USB Support

simbun said:
I was wondering if they'd exposed that.


I'm pretty sure that's all there is unfortunately, at least from the core project.

Would be nice to get some logging, even if it's only the errors written to a log file on the USB.
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Interesting - this time when USB disappeared from the app, I tried VLC again - worked fine. But USB is still gone on the app. So I don't know what that means - some kind of problem with the app ? Not sure. The MiniDLNA server itself is clearly working just fine right now. And if I use the app to start playing the song that I had paused before - that still works too - it plays on my speakers. It just does not show USB as a source in the app. Very strange. (while the song is playing on the app, the icon at the bottom for the server is greyed out)

The app does appear to have some log files on the phone but I can't seem to access them.
 
I waited a few days since the latest app revision (2.8.3.240129.07df34) before reporting back here.
Short and sweet version: the USB issues now seem to be fixed for me.

During several days of use, the USB has consistently shown up in my Wiim Home App and also to other UPnP apps. There is still some delay (1 to 2 minutes) to initially recognize/display the USB media after the Amp has been asleep a while (for example, first opening of app in the morning). But other than that caveat, its been working consistently.

FWIW, my situation is ~12,000 song files (VBR MP3) on a 128GB drive formatted NTFS. My original formatting 10-12 days ago was FAT32, and *when* the USB was showing, everything worked fine, but of course USB was often nowhere to be seen. In searching for a fix to the discovery issue, I changed formatting to NTFS and still had the same/similar discovery problems.

I haven't tried FAT32 with the newest app revision, so I can't definitively say that FAT32 is part of the problem; all I can say is NTFS with the new app *does* work. At least for me.

Also, the app's memory consumption on my phone was > 1.3GB on the earlier app with USB problems. Now its ~ 200MB and no problems.

@SeeRM114, I'd suggest you start with a drive reformatted to NTFS and see how it goes.
 
A few more notes re my USB experience on the Wiim Amp:

- my 6000 ish track 128 GB is formatted in exFAT and works normally since the appearing/disappearing act in the Android WHA has been cured

- I installed the app update that removed the "USB" entry from "select source" in the App, in both IOS and Android, leaving access only via Home Music Share. But now "USB" has reappeared under "select source" in both IOS and Android.

- after i updated the Android app this morning, i started the Amp from "unpowered" and it would not connect to wifi - first time that has happened in 2 months of use. Going into set-up for a "re set-up" fixed the wifi, but then the USB could not be found by the App - until i pulled out the USB stick and reinserted it - USB found and working normally. It did not appear to rescan, or did so very quickly if it did.
 
I have now switched to NTFS and FLAC (although Wiim Support said ALAC should work just fine). Ok so far - the source has not disappeared from the app. In my ticket, they said the first thing to do if that happens is to remove the USB drive and reinsert it. So - I'll see how it goes.

App Version is now 2.8.4.240203.798f0a ; after the first rescan, the tracks were all there but the app might play track 2 of a an album even though I chose track 1. So I reinstalled the app (hoping that would force it to reload the list - didn't work) and then did a Rescan - that 2nd rescan of 4826 tracks went much faster than the initial one. And now the names line up. Weird.
 
SeeRM114 said:
I have now switched to NTFS and FLAC (although Wiim Support said ALAC should work just fine). Ok so far - the source has not disappeared from the app. In my ticket, they said the first thing to do if that happens is to remove the USB drive and reinsert it. So - I'll see how it goes.

App Version is now 2.8.4.240203.798f0a ; after the first rescan, the tracks were all there but the app might play track 2 of a an album even though I chose track 1. So I reinstalled the app (hoping that would force it to reload the list - didn't work) and then did a Rescan - that 2nd rescan of 4826 tracks went much faster than the initial one. And now the names line up. Weird.
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I think there’s a bug in the system that if you have too many files it doesn’t work correctly. Wiim is doing a test on app which they test of 100k files and it’s currently in progress. We’re not expert on programming so if they add feature somewhere on those line will break a code that otherwise was working before. It takes one or two or more before those bug get ironed out.
 
