Playing Android phone audio via DLNA

[Pluto]

Anyone know of an Android app. that will intercept the phone's audio output and cast it as DLNA to a renderer sitting on the network?

In case this is important, I am not interested in playing content that exists within the phone's storage. I merely want to be able to listen to the phone audio in rather better quality than the phone itself is capable of. Not too long ago this would have been accomplished by simply connecting a lead into a 3.5mm jack on the phone. But that would be too easy…

 

[jmtocali]

Airmusic App https://www.airmusic.app/

 

[Jimbob54]

Anyone know of an Android app. that will intercept the phone's audio output and cast it as DLNA to a renderer sitting on the network?

In case this is important, I am not interested in playing content that exists within the phone's storage. I merely want to be able to listen to the phone audio in rather better quality than the phone itself is capable of. Not too long ago this would have been accomplished by simply connecting a lead into a 3.5mm jack on the phone. But that would be too easy…

Think you can share other music apps to bubble upnp which can then dlna

 

[Pluto]

Airmusic App https://www.airmusic.app/

Looks just the ticket but appears to need a rooted phone.

 

[Vincent Kars]

Have a look at BubbleUPnP, one of the more popular DLNA server and renderer on Android

 

[Pluto]

BubbleUPnP

Thanks for pointing at this. I have installed the trial version and, unless I am missing something, while it appears to be able to cast all manner of files from here, there and everywhere to DLNA, I cannot see how it does what I actually need which is to intercept the system audio to enable other apps to play their output via DLNA. My mission here, specifically, is to play the output of the BBC Sounds app to an external renderer in order to hear something better than phone-quality audio.

OTOH my experience with Android/Linux is very limited so if I am missing the obvious, please say so.

 

[LTig]

Thanks for pointing at this. I have installed the trial version and, unless I am missing something, while it appears to be able to cast all manner of files from here, there and everywhere to DLNA, I cannot see how it does what I actually need which is to intercept the system audio to enable other apps to play their output via DLNA. My mission here, specifically, is to play the output of the BBC Sounds app to an external renderer in order to hear something better than phone-quality audio.

OTOH my experience with Android/Linux is very limited so if I am missing the obvious, please say so.

The only way I see is to send audio via Blutooth, so you need a BT receiver. There are models with SPDIF output so SQ suffers only through the BT compression. I have such a receiver and for my aging ears there is no audible loss in SQ.

 

[mansr]

My mission here, specifically, is to play the output of the BBC Sounds app to an external renderer in order to hear something better than phone-quality audio.

I don't think that's possible without "rooting" the device. It certainly used to be the case.

If you have a spare Android device, it could be worth setting it up as needed and use it for that purpose only. A rooted phone should not be used for everyday browsing and such. If any malware got in, it would have unfettered access to everything.

 

[Jimbob54]

Thanks for pointing at this. I have installed the trial version and, unless I am missing something, while it appears to be able to cast all manner of files from here, there and everywhere to DLNA, I cannot see how it does what I actually need which is to intercept the system audio to enable other apps to play their output via DLNA. My mission here, specifically, is to play the output of the BBC Sounds app to an external renderer in order to hear something better than phone-quality audio.

OTOH my experience with Android/Linux is very limited so if I am missing the obvious, please say so.

Depends on the source app I believe . In Tidal, for eg, one of the in app settings is "share to" , allows you to share the stream to Bubble. Once in bubble you can then DLNA that to whatever receiver. Not sure if the BBC Sounds app allows. Will look.

EDIT- cant see any "share" buttons in BBC sounds, so no, wont work. I realise you want the whole system sounds sharing, never known how to do that, sorry.

 

[Jmudrick]

Thanks for pointing at this. I have installed the trial version and, unless I am missing something, while it appears to be able to cast all manner of files from here, there and everywhere to DLNA, I cannot see how it does what I actually need which is to intercept the system audio to enable other apps to play their output via DLNA. My mission here, specifically, is to play the output of the BBC Sounds app to an external renderer in order to hear something better than phone-quality audio.

OTOH my experience with Android/Linux is very limited so if I am missing the obvious, please say so.

BBC Sounds app itself will cast to Chromecast devices but not DLNA. I'd get a Chromecast.

