What's your setup/configuration look like?

Steve Woodhouse said:
From the right, the speakers are old Monitor audio Bronze BX1 (original version), that’s a pair of Sennheiser HD600 headphones, below it is a Topping EX5 DAC/Headphone Amp/Pre Amp.

To the left of the headphones is the WiiM Mini. Centre is my monitor. Below it is a space where my laptop goes, but someone’s borrowed it.

To the left is a jar of KP Dry Roasted Peanuts, to the left of those my Fire Tablet, currently displaying what I’m playing.

Finally, below that is my old trusty Denon UD-M31. What you can’t see is my BK XLS200DF subwoofer.

The EX5 is on pre amp duties for the Denon/BX1s, and also drives the headphones.

Changes coming are:

- A new PC (to replace the lapdog).
- Topping PA5 II Plus amp (to replace the Denon).
- Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 and/or Revel M16 speakers.
- WiiM Ultra.
- SVS SB1000 Pro subwoofer.
- Possibly a WiiM Pro.

The idea is for the Ultra to feed both the amp and sub from analogue outs, and the EX5 from digital out. However, depending on how user-friendly (or not) the Ultra is, it might be a pain to swap EQ profiles, turn the sub and bass management on and off, and turn room correction on and off, every time I swap between speakers and headphones. So I may buy a Pro to feed the EX5 purely for headphone use, and the Ultra just for the speakers.
Click to expand...
It's a nice desktop.
Are WiiM Ultra and Topping PA5 II Plus going to be connected via RCA?

Probably, if you use the RCA input of the PA5II, you will hear noise from the tweeter when there is no sound. (If the PA5II is the same as my TP RA3.) You may be concerned about it at close range.

XLR is silent. For this reason, I think it would be cleaner to put a DAC between the WiiM and the PA5II. 😊
 
Wiimer said:
It's a nice desktop.
Are WiiM Ultra and Topping PA5 II Plus going to be connected via RCA?

Probably, if you use the RCA input of the PA5II, you will hear noise from the tweeter when there is no sound. (If the PA5II is the same as my TP RA3.) You may be concerned about it at close range.

XLR is silent. For this reason, I think it would be cleaner to put a DAC between the WiiM and the PA5II. 😊
Click to expand...

The Ultra may not have balanced outs, so that may be beyond my control.

Whether it does or not, the Topping has both RCA and Balanced ins, so that won’t be an issue.

Measured on balanced ins, at full power, there’s no audible noise (SNR 20 bits). The levels I’m listening at, there shouldn’t be any noise on RCAs either, but time will tell.

If push come to shove I can use the EX5’s DAC - the output stage for the preamp is balanced. But obviously, that only works if I can output HF over digital to the DAC and LF over analogue out to the sub.

We wait and see.

But ‘worst case scenario’, Ultra RCAs into PA5, I’m confident there’ll either be no noise, or so little that it isn’t an issue.

Let’s put it this way - EX5 is connected to the Denon over RCAs. If I set the EX5 to full power, and the Denon to full power, ear-to-tweeter, there’s no noise or hiss at all. BTW, full volume setting on the Denon is 34. If I take a very loud, brickwalled track and play that, the loudest I can turn my amp is 20/34 (58%) and that’s uncomfortable.

I’d be amazed if the Ultra/PA5 II wasn’t at least as good.
 
Fosi v3 with Sparkos op amps, SMSL su1, WiiM pro, Clef 5v linear power supply (SMSL + WiiM are connected), Wharfedale Diamond 12.1, Ugreen optical, Canare RCA + Canare 4S11 speaker cables.
 

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Griff said:
https://shenzhenaudio.com/collectio...amp-rack-transparent-equipment-two-layer-rack a couple of these joined together. You can also put the Pro on a lower shelf but have to leave out the back supports, see latest picture attached. View attachment 5381
Click to expand...

Cheers. I looked at that, but the price is steep. The ones I linked to above are a fraction of the price, but who knows about quality.

Great set up. Do you have any issues with heat; some of those look a very snug fit. I’m going to guess they have ventilation holes on the sides.

I’m a sucker for the glow from the lights.
 
Steve Woodhouse said:
Cheers. I looked at that, but the price is steep. The ones I linked to above are a fraction of the price, but who knows about quality.

Great set up. Do you have any issues with heat; some of those look a very snug fit. I’m going to guess they have ventilation holes on the sides.

I’m a sucker for the glow from the lights.
Click to expand...
Never had any trouble with the heat, the 2 bottom units have lots of space at the back.

I cheated with the blue light as it's nothing to do with the stack itself. It comes from a powered hdmi switch behind the stack with the most obnoxiously bright blue led on the top. I stuck the switch behind the stack at a slight angle and the acrylic shelves pick the light up and bring it through to the front in a quite nice effect.
 
Dining room / kitchen setup. Love the sound. The Q Acoustics punch way above their weight, just lack the low end the old Cerwin's had, but they had 12" main drivers. The Q's are great but I'm tempted with a sub, but that means an amp upgrade. I might be talking myself into a Wiim amp haha!

The smsl is basic but does everything I need and I have no complaints at that price.

I stream uk radio, Soundcloud and Spotify. I liked tidal sound but not their app. Also use a Denon FM tuner essentially for one local station which is brilliant (rtrfm con.au)
 
Why would you need an amp upgrade to accommodate a subwoofer?

You can daisy-chain the smsl --> integrated amp --> speaker line out -- > sub -->sub amp speaker line out --> bookshelf speakers.
Let the sub X-over define what frequency to hand off to your bookshelf speakers.
 
wunderkind said:
Why would you need an amp upgrade to accommodate a subwoofer?

You can daisy-chain the smsl --> integrated amp --> speaker line out -- > sub -->sub amp speaker line out --> bookshelf speakers.
Let the sub X-over define what frequency to hand off to your bookshelf speakers.
Click to expand...
That's one way.

But the Wiim amp takes up a lot less space. A cleaner look than having an amp, tuner, streamer and DAC. Also newer tech. Subwoofer management. A remote control. More power.

That amp is from 97. Was a What Hifi Award winner. I think it's time it retired.🤓
 
wunderkind said:
Why would you need an amp upgrade to accommodate a subwoofer?

You can daisy-chain the smsl --> integrated amp --> speaker line out -- > sub -->sub amp speaker line out --> bookshelf speakers.
Let the sub X-over define what frequency to hand off to your bookshelf speakers.
Click to expand...

So firstly, not all subs accept speaker level.

Secondly, the analogue crossover involved in the sub, no matter how good, will inevitably be noisier than the digital high and low pass filters in the WiiM Amp.

Thirdly, once set up, you can control pretty much every setting for the sub from the WiiM amp using the app on your phone, which is far easier than crawling on the floor trying to access the settings on the back of your sub, returning to your seat, trying to remember if it sounded better or worse before, repeat multiple times.

Fourthly, the WiiM Amp set up involves the Amp, speaker cables from Amp to the speakers, RCA to the sub.

That’s it.

Running through the sub using the Mini/SMSL as a source involves Mini cable to SMSL, stereo RCAs from SMSL to amp, speaker cables amp to sub, speaker cables sub to speakers. That’s significantly more spaghetti.
 
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