[SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

rpt · 2013-12-23 00:43:34

Hello,

I am trying to configure MPD to play audio on my system.

I will show two candidate configuration sets along with the issues encountered with each:

(1) Running MPD as my own user

# Required files
db_file            "~/.config/mpd/database"
log_file           "~/.config/mpd/log"

# Optional
music_directory    "~/Music"
playlist_directory "~/.config/mpd/playlists"
pid_file           "~/.config/mpd/pid"
state_file         "~/.config/mpd/state"
sticker_file       "~/.config/mpd/sticker.sql"

Then mpd is started from the commandline with 'mpd'. It works when the --no-daemon option is attached.
In any case, without the option, the following is produced in the log file, beginning with the first line which is produced at startup:

Dec 22 15:34 : alsa_mixer: Failed to read mixer for 'default detected output': no such mixer control: PCM
ALSA lib pcm_dmix.c:1022:(snd_pcm_dmix_open) unable to open slave
Dec 22 15:35 : alsa_output: Failed to open "default detected output" [alsa]: Failed to open ALSA device "default": No such file or directory
Dec 22 15:35 : output: Failed to open audio output

The subsequent lines are generated when I try to play audio.

The alternate configuration has mpd running as the 'mpd' user, homed in /var/lib/mpd:

user "mpd"

db_file            "~/database"
log_file           "~/log"

# Optional
music_directory    "~/music"
playlist_directory "~/playlists"
pid_file           "~/pid"
state_file         "~/state"
sticker_file       "~/sticker.sql"

Starting MPD in the same manner as before, this yields:

errno: failed to open log file "/var/lib/mpd/log" (config line 17): Permission denied

The file is accessible to both me and the 'mpd' user.

Here are some general details about my audio configuration:

defaults.ctl.card 1
defaults.pcm.card 1
defaults.timer.card 1

# Use PulseAudio by default
pcm.!default {
  type pulse
  fallback "sysdefault"
  hint {
    show on
    description "Default ALSA Output (currently PulseAudio Sound Server)"
  }
}

ctl.!default {
 type pulse
  fallback "sysdefault"
}

Audio playback works correctly from other programs. Here is the contents of /dev/snd:

drwxr-xr-x  2 root root      100 Dec 21 11:50 by-path
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  9 Dec 21 11:50 controlC0
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  5 Dec 21 11:50 controlC1
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  2 Dec 21 11:50 controlC4
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  8 Dec 21 11:50 hwC0D0
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  4 Dec 21 11:50 hwC1D0
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  7 Dec 21 11:50 pcmC0D0c
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  6 Dec 22 15:32 pcmC0D0p
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116,  3 Dec 21 11:50 pcmC1D3p
crw-rw----  1 root audio 116,  1 Dec 21 11:49 seq
crw-rw----+ 1 root audio 116, 33 Dec 21 11:50 timer

As always, please let me know if any more information is required. Thanks!

Last edited by rpt (2013-12-23 22:02:12)

okubax · 2013-12-23 01:43:35

If it helps, here is my own mpd config file. I run mpd as a normal user. NOTE: I use pulseaudio

# An example configuration file for MPD
# See the mpd.conf man page for a more detailed description of each parameter.


# Files and directories #######################################################
#
# This setting controls the top directory which MPD will search to discover the
# available audio files and add them to the daemon's online database. This 
# setting defaults to the XDG directory, otherwise the music directory will be
# be disabled and audio files will only be accepted over ipc socket (using
# file:// protocol) or streaming files over an accepted protocol.
#
music_directory		"/home/ajibola/Music"
#
# This setting sets the MPD internal playlist directory. The purpose of this
# directory is storage for playlists created by MPD. The server will use 
# playlist files not created by the server but only if they are in the MPD
# format. This setting defaults to playlist saving being disabled.
#
playlist_directory		"/home/ajibola/.mpd/playlists"
#
# This setting sets the location of the MPD database. This file is used to
# load the database at server start up and store the database while the 
# server is not up. This setting defaults to disabled which will allow
# MPD to accept files over ipc socket (using file:// protocol) or streaming
# files over an accepted protocol.
#
db_file			"/home/ajibola/.mpd/database"
# 
# These settings are the locations for the daemon log files for the daemon.
# These logs are great for troubleshooting, depending on your log_level
# settings.
#
# The special value "syslog" makes MPD use the local syslog daemon. This
# setting defaults to logging to syslog, otherwise logging is disabled.
#
log_file			"~/.mpd/log"
#
# This setting sets the location of the file which stores the process ID
# for use of mpd --kill and some init scripts. This setting is disabled by
# default and the pid file will not be stored.
#
pid_file			"/home/ajibola/.mpd/pid"
#
# This setting sets the location of the file which contains information about
# most variables to get MPD back into the same general shape it was in before
# it was brought down. This setting is disabled by default and the server 
# state will be reset on server start up.
#
state_file			"/home/ajibola/.mpd/state"
#
# The location of the sticker database.  This is a database which
# manages dynamic information attached to songs.
#
#sticker_file			"~/.mpd/sticker.sql"
#
###############################################################################


