Catherine,

Great to hear that you like it. I still prefer the 3030i and the LSX II…but I’m happy it worked for you. They have more firmware updates coming.

IW

I picked up a WiiM Ultra in hopes of “updating” my KEF LS50 Wireless 1s (state of the art 2016). Now that I’ve been moved to Gabapentin for pain management, lo and behold my tinnitus is down to a tolerable roar and the KEF tweeters no longer make my ears FREAK out. So, I’m only a day in with the WiiM, but wow! For 300 bucks, I can use it as a switch (between the HDMI and USB out digital streaming-only). That it also has a decent touch screen is a big win as I learn the app.

So, in the next month, after I’m a bit stronger, I’ll flip the Bluesound Node/Edge and Q Acoustics 3030is for the KEF/WiiM combo. The 3030is are great speakers, but do not have the clarity or OOMPH of the KEFs. Music nerd joy!!!

Thanks for the recommendation.

For short runs, even Cat5e is sufficient.

The badwidth specs are for corporate installations that run in the hundreds of feet.

I have three managed switches running GigE and Spanning Tree, in a physical delta configuration. The legs are about 40 feet long. No problems at all achieving GigE with Cat5E. I also run link aggregation, so I’m getting 2GigE on two legs, the other leg runs 10GigE.

No problem.

The drops to the room are all GigE. Each room has its own unmanaged GigE switch Three of us are on all day long… Tidal, Netflix, VPN for our jobs, big NASs (120TB), etc… and we have no bandwidth issues.

I also installed three WiFi access points ( same SSIDs, different channels ) for roaming. So, our wireless devices can roam across the house.

Note: enable ONLY ONE device as DHCP server… I recommend your main gateway router over its LAN connection.

In you small cabin, I’d recommend a physical connection to your PC only for security, but for media, a modern WiFi access point will be sufficient.

( You configure the access point by not assigning it an IP address to its WAN side, instead, assign the IPADDR of the gateway – your ASUS router. Then just plug everything into the same LAN. ).

My goal is to get bit perfect audio from Chromebooks and Android Tablets. The Chromebook reclocks everything to 48Khz… my current Android Tablet test mate reclocks everything to 192 Khz.

The test set up uses USB-OTG to drive a Topping D90LE which displays the bit input bit rate.

The source is Tidal HiFi… where I can see the bit rates too… set up to “MAX” I see Redbook 16/44.1 all the way up to 24/192Khz.

BUT, the Chromebook and Android get in the way. The display in the Topping ALWAYS shows either 48KHz (Chromebook) or 192KHz (Android) regardless of what Tidal is telling me.

Hmm.. not bit perfect.

So, I put the WiiM Ultra in between. Driving the Chromebook and Android via WiFi ( Tidal Connect ), using a normal USB cable between the WiiM and the Topping DAC, and installed WiiM Home in the tablet and my Android phone as well.

So, the WiiM Ultra operates as a streamer, bypassing its build in DAC.

Since the DAC goes into a preamp, I disabled the volume and room correction processing in the WiiM. Also disabled its DAC by choosing USB as output. Configured as a bridge between its WiFi input and USB output.

Guess what? It seems like the Chromebook and Android Tablet are indeed hobbled by reclocking their USB outputs but their WiFi outputs are not reclocked. They are bit perfect. WiiM does not reclock the signal, it is indeed a “transparent bridge” for the signal.

So, now whatever the bit rate that Tidal shows, is also shown on the front panel of the Topping D90 and on the WiiM Home screen. From Redbook up to 24/192… Nice. Perfect. The bit rate is preserved from the Tidal source all the way down to the DAC input.

So, for 300 bucks ( I got it on sale ) I now have bit perfect audio!

Try it…

And, yes, it sounds better. The sounds is airier, the treble is more extended and less “crashy”.. the soundstage is deeper, dynamics faster, instruments are clearer and the sound is actually more relaxed, I can listen for hours in my home office system with this set up ( it’s a High End System… )

I’m thinking of buying a second WiiM Ultra and I’m gonna put that one in the den’s HT as a 2 channel source. That one will use its built in DAC. We’ll see, no big deal, I got several other USB driven DACs I can use if needs be.

Neat. No need to spend beaucoup de dollars… just this little gizmo gave me bit perfect audio from those cheapo sources ( I only buy those Chromebook/Tablet things when they’re on sale at Costco for 199 – or less).

Nice.

Hi Larry,

I never thought of that in regard to the speakers. I actually came up with a different solution for the Ethernet in regard to the A-frame ADU. I have an ASUS Router with 4 Gigabit LAN ports and I’m going to spend the extra dinero to have Zook install CAT7 (CAT8 seems like overkill) cables and some wall ports. My router is pretty strong and considering the dimensions of the unit (57′ x 15), the lengths won’t be too bad.

IW

Hi Ian,

Instead of towels use foam laptop sleeves from Amazon. That’s how I protect the EGGs. The Ethernet connection part is easy, use a Wi-Fi extender that comes with an ethernet port.

Larry

Larry,

It’s an interesting design for sure that requires spending more to get what you need. Which in my case is the ADU model. I’m with you on the KEFs and my pair of LSX II (currently inside a duffel bag wrapped in towels) will be used either in the MB or kitchen. Just need to figure out the Ethernet connection part.

Appreciate the kind words.

IW

The A-frame looks gorgeous. Being retired, I often spend extended stays (months at a time) in various VRBOs. Currently, I’m in NZ for six months. If I had more suitcase room, I’d use one of the KEF LSX variants. But since suitcase space is a priority I use a set of KEF EGGs. I drive them from a Samsung Galaxy S-21 to an outboard dongle DAC to the KEFs via their analog input. KEF is selling the EGG Duo’s for $299, which uses the same 11th-gen driver as the rest of the LSX family. Having lived with this combo since November, it’s fantastic. As an added plus, the Samsung provides access to all my video services as well. I’d be glad to share more if you’re interested.

As always, I enjoy your writing.

Larry

Asa,

Happy to hear that. Am headed to PA next week to see Zook and will take some photos if the A-frame house is complete.

IW

Also, I look forward to more info and a review of the Pantheone Audio products (Pantheone 1 and Obsidian). Would be a perfect solution to my living room audio, at least on paper, and the better half would get some shelf space back. And tell them to get rid of that weird cursor circle on their website – not helpful. 🙂

PSA: For anyone with elderly parents, the Apple AirPod Pro 2s are an excellent hearing aid devices. She was using pricey, but defective hearing aides, and once these went in, she was amazed how well they worked, and for much less $$$.