Hello, I use debian:

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me@atmybox:~$cat /etc/debian_version
squeeze/sid


I was slightly distracted when a notification came up:

"Do you want KDE to permanently forget about these devices? This is the list of devices KDE thinks can be removed:"

And then it outputted my current sound devices. I accidentally clicked yes, and from then on I had no sound. I wish to both ask for help and point out this problem with Phonon. It is a PROBLEM, because it is a feature that should not have been implemented. Permanently removing a sound device so easily should never have been approved.

Now, the devices with which I could get sound are greyed out in the sound management frontend for Phonon in System Settings. I have tried deleting phonondevicesrc and kmixrc in ~/.kde/share/config and restarting the system, to no avail. I also tried restoring a copy of ~/.config/kde.org from my Opensuse 11.2 system with working sound, as well as copies of kmixrc and phonondevicesrc, also to no avail.

Please help, thanks.

Can you please remove the contents of /var/tmp/kdecache-$USER/libphonon/ outside KDE?

Thanks for replying,

While waiting for a reply, however, I felt itchy linux fingers and tried to fix the problem on my own. I purged all my KDE 4 packages as well as my alsa packages (alsa base, libs, tools, tools-gui, utils, mixergui), albeit however leaving my OSS sound packages, in an attempt to reset everything. Currently, I am downloading all the required packages for KDE for a local install as aptitude is posing me woes.

Please bear with me before I am able to rule out one method at a time, and get to your method, which should be soon.

Thanks.

Hello! I'm back...

It took quite a while sorting out dependencies manually, (of course, I didn't spend ALL that time in between doing that, finishing a Physics course in under a month was my main priority) but I was finally successful and got my GUI up and running as good as new.

Now, turning my attention back to the sound problem, I did as you asked:

Can you please remove the contents of /var/tmp/kdecache-$USER/libphonon/ outside KDE?

The contents of the libphonon directory were a single file: hardware...errr hardware-something, can't quite remember as I have now deleted it as you asked. Though I do remember checking what the file contained, and it was a text file, seemingly mixed-mode with information about sound hardware in general, not specifically mine (ie. it listed a realtek audio entry, which is not a card on my box).

After I deleted it from "console login" as root, (one of the choices under "Menu" at login to kde 4), I returned to Kde desktop and immediately was notified that the default sound device was not working, and that kde was switching to OSS sound server/device. (something like that) I checked the sound devices listed in Phonon under system settings, and found none specifically listing the preferred Audigy sound card I have installed in my machine. Those listed were:

Alsa Default Output
OSS Default Output
Jack Audio Connection Kit

I clicked "Test" to test sound for each, and none produced.

Also, here's some more information from me:

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me@mybox:~$cat /proc/asound/cards
cat: /proc/asound/cards: No such file or directory


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me@mybox:~$cd /proc ; ls
1     1368  177   2132  2262  29         cpuinfo      net
10    1369  18    2138  2263  3          crypto       opensound
1005  1373  19    2141  2264  30         devices      pagetypeinfo
1033  1383  193   2147  2265  31         diskstats    partitions
1044  14    2     2149  2266  32         dma          sched_debug
1086  1445  20    2151  2267  33         driver       self
1098  1470  2058  2155  2268  34         execdomains  slabinfo
11    1471  2085  2157  2269  35         fb           softirqs
1118  15    2086  2173  2270  36         filesystems  stat
1124  1541  2087  2175  2271  4          fs           swaps
1142  16    2088  2177  2272  426        interrupts   sys
1144  1619  2089  22    2273  445        iomem        sysrq-trigger
1160  166   2090  2245  23    5          ioports      sysvipc
1164  1667  2091  2246  24    500        irq          timer_list
1196  167   2092  2247  2400  501        kallsyms     timer_stats
12    1670  2094  2248  2404  6          kcore        tty
1207  1671  2097  2249  2408  7          keys         uptime
1216  168   21    2250  2412  714        key-users    version
1218  169   2100  2251  2413  717        kmsg         vmallocinfo
1242  17    2101  2252  2415  783        kpagecount   vmstat
1251  170   2104  2253  25    795        kpageflags   zoneinfo
1256  1709  2106  2254  2506  8          loadavg
1257  1710  2117  2255  2508  9          locks
13    172   2121  2257  2572  acpi       meminfo
1320  1721  2125  2258  2577  buddyinfo  misc
1346  1723  2128  2259  2593  bus        modules
1356  174   2129  2260  28    cgroups    mounts
1357  176   2130  2261  286   cmdline    mtrr


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me@mybox:~$cd opensound
bash: cd: opensound/: Permission denied
me@mybox:~$su -c "cd opensound"
Password:                                                           
me@mybox:~$pwd                               
/proc


As a final note as well, upon verbose init "No Alsa modules loaded"/"none loaded" is listed.

So, in summary, I am still in need of your help.

Please instruct me as to what I can do next.


Thanks

You need to configure ALSA appropriately to be able to use your sound card. This issue is not the fault of Phonon.

Unfortunately, this configuration existed prior to the removal of my soundcards by Phonon. No longer, I'm afraid. I had perfectly working sound, except for youtube which is a very common problem, perhaps requiring some extra software/flash configuration. Phonon may in fact have totally removed the entries deep in the OS or something, because that's how it's seeming...? Before, I had working kernel modules from alsa...sheesh. I guess I'd have to recompile them or something...

