Arch Linux

whatshisname

Member

Registered: 2010-04-24

Posts: 163

Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

Stick a fork in me.  I'm done!!

I have now tried 5 different bluetooth headsets.  Of the 2 or 3 that I can get working on my laptop running Arch, insofar as being able to play music and hear it through my headset, I can get *none* of them to work with Google Talk.

So.  Bluetooth *does* work on the laptop.

But  the goal here is to set my laptop up as a softphone.  Everything works on Google Talk if I wire in a headset.  But no matter what I do, I can't get Google Talk to send sound to my bluetooth headset.  The microphone works fine.

I must be missing something but I have spent *days* and now over a $100 in headsets on this and I'm getting no where.

The latest headset I've tried is a Plantronics Voyager which by all accounts and all reviews should work.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks.

Last edited by whatshisname (2012-08-14 01:20:42)

ngoonee

Forum Fellow

From: Between Thailand and Singapore

Registered: 2009-03-17

Posts: 7,362

Re: Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

It would help if you actually posted WHAT you tried. And what sound system you're using. If you're using pulseaudio (easier with bluetooth than ALSA, in my opinion, especially if you're using Gnome) then you need to change it from A2DP to the other type of connectivity.

Read up on how bluetooth audio works, playing music uses A2DP, but using it has a headset means connecting in another fashion.

---

Allan-Volunteer on the (topic being discussed) mailn lists. You never get the people who matters attention on the forums.
jasonwryan-Installing Arch is a measure of your literacy. Maintaining Arch is a measure of your diligence. Contributing to Arch is a measure of your competence.
Griemak-Bleeding edge, not bleeding flat. Edge denotes falls will occur from time to time. Bring your own parachute.

whatshisname

Member

Registered: 2010-04-24

Posts: 163

Re: Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

Sorry.  Posted in a fury of frustration.

I'm not using Pulse.  Only using ALSA.  From my reading, Pulse is just laid on top of Alsa so I didn't see the reason for the extra layer of complexity.  But if that's the direction I need to go, I'm willing to try.  I just want to make sure the simplest approach won't work before I try Pulse.  In other words, trying to stick to the Arch way.

I followed the Wiki to a T.  That's how I got bluetooth working on the laptop.

I have tried a couple of A2DP headsets.  They all work playing sound.

I'm using Lxde on this particular laptop, a Latitude D620.

Info on the sound card:

*-multimedia
             description: Audio device
             product: N10/ICH 7 Family High Definition Audio Controller
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 1b
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1b.0
             version: 01
             width: 64 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=snd_hda_intel latency=0
             resources: irq:43 memory:efebc000-efebffff

whatshisname

Member

Registered: 2010-04-24

Posts: 163

Re: Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

Installed Pulseaudio.  Ran Bluetooth manager.  Paired my headset through the Bluetooth manager.  Can hear sound through Google Talk.

Thanks Ngoonee.  Sometimes I'm too hard-headed for my own good.

ngoonee

Forum Fellow

From: Between Thailand and Singapore

Registered: 2009-03-17

Posts: 7,362

Re: Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

Its not impossible with alsa. Just that all the alsa examples I've seen involve A2DP, and that won't allow use of the mic (hence I presume google talk won't use it). Not that I've ever really tried, since pulseaudio just worked for me back when I was using Gnome. Glad you got it working.

---

Allan-Volunteer on the (topic being discussed) mailn lists. You never get the people who matters attention on the forums.
jasonwryan-Installing Arch is a measure of your literacy. Maintaining Arch is a measure of your diligence. Contributing to Arch is a measure of your competence.
Griemak-Bleeding edge, not bleeding flat. Edge denotes falls will occur from time to time. Bring your own parachute.

whatshisname

Member

Registered: 2010-04-24

Posts: 163

Re: Bluetooth and Google Talk. Anyone have it working? [SOLVED]

Its not impossible with alsa.

Well, as far as Google Talk goes, I fall in the camp of it being impossible!! :-)

Just that all the alsa examples I've seen involve A2DP, and that won't allow use of the mic (hence I presume google talk won't use it).

My problem was getting sound to the headset.  The mic worked fine.  Very frustrating.  Especially after everything was working fine in the native Arch environment.  Furthermore, there were many, many posts on the "Internets" of people having the same problem as I.  I don't remember any of them recommending Pulse.  But I could have been seeing only what I wanted to see.

Not that I've ever really tried, since pulseaudio just worked for me back when I was using Gnome. Glad you got it working.

And glad I tried Pulse.  Thanks for the push.