USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

HyperLink · 2016-02-13 10:41:10

My bluetooth dongle doesn't work. I've already searched for problems like this, but the solutions were either outdated or didn't work.
The device shows up as "Bus 001 Device 011: ID 0a5c:4500 Broadcom Corp. BCM2046B1 USB 2.0 Hub (part of BCM2046 Bluetooth)" in lsusb.
hcitool dev shows an empty device list.

Apparently I should put the device into hci mode by using hid2hci but I don't know which method parameter is the right one (I tried all of them). I found out the device path by running the folllowing command:

% udevadm trigger --dry-run --subsystem-match=usb --attr-match=idVendor=0a5c --attr-match=idProduct=4500 --verbose
/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10

Here's the output:

For methods csr, csr2, dell:

% sudo hid2hci --method=csr2 --devpath=/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10/                                                                                                                                     :(
Control transfer failed: Broken pipe (32)
error: switching device '/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10' failed.

For method logitech-hid:

% sudo hid2hci --method=logitech-hid --devpath=/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10/                                                                                                                             :(
error: switching device '/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10' failed.

It all seems to come down to switching device failed.

lsusb output of the devices that appear when the dongle is plugged in:

Bus 001 Device 019: ID 0a5c:4503 Broadcom Corp. Mouse (Boot Interface Subclass)
Bus 001 Device 018: ID 0a5c:4502 Broadcom Corp. Keyboard (Boot Interface Subclass)
Bus 001 Device 017: ID 0a5c:4500 Broadcom Corp. BCM2046B1 USB 2.0 Hub (part of BCM2046 Bluetooth)

dmesg output:

[ 3490.505454] usb 1-10: new full-speed USB device number 20 using xhci_hcd
[ 3490.679949] usb 1-10: ep 0x81 - rounding interval to 1024 microframes, ep desc says 2040 microframes
[ 3490.680297] hub 1-10:1.0: USB hub found
[ 3490.680395] hub 1-10:1.0: 3 ports detected
[ 3490.945243] usb 1-10.1: new full-speed USB device number 21 using xhci_hcd
[ 3491.148278] usb 1-10.1: ep 0x81 - rounding interval to 64 microframes, ep desc says 80 microframes
[ 3491.150389] input: HID 0a5c:4502 as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10/1-10.1/1-10.1:1.0/0003:0A5C:4502.0014/input/input31
[ 3491.206015] hid-generic 0003:0A5C:4502.0014: input,hidraw5: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [HID 0a5c:4502] on usb-0000:00:14.0-10.1/input0
[ 3491.272081] usb 1-10.2: new full-speed USB device number 22 using xhci_hcd
[ 3491.354557] usb 1-10.2: ep 0x81 - rounding interval to 64 microframes, ep desc says 80 microframes
[ 3491.357782] input: HID 0a5c:4503 as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb1/1-10/1-10.2/1-10.2:1.0/0003:0A5C:4503.0015/input/input32
[ 3491.358264] hid-generic 0003:0A5C:4503.0015: input,hidraw6: USB HID v1.11 Mouse [HID 0a5c:4503] on usb-0000:00:14.0-10.2/input0

Using kernel 4.4.1-2
bluez 5.37-2
bluez-firmware 1.2-8
bluez-hid2hci 5.37-2
bluez-libs 5.37-2
bluez-qt 5.18.0-1
bluez-utils 5.37-2

Last edited by HyperLink (2016-02-13 12:41:33)

jeremy31 · 2016-02-13 13:15:39

For some reason some of these bluetooth dongles don't work with Linux and I am not sure why. Mine is discovered in Linux Mint, Ubuntu, and an Arch iso with a 4.0 kernel