# General music daemon options ################################################
#
# This setting specifies the user that MPD will run as. MPD should never run as
# root and you may use this setting to make MPD change its user ID after
# initialization. This setting is disabled by default and MPD is run as the
# current user.
#
#user				"nobody"
#
# This setting specifies the group that MPD will run as. If not specified
# primary group of user specified with "user" setting will be used (if set).
# This is useful if MPD needs to be a member of group such as "audio" to
# have permission to use sound card.
#
#group				"nogroup"
#
# This setting sets the address for the daemon to listen on. Careful attention
# should be paid if this is assigned to anything other then the default, any.
# This setting can deny access to control of the daemon.
#
# For network
#bind_to_address		"any"
#
# And for Unix Socket
#bind_to_address		"~/.mpd/socket"
#
# This setting is the TCP port that is desired for the daemon to get assigned
# to.
#
#port				"6600"
#
# This setting controls the type of information which is logged. Available 
# setting arguments are "default", "secure" or "verbose". The "verbose" setting
# argument is recommended for troubleshooting, though can quickly stretch
# available resources on limited hardware storage.
#
#log_level			"default"
#
# If you have a problem with your MP3s ending abruptly it is recommended that 
# you set this argument to "no" to attempt to fix the problem. If this solves
# the problem, it is highly recommended to fix the MP3 files with vbrfix
# (available from <http://www.willwap.co.uk/Programs/vbrfix.php>), at which
# point gapless MP3 playback can be enabled.
#
#gapless_mp3_playback			"yes"
#
# Setting "restore_paused" to "yes" puts MPD into pause mode instead
# of starting playback after startup.
#
#restore_paused "no"
#
# This setting enables MPD to create playlists in a format usable by other
# music players.
#
#save_absolute_paths_in_playlists	"no"
#
# This setting defines a list of tag types that will be extracted during the
# audio file discovery process. The complete list of possible values can be
# found in the mpd.conf man page.
#metadata_to_use	"artist,album,title,track,name,genre,date,composer,performer,disc"
#
# This setting enables automatic update of MPD's database when files in 
# music_directory are changed.
#
#auto_update	"yes"
#
# Limit the depth of the directories being watched, 0 means only watch
# the music directory itself.  There is no limit by default.
#
#auto_update_depth "3"
#
###############################################################################


# Symbolic link behavior ######################################################
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", MPD will discover audio files by following 
# symbolic links outside of the configured music_directory.
#
#follow_outside_symlinks	"yes"
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", MPD will discover audio files by following
# symbolic links inside of the configured music_directory.
#
#follow_inside_symlinks		"yes"
#
###############################################################################


# Zeroconf / Avahi Service Discovery ##########################################
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", service information will be published with
# Zeroconf / Avahi.
#
#zeroconf_enabled		"yes"
#
# The argument to this setting will be the Zeroconf / Avahi unique name for
# this MPD server on the network.
#
#zeroconf_name			"Music Player"
#
###############################################################################


# Permissions #################################################################
#
# If this setting is set, MPD will require password authorization. The password
# can setting can be specified multiple times for different password profiles.
#
#password                        "password@read,add,control,admin"
#
# This setting specifies the permissions a user has who has not yet logged in. 
#
#default_permissions             "read,add,control,admin"
#
###############################################################################


# Input #######################################################################
#

input {
        plugin "curl"
#       proxy "proxy.isp.com:8080"
#       proxy_user "user"
#       proxy_password "password"
}

