Arch Linux

TheJoe

Member

Registered: 2009-12-20

Posts: 12

[SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

I don't know how else to explain it.

I use PulseAudio because I have to, I'm on HDA Intel and using vanilla ALSA I don't get simultaneous output (IE: mpd and youtube and pidgin). This has been a problem since I first started using Linux; PulseAudio has always been the solution.

I recently moved from GNOME to a plain Openbox/Tint2 setup and since then, PulseAudio has... died.

I can't think of anything that might have happened to the configuration files. I don't think any Pulse packages got removed (I reinstalled the whole thing anyway).

Looking in pavucontrol while mpd and a Youtube video are playing, the bar is moving. Sound is definitely going to the virtual device, but it's just not coming out of my speakers and I don't have a clue why.

Here's my asound.conf, I have stolen it from a Howto (sorry). This worked perfectly until I moved from GNOME.

pcm.paul { # paul is my name, you can use your name, just make sure you use it below too
    type dmix
    ipc_key 1024
    slave {
        pcm "hw:0,0"
        period_time 0
        period_size 1024
        buffer_size 8192
       #format "S32_LE"
       #periods 128
        rate 44100
    }
}

pcm.dsp0 {
    type plug
    slave.pcm "paul"
}

# This following device can fool some applications into using pulseaudio
pcm.dsp1 {
    type plug
    slave.pcm "pulse"
}

ctl.mixer0 {
    type hw
    card 0
}

# Part II directly from Pulseaudio Wiki

pcm.pulse {
    type pulse
}

ctl.pulse {
    type pulse
}

# Optional, set defaults

pcm.!default {
    type pulse
}

ctl.!default {
    type pulse
}

I'm completely and utterly stumped here. I'm sure the solution is probably simple, but I just can't see it. Please help.

Edit: I finally have an error.
I just tried playing Quake Live and the in-game console was screaming about "ALSA buffer underrun".
Quake Live doesn't log and I can't copy from the console, so I can't get the full error.

I was also subsequently kicked by Punkbuster for a Packet overflow.

Last edited by TheJoe (2009-12-29 15:53:25)

TheJoe

Member

Registered: 2009-12-20

Posts: 12

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

This seems to have been caused by mpd.

I installed mpd-pulse from the AUR and configured it for Pulse.

If I do not run mpd I can have Youtube, Pidgin and Totem all making sounds at the same time, as soon as I run mpd/sonata, it eats up audio.

d00maz

Member

Registered: 2009-11-08

Posts: 91

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

i suggest you try OSS4

TheJoe

Member

Registered: 2009-12-20

Posts: 12

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

i suggest you try OSS4

If you meant "configure mpd to use OSS". I tried that. Nothing.

If you meant "replace PulseAudio with OSS", well, will I have multi-app output? Will it be relatively easy to configure? Will it work with all (or most) applications?

tomd123

Developer

Registered: 2008-08-12

Posts: 565

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

i suggest you try OSS4

If you meant "configure mpd to use OSS". I tried that. Nothing.

If you meant "replace PulseAudio with OSS", well, will I have multi-app output? Will it be relatively easy to configure? Will it work with all (or most) applications?

why not just use straight alsa? sound mixing has been supported for a while.

ngoonee

Forum Fellow

From: Between Thailand and Singapore

Registered: 2009-03-17

Posts: 7,362

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

I believe you had mpd configured to use one of your other inputs in asoundconf and not the pulse one. OSSv4 and dmix are good if all you want is multi-app output, but pulse is simply easier to use all round, so stick with that if it works. Being able to move streams around is cool, and useful.

---

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TheJoe

Member

Registered: 2009-12-20

Posts: 12

Re: [SOLVED] PulseAudio....broke

Quite simply, the problem has been solved by installing OSS.