Well I spoke too soon. This morning I opened the app and couldn't find the USB. On previous days, the same thing happened, but after minute or so the USB showed up. But today this went on for an hour, despite me moving back/forth between Device and Browse on the app. Simultaneously, the app *did* show another UPnP server in my home, and my VLC app *did* show the Wiim Amp USB content in the VLC view!
After an hour, I closed the app, then reopened it, and the USB immediately showed up.

This unpredictable, non-deterministic behavior is getting pretty frustrating. Sometimes closing/reopening the app *seems* to help find USB, sometimes going to an internet stream then back to browse *seems* to help find USB, sometimes using the remote to force Amp to standby and back again *seems* to help . . . . but I really have no idea if those actions are helping, or if its just random coincidence.

FWIW my app is still at ver 2.8.4.240129.07df34
 
Inertiaman said:
Simultaneously, the app *did* show another UPnP server in my home, and my VLC app *did* show the Wiim Amp USB content in the VLC view!
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I take it you're hoping to move away from the other UPnP server are you?
 
simbun said:
I take it you're hoping to move away from the other UPnP server are you?
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The "other" UPnP server is just me temporarily using media sharing on Windows on my laptop. I've only been using it as a test function to try and better understand (and report) the USB behavior of the amp. I don't want to use my laptop as my primary music server for a variety of reasons. Hence the attraction of autonomous UPnP media via the Wiim Amp.
 
Inertiaman said:
The "other" UPnP server is just me temporarily using media sharing on Windows on my laptop. I've only been using it as a test function to try and better understand (and report) the USB behavior of the amp. I don't want to use my laptop as my primary music server for a variety of reasons. Hence the attraction of autonomous UPnP media via the Wiim Amp.
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I wasn't sure if you had a NAS or something similar.
It sounds like you're just going to have to wait for the next firmware/app update to resolve it, as it doesn't sound like it's a USB key/filesystem/codec issue.
 
@Inertiaman - my setup with NTFS and FLAC files has now been stable for more than 2 days ; I have a lot less files that you do though (less than 5000) ; I have not seen USB drop off the app at all ; it sounds like they are actively testing scenarios with up to 100K files - not sure about that though
 
Yeah I don't know what is going on w/ my USB. I did another app update and it hasn't helped; perhaps made it worse. Its been 12 hours since I last saw my USB visible on the app. During that time, its been visible/accessible on and off from my VLC application, but never from Wiim Home app. Despite powering amp on/off, moving among multiple sources then back to browse, etc . . . still no USB accessible in the app. Sometimes when I open the Home Music Share the waveform animation (indicating a search for media servers) will go on for hours.

I didn't notice a significant difference between a small file set and my larger one, but is hard to pinpoint things since the behavior is so erratic.

I'm guessing there is something going on with the router assignment of IP addresses interacting with the Wiim Amp caching IP addresses vs acquiring new ones. The most interesting/annoying bit is that the USB server on the amp is often visible/accessible to other apps, but NOT to the Wiim app. Ironic.
 
Question: @Inertiaman, how do you try to access the music on USB?
Browse => My library => Home Music Share => WiiM Amp-XXXX:Media Server (hopefully)
or
Browse => Select source on WiiM Amp-XXXX=> USB

Or doesn't it make a difference? I prepared a cheap 512 GB thumdrive (460 GiB formatted capacity, FAT32) just yesterday, mostly out of academic interest. Roughly 6.500 songs, mostly FLAC or MP3. Initial indexing took some time.

At one point in time (at least) the content did not show tapping on Home Music Share, but it became available instantly when selecting USB as the input source. Maybe just coincidence, it seems to generally work OK.

