[gentoo-user] AMD hdaudio: why do I have two audio devices and two mixers?

March 29th, 2012 - 09:30 pm ET by walt | Report spam

Fresh gentoo install on new lenovo desktop. Both linux and win7
(lenovo installed) tell me that this machine has two audio devices:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series]
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia Controller (rev 01)
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 0 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 16 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer1

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 3 Mar 29 18:07 controlC0
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 7 Mar 29 18:07 controlC1
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 2 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC0D3p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 6 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 5 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 4 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D2c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 33 Mar 29 18:07 timer

lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:01.1 -> ../controlC0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:14.2 -> ../controlC1

I spent an entire frustrating day discovering that the reason I
have no sound is that every app wants to use /dev/mixer when only
/dev/mixer1 actually works :(

Only some apps (like audacious) will let me choose which mixer to
use, and those apps work perfectly.

Anyone else seen this before, I hope? Got a fix?

Thanks :)

P.S. -- No, I don't use pulseaudio. Why do you ask?

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#1 Hung Dang

March 29th, 2012 - 09:50 pm ET | Report spam

On 03/29/2012 09:18 PM, walt wrote:

Fresh gentoo install on new lenovo desktop. Both linux and win7
(lenovo installed) tell me that this machine has two audio devices:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series]
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia Controller (rev 01)
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 0 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 16 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer1

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 3 Mar 29 18:07 controlC0
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 7 Mar 29 18:07 controlC1
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 2 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC0D3p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 6 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 5 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 4 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D2c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 33 Mar 29 18:07 timer

lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:01.1 -> ../controlC0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:14.2 -> ../controlC1

I spent an entire frustrating day discovering that the reason I
have no sound is that every app wants to use /dev/mixer when only
/dev/mixer1 actually works :(

Only some apps (like audacious) will let me choose which mixer to
use, and those apps work perfectly.

Anyone else seen this before, I hope? Got a fix?

Thanks :)

I guess the second audio device is either HDMI or HD audio generic. You
could verify this by opening alsamixer then select F6 to see a list of
audio devices. If you use pulseaudio then you can select the default
output device. Or use /etc/asound.conf to select your preferred default
device.

Hung

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#2 Michael Mol

March 29th, 2012 - 10:40 pm ET | Report spam

On Thu, Mar 29, 2012 at 9:37 PM, Hung Dang wrote:

On 03/29/2012 09:18 PM, walt wrote:

Fresh gentoo install on new lenovo desktop. Both linux and win7
(lenovo installed) tell me that this machine has two audio devices:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek
HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series]
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia
Controller (rev 01)
Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 0 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 14, 16 Mar 29 18:07 /dev/mixer1

crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 3 Mar 29 18:07 controlC0
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 7 Mar 29 18:07 controlC1
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 2 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC0D3p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 6 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 5 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D0p
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 4 Mar 29 18:07 pcmC1D2c
crw-rw-+ 1 root audio 116, 33 Mar 29 18:07 timer

lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:01.1 -> ../controlC0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 12 Mar 29 18:07 pci-0000:00:14.2 -> ../controlC1

I spent an entire frustrating day discovering that the reason I
have no sound is that every app wants to use /dev/mixer when only
/dev/mixer1 actually works :(

Only some apps (like audacious) will let me choose which mixer to
use, and those apps work perfectly.

Anyone else seen this before, I hope? Got a fix?

Thanks :)

I guess the second audio device is either HDMI or HD audio generic. You
could verify this by opening alsamixer then select F6 to see a list of audio
devices. If you use pulseaudio then you can select the default output
device. Or use /etc/asound.conf to select your preferred default device.

Well, technically, the first one is HDMI, and the second one is the
more mundane one.

:wq

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#3 masterprometheus

March 30th, 2012 - 09:40 am ET | Report spam

walt wrote:

Fresh gentoo install on new lenovo desktop. Both linux and win7
(lenovo installed) tell me that this machine has two audio devices:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek
HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series] Subsystem: Lenovo
Device 3625 Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

That's the HDMI output of your integrated GPU. All AMD graphics,
including the APU you have, come with integrated HDMI Audio.

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia
Controller (rev 01) Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

This is the one you have to use for laptop audio.

I spent an entire frustrating day discovering that the reason I
have no sound is that every app wants to use /dev/mixer when only
/dev/mixer1 actually works :(

Only some apps (like audacious) will let me choose which mixer to
use, and those apps work perfectly.

Anyone else seen this before, I hope? Got a fix?

I think you have to make the second one the default audio device.
Possibly by editing the alsa.conf files found in /etc/modprobe.d and
/usr/share/alsa. This thread may help :
http://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...ult-sound-
card-796566/

HTH

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#4 Alex Schuster

March 30th, 2012 - 12:40 pm ET | Report spam

walt writes:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek
HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series] Subsystem: Lenovo
Device 3625 Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia
Controller (rev 01) Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

Probably those are HDMI and 'normal' device. I had similar problems on my
sister's PC.

I spent an entire frustrating day discovering that the reason I
have no sound is that every app wants to use /dev/mixer when only
/dev/mixer1 actually works :(

Only some apps (like audacious) will let me choose which mixer to
use, and those apps work perfectly.

Anyone else seen this before, I hope? Got a fix?

My solution was to edit /usr/share/alsa/alsa.conf, and change
defaults.ctl.card and defaults.pcm.card from 0 to 1. Add this file to
CONFIG_PROTECT in make.conf, or else the next alsa update will overwrite
the file.

Wonko

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#5 walt

March 31st, 2012 - 05:00 pm ET | Report spam

On 03/30/2012 09:34 AM, Alex Schuster wrote:

walt writes:

00:01.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] nee ATI BeaverCreek
HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 6500D and 6400G-6600G series] Subsystem: Lenovo
Device 3625 Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Hudson Azalia
Controller (rev 01) Subsystem: Lenovo Device 3625
Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

Probably those are HDMI and 'normal' device. I had similar problems on my
sister's PC.

First, thanks to all who replied. All the answers were helpful and the
lightbulb is slowly getting brighter :)

I finally looked up HDMI on Wikipedia. Software is driven by hardware
and this new machine is the only HDMI equipment I've ever used, so I
never had any need to understand it before now.

Now it's clear to me why there are two different sound devices on this
machine -- HDMI is a completely different animal and needs different
harware and drivers. So, thanks for clearing that up for me. Maybe
someday I'll actually want to use the HDMI hardware for something ;)

My solution was to edit /usr/share/alsa/alsa.conf, and change
defaults.ctl.card and defaults.pcm.card from 0 to 1.

I must have the syntax wrong in my alsa.conf, but I finally edited
/usr/share/alsa/alsa.conf and changed the default values to 1. Now
alsamixer comes up with the right mixer displayed, thanks.

All apps but audacious still use the wrong mixer/card in spite of
the new defaults, though.

I'm finally understanding the value of pulseaudio as a side-effect of
buying this new computer. Now I'm recompiling everything with the
pulse useflag, something I thought I'd never do :/

I think I can use pulse to solve this problem IIUC. Here goes :)

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