Re: [PLUG] Audio in?
Here's my solution to that: https://www.ebay.com/itm/274405540451 https://www.thinkpenguin.com/gnu-linux/penguin-usb-20-external-stereo-sound-adapter-gnu-linux-tpe-usbsound Ted -Original Message- From: PLUG On Behalf Of Dick Steffens Sent: Sunday, April 16, 2023 3:36 PM To: PLUG List Subject: [PLUG] Audio in? I have an old boom box and some audio tapes. I'm trying to run the headphone out of the boom box into the computer. I've tried the mic input on the front, and the back of my desktop, but none of my recording software finds the sound. I'm using Audacity. I also tried Audio Recorder with the same results. Please apply the appropriate clue stick to let me record some audio from an external source. Thanks. -- Regards, Dick Steffens
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
My mother is a piano teacher and during covid had to give lessons over zoom. Zoom deliberately degrades audio quality to save bandwidth. There is discussion on this here: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/360046244692-Configuring-professional-audio-settings-for-Zoom-Meetings Note that the Linux zoom client DOES NOT ALLOW the "enable original sound and high fidelity mode" Only the windows client does. I realize you are just concerned with intelligible voice. But I suspect the various voice filters that Zoom puts in automatically are screwing you over. There are numerous audio test MP3's out there on the Internet that are VOICE ONLY and NOT music that you can Google for. Download some of those and play them on a typical music player or car stereo to know what they sound like. Then use them on your Linux box. If they play well from the desktop then it's not your audio hardware or drivers. It's Zoom. Personally I prefer an MP3 of Led Zeppelin's Kashmir for audio testing... Ted -Original Message- From: PLUG On Behalf Of Rich Shepard Sent: Sunday, April 16, 2023 3:45 PM To: Portland Linux/Unix Group Subject: Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, MC_Sequoia wrote: > So, to be clear, do you only have a problem with inbound voice audio > quality from the Internet? Mike, Yes. > Have you monitored resource, cpu/memory, usage when you're experiencing this > problem? I've watched gkrellm. > Maybe even shutdown and power back on your pc. Open up 1 browser > instance and only 1 tab for zoom or jitsi and test? I rebooted yesterday morning to make the drives in the MediaSonic Probox mount and be visible. > I suspect both Zoom & Jitsi are resource intensive web apps. Zoom seemed to be useing all 8 cores/16 threads Friday. I could see the other attendees, and all of them could hear me, but I could not hear them using the headphones and the speakers produces very unclear (garbled?) output. The new audio card is to be delivered tomorrow. I'll install it and test the voice output from 'Net videos. I've not found a Zoom test meeting that sends me audio. When I have the test meeting open the video, mic, and headphones work fine. I assume that when I hear myself speak it's all local and not out to Zoom and back again. Regards, Rich
Re: [PLUG] the dreaded hang
X and friends have insisted on actuating the screensaver for a long time now and they use dpmi I have found this does lock up some hardware. Not just on Linux I've had Windows lock up various laptop hardware as well attempting to "save the LCD screen from burn in" (I wasn't aware LCD screens burned but what do I know LOL) For some reason X makes it damn near impossible to shut the screensaver off on boot so that the machine will just boot to the login screen and leave it on forever. When the system is on a KVM it does NOT need a screensaver. Nor does it need to be wasting CPU cycles on drawing "pipes" or other nonsense. Various xset invocations once you login seem to disable the "screensaver" Ted -Original Message- From: PLUG On Behalf Of bri...@pounceofcats.com Sent: Sunday, April 16, 2023 7:21 PM To: Portland Linux/Unix Group Subject: [PLUG] the dreaded hang Hi, So i just finished putting together a new PC AMD K7/Asus MB. if i leave it alone for some indeterminate amount time, on the order of 1 to 2 hours, it decides to lock up - sort of. The caps lock key is still working, for example, but the monitor doesn't see a signal. A few things that i've checked: 1 set the display shut-off to a few minutes and sat there and watched it shut off the display. Not a problem. 2 suspended it, unsuspended it, and it recovered. that was a shocker. suspend mode and linux have never worked for me. not ever. Regardless i have suspend mode time set to never and i just now changed the display shut-off time to never. Even though i watched it shut-off without a problem I'm still suspicious that it may be the problem (for example, maybe it has to stay in display shut off for a few minutes). A couple of things i would like to do. Is there a way to enable more detailed kernel tracing so i could look at a log file and see if can figure out if there's a particular activity preceding the problem ? One thing that occurs to me as i'm typing this is that I did not try to SSH in and see if things were working - it could simply be a video card driver problem (AMD video card). The odd thing is that it's running 100% reliably when i'm sitting at the computer Any other things I might try to narrow down the problem ? -- Brian
