SoundBlaster Live on Mandrake 9.2
 

Hello,

obviously i am rather new to this, so i'll probably require some patience here. i have read over all the threads about sound problems with mandrake 9.2. i have tried all the steps and now i am more certain than ever that i am really oblivious to something.

i have the driver set up to the alsa emu10k1, i have the volumes jacked up in all mixers, but all i get is a static. However, when i turn on the microphone levels in the mixer, i get intense feedback through the speakers. when i turn the microphones down, sounds i make are passed straight through and amplified, which tells me that, at least on some level, the sound card is working. does anyone have any suggestions? i am running mandrake 9.2 on a dell dimension 4600 with two sound cards sb live! value (i think) and a generic dell one. i just opened the thing up to see if i could pluck one out manually, as was suggested in another thread, but that doesn't look to possible. perhaps disabling one might help the other?

all help would be appreciated.

merci,
randal:newbie:

Check the output of 'lsmod' that will tell you which sound cards are running. Try running 'alsamixer' and look at the top left hand corner. That will tell you which sound card alsa thinks it is using. Try unplugging your speaker cable from the SB Live! and plugging it into the generic card. Test the sound again.

thank you for your reply. this is going to seem extremely remedial, but i go into terminal to run the command Ismod and i get this:

bash: Ismod: command not found

wait no... that was an L, not an I.... i get

Module Size Used by Tainted: P
lp 8160 0
parport_pc 25544 1
parport 34472 1 [lp parport_pc]
agpgart 48292 3 (autoclean)
nvidia 2126440 6 (autoclean)
snd-seq-midi 5056 0 (autoclean) (unused)
snd-emu10k1-synth 5276 0 (autoclean) (unused)
snd-emux-synth 31900 0 (autoclean) [snd-emu10k1-synth]
snd-seq-midi-emul 6924 0 (autoclean) [snd-emux-synth]
snd-seq-virmidi 4588 0 (autoclean) [snd-emux-synth]
snd-seq-oss 32000 0 (unused)
snd-seq-midi-event 6080 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-seq-virmidi snd-seq-oss]
snd-seq 42544 2 [snd-seq-midi snd-emux-synth snd-seq-midi-emul snd-seq-virmidi snd-seq-oss snd-seq-midi-event]
snd-emu10k1 70948 2 [snd-emu10k1-synth]
snd-util-mem 3040 0 [snd-emux-synth snd-emu10k1]
snd-hwdep 6304 0 [snd-emu10k1]
snd-pcm-oss 43652 0
snd-mixer-oss 14200 0 [snd-pcm-oss]
snd-intel8x0 22020 2
snd-pcm 79588 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-pcm-oss snd-intel8x0]
snd-timer 18436 0 [snd-seq snd-pcm]
snd-ac97-codec 45720 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-intel8x0]
snd-mpu401-uart 4704 0 [snd-intel8x0]
snd-rawmidi 17760 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-seq-virmidi snd-emu10k1 snd-mpu401-uart]
snd-seq-device 5832 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-emu10k1-synth snd-emux-synth snd-seq-oss snd-seq snd-emu10k1 snd-rawmidi]
snd-page-alloc 9044 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-intel8x0 snd-pcm]
snd 41380 4 [snd-seq-midi snd-emux-synth snd-seq-virmidi snd-seq-oss snd-seq-midi-event snd-seq snd-emu10k1 snd-util-mem snd-hwdep snd-pcm-oss snd-mixer-oss snd-intel8x0 snd-pcm snd-timer snd-ac97-codec snd-mpu401-uart snd-rawmidi snd-seq-device]
soundcore 6340 0 [snd]
af_packet 14856 1 (autoclean)
sr_mod 19384 0 (autoclean)
floppy 55932 0
e100 52776 1 (autoclean)
nls_iso8859-1 3484 1 (autoclean)
ntfs 77292 1 (autoclean)
supermount 84032 3 (autoclean)
ide-cd 33956 1
cdrom 32608 0 [sr_mod ide-cd]
ide-scsi 11376 0
scsi_mod 106176 2 [sr_mod ide-scsi]
ehci-hcd 19212 0 (unused)
usb-uhci 25136 0 (unused)
usbcore 74988 1 [ehci-hcd usb-uhci]
rtc 9004 0 (autoclean)
ext3 60048 2
jbd 39264 2 [ext3]




is there a specific place i am supposed to run this?

