[pulseaudio-tickets] [PulseAudio] #139: HAL module only adds the first ALSA device of each card

[PulseAudio]

#139: HAL module only adds the first ALSA device of each card
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  Reporter:  juergbi        |       Owner:  lennart 
      Type:  enhancement    |      Status:  reopened
  Priority:  normal         |   Milestone:          
 Component:  module-alsa-*  |    Severity:  normal  
Resolution:                 |    Keywords:          
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Comment (by lennart):

 Replying to [comment:15 markfal]:

 > But it does not make any sense to just ignore the issue. ALSA has that
 information, it is a failure of hal-detect to get it and pass it on to
 pavucontrol so it can be presented to the user that is the real issue
 here.

 ALSA does not export this information right now. There is the the naming
 hinting code, but it is incomplete, usually wrong and does not include
 information which devices are exclusive to each other and which are not.
 Currently there is no better way figure out the available device than
 trying to open them.

 > I have 5 output devices I would like to use but only 2 are available in
 pavucontrol and only one falls into the concerns that lennart expresses.
 When I try to add them manually as all I get is errors and the pa daemon
 refuses to start. So, as a result, I have only control over 2 speakers and
 my headphones working on separate sound cards and no way to control the
 sound on the other speakers and the sound to my TVs.

 If ALSA allows concurrent access to those devices you want to access
 concurrently, then PA will allow you to use them that way. If you say you
 get errors than this is either a sign that in fact those devices are not
 usable independantly -- or that your configuration is broken.

 > Pulse Audio makes it very easy to control sound over a network, but
 impossible to control sound around my living room.

 It's not exactly PulseAudio's fault. We build on top of ALSA, and ALSA is
 lacking in this area and needs to be fixed first.

 Rest assure that this general issue is not ignored. However, the problem
 is much harder to fix than most people might assume.

-- 
Ticket URL: <http://www.pulseaudio.org/ticket/139#comment:16>
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