{"id":371,"date":"2026-09-30T13:12:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T13:12:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zebadger.com\/wp\/?p=371"},"modified":"2026-09-30T13:38:51","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T13:38:51","slug":"getting-a-tuya-zy-n1-sound-detector-working-in-zigbee2mqtt-and-using-it-as-a-smoke-alarm-listener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zebadger.com\/wp\/?p=371","title":{"rendered":"Getting a Tuya ZY-N1 Sound Detector Working in Zigbee2MQTT (and Using It as a Smoke Alarm Listener)"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

IMPORTANT NOTE:\u00a0 If you wait a few weeks this should be supported by Z2M by default, so you might want to just wait.<\/span><\/strong>

The Tuya ZY-N1 sound detector works in Zigbee2MQTT today with a community external converter, and it makes a handy smoke alarm listener for Home Assistant. Getting there took one non-obvious setting change, so here is the whole route.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The ZY-N1 is a small USB-powered Zigbee sound sensor that reports how loud a room is. It shows up as TS0601<\/code> with manufacturer _TZE204_r6kfl9ta<\/code>. At the time of writing there is no built-in support in Zigbee2MQTT: the device request is still an open issue, Koenkk\/zigbee2mqtt #33195<\/a>, and that issue is where the working converter comes from.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

My setup: Home Assistant with the Zigbee2MQTT add-on (version 2.x). The converter was tested by its author on Zigbee2MQTT 2.14.1, and automatic loading of external converters needs 2.x.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Step 1: Pair it and check the fingerprint<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Pair the sensor first, before adding any converter. Turn on Permit Join in Zigbee2MQTT and plug the sensor in. It joins as a router, because it is mains powered, and appears as unsupported with an “Automatically generated definition”.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Open the device’s About tab and check two values. The Zigbee model must be TS0601<\/code> and the manufacturer must be exactly _TZE204_r6kfl9ta<\/code>. The converter only matches that exact pair, so a unit with a different manufacturer string needs a different converter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Step 2: Add the external converter<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The converter is a single JavaScript file that tells Zigbee2MQTT how to read the sensor. Its author posted it in the “External definition” section of issue #33195<\/a>, along with detailed notes on what each datapoint does.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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  1. Using the File Editor or Studio Code Server add-on, find the folder that holds Zigbee2MQTT’s own configuration.yaml<\/code> and database.db<\/code>. On a standard add-on install that is \/homeassistant\/zigbee2mqtt\/<\/code>.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
  2. Inside it, create a folder called exactly external_converters<\/code>.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
  3. In that folder, create a file called zy-n1.mjs<\/code>. The .mjs<\/code> extension matters, because the file uses import<\/code> statements.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
  4. Paste in the whole code block from the issue, from the first import<\/code> line to the final ];<\/code>. Leave out the triple backticks GitHub shows around it.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    The two import<\/code> lines at the top need no setup. They borrow code from zigbee-herdsman-converters<\/code>, the device library that ships inside Zigbee2MQTT.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    What the converter gives you:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    \r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
    Entity<\/th>\r\nWhat it does<\/th>\r\nUpdates<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/thead>\r\n
    sound_class<\/code><\/td>\r\nLoudness class: 0 quiet, 1 medium, 2 loud<\/td>\r\nLive, pushed by the device<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
    noise_detected<\/code><\/td>\r\nNoise detected, yes or no<\/td>\r\nLive, pushed by the device<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
    sound_level<\/code><\/td>\r\nSound level in dB<\/td>\r\nOnly when asked for (see Step 3)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
    dpNN_raw<\/code><\/td>\r\nUnmapped settings, read-only<\/td>\r\nWhen asked for<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    The sensitivity and timing settings from the printed manual are not mapped yet. That is why the converter exposes them only as raw, read-only values.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    The gotcha: external JavaScript was switched off<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    My converter was correct and in the right place, but Zigbee2MQTT ignored it because the enable_external_js<\/code> setting was off. The symptoms were confusing:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n