Linux

Preconfigured Airplay speaker (Shairport) – Downloadable Raspberry Pi image

Update 2013-08-31
New image available for download with updates of Shairport, raspi kernel and better startup/watchdog scripts.

This is a preconfigured Raspberry Pi Debian build with Shairport. – Thread on Raspberry Pi forums

Write the image to a SD card (4GB or larger), plug in speakers and network, and an AirPlay-capable player will show up on your network once you boot the Pi up.

Build instructions
Detailed build instructions can be found here

Latest version:
2013-08-31

Download:
Mirror 1

Release notes
2013-08-31 – Updated of Shairport, raspi kernel and better startup/watchdog scripts.
2013-04-21 – First release

Login

Username: pi
Password: raspberry

Misc
Tested with Airfoil (PC/Mac) and Honey Player (Android).
Additional testing welcome. (In particular actual iOS devices!)
More stable builds will be available shortly.

Linux

Permalink: https://snippets.khromov.se/preconfigured-airplay-speaker-shairport-downloadable-raspberry-pi-image/

Comments 38

Posted on 01/05/2013

Lawrence

Reply Author

I built these following instructions elsewhere on the net but messed up the build when I tried to add a password and a USB soundcard.

Found your image and downlaoding image now – Thanks 0- will save a bit of time!

Is there instructions for adding a password and USB soundcard anywhere for this build?

This is the soundcard – http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/USB-External-3D-5-1-Channel-Audio-PC-Sound-Card-Adapter-/160612635510?pt=UK_Computing_ComputerComponents_SoundCards&hash=item2565425376

Thanks.
- Posted on 01/05/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  The image should provide you with a good starting point.
  
  This build uses built-in audio, perhaps this tutorial may be helpful to you:
  http://amiexp.blogspot.se/2013/01/respberry-pi-with-shairport-and-usb.html
  
  The provided image boots to console, and you need a username and password (pi/raspberry) to log in.
  - Posted on 24/05/2013
    
    Lawrence
    
    Reply Author
    
    thanks,
    
    I’ve editied etc/init.d/shairplay to change the broadcast name using JOE – that works fine but struggling with the syntax for the password..
    
    I’ve seen that switches for starting shairplay include
    
    -p, –password=secret Sets password
    
    but not sure the format the line
    
    user/local/bin/shairport -d -a “$NAME”
    
    I’ve tried
    
    user/local/bin/shairport -d -p 1234 -a “$NAME”
    
    can you help?
    
    Thanks
    - Posted on 19/12/2013
      
      Phillip
      
      Reply Author
      
      Hi.
      Any progress on setting the password? I think I have to add a line in /etc/defaults/shairport were I changed AP_NAME – but I don’t know the syntax…
      Thanks for any hints
      Phil
Posted on 22/05/2013

Transient Gadfly

Reply Author

Hey, I’m trying to connect to my shairport pi via airfoil on Mac (tried 10.6.8 and 10.7.2)–in both instances Airfoil fails to connect and responds “could not parse response from remote server”. I’ve run shairport from the command line on the pi with “-vvvv” and I get the following output:

Listening for connections. Established under name '4E502B554875@Shairport on jen' received request: OPTIONS * RTSP/1.0 User-Agent: Airfoil/4.7.5 (Macintosh; N; Intel) CSeq: 1 DACP-ID: 5B555495C449D615 Apple-Challenge: 1a9jyDbkBBxncxsxohipvw Client-Instance: 8F2E848E0541200D Active-Remote: 3449327014 sending response: RTSP/1.0 200 OK Apple-Response: rljNiXC1X86wKmTrpMVvU6k2JTW7MrJxf86tgoB18yISDcYF2utKKwEU3rE6tk5+BnV/Odz3bmxxzqQhXyOnnbV8h4neLsIO7EX4CHvWu21hR55SBks/qmf9jKqVRxyUQvShr8xs5c0E+4kwZbuPr0lPIGA2CdmdtpKVr2Lj20yGf9HPFK95o+7MUkMkKu08VcqyI/p0/Xb8d+J+8BIebYStGsANxO/VQnsAWnM0Bwm5QojE6blTYL143VqzbF0t0RdQoAz3Uf212mUleX+PQFKibvENv324fZytaIeC2VoLhw0Uyc6+dV6P1IOLh+hRzDHqkIfslwFnvo3j6fNC5g CSeq: 1 Audio-Jack-Status: connected; type=analog Public: ANNOUNCE, SETUP, RECORD, PAUSE, FLUSH, TEARDOWN, OPTIONS, GET_PARAMETER, SET_PARAMETER received request: ANNOUNCE rtsp://192.168.0.3/3452057820 RTSP/1.0 Client-computer-name: moss Client-instance-identifier: E063AC4C-78DD-4AC4-9CCD-96907D9A2D27 Active-Remote: 3449327014 DACP-ID: 5B555495C449D615 User-Agent: Airfoil/4.7.5 (Macintosh; N; Intel) Client-Instance: 8F2E848E0541200D Content-Type: application/sdp Content-Length: 571 CSeq: 1 sending response: RTSP/1.0 200 OK CSeq: 1 Audio-Jack-Status: connected; type=analog received request: TEARDOWN rtsp://192.168.0.3/3452057820 RTSP/1.0 User-Agent: Airfoil/4.7.5 (Macintosh; N; Intel) CSeq: 1 DACP-ID: 5B555495C449D615 Client-Instance: 8F2E848E0541200D Active-Remote: 3449327014 sending response: RTSP/1.0 400 Error CSeq: 1 Audio-Jack-Status: connected; type=analog RTSP connection closed