[PLUG] the dreaded hang
Hi, So i just finished putting together a new PC AMD K7/Asus MB. if i leave it alone for some indeterminate amount time, on the order of 1 to 2 hours, it decides to lock up - sort of. The caps lock key is still working, for example, but the monitor doesn't see a signal. A few things that i've checked: 1 set the display shut-off to a few minutes and sat there and watched it shut off the display. Not a problem. 2 suspended it, unsuspended it, and it recovered. that was a shocker. suspend mode and linux have never worked for me. not ever. Regardless i have suspend mode time set to never and i just now changed the display shut-off time to never. Even though i watched it shut-off without a problem I'm still suspicious that it may be the problem (for example, maybe it has to stay in display shut off for a few minutes). A couple of things i would like to do. Is there a way to enable more detailed kernel tracing so i could look at a log file and see if can figure out if there's a particular activity preceding the problem ? One thing that occurs to me as i'm typing this is that I did not try to SSH in and see if things were working - it could simply be a video card driver problem (AMD video card). The odd thing is that it's running 100% reliably when i'm sitting at the computer Any other things I might try to narrow down the problem ? -- Brian
Re: [PLUG] Audio in?
On Sun, Apr 16, 2023 at 6:18 PM Dick Steffens wrote: > On 4/16/23 16:05, Dick Steffens wrote: > > > > First I tried the jack on the front that is not the headphone jack. I > > think it's a mic in jack, but don't know for sure. > > Then I tried the red ring jack on the back. I've switched to the blue > > ring jack. Still no results in Audacity. > > > > In Audacity I have four options on the tab with a microphone icon: > > > > HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Analog(hw:1,0) > > HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Alt Analog(hw:1,2) > > pulse > > default > > > > All I get is a graph with a straight line at 0.0, in other words, no > > signal recorded. > > > > Sometimes it turns out that having multiple machines is helpful. I moved > my recording process to my other desktop machine. I can record now. I > get an actual graph in Audacity. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like > what I'm used to. Plus, there's a lot of noise. > > Instead of the usual graph, I get a very wide blue bar with some > graphing visible on it. As I said, it's noisy, but the graph doesn't > give me a convenient way to sample the noise to remove it. I have the > headphone out of the boom box plugged in to the line-in on the back of > the computer. While it works better than on the front mic jack, it's > still not ideal. I'm not sure if there's some way I can fuss with the > boom box to clean things up > I would suggest you try to turn the volume control on the boombox to the lowest you can go while still being able to pick up the signal on the desktop. -wes
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
"I could not hear them using the headphones and the speakers produces very unclear (garbled?)output." Does your PC have an onboard speaker that you can test with? Are the speakers and headset both plugged into the PCI-E soundcard? Have you tried plugging into the onboard audio ports directly on the motherboard? I'm just working the process of elimination and maybe narrow down the suspect list a bit.
Re: [PLUG] Audio in?
On 4/16/23 16:05, Dick Steffens wrote: First I tried the jack on the front that is not the headphone jack. I think it's a mic in jack, but don't know for sure. Then I tried the red ring jack on the back. I've switched to the blue ring jack. Still no results in Audacity. In Audacity I have four options on the tab with a microphone icon: HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Analog(hw:1,0) HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Alt Analog(hw:1,2) pulse default All I get is a graph with a straight line at 0.0, in other words, no signal recorded. Sometimes it turns out that having multiple machines is helpful. I moved my recording process to my other desktop machine. I can record now. I get an actual graph in Audacity. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like what I'm used to. Plus, there's a lot of noise. Instead of the usual graph, I get a very wide blue bar with some graphing visible on it. As I said, it's noisy, but the graph doesn't give me a convenient way to sample the noise to remove it. I have the headphone out of the boom box plugged in to the line-in on the back of the computer. While it works better than on the front mic jack, it's still not ideal. I'm not sure if there's some way I can fuss with the boom box to clean things up, but that will be for another day. When I finish fussing I will still try to figure out why my primary machine doesn't connect the way it should. Anyway, thanks, Rich, for your recommendation about using the line-in. I should have done that from the beginning, and I know better. Sigh. Time for dinner. -- Regards, Dick Steffens
Re: [PLUG] Audio in?
