Choppy distorted sound

English Hardware
1

When I test sound it sounds good. When I do any Internet stream I get a choppy and distorted sound

Some information

rpm -qa | grep alsa

alsa-plugins-1.0.21-3.3.i586
alsa-firmware-1.0.20-3.2.noarch
alsa-oss-1.0.17-25.2.i586
alsa-utils-1.0.21-3.1.i586
alsa-1.0.21-3.2.i586
alsa-plugins-pulse-1.0.21-3.3.i586

rpm -qa | grep pulse

pulseaudio-esound-compat-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-module-x11-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-0.9.19-2.3.i586
libpulse-mainloop-glib0-0.9.19-2.3.i586
libpulse0-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-module-zeroconf-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-module-bluetooth-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-module-lirc-0.9.19-2.3.i586
pulseaudio-module-gconf-0.9.19-2.3.i586
libpulse-browse0-0.9.19-2.3.i586
alsa-plugins-pulse-1.0.21-3.3.i586
pulseaudio-utils-0.9.19-2.3.i586

rpm -q libasound2
libasound2-1.0.21-3.2.i586

uname -a
Linux linux-3uw1 2.6.31.5-0.1-default #1 SMP 2009-10-26 15:49:03 +0100 i686 i686 i386 GNU/Linux

cat /etc/modprobe.d/sound
cat: /etc/modprobe.d/sound: No such file or directory

cat /proc/asound/version
Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Driver Version 1.0.20.

cat /proc/asound/modules
0 snd_via82xx

cat /etc/SuSE-release
openSUSE 11.2 (i586)
VERSION = 11.2

cat /proc/asound/cards
0 [V8237 ]: VIA8237 - VIA 8237
VIA 8237 with ALC250 at 0x1000, irq 22

I also found this SDB:AudioTroubleshooting - openSUSE
A possible fix to choppy / skipping sound

The PulseAudio sound server was written to use timer-based audio scheduling instead of the traditional interrupt-driven approach. This is the approach that is taken by other systems such as Apples CoreAudio and the Windows Vista audio subsystem and has a number of advantages, not the least in reduced power consumption, minimization of drop-outs and flexible adjustment of the latency to the needs of the application. However, timer-based scheduling may expose issues in some Alsa drivers. To turn timer-based scheduling off, replace the line

load-module module-hal-detect

in /etc/pulse/default.pa by

load-module module-hal-detect tsched=0

but I’m not sure if I should run this without knowing the issue first

2

On openSUSE-11.2 the file changed to 50-sound.conf. So if you type the following you will get the file’s contents:

cat /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf

…

Well, I wrote that. :slight_smile:

Note you can always remove what you put in there. So it is harmless to try that, and then remove it later if it does not help.

But if you have choppy Internet streaming sound, and fine sound elsewhere, then I would be suspicious of a few other things in addition to pulse audio

  • maybe the web site is just slow. Youtube is notoriously bad for streaming choppy sound
  • maybe the video is too high a bit rate for your PC (if it is an old PC)
    *]maybe you have ipv6 enabled (it is VERY difficult to disable in openSUSE-11.2 because it is enabled in the kernel and the old openSUSE-11.1 and earlier methods for disabling it do not work).
3

cat /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf

options snd slots=snd-via82xx

Ssy1.4IVJSDDDGu8:VT8233/A/8235/8237 AC97 Audio Controller

alias snd-card-0 snd-via82xx

Well I tried changing that line you suggested

load-module module-hal-detect
in /etc/pulse/default.pa by
load-module module-hal-detect tsched=0

It may have mad it better, but the popping is still there. I reduced the sound all around in alsamixer, sound preferences & yast sound. I thought mayby it’s the speakers but it makes that crackling sound even with the headphones on. The sound crackles on a stream & cd or mp3. I haven’t tried

Alsa-update - openSUSE

Since I’m not sure what I’m looking for .

That’s got to be nice when someone quotes you and doesn’t know it.

4

Is this a gnome desktop?

I see this also on my gnome sandbox PC, and I have not done any research to see if I can find the cause.

I did note that if I changed the output audio mode in some of my multimedia players I could get rid of it. For example if I selected OSS on VLC, I no longer had the crackle.

