Very Computer

I've experienced a problem with recording audio with my SB16 card under _any_
version of Linux (I'm currently using 2.0.26) I've used, namely it dosen't.  
When I run
dd bs=8k count=4 </dev/audio >sample.au  it prints out the results:
4+0 records in
4+0 records out

But when I perform a cat sample.au >/dev/audio all I get is silence.  I have no problem
playing back audio in (almost) any form, so I know that my sound card is working.
But this has got me puzzled, and really this wouldn't have been much more than
a curiosity for me except that when I tried to use Ears it wouldn't learn sounds,
and I think that would be related to my recording problem.  I've been through the
HOWTO and gleaned what I can from the newsgroups if there is a FAQ I've missed or
some other detail that I've missed (What?  SB16 won't record?!?;^b) I would greatly
appreciate a pointer.

Thanks in advance,

Keith
--
_/_/_/ Keith Evenden                I do not care to belong to a club that
/_/_/                               accepts people like me as members.
 /_/                                -Groucho Marx (1890-1977)
  /    http://www.peak.org/~kevenden  

What you probably need to do is adjust the mixer settings. First of all, if
you don't have it, get an appropriate version of snd-util. (Refer to
/usr/src/linux/Documentation/* and /usr/src/linux/drivers/sound/Readme to
determine what version is appropriate and where to get it.) Compile the
mixer program contained therein. (gcc mixer.c -o mixer) Then do something
like this:

  mixer mic 100  # Enable sampling from the microphone, at max sensitivity
  mixer igain 10  # input gain up but not too far
  mixer vol 75  # Speaker volume up

By this point you should be able to speak into the microphone and hear your
voice come out the speakers. If not, gradually increase the "vol" and
"igain" values. Next:

  mixer +rec mic  # Make sure mic is enabled as a recording source

This last command should tell you which recording sources are currently
active. If there are any which you aren't using, turn them off, e.g. "mixer
-rec line"

Now, try copying from /dev/audio or /dev/dsp.

This stumped me for a while too, once, so don't feel bad. :)

Regards,
Alex.
--
Alex Butcher - Micro Support Technician  Tel +44 (0)117 928 9000 x3038
Computing Service, University of Bristol, Tyndall Ave. Bristol BS8 1UD
http://www.cse.bris.ac.uk/~ccajb/Welcome.html  #include <stdisclaim.h>

Quote:> What you probably need to do is adjust the mixer settings. First of all, if
> you don't have it, get an appropriate version of snd-util. (Refer to
> /usr/src/linux/Documentation/* and /usr/src/linux/drivers/sound/Readme to
> determine what version is appropriate and where to get it.) Compile the
> mixer program contained therein. (gcc mixer.c -o mixer) Then do something
> like this:

Quote:>   mixer mic 100  # Enable sampling from the microphone, at max sensitivity
>   mixer igain 10  # input gain up but not too far
>   mixer vol 75  # Speaker volume up

> By this point you should be able to speak into the microphone and hear your
> voice come out the speakers. If not, gradually increase the "vol" and
> "igain" values. Next:

Quote:>   mixer +rec mic  # Make sure mic is enabled as a recording source

> This last command should tell you which recording sources are currently
> active. If there are any which you aren't using, turn them off, e.g. "mixer
> -rec line"

> Now, try copying from /dev/audio or /dev/dsp.

Keith
--
_/_/_/ Keith Evenden                I do not care to belong to a club that
/_/_/                               accepts people like me as members.
 /_/                                -Groucho Marx (1890-1977)
  /    http://www.peak.org/~kevenden  

[Posted and mailed]

Quote:> I've experienced a problem with recording audio with my SB16
> [snip]
> I would greatly appreciate a pointer.

Hope this helps,

Thor Sigvaldason