WiiM Amp Ultra Users Experience

[slartibartfast]

Agree, but this rule cannot be that simple. If you consider the number of 10 °C increments starting from 0 K, you’d end up with a very short lifetime even at 0 °C (0.5²⁷ < 10⁻⁹ ). Jokes aside, it is true that some components—such as capacitors—suffer more than others and have more limited lifetimes. That said, if the manufacturer specifies an operating temperature range, you can use that as a guideline, and 40–50 °C is not a problem (think of Class A amps!). Of course, it’s better to operate near ambient temperature, but in the case of the WAU, being a computer-based device, it will likely become obsolete long before it fails due to overheating. If WiiM introduces a new WAU 2 with better DSP capabilities (e.g., FIR filters, 2 sub outputs and Hypex NCx) at a competitive price, many of us will be waiting an excuse to replace the older model, and in that case a shorter lifetime wouldn't be a problem .

I also wonder how loud he is playing for the case to reach 42C. I have seen my WiiM Amp reach around 35C. Maybe his ambient is high.

 

[PaintItBlack]

I also wonder how loud he is playing for the case to reach 42C. I have seen my WiiM Amp reach around 35C. Maybe his ambient is high.

I've reached such temps playing at volume 50 - 65 with my Dynaudio Focus 140 (4 ohm, 86 dB) for just one hour, ambient temperature 19-20C. But that was quite loud. I usually use volume 40-50 and then I get around 35-37C. Quite cool for power amp. All temperatures read using the HTTP interface of the WAU.

 

[FuckaZip]

100 years ago, I had a “Mede8er MED500X2” in my living room equipped with a 3.5" 1.5TB WD HDD. This unit with a fan was so horribly loud (the fan was small and spun at what felt like 7,000 rpm, the HDD rattled like crazy and transmitted the noise undamped to the sideboard)...

The fact is: I will never have devices with fans/HDDs in my living room/music room again!

 

[slartibartfast]

I've reached such temps playing at volume 50 - 65 with my Dynaudio Focus 140 (4 ohm, 86 dB) for just one hour, ambient temperature 19-20C. But that was quite loud. I usually use volume 40-50 and then I get around 35-37C. Quite cool for power amp. All temperatures read using the HTTP interface of the WAU.

Are they chip temperatures? He was talking about case temperature.

 

[PaintItBlack]

Are they chip temperatures? He was talking about case temperature.

That was the temperature reported by the HTTP interface. There are CPU temperature and I guess the other is the TPA3255 temperature or that in the surroundings. I don't think the case temperature is reported.

 

[harkpabst]

We can discuss this topic for as long as we want: No technical reasoning is ever going to convince @Goodnews to buy a new WiiM to replace the returned one.

They don't care if or if not the case temperature of 42⁰ C under not too well defined conditions lead to a technical problem or not. They don't want the case temperature to be 42⁰ and that's it. It's everybody's right to ask for device properties that are meaningless to you, to me, to anyone. Should some for whatever reason not like a device with no transformer hum, they will return the device, no matter what. It's all legit.

Arguing about how their lukewarm is more correctly called lukewarm then your lukewarm ... well ... pointless.

 

[Burnside]

We can discuss this topic for as long as we want: No technical reasoning is ever going to convince @Goodnews to by a new WiiM to replace the returned one.

They don't care if or if not the case temperature of 42⁰ C under not too well defined conditions lead to a technical problem or not. They don't want the case temperature to be 42⁰ and that's it. It's everybody's right to ask for device properties that are meaningless to you, to me, to anyone. Should some for whatever reason not like a device with no transformer hum, they will return the device, no matter what. It's all legit.

Arguing about how their lukewarm is more correctly called lukewarm then your lukewarm ... well ... pointless.

Who would have expected a heated discussion over this?

 

[slartibartfast]

That was the temperature reported by the HTTP interface. There are CPU temperature and I guess the other is the TPA3255 temperature or that in the surroundings. I don't think the case temperature is reported.

Exactly. To achieve case temperature of 42C in a normal ambient of 20C it must be playing louder than when you recorded a similar internal temperature. I think I measured a case temperature of 35C when the internal temperature was 46C.