Any insight as to what might be wrong here? Thanks.
- Posted on 22/05/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  Hey Transient,
  
  There seems to be a bug report regarding this on the Shairport issue tracker. You can find the issue here:
  ~~github.com/abrasive/shairport/issues/213~~ Issues have been removed from the GitHub project.
  
  This image is running the latest 1.0-dev version of Shairport. (As of today)
- Posted on 29/05/2013
  
  Juan Diego
  
  Reply Author
  
  I’m getting this same error on Airfoil for Mac (2.7.x). In addition, right before the Pi prompts the login/password dialogue I get a [FAIL] message startpar: service(s) returned failure: avahi-fix.sh … failed!. Everything works like a charm with iTunes for Mac or the stock Music app for iOS.
  
  (If someone is having problems with the audio output I suggest trying no to use HDMI for audio output (just connect your headphones/speakers). Otherwise run amixer cset numid=3
  where n is 0=auto, 1=headphones/speakers, 2=hdmi)
  - Posted on 29/05/2013
    
    Stanislav Khromov
    
    Reply Author
    
    Hey Juan,
    
    Is this with the downloaded image without modifications?
    Avahi-daemon failing is usually a sign of network connectivity issues (for example Wi-fi that hasn’t connected yet.)
    
    You might have some luck checking for possible causes to the error in:
    /var/log/messages
    
    What is the issue with HDMI audio out?
    - Posted on 29/05/2013
      
      Juan Diego
      
      Reply Author
      
      Yeah, my downloaded file is exactly from this link: https://snippets.khromov.se/files/shairport-configured-latest.tar.gz
      
      And I obtain local IP before that message of avahi-fix.sh failed. Once in the command line, to ping/curl google.com, for example, works OK. I’m gonna check /var/log/messages anyway. That avahi thing can cause some kind of future error? Cause right now I get nice sound and all but the Pi keeps displaying packet-related errors only while playing music I send from my iPod or Mac.
      
      And about HDMI, the first time I tried to use Shairport I got no sound at all (neither using the aplay command). That was because the Pi generally does not output sound via HDMI so I tried Shairport without the HDMI plugged in and everything worked fine. Then I fixed the issue by presetting the audio output to sound card which ends at the 3.5mm audio jack. I ran amixer cset numid=3 1 on CLI.
      - Posted on 29/05/2013
        
        Stanislav Khromov
        
        Reply Author
        
        The file avahi-fix.sh is no longer needed, it was used temporarily to fix an issue with avahi-daemon not starting on .local domain networks. Read more here:
        http://rubenlaguna.com/wp/2007/08/19/avahi-and-local-domain-troubleshooting/
        
        It was later resolved by changing the avahi-daemon startup config (search for avahi):
        https://snippets.khromov.se/raspberry-pi-shairport-build-instructions/
        
        Avahi is a fickle service, it seems prone to not start up properly on certain network configurations.
        
        You need it to run Shairport though. (Shairport will not start if avahi is not running.)
        
        Regarding the packet errors, don’t worry – the packets will be resent. As long as the sound doesn’t skip you are fine!
Posted on 16/07/2013

Josh

Reply Author

If I unplug the pi, and plug it back in, it completely stops working. I have tried everything I can think of. I then must reformat the sd card to get it working again. I would love to be able to unplug the pi and move it to a different speaker without having to reformat the card every time or plugging in a screen and keyboard. Any Ideas??

thanks,

-Josh
- Posted on 08/09/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  Hi Josh,
  
  Try the new version!
Posted on 26/07/2013

Benny Kjølhede

Reply Author

Hej Guys. I can´t get my image on to my sd card useing disktools on my mac. It says all kinds of errors. Do you have any ideas what might be wrong ? And is there a other way i can copy the image over ?
- Posted on 07/10/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  Hi Benny,
  
  You can try the NOOBS installer from here:
  http://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads
  
  There are instructions for Mac, you can find them here:
  http://www.raspberrypi.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/quick-start-guide-v2_1.pdf
Posted on 07/10/2013

Marc

Reply Author

Hi Stan or any other expert,

Thanks for this work, it has been very useful … so far.

