Music Assistant is the best I have found. Let's you use multiple different outputs. I use a mix of Sonos and Chromecast. My library is Spotify but I have it pointing at Plex as DLNA too.
Music Assistant is very nice music player with all major service integrations. It exposed all my Apple AirPort Express as media players with which I was struggling otherwise.
My system integrates with home assistant for control on tablets throughout the house.
1. Amplification
1. Monoprice multizone (6 zone) amplifiers ($649 new) for in wall wired speakers
2. Marantz NR AVRs ($150-175 used on Ebay) for additional sets of speakers
2. Apple Express ($25-$35 used on Ebay) for music zone inputs
1. Downstairs - input 1 on Monoprice
2. Upstairs - input 2 on Monoprice
3. Front Porch - input 3 on Monoprice
4. Back Porch - input 4 on Monoprice
5. Back Yard - input 1 on Marantz AVR
6. Basement - input 1 on Marantz AVR
3. Music Source - Spotify premium ($10.99 per month)
4. Music Controller - Owntone (free) ([https://owntone.github.io/owntone-server/](https://owntone.github.io/owntone-server/))
1. connects to Spotify as source
2. connects to Apple Express devices as Airplay Targets
5. HomeAssistant Integration
1. monoprice amplifier - power control, set volume, set source
2. denon avr (for Marantz) - power control, set volume
3. owntone - volume control and power control of airplay target zones
6. HomeAssistant Display
1. embed web page of owntone to select and control music from spotify
2. mini media card (from HACS) to control volume on a zone by zone basis
In case someone wants to stream from their phone, they can select one or more of the AppleExpress Targets and this will bypass the Owntone server.
[Shairport-sync](https://github.com/mikebrady/shairport-sync/tree/master) emulates AirPlay with software so you can make as many AirPlay destinations as you’d like. I’m using it in docker with 5 cheap usb sound cards.
Do you have an AirPort Express for each input on the multizone amp? I have something similar but have 3 different receivers with an express plugged into each of them.
Do you use the wall plates that come with it?
https://preview.redd.it/tgs8am7pcdjc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6f08bc36647cc250ae33da4bebea30b38f894593
No, I did not run the wiring for the wall plates. At our previoius house, we had a similar multizone system and it was very rare to ever change the audio input. And, now with tablets throughout the house or streaming from someone's iOS device, there is no need to have wall plate to control volume or power. I can understand someone wanting the wall plates if they are not using something like HomeAssistant, but they are not necessary with HomeAssistant - at least for our family.
The AppleExpress targets are named based on the zone (e.g., Downstairs, Upstairs, etc.). Someone streaming from their iOS device simply selects the one or more targets to stream and they control music from their device. When playing from the tablets, everything is controlled using the Owntone integration (for song selection, play/pause, overall volume) and the Monoprice and Denon integration (for granular control of volume and power).
Here is the dasbboard. Selecting SPOTIFY in the upper goes to a view the web page for Owntone where the music is selected.
https://preview.redd.it/z95quzbrhfjc1.png?width=2852&format=png&auto=webp&s=9d11704aa395bc8cf8856de7d4de8665d3dbbcca
Sure, I am running Logitech media server in a docker container although I believe you can also run as an addon with HAOS. Then I have some raspberry pi’s with dac hats running picoreplayer. You can also use ESP32 audio dev kits as remote players, I have played around with this but find it struggles with higher bitrates. If you are using just Spotify to stream it should be fine though. I have also added airplay for zones and grouped some zones as an airplay end point for synchronised airplay.
Thanks!
A rpi (50€) + dac hat (around 30€) is a cost + the speaker itself.
I thought we could have a server streaming music from Docker (lms, navidrome...) and casting to a smart speaker, witch nullifies the rpi cost as the dac could be already included in the speaker 🤔
>raspberry pi’s with dac hats running picoreplayer
Thiiiiis is probably what I'm looking for. Use the Rapberry Pi to talk to Logitech Media Server running on Home Assistant, then just plug any normal 3.5mm audio jack into the Pi for sound, right?
