Pulseaudio in KDE 4.4 - only notifications work

JanSimek · March 22, 2010, 2:20pm

About two weeks ago I enabled KDE factory repo to get the latest KDE 4.4.
Everything was fine until a recent update, which caused sound working only in some applications.
Sound now works when tried in System Settings and Yast->Sound, but it does not work in Firefox, VLC, Skype, and so on.

This did not help: Alsa-update - openSUSE, Enabling PulseAudio, Audio Troubleshooting

This is my [b]/usr/sbin/alsa-info.sh output

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

options snd slots=snd-hda-intel
# u1Nb.vD9VbU_X1r7:82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
alias snd-card-0 snd-hda-intel
options snd-hda-intel model=dell-3stack

Sound test under normal user
speaker-test -Dplug:front -c2 -l5 -twav → works
speaker-test -c2 -l5 -twav → does not work (no error)

Sound test under root
speaker-test -Dplug:front -c2 -l5 -twav → works
speaker-test -c2 -l5 -twav → does not work (see below)

speaker-test -c2 -l5 -twav

speaker-test 1.0.22

Playback device is default
Stream parameters are 48000Hz, S16_LE, 2 channels
WAV file(s)
ALSA lib pulse.c:229:(pulse_connect) PulseAudio: Unable to connect: Connection refused

Playback open error: -111,Connection refused
ALSA lib pulse.c:229:(pulse_connect) PulseAudio: Unable to connect: Connection refused
...

JanSimek · March 22, 2010, 3:39pm

I forgot to mention, that kmix is not run automatically at startup and when I start it manually it sees only one channel - Master channel.
Also, I added ~/.asoundrc files as suggested in this thread: latest phonon doesn’t work with pulseaudio

pcm.phononpulse {
type plug
slave.pcm {
type pulse
}
hint {
show on
description “PulseAudio”
}
}

oldcpu · March 23, 2010, 8:52am

Sorry to read of your problems.

This thread really belongs under Pre-Release/Beta - openSUSE Forums because you are not keeping an official openSUSE KDE version, but rather updating to something that has not been tested.

If you end up re-installing openSUSE and stay at KDE 4.3.5 or if you roll back successfully to KDE-4.3.5 I will try and support, but I do not support any KDE beyond 4.3.5.

If you elect to stay at this 4.4.x, then hopefully someone else will chime in on this thread and help.

JanSimek · March 23, 2010, 10:19am

I literally spent the whole Monday trying to get it to work, but to no avail.
I have no other option but to follow your advice and downgrade to KDE 4.3.5.
All the unofficial repositories except Packman are disabled and the version is being switched to Index of /distribution/11.2/repo/oss

JanSimek · March 23, 2010, 8:49pm

OK, I downgraded to KDE 4.3.5 and the sound works, including my microphone.

Trouble is that it works only after I put rcalsasound restart in the konsole and then I have to restart all the applications that use sound.

Any ideas, please?

knurpht · March 23, 2010, 10:17pm

Take a look in Yast, Hardware, Sound, see if there’s something strange inthere.

oldcpu · March 23, 2010, 10:55pm

Ideas … hmm … well … why not try to figure out what application is using your audio device when sound works and when sound does not work?

Take a look at the troubleshooting guide for audio:
SDB:AudioTroubleshooting - openSUSE

Go to the end and you will see advice on how to determine what application is using the audio device:

 lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*

For example, if I run that on my KDE-4.3.5 with no sound playing (but sound actually functional) I get:

oldcpu@hal2009:~>  lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*
COMMAND   PID   USER   FD   TYPE DEVICE SIZE/OFF NODE NAME
knotify4 3064 oldcpu   12u   CHR  116,9      0t0 5512 /dev/snd/controlC0
kmix     3095 oldcpu   10u   CHR  116,9      0t0 5512 /dev/snd/controlC0
kmix     3095 oldcpu   12u   CHR  116,4      0t0 5449 /dev/snd/controlC1

…

now if I play a video with smplayer and run that:

oldcpu@hal2009:~> lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*
COMMAND    PID   USER   FD   TYPE DEVICE SIZE/OFF NODE NAME
knotify4  3064 oldcpu   12u   CHR  116,9      0t0 5512 /dev/snd/controlC0
kmix      3095 oldcpu   10u   CHR  116,9      0t0 5512 /dev/snd/controlC0
kmix      3095 oldcpu   12u   CHR  116,4      0t0 5449 /dev/snd/controlC1
mplayer  26835 oldcpu  mem    CHR  116,6          5498 /dev/snd/pcmC0D0p
mplayer  26835 oldcpu    5r   CHR  116,2      0t0 5034 /dev/snd/timer
mplayer  26835 oldcpu    6u   CHR  116,6      0t0 5498 /dev/snd/pcmC0D0p
mplayer  26835 oldcpu    7u   CHR  116,9      0t0 5512 /dev/snd/controlC0

