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Audio Problem w/ Linux Mint 12


V.T. Eric Layton

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V.T. Eric Layton

OK, all you Linux hardware experts, I have an interesting dilemma for you to discuss.

 

I recently set up a system for my brother that is using an older MSI RS480M mobo that was originally in an eMachine. It has standard baloney onboard audio. However, I had a nice Dynex DXSC51 sound card just lying around out in the shop, so when I set the system up for him, I included the high perf sound card.

 

It works great in MS Windows. However, Linux Mint does not see the sound card (PCI). It only sees the AC-97 onboard audio. In the past, when I've run across a Linux distro that behaves like this, I've just disabled the onboard audio from within the BIOS and VOILA! Linux detects and uses the PCI sound device. That's not a happening fix in this situation, though. The BIOS has no provision for disabling onboard audio.

 

Anyone have any other suggestions? Keep in mind, this will be difficult for me to troubleshoot because the system is 800 miles away from me in Fairfax, VA now. :( Are there any other possible ways that I can get Linux to use this card? Or is my brother doomed to using the onboard audio?

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V.T. Eric Layton

*sigh*

 

I'm going to have to figure out remote access for Linux Mint. There's no way I can walk my brother through command line troubleshooting over the phone. :(

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Results of lspci and lsmod |grep snd would help. Posts I found said it showed up as "ICEnsemble ICE1724" and that it works OOTB in Fedora9 and Ubunut 8.04.

Things to try:

-Disable onboard in Bios is the best way, but you said no-go.

-Check in Kmix, alsamixer or whatever the distro uses and make sure channels are unmuted and volume up (amazing how common this is).

-

modprobe snd_ice1724

May also need a modules.conf file - see Alsa wiki (note that some of the info in the upper part of that page is deprecated).

-Make a file called .asoundrc in your home and/​or root directory.

Copy and paste the following into the file, then save it:

pcm.ice1724 {
         type hw
         card 0
      }
      
      ctl.ice1724 {
         type hw
         card 0
      }

That said, it should work OOTB. I have an M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card (ICE1712) which "just works" in Linux, but needs drivers installed for Win.

Lotsa luck!

:luck:

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V.T. Eric Layton

The first night we were trying to troubleshoot this, I think he said there was a device in the ALSA mixer device pulldown called "ICEnsemble bla-bla". When he chose it there was still now sound. However, that could very well be a module loading issue.... or may just require a reboot. He's in Tampa this weekend, Roger, but I'll walk him through this when he gets back home on Monday.

 

Thanks,

 

~Eric

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It could also be the module/hardware support is dropped from the kernel/repositories LinuxMint 12 is shipping with.

 

I do see a lot of OLD, I mean really OLD, hardware and not all the newer mainline distros include support for it anymore.

 

A good test is to see if an Anti-X LiveCD is able to produce sound and support your hardware config. Anti-X is a distro child of Mepis specifically designed to support, detect, and run on old, low resource machines. I know that this is not a low resource machine, but the Mobo and sound card likely are older. If it works with Anti-X LiveCD, then the problem is in LinuxMint support for older hardware and kernel modules. Doesn't mean you can't solve this, just means it gets a lot more challenging.

 

:hug: As a bonus, if you order now, Anti-X Mepis will also be a Rolling Release distro based very faithfully on Debian Testing branch. (Now you know my dirty little secret.) :hug:

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V.T. Eric Layton

Good ideas, Bob. However, downloading/burning/testing with Linux .iso LIVE CDs is a bit beyond my brother's minimal MS Windows-based computer skills. ;)

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V.T. Eric Layton

Sounds like you may have to blacklist the onboard audio module

 

http://forums.linuxm...=48&t=61823/url

https://wiki.archlin...ntel_Sound_Card

 

You may be misunderstanding my dilemma, J. I do NOT want onboard audio to work. I want to disable it somehow so Mint will use the PCI audio card I've installed. :)

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Also, sometimes you have to boot to the xvesa graphical mode to get a complete boot even with Anti-X.

 

You may be misunderstanding my dilemma, J. I do NOT want onboard audio to work. I want to disable it somehow so Mint will use the PCI audio card I've installed. :)

That's what J is suggesting, in Arch terminology.
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V.T. Eric Layton

Send him home this weekend with one that you make and demonstrate for him.

