Some AirPlay speakers are set to require a password, and some TVs and receivers show a code on screen the first time something connects to them. Audiout works with both. You type the password or code once, and Audiout saves it.
A lock beside a speaker’s name in the Mixer marks one that needs a password or a code.
A speaker with a password
Switch the speaker on in the Mixer. The first time, a sheet opens: “Enter the password for “Living Room””, with a Password field. Type the password and click Connect.
The sheet opens by itself only when you switch the speaker on in the Mixer. If the speaker joins some other way, for example when Audiout reconnects your speakers at launch or you switch to a scene, its row shows it connecting with an “Enter Password…” link. Click the link to open the same sheet. Nothing plays on that speaker until you do.
This covers AirPlay 2 speakers set to “Require Password” and older AirPlay speakers with a password.
A TV that shows a code
Some receivers, an LG TV for example, put a four-digit code on screen when Audiout connects. For these the row says “Enter Code…”, and the sheet reads “Enter the code shown on “Bedroom TV”” with four boxes. Type the digits from the screen. The fourth digit connects by itself, so there is no button to click. Pasting a code fills all four boxes at once.
Audiout saves the pairing, so the TV asks for a code only the first time.
Where it is saved
Passwords and pairings are saved in the macOS Keychain on this Mac. Once one is saved, the speaker’s page on the Speakers tab shows a “Password” row, or “Pairing” for a TV that showed a code, reading “Saved”.
To open that page, right-click the speaker’s row in the Mixer and choose “Speaker settings…”.
Changing or clearing it
There is no field to edit a saved password. Instead, click Forget on the Password or Pairing row. Audiout deletes it from the Keychain, and the next time you switch the speaker on in the Mixer it asks again. That is also how you enter a new one.
If you changed the password on the speaker itself, you don’t need to Forget anything. The old one stops working, Audiout deletes it, and the Mixer offers “Enter Password…” for the new one.
If it is rejected
A wrong entry in the sheet shows “That password didn’t work. Check it and try again.”, or for a code, “That code didn’t work. Check the screen and try again.” Correct it and connect again.
If a saved password stops working later, the Mixer opens a red panel with “Password didn’t work” and an “Enter Password…” button. For a code it reads “Code didn’t work”, with “Try again”. Audiout deletes a password or code the speaker refused, so it never keeps retrying a wrong one.
Two kinds Audiout can’t join yet
- “Needs a code every time”. Some receivers ask for a new code on every connection, not just the first. Audiout recognizes these and says “This speaker asks for a new code on every connection. Audiout can’t do that yet.”
- “Home members only”. A HomePod or Apple TV can be limited to people who share its Home, and Audiout isn’t one of them. Change that speaker’s AirPlay access in the Home app so anyone on the same network can use it, then try again. A Mac acting as an AirPlay receiver has the same setting: in System Settings, set AirPlay Receiver to allow “Anyone on the same network”.
The rest of the Speakers tab, including Forget for speakers that are gone, is in Hide or show a speaker in the Mixer. What each kind of speaker supports is in What works with each kind of speaker. If a speaker is silent for another reason, start with No sound from Audiout.