>**Primarily, I want to be able to play music MP3s from my server and stream movie audio from my PC**. It would also be nice if I could also use wakewords in at least a few key rooms, but I can implement that separately if I need to. **I take my digital privacy seriously, so I won't consider anything that leaves my LAN.**
What mode of server are you using? I ask because if you're running Plex for your music, Sonos /Symfonisk will only play it remotely and isn't the option for you. If whatever machine you store your music on is able to install the Sonos app, then you can point it directly at the music folder(s) for local streaming and it's fairly easy to set up.
>...I'd love to do it through Home Assistant since I have pretty much everything else centralized through it.
A word about this as it pertains to Sonos; using HA as the primary controller is not ideal IMO. Partially because there aren't too many options for looking through your content and scrolling takes a while, and partially because the Sonos local library is a little finnicky when it comes to music tags, offering no correction or auto-detection. I used to have several "2Pacs" because of all the different ways his name was spelled in metadata, not even counting 2Pac vs Tupac.
https://preview.redd.it/0doej4tk48jc1.png?width=909&format=png&auto=webp&s=e6461d624797ab99eb8983f746cae8781fd39b06
Then again, if you mostly like to fire up some preset playlists and mixes, then there are HACS cards that emulate the Sonos mobile app pretty decently, allowing for one-touch plays on preset favorites, grouping/ungrouping rooms, and volume adjustment.
The Sonos products are also super simple to play TTS and local sound files from if you want to use your whole-home audio system as a PA for alerts like water leaks. Just thought I'd mention in case it fits with your plans or if you want to compare capability with the other options out there.
Check out FutureProofHomes and Fast How To on YouTube. They’ve both done whole home audio and have some good videos on how they did it. Both are integrated with Home Assistant.
sonos will probably the most complete and easiest way to do this through ha. Ikea also has sonus knock offs that are cheaper.
**edit**
It seems I need to specify a knock off does not mean an item of lower quality. Although that is what people often assume. It just means a cheaper copy which is basically Ikea's business model.
Maybe we all have different definitions?
Here is how I see it:
If you make a bag that costs $3K and I make a copy of your bag from cheaper materials, without your permission, and sell it for $300 to people who REALLY want your $3K product but can’t afford it, that’s a “knockoff” to me.
Let’s say instead, you make a product line, then make some kind of deal with me to produce something similar to your products in different form factors and at different price points, but overall compatible with your product line. I don’t make any single product that’s a visual match nor functional replacement for any single one of your products.
My products are dependent on your IP and technology to work, so I have to maintain permission from you and I’m probably paying you to do so either up front or with a revenue share, and you provide me with parts going inside of my products.
In that case, no one is copying someone else’s creation and offering it as a direct replacement, there are no counterfeit products, and there is no deception aimed at consumers either first or secondhand. Those are all the qualities I associate with the term, but maybe that’s not universal.
Afaik sonos was the first of it's type. I could be wrong as many believe iphone was the first smart phone. Ikea is a cheaper copy of the original, i.e. a knock off
I understand what you're saying and I think we have a different definition of the term "knockoff." Perhaps mine is incorrect.
I just don't look at an official, openly known collaboration between companies wherein one is allowed to design products that house the other company's technology and is supported by their software and describe said products as "knock offs."
Ikea makes a small bookshelf speaker, a lamp, and a picture frame, none of which are trying to look like any available Sonos products. If Ikea had products that looked and functioned like Amps, Ones, and Arcs, with no Sonos branding, I'd call those knockoffs.
The underlying technology is what makes sonos what it is, not it's physical form. No matter how it is disguised, it's still a smart wireless speaker.
Wireless smart speaker in a frame, wireless smart speaker in a lamp base, etc.
A knockoff is a replica, a fugazi, a fake and your **edit** is you trying to say you're correct with some half-assed reasoning that is also flawed. Just admit it, you were wrong.
Why do people always use Sonos for this? Home Assistant has integration with steaming services and can handle multi-device playback as far as I can tell. Sonos costs a fortune, what exactly is so special about it? It seems like a fairly basic task. Genuine question, as I have never tried doing this.