Bus 002 Device 006: ID 0a5c:2148 Broadcom Corp. BCM92046DG-CL1ROM Bluetooth 2.1 Adapter
Bus 002 Device 005: ID 0a5c:4503 Broadcom Corp. Mouse (Boot Interface Subclass)
Bus 002 Device 004: ID 0a5c:4502 Broadcom Corp. Keyboard (Boot Interface Subclass)
Bus 002 Device 003: ID 0a5c:4500 Broadcom Corp. BCM2046B1 USB 2.0 Hub (part of BCM2046 Bluetooth)

Feb 13 06:51:06 jeremy-Satellite-M645 kernel: [22613.188669] usb 2-1.4.3: Product: BCM92046DG-CL1ROM
Feb 13 06:51:06 jeremy-Satellite-M645 kernel: [22613.188672] usb 2-1.4.3: Manufacturer: Broadcom Corp
Feb 13 06:51:06 jeremy-Satellite-M645 kernel: [22613.188676] usb 2-1.4.3: SerialNumber: 000272A1E4D2

You can try a different USB port or see if there are any USB settings in BIOS to see if the 0a5c:2148 device appears

HyperLink · 2016-02-13 13:23:22

I'll see if that works.

EDIT: A different USB port still gives the same results and I didn't find any BIOS settings that looked ok.
I'll try a Ubuntu Live CD, maybe it's just a driver problem or I didn't install something that s necessary for the bluetooth to work

EDIT 2: Nope, no such luck. No additional device appears in Ubuntu Well, at least I know now it's not an Arch issue.

Wasn't there a driver loader for Windows drivers?
Yeah, there's ndiswrapper, but then I'd have to search for Windows drivers for my dongle since there doesn't seem to be generic broadcom drivers for this one... yuck.

I might have to buy a new one, but if there's any way to resolve this, it'd be awesome.

Maybe it's a kernel problem. I might get linux-lts for testing...

EDIT 3: So ndiswrapper apparently doesn't support bluetooth so I couldn't get it working. Booting linux-lts gave the same results as the normal linux kernel.

There must be a way to get it working...

Last edited by HyperLink (2016-02-14 09:51:58)

HyperLink · 2016-02-16 16:49:18

Well, in the end I wound up buying another one (0a12:0001 Cambridge Silicon Radio, Ltd Bluetooth Dongle (HCI mode)), it works but I would still like to know if there was any way to resolve the original problem.

jeremy31 · 2016-02-16 23:12:43

Do you have another computer to test the BCM2046 on to see if it works, even on windows?

The Loko · 2016-02-17 21:30:02

I had similar issues with a BCM2045 device and asked on bluez mailing list and it was a bug, now it's fixed.
You could try asking there.

HyperLink · 2016-02-18 16:35:06

jeremy31 wrote:

Do you have another computer to test the BCM2046 on to see if it works, even on windows?

Well the bluetooth adapter is my dad's, it works on his windows computer. I might try plugging it into my laptop (which also runs Archlinux) to test is it works.

The Loko wrote:

I had similar issues with a BCM2045 device and asked on bluez mailing list and it was a bug, now it's fixed.
You could try asking there.

I'll see, I could ask there, maybe it will get fixed. Thanks for the suggestion.

Last edited by HyperLink (2016-02-18 16:36:02)

koksnuss · 2016-04-25 22:15:54

I have a dell studio 1555 laptop with windows 10 dual boot and a BCM2046 device. However, when I pair with a phone (tested two android devices so far) it gets difficult:
- When I initiate the pairing from my laptop, I will get an error afterwards that the device could not be "connected".
- When I initiate the paring from my phone I will get the error that the PIN is incorrect.

The strange thing is I can send files from my laptop to my phone via bluetooth and vice versa. On the ArchWiki I read that epecially on dell studio 15 laptops the package hid2hci is needed so I found this post in the forum.

