No. You only need to link a WiiM to Alexa if you want to use voice control, direct Alexa supported audio to it, use Alexa MRM groups or cast to it from the Amazon Music app. If you don’t , then there’s no need to link it to Alexa. On the other hand, it would do no harm to do so given you have an Echo and may wish to do use those functions in the future, albeit you’re primarily using the echo as a dumb wired powered speaker at the moment.
WiiM Mini with Echo 4th Gen to create WiiM Group with Pro Plus
For anyone playing along at home, an update:
WiiM replied to my third message to them through Amazon and they have promised to investigate the missing USB adaptor, given their listing details had it as an inclusion. They asked that I send them photos, which I did immediately. No further reply to date.
With regards to testing the functions that drew me to this particular setup, so far everything has worked. I can play stored music files, CDs, streaming and Alexa content through the Pro Plus and everything also plays through the supplementary speaker setup with the WiiM Mini, albeit still with the tinny JBL Go speaker. The Echo should arrive on Monday or Tuesday.
But even with the JBL what I envisaged appears to work exactly as I'd hoped. So I effectively have a WiiM Sound Speaker without the cost and unknown wait.
WiiM replied to my third message to them through Amazon and they have promised to investigate the missing USB adaptor, given their listing details had it as an inclusion. They asked that I send them photos, which I did immediately. No further reply to date.
With regards to testing the functions that drew me to this particular setup, so far everything has worked. I can play stored music files, CDs, streaming and Alexa content through the Pro Plus and everything also plays through the supplementary speaker setup with the WiiM Mini, albeit still with the tinny JBL Go speaker. The Echo should arrive on Monday or Tuesday.
But even with the JBL what I envisaged appears to work exactly as I'd hoped. So I effectively have a WiiM Sound Speaker without the cost and unknown wait.
Something I don't think that has been mentioned in the thread, and perhaps it's not an issue for your use case, but the Mini doesn't support Google Cast/Chromecast, so that's an area where this setup would differ from e.g. WiiM Sound (presumably the Sound will support this, although obviously specs are yet to be confirmed.)
Yes, I was aware of that. So presumably if I do cast to the Pro Plus it won't send the content to the Mini. I don't think it will be much of an issue as I've not Google cast anything to the Pro Plus since I received it last November.
Yes, from what I've been told on here, it's a limitation of Chromecast that only Cast-able decices can be included in a Chromecast group, so casting to the Pro can't produce audio on the Mini.
I use it for Bandcamp and occasionally if there's something playing on my phone (e.g. Youtube) that I'd like to hear from my speakers.
I think I know what you meant, and maybe you do too, but to clarify for anyone else reading.
Yes, a chromecast group can only have chromecastable devices, and the mini isn't one.
If a pro and a mini are in a wiim group and you chromecast to the pro then only the pro will play.
But that has nothing to do with it being a mini.
If your (any) wiims are in a wiim group and you chromecast to the group parent then only that parent plays.
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Thank you. That's an excellent an informative clarification. I don't imagine I would use Google Cast in this setup, but it's good to know.
I have tested the WiiM Group with Spotify Connect and it works perfectly.
