desktop-packages team mailing list archive

[David Chatterton <dmchatterton@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Regrettably, my suggestion that this bug report be closed is premature.

On switching on the laptop from cold this morning, I found that there
was nothing listed in the Systems Settings > Sound pane.

I chose to shut down and start up again. This time, I found the
Speakers, Built-in Audio listed but with the HDMI options shown.

I did a restart and found the same situation. However, I decided to plug
in a pair of headphones in an attempt to kick-start the system. This
brought up the panel asking to identify the type of headset. The
headphones appeared in the listing and the Test Sound button enabled me
to test the left and right channels for output. I then clicked on the
Speakers and found that the HDMI options had been replaced by the Test
Sound button. However, the left and right channel test sounds came
through the headphones and not through the speakers, even though the
speakers were highlighted. I then removed the headphones. Their menu
item disappeared and I was able to use the Test Sound button to get
sound from the speakers.

The point about this bug report is that the system does not function as
well as one could reasonably expect. I have a number of people who are
interested in moving away from the MS Windows environment and are
looking to me for a recommendation. Although Dell appear to manufacture
an excellent laptop in the form of the XPS 13, Dell still only supply it
with Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and include proprietary drivers for the Intel AC
7260 WiFi and Bluetooth chip. I believe that I have moved on
significantly by upgrading to 14.10 and using the latest v3.18 kernel
(as well as dispensing with the Dell-supplied drivers). I have great
expectations for 15.04 when it appears. However, I would not expect any
support from Dell for what I have done so far.  Until I can get the
laptop to perform reliably without intervention, my advice to those
wishing to move away from Windows is to bite the bullet and invest in an
Apple MacBook Pro running OS X 10.10.1. One can still run FOSS
applications such as LibreOffice and GIMP on the Mac but it is a pity
that Ubuntu has not yet arrived at the Mac's level of functionality,
although I hope that, by continuing to submit my bug reports, I can
contribute to Ubuntu's development.

-- 
You received this bug notification because you are a member of Desktop
Packages, which is subscribed to alsa-driver in Ubuntu.
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1402666

Title:
  [XPS13 9333, Intel Haswell HDMI, Digital Out, HDMI] Playback problem

Status in alsa-driver package in Ubuntu:
  Incomplete

Bug description:
  If an HDMI monitor is plugged into the video out and the Videos app is
  started, the Systems Settings > Sound > Output shows only the
  Speakers, Built-in Audio in the Play sound through listing. The HDMI
  option is not presented.

  The workaround is to open the VLC app which lists the Built-in Stereo (HDMI) option under its Audio > Audio Devices menu.
   
  When a video is started in VLC, having selected the HDMI option, the sound plays through the monitor speakers. The HDMI / Display Port , Built-in Audio item then appears in the Play sound through window, even though the selection highlight remains on Speakers. The sound output can be switched between either output by highlighting the chosen option.

  If VLC is closed and Videos is restarted, the sound now plays through
  the previously selected HDMI item and can be switched between the
  monitor and the laptop's speakers.

  What I regard as a bug is the failure of the HDMI option to appear in
  the Play sound through listing as soon as an HDMI monitor is plugged
  into the Display Port output. Obviously, VLC has the means to add this
  item but the Videos app does not seem to be able to do this by itself.

  In contrast, as soon as a previously paired set of Bluetooth headphone
  are turned on, the Headset does appear as a menu item in the listing.
  I would reasonably expect the plugging in of an HDMI monitor into the
  Display Port to automatically add this item as well as its affects on
  the Screen Display pane of Systems Settings.

  Note: the laptop is running Ubuntu 14.10 and the Linux kernel has
  recently been upgraded to v3.18 (Vivid).

  ProblemType: Bug
  DistroRelease: Ubuntu 14.10
  Package: alsa-base 1.0.25+dfsg-0ubuntu4
  Uname: Linux 3.18.0-031800-generic x86_64
  ApportVersion: 2.14.7-0ubuntu8
  Architecture: amd64
  AudioDevicesInUse:
   USER        PID ACCESS COMMAND
   /dev/snd/pcmC1D0c:   david      2242 F...m pulseaudio
   /dev/snd/controlC1:  david      2242 F.... pulseaudio
   /dev/snd/controlC0:  david      2242 F.... pulseaudio
  CurrentDesktop: Unity
  Date: Mon Dec 15 13:13:47 2014
  InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-12-11 (3 days ago)
  InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64 (20140722.2)
  PackageArchitecture: all
  ProcEnviron:
   LANGUAGE=en_GB:en
   PATH=(custom, no user)
   XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
   LANG=en_GB.UTF-8
   SHELL=/bin/bash
  SourcePackage: alsa-driver
  Symptom: audio
  Symptom_AlsaPlaybackTest: ALSA playback test through plughw:HDMI failed
  Symptom_Card: Built-in Audio - HDA Intel HDMI
  Symptom_Jack: Digital Out, HDMI
  Symptom_Type: None of the above
  Title: [XPS13 9333, Intel Haswell HDMI, Digital Out, HDMI] Playback problem
  UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to utopic on 2014-12-11 (3 days ago)
  dmi.bios.date: 09/11/2014
  dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
  dmi.bios.version: A05
  dmi.board.name: 0D13CR
  dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
  dmi.board.version: A00
  dmi.chassis.type: 8
  dmi.chassis.vendor: Dell Inc.
  dmi.chassis.version: 0.1
  dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnDellInc.:bvrA05:bd09/11/2014:svnDellInc.:pnXPS139333:pvr:rvnDellInc.:rn0D13CR:rvrA00:cvnDellInc.:ct8:cvr0.1:
  dmi.product.name: XPS13 9333
  dmi.sys.vendor: Dell Inc.

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