WiiM Amp Pro Amplifier Review

Having established itself as a genuine front-runner in double-quick time, WiiM is now in the process of creating a portfolio of entry-level products designed to take it to the next level. The Amp Pro is its latest integrated stereo amplifier, and boasts plenty of network streaming and multiroom smarts too – but you wouldn't know to look at it.

The fascia of this little [66x217x190mm, HxWxD] 'space gray' aluminium box features a volume control and a few LEDs – and that's yer lot. There is scarcely more going on around the back. An input for mains power and a pair of speaker cable binding posts are accompanied by an Ethernet socket and an HDMI ARC, a digital optical input, stereo RCA line-level inputs, a USB slot and a pre-out for a subwoofer.

Yet the Amp Pro most assuredly has it where it counts – inside. This little box comes fitted with an ESS ES9038 Q2M DAC, which is capable of natively dealing with 24-bit/192kHz content. This feeds a Texas Instruments TPA3255 amplifier chipset that can push out a claimed 60 watts per channel into 8 ohms. The WiiM uses both Bluetooth 5.3 (with LE Audio codec compatibility) and Wi-Fi 6 (with a promised upgrade to 6E coming soon) for wireless connectivity. And it's configured not only to stream music from your local network (thanks both to its DLNA compliance and its Roon Ready status) and a fistful of music and internet radio streaming services but also to form part of a multiroom system in conjunction with Amazon Echo, Google Nest, Linkplay and/or WiiM devices.

Control is available via Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice protocols, or you can always use the reasonably comprehensive remote control handset that's part of the bundle. Your best bet, though – unless you're completely enamoured with the sound of your own voice – is the 'WiiM Home' control app that's free for iOS and Android. This lets you access numerous music streaming services. As well as Alexa Cast, Google Cast, and the 'Connect' versions of Spotify and TIDAL, the Amp Pro can handle everything from Amazon Music and BBC Radio via Deezer and Napster to Pandora, Quobuz and SoundCloud. Internet radio is available from vTuner and iHeartRadio.

The ten-band graphic equaliser lets you define your own custom EQ settings if you don't like any of the 24 presets. There are a dozen slots for 'favourites', a balance control, and a room-correction algorithm to help the WiiM tune itself to your specific environment. It even has an alarm clock. In terms of ease of use, other apps might be a little more intuitive when it comes to navigation. This app sometimes needs a moment to remember what's what if the device that's running it should go to sleep, but it's as comprehensive and as useful as the best alternatives out there.

THE LISTENING

There are a few things you need to do before you can appraise the WiiM Amp Pro in the manner it deserves. First is to ensure you've run the room correction routine in the app. The second is to be sure to use price-appropriate speakers and source equipment. And thirdly, you need to remember that this device costs less than a couple of nights at a cheap travel hotel – context is everything, after all. This done, this proves to be an adaptable, likeable and musical little device that's entirely fit for purpose. As a combination of audio quality and extended functionality, it's hard to lay a glove on.

The Amp Pro plays things safe at the top of the frequency range. Treble extension is decent, and there's reasonable crunch and bite once you're up there, but it's still not the most open performer up top. Presumably, this is deliberate to aid system matching with speakers that are likely to be less than refined. While this means the Amp Pro isn't the absolute last word in accuracy, it is nevertheless a sensible policy. Making yourself as welcoming as possible to as many partnering speakers as possible has to be a good idea in this area of the market.

The Amp Pro isn't the best I've heard in dynamic terms, but certainly doesn't fall behind its price rivals in this respect. Like anything in this market sector, it can't quite faithfully track the sudden amplitude changes found in most types of music. Take The Columbia Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Bernstein having at George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, for example. This classic 1959 recording sounds just slightly flattened when the transition from 'solo piano' to 'entire orchestra in full attack mode' occurs. This is a far-from-fatal trait, you understand, but it reminds us of the Wiim's modest price point all the same.

Aside from these gripes, the WiiM gives a very good account of itself. Its tonal balance, for example, is nicely judged in the 'Goldilocks' manner – it's not too warm and not too chilly, but just right. And that treble reticence aside, the smoothness and evenness of the frequency response is pleasing. Detail levels are high across the board too, which makes for a satisfying listening experience.

For example, the way the Amp Pro renders the quirky modern electropop of Jockstrap's Greatest Hits is very enjoyable. It puts everything in the mix carefully in its place and knits it all together in a highly controlled way. It's an expansive listen in both 'left/right' and 'front/back' terms, and even the most complex stuff comes across as organised, spacious and easy to follow. Bass is similarly well-wrought, too. The WiiM digs down deep but also has the sort of variation and textural information available to prevent it from just droning or thumping. Low-end sounds start and stop with alacrity, making rhythmic expressions confident and convincing.

It's through the midrange that the Amp Pro shines brightest. It communicates in absolute torrents, granting vocalists of all styles, techniques and levels of competence complete expression. No matter if it's the tone-deaf approach of Stephen McRobbie during The Pastels' Nothing To Be Done or Anne Sofie von Otter's Baby Plays Around masterclass, the WiiM is as eloquent and articulate through the midrange as the best of any of its price rivals. Indeed, the Amp Pro impresses at every turn. Its powers of stereo focus are a match for its ability to separate and individualise specific elements of a recording. It is alert to the small harmonic variations that the aforementioned solo piano exhibits. It's deft where even the trickiest, most club-footed rhythms are concerned.

THE VERDICT

The WiiM Amp Pro is a properly talented product at the price, and it's well worth investigating if you're after this sort of integrated stereo amplifier. And when you factor in its wider functionality, it becomes a compelling purchasing proposition. Like all of WiiM's recent releases, this new design really hits the spot.

Visit WiiM for more information