Music Assistant 2.4 brings Assist devices enhancements, Spotify Connect & podcast support

Home Assistant has launched version 2.4 of Music Assistant, enhancing its integration capabilities with popular streaming services like Spotify and Tidal, alongside local media files. This update introduces significant advancements for Assist devices, including the Home Assistant Voice Preview Edition, enabling voice control for media playback, such as selecting songs and artists.

The update also supports external audio sources through players or plugins, with Spotify Connect being the first plugin to offer this functionality. Music Assistant now natively supports podcasts and audiobooks, with new providers like Subsonic, YouTube, and RSS feeds for podcasts, and Audible and Audiobookshelf for audiobooks, alongside local file imports.

In addition to existing support for Apple Music, the update introduces new providers like iBroadcast, SiriusXM, and Bluesound players. Users can now fine-tune audio with input and output gain adjustments and a parametric equalizer for each player. The new Don’t stop the music mode ensures continuous playback by selecting similar songs from the user's library once the queue finishes.

Version 2.4 also brings improved integration with Home Assistant, enhanced streaming stability, and various other improvements and bug fixes.