Head to squarespace.com/cheapaudioman to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code cheapaudioman WIIM Amp Amazon amzn.to/3uyfvaq (Amazon) WIIM Amp howl.me/ck6bchaeyns (Crutchfield) check out my other channel www.youtube.com/@cheapwatchman_official Intro graphics by johnvilardi.com Support the Channel! Shop on Amazon amzn.to/3W8vsgK Crutchfield shop-links.co/cguPK8XEGmt Join the best hifi community out there! patreon.com/cheapaudioman TRY ROON www.rofjdjk3ns.com/33G977/2CTPL/ Tidal Deal bit.ly/3siuqSF Amazon Unlimited Music Trial amzn.to/3DRAVj9 Crutchfield shop-links.co/cguPK8XEGmt Best Buy Deals shop-links.co/cf9yDZeYtUH amzn.to/3GkNaop CAM Store (New Products!) bit.ly/30Lgu4K apos.audio?sca_ref=552340.TY98BPcZ6P

One big feature that this has over a lot of the other stuff from Fosi, Arylic, SMSL, Topping, etc is having that internal power supply. It just makes something like this so much easier and cleaner to setup in a 2 channel soundbar replacement situation not having to find a place to hide a power brick or wall wart. Glad people are finally starting to put e-arc into these little 2 channel amps.

Randy, you are absolutely right: there is something about the nimbleness of the WIIM crew coupled with their attention to detail and insane pricing that is nothing short of remarkable. For the last few years i was a Blusound fan--Ive got everything from some Pulse speakers, the Vault CD ripper/NAS and a PowerNode. But 2024 for me is about downsizing and simplifing. No more multi-room systems or separates for this kid. From now on its FutureFi all the way. Gone are my Bose 901s (cue the giggling) and the required EQ that also requires an old amp with TapeMonitor functionality. Enter The Sevens and a WIIM. The 7s are still in transit but the WIIM Pro arrived yesterday and upon hooking it up (which was easy and sweatless and ACTUALLY easy) i could FEEL the difference in the software, if thats possible. Bluesound has some of the best software around, bar none, but it can get finicky and startles easy. The Wiim software, on the other hand, seemed sure footed by comparison and its integration with music services is actually BETTER than Bluesound's. I think. But more than that, the 10 band EQ is a game changer! Bluesound users have been screeching for real software EQ for years and our entreties have fallen on deaf ears. For that simple enhancement, the last 48 hours or so with the WiimPro have been a treat. The ability to EQ has breathed new life into my 901's (cue more snickering) and from a $120 piece of equipment, mind you. All this from an outfit who, 18 months ago, nobody had ever heard of. The Mini replaced the defunct Chromecast Audio Puck. The Pro set its sights on fuller fledged streamers and the Pro Plus possibly bests the Sonos and Bluesound Node family of streamers. My only complaint about the Pro Amp is that I don't need one. Yet.

Cool little bit of kit. Add a $200ish sub, some high efficiency speakers and you'd be good to go for a while for under $1000. WIIM Amp Pro: hdmi out for screen art (buy your own touch screen), digital out, pre out/in and some more power. Thanks Randy!

Actually it has HDMI ARC not eArc. For a stereo amp that doesn't matter. The difference is the bandwidth. eArc has a lot more of it so you can do uncompressed 7.1 Audio. The WIIM does two channels, so plenty of bandwidth. The DAC is the ess9018. A bit old but back in 2017 it was still used in DAC's that cost over $12000

I have an amp that looks like that. A black box and a black volume control on the front right with power switch on the back. It has bolt holes on front corners and 2 handles for rach mounting. Sounds fantastic and only took a few weeks to build.

Wiim has come out with some great products at very attractive price points, this being another! Excellent comparison and review! I totally agree if they added the pre out and digital out...this product would be fire! If Wiim is listening, I wouldn't be surprised if that happened. It's got my attention..

“It got as loud as I wanted it to get.” This is why I love what you’re doing here man. Thank you Randy.

