Smart Home Cinema Local Voice Edition

Control your local movies by voice using only a PC microphone.

Local Voice Edition is the plug-and-play edition of Smart Home Cinema.

Install VLC Media Player or PotPlayer if needed, install Smart Home Cinema, and use your PC microphone to control local movies by voice.

It lets you control local movie playback on your Windows PC using voice commands, without Alexa, Google Assistant, TriggerCMD, Google Home, or a smart speaker.

After setup, normal movie playback control can work without an internet connection. Voice commands are handled through your PC microphone and the Local Voice Engine.

You only need a Windows PC, PotPlayer or VLC Media Player, your local movie folder, and a working microphone.

What is Local Voice Edition?

Local Voice Edition is the microphone-based version of Smart Home Cinema.

Instead of sending voice commands through Alexa or Google Assistant, this edition uses a local component called the Local Voice Engine.

The Local Voice Engine runs on your Windows PC, listens to your local microphone when enabled, and recognizes supported Smart Home Cinema voice commands offline using Vosk speech recognition technology.

It is designed for users who want a plug-and-play setup:

no Alexa account
no Google Assistant setup
no TriggerCMD configuration
no smart speaker
no assistant routines
no cloud voice-control setup

Smart Home Cinema still controls your existing local playback system. It does not replace your media player, stream your movies, or upload your movie files.

What you need

To use Local Voice Edition, you need:

Windows 10 or Windows 11, 64-bit
PotPlayer or VLC Media Player
a working microphone connected to your Windows PC
a folder containing your local movies
optional: an OpenSubtitles account for automatic subtitle download

That is all.

If you do not use automatic subtitle download, you do not need an OpenSubtitles account.

How Local Voice Edition works

Local Voice Edition uses a local component called the Local Voice Engine.

The Local Voice Engine runs on your Windows PC, listens to the local microphone when enabled, and recognizes supported Smart Home Cinema voice commands offline.

It does not use Alexa, Google Assistant, Google Home, or TriggerCMD.

The Local Voice Engine does not execute movie actions directly. Instead, it recognizes a supported command, filters it, converts it into an internal command ID, and sends it to CommandHub, the local Smart Home Cinema component that performs the actual playback, subtitle, overlay, file, or system action.

In simple terms:

You speak a supported Smart Home Cinema command.
Local Voice Engine recognizes it locally.
The command is converted into a Smart Home Cinema command ID.
CommandHub executes the action on your Windows PC.

This keeps voice command processing, playback automation, subtitle handling, and command execution local on your PC.

Local Voice states

Local Voice Edition uses three main states:

Microphone Off / OFF Mode
Sleeping Mode
Command Mode

This gives you clear control over when the microphone is off, when the system listens only for the wake phrase, and when full Smart Home Cinema commands are active.

1. Microphone Off / OFF Mode

This is the default state when you start Smart Home Cinema Local Voice manually from the Windows Start Menu.

In this state:

the app runs in the Windows System Tray;
the microphone is off;
no voice commands are recognized;
the wake phrase is not detected;
no voice-recognition resources are used;
you decide when listening starts.

This state exists for privacy, control, and predictability.

Starting the app manually does not automatically activate the microphone.

To enable Local Voice control, right-click the tray icon and choose Start Sleeping Mode.

2. Sleeping Mode

Sleeping Mode is the ready state.

In this state:

the microphone is active;
Local Voice Engine listens only for the wake phrase;
normal movie commands are not executed yet;
commands such as Play Movie, Pause Movie, or Download Subtitles are ignored until Command Mode is active.

To enter Command Mode, say one of these local voice commands:

Smart Cinema wake up
Smart Cinema start listening

Sleeping Mode helps prevent accidental command execution during normal movie watching.

It keeps Local Voice ready, but it does not allow full movie commands until you intentionally wake the system.

3. Command Mode

Command Mode is the active voice-control state.

In this state:

the microphone is active;
supported Smart Home Cinema commands are accepted;
recognized commands are converted into internal command IDs;
command IDs are sent to CommandHub;
CommandHub performs the actual Smart Home Cinema actions.

For example:

Local Voice Edition is in Sleeping Mode.
You say: Smart Cinema wake up.
The system enters Command Mode.
You can say: Smart Cinema play movie or Smart Cinema show commands.

You can return to Sleeping Mode by saying:

Smart Cinema go to sleep
Smart Cinema stop listening
Smart Cinema sleeping mode

Status command

Local Voice Edition includes a local status command:

Smart Cinema status

Smart Cinema status works in both Sleeping Mode and Command Mode.

This command is handled by the Local Voice Engine.

It is not sent to CommandHub and does not control movies, subtitles, files, playback, or system actions.

It only shows a visual confirmation of the current Local Voice state, such as:

Sleeping Mode
Command Mode Active

This is useful when you are not sure whether the system is waiting for the wake phrase or already accepting full commands.

If Local Voice Edition is in Microphone Off / OFF Mode, the voice status command cannot work because the microphone is off. In that case, the current state can be checked from the System Tray menu.

Start with Windows

Local Voice Edition includes a System Tray option:

Enable Start with Windows / Disable Start with Windows

When this option is enabled, Smart Home Cinema creates a shortcut in your Windows Startup folder.

After that, Windows starts Local Voice Edition automatically when you log in.

In this case, Local Voice Edition starts directly in Sleeping Mode.

This means:

the app starts automatically with Windows;
the microphone is active only for the wake phrase;
normal movie commands are not executed yet;
you can say Smart Cinema wake up from the bed or sofa to enter Command Mode.

This behavior is intentional.