On 4/16/23 15:50, Rich Shepard wrote: On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Dick Steffens wrote: I have an old boom box and some audio tapes. I'm trying to run the headphone out of the boom box into the computer. I've tried the mic input on the front, and the back of my desktop, but none of my recording software finds the sound. I'm using Audacity. I also tried Audio Recorder with the same results. Please apply the appropriate clue stick to let me record some audio from an external source. Dick, Are you using the audio chip on the motherboard with a mini-phone jack that has a blue ring? It might be the system isn't seeing the external imput. The mic input has a red ring surrounding it and the boom box output is different from a microphone output. Try the blue mini-phone jack on the system's rear panel. Regards, Rich First I tried the jack on the front that is not the headphone jack. I think it's a mic in jack, but don't know for sure. Then I tried the red ring jack on the back. I've switched to the blue ring jack. Still no results in Audacity. In Audacity I have four options on the tab with a microphone icon: HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Analog(hw:1,0) HDA Intel PCH: ALC887-VD Alt Analog(hw:1,2) pulse default All I get is a graph with a straight line at 0.0, in other words, no signal recorded. -- Regards, Dick Steffens
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
--- Original Message --- On Sunday, April 16th, 2023 at 3:39 PM, Rich Shepard wrote: > On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: > > > Ah ok so here is where we got real problems. First off, you don't want to > > use pip. it makes it very difficult to remove packages later and can > > result in a broken python installation. > > > Ben, > > I've used pip when I could not find an SBo package. > > > You can try starting the build with "meson build -Dpython=python2.7" to > > make sure it selects the older python. If that doesn't work you might need > > to seek other solutions since dealing with an incomplete python stack is a > > project all on it's own. > > > Wait ... meson wants python2 and not python3? > > Nope: > $ meson build -Dpython=python2.7 > Traceback (most recent call last): > File "/usr/bin/meson", line 6, in > > from pkg_resources import load_entry_point > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 3324, in > > def _initialize_master_working_set(): > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 3298, in _call_aside > f(*args, **kwargs) > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 3336, in _initialize_master_working_set > working_set = WorkingSet._build_master() > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 629, in _build_master > ws.require(requires) > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 966, in require > needed = self.resolve(parse_requirements(requirements)) > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 827, in resolve > dist = self._resolve_dist( > File > "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/init.py", > line 868, in _resolve_dist > raise DistributionNotFound(req, requirers) > pkg_resources.DistributionNotFound: The 'meson==0.59.2' distribution was not > found and is required by the application > > Yet, > $ ls /var/log/packages/ | grep meson > meson-0.59.2-x86_64-2 > > Thanks, > > Rich you'll figure it out. sink or swim. Most of the slackware community has pretty much given up using python on 14.2 for this exact reason. And you've been using pip so this ones on you. -Ben
Re: [PLUG] Audio in?