Earlier today, I was looking at gnome on my sandbox PC, and only vlc was giving me good audio. For example, xine was giving horrible audio. I tried various output audio modes. I also played with pulse audio settings. Nothing was getting rid of the horrible crackle. So I put all settings back, and then pondered this a bit. I had installed nothing unusual. I had not changed anything directly related to audio that I could think of . … ergo I put up a hypothesis that maybe there was a bug somewhere, and IMHO the most likely culprit was pulse. Now this gnome desktop has been running for over a week with no reboot and I’ve tried all sorts of weird things as I put it thru its paces. So I decided to restart alsa. I typed su -c ‘rcalsasound restart’ (entered root password) and got some sort of weird pulse error (I should have wrote it down) and alsa restarted. I then played the same file (that caused problems minutes earlier) with xine and it worked fine.

So that suggests to me something was corrupting the sound, and I think it pulse.

So, … are you using gnome?

5

Yes I run Gnome. Are you suggesting to try
su -c ‘rcalsasound restart’

and see what happens and write the error and post it?

Or should I dabble around in the media players and see if your other suggestion works.

Does it matter in pulse preferences that the profile setting for the device is
Analog mono duplex?
Also in the output settings it is selected to
analog headphone/no amplifier
since having the amplifier mutes the sound.

Last time I changed this to different selections in output settings, I lost sound. I forgot what I did to get it back. Maybe deleting the settings and reconfiguring it?

6

Note I have KDE-4.3.4 on the same PC as I have Gnome, but in a separate boot partition. Sound “just works” on KDE-4.3.4. None of this static and other nonsense that happens with sound with Gnome. Gnome has some REAL problems with sound from what I have encountered with my rather limited Gnome experience.

While there are somethings (such as an excellent desktop appearance that I REALLY LIKE) about Gnome that I really like, it has some things that irk me, and absolutely stop me from putting it on more than one PC (which is a sandbox PC). Sound is one of the BIG PROBLEMS with Gnome from my perspective. And thats too bad, as I like other Gnome aspects. But BAD Gnome sound means NO gnome use for me on more than just a test PC.

In truth, there are quirks to gnome sound that are different from sound in KDE, and I do not know the “ins and outs” of gnome quirks. Just the contrary.

So I would not dream of providing you a recommendation that is specific to gnome.

Rather my intent was to illustrate how my thinking process works, so you can come up with your own, BECAUSE, in truth, from my perspective, your questions are really related to the Gnome desktop, and I can not provide answers there. Sorry.

7

I took your suggestion and the culprit is pulse audio. I removed it in yast. Now I have clear sound with cds, mp3’s, and dvd playback! But I have no audio playback with Internet streams.

8

I confess my recommendation would not have been to remove pulse, because I do not understand how it is woven into the over all sound system in Gnome.

To get your sound working with Internet streams, you may need to get someone familiar with Gnome who has removed pulse audio to help.

But before jumping to that conclusion, saying you “have no audio playback with Internet streams” is not very informative. What site(s) did you try ? What application/browser are you trying ?

For example, sometimes firefox users, who have ‘flash-player’ installed, get no audio from the website ‘youtube’ in firefox. For some of them the solution is as simple as checking their mixer, and moving up the value of PCM volume control which will dynamically change (and go to zero) at times.

For others, the solution is to remove ‘libflashsupport’ (but keep ‘flashplayer’) and restart firefox (and also check PCM volume control).

For others, doing both the above and installing ‘mplayerplug-in’, and restarting firefox, does the trick for them.

But this could just be a Gnome problem having removed Pulse. I have never removed nor disabled pulse on any of my PCs.

9

Some websites are ted, myspace, youtube, etc. amd Internet radio streams using firefox and opera. I’m pretty sure all were flash based. I have the mplayer plugin for firfox. I will try some of your other suggestions.

After removing pulse, I read about disabling pulse instead, which probably would have been the better result first. But since I wasn’t having any luck finding anything solutions, I figured, I needed to verify that was the problem. If removing pulse was detrimental I always had and have the option to reinstall.

Although I have no Internet streams, and consequently I can play crystal clear sound on my cd’s, mp3’s and movies, this seems less annoying right now than choppy crackling sound on everything.

