Amazon Echo Club

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

You did call that. I should have acknowledged that. Sorry.

Absolutely no need to be sorry or apologize. I wasn't trying to be snarky. I was just trying to affirm that I have the same kind of issue from time to time. If only one person experiences a particular issue, then it can be really frustrating to trace down, and could even be a faulty component. However since both of us are experiencing a similar issue on occasion and with multiple bulbs, it does seem to point to something other than just a bulb going bad, although that could still be the case.

[OtinG]

BTW, here is a list of my TP-Link bulbs and their specs:

• LB130, Mood, FW 1.4.3, HV 1.0, Color
• KL130, Kitchen, FW 1.0.12, HV 2.0, Color
• KL130, Color Bath Light, FW 1.0.12, HV 2.0, Color
• KL130, Lamp, FW 1.8.11, HV 1.0, Color
• LB110, Bath Light, FW 1.7.1, HV 1.0, White, (Currently Not Installed)
• LB100, Porch, FW 1.8.6, HV 1.0, White
• LB100, Study, FW 1.4.3, HV 1.0, White

The two bulbs I'm having the occasional issue with are:

• LB130, Mood, FW 1.4.3, HV 1.0, Color
• KL130, Lamp, FW 1.8.11, HV 1.0, Color

Both are color bulbs, both are HV (hardware version) 1, but they are different models. The other two color bulbs are HV 2, so maybe there was an issue with the HV 1 bulbs that got resolved.

My two color bulbs that are HV 2 don't have the issue, nor do any of the white bulbs.

Also, I’m not having any issues with my two smartplugs. They are both model HS103, FW 1.0.3, HV 5.0.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

You did call that. I should have acknowledged that. Sorry.

Hey, I called it, too!





ApK

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by ApK

Hey, I called it, too!





ApK

The TP-Link bulbs and smartplugs don’t require a separate hub, neither does my Govee RGBIC Alexa LED Strip Lights. I don’t have a separate hub except for the one built into my Echo Plus 2nd gen. Can you use Hubitat with such devices that don’t require a separate hub? I assume yes since you have TP-Llink bulbs.

[OtinG]

I was just browsing online at the verbiage for one of my bulbs and found a couple of statements that might be of interest:

• Beware of turning the power on and off 3 times quickly as this will reset the device
• Do not use with dimmer switches

Always good to know how to reset them. I don’t use mine with a dimmer switch, but I can see how that would be an issue. The other precautions they listed on Amazon.com were Wi-Fi related.

[DiapDealer]

3 times quickly is a soft reset. Settings are retained. 5 times quickly is a hard reset. Meaning you'll have to set the device up entirely again (the current firmware, however, will survive a hard reset).

No dimmer switch on mine either. I do have a Kasa in-wall smart dimmer switch that I use with dumb led bulbs (that are specified as dimmable), though.

[Catlady]

Are any of you using a robot vacuum with Alexa? My non-Alexa-enabled robot vacuum seems to be dying, and it looks like most of the newer models are Alexa-enabled now.

I'm mostly interested in how well they navigate and pick up dirt and fur, and in if I can bypass Alexa. Thanks.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by OtinG

The TP-Link bulbs and smartplugs don’t require a separate hub, neither does my Govee RGBIC Alexa LED Strip Lights. I don’t have a separate hub except for the one built into my Echo Plus 2nd gen. Can you use Hubitat with such devices that don’t require a separate hub? I assume yes since you have TP-Llink bulbs.

Yes, if there's a driver available for them, and there is for most TP-Link devices, and other wifi-only (hubless) devices I've had in the house. There's a pretty active dev community, so if the local network control protocols are known or can be reverse engineered, there's a good chance someone has made a driver for it.


The one exception in my case being the Amazon smart plugs. My very brief search did not show a local control driver for them, just some seemingly convoluted cloud-based hack, and I wasn't all that interested in trying it. (I'm not even sure where my one remaining amazon smart plug is at the moment.)



ApK

[OtinG]

I just installed the latest update for the Alexa app on iPadOS. It had a note that they added Favorites, and automatically added some of my devices into same. (See attached screen capture.) It looks to be self-explanatory, but I haven’t messed with it yet.

….

[OtinG]

My Echo Studio arrived yesterday. Pretty simple to set up, especially since I already have multiple Echo devices, so it automatically set it up on my Wi-Fi without having to enter all the password and other info. Although it did default to 2G, so I switched that over to 5G.

I'm not going to do a full review here, but suffice it to say "holy cow it sounds amazing"! It is what it is, a single unit speaker system with 5 speakers, so technically HiFi, but it sounds better than my Sony soundbar which is a 2.1 stereo system with 4 speakers (two 4" bass and two tweeters). The Studio has a 5.25" bass, 3 midrange, and 1 tweeter. There is really no need to compare it to any of the other Echos because it is in a class of its own. The best previous Echo I have is the 2nd gen Plus and as I said there is NO comparison between the two.

