Whole Home Audio System Overview

Please forgive me, I'm not great at documentation so have used ChatGPT to assist with a technical write up. Everything you read here has been reviewed.

IMPORTANT: ChatGPT was not used in the creation of any of the technical solution whatsoever.

Overview

This project integrates a robust whole home audio solution using Home Assistant with Music Assistant as the core controller. The system is designed for seamless music playback, media session transfers, and automated management of media players throughout the home. Below is a breakdown of the key features and configurations:

Key Features

1. NFC Music Playback Start

• NFC tags are placed around the home to instantly start music playback by scanning with an Android device.
• The system detects the NFC tag and initiates music playback on the selected media player.
• Each NFC tag can be configured to start a favorite playlist, allowing you to customize music based on your preferences.
• When a favorite playlist is triggered, Music Assistant generates a unique blend of music based on the content of that playlist (this feature is available only for supported media sources).
  • The media provider within Music Assistant uses the songs in your favorite playlist to create a dynamic, curated listening experience tailored to your taste, ensuring fresh music recommendations every time. If you ever get bored of a playlist, just scan the same tag again and a new playlist is generated!

2. NFC Transfer of Media Session from Android to Music Assistant

• Media sessions playing on an Android device can be transferred to Music Assistant through NFC tags.
• When a session is transferred, the Android device automatically pauses its media session, and the playback resumes on the selected media player in Music Assistant.
• Providing the Android device provides an up to date status from the media session, the playback will automatically seek to the current position.

3. NFC Transfer of Listening Session Between Media Players

• NFC tags enable seamless transfer of active listening sessions between different media players controlled by Music Assistant.
• Simply scan an NFC tag at another location to transfer playback to a different media player, without interruption.

4. Automatic Shutdown of Idle Media Players

• The system is configured to automatically turn off any media player that has been idle for more than 20 minutes.
• This helps conserve energy and ensures that no media player is left on unnecessarily.

5. Configuration via External JSON File

• No hardcoded entities are used in the automations. Instead, the entire system is configured through an external JSON file, making it flexible and easily adaptable to changes in the environment or setup.
• Media players, tags, users and playlists are all defined within the JSON file.

6. Temporary State Management Using Saver Integration

• The system leverages the Saver integration to store temporary states instead of using Home Assistant helpers.

Technical Details

• Home Assistant: The central hub for home automation, managing all interactions between NFC tags, media players, and Music Assistant.
• Music Assistant: The controller for audio playback and media session management.
• Saver Integration: Used to store and recall temporary states such as active media sessions or last-used media players.
• NFC Tags: Trigger various actions such as starting playback, transferring sessions, and switching between media players.

Getting started

Dependencies

To set up and run this whole home audio system, you will need the following components:

• Music Assistant

  • Integration version: 2024.9.0+
  • Music Assistant Server version: 2.2.0+
  • This is the core controller for audio playback, playlist management, and media session handling.

• Home Assistant

  • The central automation hub for managing interactions between NFC tags, media players, and Music Assistant.

• Saver Integration

  • Latest version of the Saver integration.
  • This integration is used to temporarily store and manage states without needing Home Assistant helpers.
  • This should be installed and ready to go.

• Snapcast or other Music Assistant compatible players

  • Make sure you have Snapcast or any other compatible media players already configured and integrated into Music Assistant.

• NFC Tags

  • Cheap NFC tags can be sourced from places like AliExpress to set up music playback triggers throughout the home.

• External Configuration Storage

  • You’ll need somewhere to store your external JSON configuration file. This can be stored:
    • Locally on your Home Assistant host.
    • Or externally, such as within n8n or another workflow automation platform that supports JSON storage.

• Spare Time and a Cup of Coffee

TODO: Build

This has been split up into multiple stages, first navigate to the configuration folder to setup the external configuration file.