Wiim Mini as it's own Spotify streaming Source vs. iPhone

[avbiro]

I purchased a Wiim Mini for streaming Spotify (Wiim Music Services) directly from the Wiim. However, every time I launch the Wiim App to play Spotify it wants to launch my iPhone Spotify app to play music.
The problem with that is I can no longer use my iPhone to play different songs than the Wiim Mini Music Services. Also when I leave the house or outside the Wifi range with my phone, the music stops.

I also have a Sonos Connect and that allows streaming directly from the Sonos vs. streaming on the phone. The Sono S1 iPhone app is just a remote control for the Sonos Connect and this workflow works great.

Is there a Wiim setting I can change to resolve this issue so My Wiim mini can stream music as it's own source vs. from my iPhone?

 

[Brantome]

No, most Spotify implementations use Spotify Connect like the WiiM. There’s no way of changing that behaviour.

 

[avbiro]

So if I remove the Spotify app from my phone, what happens then?

 

[Brantome]

So if I remove the Spotify app from my phone, what happens then?

It won’t play from Spotify.

 

[avbiro]

Is that for all Wiim audio services like Pandora, iHeart radio or just Spotify.

I really don't want to give my money to Sonos but I need an independent streamer from our phones. That was why I purchased the Wiim.

 

[Brantome]

Is that for all Wiim audio services like Pandora, iHeart radio or just Spotify.

I really don't want to give my money to Sonos but I need an independent streamer from our phones. That was why I purchased the Wiim.

Just Spotify as far as I’m aware - those other two services aren’t available in the UK.

While I believe older AVRs like Onkyo did provide a third party interface to Spotify (as you say Sonos do), most Spotify implementations I’ve encountered use Spotify Connect from the Spotify app and cast to devices as do WiiM. This has the benefit of being able to access the full range of features that the app offers rather than the subset they generally make available to third parties for inclusion in their apps.

Actually, coming to think more about it, are you sure you are using Spotify Connect and not airplay or Bluetooth when connecting to your WiiM device as I wouldn’t expect Spotify Connect to stop playing when your phone is out of range. Spotify Connect plays direct from the cloud to the target device/speaker independently and not via your phone like Airplay and Bluetooth would.

 

[avbiro]

I usually select Wiim from the "AirPlay or Bluetooth" page from the Spotify iPhone app to stream the music to Wiim Mini. As I mention before this workflow streams from my iPhone which is an issue when I leave the house.

When I select "Wiim Mini" without going to the "AirPlay or Bluetooth" it seem to fix my issues.

I tested this by selecting the songs I want the Wiim to stream from the internet and then turn off Wifi and Bluetooh in my iPhone settings and the Wiim is still playing the music.

I will continue to monitor these steps and hope it resolves my streaming issues.

 

[Brantome]

I usually select Wiim from the "AirPlay or Bluetooth" page from the Spotify iPhone app to stream the music to Wiim Mini. As I mention before this workflow streams from my iPhone which is an issue when I leave the house.

When I select "Wiim Mini" without going to the "AirPlay or Bluetooth" it seem to fix my issues.

I tested this by selecting the songs I want the Wiim to stream from the internet and then turn off Wifi and Bluetooh in my iPhone settings and the Wiim is still playing the music.

I will continue to monitor these steps and hope it resolves my streaming issues.

That’s because you’re now using Spotify Connect as I explained in my last sentence of my previous reply - Spotify Connect is the recommended method of playing Spotify to a target device. Generally you should only use Airplay if the target device/speaker doesn’t support Spotify Connect, and only really use Bluetooth if all else fails.

 

[Doublej]

I select my WiiM device as the speaker output on the Spotify app running on my phone, tablet, PC, or Mac. Spotify will transfer the stream to the WiiM device and then you can do whatever you want with the phone, tablet PC, or Mac including turning them off. They are no longer involved in the Spotify stream you have playing on the WiiM.

You can also use Alexa to tell Spotify to play something on your WiiM device once you have installed the necessary free software in the Alexa ecosystem. If you make Spotify your default music service on Alexa, you don't have to specify Spotify in your Alexa command.

Pandora, iHeart, TuneIn (there may be others) can also be told to play on the WiiM through Alexa. Same thing happens, the music service streams directly to the WiiM, no other device is involved in the playback chain.

 

[Brantome]

You can also use Alexa to tell Spotify to play something on your WiiM device once you have installed the necessary free software in the Alexa ecosystem.

There’s no “necessary free software in the Alexa system”, you merely link your Spotify account under the music&podcasts settings in the Alexa app, in a similar way to linking music services in the WiiM home app.

 

[Doublej]

Perhaps poor choice of words on my part. Does one need to add the Spotify skill to their Alexa account and then link their Spotify account in Alexa?

 

[Brantome]

Perhaps poor choice of words on my part. Does one need to add the Spotify skill to their Alexa account and then link their Spotify account in Alexa?

The Music&Podcast section is the Alexa app’s attempt to bring music services logically together in one place from where you link your account (via the relevant skill as it happens), rather than losing them amongst the myriad other non related skills in the skills section. It also gives a place to set default services, auto play, explicit content etc which wouldn’t be obvious if you had just enabled the skill elsewhere. And it’s probably easier for non experienced users to understand rather than confusing them with what an Alexa skill is.

 

[Doublej]

I think this covers it well. Thanks for the info. I did not know this existed.

 

[d6jg]

Simplisticly

Airplay & Bluetooth - Phone acts as relay. Shut down phone and music will stop.

Otherwise. Phone acts as Remote Control. Shut down phone and music continues.

 

[BMoreJazz]

Sonos uses Spotify Connect too. When out of range you have to close the WiiM app and open the Spotify app directly.