 

What good would it do? If LIVE CD worked, I'd still have to solve the issue in Mint for it to work there. I'm going to check on that ICEnsemble thing that Roger posted about above because I remember my brother reading that option off to me in the alsa-mixer device pulldown menu. Once I get him to choose that device, I just have to find a way to disable the onboard audio from within Mint.

 

Or, alternatively, he can just use Win XP to listen to music and watch videos. ;)

 

Also, sometimes you have to boot to the xvesa graphical mode to get a complete boot even with Anti-X.

 

That's what J is suggesting, in Arch terminology.

 

Ah! Yes... blacklist AC-97. I see. I'll have to do that and then get him to choose the ICEnsemble device in alsa-mixer. May work... may just work. Well, we won't be able to fine out till at least Monday evening.

 

Thanks, folks! Golly! You Scot's people sure are helpful. :yes:

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V.T. Eric Layton

Cannot troubleshoot till Monday evening. Brother is visiting down here in Florida this weekend. Computer is in Virginia (800 or so miles away).

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Cannot troubleshoot till Monday evening. Brother is visiting down here in Florida this weekend. Computer is in Virginia (800 or so miles away).

 

You might find this useful as Mint is a buntu based os. I know you are pretty wise but the guides just may nudge a half remembered memory of the needed step to sound and beyond.

 

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1885240

 

:breakfast:

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V.T. Eric Layton

Oooh! More docs. I like! Thanks! :)

 

I'll probably get him on the phone tonight and see if I can walk him through some things that Sunrat and others suggested above. If it gets too aggravating on the phone, I may try to set up Remote Access in Mint and do it myself. ;)

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securitybreach

Oooh! More docs. I like! Thanks! :)

 

I'll probably get him on the phone tonight and see if I can walk him through some things that Sunrat and others suggested above. If it gets too aggravating on the phone, I may try to set up Remote Access in Mint and do it myself. ;)

 

Sounds like fun, let us know how it goes.... B)

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V.T. Eric Layton

Results of lspci and lsmod |grep snd would help. Posts I found said it showed up as "ICEnsemble ICE1724" and that it works OOTB in Fedora9 and Ubunut 8.04.

Things to try:

-Disable onboard in Bios is the best way, but you said no-go.

-Check in Kmix, alsamixer or whatever the distro uses and make sure channels are unmuted and volume up (amazing how common this is).

-

modprobe snd_ice1724

May also need a modules.conf file - see Alsa wiki (note that some of the info in the upper part of that page is deprecated).

-Make a file called .asoundrc in your home and/​or root directory.

Copy and paste the following into the file, then save it:

pcm.ice1724 {
	  type hw
	  card 0
   }
  
   ctl.ice1724 {
	  type hw
	  card 0
   }

That said, it should work OOTB. I have an M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card (ICE1712) which "just works" in Linux, but needs drivers installed for Win.

Lotsa luck!

:luck:

 

Alrighty... an update:

 

None of the above worked. However, lsmod | grep snd did see the ice1724 device. That's good news. Still no audio after modprobe snd_ice1724. And no audio after creating and adding the .asoundrc file to /home/brother.

 

No joy anywhere, except MS Windows, where the sound works fine. :(

 

I'm off to read those troubleshooting docs that were posted above. Any other ideas would be appreciated. Thanks all!

 

~Eric

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He is plugging the speakers into the right sound card right? ;)

 

Now that sounds like an experienced telephone support person talking! :clap:

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Guest LilBambi

:th_tired-sleeping-smiley-4642:

 

There's only one thing I can say in response to that:

 

 

This Youtube version is my favorite version of 3 Dead Trolls - Internet Help Desk - its the live version that I have had for MANY years in mp3 format. There are other versions that came later, but none beat this one, IMHO.

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Guest LilBambi

OK, great! Glad it works in Windows which would preclude it being in the wrong audio card. :Laughing:

 

So that means it's really still a real :help:

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V.T. Eric Layton

I'll figure it out eventually. It would be so much easier with the system in my own shop, though. In the meantime, he can boot into Windows to watch his YouTube vids or listen to music. :yes:

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