Arch Linux

simonthemime

Member

Registered: 2014-01-06

Posts: 8

Pulseaudio hissing, crackling, low quality

Long time arch user here. I'm not an audiophile so this isn't some desparate attempt at me to reach perfection. This is just straight unlistenable, very unpleasant This started recently.

The problem:
- Low audio
- Lots of hissing
- Low quality
- Lots of clicking/popping when entering nonaudio/low audio/audio state

Troubleshooted:
- Speaker & aux cable, tested with other devices, they're fine
- Turned up software gain +11 db so I can at least listen to podcasts without popping every two seconds
- Added ignore_dB=1 to the load-module module-udev-detect line in your /etc/pulse/default.pa
- Followed archwiki and added tsched=0 to the load-module module-udev-detect line in your /etc/pulse/default.pa (this gave some noticeable improvement, but not fully fixed).

Output of pacmd list-sinks

pacmd list-sinks

1 sink(s) available.
  * index: 0
        name: <alsa_output.pci-0000_0c_00.3.analog-stereo>
        driver: <module-alsa-card.c>
        flags: HARDWARE HW_MUTE_CTRL HW_VOLUME_CTRL LATENCY
        state: RUNNING
        suspend cause: (none)
        priority: 9039
        volume: front-left: 62263 /  95%,   front-right: 62263 /  95%
                balance 0.00
        base volume: 65536 / 100%
        volume steps: 88
        muted: no
        current latency: 100.12 ms
        max request: 17 KiB
        max rewind: 17 KiB
        monitor source: 0
        sample spec: s16le 2ch 44100Hz
        channel map: front-left,front-right
                     Stereo
        used by: 1
        linked by: 1
        fixed latency: 100.14 ms
        card: 1 <alsa_card.pci-0000_0c_00.3>
        module: 7
        properties:
                alsa.resolution_bits = "16"
                device.api = "alsa"
                device.class = "sound"
                alsa.class = "generic"
                alsa.subclass = "generic-mix"
                alsa.name = "ALC1220 Analog"
                alsa.id = "ALC1220 Analog"
                alsa.subdevice = "0"
                alsa.subdevice_name = "subdevice #0"
                alsa.device = "0"
                alsa.card = "0"
                alsa.card_name = "HD-Audio Generic"
                alsa.long_card_name = "HD-Audio Generic at 0xfa600000 irq 192"
                alsa.driver_name = "snd_hda_intel"
                device.bus_path = "pci-0000:0c:00.3"
                sysfs.path = "/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:08.1/0000:0c:00.3/sound/card0"
                device.bus = "pci"
                device.vendor.id = "1022"
                device.vendor.name = "Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD]"
                device.product.id = "1457"
                device.product.name = "Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) HD Audio Controller"
                device.string = "front:0"
                device.buffering.buffer_size = "17664"
                device.buffering.fragment_size = "2944"
                device.access_mode = "mmap"
                device.profile.name = "analog-stereo"
                device.profile.description = "Analog Stereo"
                device.description = "Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) HD Audio Controller Analog Stereo"
                module-udev-detect.discovered = "1"
                device.icon_name = "audio-card-pci"
        ports:
                analog-output-lineout: Line Out (priority 9000, latency offset 0 usec, available: yes)
                        properties:

                analog-output-headphones: Headphones (priority 9900, latency offset 0 usec, available: no)
                        properties:
                                device.icon_name = "audio-headphones"
        active port: <analog-output-lineout>

Output of pacmd list-sink-inputs

pacmd list-sink-inputs

1 sink input(s) available.
    index: 3
        driver: <protocol-native.c>
        flags: START_CORKED
        state: RUNNING
        sink: 0 <alsa_output.pci-0000_0c_00.3.analog-stereo>
        volume: front-left: 77988 / 119% / 4.53 dB,   front-right: 77988 / 119% / 4.53 dB
                balance 0.00
        muted: no
        current latency: 123.94 ms
        requested latency: 100.14 ms
        sample spec: float32le 2ch 44100Hz
        channel map: front-left,front-right
                     Stereo
        resample method: copy
        module: 14
        client: 57 <Brave>
        properties:
                application.icon_name = "brave-browser"
                media.name = "Playback"
                application.name = "Brave"
                native-protocol.peer = "UNIX socket client"
                native-protocol.version = "34"
                application.process.id = "2352"
                application.process.user = "koba"
                application.process.host = "lenin"
                application.process.binary = "brave"
                application.language = "en_US.UTF-8"
                window.x11.display = ":0"
                application.process.machine_id = "d2865813ad82d59b7618ff545ee549ad"
                application.process.session_id = "1"
                module-stream-restore.id = "sink-input-by-application-name:Brave"

It's a really weird problem. It's like.. I can turn the gain/volume to beyond 150% but it just sounds like I'm blasting a low-quality sound until the sound is louder than the hissing.

Please help!