In my living room 2.1 system I am running an Arylic BP 50 parred with a Fosi Audio V3 and it sounds pretty awesome! Right now I am using monoprice encore B4 bookshelf speakers, and a monoprice 10 inch low profile sub. Considering the cost it’s a pretty awesome system. For streaming, I just run airplay through my TCL Roku TV.

Like George Costanza and the donuts, I eat recently tossed, perfectly good items out of the garbage as well!

agree on the "wish it had an optical out"...future! "alexa built in" is a plus over the 3 unit stack... would love to see a 5.1 version surround version!...Thanks Randy!

I was contemplating the Sonos amp until I saw this video which was uploaded 3hrs ago. I needed something small but mighty for my office that took up very little desk space. I have a NAD C388 that is freaking amazing but is large as hell and takes up too much space. This amp WiiM amp is perfect, and I bought it on Amazon.

Thanks for this, especially the little affordable stack comp. I was about to have buyers remorse over my V3, wiim Pro Plus stack but it looks like I've got the win, particularly with the built in DACs considered. Do wish that I had that idmi though.

It’s crazy, there are other audio KZfaq channels that I’ve been watching before your channel started that we’re good channels and they’re still trying to break the 100,000 subscriber mark while you’re already over 200,000. That’s great and it’s not only because you do good reviews And your knowledgeable products that the average guy can afford but also due to your quirky humor. The 10 minute rule on Garbage french fries is something I also agree with by the way.

Agree, Randy! If they’re doing this for $299, let’s see a higher end streamer with a large touchscreen display to go up against (and out do) the Eversolo DMP-A6. I bought one on all the hype and quickly sold it. Let go WIIM! Show us what you can do with an upscale offering.

I've been waiting for something like this. It ticks EVERY box I have in terms of what I want and need. After Christmas, I will be grabbing one of these. I cannot wait.

Nitpick: it has ARC, not eARC. It doesn't really matter, eARC on this would be a waste since it's only stereo anyway, but you're still wrong to say it has eARC.

I love what you do. Thank you for pointing me at the Wiim Mini. This is good enough for me. Have been running it with an Allo Shanti power source (built nearby in Bangalore, India) last 18 months. Am always thrilled to bits with your suggestion.

Would love to see native apple music support for bitperfect lossless playback. But definitely a solid recommendation for anyone just starting out.

Hey Randy and yeah John Darko thinks it's Hot as in awesomeness...and it's an Aluminum Chassis. And it's amperage is excellent. 🎉❤ I think the rated wattage is 80 at 8 ohms to 120 or 140 at 4ohms along with the Ten Band is a Parametric Eq and Sub woofer crossover options. It would not surprise me if Wiim went to small separates next as a logical product process. I could be off on power but it is certainly more than enough for many.

I have been using a WiiM amp in my main system to test it out. Powering Magnepan LRS to 70-75dbs no problem. Working seamlessly. Turn on the TV and it wakes up and starts playing sound immediately. Tv remote controls volume. Use the app to start streaming and it will switch over to music. It sounds at least as good as my Rouge Sphinx V2 with schiit Modi 3 did and i never have to touch anything. I might have to order another one for the family room TV now since i don't really want this to leave. Its so easy and convenient .. I Do wish it had pre outs so i could use my big 250w A/B amp with this as a control box.

Pre-out AND digital-out would be killer features. It would become the single "go-to" device for all starter systems.

I think a great use for this is for outdoor speakers, where critical listening and high volume isn't really needed. I am running 2 pair of polk atrium 8SDI in parallel, then sending the subwoofer out to a Crown XLS1002 and a Dayton outdoor sub. Sounds pretty good for background music and airplaying TV audio from Apple TV to WiiM Amp.

Hit the nail on the head at the end. I went elsewhere due to no preamp out. I think they should offer a slightly more expensive model with the features you mentioned

Dude. Despite your concerns regarding reviewing and liking some not so cheap equipment affecting your cred as the "cheapaudioman", I think your story about eating fries from the garbage if it's only been 10 minutes since they were thrown away basically cements your street cred. Thanks for the review man.

My new $450 "fine Columbian" ambiance Steely system for the outdoor toilet with some back porch speakers slightly toed in. Not for everyone, but CAM approved and warm fries ready.

