Re: Need help getting ALSA to work in Sarge

[Katipo <katipo@weavers-web.org>]

Paul E Condon wrote:
> I'm running Sarge, X windows, and Gnome. I have a CMI8738 sound card.
> Sound works under Knoppix, so my problem is with software and dummy
> user. I've installed all the stuff that has alsa in its package name and
> that seems plausibly necessary. I've run alsaconf. Before I started this
> project I already had a sound volume icon on my top menu bar. Now I
> expect that it should work, but it doesn't. There is a diagonal bar 
> across it, which I suppose indicates that sound is disabled, and I do
> indeed have no sound.
>
> When I click on the volume control, I get and error message window:
> Couldn't open mixer device /dev/sound/mixer
> This puzzles me. Shouldn't the required device software have been set
> up by the install scripts? Is there a 'Sound on Debian for Dummies' 
> that I can look at?
>
> Thanks
Hello Paul,

The two stumbling blocks I found with alsa were:-
(1) Opening alsamixer in a console, and then unmuting volumn controls;
(2) Adding myself to the user group so that I had access.
Regards,

David.