Alsa is ok (it seems) but i can not hear anything

iyo · n00b Joined: 22 May 2006 Posts: 5

Hi, i seted up ALSA last weekend and it worked perfectly. I left home for a week. When I returned, my loudspeakers don't play anything.

When I execute xmms (or other program which play music) and play some music, it seem everything is all right, but i can not hear anything.

ALSA don't write any error:

b33fc0d3 · Retired Dev Joined: 22 Jun 2006 Posts: 128

Try:

iyo · n00b Joined: 22 May 2006 Posts: 5

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

Same problem for me, My PC was unplugged, due to a storm, in the middle of a gentoo update (I was note present). One of the package update was arts ( in my USE flag, the corresponding flag is set to -arts, thus I do not really understand why it is compiled). I have remerge it in case it was the source of the problem, but no change.

I have try revdep_rebuild, for possible broken package but no change too.

If some one have a solution or sme hints to discover it, please help.

elbeasto · n00b Joined: 25 Jun 2006 Posts: 42

I had to mute "surround" in alsamixer before my sound would work.

This is probably becase I only have 2 speakers.

Hadriel · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 28 Jul 2005 Posts: 75

@iyo
whats your soundcard? i had to use a newer kernel (2.6.17) to get sound to work at all (intel hd audio).

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

My sound cards are:

From lspci

Multimedia audio controller: Ensoniq ES1371 [AudioPCI-97] (rev 06)
Multimedia audio controller: C-Media Electronics Inc CM8738 (rev 10)

I have tried to compile kernel v 2.6.16-r9 along with alsa-driver, but still no sound

orangeman12 · Apprentice Joined: 19 Dec 2004 Posts: 283 Location: Chair

realnoob when updated did u compile a new kernel b/c if you did then you need to reinstall the alsa drivers. Also check that alsa was not compiled in with your new kernel
_________________
Orangeman

tarpat · n00b Joined: 19 Jun 2006 Posts: 29

Hi,

I have exactly the same prob. Everything looks all right (I've just set up ALSA on a fresh install) BUT NO SOUND.

I know when I did the kernel part that I've seen that there was an option
<*> Support for old type of ALSA (sg like this, not exactly). I left it w/ the <*> because previously I compiled my kernel with genkernel, so I didn't want to touch it until I know what I do.

Do any of you have it compiled in the kernel? Can it be the root of the problem?

I have Intel 82xxx and use the intel8x0 modul.
_________________
*** "Credo quis absurdum" /Tertullianus/ ***

Packard Bell Easynote A8400, Gentoo
Pentium M 1,73; 1GB RAM; 80GB HDD;
Mobil Intel 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family

rzr · Posted: Thu Jul 06, 2006 8:07 am Post subject:

i also have an intel8x0 soundcard, and it's only working when i *mute* the line jack item on alsamixer. the soundcard will go silent if i unmute that part.

maybe, you need to do the same

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

orangeman12, I have take care of disableling alsa in the kernel, before compiling it in addition to alsa-driver, alsa-header, alsa-lib and alsa-utils.

Bluespear · Posted: Thu Jul 06, 2006 9:09 am Post subject:

Alsa got a problem with alsa... After trying to configure skype...

lspci:

Bluespear · Posted: Thu Jul 06, 2006 9:14 am Post subject:

Well, I guess I've played to much with mute/unmute on channels

Now I can ear me speakin in the mic, but music from computer is still muted

Edit: Got it

lines were inverted

tarpat · n00b Joined: 19 Jun 2006 Posts: 29

Bluespear, rzr,

thanks for your comments! Yesterday I played a little with muting/unmuting different channels but neither the microphone nor the speakers came alive.

I have to mention though that the muting/unmuting switches were sometimes accompanied with a short "click" or "knock" sound that clearly comes from the sound system.

I went step-by-step according to the guideline on installation of ALSA, I have no idea what could be wrong.
I had several times run xmms and totem to chek if one setting or another works (unfortunately not) and I also tried different setting so that xmms was constantly running. Both of the players play well on the screen but no sound.
I tried cdplayer as well (automounts nicely :-)

) no sound either, although seems to be playing.

