autostream

Turn any turntable or CD player into an AirPlay streamer — no subscriptions, no compromises.

Connect autostream to your HiFi equipment to stream vinyl, CD, radio, and anything else with a line-level output. Control is easy with the simple app-like experience. Everything works over Wi-Fi, and there’s no vendor lock-in, no apps to install, and no cloud accounts or adverts. Just press play: autostream does the rest.

Free for personal use – get it on GitHub

autostream…

  • Turns any Raspberry Pi into an AirPlay/AirPlay2 streamer.
  • Has a simple, mobile optimised interface to control volume and which speakers are playing.
  • Listens for music on one or two connected audio sources.
  • Automatically starts streaming when sound is detected and stops when it ends. It preserves the simplicity of HiFi separates whilst playing through muti-room WiFi speakers.
  • Works entirely on your home network.
  • Provides a per-input equaliser.
  • Tracks turntable stylus hours and providers a notification when it needs changing.

Connecting autostream is easy using USB and many turntables available today have a USB output built-in. Analogue outputs can be connected via low-cost USB preamps (Behringer UFO202 for example), and optical outputs can be connected using low-cost SPDIF to USB dongles.

Web UI

The autostream webUI provides easy access to volume controls and speaker selection, as well as setup. It can be added to an iPhone home screen and behaves much like a regular app, without needing to install anything.

Use Cases

  • Vinyl enthusiasts: Play your records directly to AirPlay speakers.
  • Minimalist Hi-Fi: A record player (or other source) and wireless speakers is all that’s on view. No amplifier, no trailing speaker wires, no limits on speaker placement.
  • Multi-Room Hi-Fi: Enjoy your records and CDs throughout the house.
  • Embed autostream right into retro/vintage HiFi: create your own fully integrated, single-power cord AirPlay Turntable or CD player like this one.

This isn’t another “stream from your phone” hack. It’s real-time analogue to AirPlay audio.

Getting Started

autostream can be installed directly from GitHub here. The included installation script automates everything.

The system runs on any Raspberry Pi (Zero2W recommended). You will also need a USB input device, like a SPDIF to USB dongle for use with CD players or a USB DAC like the Behringer U-PHONE UFO202 for turntables, both of which are about £20 at time of writing.

To get started, you’ll need:

  • A Raspberry Pi (quad-core model recommended).
  • A USB audio input device (turntable with USB out, USB ADC for phono/line, or SPDIF-to-USB adapter).
  • AirPlay / AirPlay 2 speakers on your LAN. Chromecast and Roku devices also work.

The fully automated autostream install script converts any Raspberry Pi into a streaming appliance! A Pi Zero-class board draws well under 2 Watts in normal operation (and can be tuned to about 0.8W).

Behind the scenes, the autostream monitor service:

  • captures audio from attached USB (or I2S) devices
  • continuously corrects for source clock drift
  • applies user-configured tone controls (bass/treble and 40Hz) to the stream (if required)
  • sends the audio to owntone, which then streams it to Airplay and Airplay 2 speakers.

autostream provides an app-like webui for configuration and playback control, and background services to ensure the system stays up and enable reconfiguration when needed. It’s source-available and free for personal, non-commercial use. Commercial licensing is available on request.

Contributions and issues live on GitHub.

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