Splitting the AUX outlet on WiiM Mini to add Active Subwoofer?

[harkpabst]

It's actually AUD$269 if that helps.

That's certainly important, the .au had slipped my attention, surfing the site on my phone. It doesn't explain the difference in price between these seemingly very similar subwoofers but it adds to the appeal.

70 W RMS is not an awful lot of power when it comes to bass reproduction. When set up as intended (close to the front wall, ideally close to a room corner) and tamed by RoomFit it could still work well at limited volume levels.

In my experience even a cheap sub can really enhance the enjoyment, especially with small speakers.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

just wondering what you ended up doing in the end? @Erebus did you go for an edifier model??

 

[Erebus]

did you go for an edifier model??

I quite like the the slim T5 but haven't bought a sub yet. I'm hoping they will be more affordable in the upcoming Prime or Black Friday sales.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

I quite like the the slim T5 but haven't bought a sub yet. I'm hoping they will be more affordable in the upcoming Prime or Black Friday sales.

yeah, waiting for prime day in a couple weeks myself...

but if the WiiM sub pro becomes ready to ship at a local retailer in the next few days, then i might have to just pull the trigger, haha! very tempting.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

lmao - i ended up pulling the trigger on an open box KRK S10.4 subwoofer... good bit of cash saved compared to the Wiim sub pro.

with a 10" woofer and WAY more power, it should perform better in my room that is a bit big anyways for the WiiM.

apart from the extra wires and less flexibility in placement, it should suit my use case better too. the built-in bass management, and hopefully rock-solid build quality makes it overall arguably better value?

so my plan is to hook it up like the edifier diagram from amazon JP... i will use the crossover in the sub + the unbalanced in+out connections to perform the bass management... this way i can use the line-out from my DAC > sub > powered speakers. and it will work with either my WiiM pro or mini!

 

[Erebus]

KRK S10.4

Nice. These are around AUD$700 here, but still less than the WiiM Sub is here. The Edifier subs certainly seem to be well priced in comparison.

 

[Erebus]

If I decide to get the slim T5s to connect with the WiiM Mini and the Echo speaker, what settings should I use on the T5s? I understand that there is no HPF, nor any sub management from the Mini or the WHA, hence the query. I would connect with two RCA to 3.5mm stereo cables - one cable from the Mini Aux out to the T5s RCA Signal In, and then from the RCA Signal Out to the Echo Aux input, as discussed previously.

T5s Powered Subwoofer

8" front-firing long-throw woofer Reproducing low frequencies down to 35Hz 70W RMS total output power High-performance front end and closed-loop class-D amplifier Volume, low pass filter and phase control Signal In input and Signal Out pass-through output for maximum compatibility Auto standby...

edifier.com.au

 

[dominikz]

If I decide to get the slim T5s to connect with the WiiM Mini and the Echo speaker, what settings should I use on the T5s? I understand that there is no HPF, nor any sub management from the Mini or the WHA, hence the query. I would connect with two RCA to 3.5mm stereo cables - one cable from the Mini Aux out to the T5s RCA Signal In, and then from the RCA Signal Out to the Echo Aux input, as discussed previously.

T5s Powered Subwoofer

8" front-firing long-throw woofer Reproducing low frequencies down to 35Hz 70W RMS total output power High-performance front end and closed-loop class-D amplifier Volume, low pass filter and phase control Signal In input and Signal Out pass-through output for maximum compatibility Auto standby...

edifier.com.au

The first thing will be to select the low-pass frequency. I'd suggest to first run RoomFit without the sub to see where the response starts to drop. Set low pass on the sub to approximately the same frequency.
Next I'd suggest to put the sub in a room corner, as that way you'll get more headroom for RoomFit later. Connect it to your system now.
Level on the sub you'll need to adjust initially by ear, and set the phase switch to a position that gives more/louder bass.
Then you can re-run RoomFit and inspect the response to see if you need to adjust further.

 

[Wiimer]

It is also recommended that the Echo's equaliser is turned off (default) before running RoomFit.

 

[Erebus]

Thanks for the replies, but I was wondering if there were any recommended settings for the T5s itself. I have no technical understanding of these things at all and have never used RoomFit as I don't understand it either.