JanSimek · March 24, 2010, 10:36am

There is no output from this command after the system starts:

lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*

But after executing rcalsasound restart I get:

jsimek@linux-xps:~> lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*
COMMAND    PID   USER   FD   TYPE DEVICE SIZE/OFF  NODE NAME
pulseaudi 8577 jsimek  mem    CHR  116,4          28628 /dev/snd/pcmC0D0p
pulseaudi 8577 jsimek   10u   CHR  116,7      0t0 28664 /dev/snd/controlC0
pulseaudi 8577 jsimek   21u   CHR  116,4      0t0 28628 /dev/snd/pcmC0D0p
pulseaudi 8577 jsimek   23u   CHR  116,7      0t0 28664 /dev/snd/controlC0
pulseaudi 8577 jsimek   30u   CHR  116,7      0t0 28664 /dev/snd/controlC0

Nothing seems out of ordinary in Yast->Sound:

82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
Configured as card number 0
Driver snd-hda-intel

oldcpu · March 24, 2010, 7:34pm

There should be an output.

As a regular user, immediately after a PC restart/reboot, type:

dmesg > dmesg.txt

and then open the file dmesg.txt with a text editor and paste its contents on PasteBin.be and press dump on that site and post here the URL it provides

JanSimek · March 25, 2010, 9:24pm

Here it is.

As far as I can see, there is no error. But then again, I don’t understand much of what it says.

    6.083586] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3881: autoconfig: line_outs=1 (0xd/0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0)
    6.083592] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3885:    speaker_outs=0 (0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0)
    6.083596] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3889:    hp_outs=2 (0xa/0xf/0x0/0x0/0x0)
    6.083600] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3890:    mono: mono_out=0x0
    6.083604] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3893:    dig-out=0x21/0x0
    6.083617] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/hda_codec.c:3901:    inputs: mic=0xc, fmic=0xe, line=0x0, fline=0x0, cd=0x0, aux=0x0
    6.084229] ALSA /usr/src/packages/BUILD/kernel-desktop-2.6.31.12/linux-2.6.31/sound/pci/hda/patch_sigmatel.c:2974: stac92xx: dac_nids=2 (0x2/0x5/0x0/0x0/0x0)
    6.084429] input: HDA Digital PCBeep as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/input/input8
    6.093683] nvidia 0000:01:00.0: PCI INT A -> GSI 16 (level, low) -> IRQ 16
    6.093694] nvidia 0000:01:00.0: setting latency timer to 64
    6.093877] NVRM: loading NVIDIA UNIX x86_64 Kernel Module  190.53  Wed Dec  9 15:29:46 PST 2009
    6.158204] input: HDA Intel Mic at Ext Front Jack as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/sound/card0/input9
    6.158297] input: HDA Intel HP Out at Ext Front Jack as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/sound/card0/input10
    6.158353] input: HDA Intel HP Out at Ext Front Jack as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/sound/card0/input11

Thank you for your help.

oldcpu · March 25, 2010, 9:40pm

There are a couple of strange things in that dmesg.

Why is Skype running so soon at the start? I’m thinking maybe you have it running at the start and it is not sharing the audio device?

Also, why is virual box running at the start? I’m also thinking maybe you have it running at the start and it is not sharing the audio device?

JanSimek · March 26, 2010, 9:45am

Skype and Virtualbox are gone, but the problem persists - PasteBin.be

I guess a dirty solution would be to write a script that would wait ten seconds after KDE login and then execute rcalsasound restart

oldcpu · March 26, 2010, 11:20am

Now that you have those removed, why not next time you reboot, run again:

lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*

I still do not see why there was no output. Not even an error ?

There should be something.

NO need for a script. This can just go in /etc/init.d/boot.local if my memory serves me correct. (I am not at a linux pc and my memory truely is very bad). But if my memory is correct, as the last line in /etc/init.d/boot.local add:

rcalsasound restart

however I still think you should look for output of:

lsof /dev/dsp* /dev/audio* /dev/mixer* /dev/snd/*

wrkn · March 29, 2010, 9:29pm

Hi,

I updated to KDE 4.4 today (factory repo). For me sound was broken as well.

It appears that although KDE 4.3 on openSUSE 11.2 does not use pulseaudio, KDE 4.4.1 does use pulseaudio.

To get other applications to route their audio through the pulseaudio daemon I did the following:

$ cd /etc
$ sudo cp asound-pulse.conf asound.conf

I hope this works just as well for you as for me.

The following page contains instructions to make several applications route their audio through the pulseaudio daemon:
PerfectSetup – PulseAudio

–
kind regards, wouter…

JanSimek · April 2, 2010, 10:11am

Indeed, it does! Thank you.

I guess I can now try to upgrade back to KDE 4.4