#
###############################################################################

# Audio Output ################################################################
#
# MPD supports various audio output types, as well as playing through multiple 
# audio outputs at the same time, through multiple audio_output settings 
# blocks. Setting this block is optional, though the server will only attempt
# autodetection for one sound card.
#
# See <http://mpd.wikia.com/wiki/Configuration#Audio_Outputs> for examples of 
# other audio outputs.
#
# An example of an ALSA output:
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"alsa"
#	name		"My ALSA Device"
##	device		"hw:0,0"	# optional
##	format		"44100:16:2"	# optional
##	mixer_type      "hardware"	# optional
##	mixer_device	"default"	# optional
##	mixer_control	"PCM"		# optional
##	mixer_index	"0"		# optional
#}
#
# An example of an OSS output:
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"oss"
#	name		"My OSS Device"
##	device		"/dev/dsp"	# optional
##	format		"44100:16:2"	# optional
##	mixer_type      "hardware"	# optional
##	mixer_device	"/dev/mixer"	# optional
##	mixer_control	"PCM"		# optional
#}
#
# An example of a shout output (for streaming to Icecast):
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"shout"
#	encoding	"ogg"			# optional
#	name		"My Shout Stream"
#	host		"localhost"
#	port		"8000"
#	mount		"/mpd.ogg"
#	password	"hackme"
#	quality		"5.0"
#	bitrate		"128"
#	format		"44100:16:1"
##	protocol	"icecast2"		# optional
##	user		"source"		# optional
##	description	"My Stream Description"	# optional
##	url		"http://example.com"	# optional
##	genre		"jazz"			# optional
##	public		"no"			# optional
##	timeout		"2"			# optional
##	mixer_type      "software"		# optional
#}
#
# An example of a recorder output:
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"recorder"
#	name		"My recorder"
#	encoder		"vorbis"		# optional, vorbis or lame
#	path		"/var/lib/mpd/recorder/mpd.ogg"
##	quality		"5.0"			# do not define if bitrate is defined
#	bitrate		"128"			# do not define if quality is defined
#	format		"44100:16:1"
#}
#
# An example of a httpd output (built-in HTTP streaming server):
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"httpd"
#	name		"My HTTP Stream"
#	encoder		"vorbis"		# optional, vorbis or lame
#	port		"8000"
#	bind_to_address	"0.0.0.0"		# optional, IPv4 or IPv6
##	quality		"5.0"			# do not define if bitrate is defined
#	bitrate		"128"			# do not define if quality is defined
#	format		"44100:16:1"
#	max_clients	"0"			# optional 0=no limit
#}
#
# An example of a pulseaudio output (streaming to a remote pulseaudio server)
#
audio_output {
	type		"pulse"
	name		"My Pulse Output"
##	server		"remote_server"		# optional
##	sink		"remote_server_sink"	# optional
}
# An example of visualization
audio_output {
    type                    "fifo"
    name                    "my_fifo"
    path                    "/tmp/mpd.fifo"
    format                  "44100:16:2"
}
#
## Example "pipe" output:
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"pipe"
#	name		"my pipe"
#	command		"aplay -f cd 2>/dev/null"
## Or if you're want to use AudioCompress
#	command		"AudioCompress -m | aplay -f cd 2>/dev/null"
## Or to send raw PCM stream through PCM:
#	command		"nc example.org 8765"
#	format		"44100:16:2"
#}
#
## An example of a null output (for no audio output):
#
#audio_output {
#	type		"null"
#	name		"My Null Output"
#	mixer_type      "none"			# optional
#}
#
# This setting will change all decoded audio to be converted to the specified
# format before being passed to the audio outputs. By default, this setting is
# disabled.
#
#audio_output_format		"44100:16:2"
#
# If MPD has been compiled with libsamplerate support, this setting specifies 
# the sample rate converter to use.  Possible values can be found in the 
# mpd.conf man page or the libsamplerate documentation. By default, this is
# setting is disabled.
#
#samplerate_converter		"Fastest Sinc Interpolator"
#
###############################################################################


# Normalization automatic volume adjustments ##################################
#
# This setting specifies the type of ReplayGain to use. This setting can have
# the argument "off", "album" or "track". See <http://www.replaygain.org>
# for more details. This setting is off by default.
#
#replaygain			"album"
#
# This setting sets the pre-amp used for files that have ReplayGain tags. By
# default this setting is disabled.
#
#replaygain_preamp		"0"
#
# This setting enables on-the-fly normalization volume adjustment. This will
# result in the volume of all playing audio to be adjusted so the output has 
# equal "loudness". This setting is disabled by default.
#
#volume_normalization		"no"
#
###############################################################################


