Sound Volume problem

bdbgittyhubby

Hello, I have been using GhostBSD for a while and have been positive experience so far. . The only problem I have come around is the low sound Volume I don't know why but the sound Volume is Very low even though set to Maximum volume. Does Anybody had the same problem and know how to fix it ?

dmesg|grep pcm gives me:
pcm0: <Intel Broadwell (HDMI/DP 8ch)> at nid 3 on hdaa0
pcm1: <Realtek ALC255 (Analog)> at nid 20 and 25 on hdaa1
pcm2: <Realtek ALC255 (Left Analog Headphones)> at nid 33 on hdaa1
cat /dev/sndstat gives me:
Installed devices:
pcm0: <Intel Broadwell (HDMI/DP 8ch)> (play)
pcm1: <Realtek ALC255 (Analog)> (play/rec) default
pcm2: <Realtek ALC255 (Left Analog Headphones)> (play)
No devices installed from userspace.

Sorry, I don't know how to proceed from here .

I don't know why but sometimes the problem seems to just 'fix itself up'. For instance now when playing with settings or sometime playing with Volume controls its beginning to work like it always Should ..

vimanuelt

Mixer Gui provides a GTK3-based graphical user interface for managing audio settings on GhostBSD and FreeBSD systems. It supports both the native OSS (Open Sound System) via the mixer command and the PulseAudio sound server via the pactl command, with automatic audio back-end detection.

Users can select audio devices, view and control multiple channels simultaneously with vertical sliders, manage mute states, and filter channels. The application also supports saving and loading audio profiles.

fetch xcrsz/mixerguiblob/main/mixergui
chmod +x mixergui
sudo ./mixergui

bdbgittyhubby

Thank you. Can I ask you What is a sound server and How does automatic audio back-end detection Works ?

vimanuelt

bdbgittyhubby
In FreeBSD and GhostBSD, a sound server is a background software layer that manages and routes audio streams between applications and audio hardware. It acts as a middleman, allowing multiple programs to play or record sound simultaneously, while handling mixing, volume control, and sometimes network audio streaming.

Automatic audio back-end detection works by querying the environment and available system resources to determine which audio system (or "back end") is active or preferable.

bdbgittyhubby

Thank you Very Much. Could this automatic audio back-end detection be the Root of a problem? Like the system (erronously)'recognizes' that the volume is way to high while in Reality it is really set to Low. . . Can you please elaborate maybe only in few words on How to set-up a different sound server? if I ever wanted one or to change it. Thanks ..

vimanuelt

bdbgittyhubby
Yes, GhostBSD uses OSS as the underlying audio system, and PulseAudio is enabled by default on top of it. OSS is part of the FreeBSD kernel and communicates directly with the sound hardware. PulseAudio acts as a sound server layered above OSS, providing features like per-application volume control, software mixing, Bluetooth audio support, and network audio streaming.

In this setup, PulseAudio sends its output through OSS. While this usually works well, it can sometimes cause problems such as low volume or incorrect audio routing. For example, PulseAudio may choose the wrong output device, like HDMI instead of speakers, or its internal volume settings may be too low even if the OSS mixer is set to maximum.

If you experience low sound volume, it may be due to PulseAudio overriding or mismanaging OSS settings. You can inspect or adjust PulseAudio’s volume levels using the pactl command or the pavucontrol GUI, if installed.

bdbgittyhubby

Thank you for your time. I will see what I can do!