The strange thing that persists to incriminate Phonon is that when I just tried copying over libphonon.conf, phonon-xine.conf, kmixrc, phonondevicesrc from a working sound system (OpenSUSE) a SECOND time just now, my true card was listed again (the Audigy) but was greyed out again just like in the beginning. NOW,..this is AFTER i have deleted the contents of kdecache-$USER/libphonon in /var/tmp. STRANGE!

NOTE: Alsa is listed as fully reinstalled by dpkg-query -- package-wise, that is -- since last time.

Phonon is unable to break any ALSA configurations, as it only has knowledge of the library used to decode audio such as Xine or GStreamer.

I would recommend that you check that the appropriate scripts which load modules are being run, and that they are not blacklisted.

I fixed it so that alsa loads and soundcards are fully listed now....

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me@mybox:~$cat /proc/asound/cards
 0 [ICH5           ]: ICH4 - Intel ICH5
                      Intel ICH5 with AD1980 at irq 17
 1 [Audigy         ]: Audigy - SB Audigy 1 [SB0092]
                      SB Audigy 1 [SB0092] (rev.3, serial:0x531102) at 0xdf20, irq 19
me@mybox:~$aplay mario_02.wav
Playing WAVE 'mario_02.wav' : Signed 16 bit Little Endian, Rate 11025 Hz, Mono


My sound devices are now listed in phonon and are not greyed out, but still nothing is heard. Could it be modules are being loaded that conflict? From my lsmod output, a lot of snd* modules are being loaded:

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snd_emux_synth         21890  1 snd_emu10k1_synth
snd_seq_virmidi         2955  1 snd_emux_synth
snd_seq_midi_emul       3554  1 snd_emux_synth
snd_emu10k1           104712  2 snd_emu10k1_synth
snd_seq_midi            3576  0
snd_seq_midi_event      3684  2 snd_seq_virmidi,snd_seq_midi
snd_rawmidi            12505  3 snd_seq_virmidi,snd_emu10k1,snd_seq_midi
snd_intel8x0           19523  5
emu10k1_gp              1238  0
gameport                6061  2 emu10k1_gp
snd_ac97_codec         79148  2 snd_emu10k1,snd_intel8x0
snd_util_mem            1548  2 snd_emux_synth,snd_emu10k1
snd_hwdep               4054  2 snd_emux_synth,snd_emu10k1
snd_pcm                47210  5 snd_emu10k1,snd_intel8x0,snd_ac97_codec
snd_seq                35463  5 snd_emux_synth,snd_seq_virmidi,snd_seq_midi_emul,snd_seq_midi,snd_seq_midi_event
snd_timer              12258  5 snd_emu10k1,snd_pcm,snd_seq
snd_seq_device          3673  5 snd_emu10k1_synth,snd_emu10k1,snd_seq_midi,snd_rawmidi,snd_seq
snd                    34363  19 snd_emux_synth,snd_seq_virmidi,snd_emu10k1,snd_rawmidi,snd_intel8x0,snd_ac97_codec,snd_hwdep,snd_pcm,snd_seq,snd_timer,snd_seq_device
soundcore               3450  1 snd
snd_page_alloc          5045  3 snd_emu10k1,snd_intel8x0,snd_pcm


Please note that the Intel ICH5 sound device is not connected to speakers so I will not get sound from it. I prefer the Audigy. It's what I use in Windows.

Please make sure that Pulseaudio is not installed, and ensure that the Audigy is at the top of Phonon's list in all categories.

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:~$ dpkg-query -l pulse*
Desired=Unknown/Install/Remove/Purge/Hold
| Status=Not/Inst/Conf-files/Unpacked/halF-conf/Half-inst/trig-aWait/Trig-pend
|/ Err?=(none)/Reinst-required (Status,Err: uppercase=bad)
||/ Name                Version             Description
+++-===================-===================-======================================================
un  pulseaudio          <none>              (no description available)


pulseaudio seems uninstalled. (un)

All entries in Phonon produce no sound, upon clicking test for each. I tried clicking the test button for all the audigy entries in each category. Since I cannot get sound for any entry, I can't find the one to move to the top.

If you use "aplay" or another non Phonon application, such as MPlayer, does it work? Also, check that no other application has the audio interface open:

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lsof /dev/snd/

just used aplay above, no sound.

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:~$aplay ~/Downloads/mario_02.wav
Playing WAVE '/home/optimus/Downloads/mario_02.wav' : Signed 16 bit Little Endian, Rate 11025 Hz, Mono


I was able to get sound working through the Intel ICH5 device, connecting the speakers to it, but my beloved audigy breathes not.

The reason I was forced to try the Intel ICH5 was because something very annoying happened. I deleted "hardwaredatabase" from /var/tmp/kdecache-$USER/libphonon to try to reset everything again, and when I logged back in to KDE after a reboot it asked me the age old question - shall I permanently forget your Audigy? I checked don't ask me again and clicked no, only to find my audigy completely gone from Phonon again, but Intel ICH5 still intact. Since it was still there, and sound kept falling back to intel as per the notifications in the sys tray, I plugged in the old clunker and played my game with sound at last. aargh........

NOTE: lsof found nothing

What is the output of "aplay -l"? It is possible that the needed ALSA configuration to get your Audigy sound card working hasn't been finished.

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~$ aplay -l
**** List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****
card 0: ICH5 [Intel ICH5], device 0: Intel ICH [Intel ICH5]
  Subdevices: 0/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 0: ICH5 [Intel ICH5], device 4: Intel ICH - IEC958 [Intel ICH5 - IEC958]
  Subdevices: 0/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0


Your Audigy sound card is not listed in that output... please check your ALSA configuration. Your distribution forums may be able to point you to which files need to be altered and which packages installed.