Did you try subwoofer with the Wiim Amp as that would be one area where I thought it would beat your V3 stack? Though the new Fosi Audio ZA3 is effectively a V3 with a subwoofer output.

I’m a newbie to audio. Found you recently. You stand clear above the rest in your presentation, production, humor. Love it. I’ve been known to go for the fries too. In my naivety I bout the Wiim pro as a stand alone streamer and quickly learned I needed an amp. I bought the A07. Should have bought Wiim amp? Question is why did you add the DAC to the stack for comparison? Wouldn’t the comparison been better of a stack of just Wiim pro and amp?

I appreciate the comparison to the stack you chose. That stack is my reference to which I gauge the value and functionality of every budget system whether it's a stack or integrated amp with a Wiim mini.

If the fries are sitting on top of the trash, they're technically not IN the trash😉

This seems like a great starter system.

I like this, but a wiim mini with an optical out and that stack is the same price. What I would like to see WiiM develop next is a more highend WiiM mini that has a lcd touch display that can be used to play music and see album art while music is playing.

This is a great unit for a bedroom or secondary location. One can wish for a Center channel amp output, but this is a great deal as is.

I feel like this is a product that conforms to the needs of the users (HDMI ARC, sub out, remote, Alexa voice control, high and low pass filters, etc.) as opposed to products that force the user to conform to the product that the manufacturer wants to make.

Would have been a nice money saver if it had been available when I bought 4 Sonos amps for my multi room setup! Looks like a good piece of kit for this type of setup.

Good afternoon ☕️ I’m running the OG Wiim pro feeding a Topping E50 DAC ..that’s what they need ..more inputs and pre out …RCA and XLR …now you’re talking. A damn good start!

What a cool product. I'm enjoying having separates so i'll stick with the pro plus but love what Wiim is doing.

Just picked it up on pre order. 👍

Perhaps their finest product to date. Great value. Thanks for sharing your observations Randy. Well done.

I like it because it DOES NOT have a screen. I do however agree it should have come with pre-outs. How about a $499 product, 80w into 8ohms and 160w into 4 ohms, with pre-outs. No screen. I'd buy at least two. They could also make a stand alone amp in the same sized case. 250w into 8 and 500w into 4. Buy two and run them as monoblocks for BIG power. Game over at that point.

OK, Randy. I just ordered a Wiim amp. This is going to be an expensive Christmas season and I haven't even bought gifts for anyone yet. You need to stop now.

Old school car audio here. Tens times the wattage for only 3db more. Also need to think about this backwards concerning the speakers, three db less sensitivity is using the same amp but theoretically losing 10x the amps wattage. Don't get me started on cabinet size regarding isobaric loading. Side note, bandpass sucks. Want output, horn load that stuff. I should get off my soapbox now. Good day sars!

Thanks for your conent - very good point at the end, also very important for my buy decission..

My Aorus X470 Gaming 7 wifi motherboard has an ESS Sabre DAC in it, its the best thing ive ever heard.

Replacing a NUVO One that failed. Not needing outputs to push four patio speakers, the WIIM Amp seems like a good replacement. Thank you for an informative video.

It would be cool if you start sticking a magnet to binding posts of amps and speakers to see if they are using steel nuts(which degrades quality)

The SMSL AO300 has lots of power and HDMI ARC. Also, the Wiim Amp has ARC, not eArc.

I like how you tell me to grab a cup of coffee

Well. I guess I am going to return the Bluesound Node Edge I ordered during Black-Friday/Cyber-Monday. Was looking for something less expensive, or the Node Edge to go on sale. I have the Bluesound Node in my hifi setup. But did not want to spend that much on a bedroom setup to just "boost" the sound of the TV.

Thanks for the review! I've been looking for something to replace my Acrylic A50. I just hate the speaker connectors on it. This seems perfect.

This could finally get me to stop using my old chromecast audio. OTOH, the CCA works just fine.

You need to compare wiim amp to smsl ao300/loxjie a40 +wiim pro or wiim pro+. And in the case of AO300/a40 ($230) we have an additional headphone amplifier and all the functionality of a WIIM streamer (150-200$) with a software update.