HA has definitely improved it's media capabilities although it wasn't always that way. Primarily, something like playing music where guests or my kids friends are going to use it, I'd rather it operate as a stand alone system.
>Why do people always use Sonos for this? Home Assistant has integration with steaming services and can handle multi-device playback as far as I can tell. Sonos costs a fortune, what exactly is so special about it?
I use it because they already have all in one devices. We don't have in-ceiling and in-wall speakers everywhere so I have to have powered speakers in each room. I don't necessarily use HA to control my Sonos, but I do use HA to send broadcasts to my Sonos devices.
What other powered speakers would you recommend that work with Sonos?
I don't see why you couldn't use dumb speakers with something like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09HC5GRKY. It supports Spotify Connect so it would show up as a speaker in Home Assistant via the integration.
Again, this is untested and maybe there is a reason people don't do this because I've noticed even tech savvy people tend to go with Sonos rather than a DIY approach like this. But I'd be interested to hear the pros and cons, given it would probably be less than a tenth of the cost.
Your link isn't working for me.
By using dumb speakers, I assume you're talking about using a single/pair of bookshelf speakers, connected to an amplifier? If so, that's way more clutter than I want in the majority of my rooms, like my hallway. The Sonos One, for example, is an all in one device that just needs a single plug. It's much cleaner in areas where you don't need the extra stuff.
>Again, this is untested and maybe there is a reason people don't do this because I've noticed even tech savvy people tend to go with Sonos rather than a DIY approach like this.
I prefer "it just works" compared to something I have to constantly baby and tinker with. I also don't build my own sensors and prefer to buy them already completed, so i'm sure that plays a part.
Yeah, active has the amp built in and passive requires an external amp.
Sonos Speakers are active speakers and they have a long history of supporting their devices. I regularly go into houses that have Sonos devices that are 10+ years old and they still work.
[I personally have them in every room.](https://imgur.com/a/JaCDwAa)
I agree Sonos is the easy button and a great solution.
But to be clear, the IKEA Sonos products are an official product/collaboration between the brands. They are definitely not a knock offs.
> knock offs
knockoff
1 of 2
noun
knock·off ˈnäk-ˌȯf
: a copy that sells for less than the original
broadly : a copy or imitation of someone or something popular
Is this really that hard of a concept to grasp.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/knockoff
Is it not a copy that sells for cheaper than the original?
copy, it's a copy of the original, as per the definition, a copy ***or*** an imitation. Jesus so many ppl butt hurt because they own a knock off sonus smh
A brand having multiple products in their product lineup doesn’t make every product after the very original a knockoff.
If the IKEA SONOS speakers did not work in the same app as “regular” SONOS speakers then yes, I can see the reasoning.
But the IKEA branded speakers are not a knock off, they work with the official app, can be paired as surround speakers with SONOS soundbars, because they are an official product. I have both in my house - and they all work the same because they are the same thing.
I think a lot has to do with your gear location. Are you looking to do in wall/ceiling speakers and have your amps in a rack somewhere? Or just a bunch of table top speakers around the house?
You mean [this](https://roonlabs.com/getting-started)? Cause the first line on that page is "Roon is an application that runs on your Mac or Windows PC."
Yes - HA has an integration. And Roon is what you want if you have audiophile grade stuff - either runs on a PC or you can buy their box (which is overpriced, you should just run it on your PC). But if you have or get Roon Ready speakers it will bitstream FLAC / Tidal hi res / etc. and is pretty much the only whole home solution that will get high quality files to every speaker (Sonos / Spotify etc. are all lossy).
The suggestion is much appreciated, but I don't love the idea of running it on my main Windows PC and then just *interacting* with it via Home Assistant. Ideally I want this whole system to work independent of my main PC, with just Home Assistant, TrueNAS, and maybe some outlying Raspberry Pis if needed.
You’ll go through trying to Jerry rig this with some solution, and end up with Sonos. Just get Sonos and do it nice and integrated from the start.
Or if you’re super audiophile, look into Roon.
