Public Beta Test: Audio Without Compromise - Refining the Future of Volumio on Bookworm

Volumio Development Volumio Beta Testing
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Hey @VictorDUA,

You’re right to ask, and here’s the current state of things:

Bluetooth HID remotes (input-class devices) are not officially supported in Volumio. However, thanks to recent fixes in the Bluetooth stack and Triggerhappy service, it is now possible to get simple Bluetooth input devices (like media remotes or basic HID keyboards) working with a little manual setup.

There is no UI support for pairing or managing such devices. A plugin would be required for full integration, but that is out of scope for the Bookworm Beta. If this feature is important to you, please consider submitting a request in the Plugins Development or Feature Request sections. Perhaps our guru @balbuze or others might help when time allows.

Here is a short guide for SSH-based pairing and setup:

SSH-Based Setup Instructions for Bluetooth HID Remote

  1. SSH into your Volumio device

    ssh volumio@<your_volumio_ip>

  2. Enable pairing mode on your Bluetooth remote

  3. Use bluetoothctl to scan and pair

    bluetoothctl

    Then inside the prompt:

    power on
scan on

    • Wait for your device to appear. Note the MAC address (format: XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX).

    • Then:

      pair XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX
trust XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX
connect XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX

    • Do not run agent on or default-agent - the active agent is already managed by Volumio’s A2DP stack.

    Once paired and connected, exit:

    exit

  4. (Optional) Install evtest to debug input

    sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install evtest

    Then run:

    sudo evtest
    • Select your Bluetooth input device and press buttons to observe recognized key events.

  5. (Optional) Update key mappings to Triggerhappy
    Create or edit the file:

    sudo nano /etc/triggerhappy/triggers.d/audio.conf

    Example contents:

    KEY_PLAYPAUSE 1 /usr/bin/mpc toggle
KEY_NEXT 1 /usr/bin/mpc next
KEY_PREVIOUS 1 /usr/bin/mpc prev

  6. Restart the Triggerhappy service

    sudo systemctl restart triggerhappy.service

This will allow many basic Bluetooth HID remotes to work for media control under Volumio. Keep in mind this is an unofficial method and may vary depending on your remote.

Kind Regards,

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