Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

[wolfstu]

Hi all. I've been wrestling with this for a while. I used to do voice chat and VOIP a lot on my Lenovo T60 laptop running Kubuntu. A couple of months ago I installed the new version of the OS, and found that the microphone doesn't work.

Sound is otherwise fine -- it plays on both the internal speakers, and the speakers or headset that I plug into the sound jack. But the microphone never works. Not the internal mic, the external one in the mic jack, or the one in my USB webcam.

I've fiddled around in the application settings, and I've played around in alsamixer. And I've upgraded, installed various libraries. but basically I've had zero success, and the mic still doesn't work at all. I just had to turn down a call from a good friend whom I haven't seen in a while, and that was the last straw. Time to ask for help.

Does anyone have ideas on how to get this working?

--wolfstu

[dibl]

Re: Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

Earlier this evening, I won the same wrestling match with my Toshiba NB205, to get skype working. Well, I actually had to settle for headphones -- I never did get the little onboard mic working, but even so it was tricky. I feel your pain.

If you click the speaker icon on your taskbar, and then choose to open the mixer, and then on kmix choose "settings > configure channels", that will open a pair of panels. On my Toshiba, I have several different microphones, and the one I needed was just "mic", not "mic2" and not "internal mic", and not any of the "mic boost" choices. You can see how to move the devices across the partition into the "Visible Channels" window.

[wolfstu]

Re: Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

If you click the speaker icon on your taskbar, and then choose to open the mixer, and then on kmix choose "settings > configure channels", that will open a pair of panels. On my Toshiba, I have several different microphones, and the one I needed was just "mic", not "mic2" and not "internal mic", and not any of the "mic boost" choices. You can see how to move the devices across the partition into the "Visible Channels" window.

I hadn't seen this feature before, but I note that on opening it, all channels (including the mic and mic boost) are already in the "visible" list. Removing some of them doesn't seem to help.

[nhtrader]

Re: Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

kubuntu 10.04.1_amd64 with all known updates
Skype 2.1.0.81 v2.1 beta 2 (this is what Skype's Website is offering as latest)
Logitech HD Webcam C270 with Microphone - USB

PROBLEM: MIC not working with Skype, but my microphone was able to record using "arecord"
SOLUTION: I installed Audacity, and the microphone worked with Skype

Below are the steps that I documented (over 6 hours) which got my microphone to work.

Note before I started, I knew that my speakers worked with Amarok and I had tested my Webcam using VLC player - it worked. At this point, I didn't know how to test my microphone. So I just assumed it would work and dove into installing Skype.


First, I started with installing Skype from their website.
http://www.skype.com/intl/en/get-sky...computer/linux (v2.1 Beta 2)

Used Firefox to Download file to /home/user/downloads
skype-ubuntu-intrepid_2.1.0.81-1_amd64.deb

Now enter terminal mode...
> dpkg -i skype-ubuntu-intrepid_2.1.0.81-1_amd64.deb

Now return to KDE... Kstart | Applications | Internet | Skype
(right click icon and select "add to Desktop" if you want to do this)

Now click Icon to start Skype....

Skype Software
==============
1. Installed Skype. Video ok both ways, sound ok (I can hear caller), mic failed (caller can't hear me).
2. Went into Skype options | Sound Devices
Changed Microphone selection from Default device (default)
to new device in list: USB device 0x46d:0x825, SUB Audio 9hw:2,0
3. Unchecked box: "Allow Skype to automatically adjust my mixer levels"
4. Pressed button "Apply"
5. Exit Skype
6. Now Quit Skype ( right click Skype Icon on task bar) Select quit
7. Re-start Skype
8. result = no microphone



Next, check sound mixer (kmix)
click Volume icon on task bar | click button "mixer"
I my setup there were 3 Tabs...
I selected tab named (in my case) "USB Device 0x46d:0x825"
put check mark in box "Capture"
adjust slider to max


Now restart Skype
test call
result = no microphone


Next, test microphone

use commands as cited in Skype's forums
The following commands help you to identify the microphone and to verify that linux is using it. Of course, if you don't see your microphone in the output of these commands, then this isn't Skype's problem. You have to solve this before continuing.

So here are the commands to use to identify your microphone...
(btw, you can use these same commands after you disconnect your device to help identify it. compare before and after.)

enter terminal mode then type in these commands...
>cat /proc/asound/version
screen showed:
Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Driver Version 1.0.21.