I’m trying to change the name of the Airplay network. The off-the-shelf one is “AirPi” when using your preconfigured image. I would like to change to something like “Living Room”.

I’ve checked the shairport file in /etc/init.d/ however there are no mention of “AirPi” :(

Can you help?

thanks
marc
Posted on 07/10/2013

Thomas Pujolle

Reply Author

Hey there,

I believe you want to edit the shairport file, which is here:

/etc/init.d/shairport

You ‘ll be able to find the name of the speakers there :)

Now that I’m here, maybe of you can help me! I’m trying to get the most out of my RPi, mainly some high quality music! I’ve set everything so far, and I think it could be much better!

I’m using Spotify (Deezer, Grooveshark like) to play music, and even though the sound quality is perfect using a jack on my speakers, some frequencies don’t seem this smooth as I listen to what I play.

Has anyone figured out how to improve this quality? I’m not using the “ready to go” image, I’ve setup everything myself. Do you think using the OS image would work better?

Thanks guys :)
- Posted on 07/10/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  Hi Thomas,
  
  You can improve the audio quality by using a USB DAC instead of the built-in raspi output.
  
  This article is a good starting point: http://www.raspyfi.com/the-right-usb-dac-for-your-raspberry-pi/
  
  As for improving the quality on your existing setup, the only thing I can suggest is running rpi-update. This will update the kernel, and sometimes that results in improved audio quality.
  
  You can get rpi-update here: https://github.com/Hexxeh/rpi-update
  
  Cheers!
- Posted on 07/10/2013
  
  Marc
  
  Reply Author
  
  Thanks Thomas
  
  Actually within /etc/init.d/shairport the name is set as
  NAME=My Shairport
  
  although the one shown on my iphone and ipad is “AirPi”
  
  I would like to change AirPi into “Living Room” for instance … but seems shairport is not the right place?
  
  anyone can help? thanks
  marc
  - Posted on 08/10/2013
    
    Marc
    
    Reply Author
    
    Actually, I found the solution!
    
    In the case of using the ready to go image the file to edit in order to change the Airplay network name is
    
    /etc/default/shairport
    
    and NOT
    
    /etc/init.d/shairport
    - Posted on 20/10/2013
      
      Marco Buongiovanni
      
      Reply Author
      
      Ciao, io ho localizzato il file corretto /etc/default/shairport ma io non sono in grado di modificarlo perché il sistema mi dica che non ho le autorizzazioni e non sono il proprietario del file.
      Ho provato a cambiare i permessi con chmod comando ma ho avuto lo stesso messaggio.
      
      Suggerimenti?
      Marco
    - Posted on 20/10/2013
      
      Marco Buongiovanni
      
      Reply Author
      
      Hi, I have localized the correct file /etc/default/shairport but I’m not able to modify it because system tell me I haven’t permissions and I’m not the proprietary of the file.
      I tryed to change permissions with chmod command but I got the same message.
      
      Suggestions?
      Marco
      - Posted on 20/10/2013
        
        Stanislav Khromov
        
        Reply Author
        
        Hey Marco,
        
        You need to be root to change configuration scripts.
        
        Run this command before editing
        
        sudo su
Posted on 09/10/2013

Thomas Pujolle

Reply Author

Hi again,

Has anyone of you encountered some stability issue with the image? When I’m on SSH it appears that the connection gets randomly cut (host is down, I can read). It happens very often, with no particular reason.

Anyone?
- Posted on 12/10/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  Hi Thomas,
  
  That usually happens when there is insufficient power supply to the Pi. The image is configured to use stock 700mhz, with no overclock.
  
  Did you overclock the Pi after installing the image?
  
  Do you have adequate power supply?
  
  Here is a great post on Raspi power supply issues:
  http://forum.stmlabs.com/showthread.php?tid=3918
Posted on 28/10/2013

jnew

Reply Author

I am having a problem when I try to run shairport over wifi. Everything loads properly and “AirPi” shows up on my phone. I connect and push play and it works great. It plays without problems for 30-45 seconds and then stops. It will usually cut in and out a little and then eventually crash. If I unhook the wifi dongle and use a LAN connection, I can play music all day without problems. I tried doing the load from Raspbian on my own and had this problem. In researching the issue I found your load and tried it. It worked like a charm but I still have the wifi issue.