Two things are odd: Sort order seems not always to be remembered. Even after explicitly and successfully tapping on USB the app will constantly show Wi-Fi as the selected source (on the Browse tab as well as in device settings).
 
I always check both the Source/USB and Library/HomeMusicShare paths, and in my experience they are always both there, or both not there. In other words, if the Home Music Share isn't finding the USB server, the USB isn't showing as an option in Sources. And if USB isn't showing, then no server is visible at Home Music Share. And if one is showing, the other is showing.
 
@Inertiaman, I'm starting to wonder if this might be entirely related to smartphone power management settings (by now).

After having slight issues initially, I excluded the WiiM Home App from Xioami power management and all I can say is: USB is working for me each and every time. No matter if the amp has been used just before, if it was in standby, or if it just woke up after being disconnected from the mains.

Different brands of Android phones might work very differently, but some are known for implementing very aggressive battery saver strategies.
 
My generic USB 3.1 stick formatted as NTFS with FLAC files has been rock solid - not disappearing from the app at all. And - @jeromeof - I did grab files.db from the Wiim_Cache folder and used an app called "DB Browser for SQLite" to make some playlists using this query that I found on github (you add an "#EXTM3U" line to the beginning after copying the results of this query)

SQL: 
select '#EXTINF:0,'
       || ARTIST
       || ' - '
       || TITLE
       || char(10)
       || PATH
from DETAILS
where PATH like '%album name%'

One question - the BOOKMARKS table only has 3 columns - all Integers - ID, SEC, and WATCHCOUNT. So is it possible to Bookmark albums on your USB stick in this way ? Or are Bookmarks in the Wiim Home app only if you have a NAS server ?
 
SeeRM114 said:
My generic USB 3.1 stick formatted as NTFS with FLAC files has been rock solid - not disappearing from the app at all. And - @jeromeof - I did grab files.db from the Wiim_Cache folder and used an app called "DB Browser for SQLite" to make some playlists using this query that I found on github (you add an "#EXTM3U" line to the beginning after copying the results of this query)

SQL: 
select '#EXTINF:0,'
       || ARTIST
       || ' - '
       || TITLE
       || char(10)
       || PATH
from DETAILS
where PATH like '%album name%'

One question - the BOOKMARKS table only has 3 columns - all Integers - ID, SEC, and WATCHCOUNT. So is it possible to Bookmark albums on your USB stick in this way ? Or are Bookmarks in the Wiim Home app only if you have a NAS server ?
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I can’t see the option to bookmark items on the USB stick
 
On the app, when I choose "Home Music Share", I see my "Media Server" (USB stick) and I also see "Bookmarks" and if I tap on it, it says "Press the (star icon) to add bookmarks associated to your media library." But I can't see the "star icon" anywhere when I am browsing or playing music from the USB stick. (I also see something called "Virtual Folder" on the Home Music Share screen but that is disabled.

(maybe "Bookmarks" is only for Videos)
 
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SeeRM114 said:
On the app, when I choose "Home Music Share", I see my "Media Server" (USB stick) and I also see "Bookmarks" and if I tap on it, it says "Press the (star icon) to add bookmarks associated to your media library." But I can't see the "star icon" anywhere when I am browsing or playing music from the USB stick. (I also see something called "Virtual Folder" on the Home Music Share screen but that is disabled.

(maybe "Bookmarks" is only for Videos)
Click to expand...
As I said, I don't see a bookmark option for the USB library contents, but it is available for items under my other UPNP libraries such as Minimserver and AssetUPNP as a star against albums, genres, artists etc. I have bookmarks for folders, quality, file type menus on my UPNP servers but could also have entries for the other examples I gave.

'Virtual Folder' is just a heading under which the Bookmarks heading appears, similar to the 'Available Media Server' heading above it where Media Servers are listed.

You could perhaps use the feedback route in the WiiM Home app to ask WiiM to allow USB library entries to be similarly bookmarked.
 
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