Eee PC 1015 PED Intel 82801G audio only via headphones

lordmorgul · June 25, 2011, 12:47pm

Hi,
I’ve recently installed 11.4 with KDE SC on my Eee PC 1015 PED netbook. I’ve had absolutely no problems with it, but after a reboot the speakers have stopped playing, I can only hear audio via headphones. I tried many settings in systemsettings and YAST, but nothing helps. Here’s all the info I need to provide, according to the sticky thread:

The link from # alsa-info.sh: http://www.alsa-project.org/db/?f=2f51c6de21a973df9460fb80c0c986be64bb214d

The rest:

# rpm -qa '*alsa*'
alsa-plugins-pulse-1.0.24-6.1.i586
alsa-firmware-1.0.24.1-3.1.noarch
alsa-plugins-1.0.24-6.1.i586
alsa-oss-1.0.17-32.1.i586
alsa-utils-1.0.24.2-3.1.i586
alsa-1.0.24.1-4.7.1.i586
# rpm -qa '*pulse*'
alsa-plugins-pulse-1.0.24-6.1.i586
pulseaudio-module-bluetooth-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
libpulse0-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
libpulse-browse0-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-module-jack-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-module-zeroconf-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
libxine1-pulse-1.1.19-2.pm.46.6.i586
pulseaudio-module-x11-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-esound-compat-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-module-lirc-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
libpulse-mainloop-glib0-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
pulseaudio-utils-0.9.22-6.11.1.i586
# rpm -q libasound2
libasound2-1.0.24.1-4.7.1.i586
# uname -a
Linux steppenwolf-eee 2.6.37.6-0.5-default #1 SMP 2011-04-25 21:48:33 +0200 i686 i686 i386 GNU/Linux
# cat /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf


options snd slots=snd-hda-intel
# u1Nb.TkKxqDmvYl9:82801G (ICH7 Family) High Definition Audio Controller
alias snd-card-0 snd-hda-intel

I’d appreciate any help.

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 1:03pm

What is KDE SC ?

Do you have some custom KDE version installed ?

That tells me an Asus 1015PE running a 32-bit openSUSE-11.4 with the 2.6.37.6-0.5-default kernel and alsa driver 1.0.23 and alsa utilities 1.0.24.2. Hardware audio codec is an ALC269VB. I’ve read of an ALC269, but not an ALC269VB. I don’t know the difference (if any).

I note pulse installed but not running. Does that mean you disabled pulse ? (or perhaps you ran the script along time after your last multimedia playing event).

I note you have your volume control rather low :

**Simple mixer control 'Master',0**
  Capabilities: pvolume pvolume-joined pswitch pswitch-joined penum
  Playback channels: Mono
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono: Playback 47 **[54%]** -30.00dB] [on]

I assume that is to stop volume from blasting out on the headphones.

For cases with a standard ALC269, one can force an alsa sound driver configuration upon boot by specifying a model option in the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf file, where one can choose from the alsa documentations HD-Audio-Models.txt file:


ALC269
======
  basic		Basic preset
  quanta	Quanta FL1
  laptop-amic	Laptops with analog-mic input
  laptop-dmic	Laptops with digital-mic input
  fujitsu	FSC Amilo
  lifebook	Fujitsu Lifebook S6420
  auto		auto-config reading BIOS (default)

I note this error from your PC’s dmesg:


   13.089248] ALSA patch_realtek.c:1579: realtek: No valid SSID, checking pincfg 0x40079a2d for NID 0x1d

That suggests to me that alsa is having a difficult time configuration for the ID of your hardware audio codec.

But I don’t know if that applies to you.

And this could be a KDE update problem for all I know (I don’t provide support for KDE updates). Can you advise wrt your KDE version please ?

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 1:08pm

Assuming you have not disabled pulse audio, I find that the application pulse audio volume control ‘pavucontrol’ is very useful for controlling the volume on one’s openSUSE-11.4. I recommend you install ‘pavucontrol’ and then when running a multimedia application launch ‘pavucontrol’ and see if you can use that to tune the sound output to your speakers. Ensure in the pavucontrol tab for output devices you SHOW all output devices and in the tab for playback you SHOW all streams.

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 1:10pm

I read one post where it claims this problem is related to the use of ‘suspend’ mode on this laptop. Have you tried a proper shutdown and reboot (and not just a resume from suspend mode) ?

lordmorgul · June 25, 2011, 1:15pm

No, just the regular KDE that came with the live-CD image. KDE is called KDE SC from some time.

That tells me an Asus 1015PE running a 32-bit openSUSE-11.4 with the 2.6.37.6-0.5-default kernel and alsa driver 1.0.23 and alsa utilities 1.0.24.2. Hardware audio codec is an ALC269VB. I’ve read of an ALC269, but not an ALC269VB. I don’t know the difference (if any).

I note pulse installed but not running. Does that mean you disabled pulse ? (or perhaps you ran the script along time after your last multimedia playing event).[/quote]
Like I said, I’ve been trying to change some settings after the speakers stopped playing, I must’ve disabled it then. But there’s still no audio after re-enabling PA.

