How to improve HomePod and HomePod mini audio with stereo pairing

Whether you’ve got a couple of the new HomePod 2 speakers, the original, or the mini, it’s quick to set them up to work together. Here’s how to make a HomePod stereo pair, the requirements, plus a trick to pairing non-matching HomePods.

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Using HomePods as a stereo pair has been a feature since Apple’s original smart speaker and it continues on with HomePod 2 as well as HomePod mini. Along with the stereo support, you get the benefit of a boost in volume output.

To natively make a HomePod stereo pair, you’ll need to have two of the same type and generation (2x HomePod mini, 2x HomePod 1st gen, 2x HomePod 2nd gen).

However, there is a workaround with a third-party app:

• How to defy Apple and create a HomePod stereo pair with first and second-gen speakers

Below we’ll walk through the official way to create a HomePod stereo pair.

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How to make a HomePod stereo pair

1. Open the Home app on iPhone or iPad
2. Make sure both HomePods of the same generation and type are plugged in and assigned to the same room in the Home app
   • If they’re not, long-press on one > Accessory Details > swipe down > Room to change it
3. Long-press on one of the two HomePods and chose Accessory Details, swipe down until you see HomePod settings
4. Choose Create Stereo Pair
5. Tap the two HomePods you’d like to use, then hit Done in the top right corner
6. Pick which one you want to be your left and right speaker
   • Tap one to hear a chime to identify which is which
   • Use the orange arrow button to swap them
7. Now tap Back to finish the stereo pairing process
   • You’ll see a message that “HomePod is being configured. Additional settings will be available shortly…” (this usually just takes a minute or so).
8. When the process is complete, the icon will show as two HomePods – tap the X in the top right corner to head back to the Home app

Here’s how the process looks:

More on HomePod from 9to5Mac:

• Here’s how HomePod 2 compares to the original and HomePod mini
• HomePod 2 teardown shows what’s different compared to the 2018 model
• Hands-on: The new HomePod compared to the original