The $ 299 Wiim Amp is an audio Swiss USA tongue . It can playact as a multisource desegregate amplifier , a wireless streaming euphony player , an Amazon Alexa wise speaker , and even a familiar for your TV . Attach a enough set of passive speakers ( and mayhap a subwoofer ) and you ’ve got a sleek and compact auditory sensation system that passably much does it all .
I ’ve just wrapped up a three - week valuation of it , and I could n’t be more impressed . Even if you already have anintegrated amp or receiver , you may want to regard swap it for the Wiim Amp . Here ’s why .
Is it a Sonos clone?
permit ’s address one very important affair right off the squash racket . Though Wiim , which is have by LinkPlay , is still a newcomer to the home audio shot , it has been get a ton of attention thanks to the companionship ’s strategy of take up the in effect features of Sonos ’ devices and trade them for far less .
My first experience with this was theWiim Pro , a net stream music instrumentalist that you could argue is a $ 149Sonos Portclone .
It ’s not just the hardware — on some of its concealment , Wiim ’s mobile app is a dead ringer for the Sonos app .
But while the Wiim Pro made a extremely in force argument that you do n’t need to drop Sonos Port money to get Sonos Port features , when it comes to the Wiim Amp and its close Sonos competitor , the $ 699Sonos Amp , it ’s not quite apples to apples . I ’ll discuss the departure throughout this review .
What’s in the box?
Wiim ships the Amp with a powerfulness cord , anHDMI cable , anoptical transmission line , a stereo RCA cable , and a Bluetooth vocalization remote . Be warned though : Wiim has bucked the decades - long trend of include barrage fire , so you ’ll have to supply your own solidification of AAA cell .
The only other thing you ’ll need ( assume you already have speaker cable to go with your inactive speakers ) are an Ethernet cable ( this is optional — most folks will use the built - in Wi - Fi ) and an RCA coaxial line if you intend on connecting a powered subwoofer .
Designed in Cupertino?
Like many other tech companionship , Wiim has taken its design breathing in for the Amp from Apple . The equipment is wrapped in an aluminium hide , in your option of Apple ’s two favorite colors : silver or space Thomas Gray .
The result is a element that looks wonderful — our space gray evaluation unit of measurement would complement even the most refined and modern-day interior decoration .
It ’s a smart decision on Wiim ’s part . As much as I like the Wiim Pro , its contraband charge card enclosure search and feels a little cheap . It ’s not bad by any mean value , but it ’s nothing like the Amp ’s premium esthetic . From a functionality standpoint , there ’s no reason why you ca n’t tuck the Wiim Amp away in a console table or cupboard — all of its functions can be accessed via the Wiim app or the included Bluetooth remote . But with facial expression like this , it deserve to be seeable .
The integrate bulk / play / pause control on the front panel is the one conception pick that feel a little less paying attention .
It ’s a large sizing and shape , and the rotating ring has pleasingly indexed notched clicks in its tailspin . But the central release spins too , causing the “ play ” triangle to point in a variety of focussing as you change the volume , instead of remaining in the normal aright - pointing preference .
avowedly , I ’m nitpicking , but my center keeps wanting to straighten it out — which it refuses to let me do .
One criticism that feels less nitpicky : there ’s no way to course - skip forward or backward using the primal button . It ’s a foreign omission since the Sonos Amp give you this potentiality .
Right beside the big pommel is a six - LED mass scale , a dainty touch on a product that efficaciously replaces a receiver or amp , and it ’s something the Sonos Amp lacks . you could leave it lit while the power is on , or it can fade to nigrify a few seconds after your last volume change .
Finally , a single LED on the leftover side acts as a power / mood index number . Depending on what it ’s taste to differentiate you , it will glow or flash blanched , light-green , or crimson to argue source , wireless connexion body politic , or if something ’s gone wrong .
One small caveat for home dramatic art mass : The Wiim Amp does n’t have an infrared receiver . So if you settle to connect it to your TV via analog oroptical instead of HDMI , you ’ll demand to keep the let in remote control ( or the app ) William Christopher Handy for mass and muting since your TV ’s remote control wo n’t be able to control it .
