Meet WiiM Ultra - The Digital Hub for Your Music

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Has anyone seen actual specific date when the ultra will be available for pre order on Amazon in the US? Crutchfield has it now for July 5 delivery/release but us that a guess or fact on their part?
 
Has anyone seen actual specific date when the ultra will be available for pre order on Amazon in the US? Crutchfield has it now for July 5 delivery/release but us that a guess or fact on their part?
Nope. Crutchfield has had 7/5 on their site for about a month now so consistent at least. Excellent, no BS seller so maybe they know something :).
 
Can't comment on this, but I read earlier today that there's an update in the works for HDMI CEC stability/compatibility.

Doesn't help if you aren't using HDMI though.
 
Doesn't help if you aren't using HDMI though.
?

OP is definitely using HDMI ARC and WiiM seems to acknowledge there's been some issues. Sorry for providing some helpful info.

At this moment nobody knows how/if the Ultra will have better HDMI CEC support.

I'm confident though that the hardware foundation will be pretty similar and they'll be able to iron out the bugs with software updates.
 
Do we have any specs on the headphone output yet?
This would be a much cleaner setup than the WiiM pro + SMSL DL200 currently sitting on my bed side table if the HP output is good enough.
 
?

OP is definitely using HDMI ARC and WiiM seems to acknowledge there's been some issues. Sorry for providing some helpful info.

At this moment nobody knows how/if the Ultra will have better HDMI CEC support.

I'm confident though that the hardware foundation will be pretty similar and they'll be able to iron out the bugs with software updates.
I was just pointing out that auto sensing doesn't work even when not using HDMI.
The OP didn't mention HDMI ARC at all in the original post.
 
Can the Wiim Ultra work as safe preamp if connected to a poweramp? I'm thinking that digital preamps sometimes have been known for faulty volume control damaging the speakers when the volume suddenly goes to max. Or does the Ultra have to be connected to an analouge preamp?
 
Can the Wiim Ultra work as safe preamp if connected to a poweramp? I'm thinking that digital preamps sometimes have been known for faulty volume control damaging the speakers when the volume suddenly goes to max. Or does the Ultra have to be connected to an analouge preamp?

Until it’s released, and someone has a glitch, no one will know.

But that’s true of every DAC and digital pre amp.
 
Can the Wiim Ultra work as safe preamp if connected to a poweramp? I'm thinking that digital preamps sometimes have been known for faulty volume control damaging the speakers when the volume suddenly goes to max. Or does the Ultra have to be connected to an analouge preamp?
If you’re worried you could always get something like the schiit sys for $50 to set your max volume and then just control with the wiim. The WiiM also has a volume limit you can set, but if you’re worried about a software glitch that wouldn’t help you.
 
Ultimately, absolutely nothing is fool proof.

If you have an old cassette deck into an old integrated amp your child might have wound the volume pot to full, or the variable resistor in the volume pot might have become worn and shorted.

That’s a shame, but we live in an imperfect universe. However, let’s not let the perfect become the enemy of the good. You can protect yourself 99.9% by:

- Setting the volume limiter on the WiiM
- Making sure the power amp is turned right down before turning it on
- Turning the WiiM on first, and ensuring it’s turned right down before turning on the power amp
- Ensuring the WiiM isn’t playing anything when you turn the power amp on

You can replicate the above with pretty much any set up.
 
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I also intend to run the Wiim Ultra directly into my poweramp, but will probably go through my preamp for a few weeks first to try things out.

So one thing to try is this.

Set the volume on the Ultra (both the volume control and the limiter - do this twice, once for each).

Then, after a few on/off cycles, pull the plug - complete power disconnect.

Then turn it on again and see if your volume settings have been saved.

(y) (y) (y)
 
My power amp has input pots, and I currently run a Sonos Port mostly at full volume.

Someone mentioned this


If your amp doesn’t have input control.

For unknown reasons, they make a black one that is cheaper.
 
My power amp has input pots, and I currently run a Sonos Port mostly at full volume.

Someone mentioned this


If your amp doesn’t have input control.

For unknown reasons, they make a black one that is cheaper.

It’s transparent at full volume…but full volume is what we’re trying to avoid in this instance (at least when you turn it on).

There's more noise as you turn it down, so it’s best used at 100%.

So one solution would be to use it as a safety buffer. Turn it down to 0 before switching everything else on. Ensure everything else is set to the correct volume, start playing some music, then crank it up from 0% to 100%.

There’s an old saying that if you ask 100 economists their opinion on something, you’ll get 100 different answers. Ask anyone in the audiophile community whether to have your power amp at full and control from a digital volume control, or set set digital to 100%, and control from power amp, you’ll get 200 answers.

If your power amp has a volume control, it almost certainly does the same job as the Schiit SYS: it’s a variable resistor which offers zero resistance at full volume. So, if that’s your set up, save your money. Just turn the volume on your amp right down before turning everything eye on, then turn it up slowly.

If your power amp has no volume control, buy the Schitt. Or another amp.
 
Sorry, just one more thing to consider.

If you’re using the Ultra with a sub, you have no choice but to use the volume on the Ultra. If you use a pre amp like the Schitt, or the volume on your amp, you’re changing the volume on L&R, but not your sub, which makes things completely impractical.

The idea of setting your amp (or pre) to 0 before turning everything else on is still a good one, but unless you can then accurately set that volume control exactly (let’s say to 67%), then you’re in trouble ensuring it’s the same level as the sub.

The only solution in that case is to have you amp or pre at 0 to start with, but always wind it up to 100%; it’s the only way to be sure that it’s at the same volume relative to the sub.
 
For me, volume limiting control at the amp goes back to having the turntable lose its ground for whatever. Dirty headshell connectors, or whatever.
 
Sorry, just one more thing to consider.

If you’re using the Ultra with a sub, you have no choice but to use the volume on the Ultra. If you use a pre amp like the Schitt, or the volume on your amp, you’re changing the volume on L&R, but not your sub, which makes things completely impractical.

The idea of setting your amp (or pre) to 0 before turning everything else on is still a good one, but unless you can then accurately set that volume control exactly (let’s say to 67%), then you’re in trouble ensuring it’s the same level as the sub.

The only solution in that case is to have you amp or pre at 0 to start with, but always wind it up to 100%; it’s the only way to be sure that it’s at the same volume relative to the sub.
Wow....that's probably a dealbreaker for me then. I intend to use a subwoofer to the Ultra and having my integrated amplifier on max volume (and controlling volume on the Ultra) to ensure same volume on speakers and subwoofer...I mean, the whole purpose of having an integrated amplifier is to have a safe volume control. Or am I missing something here?
 
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