Value-Priced Multi-Room Audio

MANY OF us use inexpensive smart speakers throughout our homes to play music and control everything from lights to microwaves and washing machines. Devices like the Amazon Echo are great at controlling smart devices along with other more capable smart speakers and amps, but they don't typically deliver a great listening experience on their own.

- Barb Gonzalez

To achieve multiroom capability and rich, full-bodied sound-something on par with what you would expect from a good pair of stereo speakers-you have to spend quite a bit more, which means looking at systems from companies like Sonos or Bluesound. Or, you could set up a system using existing speakers and one of the many integrated streaming amps that have become available in recent years at prices across the board.

The WiiM Amp is an affordable and highly capable example of a "smart amp" that streams music to one or several speakers around the house. It is similar in concept to the Sonos Amp but sells for half the price and doesn't limit you to speakers designed to work only in a proprietary (such as Sonos).

The amp is about as streamlined as you can get with only one knob and a row of LEDs on its front panel. Everything can be controlled using the WiiM Home App (for iPhone or Android), or you can use the supplied voice remote to adjust volume and control playback, which works fine as long as you don't need to know details about the music that's streaming because the Wiim Amp has no display. The remote's built-in microphone allows the amp to also function as an Alexa-compatible device capable of controlling compatible smart-home devices.

There are many similarities with Sonos in the way the Wiim Home App works. In addition to being able to stream directly from the popular music services such as Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, Napster, SoundCloud, and Qobuz, you can stream music from a computer or NAS drive. You can also use Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri voice commands albums, artists, and playlists or adjust volume and play/pause or skip tracks. You can also use AirPlay to stream music from phones, computers, and other sources to Apple devices, such as a HomePod or Apple TV, or use Bluetooth to stream to headphones; wired listening isn’t possible because the Wiim Amp doesn’t have a headphone jack.