Again, the Studio is what it is, a HiFi home speaker device with 5 speakers built in. If you pair it with a second Studio then it would be a 5.1 stereo home theater system. I only have the one though, for now.

I set it up to be the main speaker system with my Fire TV Cube 2nd gen, and it definitely has better sound than my Sony soundbar. I set the Speech Enhancement option ON and it does an extremely good job for TV conversations. It really brings out the conversations more clearly. It is better to keep it off if watching an action adventure type of movie though, or if listening to music.

I did listen to a bit of what Amazon calls ULTRA HD music, and it sounded okay, but not as good as with capable headsets. BTW, HD is Amazon speak for lossless music files, UltraHD is what they call their 3D audio (or spatial Audio). It sounds good, but I’ve heard better through my Amazon Buds. However, Amazon also has what they label simply as Atmos for songs, and that kicks butt and takes names! They had a sample of it that I listened to and it was spectacular, and did sound somewhat 3D, but with just one Studio the true 3D effect will be so-so of course.

I watched a bit of 4K HDR (HDR10, HDR10+) movies and shows from Prime Video, and the speaker really shines with that kind of audio. I didn't find any Dolby Atmos movies/shows yet to test, but it is capable of that too. The sample they had was exceptional though.

I don't have any other home speakers in the same class as the Echo Studio so I can't compare them to their competition. Apple cancelled their fullsize HomePod, and the HomePod minis get ridiculed much like the Echo Dots do, but both are low end speakers so they are what they are.

I should point out that I bought the Echo Studio primarily as a stand-alone music listening device. I connected it my Fire TV Cube, and it surprised me in how well it does, but primarily I will be asking Alexa to play songs on it, then no doubt arguing with her over which version of the song to play. Yep, Alexa can be like a problem child from time to time, but ditto for my cats...

[mlewis78]

OtinG, how does the Echo Studio connect with the Fire TV Cube? I just saw on the Amazon site that it goes with it but no bluetooth.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by mlewis78

OtinG, how does the Echo Studio connect with the Fire TV Cube? I just saw on the Amazon site that it goes with it but no bluetooth.

BTW, you can also connect a single or pair of Echo Dots, Echos, and Echo Pluses, as well as connect the Echo Sub. At least wirelessly with these devices, not sure about wired.

Connecting Wirelessly
It can connect via BT or Wi-Fi. I highly suggest using Wi-Fi because the bandwidth of BT is so small that there will likely be some stuttering and lip-sync issues. I'm not sure if Atmos and Ultra HD sound will work with BT, but it does work with Wi-Fi.

From Amazon.com:

Wi-Fi connectivity: Dual-band Wi-Fi supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz) networks. Does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks.

Bluetooth connectivity: Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) support for audio streaming from your mobile device to Echo or from Echo to your Bluetooth speaker. Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP) for voice control of connected mobile devices. Hands-free voice control is not supported for Mac OS X devices. Bluetooth speakers requiring PIN codes are not supported.

Connecting via Wires
It can also connect via a 3.5mm audio plug and also through a mini optical cable. However, I've read that these methods will not provide Atmos and Ultra HD sound from the TV because the bandwidth is too small.

From Amazon.com:

Audio input: Combination 3.5 mm mini-optical Toslink

[OtinG]

One more thing about connecting an Echo Studio (or pair) to a Fire TV: When the TV is not being used, you can use the Echo Studio standalone as though it wasn't connected to the TV. I use the "Alexa" wake word for my Fire TV Cube and "Echo" for my Echo Studio. With the TV off, I can say "Echo, play Smooth Jazz station" and it will. Or do any other Alexa related smart speaker things with it. I haven't tried asking it anything while the TV is going, so not sure what would happen then.

Basically the Fire TV Cube and Echo Studio are paired, so in theory asking either to do something should result in the command being executed. So asking either to turn on the TV or go to a specific show should work. Anything involving sound will be routed to the Echo Studio. If I say "Alexa, what time is it", I will hear the response on the Studio, and the same if I say "Echo, what time is it".

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by OtinG

With the TV off, I can say "Echo, play Smooth Jazz station" and it will.

That's so wrong. You're teaching your Studio a bad habit. You should be teaching it something good, like "Echo, play some Hard Rock"

Or do any other Alexa related smart speaker things with it. I haven't tried asking it anything while the TV is going, so not sure what would happen then.

Your TV will explode

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

That's so wrong. You're teaching your Studio a bad habit. You should be teaching it something good, like "Echo, play some Hard Rock"



Your TV will explode

LOL! The first thing I did after getting the Studio was to listen to a playlist called Classic Rock which was in UltraHD sound!

I figure Alexa is doing good to get one task done halfway correct, and she would probably have a melt down trying to multitask, so I leave her alone when the TV is on!