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Music Assistant

BBC Sounds Preview image

Section titled “BBC Sounds ”

Music Assistant has support for streaming from BBC Sounds. Contributed and maintained by Kieran Hogg

Features

Section titled “Features”
Subscription FREEYes
Self-Hosted Local MediaNo
Media Types SupportedTracks, Radio, Podcasts
Recommendations SupportedYes
Lyrics SupportedNo
Radio ModeNo
Maximum Stream QualityLossy, AAC-LC(320kbps)
Login MethodNone or Password

Other

Section titled “Other”
  • Stream live BBC radio shows, podcast series and on-demand audio
  • Access your personalised BBC Sounds content*
  • Keeps your My Sounds listen history up to date with your Music Assistant activity*

*Requires a logged in BBC account

Usage

Section titled “Usage”

You can access the main Sounds menu by navigating to Browse > BBC Sounds. Relevant content will also be shown on the homepage as recommended items, and available content can also be accessed through search.

Configuration

Section titled “Configuration”

The provider works without a login, but you will be restricted to a basic version of the Sounds content.

Settings

Section titled “Settings”
  • Username and Password. A BBC Sounds account is optional, but some UK-only content may not work without being logged in
  • Advanced - Show local radio stations. By default, only national radio stations are listed. Enabling this option will also show local stations.
  • Advanced - Preferred Stream Format Options are HLS [default] or MPEG-DASH

Known Issues / Notes

Section titled “Known Issues / Notes”

The full functionality is enabled when you are a UK-based listener, and signed in to your BBC account. The BBC has slowly been moving towards excluding non-UK listeners from using its Sounds platform, more details here. This provider currently allows access to live and catch up radio to International listeners via the Sounds API, but this could be restricted in the future.

Not Yet Supported

Section titled “Not Yet Supported”
  • Pausing and seeking live radio
  • International accounts may work, but are not currently supported
  • The international menu should show available podcasts, this has not been implemented yet
  • Showing the currently playing song for stations and catch-up is implemented but not yet released
  • For signed-in users, accessing your subscribed content through the library is not yet supported, but is planned