r/amplifiers

I’ve been thinking about the new wave of “smart amps” like the WiiM Amp. On paper it looks amazing: compact, streaming first, app controlled, constantly updated features, etc.
But the more I look at it, the more it feels like we’re moving toward something that is almost entirely software dependent hardware and that raises a few concerns.

Hardware becomes “good enough,” software becomes everything
The amp itself is basically a stable platform. All the real differentiation is:
App experience
Streaming integrations
EQ / room correction updates
UI changes
Firmware support longevity
That means your “hi fi experience” is no longer just hardware quality, it’s tied to software decisions years after purchase.

Long term support risk is real
We’ve seen this pattern before in consumer tech:
Products launch strong
Software support slows after a few years
Features get deprecated or locked behind newer models
App ecosystems shift
Even if WiiM is good today, the question is what happens in 5 to 8 years when the app ecosystem moves on.

Convenience versus permanence
I get the appeal:
One app controls everything
Streaming is seamless
Updates can improve features over time
But audiophile gear used to be the opposite philosophy:
Buy once, use for decades, no dependencies
We are now trading that for:
Buy once, hope the software stays good

My concern in one line
A great app today does not guarantee a great product tomorrow.
Curious what others think. Is software defined hi fi the future we actually want, or are we slowly accepting planned obsolescence in a nicer UI wrapper?

So I have a 2025 ioniq 6 SEL so no Bose sound system. I want to install my JL Audio 12w1v2-4 subwoofer but not sure what amp I can use that will be safe to use on an electric vehicle. I was chatting with someone on Crutchfield and the guy said they don't have any amps compatible with the ioniq 6. But doing research online through gemini I found that class D amps should be safe to use as long as they aren't pushing more than 600 watts. But today I read to only use an amp that pulls less than 30 amps so using a 300 watt amp pulls 25 amps already. So question is, what amps are safe to use, or what amps are people currently using on there ioniq 6? I'm new to this so don't want to fuck anything up, especially with these ICCU issues I see here. Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

On side note, someone is selling me a JL audio jd500/1 amplifier for cheap. At 4 ohms it pushes 250watts which should the safe on the 12v battery. But I'd like upgrade the subwoofer in the future to a JL audio w3 series at 2ohms which would use the full 500watts of the amp. Would that be too much?

Sorry if I am being a little bit too long winded lol. Like I said I'm learning on the fly.

So I have 2 evl skar 12s with a CA3000.1DPROV2 amp how should I tune my amp help please

No offense if you love dsp, but I just don't really see a huge point to use it.

It's kinda cool for a few minutes to mess around with, but how many people wanted to have they're music sound like its in a church.

But again this is all my opinion. And I would love to know if you like it and use it a lot.

I recently picked up a pair of focal chorus 706's off market place but still haven't bought an amplifier for them. I'm running a Fluance Rt85n with a schiit mani 2 as the preamp. After looking online the Yamaha AS504 seems appealing but i don't want to with the wrong amplifier. I would not like to spend more than $800 and even that is a stretch. Any recommendations would be very appreciated. The speakers are about 89db sensitive, with a of max 120 watt @ 8 ohm (obviously staying between 50-90watt)