 

[Mr Ee]

Thanks for the replies, but I was wondering if there were any recommended settings for the T5s itself. I have no technical understanding of these things at all and have never used RoomFit as I don't understand it either.

Don't know why, but the thought of you headbanging to some loud base made me think of this.

There are only 3 dials / switches on the back of the T5 and the setup guide has some tips.

 

[Erebus]

Don't know why

LOL! Pretty sure moving my head like that these days would see me in traction!

I have read the manual of course, but I guess there are no recommended default settings. Too much to ask for probably - like being able to bend my neck like a teenager!

 

[Mr Ee]

I guess there are no recommended default settings

I guess there are 'technically correct' staring points, but like music itself it's probably more a matter of taste / what settings you end up liking.
And you never know, you might be a basshead in the making (music, not illegal substances).

 

[Erebus]

guess there are 'technically correct' staring points

Thanks for the tip. I shall look into that in due course, but if I understand correctly, I think setting the LPF to 90hz is where that should be, with the Volume setting to match the speaker/speakers, and then seeing which sounds best for the phase setting.

 

[dominikz]

There aren't really any universal settings, unfortunately.
However, looking at rtings.com measurement of the Echo 4th Gen I'd assume the sub's LPF should be set somewhere between 50-60Hz.

I'd again advise to try using RoomFit, it really helps a lot being able to see what is happening when you change parameter values. Not to mention that room correction is IMHO a game-changer when it comes to bass quality...

In any case, good luck and I hope you'll be happy with the results you get!

 

[Erebus]

somewhere between 50-60Hz.

Ah, well I got that wrong! I appreciate what you're saying about RoomFit, but the room is an open plan living, dining and kitchen layout, and due to this the main speakers do not face the main listening area, which is why we added the Echo. I also have no idea about frequencies or parameters, so I wouldn't know what to change in any case. I'm simply hoping to achieve a little more bass sound given none of my speakers go below 65hz if I remember correctly.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

Thanks for the tip. I shall look into that in due course, but if I understand correctly, I think setting the LPF to 90hz is where that should be, with the Volume setting to match the speaker/speakers, and then seeing which sounds best for the phase setting.

assuming you have the gen 4 amazon echo, and going by the frequency response curve from RTINGS.com, this is what i would do.

Given that the echo's -3 dB point is at around 55Hz, and there is a massive dip around 80-82 Hz i would initially set the crossover freq quite high at around 100 Hz + keep phase at 0. start with gain/volume approx 1/3 of full... and then keep adjusting the crossover higher until it sounds best to you.

since the sub has a smaller 8" woofer (and can therefore play higher frequencies easily) and the echo is tiny - in your situation, i would prefer to play as much of the spectrum via the sub. so even a crossover of 160 Hz could sound the best. some would say you'd lose a bit of localising information, but in a mono 1.1 setup is there really much stereo imaging etc going on anyways??

 

[BowsAndArrows]

good luck regardless. a lot of great advice here from @dominikz . but i reckon tuning by ear should be sufficient initially - play some songs that you are very familiar with... until they sound the best to your ears. and THEN apply roomfit stuff.

but i also agree that you can just use it to get a rough idea of about what's goin on in your room.

That slim design on the edifier + decently thick MDF construction looks pretty awesome, i have to say very sleek

 

[Erebus]

good luck

Thank you very much, and thanks also for the great and detailed information. Yes, it's the Echo 4th Gen, which I have added to my system to counter the fact that the main speakers do not face the main listening area.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

Thank you very much, and thanks also for the great and detailed information. Yes, it's the Echo 4th Gen, which I have added to my system to counter the fact that the main speakers do not face the main listening area.

oh, i only just now clocked your setup... have you considered the Q acoustics 3060s?? very similar form factor to the edifier, and it would look really cool in your setup with the 3010is that you have absolutely LOVE the built-n cable management on the Q acoustics subs

i've seen the 3060s on sale around here for less than HALF the price of the WiiM sub pro. they could be clearing the last of the old subwoofer stock?? cos it seems the QB12 is also on sale at a lot of places... which also coincides with the launch of their new SUB80, SUB100 etc subwoofer range this year...