vsslctrl 0.1.13.dev1

Package for controlling VSSL's range of streaming amplifiers

vsslctrl

Package for controlling VSSL's range of streaming amplifiers.

Coverage

Tested on:

Model	Software Version	Note
A.3x	p15305.016.3701

Home Assistant integration with basic functionality working on:

Model	Software Version	User Reported
A.1	p15265.033.3703	✔️
A.3	p12013.141.3703	✔️
A.3x	p15305.016.3701
A.6x	p15305.017.3701	✔️

Testers Needed

I am looking for testers with any VSSL amplifier models, please get in touch if you interested in helping. [e-mail]

Important

There should not be any VSSL Agent's running on the network. If you dont know what this is, then you can ignore this notice.

vsslctrl is not endorsed or affiliated with VSSL in any manner.

TODOs

• Better test coverage
• A.1(x) testing - e.g output settings
• More controls - e.g IR Control

Basic Usage

vsslctrl needs to be running inside a asyncio event loop.

A.1 Example

import asyncio
from vsslctrl import Vssl, DeviceModels, Zone, ZoneIDs

async def main():
  
  # Represents a physical VSSL amplifier
  vssl = Vssl(DeviceModels.A1)
  a1 = vssl.add_zone('192.168.1.10')

  # Connect and initialise zone.
  await vssl.initialise()

  """Control Examples"""
  # Print device name
  print(a1.settings.name)
  # Set volume to 25%
  a1.volume = 25
  # Pause
  a1.pause()
  # Print track name
  print(a1.track.name)

  # Shutdown and disconnect all zones
  await vssl.shutdown()

asyncio.run(main())

A.3x Example

import asyncio
from vsslctrl import Vssl, DeviceModels, Zone, ZoneIDs

async def main():
	
  # Represents a physical VSSL amplifier
  vssl = Vssl(DeviceModels.A3X)

  # Add each you wish to control
  zone1 = vssl.add_zone('192.168.1.10', ZoneIDs.ZONE_1)
  zone2 = vssl.add_zone('192.168.1.11', ZoneIDs.ZONE_2)
  zone3 = vssl.add_zone('192.168.1.12', ZoneIDs.ZONE_3)
  #... up to 6 zones for A.6(x)

  # Connect and initialise zones.
  await vssl.initialise()

  """Control Examples"""
  # Print zone1 name
  print(zone1.settings.name)
  # Set zone2 volume to 25%
  zone2.volume = 25
  # Pause zone3
  zone3.pause()
  # or zone3.transport.pause()
  # Print zone1 track name
  print(zone1.track.name)


  # Shutdown and disconnect all zones
  await vssl.shutdown()


asyncio.run(main())

Device Discovery Helper

You can discover VSSL devices on the network using mDNS / Bonjour if you have the zeroconf package installed.

This uses airplay service string _airplay._tcp.local., therefore airplay needs to available and will not work across VLANs without other provisions.

Note: This is designed to be a helper and its not recommended to be used for the initialization of the VSSL class.

import asyncio
from vsslctrl import Vssl

async def main():
  
  print(await Vssl.discover())

  """
    {
        'XXXXXXXXXXXX': [
            {
                'host': '192.168.168.25',
                'name': 'Living Room',
                'model': 'A1x',
                'mac_addr': 'AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF',
                'zone_id': '7',
                'serial': 'XXXXXXXXXXXX'
            }
        ]
    }

  """

asyncio.run(main())

API Functionality

Most functionality is achieved via getters and setters of the two main classes Vssl, Zone.

The classes will update the physical VSSL device when setting a property and once feedback has been received, the classes internal state will be updated. For example:

# Setting the zone name
zone1.settings.name = 'Living Room'
>>> 'Old Zone Name'

# Printing zone name
print(zone1.settings.name)
>>> 'Living Room'

Important in the above example, zone1.settings.name won't be set to its new value until after the VSSL device has changed the name and the Zone class has received confirmation feedback. If you need to wait for the value change, you can await a [property_name]_CHANGE events as below:

from vsslctrl.settings import ZoneSettings
# Setting the zone name and wait for feedback
future_name = vssl.event_bus.future(ZoneSettings.Events.NAME_CHANGE, zone1.id)
zone1.settings.name = 'Bathroom' 
# Helper to await a future with timeout
new_name = await vssl.event_bus.wait_future(future_name)
# Printing zone name
print(new_name)
>>> 'Bathroom'
# or
print(zone1.settings.name)
>>> 'Bathroom'

API Reference

DeviceModels

A device model has to be passed to VSSL so it knows internally what features are supported by the device. This might be removed in the future if we can differentiate different models from the API.

Property	Description
A1X	A.1x
A3X	A.3x
A6X	A.6x
A1	A1
A3	A3
A6	A6

ZoneIDs

A ZoneIDs must be passed to each zone you which to control and it must match the zone on the VSSL device.

If you are unsure of your ZoneIDs you could use the discovery helper to find out the correct mapping.