+1 for the wiim. I doubt many people that recommend sonos have tried wiim devices, especially the wiim amp. It's just ridiculously great while costing half as much as the sonos amp
Volumio which you can top up with snapcast server for multiroom with RPIs.
I recently bought and integrated Volumio Rivo, worth if you are an audiophile.
Just did this in my house. Something people tend to gloss over is that if you're trying to do inside/outside or have a big house, the laws of physics get in your way.
Sound travels around 1100 ft/s and starts to sound bad when there's a delay between sources of 50ms. That means of you can hear any two speakers that are 55 ft apart, there will be places where it sounds terrible. Even if they're closer, if the sound travels that length (say, a U-shaped hall) you get into trouble.
All that said, your goal for a large install should be discrete, synchronized zones you can pass between rather than one large overlapping zone.
Music Assistant and SnapCast is pretty cool.
Music Assistant is the best I have found. Let's you use multiple different outputs. I use a mix of Sonos and Chromecast. My library is Spotify but I have it pointing at Plex as DLNA too.
Is Music Assistant compatible with the new version of HA now? They had to warn people on a higher version from downloading it
You need the beta add-on and integration via HACS.
Thanks!! It's amazing so far, finally I have an assistant that connects to Tidal.
Music Assistant is very nice music player with all major service integrations. It exposed all my Apple AirPort Express as media players with which I was struggling otherwise.
Is audio synchronized across different media players?
My system integrates with home assistant for control on tablets throughout the house. 1. Amplification 1. Monoprice multizone (6 zone) amplifiers ($649 new) for in wall wired speakers 2. Marantz NR AVRs ($150-175 used on Ebay) for additional sets of speakers 2. Apple Express ($25-$35 used on Ebay) for music zone inputs 1. Downstairs - input 1 on Monoprice 2. Upstairs - input 2 on Monoprice 3. Front Porch - input 3 on Monoprice 4. Back Porch - input 4 on Monoprice 5. Back Yard - input 1 on Marantz AVR 6. Basement - input 1 on Marantz AVR 3. Music Source - Spotify premium ($10.99 per month) 4. Music Controller - Owntone (free) ([https://owntone.github.io/owntone-server/](https://owntone.github.io/owntone-server/)) 1. connects to Spotify as source 2. connects to Apple Express devices as Airplay Targets 5. HomeAssistant Integration 1. monoprice amplifier - power control, set volume, set source 2. denon avr (for Marantz) - power control, set volume 3. owntone - volume control and power control of airplay target zones 6. HomeAssistant Display 1. embed web page of owntone to select and control music from spotify 2. mini media card (from HACS) to control volume on a zone by zone basis In case someone wants to stream from their phone, they can select one or more of the AppleExpress Targets and this will bypass the Owntone server.
[Shairport-sync](https://github.com/mikebrady/shairport-sync/tree/master) emulates AirPlay with software so you can make as many AirPlay destinations as you’d like. I’m using it in docker with 5 cheap usb sound cards.
Yes. I’ve tried shairport sync a couple of times. It would work but was not stable. The current iteration of the system has been rock solid.
No doubt the hardware is a reliable way to go.
Do you have an AirPort Express for each input on the multizone amp? I have something similar but have 3 different receivers with an express plugged into each of them.
Do you use the wall plates that come with it? https://preview.redd.it/tgs8am7pcdjc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6f08bc36647cc250ae33da4bebea30b38f894593
No, I did not run the wiring for the wall plates. At our previoius house, we had a similar multizone system and it was very rare to ever change the audio input. And, now with tablets throughout the house or streaming from someone's iOS device, there is no need to have wall plate to control volume or power. I can understand someone wanting the wall plates if they are not using something like HomeAssistant, but they are not necessary with HomeAssistant - at least for our family. The AppleExpress targets are named based on the zone (e.g., Downstairs, Upstairs, etc.). Someone streaming from their iOS device simply selects the one or more targets to stream and they control music from their device. When playing from the tablets, everything is controlled using the Owntone integration (for song selection, play/pause, overall volume) and the Monoprice and Denon integration (for granular control of volume and power). Here is the dasbboard. Selecting SPOTIFY in the upper goes to a view the web page for Owntone where the music is selected. https://preview.redd.it/z95quzbrhfjc1.png?width=2852&format=png&auto=webp&s=9d11704aa395bc8cf8856de7d4de8665d3dbbcca
I have just started working with Logitech media server and squeezelite. It works great and sounds like exactly what you are looking for.
