New Setup for Indoor/Outdoor Renovation Project

[efiftythree]

Hey Everyone, I'm excited to get to this part of my project and I have a configuration in mind but would like a sanity check from others more knowledgeable on WiiM setups.

We have a renovation project that includes our living room, kitchen, deck, and patio spaces and from an AV perspective each of those is a zone in my configuration.

I am not sure how well/easy the 2-zone features of the Denon AVR work so I focused all of my multi-zone audio mainly on WiiM devices.

We would like to be able to use the record player across all zones and if possible, TV audio as well. Do you see any obvious issues with what I have chosen or any pointers? Thanks!

 

[Mr Ee]

Welcome.

I'm sure others will look more closely than me, but here's my thruppence:

1 - You may want to consider a pro plus over a pro if one of its key duties is turntable (the TT has its own phono stage, right? i.e. rca out, or you have a separate phono stage). The ADC section of the pro plus is, apparently, somewhat better than the pro. I've no direct experience of this myself to indicate how much better / how audible this is. Additionally, iirc, the pro has a fixed sampling rate for the analog input while the plus allows you to choose.
imo, the pro's dac stage is 'not great'. Not got a pro plus to compare it to, but if the plus is anything like the ultra then seing as you are rca into the denon then get the plus!

In case it's not obvious, the TT analog input to the pro will be digitised within the pro then converted back to analog for the rca outputs.
The plus is better at both of those than the pro. I'm pretty confident I can state that as fact, not just opinion

2 - If you want tv audio to all zones then you could connect the tv optical out to the pro optical in. Which leads to...

3 - If the pro is grouped with any of the amps then that will introduce a delay. All the wiims can play in sync, that's not an issue, so for music alone it's irrelevant. However, for tv audio you are quite likely to find that you won't be able to overcome the lip sync problem this introduces.

And although I said thruppence, here's an additional thought for free.
I have multiple wiims in multiple rooms in a fairly open home, and when in a group I find that I don't need to manually adjust any wiim's delay to get decent sync - i.e. it just works straight out of the box, so to speak.
Your pro's rca output is to the denon avr. You might find that the denon introduces its own delay to the signal it receives from the pro.
If the pro is in a group with any of the amps you might find you need to adjust the group delay settings, either manually or try the automatic sync functionality.

Have fun!

 

[Wiimer]

Hey Everyone, I'm excited to get to this part of my project and I have a configuration in mind but would like a sanity check from others more knowledgeable on WiiM setups.

We have a renovation project that includes our living room, kitchen, deck, and patio spaces and from an AV perspective each of those is a zone in my configuration.

I am not sure how well/easy the 2-zone features of the Denon AVR work so I focused all of my multi-zone audio mainly on WiiM devices.

We would like to be able to use the record player across all zones and if possible, TV audio as well. Do you see any obvious issues with what I have chosen or any pointers? Thanks!

View attachment 13392

Hi,

I am not an expert, but from the drawings I don't see any major problems. And I agree with @Mr Ee.

When it comes to the delay of the Denon AVR, there is a delay caused by the DSP when the grouped WiiM pro audio signal is output to the AVR. But I think this can be solved by putting the AVR in direct mode. (This will result in 2ch playback.) Using AVR in surround mode should also be solved by auto-sync of WiiM.

As already mentioned, I believe Future TV viewing would be limited to Zone 4, since audio from TVs connected to Zone 4 would be delayed by the WiiM grouping.

 

[efiftythree]

@Mr Ee & @Wiimer thank you very much for your excellent replies. I'm curious if there are any major reasons to consider an Ultra over a Pro Plus? At any rate I see the logic of switching to the Pro Plus.

Regarding the issues with TV and delays I don't think I will concern myself with that too much. It would mainly be used for the occasional sports event. Multi-zone audio will be for music the vast majority of the time. I appreciate the info on the delay related to the AVR and will take that into consideration.

 

[Mr Ee]

if there are any major reasons to consider an Ultra over a Pro Plus?

From what you've drawn / written, I think probably not.
It has a phono input, but it seems you already have a phono stage either in your TT or separately.
It has sub out - do you have a sub? If so, this could make the ultra worthwhile.
It has usb out and a headphone jack. Either of those useful to you? imo, although the headphone out is remarkably good for a single box of this price, if you are a serious headphone listener then get a hp amp/dac (which might use the usb out)

 

[mrgene]

I think WiiM is supposed to release a new model called WiiM CI MOD A80 soon. Perhaps that's better suited for you project?

 

[Burnside]

I think WiiM is supposed to release a new model called WiiM CI MOD A80 soon. Perhaps that's better suited for you project?

The CI models are for the custom installation market and won’t be available to the retail market and basically looks like a WiiM Amp

 

[d6jg]

My 2p

Just so you know there is every chance that the analog signal receied by your Denon from the WiiM will be converted to digital for DSP reasons then back to analog for amplification. This ADC/DAC may be better/worse than the one in a Pro/Pro Plus. Whether this matters to you will be a question for your ears to answer.

 

[efiftythree]

I'm not worried about having perfect sound as my ears are damaged enough I probably couldnt ever tell the difference. I'm mostly looking for ease of use for multi-zone audio and not paying for Sonos

 

[efiftythree]

From what you've drawn / written, I think probably not.
It has a phono input, but it seems you already have a phono stage either in your TT or separately.
It has sub out - do you have a sub? If so, this could make the ultra worthwhile.
It has usb out and a headphone jack. Either of those useful to you? imo, although the headphone out is remarkably good for a single box of this price, if you are a serious headphone listener then get a hp amp/dac (which might use the usb out)

All great items to bring up and keeps me in the Pro Plus I think. Ultra seems fitting for a standalone listening area especially if you can have it out for display so you can see the...display. All my stuff will be in a cabinet of some kind.