>cat /proc/asound/modules
screen showed:
0 snd_hda_intel
1 snd_usb_audio
2 snd_hda_intel

>cat /proc/asound/devices
2: : timer
3: : sequencer
4: [ 1- 0]: digital audio capture
5: [ 1] : control
6: [ 0- 2]: digital audio capture
7: [ 0- 1]: digital audio playback
8: [ 0- 1]: digital audio capture
9: [ 0- 0]: digital audio playback
10: [ 0- 0]: digital audio capture
11: [ 0- 0]: hardware dependent
12: [ 0] : control
13: [ 2- 3]: digital audio playback
14: [ 2- 0]: hardware dependent
15: [ 2] : control

>cat /proc/asound/cards
0 [SB ]: HDA-Intel - HDA ATI SB
HDA ATI SB at 0xfe024000 irq 16
1 [U0x46d0x825 ]: USB-Audio - USB Device 0x46d:0x825
USB Device 0x46d:0x825 at usb-0000:00:12.2-5, high speed
2 [HDMI ]: HDA-Intel - HDA ATI HDMI
HDA ATI HDMI at 0xfdefc000 irq 19

>cat /proc/asound/card?/codec#* | grep Codec
Codec: Realtek ALC889A
Codec: ATI RS690/780 HDMI



This command records a 10 second sample if your microphone works
(note: I did not need to install any packages for the next two commands "arecord" and "aplay")

>arecord -f S16_LE -D hw:1,0 -d 10 test.wav

This command plays back your recording
>aplay -f S16_le test.wav

result = I could record and playback my 10 second sample. My microphone works but not with Skype. Second, I confirmed that the identity of the microphone is the USB device on card 1; device 0 "USB device 0x46d:0x825"


Next, since Skype is a GUI app, I wanted to use the microphone with another GUI application, so I chose Audacity. Again, "arecord" worked which is a terminal mode app.

I needed to install a new app.
I used KPackageKit to install "Audacity"
Kstart | Applications | System | Software Management (KpackageKit)
Find by Name: audacity
I Selected "audacity" for install and pressed Apply (there were 3 items listed, I didn't select the other 2)

After installation of Audacity, I opened Audacity and I tried to use the microphone, but it didn't work. The recorder started; I talked; but nothing recorded. I could see that the waveform was static - flat lined.

Then I tried to find the Microphone Device. I saw an icon for it but I couldn't change it.
To chang the Microphone Device...
Select View Menu | Toolbars | select Devices
now microphone device dropdown appears and it can be changed from default to your device, or in my case "USB device 0x46d:0x825"

Now I tried again to record, but still nothing. So it occurred to me that maybe the microphone device doesn't have a default recording format. So I experimented with different formats.
So I edited preferences....
Select Edit Menu | Preferences | Quality
I changed the bit rate to 16 bit and sampling rate to 16000 - the microphone now worked.
Then I changed the bit rate to 24 bit and 44100 - it worked.
Then I changed it back to 32 bit float and 44100, and now the microphone worked. (btw, these were the defaults within Audacity, but they didn't work initially.)

I closed Audacity and opened Skype. The microphone now works with Skype.

I don't know what changed after installing Audacity. Plus I don't know what happened after I changed the bit rate and sampling rate, but it re-established the connection to the microphone so that Skype could use it.


As a guess, there is a broken link associated with the USB audio capture device and Audacity re-established this link.



Footnotes for developers:
1. when using this command: cat /proc/asound/card2/codec#* | grep Codec
no codecs were listed despite the fact that the command: cat /proc/asound/cards
clearly shows that card 2 exists.
2. when using this command: arecord -D hw:2,0 -d 10 test.wav
this command failed with this error msg...
Unsigned 8 bit, Rate 8000 Hz, Mono
arecord: set_params:990: Sample format non available
Available formats:
- S16_LE
(it is surprising to me that the default recording format (U8) isn't available. why not?)

3. Why did changing the sampling rate and bit rate change the behavior of the microphone?

4. kMix has an interesting quirk. when you use kStart | Applications | Multimedia | Sound Mixer (kMix)
nothing happens. Consider this. How are newbies to know that clicking kMix brings up the volume icon on the taskbar, when in most cases it appears by default when you login? A newbie clicks kMix and then waits for the mixer to appear, but it doesn't. Then they have to figure out that they also have to click the volume icon and then click the mixer button to get the mixer to appear on screen. It seems to me to be inconsistent with how all other applications behave when initiated from kStart. Perhaps you could make kMix appear on screen and activate the Volume icon simultaneously. Plus consider this, why should someone fumble around and waste time learning that the volume icon = kMix.

[wolfstu]

Re: Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

Well, thanks for the help everyone. I didn't find a solution, but I did find a workaroud: I ditched Kubuntu and moved to Linux Mint Debian Edition. Sound worked fine from the get-go with no hassles.

[vinnywright]

Re: Upgraded to 10.04; microphone no longer works

strange but I feel your pane ......mine works just fine but I assume you have diferent hardware mine is

Audio device: Intel Corporation 82801FB/FBM/FR/FW/FRW (ICH6 Family) High Definition Audio Controller (rev 03)

BUT it dose not work properly if I don't boot windows first and then reboot to kubuntu (sound is the only reason windows is still on this box) it seems that the on board sound dose not fully activate unless windows gets booted?

it's a gateway 5200x

VINNY