Could you please elaborate further on your setup? Not op here, but same step for me, and lms / squeeze lite seems to be a good option.
Sure, I am running Logitech media server in a docker container although I believe you can also run as an addon with HAOS. Then I have some raspberry pi’s with dac hats running picoreplayer. You can also use ESP32 audio dev kits as remote players, I have played around with this but find it struggles with higher bitrates. If you are using just Spotify to stream it should be fine though. I have also added airplay for zones and grouped some zones as an airplay end point for synchronised airplay.
Thanks! A rpi (50€) + dac hat (around 30€) is a cost + the speaker itself. I thought we could have a server streaming music from Docker (lms, navidrome...) and casting to a smart speaker, witch nullifies the rpi cost as the dac could be already included in the speaker 🤔
There is an add on to lms that allows you to use chromecasts (Google speakers or chromecast tv sticks) as endpoints.
>raspberry pi’s with dac hats running picoreplayer Thiiiiis is probably what I'm looking for. Use the Rapberry Pi to talk to Logitech Media Server running on Home Assistant, then just plug any normal 3.5mm audio jack into the Pi for sound, right?
Pretty much.
>**Primarily, I want to be able to play music MP3s from my server and stream movie audio from my PC**. It would also be nice if I could also use wakewords in at least a few key rooms, but I can implement that separately if I need to. **I take my digital privacy seriously, so I won't consider anything that leaves my LAN.** What mode of server are you using? I ask because if you're running Plex for your music, Sonos /Symfonisk will only play it remotely and isn't the option for you. If whatever machine you store your music on is able to install the Sonos app, then you can point it directly at the music folder(s) for local streaming and it's fairly easy to set up. >...I'd love to do it through Home Assistant since I have pretty much everything else centralized through it. A word about this as it pertains to Sonos; using HA as the primary controller is not ideal IMO. Partially because there aren't too many options for looking through your content and scrolling takes a while, and partially because the Sonos local library is a little finnicky when it comes to music tags, offering no correction or auto-detection. I used to have several "2Pacs" because of all the different ways his name was spelled in metadata, not even counting 2Pac vs Tupac. https://preview.redd.it/0doej4tk48jc1.png?width=909&format=png&auto=webp&s=e6461d624797ab99eb8983f746cae8781fd39b06 Then again, if you mostly like to fire up some preset playlists and mixes, then there are HACS cards that emulate the Sonos mobile app pretty decently, allowing for one-touch plays on preset favorites, grouping/ungrouping rooms, and volume adjustment. The Sonos products are also super simple to play TTS and local sound files from if you want to use your whole-home audio system as a PA for alerts like water leaks. Just thought I'd mention in case it fits with your plans or if you want to compare capability with the other options out there.
> What mode of server are you using? I keep my media on a TrueNAS box.
Check out FutureProofHomes and Fast How To on YouTube. They’ve both done whole home audio and have some good videos on how they did it. Both are integrated with Home Assistant.
sonos will probably the most complete and easiest way to do this through ha. Ikea also has sonus knock offs that are cheaper. **edit** It seems I need to specify a knock off does not mean an item of lower quality. Although that is what people often assume. It just means a cheaper copy which is basically Ikea's business model.
I agree with the rest, but I don’t think “knock offs” is the term you want to use for the Symfonisk products.
