Chromecast Devices And Roon

Chromecast

Basics and Setup

Chromecast is fully supported by Roon! Chromecast devices can be setup just the same as any other zone within Roon. Simply head to Settings > Audio and enable your Chromecast device.


Hardware Support

The following devices have been fully tested and supported:
  1. Chromecast Gen 1
  2. Chromecast Gen 2
  3. Chromecast Audio
  4. Chromecast Ultra
  5. Chromecast with Google TV
  6. Google Home
  7. Google Home Mini
  8. Google Home Max 
  9. Nest Hub 
  10. Nest Hub Max
  11. Nest Mini 
  12. Most devices with “Chromecast Built-in” 

If you experience any difficulties with these devices please visit our community site and let us know. All Chromecast devices support gapless playback with Roon. Chromecast Audio supports high-resolution music (up to 96kHz/24-bit), while other Chromecast devices support a sample rate up to 48kHz. On Chromecast devices that support video Roon displays album artwork, artist photos, and track information in addition to audio.

Control Options and Voice Support

When using Google hardware, standard Chromecast controls should also work. This means that Android devices should display Play/Pause controls in your notifications, and both Android and iOS devices should offer transport controls via the Google Home app. Some IR remotes may work depending on HDMI-CEC, and voice-controlled Chromecast devices can also be used to control other Chromecast zones on your network. For example, if Roon is playing to the Chromecast on your TV, your Google Home speaker can understand commands like “Ok Google, pause Chromecast.” Unfortunately, due to limitations in Chromecast, these controls will not work on Android TV devices.

Grouped Zones

Roon supports grouped playback on audio-only Chromecast devices via the Google Home app. Using the Google Home app, you can set up groups of devices, which then appear as additional audio devices in Roon alongside the hardware devices. So for example, you could group a few Chromecasts into a “Whole House” or “Living Room + Patio” zone, enable them as separate Zones in Roon, then play to them freely. Note that video Chromecast devices cannot be grouped together in this manner. Due to hardware limitations, Chromecast devices cannot be grouped with other, non-Chromecast devices outside of the Google Home app. You can find detailed instructions regarding Chromecast device grouping using the Google Home app on this Google knowledgebase page. 

Troubleshooting Chromecast Zones

If you’re experiencing difficulties with your Chromecast zones, please make sure that all of your devices are up to date. If you’re having trouble enabling your Chromecast, try rebooting it and trying again. Be sure to check out our Networking Best Practices guide for more information about making sure you have a solid network for audio streaming. For improved network performance of Chromecast devices, Google offers a low-cost Ethernet adapter. If you need further troubleshooting assistance, please reach out to us on our community site for further support.