"lsusb | grep -i bluetooth"

...
Bus 001 Device 005: ID 413c:8156 Dell Computer Corp. Wireless 370 Bluetooth Mini-card
Bus 001 Device 004: ID 413c:8158 Dell Computer Corp. Integrated Touchpad / Trackstick
Bus 001 Device 003: ID 413c:8157 Dell Computer Corp. Integrated Keyboard
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 0a5c:4500 Broadcom Corp. BCM2046B1 USB 2.0 Hub (part of BCM2046 Bluetooth) <-- my BT device
...

"udevadm trigger --dry-run --attr-match=idVendor=0a5c --attr-match=idProduct=4500 --verbose"

/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb1/1-1

The output of "sudo hid2hci --method=dell --devpath=/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb1/1-1 --mode=hci"

error: switching device '/sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb1/1-1' failed.

In my laptop the Bluetooth-Chip is on the same board as the Wifi-Chip. So I also tried the hid2hci switch for the devpath of the Wifi controller with no succes.

Output after connection attempt via bluetoothctl:

[NEW] Controller 00:25:56:D5:63:52 ChromeLinux_BB22 [default]
[bluetooth]# scan on
Discovery started
[CHG] Controller 00:25:56:D5:63:52 Discovering: yes
[NEW] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Moritz-Handy
[bluetooth]# agent on
Agent registered
[bluetooth]# pair A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE 
Attempting to pair with A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Connected: yes
Request confirmation
[agent] Confirm passkey 728857 (yes/no): yes
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Modalias: bluetooth:v001Dp1200d1436
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001105-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001106-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 0000110a-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 0000110c-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001112-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001116-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 0000111f-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 0000112f-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001132-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001200-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001800-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE UUIDs: 00001801-0000-1000-8000-00805f9b34fb
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Paired: yes
Pairing successful
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Connected: no
[bluetooth]# trust A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE 
[CHG] Device A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE Trusted: yes
Changing A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE trust succeeded
[bluetooth]# connect A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE 
Attempting to connect to A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE
Failed to connect: org.bluez.Error.Failed

Journalctl output after connection attempt with KDE bluedevil:

...
wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Manager initialized
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Initialize Discover Page
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Starting scanning
kdeinit5[605]: log_kioremote: RemoteDirNotify::toRemoteURL( QUrl("bluetooth:/") )
NetworkManager[423]: <info>  (A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE): new Bluetooth device (carrier: UNKNOWN, driver: 'bluez', ifindex: 0)
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Stopping scanning
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Device type:  "phone"
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Legacy:  false
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: From DB:  false
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: PIN:  "136645"
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Initialize Pairing Page
kdeinit5[605]: bluedevil: Adding place QUrl("obexftp://a4-eb-d3-26-98-ae")
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: AGENT-RequestConfirmation  "/org/bluez/hci0/dev_A4_EB_D3_26_98_AE" "999435"
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Pairing finished:
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard:          error     :  false
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard:          errorText :  ""
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Initialize Connect Page
bluetoothd[435]: a2dp-source profile connect failed for A4:EB:D3:26:98:AE: Protocol not available
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: BluezQt: PendingCall Error: "Protocol not available"
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Connect finished:
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard:          error     :  true
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard:          errorText :  "Protocol not available"
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Initialize Fail Page
bluedevil-wizard[1436]: bluedevil.wizard: Wizard done:  0
...

Last edited by koksnuss (2016-04-27 19:18:48)

koksnuss · 2016-05-12 20:41:27

Recently I figureg out how to solve my problem by installing

bluez-firmware pulseaudio-bluetooth pulseaudio-alsa

.

Last edited by koksnuss (2016-05-12 21:05:34)

Arch Linux

#1 2016-02-13 10:41:10

USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#2 2016-02-13 13:15:39

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#3 2016-02-13 13:23:22

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#4 2016-02-16 16:49:18

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#5 2016-02-16 23:12:43

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#6 2016-02-17 21:30:02

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#7 2016-02-18 16:35:06

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#8 2016-04-25 22:15:54

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

#9 2016-05-12 20:41:27

Re: USB bluetooth dongle (BCM2046) not working

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