Anamanti

Install guide

Turn an Echo Show 8 into an Anamanti display.

The first-generation Echo Show 8 (2019) can be unlocked over USB, without opening the case, and run a community build of LineageOS. This guide pulls the steps together and links to the people who did the hard work. Follow their instructions where they differ from ours.

You don't need an Echo Show to use Anamanti. See other ways to build the UI.

Read this first. This replaces Amazon's software entirely: Alexa and Fire OS are gone afterwards, and there's no documented way back to stock firmware. It almost certainly voids the warranty. A mistake during the unlock or a wrong wipe can brick the device. The LineageOS build is unofficial and still maturing. Amazon can patch the exploit in a future update, so check the XDA threads below before you buy a device or start.

Before you start

  • The right device: Echo Show 8 1st gen (2019), model C7H6N3 / product code AEOCW, codename “crown”. The 2nd and 3rd gen Show 8 are not supported. Check secondhand listings carefully, and avoid units still registered to someone else's Amazon account.
  • Supported firmware: community reports say Fire OS 6.5.7.1–6.5.7.4. Update to a supported version, then turn Wi-Fi off so a newer, patched update can't install.
  • A micro-USB data cable (not charge-only) and the device's power adapter.
  • A computer: Windows is the documented path. Linux scripts also exist. macOS isn't documented for the unlock step.
  • Android platform-tools (adb and fastboot), and on Windows the Amazon USB driver. Links are in Sources.

  1. Download the crown unlock package

    Get amonet-crown from the XDA unlock thread and unzip it. amonet combines a MediaTek bootrom exploit with a bootloader exploit, and needs no case opening or test-point shorting.

    Sources: XDA unlock thread · amonet, mt8163-crown branch

  2. Put the Show into fastboot

    Unplug the device. Hold all three top buttons and plug in power until FASTBOOT appears at the lower left, then connect USB to your computer.

    Source: Derek Seaman's walkthrough

  3. Run the unlock

    On Windows, run fastbrick.bat from an administrator prompt and type YES. On Linux, use the repo's bootrom-step.sh then fastboot-step.sh (disable ModemManager first). The device reboots into TWRP recovery.

    Sources: Seaman · amonet scripts · TWRP for crown

  4. Learn the boot combinations

    • Volume Up while powering on: TWRP recovery.
    • Mute: “hacked” fastboot.
    • All three buttons: stock fastboot.

    Source: Seaman

  5. Download LineageOS for crown

    Get the latest lineage-18.1 … UNOFFICIAL-crown.zip from the amazon-oss releases and check its SHA-256 against the release page.

    Sources: amazon-oss releases · XDA LineageOS thread · device tree

  6. Wipe, carefully

    Boot into TWRP (Volume Up). Go to Wipe → Advanced Wipe and select only System, Data and Cache. Wiping other partitions can brick the device.

    adb push lineage-18.1-*-UNOFFICIAL-crown.zip /sdcard/

    Source: Seaman

  7. Install LineageOS and root

    In TWRP, Install the LineageOS zip and reboot into setup. Google apps are optional, and Anamanti doesn't need them. Anamanti's echo-cancellation add-on does need root, so also flash Magisk from TWRP (rename the .apk to .zip).

    Sources: Seaman · Aftermath · Magisk releases

  8. Turn on ADB (and ADB over Wi-Fi)

    Settings → About tablet → tap Build number seven times, then Developer options → USB debugging. With the device on Wi-Fi and still plugged in:

    adb devices
adb tcpip 5555
adb connect <device-ip>:5555

    Source: Android developer docs

  9. Add echo cancellation (required for Anamanti)

    Anamanti's audio add-on hooks the Echo Show's audio service and runs echo cancellation against the speaker's own hardware loopback, about 16 dB, so you can interrupt the assistant mid-sentence. It's a separate, reversible project:

    git clone https://github.com/Brutus-GTC6245/EchoShow8gen1-aec-shim
cd EchoShow8gen1-aec-shim
./scripts/install.sh --so prebuilt/libamznaec_shim.so   # pushes the shim, edits the audio service, reboots
adb logcat -d | grep amznaec                            # confirm it loaded
./scripts/uninstall.sh                                  # to undo: restores the originals and reboots

    Its README warns that a bad install can wedge the device's fragile audio path. Read it before running anything.

    Source: EchoShow8gen1-aec-shim

  10. Install Anamanti Display

    The Display app is a single APK. Install it once over ADB and it keeps itself up to date (signed, checksum-verified updates). It finds your Anamanti Core on the network by itself, with no IP addresses to enter.

    adb install anamanti-display.apk

    We're sending download links to people on the waitlist as we're ready to support them. Join the waitlist.

Sources & credits

All of the unlock and LineageOS work is by the Echo Show community. Thank them, and follow their threads for the authoritative, current instructions.

Firmware version ranges and button combinations come from the walkthroughs above. We couldn't independently confirm every detail against the XDA first posts, which are the authoritative source. Echo Show is a trademark of Amazon; Anamanti isn't affiliated with Amazon.