Member Avatar for jleach45

I installed Mandrake 9.2 on a Laptop. It didn't detect the sound but I used sndconfig and configured it. I guess the problem is I don't get sound as user. What can I do?

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)BIG"B"Affleck commented: Post back +30

Dani AI

Generated

Brief, practical checklist to follow given the thread so far: since heard the sndconfig sample but the KDE test produced no sound, the kernel driver is probably present while a user-level access or sound-server issue is preventing normal users from hearing audio. 's permission hint and 's module advice are both relevant; the next steps focus on group/permission checks and whether a daemon is holding the device.

Check group membership and add the account to the audio group if missing:

id
groups
sudo usermod -a -G audio <username>    # add without removing existing groups

(If the platform’s usermod lacks -a, use gpasswd -a <username> audio or safely edit /etc/group. A session logout/login is required for changes to take effect.)

Look for a sound server or another process that has the audio device open (these can run as root and block other users):

ps aux | egrep -i "artsd|esd|esound|aoss"
fuser -v /dev/dsp
lsof /dev/dsp

If a daemon owns the device, restart or reconfigure it so it runs with the correct privileges or uses a mixer/multiplexer (aRts, ESD or similar).

Verify OSS vs ALSA mismatch and driver state (mixers and device list):

cat /proc/asound/cards
aplay -l
alsamixer
dmesg | tail

If applications expect the other API, use the appropriate compatibility wrapper (for example an OSS-ALSA bridge) or install the correct sound package. Common quick tests: play a short WAV with aplay (ALSA) or via the system sound test both as root and as the normal account to compare behavior.

Tie-in: was right to suspect a sound server; ’s permission angle is also correct—most cases like this turn out to be group/daemon/permission related rather than a missing driver.

Recommended Answers

All 11 Replies

Member Avatar for )BIG"B"Affleck

Make sure your not muting it to begin with.

Member Avatar for Dani

When you ran sndconfig, you heard Linus Torvalds welcome you to Linux? (or whatever message that is that plays?) Does root hear sound but other users don't?? I'm a bit confused what exactly the problem is.

Member Avatar for )BIG"B"Affleck

I think what he is saying is (strickly assuming) that my soundcard is not working. If thats the case'


  • Go to your Mandrake Control Centre:
  • Hardware
  • HardDrake lists and help you to set up your hardware.
  • Click on your soundcard
  • Click on: Run config tool
  • Then choose the driver: i810_audio ect....
Member Avatar for jleach45

When I installed Mandrake it din't detect my soundcard. I used sndconfig and yes I heard the sound samp;e. I went into KDE System Notification because you can test the sound. I tried to test it but no sound was heard. I checked aumix and nothing seems to be muted, Mandrake supports the integrated sound, it's a Crystal audio cs423x. Thanks

Member Avatar for )BIG"B"Affleck

What was the brand of that laptop?
Resource:

Member Avatar for jleach45

IBM Thinkpad 560X, PII233mhz,64MMB Ram. 4.0GB hard drive. Mandrake detected everything but sound.

Member Avatar for fsn812

Does mandrake have a sound server that needs to be started? Also, check your aumix settings to insure they are not getting reset (Main, PCM...) to zero when you log out.

Member Avatar for jleach45

Aumix doesn't get reset to 0, I have checked it. If it has one, how do I initialize the sound server? Thanks

Member Avatar for )BIG"B"Affleck

(suggestion)Give everyone read and write presmission on

/dev/sound/dsp

Make sure the permissions and ownership are all setup right erego:

Uranus:~ $ ll /dev/dsp*
lrwxrwxrwx	1 root	 root			 4:20 /dev/dsp ->
/dev/dsp0
crw-rw----	1 root	 audio	 4:20 /dev/dsp0
crw-rw----	1 root	 audio	 4:20 /dev/dsp1
crw-rw----	1 root	 audio	 4:20 /dev/dsp2
crw-rw----	1 root	 audio	 4:20 /dev/dsp3
Member Avatar for Dominick

lsmod - lists the kernel modules (specifcally the sound modules)
modprobe - will add kernel modules
rmmod will remove kernel modules
modinfo will tell you what the purpose of a module is

treat playing with kernel modules with kid gloves. Dont play around. Remove what you have to and dont go overboard.

Member Avatar for WEATHER CHANNEL

Listen to Affleck.

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