# MPD Internal Buffering ######################################################
#
# This setting adjusts the size of internal decoded audio buffering. Changing
# this may have undesired effects. Don't change this if you don't know what you
# are doing.
#
#audio_buffer_size		"2048"
#
# This setting controls the percentage of the buffer which is filled before 
# beginning to play. Increasing this reduces the chance of audio file skipping, 
# at the cost of increased time prior to audio playback.
#
#buffer_before_play		"10%"
#
###############################################################################


# Resource Limitations ########################################################
#
# These settings are various limitations to prevent MPD from using too many
# resources. Generally, these settings should be minimized to prevent security
# risks, depending on the operating resources.
#
#connection_timeout		"60"
#max_connections		"10"
#max_playlist_length		"16384"
#max_command_list_size		"2048"
#max_output_buffer_size		"8192"
#
###############################################################################

# Client TCP keep alive #######################################################
#
# For clients connected by TCP on supported platforms.
# Allows detection of dangling connections due to clients disappearing from
# the network without closing their connections.
#
# This is not usually necessary but can be useful in cases such as wifi connectected
# clients that go in and out of network range or turn off wifi without closing their
# connections. Combined with low max_connections this can soon cause clients to not
# be able to connect.
#
#
# Enable tcp keepalive on new client connections (default is "no")
#
#tcp_keep_alive "no"
#
# Time in seconds since the last communication on the connection and before
# the keepalive probing is started. (default is 7200 seconds)
#tcp_keep_alive_idle "7200"
#
# Interval in seconds between keepalive probes, once a probe started.
# (default is 75 seconds)
#tcp_keep_alive_interval "75"
#
# Number of failed probes before the connection is pronounced dead and
# the connection is closed. (default is 9 times)
#tcp_keep_alive_count "9"
#
###############################################################################

# Character Encoding ##########################################################
#
# If file or directory names do not display correctly for your locale then you 
# may need to modify this setting.
#
#filesystem_charset		"UTF-8"
#
# This setting controls the encoding that ID3v1 tags should be converted from.
#
#id3v1_encoding			"ISO-8859-1"
#
###############################################################################


# SIDPlay decoder #############################################################
#
# songlength_database:
#  Location of your songlengths file, as distributed with the HVSC.
#  The sidplay plugin checks this for matching MD5 fingerprints.
#  See http://www.c64.org/HVSC/DOCUMENTS/Songlengths.faq
#
# default_songlength:
#  This is the default playing time in seconds for songs not in the
#  songlength database, or in case you're not using a database.
#  A value of 0 means play indefinitely.
#
# filter:
#  Turns the SID filter emulation on or off.
#
#decoder {
#	plugin			"sidplay"
#	songlength_database	"/media/C64Music/DOCUMENTS/Songlengths.txt"
#	default_songlength	"120"
#	filter "true"
#}
#
###############################################################################

ondoho · 2013-12-23 15:26:38

it looks like you're using pulseaudio, but mpd is configured to use alsa.

(imho it's easier to run mpd as current user)

progandy · 2013-12-23 17:10:01

Here is my config for pulseaudio. The example config covers most of the stuff you'll have to know (/usr/share/doc/mpd/mpdconf.example)

cat ~/.mpd/mpd.conf | grep -ve "^#" -e "^$"
music_directory		"~/Musik"
playlist_directory "~/.config/mpd/playlists"
db_file "~/.config/mpd/mpd.db"
pid_file "~/.config/mpd/mpd.pid"
state_file "~/.config/mpd/mpdstate"
sticker_file			"~/.config/mpd/sticker.sql"
bind_to_address 		"127.0.0.1"
port  				"6677"
follow_outside_symlinks	"yes"
follow_inside_symlinks		"yes"
zeroconf_enabled		"no"
input {
        plugin "curl"
}
audio_output {
       type            "pulse"
       name            "Local Pulse Audio"
}

Last edited by progandy (2013-12-23 17:11:18)

rpt · 2013-12-23 22:01:47

Thanks everyone. Could have sworn that I had included that audio_output entry at one point and that it didn't work, but it's working fine now.

Arch Linux

#1 2013-12-23 00:43:34

[SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

#2 2013-12-23 01:43:35

Re: [SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

#3 2013-12-23 15:26:38

Re: [SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

#4 2013-12-23 17:10:01

Re: [SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

#5 2013-12-23 22:01:47

Re: [SOLVED] MPD issues -- playing audio

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