i tried plugging in the sound to another outlet, but that gives me the same static. i just went into the alsamixer and it thinks i am running the intel CH5 sound card, as opposed to the creative soundblaster live one. is there a way i can switch this?

also, i tried to install the latest alsa drivers and lib thing and when it comes time to configure during driver installation, i get:

checking for gcc... gcc
checking for C compiler default output file name... a.out
checking whether the C compiler works... yes
checking whether we are cross compiling... no
checking for suffix of executables...
checking for suffix of object files... o
checking whether we are using the GNU C compiler... yes
checking whether gcc accepts -g... yes
checking for gcc option to accept ANSI C... none needed
checking for ranlib... ranlib
checking for a BSD-compatible install... /usr/bin/install -c
checking how to run the C preprocessor... gcc -E
checking for egrep... grep -E
checking for ANSI C header files... yes
checking for an ANSI C-conforming const... yes
checking for inline... inline
checking whether time.h and sys/time.h may both be included... yes
checking whether gcc needs -traditional... no
checking for current directory... /home/randal/Desktop/alsa-driver-1.0.2c
checking cross compile...
checking for directory with kernel source... /usr/src/linux
checking for kernel version... The file /usr/src/linux/include/linux/version.h does not exist.
Please, install the package with full kernel sources for your distribution
or use --with-kernel=dir option to specify another directory with kernel
sources (default is /usr/src/linux).

i feel like i am missing something really obvious. i have plugged and unplugged, but still no sound. any more ideas would be much appreciated.

thanks,
randal

You have 2 sound modules running. That probably isn't good. Do "rmmod snd-intel8x0" (as root). You might also want to "rmmod snd-emu10k1" and "insmod snd-emu10k1" to make sure all the devices in /dev/ are correctly set up. Then try the sound again.

Alsamixer is probably included in a package called alsa-utils. I'm sure Mandrake has a binary, but if you want to install from source, you should install the headers for your kernel (type "uname -r" to check your kernel version and make sure the version number of the headers matches the version of your installed kernel).

i punched those through and go this:

# rmmod snd-intel8xo
rmmod: module snd-intel8xo is not loaded
# rmmod snd-emu10k1
snd-emu10k1: Device or resource busy
# insmod snd-emu10k1
Using /lib/modules/2.4.22-10mdk/kernel/sound/pci/emu10k1/snd-emu10k1.o.gz
insmod: a module named snd-emu10k1 already exists

my alsa mixer, which i finally found, says that the Intel one is the card that i am using. how do i switch this? i turned off the intel one, but it is still thinking it is my master.


thanks again for your advice,
randal

ps: alsa mixer says this:
/proc/asound/version: # ?
? ?==================== # ?
? ?Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Driver Version 0.9.6. # ?
? ?Compiled on Sep 18 2003 for kernel 2.4.22-10mdk with versioned symbols.? ?
? ? ? ?
? ?/proc/asound/cards:
=================== ? ?
? ?0 [ICH5 ]: ICH - Intel ICH5 # ?
? ? Intel ICH5 at 0xfebffa00, irq 17 # ?
? ?1 [Live ]: EMU10K1 - Sound Blaster Live! # ?
? ? Sound Blaster Live! (rev.0) at 0xdf20, irq 22 # ?
? ? ? ?
? ?/proc/asound/devices: ? ?
? ?===================== ? ?
? ? 0: [0- 0]: ctl ? ?
? ? 16: [0- 0]: digital audio playback ? ?
? ? 24: [0- 0]: digital audio capture ? ?
? ? 1: : sequencer ? ?
? ? 33: : timer ? ?
? ? 32: [1- 0]: ctl ? ?
? ? 36: [1- 0]: hardware dependent ? ?
? ? 40: [1- 0]: raw midi

