# [PC-BSD 10.1] [Intel N3530] [snd_hda] Broken sound



## Tangaroa (Dec 15, 2014)

Using PCBSD 10.1 on an Intel N3530 ValleyView / Bay Trail system-on-a-chip, sound is completely broken as if some component were frozen and not responding.

Symptoms are:


`cat foo.wav > /dev/dsp0.0` or dsp1.0 produces: 
	
	



```
cat: stdout: Invalid argument
```

mplayer shows one frame of video and freezes
vlc does the same
mplayer

```
Audio device got stuck!
```

vlc: 
	
	



```
[8020cea50] OSS audio output error, cannot write samples: Invalid argument
```

systemsettings: OSS sound test causes systemsettings to hang
pc-soundconfig sound test on pcm0 does nothing
pc-soundconfig sound test on pcm1 sends a loud unmuteable jackhammer noise through system speakers or headphones
More details posted here: https://01.org/linuxgraphics/node/425
dmesg, sysctl outputs posted here: http://pastebin.com/9wmtducU

The snd_hda() driver recognizes that a Realtek codec exists but does not appear to identify the exact Realtek codec number. I have not been able to find a conclusive source for this information.

Adding 
	
	



```
snd_hda_load="YES"
```
 to loader.conf and rerunning `grub-mkconfig` produces a boot message to the effect that the sound module is already loaded.

I do not know how to diagnose sound issues like this and would appreciate any advice.


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## SirDice (Dec 15, 2014)

PC-BSD, FreeNAS, NAS4Free, and all other FreeBSD Derivatives


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## Tangaroa (Jan 1, 2015)

`sysctl dev.hdac.0.polling=1` gives me sound, but there are still problems.

When listening through the headphone jack using earbuds or cheap headphones, sounds are distorted to the point where one song has almost entirely lost its vocal track. It works well when I plug in a speaker system. I would like to listen to music through earbuds rather than the main speaker when I take my laptop on the road, and that probably goes for everyone else at Starbucks. In `vlc` and `smplayer`, turning on stereo left or stereo right removes the distortion. The stereo and stereo reverse modes give me distorted audio. Is there a way to force the jack to use mono output so sound will work in any program without needing to change this setting on a per-program basis?

Might anyone have an idea why the interrupt-based sound system was not working, or how one could go about diagnosing this issue?

`cat`ting a .wav to a dsp device still does not work. It produces either noise or silence but not music. Is .wav the wrong format to use?


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## chrbr (Jan 1, 2015)

Dear Tangaroa,
May be there are two possible issues regarding the sound.


Tangaroa said:


> When listening through the headphone jack using earbuds or cheap headphones, sounds are distorted to the point where one song has almost entirely lost its vocal track. It works well when I plug in a speaker system.


It can be that the impedance of the head phones is too low-ohmic for the output of the sound system. This causes distortions. The speaker systems usually have highohmic input impedance. Therefore there are no distortions related to low impedance.


Tangaroa said:


> n  vlc and  smplayer, turning on stereo left or stereo right removes the distortion. The stereo and stereo reverse modes give me distorted audio.


The 3.5mm stereo connectors are often of "difficult" quality. The metal part of the 3.5mm connector which is close to the cable is ground which is the reference. The second section and the tip provide left audio and right audio. If the connection is poor you might listen to "left minus right" instead of stereo which gives a strange sound impression.

Form my perspective it can easily be an hardware issue. Please try a different headphone or try to connect the headphone by a 3.5mm extension cable. Some speaker have an additional 3.5mm connector to attach headphones. Please try this as well if possible. And try the headphones elsewhere to ensure if they are really ok. Try test signals with left only, right only and mono only. I recommend not spend any money until the root cause is clear. First only try the hardware you have or you can borrow.


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