DFPlayer Mini MP3 Player Integration with ESPHome

Hey everyone, I’ve been really curious about integrating the DFPlayer Mini MP3 player into my smart home setup. I’ve seen some great examples online, but I wanted to share my own journey and see if others have tackled this too!

The Setup
I’ve got an ESP32-cam based doorbell system that I’d love to add some voice notifications to. The idea is to have pre-recorded messages like “Just a moment. I’ll be right there.” play when someone rings the doorbell. It’s a small touch that could make things much smoother for visitors.

The Challenge
I’ve been exploring how to control the DFPlayer Mini using ESPHome. From what I gather, it’s possible to use the UART bus or a custom UART device with one of the Arduino libraries like DFPlayerMini Fast. I’ve been tinkering with the code, but I’m not entirely sure if I’m on the right track. Here’s a snippet of what I’ve tried so far:

python
// Play track 0013.mp3 of Dfplayer microSD
class DFPlayerMini {
public:
DFPlayerMini(SoftwareSerial *swSerial);
void begin();
void play(uint16_t track);
void next();
void previous();
void volume(uint8_t vol);
void eq(uint8_t eq);
void bass(uint8_t bass);
void treble(uint8_t treble);
void loop(uint8_t loop);
void powerSave(uint8_t powerSave);
void Led(uint8_t Led);
void LedColor(uint8_t LedColor);
void LedBrightness(uint8_t LedBrightness);
void LedFlash(uint8_t LedFlash);
void LedOff(uint8_t LedOff);
void LedOn(uint8_t LedOn);
void LedMode(uint8_t LedMode);
void LedEffect(uint8_t LedEffect);
void LedEffectSpeed(uint8_t LedEffectSpeed);
void LedEffectDirection(uint8_t LedEffectDirection);
void LedEffectColor(uint8_t LedEffectColor);
void LedEffectRainbow(uint8_t LedEffectRainbow);
void LedEffectFire(uint8_t LedEffectFire);
void LedEffectPolice(uint8_t LedEffectPolice);
void LedEffectBreath(uint8_t LedEffectBreath);
void LedEffectWave(uint8_t LedEffectWave);
void LedEffectJump(uint8_t LedEffectJump);
void LedEffectSparkle(uint8_t LedEffectSparkle);
void LedEffectFlash(uint8_t LedEffectFlash);
void LedEffectStrobe(uint8_t LedEffectStrobe);
void LedEffectPulse(uint8_t LedEffectPulse);
void LedEffectFade(uint8_t LedEffectFade);
void LedEffectGradient(uint8_t LedEffectGradient);
void LedEffectCustom(uint8_t LedEffectCustom);
void LedEffectStop(uint8_t LedEffectStop);
void LedEffectResume(uint8_t LedEffectResume);
void LedEffectPause(uint8_t LedEffectPause);
void LedEffectContinue(uint8_t LedEffectContinue);
void LedEffectLoop(uint8_t LedEffectLoop);
void LedEffectOneShot(uint8_t LedEffectOneShot);
void LedEffectBlink(uint8_t LedEffectBlink);
void LedEffectBlinkFast(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkFast);
void LedEffectBlinkSlow(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkSlow);
void LedEffectBlinkMedium(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkMedium);
void LedEffectBlinkCustom(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustom);
void LedEffectBlinkStop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkStop);
void LedEffectBlinkResume(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkResume);
void LedEffectBlinkPause(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkPause);
void LedEffectBlinkContinue(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkContinue);
void LedEffectBlinkLoop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkLoop);
void LedEffectBlinkOneShot(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkOneShot);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomSpeed(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomSpeed);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomDirection(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomDirection);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomColor(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomColor);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomEffect(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomEffect);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomStop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomStop);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomResume(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomResume);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomPause(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomPause);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomContinue(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomContinue);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomLoop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomLoop);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomOneShot(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomOneShot);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomSpeed(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomSpeed);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomDirection(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomDirection);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomColor(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomColor);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomEffect(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomEffect);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomStop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomStop);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomResume(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomResume);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomPause(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomPause);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomContinue(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomContinue);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomLoop(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomLoop);
void LedEffectBlinkCustomOneShot(uint8_t LedEffectBlinkCustomOneShot);
}

The Goal
I’d love to know if anyone else has successfully integrated the DFPlayer Mini with ESPHome. Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated! I’m also curious if there’s a more streamlined way to handle the MP3 playback without relying too heavily on custom code.

Looking Forward
I’m really hopeful that this project will come together. It’s a fun way to add a personal touch to the doorbell system, and I can’t wait to see how it turns out. If anyone has experience with this or similar setups, please share your insights!

Cheers,
[Your Name]