Arch Linux

MrWeatherbee

Member

Registered: 2007-08-01

Posts: 277

Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

I've been running an HTPC with an Asus  ROG Strix Z270G Gaming motherboard since early March, 2017, and have not noticed any issues with the onboard audio, which, according to Asus' specs, is Realtek ALC1220 / ALC1220A.

However, as noted by many articles (including ones posted on Phoronix), ALC1220 should not work correctly with pre-4.11 kernels; proper support was to come with the release of kernel version 4.11.

Here are some additional facts about my setup(s) which have been upgraded to kernel version 4.11.2-1:

- When running 'alsamixer', rather than showing 'CHIP = Realtek ALC1220 (or ALC1220A)', it is still showing 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'.
- When checking loaded modules, the 'snd_hda_codec_realtek' is not present; it only appears if I manually add it (via modprobe or /etc/modprobe.d *.conf file)
- Even after adding the Realtek module manually (in /etc/modprobe.d) and rebooting, alsamixer still shows 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'
- Another Asus ROG board I have with Realtek ALC1150 shows 'CHIP = Realtek ALC1150' in alsamixer, and the 'snd_hda_codec_realtek' module automatically loads without my intervention.

With all that in mind, what exactly was kernel version 4.11 supposed to do in regard to ALC1220, and if anything, how do I access the newly supported features?

At the very least, I'd like to see the system reporting / recognizing 'Realtek ALC1220' as opposed to reporting it (and running it) as 'Realtek Generic'.

Thank you.

-------
Note
In researching this issue on external sites, the very little info I've found shows ALC1220 users (mostly Ryzen users, I believe) reporting the following:
- pre-4.11 ALC1220 did not work, and they are still having issues after the update;
- pre-4.11 ALC1220 did work, and they see no change after the update, including still seeing 'Realtek Generic' reported as the chip in use, which is my situation as well;
- pre-4.11 ALC1220 did work, and they see no change after the update,  except that 'Realtek ALC1220' is now being reported correctly.

DullOnion

Member

Registered: 2011-10-14

Posts: 8

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

I'm using an Asus Z270E and I'm experiencing the same issue with the integrated sound system model not being recognised.  It was mostly working prior to the 4.11 release, but the auto-mute function in alsamixer mutes both the headphones and the speakers when running alsa with pulseaudio.

loqs

Member

Registered: 2014-03-06

Posts: 18,055

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

Have you been able to find which module is providing 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'?

DullOnion

Member

Registered: 2011-10-14

Posts: 8

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

Have you been able to find which module is providing 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'?

It's snd_hda_codec_realtek.  Without it loaded, the sound system gets detected as HD-Audio Generic.

loqs

Member

Registered: 2014-03-06

Posts: 18,055

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

It's snd_hda_codec_realtek.  Without it loaded, the sound system gets detected as HD-Audio Generic.

I read the following to mean it showed up as 'CHIP = Realtek Generic' without snd_hda_codec_realtek present.

- When running 'alsamixer', rather than showing 'CHIP = Realtek ALC1220 (or ALC1220A)', it is still showing 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'.
- When checking loaded modules, the 'snd_hda_codec_realtek' is not present; it only appears if I manually add it (via modprobe or /etc/modprobe.d *.conf file)
- Even after adding the Realtek module manually (in /etc/modprobe.d) and rebooting, alsamixer still shows 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'

Anyway this commit from the 4.11 release cycle might explain the symptoms.  Can you built linux-git v4.11 with that commit reverted and see if the situation return to the same as 4.10.
https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/ke … ade36a9459
Edit:
Added link
Edit2:
linux-git v4.11 not v4.13 sorry.

Last edited by loqs (2017-05-26 18:36:51)

MrWeatherbee

Member

Registered: 2007-08-01

Posts: 277

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

Have you been able to find which module is providing 'CHIP = Realtek Generic'?

Pretty sure the module is 'snd_hda_codec_generic'.