I am currently testing the setup and the pi is about 2 feet away from my wireless router. The link quality on the pi says perfect (100).

I bought the pi as a set with the wifi dongle and it looks pretty cheap, but it worked out of the box. I am wondering if I should try another wifi dongle but before I do, I would like your advice.

Thanks in advance!
- Posted on 01/11/2013
  
  jnew
  
  Reply Author
  
  I changed out the wifi card and it works perfectly!
  - Posted on 10/11/2013
    
    Stanislav Khromov
    
    Reply Author
    
    Glad that worked out for you! Sometimes, you may also have luck changing the power brick. I have been using The Pi Huts bricks without issues:
    http://thepihut.com/products/eu-micro-usb-power-supply-for-the-raspberry-pi
  - Posted on 19/01/2015
    
    Luis
    
    Reply Author
    
    Hi Jnew
    which wifi card are you using?
    I am having the same problem.
Posted on 16/12/2013

Dan Henderson

Reply Author

Hi there,

Thanks for this. I tried it and it works straight away with my Galaxy S4 on 4.3, Galaxy Note 10.1 on 4.2 and IPhone4s on IOS7. There is a few seconds lag in between pause, volume change commands and the output changing, but I’m guessing that’s just how it is?

The one thing I wanted to ask though, is that the playback is a bit glitchy on my devices so it crackles a bit and sometimes goes intermittent. I’ve updated using apt-get update and upgrade and also rpi-update. Is there anything else I should do? My wifi is a fair speed and there’s not alot connected to it.

Thanks for any help, and thanks for building this!

Dan
- Posted on 16/12/2013
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  Hi Dan,
  
  Happy that most of it is working for you.
  
  Is there any particular device you are having an issue with? I know that I started having some issues with iOS 7 devices, but the android ones work great. Is that also the case for you?
  - Posted on 16/12/2013
    
    Dan Henderson
    
    Reply Author
    
    Hi,
    
    I’ve just done some more testing (on both my rpis to check) and the android devices have a longer lag between playing and skipping tracks etc (the iphone seems to be pretty fast now!)
    
    But both have the same problem with a slight crackling all through playback, almost like the noise you get when you pull selotape(!) but quieter and intermittent.
    
    I’m using a usb soundcard (fairly cheap one) so it might be that, although I’ve had good sound out of it before. I can’t think what else to do to try and sort it out. Any thoughts would be much appreciated!
    
    Hope it doesn;t sound like a complaint though…this is awesome!
    
    Thanks,
    
    Dan
    - Posted on 16/12/2013
      
      Dan Henderson
      
      Reply Author
      
      Just to say I’ve switched to wired internet to make sure the wifi isn;t the culprit but same thing.
    - Posted on 27/12/2013
      
      Stanislav Khromov
      
      Reply Author
      
      Did you try the built-in audio jack?
      
      I actually compared the built-in jack with a cheapo USB sound card and the built-in one sounded better.
      
      Another option you could try is compiling a later version of Shairport, as per these instructions:
      
      https://snippets.khromov.se/raspberry-pi-shairport-build-instructions/
      
      During the git clone, check out the “master” branch instead of “1.0-dev”, the master one seems newer.
      
      So you would do it like this:
      
      git clone -b master git://github.com/abrasive/shairport.git
      
      Hope that helps.
Posted on 28/01/2014

Alessandro

Reply Author

Hello,
I installed shairport following all the procedures of your site and it works well. But I would like to start shairport by the demon (/etc/init.d/shairport) using the default file /etc/default/shairport with a name that includes spaces such as:
“Air Pi of Alexander”
I have tried in various ways, but I could not, can you tell me how I can do and give me a solution.
Thank you.
Posted on 01/09/2014

NPLDK

Reply Author

Hi

My pi is working perfect using airplay using shairport

I have one question

How can i get a 5vdc signal when using airplay
High when playing music on airplay
Low when not playing music on airplay

Best regards
NPL
Posted on 12/11/2014

Carlo

Reply Author

Hi,
very great tutorial…
I have two questions:
1) It seems that it is not working with Android phones (Andorid > 4.2) is it possible ?
2) If i want to execute some actions (execute a bash script) when a device connects/disconnects where do I have modify your scripts ?
Thank you!
Carlo.
- Posted on 15/11/2014
  
  Stanislav Khromov
  
  Reply Author
  
  1.) Which app are you using to play the audio on Android? I don’t think Android has native support, only iOS, but you can use third party apps like Honey Player.
  
  2.) I don’t think you can run a bash script when users start a stream or disconnects, but you can check out the build instructions here:
  https://snippets.khromov.se/raspberry-pi-shairport-build-instructions/

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