WiiM Amp Ultra Users Experience

[adias]

How does that compare to the chip temperature in the status enquiry?

CPU 57
tmp_102 60

 

[harkpabst]

Indeed.
It may have been something I did inadvertently while setting up, but my initial volume was much, much higher.
I could look back at my post, but iirc it was around 95. That would have been a shock.

Initial volume setting on my Amp Ultra was 50, just as @adias had noticed with his.

 

[Mr Ee]

Initial volume setting on my Amp Ultra was 50, just as @adias had noticed with his.

Yeah, I get it... I messed up
But even 50 is, imo, too high as a shipped default. I'm at 50 right now in my office, and tbh if it wasn't Friday afternoon it'd be too loud to work effectively. (Guns N' Roses)
iirc, the audio pro wiim edition speakers were a lower, more sensible default.

 

[mkp1969]

Yes, you're right with Naim.

I run two Naim amps. I use generic high quality speaker cable with both to no negative effect.

 

[Wiimer]

This is my experience with the WiiM Amp Ultra. First of all, here's unboxing video.

View attachment 1000000604.mp4



View attachment 1000000597.mp4



View attachment 1000000600.mp4


Before I get down to business, must confess. I never even imagined I would like the new Remote 2 so much..


Excellent Completion



The 3 WiiM Amp sisters side by side.




It may not be new to those who already have an Ultra, but the weight is completely different, giving it a luxurious feel and a high level of satisfaction when I hold it in my hand.


Speed comparison of standby on/off by Remote. Amp Ultra is so fast.

Top:Amp
Middle:Amp pro
Bottom:Amp Ultra
View attachment 1000001245.mp4



Screen comparison between Ultra and Amp Ultra. Although there may be individual differences, the Ultra's screen looks slightly yellowish compared to the Amp Ultra.



I believe the resolution and refresh rate are the same; the UI is basically the same as the Ultra and I didn't notice any difference in touch sensitivity. No particular problems.
The orange VU meter looked more beautiful on the Amp Ultra.
View attachment 1000001238.mp4


Comparing the aluminium chassis, the Ultra has joints, whereas the Amp Ultra is one-piece. Chassis sizes also vary slightly.



The back panel of the Amp Ultra is similar to the Vibelink amp, but as you may know, the speaker terminals are colour-coded.




Note, however that unlike previous WiiM Amp sisters, Optical, HDMI, USB and LAN jacks on the Amp Ultra are upside down. I was a little confused during set-up.


Since I had 3 WiiM Amps lined up, I played each one for an hour and compared the temperatures.

Use an inexpensive kitchen thermometer.



First, temperatures were measured on 3 units that had been on Standby for more than 12 hours.


[Amp Ultra] Top: 32°C, Bottom: 31°C
(CPU temperature: 43°C)


[Amp Pro] Top: 33°C, Bottom: 31°C
(CPU temperature: 44°C)


[Amp] Top: 34°C, Bottom: 31°C
(CPU temperature: 42°C)



One "Sade" album was played at approximately 75 dB (1m) with the EQ and Sub turned off respectively. (My speaker is 8 ohms/87dB)

After 1 hour...


[Amp Ultra] Top: 39°C, Bottom: 38°C
(CPU temperature: 53°C)



[Amp Pro] Top: 39°C, Bottom: 39°C
(CPU temperature: 59°C)



[Amp] Top: 39°C, Bottom: 37°C
(CPU temperature: 52°C)


The CPU was hottest on the Amp pro; the Amp and Amp Ultra were almost identical.

The temperature of the top panel was almost the same for all three units.

Also, the Amp Pro seemed to have a harder time lowering its CPU temperature after standby compared to the others. (I will not pursue this at this time as need more time to investigate this.)

Note that Amp Ultra has been tested before. After 7 hours of continuous playback at approximately the same volume, the results were as follows.

[Amp Ultra] Top: 46°C, Bottom: 42°C
(Sorry, I forgot to look at the CPU)



Now, suddenly the topic changes, they say that Amp Ultra is Wi-Fi 6E compliant, is this true?

...Yes, I was able to connect successfully



I did almost all other basic operational checks and could not find any problems with the Amp Ultra hardware. On the software side, we found a few small bugs,
but these have already been fixed, or I'm confident that they will be improved soon.

Overall, I thought it was wonderfully complete.

I used to Ultra+Vibe as my main system. But I've fallen in love with the Amp Ultra so much that I now use it as my main system. For me, the sound quality of the Amp Ultra is excellent and I love the simplicity of having just one unit



(From the scene during my test.)




Thank you

 

[harkpabst]

Yeah, I get it... I messed up
But even 50 is, imo, too high as a shipped default. I'm at 50 right now in my office, and tbh if it wasn't Friday afternoon it'd be too loud to work effectively. (Guns N' Roses)
iirc, the audio pro wiim edition speakers were a lower, more sensible default.

Right. The only reason why the default volume setting is >0 is the ability to hear the spoken setup instructions.

Unfortunately, the sensitivity of the connected speakers is unknown beforehand, of course, as is the listening distance. But I think that a default value of 25 or 30 would certainly be enough to make sure that the audio instructions won't go by unnoticed.

Thank you

No, we have to thank you once again. What a great review!

I still didn't find the time to share my own thoughts. But for now let me add and confirm, that in my view the WiiM Amp Ultra is easily the best WiiM Product so far. Period.

 

[adias]

I agree with @Wiimer that the Remote 2 is quicker than the original remote.

Does anyone know if the Amp Ultra can use an external DAC in a loop?

Amp Ultra USB port out > External DAC > Amp Ultra Line Input

My guess is no.

 

[harkpabst]

I agree with @Wiimer that the Remote 2 is quicker than the original remote.

Does anyone know if the Amp Ultra can use an external DAC in a loop?

Amp Ultra USB port out > External DAC > Amp Ultra Line Input

My guess is no.

You would have no output to any external device then ... the WiiM Amp Ultra cannot have both, the USB and the speaker output active at the same time. Just like the Amp or Amp Pro.

 

[adias]

You would have no output to any external device then ... the WiiM Amp Ultra cannot have both, the USB and the speaker output active at the same time. Just like the Amp or Amp Pro.

That’s what I thought and for an AIO makes sense.