numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:28 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:28 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:30 PMBackgroundAudioPlayer
class in the LiveKit Agents SDK for Python. This feature lets you play custom audio files, like hold music, whenever you need.
Here’s a simple way to set this up:
• First, disable the customer's audio input and output.
• Then, use the BackgroundAudioPlayer
to play your chosen background audio file on a loop. For example:
def start_hold(self):
self.customer_session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)
self.customer_session.output.set_audio_enabled(False)
self.hold_audio_handle = self.background_audio.play(
AudioConfig("hold_music.mp3", volume=0.8),
loop=True,
)
Once the hold is over, you can easily stop the music using the PlayHandle
that the play
method gives you.
Just a quick note: this handy feature is currently available only in the Python SDK. If you have any questions or need help with this, please don’t hesitate to reach out—I’m here to help!
Sources: examples/drive-thru/drivethru_agent.py | Agent speech and audio | LiveKit Docsnumerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:34 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:34 PMwait_for_actual_bill
method, you can easily add background audio using the BackgroundAudioPlayer
class from the LiveKit Agents SDK for Python. Let me walk you through how to update your code:
1. First, initialize the BackgroundAudioPlayer
inside your HelpfulAssistant
class like this:
from livekit.agents import BackgroundAudioPlayer, AudioConfig
class HelpfulAssistant(Agent):
def __init__(self, instructions: str = "You are a helpful assistant.") -> None:
super().__init__(instructions=instructions)
self.background_audio = BackgroundAudioPlayer()
2. Then, update the wait_for_actual_bill
method so it plays some background audio while waiting:
@function_tool()
async def wait_for_actual_bill(self, record_id: str) -> str:
"""
Wait until the actual bill amount is added in MongoDB, then return it.
If the bill is missing, the agent will keep retrying silently until it exists.
"""
# Start playing background audio
audio_handle = self.background_audio.play(
AudioConfig("hold_music.mp3", volume=0.8),
loop=True
)
try:
while True:
record = await self._get_record(record_id)
if record and record.get("actual_bill") is not None:
bill = record["actual_bill"]
return str(bill)
# Sleep to avoid hammering DB / sockets
await asyncio.sleep(5)
finally:
# Stop the background audio when done
audio_handle.stop()
This way, your agent will play some soothing background music on a loop while it waits for the bill to be ready, and it will stop automatically once everything is done.
If you have any questions or need more help with this, just let me know—I’m here to assist!numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:37 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:38 PMTimeoutError
during LiveKit agent initialization. This can happen for a few reasons, like timeout settings being a bit too short, resource limitations, or network hiccups. Let's walk through some steps that might help resolve this together:
1. Increase Timeout Settings: Try adjusting the initialize_process_timeout
parameter in the WorkerOptions
class. For example:
worker_options = WorkerOptions(\n entrypoint_fnc=your_entrypoint,\n initialize_process_timeout=30.0 # Increase timeout to 30 seconds\n)
2. Pre-load Assets: It can really help to download models and assets during the image build process using the download-files
command. This reduces the time needed during initialization.
3. Use Adequate Compute Resources: For smoother performance, try to avoid burstable instance types like t3 or t4 in production. Instead, opting for consistent performance instances such as m5, c5, or c6i can make a difference.
4. Check Network and Configuration: Double-check that your network connection is stable and that all necessary environment variables, like API keys, are properly set.
I hope these suggestions help you move forward! Please feel free to reach out if you have any more questions or need additional support—I’m here to help.
Sources: Builds and Dockerfiles | LiveKit Docs | Builds and Dockerfiles | LiveKit Docs | Troubleshooting Latency and Timeout Errors with Turn Detection on AWS | Voice Assistants | livekit/livekit_composite | DeepWiki | Infrastructure & Deployment | livekit/livekit_composite | DeepWikinumerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:44 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:44 PMHelpfulAssistant
class doesn’t have the background_audio
attribute set up yet. No worries—we can fix this together by making sure the BackgroundAudioPlayer
is properly initialized inside the constructor of your HelpfulAssistant
class.
Here’s a simple way to do that:
from livekit.agents import BackgroundAudioPlayer\n\nclass HelpfulAssistant(Agent):\n def __init__(self, instructions: str = \"You are a helpful assistant.\") -> None:\n super().__init__(instructions=instructions)\n self.background_audio = BackgroundAudioPlayer() # Initialize BackgroundAudioPlayer
Just add this initialization to your class constructor, and you’ll have self.background_audio
ready to use in your methods.
If you run into any more questions or need a hand with anything else, feel free to reach out—I’m here to help!numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:52 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:53 PMBackgroundAudioPlayer
needs to be started before you call the play
method. To fix this, just make sure you call await self.background_audio.start()
before using play
. It’s a simple step that makes everything run smoothly!
Here’s a little guide to help you out:
from livekit.agents import BackgroundAudioPlayer\n\nclass HelpfulAssistant(Agent):\n def __init__(self, instructions: str = \"You are a helpful assistant.\") -> None:\n super().__init__(instructions=instructions)\n self.background_audio = BackgroundAudioPlayer()\n\n async def start_audio(self, room, session):\n # Start the BackgroundAudioPlayer\n await self.background_audio.start(room=room, agent_session=session)
Before you call play
, just follow these steps:
1. Connect to the room.
2. Start the agent session (if you have one).
3. Call await self.background_audio.start(room=ctx.room, agent_session=session)
.
Once that’s done, you’re all set to use play
to emit audio without any worries. If anything’s still unclear or you want to chat more about it, just let me know—I’m here to help!
