HomePod stereo pairs supported in macOS Big Sur 11.3 beta

Apple appears to be working on system-level support for HomePod stereo pairs with its upcoming macOS 11.3 update, delivering a long-requested feature that has been available on iOS and tvOS for years.

Current macOS releases restrict playback on stereo-paired HomePods to certain apps like Apple Music, with system audio relegated to individual HomePods. Further complicating matters, apps that do support stereo pairs force users to manually select speaker groups from the AirPlay menu.

As noted by 9to5Mac, HomePod pairs are listed as selectable options in macOS 11.3 beta's system sound output pane. Clicking on a paired set results in stereo output, identical to HomePod handling on iOS.

According to the report, the feature is not working consistently, suggesting Apple is hammering out bugs on the way to public release. It is unclear if the feature is compatible with HomePod mini.

The news should come as a relief to HomePod owners who have pined for stereo sound on Mac since the smart speakers launched in 2018.

Stereo pairing is a major HomePod and HomePod mini feature that automates setup and playback processes. After setting up a first HomePod, users are able to add a second unit — of the same type — to create a stereo pair that leverages onboard audio technology to significantly widen perceived soundstage.

It remains unclear whether Apple will complete development of HomePod stereo pairs in time for macOS 11.3's release, but it is apparent that the company is finally working to deliver what some consider to be a glaring omission in Mac's software feature set.

25 Comments

urahara 733 comments · 13 Years

About 3 years ago

Finally!!!

jeffharris 839 comments · 22 Years

Wow, I’d have thought that “feature” would have been there as the default.

I’ll stick with my KEF LSX speakers.

thrang 1033 comments · 17 Years

What they need to fix is the bug when setting an Hompod as a Default Speaker for an Apple TV - when "paired" this way, the HomePod "Hey Siri" is, while not completely disabled, largely useless (you cannot "Hey Sir" requests for Music and Podcast playbacks, though oddly it will still give you the weather or control Home devices)

While I understand there may be a few scenarios where playback control priority can be a little challenging to assume programmatically, an easy scenario to fix is to allow HomePod Siri full functionality if the associated Apple TV is asleep. Right now, if the AppleTV is asleep and I ask that HomePod to play something, you simply get a "Sorry, I'm having a problem connecting to Apple Music " or something like that.

If I start playback on another HomePod, and they ask it to also play on the problem child, it works. Same for initiating on the phone -

So the control logic is a bit half-assed right now...

elijahg 2823 comments · 18 Years

I don't understand how the glacial rate new features are added at Apple are justifiable to the management... Apple are happy enough to dump existing APIs all the time and announce the next new *Kit but when it comes to existing features, they are often abandoned or long-standing bugs go unfixed for months or more until they get media attention. The paired-stereo infrastructure is all there, and has been for years, it must be very little effort to add the "stereo pair" attribute to the AirPlay stream, and recycle the iTunes Airplay code.

thrang said:

What they need to fix is the bug when setting an Hompod as a Default Speaker for an Apple TV - when "paired" this way, the HomePod "Hey Siri" is, while not completely disabled, largely useless (you cannot "Hey Sir" requests for Music and Podcast playbacks, though oddly it will still give you the weather or control Home devices)

While I understand there may be a few scenarios where playback control priority can be a little challenging to assume programmatically, an easy scenario to fix is to allow HomePod Siri full functionality if the associated Apple TV is asleep. Right now, if the AppleTV is asleep and I ask that HomePod to play something, you simply get a "Sorry, I'm having a problem connecting to Apple Music " or something like that.

If I start playback on another HomePod, and they ask it to also play on the problem child, it works. Same for initiating on the phone -

So the control logic is a bit half-assed right now...

My annoyance is similar, with multiple devices able to hear "Hey Siri". The logic seems to rely on BTLE signal strength, and if a device doesn't detect a HomePod in the vicinity for whatever reason it'll decide to take over from the HP and process what I say instead. Or sometimes even both devices do it simultaneously. Which is *really* annoying. My watch does it too occasionally when it's just on my wrist at rest. It's stupid that you can't change the keyword, or at least change it from Hey Siri to Hey HomePod.