Ports galore
Around the back are the physical comment and output signal . And they are plentiful : HDMI ARC , optical in , analog line - in , USB - A , and Ethernet . I would have also welcomed a digital USB stimulus for microcomputer audio , but alas , no such fate . ( The USB - A port is strictly for access to storage devices . ) radiocommunication inputs are just as generous : Bluetooth , Apple AirPlay , Chromecast , and Amazon Alexa Cast . In fact , I was able to mostly get around the deficiency of a PC input by sending my Mac ’s audio output to the Wiim Amp using AirPlay .
The outputs are more restrictive , limited to a lot of stereo speaker 5 - way binding posts and a subwoofer out . The one big deletion here is the deficiency of a headphone end product .
As with the Sonos Amp , you ca n’t expend the Wiim Amp as anetworked euphony streamerfor be amps / receiver . If you want to do that , Wiim ’s Mini , Wiim Pro , and Wiim Pro Plus are good choices .
The Amp does have wireless outputs , however . It can be used as a informant for both Bluetooth and AirPlay cyclosis . This gives the Amp the challenging ability to send audio to other wireless speaker system and earpiece .
The visual and HDMI ARC remark require minuscule thought — just attach a TV , CD musician , Blu - ray of light player , or any other compatible digital source . you’re able to use aturntable , too ( with the analog line - in jacks ) , but keep in mind that your turntable must have a build - in phono preamp . Otherwise , you ’ll need an externalphono preamp . It ’s also worth note that the Amp does n’t offer a verbatim analog connection between input and amplification . All analog sound recording is converted to digital before being converted back to analog .
Like most receivers with an HDMI ARC stimulus , the Wiim Amp can take dictation ( let in index on / off ) from your TV if the TV is configure with HDMI CEC ( Consumer Electronics Control ) . If this is your main listening scenario , you may never need to reach for the Amp ’s remote .
Installation and setup
Word to the impudent : before you plug the Wiim Amp into power , you ’re going to desire to link your speakers . That ’s good advice in general , but with the Wiim Amp , you should take it gospel . Unlike most merged amps or receivers with physical powerfulness buttons , plug in the Wiim is the same as turn it on .
And while the likeliness of catastrophe is humble , it ’s not deserving risking damage to your talker or the Amp by causing an accidental short in the wiring .
Howyou unite your speakers is up to you . The 5 - way binding posts take on almost any method acting include banana tree plugs and bare wires . Since it ’s possible ( though not an prescribed feature ) to turn tail two sets of 8 - Georg Simon Ohm speakers ( 4 speakers in total ) , it ’s nice to be capable to run one set via banana plug and another solidification as desolate conducting wire — the Sonos Amp can only handle one of these connector at a time .
Once you ’re power up , the free Wiim app ( iOS / Android / macOS / Windows ) walks you through the balance of the frame-up process , which takes no time at all . It automatically grabs your connection configurations from your earpiece , offers you the power to rename the Amp from its default connection ID , pairs with the included Bluetooth remote , and close by walking you through the optionalAirPlay , Chromecast , and Amazon Alexa setups .
At this point , you ’re ready to sway . you’re able to add your cyclosis serving subscriptions to help yourself of the app ’s impressive feature set ( including my preferent Sonos feature , universal search ) , or you’re able to regale the app as just a stage setting interface for the Wiim Amp and do all of your cyclosis from third - company apps thanks to AirPlay , Chromecast , and Bluetooth .
Impressive sound quality
Considering the Wiim Amp ’s index specs ( 60 watts per channel at 8 Ohm or 120 W at 4 ohm ) , it can theoretically repulse a wide variety show of passive speakers — even modest - electrical resistance models . Its sweet maculation , however , is a set of 8 - ohmbookshelf verbaliser .
Given a option , I ’d have be intimate to put the Amp through its pace with a mark ofKEF Q150orBowers & Wilkins 607 S3speakers . But , woefully , I was exploit with what I had on hand .
For my tests , I used two setups . First , I used a single twosome of Energy CB5 bookshelf loudspeaker system to get a sense of the Wiim Amp ’s overall operation . Then I put the Amp side by side with a Sonos Amp and connected them to touch sets of Energy Take 5.2HB1 artificial satellite loudspeaker . These are not the loudspeaker I ’d urge for either Amp , but my goal was to equate apples to apple by rapidly switching back - and - Forth River between devices .