Sources: examples/voice_agents/background_audio.py | Agent speech and audio | LiveKit Docs | Agent speech and audio | LiveKit Docsnumerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 12:54 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 12:54 PMwait_for_actual_bill
method work more smoothly. First, it’s essential to start the BackgroundAudioPlayer
before calling play
. Also, to make sure the background audio stops properly when the method finishes or exits, we should call audio_handle.stop()
. Here’s an updated version that takes care of these details:
@function_tool()\nasync def wait_for_actual_bill(self, record_id: str) -> str:\n \"\"\"\n Wait until the actual bill amount is added in MongoDB, then return it.\n If the bill is missing, the agent will keep retrying silently until it exists.\n \"\"\"\n # Ensure BackgroundAudioPlayer is started\n await self.background_audio.start(room=ctx.room, agent_session=session)\n\n # Start playing background audio\n audio_handle = self.background_audio.play(\n AudioConfig(\"hold_music.mp3\", volume=0.8),\n loop=True\n )\n\n try:\n while True:\n record = await self._get_record(record_id)\n if record and record.get(\"actual_bill\") is not None:\n bill = record[\"actual_bill\"]\n return str(bill)\n\n # Sleep to avoid hammering DB / sockets\n await asyncio.sleep(5)\n finally:\n # Stop the background audio when done\n audio_handle.stop()
Here are the key changes I made:
• Added await self.background_audio.start(room=ctx.room, agent_session=session)
to make sure the audio player is properly started.
• Used a try...finally
block around the loop so that audio_handle.stop()
is always called when the method exits, keeping things tidy.
If anything is unclear or you’d like me to walk through any part in more detail, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’m here to help!numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 1:07 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 1:08 PMctx
and session
aren’t defined in your wait_for_actual_bill
method. These are important because they’re needed to start the BackgroundAudioPlayer
. To fix this, you can pass them as arguments to the method or get them from the job context.
Here’s an updated version of your method that should help:
@function_tool()\nasync def wait_for_actual_bill(self, record_id: str, ctx, session) -> str:\n \"\"\"\n Wait until the actual bill amount is added in MongoDB, then return it.\n If the bill is missing, the agent will keep retrying silently until it exists.\n \"\"\"\n # Ensure BackgroundAudioPlayer is started\n await self.background_audio.start(room=ctx.room, agent_session=session)\n\n # Start playing background audio\n audio_handle = self.background_audio.play(\n AudioConfig(\"hold_music.mp3\", volume=0.8),\n loop=True\n )\n\n try:\n while True:\n record = await self._get_record(record_id)\n if record and record.get(\"actual_bill\") is not None:\n bill = record[\"actual_bill\"]\n return str(bill)\n\n # Sleep to avoid hammering DB / sockets\n await asyncio.sleep(5)\n finally:\n # Stop the background audio when done\n audio_handle.stop()
Here are the key updates:
• Added ctx
and session
as parameters to the method.
• Make sure to pass these variables when you call the method.
If anything is unclear or you’d like me to walk you through it step-by-step, just let me know—I’m here to help!numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 2:03 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 2:04 PMwait_for_actual_bill
tool, you can simply disable the user's audio input right at the start of the method and then re-enable it once everything is done. This way, the user won’t accidentally send any input during this waiting period.
Here’s the updated method for you to try out:
@function_tool()\nasync def wait_for_actual_bill(self, record_id: str) -> str:\n \"\"\"\n Wait until the actual bill amount is added in MongoDB, then return it.\n If the bill is missing, the agent will keep retrying silently until it exists.\n \"\"\"\n # Disable user microphone\n self.customer_session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)\n\n try:\n while True:\n try:\n record = await self._get_record(record_id)\n if record and record.get("actual_bill") is not None:\n return str(record["actual_bill"])\n except Exception as e:\n logger.error(f"Error checking actual bill: {e}")\n return "Error while checking bill"\n\n # Sleep to avoid hammering DB / sockets\n await asyncio.sleep(5)\n finally:\n # Re-enable user microphone\n self.customer_session.input.set_audio_enabled(True)
Here’s what’s new:
• We disable the user's microphone right at the start with self.customer_session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)
.
• Then, in the finally
block, we make sure to turn it back on, so the user’s microphone is restored even if something unexpected happens.
This approach helps keep things smooth by preventing any input while the agent waits for the actual bill. If you have any questions or need a hand with anything else, just let me know—I’m here to help!numerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 2:08 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 2:08 PMself.customer_session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)
might not be properly initialized or accessible in your method. To help fix this, let's make sure the AgentSession
instance is correctly passed and used within your function.
Here’s an updated version that should work better for you:
@function_tool()\nasync def wait_for_actual_bill(self, record_id: str, session) -> str:\n \"\"\"\n Wait until the actual bill amount is added in MongoDB, then return it.\n If the bill is missing, the agent will keep retrying silently until it exists.\n \"\"\"\n # Disable user microphone\n session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)\n\n try:\n while True:\n try:\n record = await self._get_record(record_id)\n if record and record.get("actual_bill") is not None:\n return str(record["actual_bill"])\n except Exception as e:\n logger.error(f"Error checking actual bill: {e}")\n return "Error while checking bill"\n\n # Sleep to avoid hammering DB / sockets\n await asyncio.sleep(5)\n finally:\n # Re-enable user microphone\n session.input.set_audio_enabled(True)
Here are the key updates:
• We added session
as a parameter to your method so the AgentSession
instance is accessible.
• Used session.input.set_audio_enabled(False)
to properly disable the microphone.
If anything is unclear or you want me to walk you through this further, just let me know—I’m here to help!
Sources: Text and transcriptions | LiveKit Docs | examples/voice_agents/push_to_talk.pynumerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 2:15 PMtall-airline-16756
09/12/2025, 2:16 PMnumerous-shampoo-46454
09/12/2025, 2:57 PM