Last edited by simonthemime (2021-02-28 18:15:23)

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 25,062

Re: Pulseaudio hissing, crackling, low quality

Any time frame when it effectively started happening? E.g. was a certain kernel update involved? Can you reproduce this without pulseaudio and just an

aplay -Dhw:0 $insertsomewavfile

? If this can reproduce the issue this is at a lower level than pulse, maybe post your current mixers with e.g.

amixer -c0

general symptoms especially in the no audio case also sound like problems with power saving of the snd_hda_intel module which got enabled by default a while back try a /etc/modprobe/alsa.conf

options snd_hda_intel power_save=0

do you share this installation with a windows setup? In that case it might be useful to reset codec state with a

sudo alsactl init

Last edited by V1del (2021-02-28 18:26:29)

simonthemime

Member

Registered: 2014-01-06

Posts: 8

Re: Pulseaudio hissing, crackling, low quality

Thanks V1del. It happened during uptime last week, so I don't think it was a result of updates or anything.

Output of amixer -c0:

$ amixer -c0

Simple mixer control 'Master',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pvolume-joined pswitch pswitch-joined
  Playback channels: Mono
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono: Playback 85 [98%] [-1.50dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Headphone',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 0 [0%] [-65.25dB] [off]
  Front Right: Playback 0 [0%] [-65.25dB] [off]
Simple mixer control 'PCM',0
  Capabilities: pvolume
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 255
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 255 [100%] [0.00dB]
  Front Right: Playback 255 [100%] [0.00dB]
Simple mixer control 'Front',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
  Front Right: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Front Mic',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 31
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 0 [0%] [-34.50dB] [on]
  Front Right: Playback 0 [0%] [-34.50dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Front Mic Boost',0
  Capabilities: volume
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Capture channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: 0 - 3
  Front Left: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]
  Front Right: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]
Simple mixer control 'Surround',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
  Front Right: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Center',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pvolume-joined pswitch pswitch-joined
  Playback channels: Mono
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'LFE',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pvolume-joined pswitch pswitch-joined
  Playback channels: Mono
  Limits: Playback 0 - 87
  Mono: Playback 87 [100%] [0.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Line',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 31
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 29 [94%] [9.00dB] [on]
  Front Right: Playback 29 [94%] [9.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Line Boost',0
  Capabilities: volume
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Capture channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: 0 - 3
  Front Left: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]
  Front Right: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]
Simple mixer control 'IEC958',0
  Capabilities: pswitch pswitch-joined
  Playback channels: Mono
  Mono: Playback [off]
Simple mixer control 'IEC958 Default PCM',0
  Capabilities: pswitch pswitch-joined
  Playback channels: Mono
  Mono: Playback [on]
Simple mixer control 'Capture',0
  Capabilities: cvolume cswitch
  Capture channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Capture 0 - 63
  Front Left: Capture 39 [62%] [12.00dB] [on]
  Front Right: Capture 39 [62%] [12.00dB] [on]
Simple mixer control 'Capture',1
  Capabilities: cvolume cswitch
  Capture channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Capture 0 - 63
  Front Left: Capture 0 [0%] [-17.25dB] [off]
  Front Right: Capture 0 [0%] [-17.25dB] [off]
Simple mixer control 'Auto-Mute Mode',0
  Capabilities: enum
  Items: 'Disabled' 'Enabled'
  Item0: 'Disabled'
Simple mixer control 'Input Source',0
  Capabilities: cenum
  Items: 'Front Mic' 'Rear Mic' 'Line'
  Item0: 'Front Mic'
Simple mixer control 'Input Source',1
  Capabilities: cenum
  Items: 'Front Mic' 'Rear Mic' 'Line'
  Item0: 'Front Mic'
Simple mixer control 'Loopback Mixing',0
  Capabilities: enum
  Items: 'Disabled' 'Enabled'
  Item0: 'Disabled'
Simple mixer control 'Rear Mic',0
  Capabilities: pvolume pswitch
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: Playback 0 - 31
  Mono:
  Front Left: Playback 0 [0%] [-34.50dB] [off]
  Front Right: Playback 0 [0%] [-34.50dB] [off]
Simple mixer control 'Rear Mic Boost',0
  Capabilities: volume
  Playback channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Capture channels: Front Left - Front Right
  Limits: 0 - 3
  Front Left: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]
  Front Right: 0 [0%] [0.00dB]

It still hisses, still pops (at the beginning and end of audio) on the aplay test.

I assume you meant modprobe.d, either way there wasn't an existing file but I touched the empty file with that line in it and it's not changed even with reboot and restarting pulseaudio.

kokoko3k

Member

Registered: 2008-11-14

Posts: 2,452

Re: Pulseaudio hissing, crackling, low quality

"It happened during uptime" makes me think to some hardware failing (or even a bad jack/cable).
Can you do a test with a live usb or another operating system?

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