In both fount , I listened with and without an Energy S8.2 wired subwoofer .
If there are any performance issues with the Wiim Amp , these tests did not reveal them . Using multiple sources likeTidal , Amazon Music , andQobuzfrom the Wiim app , plusApple Musicvia AirPlay , I threw a immense range of mountains of musical style at it , from jazz to rap . I listened to all of my favored test tracks , like Tracy Chapman’sFast Carand Billie Eilish’sbad guy , and the Wiim Amp reserve its own .
It ’s clear and articulate , and it remind me why my Energy loudspeaker were praise for their sound when I bought them almost 22 years ago . I played it as forte as I dared ( about 85 % ) and could n’t detect any deformation .
television set sound through the HDMI port was just as gratifying , without any detectable slowdown . While it ’s true that the Wiim ca n’t process Dolby Digital 5.1 , DTS , orDolby Atmossignals ( you ’ll need to set your TV to output PCM ) , its 2.1 introduction sound amazingly immersive , and duologue clarity test to be an unexpected highlighting .
From an EQ perspective , the manufactory tuning felt a little harsh in the in high spirits frequencies — particularly when I compared it to the Sonos Amp ’s much warm bias . But if you know your way around an counterbalance ( with your choice of graphic or parametric interfaces ) , the tremendous issue of available options should get thing dial in just the way you desire them . When you ’re happy , you could save as many configurations as you require . And if that ’s way too much fuss ? I ’m suppose the generous selection of EQ presets will get you most of the way there .
That ’s something the Sonos Amp does n’t offer . Its only tint ascendency are freestanding bass and dual slider .
As you might have a bun in the oven , connecting the wired hero vastly improved the sound . Bookshelf speakers are n’t famous for their low-spirited end , and the satellite in spades needed the superfluous help . Curiously , the Sonos Amp is somewhat restrictive in terms of selectable crossover frequencies — with a range of 50Hz to 110Hz — while the Wiim gives you access to an tremendous range of 30Hz to 250Hz . For most speakers , Sonos ’ range will do , but my little Energy satellite are felicitous when they can overstep along frequency under 120Hz — just a fuzz out of doors of the Sonos Amp ’s range .
Where Sonos will needs prove more versatile is its power . Rated at 125 watts per channel at 8 ohms and 250 watts at 4 ohms , you ’ll be able to overwork your verbaliser ’ capability more effectively . You ’ll also have more cooking stove when lot with the mismatched degree of different sources . PlayingThe Lord of The Rings : The Rings of Powerfrom the built - in Amazon Prime app on my LG TV , I had to fix the Wiim ’s turnout at almost 90 % to achieve the same book that the Sonos delivered at 60 % .
Though neither Wiim nor Sonos urge bigger - than - bookshelf - size utterer , the Sonos Amp will be the better choice if you ’re determined to try it .
The Wiim app and streaming options
It ’s hard to work over Sonos when it comes to the power and functionality of its software . In the world of multiroom wireless audio , it ’s still the loss leader . And yet , Wiim has done such a good line of work of reproduce Sonos ’ primal strengths that you have to look heavy to encounter the sphere where Sonos rest ahead .
For major activity like chance and play music , operate playback , grouping and ungrouping machine throughout your nursing home , and preserve your favorite tracks , album , or playlist for easy access , Wiim and Sonos are neck and cervix . Wiim has even build its own general search , letting you see matching medicine from your subscription services and your personal euphony catalogue in a single solidification of results — a skill that had been a Sonos exclusive for class .
But if you ’re extremely picky about maximizing sound quality , Wiim ’s platform is technically superior . It can decipher lossless digital audio at up to 24 - bit/192kHz , and it ’s compatible with theMQA formatting .
It ’s not that Sonos ’ 24 - bit/48kHz maximum is spoiled . It ’s just that if you have admission to higher sampling pace files — for example , Qobuz , Amazon Music , or Apple Musichi - reticuloendothelial system audio frequency , ( orMQA via Tidal ) — it ’s sensible to require a gadget that lets you pick up all of that additional detail — even if most humans in all probability ca n’t hear a difference at all .
As of March 29 , 2024 , the Wiim Amp is officiallyRoon Ready certify , which means it can support the full range of controls and configurations withinRoon — an audiophile - oriented medicine management , discovery , and multiroom streaming software weapons platform .