 

[Pluto]

Thanks for all your contributions. To cover the various points in no particular order:

• rooting the phone is not an option because there are obvious security risks. While I could get another device purely for this purpose, that rather defeats the elegance of using one device to do it all!
• I have a bedroom system, essentially an Internet radio with DLNA rendering ability, feeding bed-size powered speakers. It's convenient, simple, reliable and sounds excellent so I'm not going to rejig a good working setup to achieve this; it isn't that important.
• This does irritate insofar as what I want to do is feed an extension speaker – I have no doubt that the audio quality is entirely satisfactory right up to the phone's internal transducer which is very good, for a phone!

I cannot be the only person on the planet who desires to play phone audio through something other than earbuds, and all the dicking about necessary to (not) achieve this fundamentally simple task says something about the technological direction being wrong.

 

[mansr]

I cannot be the only person on the planet who desires to play phone audio through something other than earbuds,

You're not.

 

[tw99]

If plugging in a 3.5mm headphone jack would have worked for you, why not just get a USB-C to 3.5mm dongle ? They are cheap.

Another more complicated way of achieving what you want would be to get a Raspberry PI with LMS running (e.g. PiCoreplayer or build it yourself), and use the BBC Sounds plugin within LMS + the DLNA bridge to send audio to your existing system. You can control it from your phone.

 

[Jimbob54]

Thanks for all your contributions. To cover the various points in no particular order:

• rooting the phone is not an option because there are obvious security risks. While I could get another device purely for this purpose, that rather defeats the elegance of using one device to do it all!
• I have a bedroom system, essentially an Internet radio with DLNA rendering ability, feeding bed-size powered speakers. It's convenient, simple, reliable and sounds excellent so I'm not going to rejig a good working setup to achieve this; it isn't that important.
• This does irritate insofar as what I want to do is feed an extension speaker – I have no doubt that the audio quality is entirely satisfactory right up to the phone's internal transducer which is very good, for a phone!

I cannot be the only person on the planet who desires to play phone audio through something other than earbuds, and all the dicking about necessary to (not) achieve this fundamentally simple task says something about the technological direction being wrong.

I fear the powers that be would have us using super duper streamers , or Bluetooth. Or, buy into the Sonos/ Amazon Echo type ecosystem.

 

[Pluto]

get a Raspberry PI with LMS running (e.g. PiCoreplayer or build it yourself), and use the BBC Sounds plugin within LMS + the DLNA bridge to send audio to your existing system. You can control it from your phone.

Look, I need an approach that I can operate when I awake in a stupor at 4am

There are always means by which these things can be done but I'm trying to stick to sensible simplicity here.

 

[ZolaIII]

What ever you download you can later stream it over DLNA, there is no live streaming such way. Do your self a favour and buy USB DAC.
Simplest DLNA streaming app which will work with anything that have a browser:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.al.dlnaserver

 

[tw99]

Look, I need an approach that I can operate when I awake in a stupor at 4am

There are always means by which these things can be done but I'm trying to stick to sensible simplicity here.

OK, well what about the dongle then ?

 

[Pluto]

Possibly, but I think I've reached the point of it all being too much hassle. My internet radio will quite happily do BBC broadcast radio and all I gain with the Sounds app is back-episodes. I'm not going to install a whole lot of mumbo-jumbo to perform a task that should, fundamentally, be straightforward.

 

[Mike-48]

@Pluto - I was looking for the same thing but gave up. I believe it doesn't exist.

I finally got a BluDento BLT-HD Bluetooth receiver via eBay. This does a nice job. It doesn't sound quite as good as pure WiFi/DLNA, but if using aptX HD, it's not bad at all. I use its Toslink output. It also has SPDIF coax. I recommend it, unless you are looking for ultimate fidelity. It's really easy to use.

The other option would running a USB cable from the Android device to a USB input of the DAC. To me, that would be a real pain (because I'd have to unplug another device from the back of the DAC, not easily accessible).

 

[Vincent Kars]

Not too long ago this would have been accomplished by simply connecting a lead into a 3.5mm jack on the phone. But that would be too easy…

Why all the complexity of DLNA if you can hardwire by using a USB dongle connected to the phone?