Property	Description	A.1(x)	A.3(x)	A.6(x)
A1		✔️
ZONE_1	Zone 1		✔️	✔️
ZONE_2	Zone 2		✔️	✔️
ZONE_3	Zone 3		✔️	✔️
ZONE_4	Zone 4			✔️
ZONE_5	Zone 5			✔️
ZONE_6	Zone 6			✔️

Vssl

Property	Description	Type
sw_version	Software version	str readonly
serial	Serial number	str readonly
model	Device Model	int readonly
reboot()	Reboot all zones	func
factory_reset()	Factory reset device	func

"""Example"""
# Reboot all zones
vssl.reboot()
# Do a factory reset (reset all settings)
vssl.factory_reset()

Vssl.settings

Property	Description	Type	Model: Default
name	Device name	str
bus_1_name	Name of Bus 1	str	A.1: Optical Input A.3x/6x: Not Used
bus_2_name	Name of Bus 2	str	A.1: Coax Input A.3x/6x: Optical Input
bluetooth	Bluetooth enabled / disabled	bool
bluetooth_toggle()	Toggle Bluetooth	func

"""Example"""
# Setting device name
vssl.settings.name = 'My House'
# Setting bus 2 name
vssl.settings.bus_2_name = 'Optical Input'
# Enable Bluetooth
vssl.settings.bluetooth = True
# Toggle Bluetooth
vssl.settings.bluetooth_toggle()

Vssl.settings.power

Property	Description	Type	Values
state	Power state	int readonly	VsslPowerSettings.States
adaptive	Power adaptive	bool

"""Example"""
# Setting power adaptive
vssl.settings.power.adaptive = True

Zone

Property	Description	Type	Values
id	Zone number / ID	int readonly	ZoneIDs
host	IP address	str readonly
volume	Volume	int	0...100
volume_raise([step=1])	Raise volume by step	func	step: int 1...100
volume_lower([step=1])	Lower volume by step	func	step: int 1...100
mute	Volume muted	bool
mute_toggle()	Mute / Unmute	func
play()	Play	func
stop()	Stop	func
pause()	Pause	func
next()	Next track	func
prev()	Begining of track or previous track	func
reboot()	Reboot zone	func
play_url([url], [all_zones])	Play a URL	func	url: str, all_zones: bool

"""Examples"""
# Set volume to 50%
zone1.volume = 50
# Raise volume by 5%
zone1.volume_raise(5)
# Mute
zone1.mute = True
# Toggle mute
zone1.mute_toggle()
# Pause transport
zone1.pause()
# Next track
zone1.next()
# Play a URL on this zone1
zone1.play_url('http://soundbible.com/grab.php?id=2217&type=mp3')
# Play a URL on all zones
zone1.play_url('http://soundbible.com/grab.php?id=2217&type=mp3', True)

Zone.transport

A VSSL amplifier can not start a stream except for playing a URL directly. This is a limitation of the hardware itself.

Property	Description	Type	Values
state	Transport state. i.e Play, Stop, Pause	int	ZoneTransport.States
play()	Play	func
stop()	Stop	func
pause()	Pause	func
next()	Next track	func
prev()	Begining of track or previous track	func
is_playing	Is the zone playing	bool readonly
is_stopped	Is the zone stopped	bool readonly
is_pasued	Is the zone pasued	bool readonly
is_repeat	Repeat state. i.e all, one, off	int readonly	ZoneTransport.Repeat
is_shuffle	Is shuffle enabled	bool readonly
has_next	Is the next button enabled	bool readonly
has_prev	Is the prev button enabled	bool readonly

"""Example"""
# Pause the stream
zone1.transport.pause()
# or
zone1.transport.state = ZoneTransport.States.PAUSE

Zone.track

• Not all sources have complete metadata - missing value will be set to defaults.
• Airplay track progress is not available.

Property	Description	Type	Values
title	Title	str readonly
album	Album	str readonly
artist	Artist	str readonly
genre	Genre	str readonly
duration	Length in miliseconds (ms)	int readonly
progress	Current position in miliseconds (ms)	int readonly
cover_art_url	URL to cover art	str readonly
source	Track source e.g Spotify	int readonly	TrackMetadata.Sources
url	URL of file or track	str readonly

Zone.input

Property	Description	Type	Values
source	Change input source. Source to be played out the zones speakers	int	InputRouter.Sources
priority	Change input priority. Stream or local to have precedence	int	InputRouter.Priorities

A.1(x) Source Routing Order

A.1 and A.1x don't support manually changing the input source. Instead a fixed source routing order is used:

1. Optical Input
2. Coaxial Input
3. Analog Input

Input InputRouter.Priorities still apply.