However , there ’s also a fringe welfare for those with DSD audio aggregation . agree to LinkPlay , the Wiim Amp ’s chipset is capable of decoding DSD flow natively , but at the moment the Amp ’s package does n’t support it .
There ’s no official timeline for this to deepen , but if you use Roon , you have a stop - gap . Roon can transcode / downconvert DSD streams into standard PCM , which the Amp can decode .
Sonos still has an edge when it comes to the routine of cyclosis service it supports natively inside its app . Its catalogue of compatible service is monumental . Even tiny services for niche interview like Familystream , which caters to listener of reformed Christian euphony , can be integrate into the Sonos app .
But its most important inclusions are Apple Music , Spotify , andYouTube Music — three major service you wo n’t find within the Wiim app . So far , Sonos is the only company other than Apple itself that offer up unmediated Apple Music integration into its wireless audio products .
The absence seizure of those three services notwithstanding , Wiim has most of the music services citizenry want , including Amazon Music , Deezer , Napster , Pandora , Qobuz , Radio Paradise , Tidal , TuneIn , and iHeartRadio .
And when it fall to Apple Music , Spotify , and YouTube Music , there are still plenty of way to get at them outside of the Wiim app . All three can be streamed to the Wiim Amp over Bluetooth , AirPlay , or Chromecast ( depending on your phone ’s option ) , and the Amp is also Spotify Connect - compatible for verbatim streaming from within the Spotify app .
talk of streaming over wireless connections , the Wiim Amp is astonishingly flexible . usually , protocols like Bluetooth and AirPlay run to be one - way . We use them to stream from our phones to our wireless speakers . The Wiim Amp , however , can pretend as both a receiver and a transmitter , which opens up all kind of possibilities .
For instance , if you own any AirPlay - compatible speakers ( including Sonos speaker made since 2017 ) , you may output the Amp ’s audio recording to them — on a speaker - by - speaker system basis . That ’s a ingenious way for Android exploiter to get around the absence seizure of AirPlay on their phones . It ’s also a handy way to send the audio from the Amp ’s three input ( optical , crinkle - in , and HDMI ) to other talker in your family .
But perhaps more relevant is the power to pair a set of Bluetooth headphones . If your telecasting ( or streaming video histrion ) does n’t bear out this feature of speech , it ’s a good mode to do private hearing when you do n’t want to disturb the rest of your home with your 2 a.m. John Wick marathon .
The one caveat : you may set the Wiim Amp to output sound wirelessly or via the speaker terminals , but not both simultaneously .
For all its strengths , this is one area where the Sonos Amp feels decidedly limited . The only way to pour to it wirelessly is via the Sonos app or Apple AirPlay , and it has no streaming yield ( except to other Sonos ware ) .
Voice remote, other options, and final thoughts
By now , I ’m sure you ’ve figured out that I ’m a fan of the Wiim Amp . Still , there ’s more to be say in favor of this all - in - one streaming boxwood . Take the included Bluetooth remote , for instance . It ’s well-fixed to overlook because most folks will use the Wiim app to interact with the Amp .
And yet , it not only rick the Amp into a full - fledged Amazon Alexa smart speaker , but it also gives everyone in the house ( and visitors too ) an soft , familiar , and app - free way to control crucial functions like volume , muting , playback , and origin survival of the fittest , including access to the first four of 12 useable presets . That ’s a mickle of superfluous value that the Sonos Amp ca n’t fit .
The Sonos Amp is the obvious comparison to the Wiim Amp , but it ’s not the only competition . If you ’re curious about your other pick , these are the chief challenger .
Denon HEOS Amplifier HS2($499 )
Bose Music Amplifier($699 )
Bluesound Powernode($949 )
As you could see , they ’re all more expensive than the Wiim Amp , and that spare investiture does n’t always mean more or better features and performance . For its price , the Wiim Amp ply an unbeatable value and demonstrates that LinkPlay ’s succeeder with its first Wiim products was n’t just a good luck .
I ’m seriously looking onwards to seeing the make ’s phylogeny into wireless speakers . It has n’t announced anything on that front , but if its current trajectory is anything to go by , it ’s the next coherent step . When that happens , it will be fascinating to see if Wiim can once again proffer a Sonos - like experience for less .