It has an alias of 'hdaudio:v00000201r*a01* snd_hda_codec_generic' which is very similar to that of the aliases listed for 'snd_hda_codec_realtek'.

For example, the first alias listed for  'snd_hda_codec_realtek' is:

hdaudio:v10EC0221r*a01* snd_hda_codec_realtek

and the last one listed (most recent codec) is:

hdaudio:v10EC1220r*a01* snd_hda_codec_realtek

Also, if I blacklist 'snd_hda_codec_generic' in /etc/modprobe.d (using the 'install' method), all I'm left with in alsamixer is the HDMI control set which is reported as 'Chip : Intel Kabylake HDMI'.

MrWeatherbee

Member

Registered: 2007-08-01

Posts: 277

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

Anyway this commit from the 4.11 release cycle might explain the symptoms.  Can you built linux-git v4.11 with that commit reverted and see if the situation return to the same as 4.10.
https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/ke … ade36a9459
Edit:
Added link
Edit2:
linux-git v4.11 not v4.13 sorry.

There must be some confusion based on the part of your quote that I emphasised in bold. To clarify, my post essentially boils down to the following:

- Kernel 4.11 was supposed to add full support for Realtek ALC1220, but I see absolutely no difference after upgrading from pre-4.11 kernels to 4.11.
- How do I get the supposed support that 4.11 offers to users of ALC1220 to work since I see no difference after upgrading? In other words, after upgrading to 4.11, I have no noticeable performance differences, no audible differences, no additional settings, alsamixer still reports the chip as generic instead of ALC1220, the realtek module still doesn't get loaded (unless I intervene), etc.

The commit you linked to is the very commit that was to provide support to ALC1220 users; my experience says it did nothing, so building a kernel without it included would leave us in exactly the same spot.

loqs

Member

Registered: 2014-03-06

Posts: 18,055

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

You could try adding the kernel paramater loglevl=7 to enable debug output to see if you can find output from the modules debuging,
such as https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/ke … a9459#n554 and see if it changes between 4.10 and 4.11 unfortunately this also enables the highest level of debugging the the whole kernel.
Alternatively you could add the following to the start of static int patch_alc882(struct hda_codec *codec) for both v4.11 and 4.10 and see if both kernels take the same path

codec_err(codec,"reached patch_alc882\n");

Another alternative replace every call to codec_dbg with codec_warn in patch_realtek.c so you would not need loglevel=7
Have you tried contacting the authors of these many articles asking what proper support entails and what their source for that information is?

MrWeatherbee

Member

Registered: 2007-08-01

Posts: 277

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

It's snd_hda_codec_realtek.  Without it loaded, the sound system gets detected as HD-Audio Generic.

I read the following to mean it showed up as 'CHIP = Realtek Generic' without snd_hda_codec_realtek present.

Another clarification:

- 'snd_hda_codec_generic' loads automatically, and seems to be the module that generates the 'CHIP : Realtek  Generic' identifier  in alsamixer.
- 'snd_hda_codec_realtek' does not load automatically (as I believe it should), but even when I manually load it, alsamixer still shows 'CHIP : Realtek Generic'.

The above holds true for pre-4.11 (4.9, 4.10) kernels and 4.11.x itself.

This all comes back to the basic premise: what new support did kernel 4.11 add for ALC1220 users, and how do I gain access to the supposed new features if they actually do anything?

The only thing I can see that has changed is that the 'snd_hda_codec_realtek' module has a shiny new alias referencing ALC1220. Some people were touting ALC1220 support as one of the major features of 4.11, so I just wanted to be sure I wasn't missing out on something before moving on.

Thanks.

loqs

Member

Registered: 2014-03-06

Posts: 18,055

Re: Kernel 4.11.2-1 - Asus Z270 Strix MB / Realtek CODEC S1220A

https://kernelnewbies.org/Linux_4.11 does note it under the sound drivers changes but only links to the commit so without someone who can explain the commit that is not much help.