Wiim Ultra and Qobuz in Thailand

[billd]

Hi - I heard a WiiM Ultra a couple of weeks ago at a HiFi show in Bangkok and liked what I heard. I use Qobuz on my desktop and phone and the staff at the show said that Qobuz Connect will be supported with the next softare update. So yesterday, I went to a hifi shop here in Bangkok to listen to a WiiM Ultra again. At the shop, the sales staff could only get connectivity and sound via Bluetooth. By wifi, it appeard to be connected but there was no sound. At this point they started talking rapidly in Thai and I couldn't keep up. I know they said the Ultra had the latest software and kept mentioning "the codex." They ended up saying that, because Qobuz isn't officially available in Thailand, WiiM devices sold here don't support wifi connectivity. I'm skeptical because we successfully connected via Bluetooth. Can anybody explain why this happened and if there is a fix? Thanks.

 

[slartibartfast]

Isn’t there a loophole where if you buy it with, say, a uk credit card (maybe while using a vpn) that it’ll work anywhere? Sure I’ve seen similar mentioned when people from non supported countries have been able to use it in the past.

Probably. So it should work then.

 

[billd]

In that case it must be that the store network is on a internet provider that is getting blocked by Qobuz. Impossible to say without hands on diagnosing. I wish you all the best. Good luck.

Thanks, I appreciate it.

 

[billd]

So how do you access Qobuz if it isn't available in your country?

I used my US based bank's credit card for payment and my US legal address for registration. I've been using Qobuz for many months with no problems.

 

[billd]

Probably. So it should work then.

Yes, that applies to my case.

 

[billd]

Isn’t there a loophole where if you buy it with, say, a uk credit card (maybe while using a vpn) that it’ll work anywhere? Sure I’ve seen similar mentioned when people from non supported countries have been able to use it in the past.

Yes, that's my situation.

 

[harkpabst]

I'm not convinced you really got full access to all devices in the dealership's network. Even if they gave you access credentials they might have been valid for a guest network only and this guest network is not too unlikely to implement client isolation. That means, each device on that network might be able to access the Internet individually, but they cannot discover each other.

Did you have the WiiM Home app installed?

This would be a good indication of if client isolation plays a role here. The WiiM Home app would not be able to find the WiiM Ultra in this case.

 

[billd]

I'm not convinced you really got full access to all devices in the dealership's network. Even if they gave you access credentials they might have been valid for a guest network only and this guest network is not too unlikely to implement client isolation. That means, each device on that network might be able to access the Internet individually, but they cannot discover each other.

Did you have the WiiM Home app installed?

This would be a good indication of if client isolation plays a role here. The WiiM Home app would not be able to find the WiiM Ultra in this case.

Thanks for the suggestion. I downloaded the app and will return to the shop and see if it makes a difference.

 

[adias]

Thanks for the suggestion. I downloaded the app and will return to the shop and see if it makes a difference.

You realize that your device’s app needs to be in the same network used by the Ultra in the store.

 

[billd]

You realize that your device’s app needs to be in the same network used by the Ultra in the store.

Thanks for the advice. So, this is not just going to my phone settings and making sure I'm on the store's wifi network. I need to go into the Qobuz and WiiM apps and make sure they are both pointed in the same direction, correct?

 

[Deleted member 20976]

Thanks for the advice. So, this is not just going to my phone settings and making sure I'm on the store's wifi network. I need to go into the Qobuz and WiiM apps and make sure they are both pointed in the same direction, correct?

Read the comment by harkpabst again. The people who try to help you suspect that it has to be a (local) network issue or regional block because for "all" other users it just works great.

 

[slartibartfast]

Thanks for the advice. So, this is not just going to my phone settings and making sure I'm on the store's wifi network. I need to go into the Qobuz and WiiM apps and make sure they are both pointed in the same direction, correct?

The store may have WiFi for customers and WiFi for staff. Check with them which network the Ultra is on.

 

[billd]

The store may have WiFi for customers and WiFi for staff. Check with them which network the Ultra is on.

Thanks. Will do.

 

[Mr Ee]

You could make the ultra connect to your mobile phone network...