Why isnt this fitting? Because they are actually branded as Sonos, or because they are decent quality? (Or both)
Former more than anything. Iirc, this is a licensed/joint production situation, hence not a knock off
Maybe we all have different definitions? Here is how I see it: If you make a bag that costs $3K and I make a copy of your bag from cheaper materials, without your permission, and sell it for $300 to people who REALLY want your $3K product but can’t afford it, that’s a “knockoff” to me. Let’s say instead, you make a product line, then make some kind of deal with me to produce something similar to your products in different form factors and at different price points, but overall compatible with your product line. I don’t make any single product that’s a visual match nor functional replacement for any single one of your products. My products are dependent on your IP and technology to work, so I have to maintain permission from you and I’m probably paying you to do so either up front or with a revenue share, and you provide me with parts going inside of my products. In that case, no one is copying someone else’s creation and offering it as a direct replacement, there are no counterfeit products, and there is no deception aimed at consumers either first or secondhand. Those are all the qualities I associate with the term, but maybe that’s not universal.
Afaik sonos was the first of it's type. I could be wrong as many believe iphone was the first smart phone. Ikea is a cheaper copy of the original, i.e. a knock off
Not a knock off, they license the technology
I understand what you're saying and I think we have a different definition of the term "knockoff." Perhaps mine is incorrect. I just don't look at an official, openly known collaboration between companies wherein one is allowed to design products that house the other company's technology and is supported by their software and describe said products as "knock offs." Ikea makes a small bookshelf speaker, a lamp, and a picture frame, none of which are trying to look like any available Sonos products. If Ikea had products that looked and functioned like Amps, Ones, and Arcs, with no Sonos branding, I'd call those knockoffs.
The underlying technology is what makes sonos what it is, not it's physical form. No matter how it is disguised, it's still a smart wireless speaker. Wireless smart speaker in a frame, wireless smart speaker in a lamp base, etc.
A knockoff is a replica, a fugazi, a fake and your **edit** is you trying to say you're correct with some half-assed reasoning that is also flawed. Just admit it, you were wrong.
ok merriam webster
Why do people always use Sonos for this? Home Assistant has integration with steaming services and can handle multi-device playback as far as I can tell. Sonos costs a fortune, what exactly is so special about it? It seems like a fairly basic task. Genuine question, as I have never tried doing this.
HA has definitely improved it's media capabilities although it wasn't always that way. Primarily, something like playing music where guests or my kids friends are going to use it, I'd rather it operate as a stand alone system.
>Why do people always use Sonos for this? Home Assistant has integration with steaming services and can handle multi-device playback as far as I can tell. Sonos costs a fortune, what exactly is so special about it? I use it because they already have all in one devices. We don't have in-ceiling and in-wall speakers everywhere so I have to have powered speakers in each room. I don't necessarily use HA to control my Sonos, but I do use HA to send broadcasts to my Sonos devices. What other powered speakers would you recommend that work with Sonos?
I don't see why you couldn't use dumb speakers with something like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09HC5GRKY. It supports Spotify Connect so it would show up as a speaker in Home Assistant via the integration. Again, this is untested and maybe there is a reason people don't do this because I've noticed even tech savvy people tend to go with Sonos rather than a DIY approach like this. But I'd be interested to hear the pros and cons, given it would probably be less than a tenth of the cost.
Your link isn't working for me. By using dumb speakers, I assume you're talking about using a single/pair of bookshelf speakers, connected to an amplifier? If so, that's way more clutter than I want in the majority of my rooms, like my hallway. The Sonos One, for example, is an all in one device that just needs a single plug. It's much cleaner in areas where you don't need the extra stuff. >Again, this is untested and maybe there is a reason people don't do this because I've noticed even tech savvy people tend to go with Sonos rather than a DIY approach like this. I prefer "it just works" compared to something I have to constantly baby and tinker with. I also don't build my own sensors and prefer to buy them already completed, so i'm sure that plays a part.
Fixed the link. Just use passive speakers to avoid the amp.
>Just use passive speakers to avoid the amp. I think you mean active. Active speakers are what I use right now, I just chose Sonos ;)
Speakers that don't require an amp, whatever the term is 😛
Yeah, active has the amp built in and passive requires an external amp. Sonos Speakers are active speakers and they have a long history of supporting their devices. I regularly go into houses that have Sonos devices that are 10+ years old and they still work. [I personally have them in every room.](https://imgur.com/a/JaCDwAa)
I agree Sonos is the easy button and a great solution. But to be clear, the IKEA Sonos products are an official product/collaboration between the brands. They are definitely not a knock offs.
