Multiroom audio, using native streaming options

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#1

Hi all,

I’ve seen multiple topics about multiroom audio. If I understand correctly, most of them use something like snapcast or other software running on a Raspberry Pi. Also if I understand correctly, every ‘speaker’ needs to have a seperate Pi connected to it as the audio source (over 3.5mm jack I guess?).

Now, with all the current speakers and streaming options included with it, I was wondering if the following scenario could be created a bit more ‘natively’’:

Let’s say we have a Soundbar in the living room with google cast functionality (For i.e. the ‘HEOS by Denon Bar’ ), a Google Home Mini in the Kitchen, a TV with a Chromecast in it upstairs and ideally also a bluetooth speaker floating around the house, but always within reach of the Kitchen GH Mini.

Wouldn’t it somehow be possible to ‘stream/cast’ (for i.e. Spotify or TuneIn) to all or some of these devices using Home Assistant? Ideally including some kind of syncing and off course master + separate volume control in LoveLace?
To be clear, without the need to put any device (manually) to the correct input source on forehand, and without seperate Pi’s or similar for the different devices?

Maybe it’s a proven thing already, but I didn’t happen to find usefull info about this.

Thanks in advance!

#2

AFAIK Spotify supports the select_source service, you can try it with this.
Im in a shared apartment and the only room that i can make smart is my room, so i cant test it with with my current setup.
Are you trying to make a automation like “if im in the kitchen switch the playback to the kitchen and if im in the bedroom switch the playback to the bedroom”? Im using my Xiaomi Mi Band 3 and my old HAss server raspi3b+, that would otherwise only collect dust, since i switched to an old office pc as server, with room-assistant as a detection, if im in my room and if not, it pauses the playback, but when i move into my own flat, i would definetly use more raspis to switch the playback to the corresponding source.

#3

It’s not necessarily the ‘walking in and out’ functionality, it’s more like using one source (preferably spotify) to stream to multiple devices, without using additional raspberry pi’s for each device (one remotely-placed Pi as some kind of hub could be acceptable though). A bit like the ‘speaker group’ functionality on Google Home works.
Hope this makes it a bit more clear as to what I’m looking for.

Thanks in advance!

#4

I dont think Spotify can do this natively, atleast with one account. Like, when i play music on my PC with Spotify, i cant listen to the same or even other music on another client like my phone.

#5

That seems valid. Therefor our mighty HomeAssistant should act like some kind of ‘splitter’ spoken in logic terms.

1 Like
#6

Bringing this topic up again.
Any solution found for multi room audio without using additional hardware?

#7

I use Google minis with media extractor service to play audio in multiple rooms.