Shouldn't using the Wiim Amp with a subwoofer clean up the output. The amp will be less stressed once you limit the bass to the main speakers. Wouldn't that help out with the dynamics as well?

Great review! I have one being delivered today and can't wait to try it out on my DP-400 turntable. however, I think you should be careful saying eARC, this amp does not have eARC. It does have an HDMI ARC connection but not eARC. Thanks again for the great review, love your channel.

That’s all and good if you can any service out of them. I have a bricked WiiM Pro that continually reboots itself in close-packed sequence. It will take no commands…cannot do a factory reset, cannot do a firmware upgrade. I’ve submitted two help tickets. The first was unhelpfully answered. The second, crickets, no reply. You get what you pay for.

This is the product I’ve been waiting for for 2 “tv rooms” that require minimalist electronics that the whole fam can operate. Pre-ordered from Crutchfield. And it will be my suggestion for newbies who want low complexity gear (read 1 box)

As a user of the Wiim Pro, my biggest concern for this integrated amp would be the dac. The Wiim Pro's dac is below the lowest standards in my opinion (for instance, it's far inferior to the almost 20 year old Burr-Brown in my HT Reciever). I was going to return it, but I decided to run it to an SU-1 instead, and am glad I did. The dac in this amp would have to be a quantum leap from the one in the Wiim Pro for this to be worth the buy.

Love my wiim pro but have no need for this amp. Still great to see them continue to push the envelope

hopefully next iteration they include the preouts, and particularly more power....that would make it a perfect product.

This seems like a great solution for Gen Xers (and elderly millennials) who want a modern take on the all-in-one Aiwa mini systems they grew up with. Also great for people with analysis paralysis who just want one device that does everything in a "good enough" fashion.

Another cheap strategy fo DAP users is connecting their dap (eg. Hiby) to stereo amplifier and controlling the Dap streaming /internal Sd music storage from distance from phone with wifi connection (mqa,dsd,flac etc),,Wiim doesnt do dsd but its a great value device.

Nice little amp. However, no mention of the Yamaha WXA as a comparison. Time for a mini streaming amp shoot out with all components in the room?

Wish Amazon was selling it now!!!!! I don't think they have it (yet) -- Opps...that comment near the end about "no pre-amp outputs"".....that's a deal breaker...thanks for what you do!!!!

Oh damn it’s got a 3255! I wasn’t expecting that.

HDMI out to add a screen for album art etc...

I would have preferred that they put the USB port on the front, although you could use a short USB cable. It probably was done to preserve the clean design aesthetic. I would have also liked to see a USB C port. And I agree that they needed to include more inputs. Perhaps this product line will follow the same track as their other products and there will be future Pro and Pro Plus versions.

Right now, you could get wiim pro plus decent used unit for $160. Plus fosi v3 (I prefer 32 volt smps, cleaner than 48 volt and does not generate much heat), the total comes out to be $250. The dac inside pro plus is, imho, better than su-1. Over time, you will appreciate the dynamics coming out of the stack than wiim amp.

I've got to try my V3 in a different setup. I had it driving some CSS Torii's and it never popped. This is something I'd get for my grown kids for their apartments. Perfect for space restrictions.

When are you going to test the smsl ao300?

I like that you wear a Tudor gmt with the white dial! I work at a Swedish retailer and I can say you got a great watch for your money! 😍

This looks like what i need for the living room

WiiM kind of reminds me of NAD in the early days, quick to develop new inovations and top sound quality for the price.

Great review, awesome piece, Wiim going from strength to strength, i am pretty sure I will purchase one of these, and i am already excited for what comes next. Can i ask, did you say the usb was for storage or does it also act as an input for PC sound.

10db requires TEN TIMES the power! if you get 80dbSPL with 50w, it takes 500w to get you to 90dbSPL.

But why no USB input for my computer? Like many people these days I’ve ripped my entire CD collection to a hard drive in FLAC format and use JRiver or MS MediaPlayer on my desktop computer to play through an amplifier with a USB input. Seems strange that WiiM are not allowing for this.

Very sleek and elegant.