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Dick Steffens wrote: I have an old boom box and some audio tapes. I'm trying to run the headphone out of the boom box into the computer. I've tried the mic input on the front, and the back of my desktop, but none of my recording software finds the sound. I'm using Audacity. I also tried Audio Recorder with the same results. Please apply the appropriate clue stick to let me record some audio from an external source. Dick, Are you using the audio chip on the motherboard with a mini-phone jack that has a blue ring? It might be the system isn't seeing the external imput. The mic input has a red ring surrounding it and the boom box output is different from a microphone output. Try the blue mini-phone jack on the system's rear panel. Regards, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, MC_Sequoia wrote: So, to be clear, do you only have a problem with inbound voice audio quality from the Internet? Mike, Yes. Have you monitored resource, cpu/memory, usage when you're experiencing this problem? I've watched gkrellm. Maybe even shutdown and power back on your pc. Open up 1 browser instance and only 1 tab for zoom or jitsi and test? I rebooted yesterday morning to make the drives in the MediaSonic Probox mount and be visible. I suspect both Zoom & Jitsi are resource intensive web apps. Zoom seemed to be useing all 8 cores/16 threads Friday. I could see the other attendees, and all of them could hear me, but I could not hear them using the headphones and the speakers produces very unclear (garbled?) output. The new audio card is to be delivered tomorrow. I'll install it and test the voice output from 'Net videos. I've not found a Zoom test meeting that sends me audio. When I have the test meeting open the video, mic, and headphones work fine. I assume that when I hear myself speak it's all local and not out to Zoom and back again. Regards, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: Ah ok so here is where we got real problems. First off, you don't want to use pip. it makes it very difficult to remove packages later and can result in a broken python installation. Ben, I've used pip when I could not find an SBo package. You can try starting the build with "meson build -Dpython=python2.7" to make sure it selects the older python. If that doesn't work you might need to seek other solutions since dealing with an incomplete python stack is a project all on it's own. Wait ... meson wants python2 and not python3? Nope: $ meson build -Dpython=python2.7 Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/bin/meson", line 6, in from pkg_resources import load_entry_point File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 3324, in def _initialize_master_working_set(): File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 3298, in _call_aside f(*args, **kwargs) File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 3336, in _initialize_master_working_set working_set = WorkingSet._build_master() File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 629, in _build_master ws.require(__requires__) File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 966, in require needed = self.resolve(parse_requirements(requirements)) File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 827, in resolve dist = self._resolve_dist( File "/home/rshepard/.local/lib/python3.9/site-packages/pkg_resources/__init__.py", line 868, in _resolve_dist raise DistributionNotFound(req, requirers) pkg_resources.DistributionNotFound: The 'meson==0.59.2' distribution was not found and is required by the application Yet, $ ls /var/log/packages/ | grep meson meson-0.59.2-x86_64-2 Thanks, Rich
[PLUG] Audio in?
I have an old boom box and some audio tapes. I'm trying to run the headphone out of the boom box into the computer. I've tried the mic input on the front, and the back of my desktop, but none of my recording software finds the sound. I'm using Audacity. I also tried Audio Recorder with the same results. Please apply the appropriate clue stick to let me record some audio from an external source. Thanks. -- Regards, Dick Steffens
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
As a broadcast engineer who has dealt with computerized automation systems providing professional audio for FM radio stations, pretty much all I have used over the years for on-air play have been Audioscience cards. Not cheap, but they do the job. Linux friendly. Available with various combinations of input and output channels and analog and AES digital. Just be careful with the used market, as there are many out there that may not fit current motherboards. Another caveat, you will need to get breakout cables/boxes to interface your audio. The cards have various connectors depending on model, usually some type of SCSI connector that the breakout cables end in XLRs. Michael On Sun, Apr 16, 2023, 14:20 King Beowulf wrote: > On 4/16/23 06:42, Rich Shepard wrote: > > The audio voice output quality from my Asus Prime X470-Pro is distorted > and > > unacceptable. I finally figured out that this is the issue with online > > meetings and news/youtube videos, not the speakers (although I just > replaced > > the Creative Pebbles with ProSonus studio monitors). > ... > > > > Please provide recommendations for an add-in PCIe audio card that outputs > > clear voice as well as music to speakers and headphones/headsets. > > > > Rich, > > Most of the Creative Labs Soundblaster Audigy series are well supported > with high quality. You go have to check and pick the card by chipset > and not by price as there are various gaps in some functionality in the > myriad of available models. > > https://alsa-project.org/wiki/Matrix:Vendor-Creative_Labs > > (Alas, this list is not up to date.) > > Slackware-15.0 uses ALSA 1.25 and allows for replacing pulseausio with > pipewire. Highly recommended. PA literally sucks donkey balls. In > Slackware-15.0 use: > /usr/sbin/pipewire-enable.sh > /usr/sbin/pipewire-disable.sh > > 2 years back I upgraded my motherboard sound (AMD Starship/Matisse HD > Audio Controller) and switched to the Core3D chipset on the CL > Soundblaster Z ($99.99 in 2021). The new motherboard did have only old > timey PCI slots so I was not able to recycle the nice SB Audigy 2 card I > was using. > > > https://www.newegg.com/creative-sound-blaster-z/p/N82E16829102048?Item=N82E16829102048 > > The newer version is > https://www.newegg.com/creative-sound-blaster-z-se/p/N82E16829102110 > > audio quality is excellent. The catch with Core3D is that you need a > newer kernel that the one Slackware-14.2 ships with 4.4.x). IIRC, > Core3D support hit around kernel-4.18+ > > I paired this with a Beyerdynamic headset (gaming version, there are > others) - cat ate through the cord of a middling Turtle Beach headset. > https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16826380033?Item=N82E16826380033 > > I usually skip trying to set stuff in the PA mixer GUI, other than to > disable the webcam audio and GPU's HDMI audio. Alsamixer suffices, and > Slackbuilds.org has a equalizer plugin. > > -Ed > > >
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
"I don't often view news site or youtube videos but it's the same issue with them as it is was the Zoom meeting. The other issue with Zoom is that heard unclear sound throught the Creative Pebble speakers that were installed, and no sound through the Panasonic headset. Yet, the headset had no problem with my tests of a news site video or a youtube video." So, to be clear, do you only have a problem with inbound voice audio quality from the Internet? Have you monitored resource, cpu/memory, usage when you're experiencing this problem? Maybe even shutdown and power back on your pc. Open up 1 browser instance and only 1 tab for zoom or jitsi and test? You can even look at resource usage in your browser. All the browsers I use have a "Task Manager" under "Settings." I suspect both Zoom & Jitsi are resource intensive web apps.
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
--- Original Message --- On Sunday, April 16th, 2023 at 1:35 PM, Rich Shepard wrote: > On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: > > > "meson build" didn't work? > > > No: > $ meson build > Traceback (most recent call last): > File "/usr/bin/meson", line 6, in > > from pkg_resources import load_entry_point > ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'pkg_resources' > > Now I'm trying to learn why I can't install pkg_resources using pip with > python3-3.9.10 installed here: > # pip install pkg_resources > bash: /usr/bin/pip: /usr/bin/python3.7: bad interpreter: No such file or > directory > > There is no python3.7 installed: > [root@salmo /usr/bin]# ls python* > python@ python2-config@ python2.7-config* python3-sip* pythontex* > python-config@ python2-sip* python3@ python3.9* > python2@ python2.7* python3-config@ python3.9-config* > > Rich Ah ok so here is where we got real problems. First off, you don't want to use pip. it makes it very difficult to remove packages later and can result in a broken python installation. Other than that, this type of thing is not unusual on 14.2 since it doesn't include a full python3 stack. Either you are missing a dependency, or meson hasn't been properly configured for the correct python version. You can try starting the build with "meson build -Dpython=python2.7" to make sure it selects the older python. If that doesn't work you might need to seek other solutions since dealing with an incomplete python stack is a project all on it's own. -Ben
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, MC_Sequoia wrote: "My issue is getting good sound quality from the 'Net using Zoom and Jitsi." This is probably the best & most useful piece of information you've to work with. That seems to point away from a audio card, audio software/drivers, cables, etc. I don't often view news site or youtube videos but it's the same issue with them as it is was the Zoom meeting. The other issue with Zoom is that I heard unclear sound throught the Creative Pebble speakers that were installed, and no sound through the Panasonic headset. Yet, the headset had no problem with my tests of a news site video or a youtube video. Music comes through okay, but music vocals is not quite clear. Perhaps it's the browser, but I've used the Zoom test meeting and it reports audio and video are okay. The test doesn't send me any audio, however. Thanks, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output => Internet apps voice quality
"My issue is getting good sound quality from the 'Net using Zoom and Jitsi." This is probably the best & most useful piece of information you've to work with. That seems to point away from a audio card, audio software/drivers, cables, etc. I don't use either of these apps, so I could only suggest to see if there these apps have some tests you can do or settings to adjust or do a web search on "Zoom voice quality problems." Seems silly, but I'd try testing with a few different browsers. There could be a problem with voice being processed between these apps and your browser. The other thing you could do is maybe find some internet audio quality test site or maybe make some test calls over google voice, skype or similar web voip app.
