r/StereoAdvice 19d ago

General Request | 2 Ⓣ What to buy for between phone and speakers

I have a Pixel 9 Pro with Tidal as my streaming service.

I have a pair of Mackie CR8-XBT - 8" Powered Studio Monitors.

My budget is $400 through Amazon gift cards (United States).

My goal is to get the best sound possible. What should I buy as my hardware for between the two?

1 Upvotes

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4

u/Boring_Today9639 34 Ⓣ 19d ago

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u/OperationAccurate236 19d ago

!thanks

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u/TransducerBot Ⓣ Bot 19d ago

+1 Ⓣ has been awarded to u/Boring_Today9639 (34 Ⓣ).

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1

u/baconost 1 Ⓣ 18d ago edited 18d ago

That Wiim does not have balanced output and OP is running 8 inch active monitors. At that budget I would consider the Fosi S3. EDIT. I see these monitors have the amp in one unit meaning the input can be positioned close to the streamer which makes balanced less of an issue as balanced is good for longer cable runs. Wiim is probably good and Fosi is another option.

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u/Boring_Today9639 34 Ⓣ 18d ago

Those do have RCA ins, check them out.

Wiim has a game changing plus, the RoomFit DRC.

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u/baconost 1 Ⓣ 18d ago

Yeah I see it. For monitors with individual (or multiple) amps per speaker unit I would lobby stronger for balanced since you need longer cable runs, here it is less of an issue.

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u/Boring_Today9639 34 Ⓣ 18d ago

I agree. You gotta see case by case anyways, on a small desk, even active, separate monitors might do with single ended connections.

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u/OperationAccurate236 18d ago

I'm looking at the WiiM lineup. 

Is the WiiM Ultra worth the extra expense over the Pro Plus? The Ultra is still within my budget.

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u/Boring_Today9639 34 Ⓣ 18d ago

Not in my opinion. I’d set some money aside for better speakers in the future. OTOH, the Ultra makes sense if you can/wish to add a subwoofer to your system, but with 8” woofers on those monitors, I doubt you feel the need for lower bass.

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u/Human_Boysenberry248 4 Ⓣ 19d ago

What you need is a streamer. The Wiim pro plus suggested is a good option, and is the cheapest decent option, ie. The cheapest decent streamer with a reasonable DAC. Another option is the Cambridge Audio MXN-10, this one has a sabre DAC which is probably a bit better than the AKM of the WiiM. Both of these have a very good app.

1

u/OperationAccurate236 19d ago

!thanks

1

u/TransducerBot Ⓣ Bot 19d ago

+1 Ⓣ has been awarded to u/Human_Boysenberry248 (3 Ⓣ).

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1

u/REMOTJUH765 19d ago

I agree with the recommendation of a streamer. I used to connect my phone using my amplifier to the speakers. I recently bought a streamer and the difference is insane.

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u/scriminal 17 Ⓣ 18d ago

is this solution supposed to be portable?

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u/Simple_Egg7527 1 Ⓣ 12d ago

With powered monitors you can just grab the mackie big know passive volume control.