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This is like a 21st century version of those cassette tapes with 3.5mm jacks; the ones you could use to play CDs from your Sony discman through your car's stereo. Great work OP!
This is quite a yak shave. You can run Spotify on one computer and have it output to speakers connected to another computer using Spotify. Remote control. I do it all the time. So you can run Spotify on your desktop, and control it from Spotify on your work laptop.
Here, the author wants to do this thing, so they do it. They're not shaving yaks, they're doing the thing they set out to do.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's both incredibly convenient, and the most impressively disguised DRM. If two users attempt to share the same account, Spotify will helpfully make one of them a remote control for the other rather than being able to listen independently.
Two users on the same account can't listen simultaneously anyway, though, regardless of network.
I know I’m gonna get downvoted because this is HN and obviously massive kudos for engineering something amazing… but seriously this is a massive sledgehammer to crack a walnut! Just connect a phone to the Aux jack and run the Spotify app…
It's also good for listening to radio station streams. I've got another Echo whose microphone is on. I can ask Alexa on that or in the Alexa app on my phone or tablet to e.g. "listen to KUOW FM on Dot".
My Denon A/V receiver predates voice control support (its from 2012 or so), but it does have a network connection with a few control options (TELNET, HTTP). I've got a program running on an RPi that can use the receiver's HTTP interface to get the current input/volume/mute settings, and to change inputs, set volume, and mute/unmute.
Apple's "Shortcuts" app on Mac/tablet/phone supports a "run script over SSH" action. I've used that to make a bunch of shortcuts: "Denon Dot", "Denon TV", "Denon Game" to select some sources; "Denon Status" to get the current settings (which the shortcut speaks); "Denon Mute" and "Denon Unmute" to mute/unmute; "Denon Up" and "Denon Down" to slightly adjust the volume; "Denon Set 30", "Denon Set 35", "Denon Set 40", ... to set specific volume levels.
Saying the name of a Shortcut to Siri invokes that Shortcut.
So putting it all together, A couple voice commands to Siri on any of my Apple devices will switch the receiver to the Dot and set the volume, so it is ready for streaming radio or for Spotify, and if it is radio I want a voice command to Alexa will start that.
This has covered pretty much all my "smart" A/V needs, so I can probably happily keep using my existing receiver for quite a while.
Title is a little off - I was expecting something like a micro controlling the serial ports on some receiver to tie into a smart home but this is pretty neat. Honestly I think I'd rather just setup a Spotify compatible casting endpoint though.
Given the archaic age of one of my analogue hi-fi systems, the title made me expect something with actuators, solenoids, and related robotics tasks with smart home connectivity.
Congrats for halfway implementing a $30 Chromecast?
Why hack, play, learn and do something for fun, and take the time to write about it when one can pay 30 bucks for the thing and be done?
I don't know enough about the subject of this particular article to say if this is the case here, but personally I think doing something that's a poorer version of a cheaper off-the-shelf solution is a bit of a waste of time, but if they're doing something different, that's really interesting to me.