Nobody has an idea about that "old ALSA support" thing in the kernel??

Bluespear,

what do you mean the lines were inverted?
_________________
*** "Credo quis absurdum" /Tertullianus/ ***

Packard Bell Easynote A8400, Gentoo
Pentium M 1,73; 1GB RAM; 80GB HDD;
Mobil Intel 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family

tarpat · n00b Joined: 19 Jun 2006 Posts: 29

Is anybody there??

I have recompiled kernel leaving the old ALSA support option empty but it did not help.
_________________
*** "Credo quis absurdum" /Tertullianus/ ***

Packard Bell Easynote A8400, Gentoo
Pentium M 1,73; 1GB RAM; 80GB HDD;
Mobil Intel 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

By recompiling once again my alsa drivers, with the last version of the kernel (2.6.16-r12), I have seen the following note during the compilation of alsa-lib, maybe that could help find the solution:

Squee · n00b Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

I just recently (two days ago) installed Gentoo fresh, and have been working for the last several hours to get sound working, but the best that I can do is get a blip when alsasound starts up. I've tried every different setup on the ALSA howtos in the Gentoo docs and gentoo-wiki.com. I've been assuming that my problem was with having on-board audio and and Audigy2, and have been just trying to get the audigy2 setup. All of /proc/asound shows Audigy 2 correctly, and everything looks like every other config I've seen, but still...no audio. It appears to be similar to everyone here...the best I get is a blip from the speakrs as alsasound starts up...I've got all the channels (that make sense) set to max in alsamixer.

osugi_sakae · n00b Joined: 24 Oct 2002 Posts: 28 Location: Columbus, OH

Have you tried removing /etc/asound.state? I recently had a similar problem where sound worked, I think, in the morning, but not that night. Only thing I had done was start an additional KDE session.

I removed /etc/asound.state, restarted alsa, and after rebooting, alsa worked fine again, even after starting additional KDE sessions. I don't think removing it will do any harm - asound.state was automatically recreated here without any problems.
_________________
I am not a number, I am a free man.
---- The Prisoner

teidon · Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 1:20 pm Post subject:

I got this same problem after updating kernel to gentoo-sources-2.6.16-r12 from -2.6.14-r2. The fix in my case with Creative Audigy sound card were that in alsamixer "Audigy Analog/Digital Output Jack" setting were in wrong position. It were unmuted which caused "line out" jack to output the music, but all messed up (tested this with headphones). When I muted it, "line out" went silent and "front speaker" (my speakers are in this) jack started to play music properly. So if someone has same/similar card, and after kernel update no sound is heard from your speakers, try to change that mixer setting. But be carefull with it! It has the potential to kill your speakers and your ears in case you use headphones. It switches between digital and analog output on some of the output jack in Audigy cards, and if you have analog speakers (you do, most likely) connected to that jack, the sound will be something horrible. So keep volume level on low when messing with that setting.
_________________
When Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, they make a vacuum cleaner.

Squee · n00b Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

Ah...It appears that my problem was the same as teidon's; toggling the Analog/Digital Output Jack setting fixed it (although, it was the opposite setting, guess I have digital speakers without knowing it). This was only AFTER I removed /etc/asound.state as suggested by osugi_sakae, which is very strange, because I'd toggled it several times before...

Regardless, the problem is fixed for me. Everything works and sounds fine now.

teidon · Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 8:05 am Post subject:

Could be because you have Audigy2, while my card is Audigy (the first), so the mixer could work differently with those cards. Also, I didn't delete /etc/asound.state nor did I do anything else than just toggled that mixer setting.

If someone has the same problem, but with different card than some Audigy card, it might help trying other output jacks in your card. Maybe some of them outputs sound.
_________________
When Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, they make a vacuum cleaner.

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

Is some one knows if it is normal that the file /proc/asound/card0/oss_mixer contains the following:

RealNoob · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 75

I have finally found the roots of my problem.

My SoundBlaster card is broken or at least one of its component, but it was not enough to make linux see the card as broken.

I was so focused on it that I have never think to try the sound card integrated to the mother board

This one works perfectly, thus my problem is solved.