17.9 Configuring a Sound Card Under Linux
Linux support of audio adapters is
specific to the Linux distribution and audio adapter you are using.
You can avoid most audio configuration problems by making sure your
audio adapter is explicitly supported by the Linux distribution you
intend to run. Before you install Linux, check the hardware
compatibility list and support pages for the distribution, as well as
the web site for the audio adapter manufacturer.
Using an outdated Linux distribution and an older audio adapter is a
recipe for trouble. Recent Linux distributions automatically detect
and configure nearly all recent audio adapters and most older models.
If your audio adapter is not detected but is AC97-compliant, you may
be able to use the i810_audio module, which allows many AC97 audio
chipsets to provide at least basic audio functionality.
If you have an older audio adapter, or a recent adapter that is not
supported by your Linux distribution, you may be able to use the
adapter by installing the Advanced Linux Sound
Architecture (ALSA) drivers
(http://www.alsa-project.org/).
Unfortunately, installing ALSA drivers may be difficult for
inexperienced users because it requires either compiling the ALSA
drivers into the kernel or building them separately as modules. The
good news is that ALSA is being incorporated as a standard part of
the Linux kernel. When the next major version of the Linux kernel is
released, every Linux distribution will by default use this much more
capable sound card driver architecture.
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If you encounter compatibility problems with an older sound card or
embedded audio adapter, by far the easiest solution is to remove or
disable the adapter and install an inexpensive modern PCI sound card
that is explicitly supported by your Linux distribution. Spending $25
may save you hours of recompiling kernels and tweaking arcane
parameters, and the sound will probably be a lot better as
well.
Choose something other than a Creative Labs Sound Blaster. Based
on our own experience and that of others, we do not use or recommend
Sound Blaster audio adapters. For example, well-known Open Source
advocate Eric S. Raymond gave up in disgust, saying in part,
"The Linux support for the SB Live! seems to be
fragile and flaky. Troubleshooting it turned into a significant time
sink and frustration source. In late January I finally got fed up and
replaced it with a no-name PCI sound card. Later, the SB Live! went
back in, but I'm now nervous about even upgrading my
OS for fear the sound configuration will break
again."
If ESR can't make a Sound
Blaster work reliably under Linux, we're not even
going to try.
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The utilities used to configure a sound card vary
by distribution. For example, Red Hat uses sndconfig, while for
Slackware you must edit the Sound Support section of the file
/etc/rc.d/rc.modules. For more information,
refer to the documentation for your distribution.
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