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: "meson build" didn't work? No: $ meson build Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/bin/meson", line 6, in from pkg_resources import load_entry_point ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'pkg_resources' Now I'm trying to learn why I can't install pkg_resources using pip with python3-3.9.10 installed here: # pip install pkg_resources bash: /usr/bin/pip: /usr/bin/python3.7: bad interpreter: No such file or directory There is no python3.7 installed: [root@salmo /usr/bin]# ls python* python@ python2-config@ python2.7-config* python3-sip* pythontex* python-config@ python2-sip* python3@ python3.9* python2@python2.7* python3-config@python3.9-config* Rich
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
On 4/16/23 11:22, Rich Shepard wrote: > On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: > >> $ meson build >> That is 'meson' then a SPACE then 'build'. They didn't tell you to run >> meson.build, so why are you executing the file manually? Did you just >> assume that they made a mistake? > Ben, > > Well, I assumed that 'mason.build' was the file name, not the command 'mason > build.' So, ... > $ mason build > -bash: mason: command not found > > Regards, > > Rich Today's word is M E S O N 1. hadronic subatomic particle composed of an equal number of quarks and antiquarks, 2. an open source build system meant to be both extremely fast, and, even more importantly, as user friendly as possible -Ed
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
On 4/16/23 06:42, Rich Shepard wrote: > The audio voice output quality from my Asus Prime X470-Pro is distorted and > unacceptable. I finally figured out that this is the issue with online > meetings and news/youtube videos, not the speakers (although I just replaced > the Creative Pebbles with ProSonus studio monitors). ... > > Please provide recommendations for an add-in PCIe audio card that outputs > clear voice as well as music to speakers and headphones/headsets. > Rich, Most of the Creative Labs Soundblaster Audigy series are well supported with high quality. You go have to check and pick the card by chipset and not by price as there are various gaps in some functionality in the myriad of available models. https://alsa-project.org/wiki/Matrix:Vendor-Creative_Labs (Alas, this list is not up to date.) Slackware-15.0 uses ALSA 1.25 and allows for replacing pulseausio with pipewire. Highly recommended. PA literally sucks donkey balls. In Slackware-15.0 use: /usr/sbin/pipewire-enable.sh /usr/sbin/pipewire-disable.sh 2 years back I upgraded my motherboard sound (AMD Starship/Matisse HD Audio Controller) and switched to the Core3D chipset on the CL Soundblaster Z ($99.99 in 2021). The new motherboard did have only old timey PCI slots so I was not able to recycle the nice SB Audigy 2 card I was using. https://www.newegg.com/creative-sound-blaster-z/p/N82E16829102048?Item=N82E16829102048 The newer version is https://www.newegg.com/creative-sound-blaster-z-se/p/N82E16829102110 audio quality is excellent. The catch with Core3D is that you need a newer kernel that the one Slackware-14.2 ships with 4.4.x). IIRC, Core3D support hit around kernel-4.18+ I paired this with a Beyerdynamic headset (gaming version, there are others) - cat ate through the cord of a middling Turtle Beach headset. https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16826380033?Item=N82E16826380033 I usually skip trying to set stuff in the PA mixer GUI, other than to disable the webcam audio and GPU's HDMI audio. Alsamixer suffices, and Slackbuilds.org has a equalizer plugin. -Ed
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
--- Original Message --- On Sunday, April 16th, 2023 at 11:22 AM, Rich Shepard wrote: > On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: > > > $ meson build > > That is 'meson' then a SPACE then 'build'. They didn't tell you to run > > meson.build, so why are you executing the file manually? Did you just > > assume that they made a mistake? > > > Ben, > > Well, I assumed that 'mason.build' was the file name, not the command 'mason > build.' So, ... > $ mason build > -bash: mason: command not found > > Regards, > > Rich "meson build" didn't work? mason meson mason meson mason meson..
