Arch Linux

cproo12

Member

Registered: 2022-12-22

Posts: 39

ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

Hello, this is my first post, and my first week using Arch. I love it so far!

I went from Linux Mint > Debian base + openbox > Arch + openbox.

Currently, the only thing I don't like that I don't know how to fix is the audio.

I am using ALSA, and every time audio stops playing, its like the sound is "turning off"? Only a problem because it happens between tracks in an album sometimes!! Then there is a 500ms or so delay before I can hear the next song.

I remember having this problem with pulseaudio in Mint- (I only used debian for a day so I never installed sound) and editing the config to play silent audio stream all the time to prevent it from sleeping, but I must not be using the right search terms as I am unable to find any ALSA equivalent of this. I've looked for alsa configs and didn't see anything "idle" related, but maybe I am just missing something obvious.

Any help appreciated + happy holidays!

Last edited by cproo12 (2022-12-22 05:03:37)

ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 20,634

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

What are you using to play music?

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cproo12

Member

Registered: 2022-12-22

Posts: 39

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

thanks for responding!

It happens with any application I've tried, cmus, Lollypop, firefox, discord, games (minecraft for example while in a quiet cave). Makes me think its not an application level issue.

May also be worth noting I am using optical audio from my motherboard to an S.M.S.L m3 dac.

ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 20,634

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

Is that a 500mS gap, after which you hear the beginning of the next track?  Or is the track playing during the gap and you missing that first half second or so?

---

Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
The shortest way to ruin a country is to give power to demagogues.— Dionysius of Halicarnassus
---
How to Ask Questions the Smart Way

cproo12

Member

Registered: 2022-12-22

Posts: 39

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

So its not exactly 500ms, just a short bit of time before audio plays.

Track does not play during gap-

For example, no audio is playing, so it goes to "sleep", then it detects that audio is playing and turns on, but I miss the first short bit of audio.

hakanarin

Member

From: Turkey ( Türkiye )

Registered: 2023-03-22

Posts: 3

Website

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

I have the same problem.
Did you solve it?

So its not exactly 500ms, just a short bit of time before audio plays.

Track does not play during gap-

For example, no audio is playing, so it goes to "sleep", then it detects that audio is playing and turns on, but I miss the first short bit of audio.

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 25,197

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

Sounds like power_saving on snd-hda-intel giving you a notable impact, try

options snd-hda-intel power_save=0

in a /etc/modprobe.d/disableHdaPowerSave.conf or so.

hakanarin

Member

From: Turkey ( Türkiye )

Registered: 2023-03-22

Posts: 3

Website

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

I am using Garuda Linux. There is no such file in Garuda.

Sounds like power_saving on snd-hda-intel giving you a notable impact, try

options snd-hda-intel power_save=0

in a /etc/modprobe.d/disableHdaPowerSave.conf or so.

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 25,197

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

You are supposed to create it. Also note that Garuda Linux is not supported here, if you have any further question beyond the scope of this thread, please refer to the Garuda support channels.

Last edited by V1del (2023-03-29 21:54:33)

hakanarin

Member

From: Turkey ( Türkiye )

Registered: 2023-03-22

Posts: 3

Website

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

I've had this issue on all distributions I've tried within 3 weeks, including Arch. The reason I'm asking here is because I saw exactly the same problem.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a solution to the problem on any website yet.

You are supposed to create it. Also not that Garuda Linux is not supported here, if you have any further question beyond the scope of this thread, please refer to the Garuda support channels.

Manjaro user

Member

Registered: 2024-12-22

Posts: 1

Re: ALSA audio "sleeping" at idle (when no sound plays)

Hello!

Have been struggling with the same problem for the last few days.
The solution for me was to install pipewire and wireplumber

And

https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWi … g_playback