Just watched the bit from 5:19 thank you for acknowledging that. Takes a big big man to admit their faults. 😂😂 Thanks and on with this awesome review

This makes sense for $300. The $700~$800 price point is icky because the Marantz Stereo 70 is $1000 and you get a serious AB amplifier with HDMI, streaming and lots of inputs.

You could use a Wiim Pro PLUS and Fosi Audio V3, saving the SMSL dac

I am just starting out on my Hi-Fi journey and I think this device would be the perfect starting point for me. But him saying that the stack of 3 devices performing better for a similar price made me doubtful. Does anyone here have any advice on which would be the better option for a total newbie in this field? Thanks in advance! Comfort and convenience are a big factor for me btw

man, im so happy i found this channel! great content.

I use wiim in my sixth system with naim amp and Harberh speakers. It sounds very good. I may get one of these for my seventh system.

Hi Randy, can you help me with a question pertaining to Wiim products using just as a streamer? Between the Mini, Pro or the Pro+, if used just plugged into an external dac and solely as a streamer, will sound quality get better up the Wiim chain? Will the Mini sound as good the rest? Used as only a streamer saving me the cash going up the product line? Thanks cheap audio man!

Weight comparison is funny knowing that WIIM is adding extra weight just for the feel, at least they did it in Pro Plus 😀

At Last! I've been waiting ages for a proper review of this machine.

Ok Randy, you got me. I dribbled my drink and almost choked after that French fry in the garbage crack. That was toooo funny.

Great video Randy and had to wait near the end till you got to the heart of your thoughts - “for anyone new to Hi fi” and the streamer at $300 is still worth the price of admission. 👍👏

Having been an early subscriber all the way back to the " vent hole" days you're frie's from the garbage can will ensure I come back even when I dont care what you're reviewing...😂😂

Great rundown on this budget worthy amp Randy! And thank you for coming out of the leftover french fries off the family plate/trash bin closet. "What do you mean you threw your uneaten Five Guys fries in the trash. Just now?!"

looks like they got some, er "inspiration" from the PS Audio Sprout. Probably why PS reduced the price of the Sprout for $500. I have to wonder if a Sprout for $200 more, plus a cheap WIIM streamer for $80 might not be a better deal. You get a phono preamp, but no HDMI, and I would guess is a fundamentally better designed/built product. As for "how does it sound?" suggest it might make sense to compare it to the Sprout. Yes, it's cheap, and yes, it has lots of features. But in the end, what's it really worth?

Great t-shirt Randy!

For some people, who just want some speakers in their room instead of listening via smartphone, this is very great! But WIIM missed the chance on those who wants to build a system, which can be updated and grow with them. No digital outputs, I cannot understand... I would still recommend the Wiim Pro and a seperate cheaper amp ; and later on getting a better amp plus a dedicated DAC. Wiim is such a great streamer but the rest is nothing for the long term.

That sub out is very helpful. I’ve got a V3 with 48v and I do have a sub connected but I don’t have a high pass on the V3 which kinda sucks.

Heck of an idea. Take A Wiim Pro+, put in the HDMI Arc input... Add a decent sized front facing color touch panel and display album art? Oh yeah. Take my money, please.

Send it to Big D over at Williston Audio Labs. He has a D'Amore Engineering AD-1 amp dyno, I'm sure he'd be glad to test it for RMS, dynamic, peak and THD.

Thanks for this very helpful video. WIIM Amp seems like a perfect first amp for me. I'm looking to buy a Fluance or Pro Ject as my first turntable. What speakers would you recommend? I've been using the Klipsch Pro Media 2.1Desktop Computer Speakers for years now for both TV and streaming and digital media, but I'm in search of a less harsh sound experience.

Love my WiiM's! I have had a few streamers, but like Randy stated, the ease of use simply puts these WiiM products above them all. And yes, waiting with baited breath to see what is next!

All they need to do now is make a 5.1 and 7.1 versions of that and people will forget about AV Receivers 😁

It looks cool but why buy this over a Marantz nr1200 for $349 on Accessories 4less?

Does your stack have a subwoofer out? If not, how does that compare to the amp using a sub with the high pass filter?