51: [1- 3]: digital audio playback ? ?
? ? 58: [1- 2]: digital audio capture ? ?
? ? 57: [1- 1]: digital audio capture ? ?
? ? 48: [1- 0]: digital audio playback ? ?
? ? 56: [1- 0]: digital audio capture # ?
? ? 41: [1- 1]: raw midi # ?
? ? 42: [1- 2]: raw midi # ?
? ? # ?
? ?/proc/asound/oss-devices: ? ?
? ?========================= ? ?
? ?No information available. ? ?
? ? ? ?
? ?/proc/asound/timers: ? ?
? ?==================== ? ?
? ?G0: system timer : 10000.000us (10000000 ticks) ? ?
? ?P0-0-0: PCM playback 0-0-0 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P0-0-1: PCM capture 0-0-1 : SLAVE
P1-0-0: PCM playback 1-0-0 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-1: PCM capture 1-0-1 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-2: PCM playback 1-0-2 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-4: PCM playback 1-0-4 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-6: PCM playback 1-0-6 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-8: PCM playback 1-0-8 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-10: PCM playback 1-0-10 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-12: PCM playback 1-0-12 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-14: PCM playback 1-0-14 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-16: PCM playback 1-0-16 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-18: PCM playback 1-0-18 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-20: PCM playback 1-0-20 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-22: PCM playback 1-0-22 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-24: PCM playback 1-0-24 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-26: PCM playback 1-0-26 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-28: PCM playback 1-0-28 : SLAVE
P1-0-30: PCM playback 1-0-30 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-32: PCM playback 1-0-32 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-34: PCM playback 1-0-34 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-36: PCM playback 1-0-36 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-38: PCM playback 1-0-38 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-40: PCM playback 1-0-40 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-42: PCM playback 1-0-42 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-44: PCM playback 1-0-44 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-46: PCM playback 1-0-46 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-48: PCM playback 1-0-48 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-50: PCM playback 1-0-50 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-52: PCM playback 1-0-52 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-54: PCM playback 1-0-54 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-56: PCM playback 1-0-56 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-58: PCM playback 1-0-58 : SLAVE # ?
? ?P1-0-60: PCM playback 1-0-60 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-0-62: PCM playback 1-0-62 : SLAVE
P1-1-1: PCM capture 1-1-1 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-2-1: PCM capture 1-2-1 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-0: PCM playback 1-3-0 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-2: PCM playback 1-3-2 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-4: PCM playback 1-3-4 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-6: PCM playback 1-3-6 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-8: PCM playback 1-3-8 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-10: PCM playback 1-3-10 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-12: PCM playback 1-3-12 : SLAVE ? ?
? ?P1-3-14: PCM playback 1-3-14 : SLAVE ? ?
? ? ? ?
? ?/proc/asound/pcm: ? ?
? ?================= ? ?
? ?00-00: Intel ICH : Intel ICH5 : playback 1 : capture 1 ? ?
? ?01-00: emu10k1 : EMU10K1 : playback 32 : capture 1 # ?
? ?01-01: emu10k1 mic : EMU10K1 MIC : capture 1 # ?
? ?01-02: emu10k1 efx : EMU10K1 EFX : capture 1 # ?
? ?01-03: emu10k1 : EMU10K1 FX8010 : playback 8

First of all, for some reason, mandrake 9.2 doesnt include kernel-sources rpm on the cds - meainig u need to d'load it and install.
And i think there is a an option to configure the sound in mandrake control center.
If u want to remove the intel sound card, then u can edit the /etc/modules.conf file manually.

