Can't adjust headphone volume [SOLVED]

Problems and successes with specific brands/models of computer audio hardware
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sheldonisaac
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Can't adjust headphone volume [SOLVED]

#1 Post by sheldonisaac »

I got a used Dell D610 Latitude laptop some months ago.

Primarily I use Lucid Puppy 5.2.8-005.

Yesterday I plugged in headphones, and find that I can't adjust the volume in Pmusic.

Please let me know how to fix it, or where to ask.

(Previously I'd used only the built-in speakers, and the volume adjusting worked OK.)



Thanks,

Sheldon
Last edited by sheldonisaac on Sat 27 Oct 2012, 11:59, edited 2 times in total.

musher0
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#2 Post by musher0 »

Hello, sheldon.

Have you tried controlling the volume with the mixer app in the tray instead of with pmusic?

You should have a loudspeaker icon in your tray. (See attached picture.) Left-click on it and a slide bar will appear. You can then modulate the volume by clicking on a particular level on the slide bar.

I hope this helps.
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musher0
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sheldonisaac
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#3 Post by sheldonisaac »

musher0 wrote:Hello, sheldon.

Have you tried controlling the volume with the mixer app in the tray instead of with pmusic?
Yes, thank you, musher0 - it has no effect; I think the headphones are at the highest volume?

However, if I right-click, I can choose "Full Window" and get a Retrovol with lots of sliders, including headphone.
You should have a loudspeaker icon in your tray. (See attached picture.) Left-click on it and a slide bar will appear. You can then modulate the volume by clicking on a particular level on the slide bar.

I hope this helps.
That has always worked fine for the built-in speakers.

I will try the same software on a 'desktop' computer, to see whether this hardware has something to do with the problem.

I posted a new question, out of concern that adding to another thread mught be considered wrong.

If there is somewhere else to ask, I'll be glad to try.

Thanks,

Sheldon

musher0
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#4 Post by musher0 »

Hi, Sheldon.

Hum.. I once had a problem on dpup 4.84 with sgmixer. It's a very complete mixer, but every once and a while, using it, for some reason, made the "mixer" device at /dev/mixer disappear, and I'd have to recopy it from /initrd/pup_ro2/dev/mixer.

Of course, if you don't have a mixer device available, you can't have sound.
Maybe check if a "mixer" device exists in your /dev directory?

Let us know. BFN.
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CatDude
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#5 Post by CatDude »

Hello sheldonisaac
sheldonisaac wrote: However, if I right-click, I can choose "Full Window" and get a Retrovol with lots of sliders, including headphone.
Have you tried increasing the PCM level in retrovol ?
That effects the volume in pmusic and the browser here.

Catdude
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sheldonisaac
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#6 Post by sheldonisaac »

musher0 wrote:Hi, Sheldon.

Hum.. I once had a problem on dpup 4.84 with sgmixer. It's a very complete mixer, but every once and a while, using it, for some reason, made the "mixer" device at /dev/mixer disappear, and I'd have to recopy it from /initrd/pup_ro2/dev/mixer.

Of course, if you don't have a mixer device available, you can't have sound.
Maybe check if a "mixer" device exists in your /dev directory?

Let us know. BFN.
Seems to be there?

Code: Select all

crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 14, 11 2005-02-27 16:07 /dev/amixer
crw-rw---- 1 root root 14,  0 2012-10-25 07:27 /dev/mixer
crw-rw---- 1 root root 14, 16 2012-04-04 07:11 /dev/mixer1
crw-rw---- 1 root root 14, 32 2012-04-04 07:11 /dev/mixer2

sheldonisaac
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Location: Philadelphia, PA

#7 Post by sheldonisaac »

CatDude wrote:Hello sheldonisaac
sheldonisaac wrote: However, if I right-click, I can choose "Full Window" and get a Retrovol with lots of sliders, including headphone.
Have you tried increasing the PCM level in retrovol ?
That effects the volume in pmusic and the browser here.
.
Catdude, the PCM in Retrovol is at maximum.
Neither the slider in Pmusic or the "regular" volume control (little speaker icon at bottom of screen) can change the headphone volume.

As I said, those controls do work if the headphone is not plugged in, ie they control the volume of the computer's speakers.

Thanks,
Sheldon

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greengeek
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#8 Post by greengeek »

sheldonisaac wrote:However, if I right-click, I can choose "Full Window" and get a Retrovol with lots of sliders, including headphone.
Did that headphone slider have any effect on the headphone volume? And is the problem excessive volume, or insufficient volume?

sheldonisaac
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#9 Post by sheldonisaac »

greengeek wrote:
sheldonisaac wrote:However, if I right-click, I can choose "Full Window" and get a Retrovol with lots of sliders, including headphone.
Did that headphone slider have any effect on the headphone volume? And is the problem excessive volume, or insufficient volume?
Yes, greengeek, thank you.
In the Retrovol window, both the PCM slider and the headphone slider can make the headphone volume louder or quieter.

The problem was excessive volume and the inability to control.
I can use the PCM or the headphone slider to set the headphone volume to an acceptable level, but am still unable to use the "regular" volume control, or the Pmusic slider. I see now that hovering over the latter says "Speaker channel: Master".

Just tried to right-click an mp3 file, and chose "Play with Gnome-mplayer"
The volume control in that software does work.
----------------

EDIT: Oops. Blush.

In Pmusic preferences, one can set the "Speaker channel" to several different things. I set it to PCM.
Now Pmusic's volume slider works to control loudness of headphones.

Maybe I should have asked in the Pmusic thread.

Thanks a lot, everyone.

Sheldon

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