Take two devices, e.g. a phone with mobile data and a tablet.

Phone:
Enable mobile data and hotspot.

Tablet:
Install the wiim home app.
Enable Bluetooth and connect to the hotspot.
Open the wiim app.
Press and hold the Ultra's volume knob for 3 seconds. It should enter setup mode.
Connect it with your phone's network us8ng the wiim app..

Now you don't need the store's wifi

 

[billd]

Read the comment by harkpabst again. The people who try to help you suspect that it has to be a (local) network issue or regional block because for "all" other users it just works great.

I read it again but I'm not sure what you mean. I downloaded the WiiM app per harkpabst's suggestion and will return to the shop and see if that makes a difference.However, I'm a bit of a Neanderthal when it comes to digital stuff. If I'm missing something beside coordinating my wifi provider, the store's wifi provider and settings on the WiiM and Qobuz apps, I'm willing to learn.

 

[billd]

You could make the ultra connect to your mobile phone network...

Take two devices, e.g. a phone with mobile data and a tablet.

Phone:
Enable mobile data and hotspot.

Tablet:
Install the wiim home app.
Enable Bluetooth and connect to the hotspot.
Open the wiim app.
Press and hold the Ultra's volume knob for 3 seconds. It should enter setup mode.
Connect it with your phone's network us8ng the wiim app..

Now you don't need the store's wifi

Thanks, Mr. Ee. I'll bring these instructions with me to the store.

 

[harkpabst]

I read it again but I'm not sure what you mean. I downloaded the WiiM app per harkpabst's suggestion and will return to the shop and see if that makes a difference.However, I'm a bit of a Neanderthal when it comes to digital stuff. If I'm missing something beside coordinating my wifi provider, the store's wifi provider and settings on the WiiM and Qobuz apps, I'm willing to learn.

The WiiM Home app won't magically cure anything. Also, you don't need to perform any specific configuration.

But you can use the WiiM Home app to find out if there is a "problem" with the shop's Wi-Fi. If after you connect to their Wi-Fi the WiiM Home app cannot see the Ultra, then the network they grant you access to does not allow communication between devices. As a result, the Qobuz app on your phone can never find the Ultra as a Qobuz Connect target.

The shop staff could and probably should try the same thing. They might or might not be on the same Wi-Fi as their customers, as pointed out by @slartibartfast.

I put the word problem I quotes, because a guest network is actually properly configured with client isolation enabled (devices cannot see each other). Everything else would be plain dangerous. But you won't be able to test Qibuz Connect this way, so it's a problem for the customer.

 

[adias]

And one more thing… the Ultra and your device can’t be on a ‘Guest’ network.

 

[Frans]

Isn’t there a loophole where if you buy it with, say, a uk credit card (maybe while using a vpn) that it’ll work anywhere? Sure I’ve seen similar mentioned when people from non supported countries have been able to use it in the past.

You are correct. When I lived in Indonesia ( what normally also not support Qobuz) I used VPN and paid with my Dutch credit card and i had Qobuz without any problems. After that it was not necessary anymore to use VPN to listen to Qobuz. I assume it will be the same here in Thailand. Since i live in Thailand i use Tidal (much cheaper, only 136 THB per month).

 

[billd]

The WiiM Home app won't magically cure anything. Also, you don't need to perform any specific configuration.

But you can use the WiiM Home app to find out if there is a "problem" with the shop's Wi-Fi. If after you connect to their Wi-Fi the WiiM Home app cannot see the Ultra, then the network they grant you access to does not allow communication between devices. As a result, the Qobuz app on your phone can never find the Ultra as a Qobuz Connect target.

The shop staff could and probably should try the same thing. They might or might not be on the same Wi-Fi as their customers, as pointed out by @slartibartfast.

I put the word problem I quotes, because a guest network is actually properly configured with client isolation enabled (devices cannot see each other). Everything else would be plain dangerous. But you won't be able to test Qibuz Connect this way, so it's a problem for the customer.

Thanks. I'll keep all of this in mind when I return to the shop.

 

[billd]

And one more thing… the Ultra and your device can’t be on a ‘Guest’ network.

Thanks for that info.