Installing Packman codecs does something weird to my PC's line-in

English Multimedia
#1

I run stereo audio from my TV to the line-in on my computer so I can listen to it through headphones simultaneously with all the other PC audio. However, after installing codecs from Packman the line-audio does not work… UNLESS VLC is playing something. Once VLC is stopped, the line-in audio continues for 2 or 3 more seconds and then stops.

I fiddled around with it for a couple of minutes and eventually ended up using Snapper to roll back to my pre-codec state (yay brtfs snapshots).

I realize this may not be the most common setup in the world but hopefully someone has an idea or two.

#2

You have not said what you did. And that makes it hard to give advice.

Adding a few packman packages won’t work very well. You have to switch packages to the packman repo:

zypper dup --from "PACKMAN" --allow-vendor-change

(change “PACKMAN” to the name or alias of your packman repo).

#3

Share the output of

pacmd list-sources

Maybe for the case when sound is being played via the line-in port, and for the case when audio is not making it through.

Also, check the configuration profile via pavucontrol.

#4 
**$ **pacmd list-sources
2 source(s) available.
    index: 0
        name: <combined.monitor>
        driver: <module-combine-sink.c>
        flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY DYNAMIC_LATENCY
        state: SUSPENDED
        suspend cause: IDLE
        priority: 1000
        volume: front-left: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB,   front-right: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB
                balance 0.00
        base volume: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB
        volume steps: 65537
        muted: no
        current latency: 0.00 ms
        max rewind: 0 KiB
        sample spec: s16le 2ch 44100Hz
        channel map: front-left,front-right
                     Stereo
        used by: 0
        linked by: 0
        configured latency: 0.00 ms; range is 0.50 .. 200.00 ms
        monitor_of: 0
        module: 14
        properties:
                device.description = "Monitor Source of Simultaneous output to Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) HD Audio Controller Ana
log Stereo"
                device.class = "monitor"
                device.icon_name = "audio-input-microphone"
  * index: 1
        name: <alsa_output.pci-0000_0a_00.3.analog-stereo.monitor>
        driver: <module-alsa-card.c>
        flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY  
        state: SUSPENDED
        suspend cause: IDLE
        priority: 1030
        volume: front-left: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB,   front-right: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB
                balance 0.00
        base volume: 65536 / 100% / 0.00 dB
        volume steps: 65537
        muted: no
        current latency: 0.00 ms
        max rewind: 0 KiB
        sample spec: s16le 2ch 44100Hz
        channel map: front-left,front-right
                     Stereo
        used by: 0
        linked by: 0
        fixed latency: 100.14 ms
        monitor_of: 1
        card: 0 <alsa_card.pci-0000_0a_00.3>
        module: 26
        properties:
                device.description = "Monitor of Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) HD Audio Controller Analog Stereo"
                device.class = "monitor"
                alsa.card = "1"
                alsa.card_name = "HD-Audio Generic"
                alsa.long_card_name = "HD-Audio Generic at 0xf6700000 irq 87"
                alsa.driver_name = "snd_hda_intel"
                device.bus_path = "pci-0000:0a:00.3"
                sysfs.path = "/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:08.1/0000:0a:00.3/sound/card1"
                device.bus = "pci"
                device.vendor.id = "1022"
                device.vendor.name = "Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD]"
                device.product.id = "1457"
                device.product.name = "Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) HD Audio Controller"
                device.string = "1"
                module-udev-detect.discovered = "1"
                device.icon_name = "audio-card-pci"

When I run pavucontrol I have sound from the line-in for a few seconds, then it cuts off again. If I go into audio volume settings and do the left/right channel test, I hear the “front right, front left” recording and the line-in plays for a few seconds before stopping again. Start and stop a YouTube video, line-in audio works for the duration, then quits after 10-15 seconds. Last night it magically decided to start working perfectly again, now today it’s uncooperative. No idea if this is a bug or a configuration problem.

#5

Actually it seems I have line-in audio for as long as I have pavucontrol open, but it dies shortly after closing the window.

#6

OK, I think I have found a clue but I don’t know where to go next.

When line-in sound is working, the output of **pacmd list-sources **includes:

driver: <module-alsa-card.c>
flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY
**state: RUNNING
suspend cause: (none)
**

and

flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY DYNAMIC_LATENCY
state: RUNNING
suspend cause: (none)

but once the playback stops, those values change to:

flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY  
state: SUSPENDED
suspend cause: IDLE

and

flags: DECIBEL_VOLUME LATENCY DYNAMIC_LATENCY
state: SUSPENDED
suspend cause: IDLE

This leads me to think that if I could figure out how to stop this suspend-on-idle behavior I would have my problem solved. But I don’t know where to start.

#7

OK, I think I have found a solution at last.

In /etc/pulse/default there is a stanza that reads:


### Automatically suspend sinks/sources that become idle for too long
load-module module-suspend-on-idle

I commented out this directive and so far so good.

Sorry to take up so much space, but maybe this will help someone else in the future. Thank you to deano_ferrari for a helpful clue.

#8

Thanks for the update. Glad to have been of guidance.