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
Can you collect an example? Like, record through the air (e.g. with a digital audio recorder maybe even in your phone) a few seconds of the distortion you are hearing and share it somewhere? Does it sound any different through headphones? Fwiw, I have zero problems with voice output on my linux machine with rando audio hardware, including usb-audio dongles that often come with headsets. -- Russell Senior russ...@personaltelco.net
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, MC_Sequoia wrote: I also was thinking about an audio quality testing application that might be useful and came across this video on an app called Noise Torch. In the video he talks specifically about producing podcasts, zoom calls & jitsi meetings. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzN9rYNeeIU Good to know. Thanks. I also came across an article that talked about the difference in driver quality between Windows and Linux. FOSS does have a cost, unfortunately. Yes, it seems to still be the case that the ALSA sound system leaves much to be desired, and pulseaudio doesn't make it that much better. I suspect this could also play a role. I don't know why linux doesn't have better sound after all these years. There are also Linux multimedia distros that've been optimized for AV production. I've had no issues recording video tutorials and podcasts. Audacity, vokoscreenNG, and open broadcast studio work just fine. My issue is getting good sound quality from the 'Net using Zoom and Jitsi. Regards, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
I also was thinking about an audio quality testing application that might be useful and came across this video on an app called Noise Torch. In the video he talks specifically about producing podcasts, zoom calls & jitsi meetings. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzN9rYNeeIU I also came across an article that talked about the difference in driver quality between Windows and Linux. FOSS does have a cost, unfortunately. I suspect this could also play a role. There are also Linux multimedia distros that've been optimized for AV production. "io GNU/Linux works well as a live boot operating system, but can also be installed to a hard drive. Its main highlight is professional level audio production, " Reference - https://linuxconfig.org/best-multimedia-linux-distributions It might be worth looking into what this distro does differently to produce "pro level audio production." It might not just be a hardware problem.
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote: $ meson build That is 'meson' then a SPACE then 'build'. They didn't tell you to run meson.build, so why are you executing the file manually? Did you just assume that they made a mistake? Ben, Well, I assumed that 'mason.build' was the file name, not the command 'mason build.' So, ... $ mason build -bash: mason: command not found Regards, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, MC_Sequoia wrote: Hopefully, someone who knows a lot more about pc audio soundcards and who produces podcasts and/or videos will respond but in the meantime here's what I can offer. "#4) ASUS XONAR SE 5.1 Channel Best for minimal audio distortion. Interesting. The product has a decent voice technology option." Okay. That's good. A card with a higher Signal To Noise Ratio will produce less distortion. Audio cables and interfaces will affect audio quality. This card comes with updated cables. The audio cables in use came with the ProSonus speakers I installed yesterday. The connector is a mini-phono plug, not an RCA plug. Thanks, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
"The audio voice output quality from my Asus Prime X470-Pro is distorted and unacceptable. Please provide recommendations for an add-in PCIe audio card that outputs clear voice as well as music to speakers and headphones/headsets." Hopefully, someone who knows a lot more about pc audio soundcards and who produces podcasts and/or videos will respond but in the meantime here's what I can offer. "#4) ASUS XONAR SE 5.1 Channel Best for minimal audio distortion. ASUS XONAR SE 5.1 Channel ASUS XONAR SE 5.1 Channel is praised for its defined bass and immersive sound quality. This is due to the 192kHz/24-bit Hi-Res audio with a 300ohm that the card provides. The product delivers a crystal clear sound ratio which is exceptional to use. It also comes with updated audio cables, which can provide a minimum balance of distortion and interference. This includes a 110 dB SNR option. The product has a decent voice technology option." Takeaways from this. A card with a higher Signal To Noise Ratio will produce less distortion. Audio cables and interfaces will affect audio quality. This card comes with updated cables. You might first try upgrading any audio interface cables if they're old, cheap, low quality. I hope this is helpful.
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
--- Original Message ---
On Sunday, April 16th, 2023 at 10:36 AM, Rich Shepard
wrote:
> On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote:
>
> > > I'm stuck at the first command:
> > > $ mason.build
> > > -bash: mason.build: command not found
>
> > Run the command provided in their README.
> > $ meson build
>
>
> Ben,
>
> Isn't that what I did with bash telling me the command's not found?
>
> Now, combining the first two lines from the README's build and install
> section I get this result:
> $ sh meson.build
> meson.build: line 1: syntax error near unexpected token
> `'pulseaudio-equalizer-ladspa',' meson.build: line 1:`
> project('pulseaudio-equalizer-ladspa','
>
> Regards,
>
> Rich
As mentioned in their instructions, you run the meson command with the build
argument.
$ meson build
That is 'meson' then a SPACE then 'build'. They didn't tell you to run
meson.build, so why are you executing the file manually? Did you just assume
that they made a mistake?
