WiiMUltra Music Streamer & Digital Preamp | 3.5" Touchscreen, Compatible with Google Cast & Alexa, Stream Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal & More | HDMI ARC, Phono Input & Headphone Output | Space Gray

A review of an audio device should come with some context of the writer, what they listen to, and what their other gear is: My uses are for multiple kinds of music from classic rock, to some classical, to some electronic dance, and even some outlaw country. My system includes a clean Onkyo amplifier, older JBL 10” 3-way speakers, and I am bypassing the WiiM DAC by passing the SPDIF data into a Denafrips Ares 2 DAC. That said, my review is probably not audiophile-grade, but audiophile-ish. My perception of sound quality in this review is compared to that of a Marantz CD6007 CD player and my perception of sound quality.The most important thing about the WiiM Ultra for me was the ability to bypass the built-in DAC so I could maximize sound quality to my ears by passing through my own DAC. Great news: It does that, beautifully. And it’s amazing. By using my own DAC, I can only barely tell the difference between a CD and even Spotify. That could set a clear line in the sand about my hearing, but I’m baffled at how close to CD quality the WiiM with my Denafrips DAC can get. It’s gets so close, it’s no longer distracting how different the sound is between streaming and CD.Now, I acknowledge that the DAC is a specialized piece of gear, but it has allowed me to homogenize the tonality of sound between CD and streaming. The WiiM connects via SPDIF, allowing for connection to any DAC you like, which was the use case that led me to finally buy a dedicated streamer. The versatility to do this pushes this into the zone where it’s an interesting to those interested in maximizing and curating a tailor-fit sound quality. The WiiM Ultra hits the mark here.It’s also beautifully easy to use. I can operate my streams from my phone, carry it around the house. Love that. It’s great.It may also be valuable to know that the screen is super fun, because I can finally just walk by and see what’s playing - and so can anyone else in the house. So nice to not have this all hidden only in one person’s phone.The design of the device is also super beautiful. Sits next to my Marantz CD player and fits right in. That’s phenomenal at this price point.So, here’s the thing - I’m probably a “practical audiophile” - I love music, I’m a little picky about sound quality, but I don’t have tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear, but I do have a sizeable investment in equipment to get as good of sound as I can. I’ve been skeptical about streaming because of sound quality (and the need for perpetual subscriptions). And the WiiM Ultra is the first dedicated streaming device I’ve ever chosen to give a chance — because of the ability to use my own DAC. It hits all the right marks given my use case: Super easy to use, beautiful design, the ability to attach my own DAC, and there aren’t any gimmicks … it’s great.Even on Spotify, with my DAC, it’s so close to CD quality, I’m no longer distracted by the fact that the stream sound quality has such different sound signature than CD. In my use case, this is a perfect solution, and it’s clear that I’m WiiM’s perfect customer. I’m sold, and I would recommend this to anyone who wants great flexibility to expand in the future, but have something beautifully functional in the meantime that likely needs no upgrades at all to still be phenomenal.Five stars on providing an affordable device that finally hits in the zone of the venerable CD for music lovers.

Picked this up on a flash sale for $279. It’s an incredible value even at regular price. Setup was fairly straightforward but I find the app isn’t the best for navigating your favorite streaming subscriptions but great for the room correction and peq functions. Simply hooked up directly to my Adcom amp, Monitor Audio speakers and cd player and was listening to music in minutes. It’s much easier to connect via Alexa or google and stream directly from those apps as I had an issue with Wiim app not loading album content. It’s well built and the display is a feature that looks like the higher end gear. The ESS dac is better than average. Not much more to add except this is an excellent streamer / preamp / dac at an awesome price and sounds phenomenal.

I highly considered buying one of Wiim's lower end units on Prime Day, but I'm glad that I went for the Ultra. The screen is fantastic. The unit feels rock solid and looks like a much higher priced piece of equipment. But ultimately, I paid the premium for the Ultra to get the USB audio output, which I consider to be superior to COAX or Optical. Sound quality out of this output last night into my DAC and headphone amp proved to be right on par with what was coming out of my MacBook. And now I don't have to have a laptop sitting on my lap to flip through tracks. I can just use my iPhone like a remote control and use Tidal Connect to control Tidal on the Wiim.There has been quite a bit of buzz this week about the Ultra not including Apple Airplay. As a lifelong Apple fanboy, this should bother me. But it doesn't. I have an AppleTV that handles my Airplay needs just fine...and Airplay really takes a hit to your audio quality.So who is this product for? I think it's perfect for a guy like me. I consider myself a budget audiophile with a decent headphone listening setup. I'm not going to spend $900 on the EverSolo or even $600 on the Bluesound. But I'll spend $329. I think this unit is worth that price. It may be a tad lower than it could be.And if I ever get tired of my Ultra in this use, I'll gladly move it into my home theater and utilize the excellent internal DAC for music streaming purposes to my main system. The things it does well, it does exceptionally well at this price point.Who is this product NOT for? As good as it is, it doesn't do everything. As much as Wiim really wanted to call this unit a replacement for a preamp in a main system, I don't see it. Despite its inputs, it just would never be enough to replace my full featured home theater receiver. Maybe you have lesser needs than I do. It would probably do okay utilizing the HDMI ARC and a small external power amp and pair of speakers. But I'd never really do this. I just think you'd be better served stepping up to a decent entry-level Onkyo or Denon receiver. And if I was looking for streaming for a really small secondary system, I'd absolutely just buy the Mini.If Airplay is your breaking point, then you are already voluntarily sacrificing sound quality. You may as well either look at one of Wiim's lower offerings or just consider using an AppleTV run to your television and the HDMI ARC back to the Wiim Ultra. (I do love my AppleTV.)If I were still using Apple Music, I'd be hosed by the entire Apple closed ecosystem anyway. Which is why I switched to Tidal. Apple doesn't play nice with others, and doesn't seem care so much about sound quality. I am very happy with Tidal and the Tidal Connect functionality in the Wiim Ultra works flawlessly for me.So is this a perfect product? No. It's five-star product for my specific use case. If your use case is different, it may not be a one-star product. But if you are looking for a way to get a high quality digital stream from one of the services that the Wiim covers, it works exceptionally well. I could have likely lived without the USB and just spent $89 for the Mini. The delta in quality isn't big. But I did take looks/aesthetics into consideration. Would I have paid $500 more just for that? No. But $230 more for a screen, beautiful casework, and USB and Coax digital ports? I'm not disappointed with my choice.