 

[cooky560]

The case of every amplifier I've ever owned is warm, this is a good thing since the case acts as a method of conducting heat away from the components. A warm case means the device is performing as expected, an overheat inside the unit will present it self with obvious faults when listening. I would hope that the wiim goes into protection mode like most other products if it's temp is too high.

 

[Goodnews]

We can discuss this topic for as long as we want: No technical reasoning is ever going to convince @Goodnews to by a new WiiM to replace the returned one.

They don't care if or if not the case temperature of 42⁰ C under not too well defined conditions lead to a technical problem or not. They don't want the case temperature to be 42⁰ and that's it. It's everybody's right to ask for device properties that are meaningless to you, to me, to anyone. Should some for whatever reason not like a device with no transformer hum, they will return the device, no matter what. It's all legit.

Arguing about how their lukewarm is more correctly called lukewarm then your lukewarm ... well ... pointless.

There is still the problem with the automatic switch-on/switch-off function on my bass power amplifiers.
VibeLink failed as a bass amplifier via the analog RCA input due to insufficient power.

Typical singer/songwriter songs are usually listened to without subwoofer support.

For me, the logical consequence of this is to change the bass power amplifiers...see VibeLink, but this would mean changing my pure dipole system. This is in the context of investing only a maximum amount.

The review by Armirm (ASR) in post 21 describes my impression of the sound of the Wiim Amp Ultra.

For me, this means that the Wiim Amp Ultra is a congenial partner for my Heco Direkt Zweiklang, but apparently less so for my high-efficiency main dipoles.
Whether this is due to the DAC, preamp, or its amp, I cannot say for sure at this point.

In any case, the Wiim Amp Ultra design responds to measures I have taken on the power supply side in the same way as other D-class amps or streamer devices.

My approach will most likely
turn out differently than expected here...

The Wiim Amp Ultra has potential.

I am well aware that designing an all-in-one device in this price segment presents a certain challenge.

In short, the issue of temperature is not the significant issue.

 

[harkpabst]

There is still the problem with the automatic switch-on/switch-off function on my bass power amplifiers.
VibeLink failed as a bass amplifier via the analog RCA input due to insufficient power.

I cannot keep track of which amp you've tried for what setup, sorry. Is this all about the WiiM Vibelink Amp? If so, what's the real problem, auto-off or insufficient power? Or both? And why do we discuss this in a thread about the WiiM Amp Ultra?

BTW, Erin's Audio Corner - as mentioned before - provided proof that the power output of the Vibelink Amp is the same when fed through RCA as fed through optical/coax.

The review by Armirm (ASR) in post 21 describes my impression of the sound of the Wiim Amp Ultra.

And truth to be told, nobody took that comment seriously on ASR.

For me, this means that the Wiim Amp Ultra is a congenial partner for my Heco Direkt Zweiklang, but apparently less so for my high-efficiency main dipoles.
Whether this is due to the DAC, preamp, or its amp, I cannot say for sure at this point.

I cannot listen to your setups, of course, so I have to trust in what you say makes a better combination (and what doesn't). Yet, from your description I still don't understand how an amplifier that (allegedly) sounds "uninteresting" and "dry, clinical, unmusical" (whatever that means exactly) could be a perfect match to any speaker.

The comment on ASR mentioned above came from an individual claiming that their Fyne Audio F501SP speakers were "transparent". Are any of your speakers transparent? I own a couple of very good speakers, but calling any of them transparent would be plain silly.

In any case, the Wiim Amp Ultra design responds to measures I have taken on the power supply side in the same way as other D-class amps or streamer devices.

I have no idea what you're implying here and I'm not going to play riddle games.

 

[mrehorst]

100 years ago, I had a “Mede8er MED500X2” in my living room equipped with a 3.5" 1.5TB WD HDD. This unit with a fan was so horribly loud (the fan was small and spun at what felt like 7,000 rpm, the HDD rattled like crazy and transmitted the noise undamped to the sideboard)...

The fact is: I will never have devices with fans/HDDs in my living room/music room again!

The small DC fans have to spin super fast to move any air at all. If you get a 5" 240V fan and run it from 120V it will turn slowly and silently, and probably last beyond your lifetime. I use two such fans in my 3D printer- one to cool the electronics enclosure and the other to blow a little air over a 500W chamber heater.

Keep in mind that as soon as you start blowing on your amp with a fan, the amp is going to collect dust much faster than it would without the fan. Be prepared to open up the amp once in a while to vacuum it out.

