Not a home automation question but I think you're the right crowd to weight in on this. I'm planning a Christmas display that includes music, but not synced to lights exactly. So timing is not extremely important. Anyway, I was considering an FM transmitter - this is a typical approach around here. There are a lot of under $150 ones on Amazon, wondering if anyone had a recommendation. Also, thought about instead displaying a QR code in the yard where people could stream the music on their smartphones instead. Wasn't sure how to pull that one off exactly, and wondered if anyone had attempted this before?
The holiday lights folks (like Falcon Christmas) would probably be a better place to ask this question, but they seem to like this one or the Signstek ones.
For streaming, you could use IceCast to stream the audio and output said stream to the transmitter. Your QR code could then point users to the IceCast stream and they can use their phone to tune in.
Make sure you connect the antenna before connecting power.
Be aware that you ‘need’ a license to broadcast with anything over 500mw which is about 300 feet. This transmitter is switchable 1 watt and 7 watts and will reach out about 1/2 mile.
I used it to broadcast the audio from my scanner so I could hear it anywhere on my property. I used it for about 3 months then switched to a web server for the audio so I can listen anywhere there is internet access so I stream it to my phone.
I have looked into IceCast. It's definitely non-trivial to setup on a Pi4 which was what I was trying. I'll have another look and also check out Falcon Christmas. Thanks for this.
Ah, now I see the "Rube Goldberg" reference. Yeah, I really need to use IceCast but it's a beast to understand. I'll keep looking for a really good write up on it on RPi4
