diff --git a/lib/playback/playback_engine.dart b/lib/playback/playback_engine.dart
index 03e1d5f..4eceee7 100644
--- a/lib/playback/playback_engine.dart
+++ b/lib/playback/playback_engine.dart
@@ -141,13 +141,15 @@ class PlaybackController extends StateNotifier<PlaybackState>
     required String? Function() serverKeyGetter,
     required void Function(Uri artUri) onArt,
     required void Function(Song song) onPlay,
+    @visibleForTesting bool? audioEnabled,
   })  : _streamUriFor = streamUriFor,
         _coverArtUriFor = coverArtUriFor,
         _serverKeyGetter = serverKeyGetter,
         _onArt = onArt,
         _onPlay = onPlay,
-        super(PlaybackState(supported: _audioSupported)) {
-    if (_audioSupported) {
+        _audioEnabled = audioEnabled ?? _audioSupported,
+        super(PlaybackState(supported: audioEnabled ?? _audioSupported)) {
+    if (_audioEnabled) {
       _player = AudioPlayer();
       _wireStreams();
     }
@@ -161,6 +163,12 @@ class PlaybackController extends StateNotifier<PlaybackState>
   final void Function(Uri artUri) _onArt;
   final void Function(Song song) _onPlay;
 
+  /// Whether a platform [AudioPlayer] was created. Defaults to [_audioSupported]
+  /// but tests force it false so a headless CI host (macOS/iOS, where
+  /// [_audioSupported] is true) doesn't touch uninitialized just_audio platform
+  /// channels. The queue/state logic runs identically either way.
+  final bool _audioEnabled;
+
   AudioPlayer? _player;
 
   final Random _random = Random();
diff --git a/test/remote_integration_test.dart b/test/remote_integration_test.dart
index 3009a6a..737de0d 100644
--- a/test/remote_integration_test.dart
+++ b/test/remote_integration_test.dart
@@ -23,13 +23,17 @@ void main() {
   final sessions = <RemoteSession>[];
 
   PlaybackController buildController() => PlaybackController(
-        // Non-null so songs count as streamable; no real player exists on the
-        // test host (audio unsupported), so this URI is never opened.
+        // Non-null so songs count as streamable; no real player is created
+        // (audioEnabled: false), so this URI is never opened. Forcing audio off
+        // keeps the test headless on any host — a macOS/iOS CI runner would
+        // otherwise build a just_audio AudioPlayer against uninitialized
+        // platform channels and throw.
         streamUriFor: (s) => Uri.parse('http://host.local/stream/${s.id}'),
         coverArtUriFor: (_) => null,
         serverKeyGetter: () => serverKey,
         onArt: (_) {},
         onPlay: (_) {},
+        audioEnabled: false,
       );
 
   RemoteSession newSession(