Turn Any Bluetooth Speaker into an AirPlay Speaker with Shairport Sync

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Henry Lim

Got a mini-PC, SBC, or Raspberry Pi speaker lying around? You can pair it with a Bluetooth speaker to create your own AirPlay receiver, letting you stream music from any Apple device. This guide uses DietPi and Shairport Sync to build a dedicated, budget-friendly audio streamer.

What You’ll Need

• A Linux-compatible computer (like a mini-PC, SBC, or Raspberry Pi)
• A microSD card with DietPi installed
• A Bluetooth adapter (if your computer doesn’t have built-in Bluetooth, a simple one like the TP-Link UB400 will work)
• A Bluetooth speaker

A Note on DietPi

While you could do this on any Linux distribution like Ubuntu or Debian, DietPi is a great choice because it’s lightweight and its user-friendly command-line interface makes installing software and configuring your device much simpler.

1. Install the Software

First, get your computer ready. After installing DietPi, use its built-in software installer to get the two main programs we need.

1. Open the DietPi software menu: dietpi-software.
2. Install Shairport Sync (AirPlay 2) (#37) and ALSA (#5).

2. Enable Bluetooth and Pair

Next, you need to enable Bluetooth on the computer and pair it with your speaker.

1. Enable Bluetooth in the DietPi configuration menu: dietpi-config -> Advanced Options -> Bluetooth -> [On].
2. Install the necessary utilities: apt install bluez-alsa-utils.
3. Now, use bluetoothctl to connect your computer to the speaker. Be sure to replace the example MAC address (02:50:41:A4:DE:6B) with your speaker’s actual address.
   • bluetoothctl
   • power on
   • scan on
   • Wait for your Bluetooth speaker’s MAC address to appear in the list. Note down the address and then turn off the scan.
   • scan off
   • trust 02:50:41:A4:DE:6B
   • connect 02:50:41:A4:DE:6B
4. For a cleaner setup, you can rename your computer’s Bluetooth broadcast name.
   • system-alias AirPlay # Rename it to "AirPlay"

3. Configure Audio Routing

To ensure audio is sent through Bluetooth, we’ll edit the ALSA configuration file.

1. Open the file: nano /etc/asound.conf.

2. Replace the entire content with the following code. This tells ALSA to route all default audio to the Bluetooth speaker.
   

   pcm.btreceiver {
       type plug
       slave.pcm {
           type bluealsa
           device "02:50:41:A4:DE:6B"
           profile "a2dp"
       }
       hint {
           show on
           description "Bluetooth Receiver"
       }
   }
   
   pcm.!default {
       type plug
       slave.pcm "btreceiver"
   }
   

4. Automate the Connection

To make this setup seamless, we’ll create a script that automatically connects to the speaker whenever AirPlay starts.

1. Create the script file: nano /root/shairport-sync-connect.sh.

2. Add this simple script to the file:
   

   echo "Connecting to Bluetooth Speaker ..."
   bluetoothctl connect "02:50:41:A4:DE:6B"
   sleep 3
   exit 0
   

3. Make the script executable: chmod +x /root/shairport-sync-connect.sh.

5. Finalize Shairport Sync Settings

Finally, we’ll update the Shairport Sync configuration to use the new script and give your AirPlay device a friendly name.

1. Open the configuration file: nano /usr/local/etc/shairport-sync.conf.
2. Find and change these three lines:
   • general.name = "Bluetooth Speaker"
   • sessioncontrol.run_this_before_entering_active_state = "/root/shairport-sync-connect.sh"
   • sessioncontrol.wait_for_completion = "yes"

6. Restart the Service

To apply the changes you just made, you need to restart the Shairport Sync service.

Run the following command to restart the service: systemctl restart shairport-sync

That’s it! Now your computer will appear as an AirPlay speaker on your Apple devices, ready to stream music. Enjoy your new, custom-built sound system!

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Henry Lim