I note you have your volume control rather low :

**Simple mixer control 'Master',0**
  Capabilities: pvolume pvolume-joined pswitch pswitch-joined penum
  Playback channels: Mono
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono: Playback 47 **[54%]** -30.00dB] [on]

I assume that is to stop volume from blasting out on the headphones.

Yup, I also tried manipulating all available volume sliders, to no effect, unfortunately.

For cases with a standard ALC269, one can force an alsa sound driver configuration upon boot by specifying a model option in the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf file, where one can choose from the alsa documentations HD-Audio-Models.txt file:


ALC269
======
  basic		Basic preset
  quanta	Quanta FL1
  laptop-amic	Laptops with analog-mic input
  laptop-dmic	Laptops with digital-mic input
  fujitsu	FSC Amilo
  lifebook	Fujitsu Lifebook S6420
  auto		auto-config reading BIOS (default)

And how do I do that? I mean, where in the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf should I add it?

I note this error from your PC’s dmesg:


   13.089248] ALSA patch_realtek.c:1579: realtek: No valid SSID, checking pincfg 0x40079a2d for NID 0x1d



That suggests to me that alsa is having a difficult time configuration for the ID of your hardware audio codec.

But I don't know if that applies to you. 

And this could be a KDE update problem for all I know (I don't provide support for KDE updates). Can you advise wrt your KDE version please ?

Qt: 4.7.1
KDE Development Platform: 4.6.00 (4.6.0) “release 6”

I tried fiddling with some controls in pavucontrol, nothing helped. As a matter of fact, now I only have ‘dummy output’ available in pavucontrol, and no cards available for configuration in the configuration tab.

I tried rebooting, didn’t help either.

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 2:15pm

ok, so recall the options for an ALC269 (which may or may not be the same as the ALC269VB) are:


ALC269
======
  basic		Basic preset
  quanta	Quanta FL1
  laptop-amic	Laptops with analog-mic input
  laptop-dmic	Laptops with digital-mic input
  fujitsu	FSC Amilo
  lifebook	Fujitsu Lifebook S6420
  auto		auto-config reading BIOS (default)

so lets say you decide to try the ‘basic’ model option (only try one at a time). Then edit the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf file, adding a line to the start of the file so that the file looks like:


options snd-hda-intel model=basic
options snd slots=snd-hda-intel
# u1Nb.TkKxqDmvYl9:82801G (ICH7 Family) High Definition Audio Controller
alias snd-card-0 snd-hda-intel

and then restart your alsa sound driver with the command


su -c 'rcalsasound restart'

and enter root password when prompted for a password. When asked if you wish to save old kde settings say no. As a regular user restart kmix (type ‘kmix’) and then test. Check your mixer.

If ‘basic’ does not work, then go on to the next model option, replacing ‘basic’ in the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf file with the next option (say ‘quanta’). Again restart the alsa sound driver, restart the mixer, and test.

Try that for each model option, stopping if you get it to work.

It should be in the pavucontrol configuration tab. Clearly it is identified in the script:


!!Aplay/Arecord output
!!------------

APLAY

**** List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****
card 0: Intel [HDA Intel], device 0: ALC269VB Analog [ALC269VB Analog]
  Subdevices: 0/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0

It might not show up if you updated your kernel version and have not restarted since. But I note you state you restarted.

Is the device configured in YaST > Hardware > Sound ?

Note going into YaST > Hardware > Sound will remove any custom settings in the /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf file, so be careful when you go there and have a backup copy of that file ready, stored in a directory OTHER than /etc/modprobe.d. Do not keep your backup files in /etc/modprobe.d directory.

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 2:18pm

fiddling ? what means ‘fiddling’ ? Serious thou, before messing with settings, ensure you record your baseline start configuration. For GUI based controls, a simple ‘print screen’ is an easy way to do that (so that one can always go back).

Was the configuration there BEFORE you started some unknown ‘fiddling’ ? If so, did you keep notes as to what you were ‘fiddling’? I always keep notes when I start changing a configuration, … for if I do not keep notes, how can I now what I tried ? I simply end up wasting time if I don’t keep notes. At least that is my experience given my rather bad memory.

lordmorgul · June 25, 2011, 3:33pm

Well, that was pretty random but I got it working, apparently. I tried using these various options in /etc/modprobe.d/50-sound.conf, none of them helped, so I just reverted back to the original file, without this additional line and after rcalsasound restart it just worked. So, thank you

Oh, and ‘to fiddle’ means ‘to make minor manual movements especially to adjust something <fiddled with the radio knobs>’ (via Merriam-Webster)

oldcpu · June 25, 2011, 4:10pm

Glad to read its working.

Please advise if you need to run ‘rcalsasound restart’ after every boot, in which case it may be necessary to add that to the boot process (as a more permanent work around)

lordmorgul · June 27, 2011, 7:12pm

So, I just did a reboot and didn’t have to restart alsa, everything’s working flawlessly now. Thanks again.