Art Can Paint Screens: Making Music “Visible”
These digital art screens ingeniously extend the auditory experience into the visual realm, transforming abstract melodies into concrete artistic imagery. This adds a richer dimension and emotional connection to music appreciation. This is the charm of music visualization—it elevates music from merely an auditory pleasure to a visually appreciable artistic experience.
ArtFrame is an album artwork display extension designed for Roon music system.
4K Ultra HD album artwork display
Adaptive fullscreen display
Touch screen support
Smart mouse hiding
iOS device fullscreen support
Automatic background blur effect
Node.js 12.0 or higher (for manual installation)
Roon Core 1.8 or higher
Modern browser (HTML5 support)
Docker (for Docker installation)
docker run -d \
--network host \
--restart unless-stopped \
epochaudio/artframe:latest
docker-compose.yml file with the following content:
version: '3'
services:
roonalbumart:
image: epochaudio/artframe:latest
network_mode: "host"
restart: unless-stopped
volumes:
- ./config:/app/config
docker-compose up -d
The service will be available at http://localhost:3666
Start Roon Core
Run ArtFrame
Enable ArtFrame extension in Roon settings
Visit http://localhost:3666 (or your configured port)
Click cover: Toggle fullscreen mode
Operation tips will be shown on first visit
This project is developed based on the following open-source projects:
This is very nice! What frame are you using here in the photo?
My biggest hurdle has been finding the right hardware to enable something like this. I’ve been using an old Surface Go and Roon full screen, but want a more artwork focused solution.
22-inch 1:1 and 16:9 art screens which were bought from our local！
Roon Cover Art Extension
This extension displays album art from your Roon music library, offering both real-time playback visualization and a dynamic art wall mode.
Key Features:
Real-time Playback Display:
Art Wall Mode:
16.9 and small_frame options).Automatic Image Saving:
Artist_Album Name).Display Options:
16.9: Optimized for 16:9 aspect ratio displays (widescreen monitors and TVs). Suitable for both landscape and portrait orientations. Does not include a clock. Recommended for 16:9 screens.small_frame: Optimized for displays with a very tall, narrow aspect ratio, such as 1280x8000. Supports both portrait and landscape orientations. Does not include a clock. Ideal for specific, non-standard display types.latest: Designed for square (1:1) aspect ratio displays. Includes a central clock display. Best for square screens.Installation and Setup:
Option A: Direct Docker Deployment
docker pull epochaudio/coverart:YOUR_TAG
YOUR_TAG with the desired display option (16.9, small_frame, or latest).docker run -d \
--name roon-coverart \
--network host \
--restart unless-stopped \
-v $(pwd)/images:/app/images \
epochaudio/coverart:YOUR_TAG
YOUR_TAG with the desired display option (16.9, small_frame, or latest).Docker Command Explanation:
docker pull epochaudio/coverart:YOUR_TAG: Downloads the specified Docker image from Docker Hub.docker run -d: Starts a new container in detached mode (runs in the background).--name roon-coverart: Assigns the name roon-coverart to the container.--network host: Allows the container to use the host’s network, enabling direct access to Roon.--restart unless-stopped: Ensures the container restarts automatically unless explicitly stopped.-v $(pwd)/images:/app/images: Mounts the images directory in the current directory on the host to /app/images inside the container. This is where saved artwork is stored.epochaudio/coverart:YOUR_TAG: Specifies the Docker image to use for the container.Important: Setting File Permissions
The container runs as the node user (UID 1000) and requires read/write access to the images directory.
Create the images directory (if it doesn’t exist):
mkdir -p images
Set Permissions (Choose one option):
sudo chown -R 1000:1000 images
sudo chmod -R 755 images
sudo chmod -R 777 images
Note: These commands must be executed on the host machine, not inside the container.
Configuration Options (Environment Variables - Docker)
The following environment variables can be set when running the Docker container to customize behavior:
SERVER_PORT: The port on which the server will listen (default is 3666).ARTWORK_SAVEDIR: The directory where album art will be saved (default is /app/images).ARTWORK_AUTOSAVE: Set to true to automatically save album art, false otherwise (default is true).ARTWORK_FORMAT: The image format for saved artwork (jpg or png; default is jpg).Example of setting an environment variable in the docker run command:
docker run -d \
--name roon-coverart \
--network host \
--restart unless-stopped \
-v $(pwd)/images:/app/images \
-e SERVER_PORT=8080 \
epochaudio/coverart:16.9
This example sets the server port to 8080.
Usage Instructions:
http://localhost:3666 (or the port you configured).Important Notes:
images directory has the correct read/write permissions for the node user (UID 1000). See the “Setting File Permissions” section.