If there were a need for a fan Wiim would have equipped the amp with one. This is sort of like the "discussions" around cables. The engineers can create things like wireless streaming, CDs, class D amps, DACs that are transparent, etc., but they just can't seem to get the cables right. Thank God there are people in the marketing departments at cable companies that know what they're doing!

 

[kevinj]

Anyone else facing this problem:

After playing from TuneIn or Qobuz, after a few hours of standby, the WAU doesn't want to start streaming those again. I can still select music on my Synology Nas and that plays without problem, but TuneIn/Qobuz doesn't start anymore.
After a Wiim amp ultra reboot, it all works again. But now I'm rebooting it 2 or 3 times per day already....


I can't be the only one with this problem, can I?

 

[EddNog]

Anyone else facing this problem:

After playing from TuneIn or Qobuz, after a few hours of standby, the WAU doesn't want to start streaming those again. I can still select music on my Synology Nas and that plays without problem, but TuneIn/Qobuz doesn't start anymore.
After a Wiim amp ultra reboot, it all works again. But now I'm rebooting it 2 or 3 times per day already....


I can't be the only one with this problem, can I?

I had a similar problem with my HEOS-based Marantz M1. It was an issue with WiFi. I purchased an eero 6 router (I already have an older eero Pro/eero Beacon-based WiFi mesh in my house) during Black Friday sales and set it up as a repeater/wireless endpoint and then used Ethernet to attach the M1 to the eero 6 router and that fixed the problem. I have not had to reboot my M1 even once since, whereas I was having to reboot my M1 2 or 3 times a day previously to get Qobuz Connect to reconnect.

-Ed

 

[FuckaZip]

The small DC fans have to spin super fast to move any air at all. If you get a 5" 240V fan and run it from 120V it will turn slowly and silently, and probably last beyond your lifetime. I use two such fans in my 3D printer- one to cool the electronics enclosure and the other to blow a little air over a 500W chamber heater.

Keep in mind that as soon as you start blowing on your amp with a fan, the amp is going to collect dust much faster than it would without the fan. Be prepared to open up the amp once in a while to vacuum it out.

If there were a need for a fan Wiim would have equipped the amp with one. This is sort of like the "discussions" around cables. The engineers can create things like wireless streaming, CDs, class D amps, DACs that are transparent, etc., but they just can't seem to get the cables right. Thank God there are people in the marketing departments at cable companies that know what they're doing!

Yes, old contraptions from the Stone Age.
Today, I have fanless HTPCs (based on ASrock J5040), my WiiM-Ultras, etc., and only SSDs in use in these rooms. The NAS with HDDs and fan is located in another room.
Fortunately, today there are powerful devices and cooling concepts that no longer require fans.

 

[adias]

This is beyond ridiculous. The Amp Pro runs cool - I consider cool the top surface measuring 110F; yes that is cool. It is an amp, physics at play, efficiency can’t be 100%. Dwelling on this affects one’s mental state and prevents enjoying the device for its purpose — music playback!

 

[cooky560]

This is beyond ridiculous. The Amp Pro runs cool - I consider cool the top surface measuring 110F; yes that is cool. It is an amp, physics at play, efficiency can’t be 100%. Dwelling on this affects one mental state and prevents enjoying the device for its purpose — music playback!

A lot audio discussion in audiophile spaces oddly, isn't about music!

 

[Wiimer]

A lot audio discussion in audiophile spaces oddly, isn't about music!

Yes, that's why they're called audiophiles.

 

[PaintItBlack]

Yes, that's why they're called audiophiles.

And not melomaniacs

 

[kevinj]

I had a similar problem with my HEOS-based Marantz M1. It was an issue with WiFi. I purchased an eero 6 router (I already have an older eero Pro/eero Beacon-based WiFi mesh in my house) during Black Friday sales and set it up as a repeater/wireless endpoint and then used Ethernet to attach the M1 to the eero 6 router and that fixed the problem. I have not had to reboot my M1 even once since, whereas I was having to reboot my M1 2 or 3 times a day previously to get Qobuz Connect to reconnect.

-Ed

Thanks for the reply Ed,
I've thought about that too, but if it was WiFi related, streaming from my own nas would also be impossible.
It's almost like my router blocks internet access for the wau, but it actually doesn't.