"rmmod snd-intel8x0" (8x zero)
and I forgot that snd-emu10k1 is used by snd-emu10k1-synth. You have to "rmmod snd-emu10k1-synth" before you "rmmod snd-emu10k1"

In lsmod, after listing each module, it tells you [in square brackets] which modules the listed module is used by. If you get the Device or resource busy message, you need to make sure that you rmmod all the modules that are using the module that gave you the error.

thanks again for your continued efforts to help me with this.

i have done the rmmod on all things you mentioned. now it gives me the

Device or resource busy

line for each rmmod. when i run lsmod, it tells me both soundcards are used by two programmes, though there are no square brakets next to them to say which. here is the section

snd-seq-midi 5056 0 (autoclean) (unused)
snd-emux-synth 31900 0 (autoclean)
snd-seq-midi-emul 6924 0 (autoclean) [snd-emux-synth]
snd-seq-virmidi 4588 0 (autoclean) [snd-emux-synth]
snd-seq-oss 32000 0 (unused)
snd-seq-midi-event 6080 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-seq-virmidi snd-seq-oss]
snd-seq 42544 2 [snd-seq-midi snd-emux-synth snd-seq-midi-emul
snd-seq-virmidi snd-seq-oss snd-seq-midi-event]
snd-emu10k1 70948 2
snd-util-mem 3040 0 [snd-emux-synth snd-emu10k1]
snd-hwdep 6304 0 [snd-emu10k1]
snd-pcm-oss 43652 0
snd-mixer-oss 14200 0 [snd-pcm-oss]
snd-intel8x0 22020 2
snd-pcm 79588 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-pcm-oss snd-intel8x0]
snd-timer 18436 0 [snd-seq snd-pcm]
snd-ac97-codec 45720 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-intel8x0]
snd-mpu401-uart 4704 0 [snd-intel8x0]
snd-rawmidi 17760 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-seq-virmidi snd-emu10k1 snd-
mpu401-uart]
snd-seq-device 5832 0 [snd-seq-midi snd-emux-synth snd-seq-oss snd-s
eq snd-emu10k1 snd-rawmidi]
snd-page-alloc 9044 0 [snd-emu10k1 snd-intel8x0 snd-pcm]
snd 41380 4 [snd-seq-midi snd-emux-synth snd-seq-virmidi s nd-seq-oss snd-seq-midi-event snd-seq snd-emu10k1 snd-util-mem snd-hwdep snd-pcm -oss snd-mixer-oss snd-intel8x0 snd-pcm snd-timer snd-ac97-codec snd-mpu401-uart snd-rawmidi snd-seq-device]
soundcore 6340 0 [snd]


so far as the mandrake control center goes, oddly enough, there is no sound configuration directly in it, but the harddrake sound configuration module can be accessed. i am going to try manually editing the modules.conf script now. i will let you know if it changes things. i will also download the kernal sources and try a newer alsa hoping that it works.

thanks again for your patience. i will keep you posted. merci,
randal

I tried adjusting the module.conf. once, i got rid of the soundblaster live card, the other time, i got rid of the intel card and left the soundblaster going. both times, there was still no sound. darn! it seemed so promising. the thing is that the computer thinks its playing music and alsamixer acts like it.... i will know try loading a new alsa.

merci

Did u restart ur comp after editing the /etc/modules.conf file ???
Also make sure that after u remove the intel entries, the emu10k1 is set to snd-card-0 and NOT snd-card-1

Hello again,

yes, i restarted the computer, but i did not switch the emu10k1 to snd-card-o. i just gave your most recent suggestion a try (switching it to snd-card-o but then when i run sndconfig it tells me the only sound card it detects is the intel AC97 (????), not the soundblaster live. i am suspicious that the dell cheapies have some sort of virtual soundcard built into this computer.

anyways, the alsamixer also says i am on the intel one, even though i struck it from the record. i am at the point of impatience now where i am tempted to go buy another soundcard. i'll check back when i get home from work this evening.

thanks again for your advices,
randal

dont use alsa and the thread kernel drivers together.
BTW, does alsaconf detect the emu10k1 ?

try snd-card-0 (zero) instead of snd-card-o
Is your intel8x0 module getting loaded at boot? Check the ouput of "lsmod".

I had put 0 (zero) not o (o as in Oh) in my post.
rmindell silly mistakes!!!
I have also heard that dell craps its own version of SB live that for now works with only windoze