Help with Audigy LS and ALSA (and modprobe...)

Coolvortex · 08-05-2005, 08:51 AM

I don't know if this really belongs to the hardware forum but here it is:

I have a audigy LS soundboard and a SoundMAX integrated on the motherboard. I have switched from a day to Mandrake Linux 10.1 (I was using windows before), so I am new to linux. Now, the SoundMAX works alright and Mandrake found it during the installation. But I want to use the Audigy LS, and Mandrake does recognize it, but ALSA and OSS don't support it. So I read that newer alsa versions now support the board (apparently, the ALSA version supplied with mandrake is old) so I went to the ALSA site and checked the instructions on how to install the ALSA drivers. Now, at a certain point of the installation, you need a command called "modprobe". When I try modprobe on the console, it says command not found. I thought that something was missing maybe, and I found that modprobe is included in the modutils packet, but it's already installed, and in fact both modprobe and modinfo (two commands named in the instructions for alsa) are in /sbin, but I can't execute them! Please help. Thanks in advance

set235 · 08-05-2005, 09:44 AM

are u running as root? modprobe will not work otherwise.

Coolvortex · 08-05-2005, 10:27 AM

Damn... I logged in as root and managed to do modprobe, but now it still loads the other soundcard so I went to the system configuration and checked the avaiable drivers but there's not the one (snd-ca0106) for my card... what am I supposed to do?

otchie1 · 08-05-2005, 11:32 AM

disable the onboard soundcard in your BIOS.

Once ALSA is installed the modprobe snd-ca0106 should work. If it doesn't then maybe try OSS instead of ALSA www.opensound.com

In either case once installed don't forget to unmute the channels with your mixer of choice

Coolvortex · 08-05-2005, 11:53 AM

There doesn't seem to be such an option in the bios... not even to disable a certain device... isn't there another way? And anyway, why even if I have installed it, snd-ca0106 isn't in the driver list? It's so strange

otchie1 · 08-05-2005, 01:00 PM

It might be automatically disabled as soon as it senses a new sound card installed.

Code:

lspci

will tell you what cards linux is seeing.

I think you have to manually add the command modprobe snd-ca0106 somewhere...i'll check it later in the asla readme.

Coolvortex · 08-05-2005, 01:46 PM

I'm almost sure Mandrake sees the card... at least it does in HardDrake. It recognizes it as a sound card but says there's no avaiable driver

otchie1 · 08-05-2005, 02:40 PM

still give us the output of

Code:

lspci

please.
Also confirm what

Code:

alsaconf

detects and the version of alsa that you are using.
What does

Code:

lsmod

produce?

Coolvortex · 08-05-2005, 03:33 PM

this is lspci's output:

Code:

00:00.0 Host bridge: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT8377 [KT400/KT600 AGP] Host Bridge
 (rev 80)
00:01.0 PCI bridge: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT8237 PCI Bridge
00:0a.0 Multimedia audio controller: Creative Labs SB Audigy LS
00:0a.1 Input device controller: Creative Labs SB Audigy LS MIDI/Game port
00:0d.0 Communication controller: Conexant HSF 56k HSFi Modem (rev 01)
00:0f.0 RAID bus controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VIA VT6420 SATA RAID Control                                                                           ler (rev 80)
00:0f.1 IDE interface: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT82C586A/B/VT82C686/A/B/VT823x/A/                                                                           C PIPC Bus Master IDE (rev 06)
00:10.0 USB Controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT82xxxxx UHCI USB 1.1 Controller                                                                            (rev 81)
00:10.1 USB Controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT82xxxxx UHCI USB 1.1 Controller                                                                            (rev 81)
00:10.2 USB Controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT82xxxxx UHCI USB 1.1 Controller                                                                            (rev 81)
00:10.3 USB Controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT82xxxxx UHCI USB 1.1 Controller                                                                            (rev 81)
00:10.4 USB Controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. USB 2.0 (rev 86)
00:11.0 ISA bridge: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT8237 ISA bridge [K8T800 South]
00:11.5 Multimedia audio controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT8233/A/8235/8237 A                                                                           C97 Audio Controller (rev 60)
00:12.0 Ethernet controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. VT6102 [Rhine-II] (rev 78)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: ATI Technologies Inc RV280 [Radeon 9200 SE] (                                                                           rev 01)
01:00.1 Display controller: ATI Technologies Inc RV280 [Radeon 9200 SE] (Seconda                                                                           ry) (rev 01)

alsaconf and lsmod say command not found...

otchie1 · 08-05-2005, 03:58 PM

lsmod gives command not found? L S M O D in lower case? Stands for LiStMODules and is a basic *nix command. Try again it should print a list of all currently loaded modules.

The lspci output confirms that your Audigy card is recognised

Code:

00:0a.0 Multimedia audio controller: Creative Labs SB Audigy LS
00:0a.1 Input device controller: Creative Labs SB Audigy LS MIDI/Game port

Coolvortex · 08-06-2005, 02:48 AM

Oh damn... the only way I've made lsmod work is booting the system without kde and logging in as root... I can't do that in the Konsole. I've tried getting the root privileges with su -m but it doesn't work. How do I log in as root in KDE? Sorry but as I've said I'm really new to linux...

ksc · 08-06-2005, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Coolvortex
Oh damn... the only way I've made lsmod work is booting the system without kde and logging in as root... I can't do that in the Konsole. I've tried getting the root privileges with su -m but it doesn't work. How do I log in as root in KDE? Sorry but as I've said I'm really new to linux...

You have to find out where lsmod is stored from the command line as it is not stored in your PATH variable.

May sure you are user Root, or you get permissions denied.
type find / -name 'lsmod' then enter the full location like e.g. /sbin/lsmod

otchie1 · 08-06-2005, 12:47 PM

1. boot as normal to kde gui
2. open a konsole
3. type

Code:

su

4. type in your root password
5.note that your prompt changes to a # from a $
6. type

Code:

lsmod

you shouldn't have to do all that but maybe that's a feature of your distro :-)

lsmod should be found at both /bin/lsmod and /sbin/lsmod meaning that all users can get at it.

Coolvortex · 08-08-2005, 04:24 AM

Oh thanks... now it works... so, I've managed to make it work, but it doesn't very well. I mean, Kmix (KDE's system mixer) crashes, so the multimedia player I'm using doesn't find any mixer lines. Amarok, another media player, works but the sound skips like every 4-5 seconds and it's crap to listen to music like that. Any suggestions?