[SOLVED] VLC DVD Sound Problem

mike acker · 08-11-2015, 04:12 PM

I have VLC 2.2.1 in an LMDE/2 MINT 17.2 system.

this version of VLC will not play a DVD : the video comes out OK but the audio sounds like someone holding a plastic spoon in a window fan

I'm using a Behringer UFO202 DAC, USB connected, with ALSA

VLC works fine on .flac -- or if the DVD has been converted to .M4V using Handbrake or .mkv using OGMrip or .wmv . so, I'm thinking the problem is it's using the wrong audio CODEC to get the audio off the /dev/sr0 disc ... when it's trying to play that way .

any hints will be appreciated!

Keruskerfuerst · 08-11-2015, 11:31 PM

Do all DVDs sound like this?

mike acker · 08-12-2015, 05:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keruskerfuerst

Do all DVDs sound like this?

even if i make one using devede/k3b from a hd source that is ok

ondoho · 08-12-2015, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike acker

I'm using a Behringer UFO202 DAC, USB connected, with ALSA

do i understand correctly that this is a non-standard (as far as consumer hardware goes) sound device?
i guess the problem is there.
do other media players have the same problem? all audio, in fact?
can you choose another sound card as default (terminal => alsamixer => F6)?

mike acker · 08-12-2015, 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ondoho

do i understand correctly that this is a non-standard (as far as consumer hardware goes) sound device?
i guess the problem is there.
do other media players have the same problem? all audio, in fact?
can you choose another sound card as default (terminal => alsamixer => F6)?

I thought about that: I could re-connect it to the REALTEK DAC built into the MoBo. But that doesn't seem to be likely to fix the issue: VLC plays video files -- m4v, wmv, mkv -- from the hard drive just fine; also any audio format,-- .flac, mp3, .ogg, .wav -- it's only when the source is /dev/sr0 --- VIDEO_TS files

also: the "Videos" player -- works OK, as well as the sound-test left, right.

the on-board realtek DAC has been unsatisfactory and I don't want to use it. all indications are VLC is not decoding sound properly off the DVD

ondoho · 08-15-2015, 12:40 AM

hmmm.

iirc, dvd's use uncompressed audio & video, as opposed to the other examples you gave.

have you tried to change the soundcard with alsamixer? necessary step for troubleshooting, methinks.
also troubleshooting: another media player playing back a dvd?

JaseP · 08-15-2015, 04:14 PM

Any particular reason that you are using ALSA versus Pulse Audio (other than aversion to anything Len Poettering touches/mangles)??? For me, it's been years since I've replaced PA with a straight ALSA...

mike acker · 08-17-2015, 06:57 PM

I can play around with the "Sound Settings": see attached. I think this just sets the default output device,-- right now the Behringer UFO202 is connect to the amp; the built-in sound -- is not connected. Either the analog or the digital interface works -- I can't tell any difference in them .

the "Videos" player -- works fine.

interestingly VLC appears to provide its own options to select a sound device. as noted -- it works fine with .flac files, mp3, .wav, .ogg ...or with video formats such as m4v, wmv, mp4, avi... with the VLC output device set to USB CODEC default

if fails on any DVD: the video is output ok but the sound is like someone holding a plastic spoon in a window fan.

there's a secondary bug though that could reveal the trouble here: using VLC the System Sound Settings volume control, --- is inoperative .

Note: I'm running an LMDE/2 MINT17.2

Note: the specification for ALSA output is made using the VLC preferences menu .

ondoho · 08-19-2015, 11:54 AM

i cannot connect the info from the screenshot to your sound card specifications.

please post the output of

Code:

lspci -k

anyhow i'm guessing your system is using pulseaudio, so you should tell vlc to use the pulseaudio output (but why it fails only on dvds, i cannot say).

other media players play dvds (and everything else) just fine?

mike acker · 08-22-2015, 08:39 AM

Code:

$ lspci -k
00:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] RS880 Host Bridge
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
00:01.0 PCI bridge: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. AMD RS780/RS880 PCI to PCI bridge (int gfx)
00:05.0 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] RS780/RS880 PCI to PCI bridge (PCIE port 1)
	Kernel driver in use: pcieport
00:07.0 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] RS780/RS880 PCI to PCI bridge (PCIE port 3)
	Kernel driver in use: pcieport
00:0a.0 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] RS780/RS880 PCI to PCI bridge (PCIE port 5)
	Kernel driver in use: pcieport
00:11.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 SATA Controller [IDE mode] (rev 40)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Device 8443
	Kernel driver in use: ahci
00:12.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ohci-pci
00:12.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ehci-pci
00:13.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ohci-pci
00:13.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ehci-pci
00:14.0 SMBus: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 SMBus Controller (rev 42)
00:14.1 IDE interface: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 IDE Controller (rev 40)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Device 8443
	Kernel driver in use: pata_atiixp
00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 Azalia (Intel HDA) (rev 40)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
00:14.3 ISA bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 LPC host controller (rev 40)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
00:14.4 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 PCI to PCI Bridge (rev 40)
00:14.5 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI2 Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ohci-pci
00:16.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ohci-pci
00:16.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: ehci-pci
00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor HyperTransport Configuration
00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Address Map
00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor DRAM Controller
00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Miscellaneous Control
	Kernel driver in use: k10temp
00:18.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 10h Processor Link Control
01:05.0 VGA compatible controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] RS880 [Radeon HD 4250]
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: radeon
01:05.1 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] RS880 HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 4200 Series]
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. M5A88-V EVO
	Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel
02:00.0 Network controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8188CE 802.11b/g/n WiFi Adapter (rev 01)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Device 84b5
	Kernel driver in use: rtl8192ce
03:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042 SuperSpeed USB Host Controller
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. P8B WS Motherboard
	Kernel driver in use: xhci_hcd
04:00.0 Ethernet controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 09)
	Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. P8 series motherboard
	Kernel driver in use: r8169
$

we (Debian LMDE/2) just received an update to VLC:

VLC 1:2.2.1-dmo1 new version 1:2.2.1-dmo1+cve1
however this had to affect on the chatter noise issue

let's close this issue/unresolved.
I am using Videos and Audacity and these are OK.
I'll look at VLC again perhaps on the next LMDE release -- or if I can find a reliable source for the .deb package

if i can find a reliable source for the .deb package i can rip the whole vlc out and re-install it. this is most likely what is needed

i think vlc accesses the hardware direct rather than going thru whatever is the default system: it offers a wide range of choices to the output audio device including both pulse audio and ALSA -- although you have to check 2 places for the switch settings .

as noted: VLC is fine on an audio playlist -- or on video from a hard-drive format . It DOES NOT handle all the menu options on a DVD correctly -- or handle the audio stream . this is why I think we need a total update of the VLC .deb package .

***** Thanks for Helping !!!!!

ondoho · 08-26-2015, 01:58 AM

unresolved is not [Solved]!

so what did the vlc update bring? still the same problem or not?

anyhow, i was wrong to ask for lspci output when you clearly stated that you connect your sound device via usb.

so

Code:

lsusb -v

(preferably post only the part for the device relevant)

even so, your computer already has 2 sound devices, and it seems that pulseaudio just doesn't see the 3rd (boehringer) one at all.
do you even know what driver it needs?
or what did you mean when you wrote "connected with alsa" in post #1?