-Ben
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Ben Koenig wrote:
I'm stuck at the first command:
$ mason.build
-bash: mason.build: command not found
Run the command provided in their README.
$ meson build
Ben,
Isn't that what I did with bash telling me the command's not found?
Now, combining the first two lines from the README's build and install
section I get this result:
$ sh meson.build
meson.build: line 1: syntax error near unexpected token `'pulseaudio-equalizer-ladspa','
meson.build: line 1: `project('pulseaudio-equalizer-ladspa','
Regards,
Rich
Re: [PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
--- Original Message --- On Sunday, April 16th, 2023 at 10:11 AM, Rich Shepard wrote: > To build LAD's improved fork of pulseaudio-equalizer I built the two > dependencies not present on my system: ladswa and fftw. Now I have all > needed dependencies: > ## Dependencies > > * Meson ≥ 0.46 & Ninja > * GTK+ 3 > * Python ≥ 2.7 or 3 > * PyGObject ≥ 3.30 > * SWH Plugins > * Pulseaudio > * bash & bc > > and when I try to implement the build sequence: > ## Build & Install > > ```sh > meson build > cd build > ninja > (sudo) ninja install > > I'm stuck at the first command: > $ mason.build > -bash: mason.build: command not found > [rshepard@salmo pulseaudio-equalizer]$ ./meson.build > -bash: ./meson.build: Permission denied > > The mason.build perms are: > -rw-r--r-- 1 rshepard users 738 Apr 16 09:45 meson.build > > What have I done incorrectly? > > TIA, > > Rich Run the command provided in their README. $ meson build -Ben
[PLUG] Building pulseaudio-equalizer
To build LAD's improved fork of pulseaudio-equalizer I built the two dependencies not present on my system: ladswa and fftw. Now I have all needed dependencies: ## Dependencies * [Meson](https://mesonbuild.com/) ≥ 0.46 & [Ninja](https://ninja-build.org/) * [GTK+](https://www.gtk.org/) 3 * [Python](https://www.python.org/) ≥ 2.7 or 3 * [PyGObject](https://pygobject.readthedocs.io/en/latest/) ≥ 3.30 * [SWH Plugins](https://github.com/swh/ladspa) * [Pulseaudio](https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Software/PulseAudio/) * [bash](https://www.gnu.org/software/bash/) & [bc](https://www.gnu.org/software/bc/) and when I try to implement the build sequence: ## Build & Install ```sh meson build cd build ninja (sudo) ninja install I'm stuck at the first command: $ mason.build -bash: mason.build: command not found [rshepard@salmo pulseaudio-equalizer]$ ./meson.build -bash: ./meson.build: Permission denied The mason.build perms are: -rw-r--r-- 1 rshepard users 738 Apr 16 09:45 meson.build What have I done incorrectly? TIA, Rich
Re: [PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
On Sun, 16 Apr 2023, Rich Shepard wrote: Please provide recommendations for an add-in PCIe audio card that outputs clear voice as well as music to speakers and headphones/headsets. I decided to purchase a Creative Sound Blaster Audigy FX card. I'll find out if it improves voice clarity in the speakers and headphone. The ProSonis Eris E3.5 monitors can control high (>10kHz) and low (~100Hz) frequecies by +/-6dB. But, there's still too much bass so voices are not clear. Using alsamixer I can control volumes, but not equalize frequency bands. There's source code for pulseaudio equalizer @ freedesktop.org. Has anyone here used this? Rich
[PLUG] Audio card for clear voice output
The audio voice output quality from my Asus Prime X470-Pro is distorted and unacceptable. I finally figured out that this is the issue with online meetings and news/youtube videos, not the speakers (although I just replaced the Creative Pebbles with ProSonus studio monitors). Searching the web (including Amazon) for PCIe sound cards that provide clear voice output was unsuccessful because all card descriptions and ratings focus on music, surround sound, or gaming output. I don't have any experience to know whether reviews that say the sound from streaming movies is really good means that I'll have high quality voice output from Zoom and Jitsi meetings and web-based videos. Please provide recommendations for an add-in PCIe audio card that outputs clear voice as well as music to speakers and headphones/headsets. TIA, Rich