Manual launch and Windows startup behave differently:

Manual Start Menu launch = starts in Microphone Off / OFF Mode.
Start with Windows enabled = starts in Sleeping Mode.

Manual launch is safe and off by default.

Start with Windows is hands-free ready because you explicitly enabled it from the System Tray menu.

Command Center for Local Voice Edition

Local Voice Edition includes a Command Center adapted for local voice control.

The Command Center has two pages.

Page 1

Movie Commands
Subtitle Commands

Page 2

Local Voice Commands
System Commands

You can control it by voice:

Smart Cinema show commands opens page 1.
Smart Cinema more commands opens page 2.
Smart Cinema close commands closes the Command Center.

The Local Voice Command Center includes local voice commands such as:

Smart Cinema wake up
Smart Cinema start listening
Smart Cinema go to sleep
Smart Cinema stop listening
Smart Cinema sleeping mode
Smart Cinema status

See all Local Voice commands →

Microphone recommendations

Local Voice Edition can work with many types of microphones, including:

built-in laptop microphones
webcam microphones
USB microphones
wireless microphones
conference microphones
lavalier microphones

For the best experience, the microphone should be close enough to the place where you normally watch movies.

If you watch movies from bed or from a sofa across the room, microphone placement matters.

A better microphone can improve recognition, especially when:

the TV or speakers are loud
the room is large
the microphone is far away
there is background noise
several people are talking
the PC is far from the seating position

You do not need an expensive studio microphone, but a very weak or distant microphone may reduce recognition accuracy.

For larger rooms, a USB conference microphone or a wireless microphone placed near the bed or sofa may work better than a microphone placed next to the PC.

Privacy by default

Local Voice Edition is designed to be privacy-friendly and predictable.

When Smart Home Cinema Local Voice is launched manually from the Windows Start Menu, it starts in Microphone Off / OFF Mode.

The microphone is not automatically activated just because you opened the app.

If you enable Start with Windows, Local Voice starts automatically in Sleeping Mode after Windows login. This happens only after you explicitly enable that option from the System Tray menu.

Smart Home Cinema does not send microphone audio, voice recordings, recognized speech, or voice command history to the developer.

Your movie files stay on your own Windows PC.

Smart Home Cinema does not upload, stream, host, analyze, or transmit your media files to the developer.

For more details, see the Legal & Privacy page.

Offline use

Local Voice Edition is the most offline-friendly version of Smart Home Cinema.

For normal movie playback and local voice control, it can work without an internet connection after the required activation steps are complete.

Internet access may still be required for specific actions, including:

initial trial activation
license activation
license rebinding
optional OpenSubtitles subtitle download
optional downloads or updates of third-party components, where applicable

If you do not use automatic subtitle download and your trial or license is already activated, Local Voice Edition can be used for local movie control without relying on an internet connection during normal use.

This makes it suitable for local home cinema setups, offline PCs, rural areas, cabins, or places where internet access is limited or unreliable.

What Local Voice Edition is not

Local Voice Edition is not a general-purpose voice assistant.

It is not a chatbot, dictation tool, transcription system, accessibility replacement, or emergency control system.

It is designed specifically for Smart Home Cinema commands related to local movie playback, subtitles, overlays, file actions, and supported system actions.

It only recognizes supported Smart Home Cinema command patterns.

Local Voice Edition vs Voice Assistant Edition

Smart Home Cinema includes two control options.

Local Voice Edition

Best for most users who want the plug-and-play setup.

uses a PC microphone
no Alexa required
no Google Assistant required
no TriggerCMD required
no smart speaker required
no assistant routines required
works well for offline/local setups
recommended for fast installation and everyday use

Voice Assistant Edition

Best for users who prefer smart assistant integration.

uses Alexa or Google Assistant
uses TriggerCMD as the bridge to the PC
works with assistant routines
useful for users who already have a smart home setup
requires more setup steps

Both editions control local movie playback on your Windows PC.

Both editions support VLC Media Player and PotPlayer.

Both editions are included in Smart Home Cinema.

Subtitles and OpenSubtitles

Local Voice Edition can work with Smart Home Cinema subtitle features.

For automatic subtitle download, you may need an OpenSubtitles account.

OpenSubtitles is optional.

If you do not use automatic subtitle download, you can ignore this step and use Smart Home Cinema for playback control only.

Subtitle availability depends on whether a matching subtitle exists on OpenSubtitles.

Getting started

To download and install Local Voice Edition, open the Download & Installation page.

If you want to review the setup path first, open the Full Installation & Setup Guide. It explains the difference between Local Voice Edition and Voice Assistant Edition, and shows the first-start steps for Local Voice.

The basic flow is simple:

Install PotPlayer or VLC Media Player.
Connect a working microphone to your Windows PC.
Install Smart Home Cinema Local Voice Edition.
Launch it from the Windows Start Menu.
Open the tray menu and click Start Sleeping Mode.
Say Smart Cinema wake up.
Start controlling your movies by voice.

Summary

Local Voice Edition is the plug-and-play edition and the simplest way to use Smart Home Cinema.

It gives you voice control for local movies on Windows without Alexa, Google Assistant, TriggerCMD, Google Home, or smart speaker setup.

After setup, normal playback control can work offline, with internet needed only for specific online actions such as subtitle downloads, activation, or license rebinding.

Your movies stay local. Playback automation runs on your PC. Voice command processing runs locally. Voice control starts only when you enable it manually or when you explicitly choose Start with Windows.

For most users, Local Voice Edition is the recommended way to get started.

Ready to try Local Voice Edition?

Download Smart Home Cinema and choose the Local Voice Edition setup that matches your preferred media player: PotPlayer or VLC Media Player.

👉 Download Smart Home Cinema