10

I’ve found with using konquerer, that at web pages with audio streams that open in a different window, such as
88Nine Radio Milwaukee
I can save the file and open the stream with the audio player of choice, which amarok did the job fine with no faulty sound.

The trouble I’m having now is trying to get video & sound together on a web page with firefox or opera-the two give video but no sound. Konquerer gives me nothing and tells me to install latest flash. Like on a page like this TED: Ideas worth spreading

Or if I try to view a web page that has a music player on there I get no sound, because I can’t save the stream. Like on a stream like this Backyard Tire Fire | Backyard Tire Fire’s Official Website

11

Did you follow my suggestions above, that I have quoted below?

12

I checked the alsamixer which I can adjust sound with cd’s & dvd’s. The PCM level is at 100%. I checked it while the audio is playing to make sure too.

I checked in yast I don’t have ibflashsupport installed. I do have mplayerplug-in installed.

13

Got sound fixed. Reinstalled pulse, I couldn’t find fixes for no pulse with online streams. The fix I did seems now to be a simple forehead slap, but for whatever reason it takes a lot of tweaking for my system, which hasn’t been the case before. With 11.0 & 11.1 it was simple, turn the dial and go, good sound out of the box. The same sound I got without pulse: simple turn the dial and it’s clean sound.

I have pulse and alsa plugin (npviewrbin) installed.
Opened alsamixer
then went to system-hardware-sound
in sound preferences clicked on applications

in output volume turned the dial to 100%
Alsa plugin about 30-40%

In alsamixer
master 89%
PCM 52%

These numbers work for me. If I adjust the sound from the panel it kills the PCM quickly and I have to readjust. Still this is a much better nuance to constantly tweak the sound system with alsa & sound prefs. than the an overload crackling sound.

I would still like to find a solution without pulse, since it works well. Finding the online audio and video lack of sound during streams needs to be sorted out.

Oldcpu thanks for your patience and willingness to help sort out my mess.

14

Sorry, spoke too soon. The same issue with pulse, still choppy. When I tested it I used amarok and with any streams with amarok I can export to it and play it without static. Went to one of the pages I earlier labeled and same sound issue.

15

Got sound fixed. By a recommendation I installed KDE also with my Gnome desktop. It’s a Pulseaudio issue with Gnome. In KDE with a little configuring the sound works out of the box on all fronts. The only issue I have is each time I open a new web page the mixers goes to full volume, which can be startling

16

I think I managed to sort the ugly pulse audio problems with my sandbox PC on openSUSE-11.2 and Gnome. Because its a “sandbox” I don’t always give it the attention it deserved, and today after the kernel update, I thought I would check the sound again. Of course, under Gnome with pulse audio it was horrible. IMHO Gnome has serious problems with reliable sound after the initial installation setup.

I then followed one of the links in the openSUSE audio troubleshooting guide to this pulse page: PulseAudio - openSUSE and followed the advice there to:

Glitches in audio playback

Edit /etc/pulse/daemon.conf: uncomment the default-fragments and default-fragment-size-msec, and change values from the default 4 and 25 to 16 and 21.
and that fixed the sound in my sandbox PCs Gnome. It now appears to work ok, although I need to test it a bit more.

17

I tried that earlier and that solution didn’t work for my system. Interestingly, I had a different issue that makes my sound system even odder than before. I created a guest user to help diagnose another problem.

But before I deleted that user, I checked the sound in the guest Gnome desktop and it sounded fine. So the guest user has normal sound and my primary user doesn’t. I don’t know what different configurations between the two could cause this?

18

Possibly because the configuration is different between users. Did you test with the exact same speaker-test ?

Did you check the Gnome desktop settings and pulse audio settings for each user to confirm they were the same?

Note application settings for output audio/sound mode can be different per user. Did you also compare the output mode settings of each application to ensure they were the same?

19

I did the same speaker test and same websites. Guest account is set proper by default. I didn’t check the Gnome desktop settings and pulse audio settings because I not sure what file to pull up. By comparing the output mode settings of each application to ensure they were the same; do you mean in gnome sound preferences make sure the output volume is the same?

20

Many multimedia applications under preferences/settings allow one to choose the output audio mode.