Input Priority / Precedence

InputRouter.Priorities	Priority Order
STREAM	Stream Party Zone Bus 1 Bus 2 Optical Coaxial Analog
LOCAL	Bus 1 Bus 2 Optical Coaxial Analog Stream Party Zone

"""Example"""
# Change zone 1 to listen to analog input 4
zone1.input.source = InputRouter.Sources.ANALOG_IN_4

# Change zone 1 to perfer local inputs over stream
zone1.input.priority = InputRouter.Priorities.LOCAL

Zone.group

Unsupported on X series amplifiers.

Property	Description	Type	Values
source	Zone ID of group master / source	int readonly	ZoneIDs
is_master	This zone is the group master	bool readonly
add_member()	Add zone to group / create group	func	ZoneIDs
remove_member()	Remove zone from group	func	ZoneIDs
dissolve()	Dissolve group / remove all members	func
leave()	Leave the group if a member	func
is_party_zone_member	Member of Party Zone	bool

"""Examples"""
# Add group 2 to a group with zone 1 as master
zone1.group.add_member(ZoneIDs.ZONE_2)
# Remove zone 2 from group
zone2.group.leave() # or
zone1.group.remove_member(ZoneIDs.ZONE_2)
# If zone 1 is a master, remove all members
zone1.group.dissolve()
# Add zone to the party zone group
zone1.group.is_party_zone_member = True
# Toggle Party Zone Membership
zone1.group.is_party_zone_member_toggle()

Zone.analog_output

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
source	Where the AO is routed from. i.e stream, optical input or off	int	AnalogOutput.Sources	Off
is_fixed_volume	Fix the output volume. Output wont respond to volume control	bool		False
is_fixed_volume_toggle()	Toggle fixed volume	func

"""Examples"""
# Change analog output of zone1 to be outputting the optical input
zone1.analog_output.source = AnalogOutput.Sources.OPTICAL_IN

# Change analog output of zone1 to be outputting the zone 2 source (whatever zone 2 is using as a source)
zone1.analog_output.source = AnalogOutput.Sources.ZONE_2

# Fix the analog output volume. 
zone1.analog_output.is_fixed_volume = True

Zone.settings

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
name	Name	str
disabled	Disable the zone	bool		False
disabled_toggle()	disable / enable	func
mono	Set output to mono or stereo	int	ZoneSettings.StereoMono	Stereo
mono_toggle()	Toggle mono or stereo	func

"""Examples"""
# Set name
zone1.settings.name = 'Living Room'
# Disable Zone
zone1.disabled = True
# Toggle mono output
zone1.mono_toggle()

Zone.settings.analog_input

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
name	Name	str
fixed_gain	Fix the input gain to a specific value	int	0...100	0 is disabled or variable gain

"""Examples"""
# Change zone1 analog input name
zone1.settings.analog_input.name = 'BluRay Player'

# Fix zone1 analog input gain to 50%.
zone1.settings.analog_input.fixed_gain = 50

Zone.settings.volume

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
default_on	Default on volume	int	0...100	0 is disabled
max_left	Max volume left channel	int	0...100	75
max_right	Max volume right channel	int	0...100	75

"""Examples"""
# Set default on volume to 50%
zone1.settings.volume.default_on = 50
# Set maximum volume for left channel to 75%
zone1.settings.volume.default_on = 75

Zone.settings.eq

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
enabled	Enable / disable EQ	bool		False

EQ to be set in decibel using a range -10dB to +10dB

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
hz60_db	60Hz	int	-10...10	0
hz200_db	200Hz	int	-10...10	0
hz500_db	500Hz	int	-10...10	0
khz1_db	1kHz	int	-10...10	0
khz4_db	4kHz	int	-10...10	0
khz8_db	8kHz	int	-10...10	0
khz15_db	15kHz	int	-10...10	0

"""Examples"""
# Set 1kHz EQ to -2
zone1.settings.eq.khz1_db = -2

Zone.settings.subwoofer

• A.1 and A.1x only
• Set 0 for full frequency range

Property	Description	Type	Values	Default
crossover	Set "sub out" crossover frequency from 50-200Hz.	int	0 or 50...200	0

"""Examples"""
# Set subwoofer ouput crossover to 100hz
zone1.settings.subwoofer.crossover = 100

Credit

Thanks to @dj-jam for the continued testing.

The VSSL API was reverse engineered using Wireshark, VSSLs native "legacy" iOS app and their deprecated vsslagent.

Motivation for this project was to integrate VSSLs amplifiers into Home Assistant and have control over different subnets (not mDNS dependant)

Known Issues & Limitiations

• Not tested on A.1x or original A series range of amplifiers (testers welcome)
• VSSL can not start a stream except for playing a URL directly. This is a limitation of the hardware itself.
• Not all sources set the volume to 0 when the zone is muted
• Airplay Zone.track.progress is not available.
• Cant stop a URL playback, feedback is worng at least
• VSSL likes to cache old track metadata. For example when playing a URL after Spotify, often the device will respond with the previous (Spotify) tracks metadata
• stop() is intended to disconnect the client and pause the stream. Doesn’t always function this way, depending on stream source
• Occasionally a zones might stop responding to certain commands, issuing the reboot command generally corrects