Music and casting
Turn each of these on under Settings → Connected services, or with its switch in Home Assistant (the only way on the Echo Dot).
| Service | Switch | Devices |
|---|---|---|
| Media player | always on | all |
| Sendspin | sendspin |
all |
| Chromecast | cast_receiver |
all; audio only on the Echo Dot |
| AirPlay | airplay |
Echo Shows |
| Bluetooth speaker | bluetooth_speaker |
Echo Shows |
Media player
Section titled “Media player”The device is a Home Assistant media player called Speaker: radio, media sources, TTS
announcements and Music Assistant. Music ducks while the assistant listens and talks; Music
ducking (media_duck_level, −40 to −3 dB, default −15) in Home Assistant sets how far.
Speaker EQ (speaker_eq, on by default) applies Amazon’s own tuning for each Echo’s speaker,
read from the device itself, and adjusts it with the volume, as the stock software did. The Echo
Show 8 and Show 8 (2nd gen) play in stereo.
Sendspin
Section titled “Sendspin”A Music Assistant player for synchronized whole-home audio. Turn on Sendspin and Music Assistant finds the device on its own; group it with other speakers there.
AirPlay
Section titled “AirPlay”On the Echo Shows. Mirror a Mac, iPhone or iPad’s screen and sound. Turn on AirPlay, then on the Mac or phone open Screen Mirroring and pick the device by its name. The picture is sized to fit the screen and turns with it. Stop mirroring from the Mac or phone, or turn AirPlay off.
AirPlay runs only while the switch is on.
Chromecast
Section titled “Chromecast”Turn on Cast receiver and the device shows up as a cast target in apps and in Google Home.
| App | Echo Show | Echo Dot |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Video, with SponsorBlock segment skipping and live delay | Audio |
| YouTube Music | Yes | Audio |
| YouTube TV | Yes | |
| Prime Video | Yes, with Skip intro and persistent registration |
Each app’s settings are under Cast receiver → Apps, listed on Settings on the screen.
Bluetooth speaker
Section titled “Bluetooth speaker”On the Echo Shows. The device shows up under its own name. Pair a phone and play; the player shows the track and cover art, and you can skip and pause from the screen.
Sound machine
Section titled “Sound machine”Two layers of steady sound, from Home Assistant: White noise layer 1 and layer 2
(noise_layer_1, noise_layer_2). Choose None, White, Pink, Brown, Rain, Ocean, Brook, Wind, Fire,
Crickets, Fan or Cabin for each; they mix together and duck for everything else. They don’t survive
a restart.
Player (Echo Show)
Section titled “Player (Echo Show)”A mini player shows on the dashboard while something plays. Tap it, or Media in the dock, for the full player. Cast and AirPlay video play full screen; tap for controls.
Settings → Display → Dashboard → Close paused player after closes a paused player.