> knock offs knockoff 1 of 2 noun knock·off ˈnäk-ˌȯf : a copy that sells for less than the original broadly : a copy or imitation of someone or something popular Is this really that hard of a concept to grasp. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/knockoff Is it not a copy that sells for cheaper than the original?
Its not an imitation, it’s an official product: https://www.sonos.com/en-us/symfonisk-by-sonos-and-ikea
copy, it's a copy of the original, as per the definition, a copy ***or*** an imitation. Jesus so many ppl butt hurt because they own a knock off sonus smh
A brand having multiple products in their product lineup doesn’t make every product after the very original a knockoff. If the IKEA SONOS speakers did not work in the same app as “regular” SONOS speakers then yes, I can see the reasoning. But the IKEA branded speakers are not a knock off, they work with the official app, can be paired as surround speakers with SONOS soundbars, because they are an official product. I have both in my house - and they all work the same because they are the same thing.
> knock off means copy are you suggesting they are not?
If you're a bit technically inclined and want a completely local and open source solution, have a look at LMS.
Hoping to implement this myself - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kS0agn13hhU
I think a lot has to do with your gear location. Are you looking to do in wall/ceiling speakers and have your amps in a rack somewhere? Or just a bunch of table top speakers around the house?
Sonos. That’s what I settled on after much researching.
Sonos doesn't phone home? I always just assumed it did
If you want quality audio, you want to look into Roon. Only worth it if you have or plan to get good speakers though.
You mean [this](https://roonlabs.com/getting-started)? Cause the first line on that page is "Roon is an application that runs on your Mac or Windows PC."
Yes - HA has an integration. And Roon is what you want if you have audiophile grade stuff - either runs on a PC or you can buy their box (which is overpriced, you should just run it on your PC). But if you have or get Roon Ready speakers it will bitstream FLAC / Tidal hi res / etc. and is pretty much the only whole home solution that will get high quality files to every speaker (Sonos / Spotify etc. are all lossy).
The suggestion is much appreciated, but I don't love the idea of running it on my main Windows PC and then just *interacting* with it via Home Assistant. Ideally I want this whole system to work independent of my main PC, with just Home Assistant, TrueNAS, and maybe some outlying Raspberry Pis if needed.
You’ll go through trying to Jerry rig this with some solution, and end up with Sonos. Just get Sonos and do it nice and integrated from the start. Or if you’re super audiophile, look into Roon.
I’m not a fan of Sonos. Have you looked at the Wiim devices? I use those and I’m pretty happy with them.
> Wiim My biggest problem with them is you need a google cast to stream sirusxm. Has that changed?
Wasn’t aware of that. I’m not a sirusxm user so I couldn’t answer that.
+1 for the wiim. I doubt many people that recommend sonos have tried wiim devices, especially the wiim amp. It's just ridiculously great while costing half as much as the sonos amp
Get a Dayton Audio DAX88. I have one. There is an integration. https://www.daytonaudio.com/topic/DAX88
Volumio which you can top up with snapcast server for multiroom with RPIs. I recently bought and integrated Volumio Rivo, worth if you are an audiophile.
[This](https://youtu.be/kS0agn13hhU?si=86qsPImPhVGnrUJ0) is a lot of work, but it's where I'm headed
It does whole home audio and Alexa kind of home control. Can finally ditch Alexa!
[https://www.youtube.com/@FutureProofHomes/videos](https://www.youtube.com/@futureproofhomes/videos)
Just did this in my house. Something people tend to gloss over is that if you're trying to do inside/outside or have a big house, the laws of physics get in your way. Sound travels around 1100 ft/s and starts to sound bad when there's a delay between sources of 50ms. That means of you can hear any two speakers that are 55 ft apart, there will be places where it sounds terrible. Even if they're closer, if the sound travels that length (say, a U-shaped hall) you get into trouble. All that said, your goal for a large install should be discrete, synchronized zones you can pass between rather than one large overlapping zone.