Quick & easy PulseAudio setup for Raspbian

[Jaco van der Merwe]

Hey folks,

Been a while ;)

Been looking around & can't really find a good answer/solution - LMGTFY only returns people with similar unresolved frustrations.

I've set up a new OSMC - a trimmed Kodi with stock Raspbian under the hood - & it works fine.  

I've loaded the a2dp-app-osmc component, paired my mobile & able to use said RasPi as an bluetooth speaker on my TV - default audio over HDMI.

What I NEED is to split it up - I'd still like to continue getting video's audio to the TV, so that I can adjust the volume with the remote & not wake the whole house, but I want the music I'm pushing to the Pi to go out over the HiFi via 3.5mm jack, so that I don't need to have the TV on the whole time it I only want to listen to music.

The last time I did battle with PulseAudio was years ago, and IIRC it did not end well for me.

What I seek is a SIMPLE solution to what seems to be a SIMPLE problem.

There's a distinct lack of ncurses TUI tools to pull anything like this off - pulsemixer seems the only tool available atm, with no good analogue to pavumixer (which is a whole X setup, I'd prefer not needing to install a whole DE just for 1 tool I need for a short period)

Anyone able to help please?

[Wayne Rooney]

Is this along the right lines?

https://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=70754

Other posts, like this one
https://www.reddit.com/r/RetroPie/comments/4k4fjc/analog_and_hdmi_sound_output_in_retropie/
suggest kodi has a 'both analog and hdmi' audio setting so both outputs run
simultainously.

Wayne

[Jaco]

thanks, but not quite.

I know in Kodi (in this ase OSMC variant, but the same) there are 4 sound options:

* ALSA (3): HDMI, jack & both
* PA

Memory's a little sketchy, but IIRC, ALSA only does "single sound", i.e. only one thing can use, 'locks' the audio device, at any given time.

PA was introduced, adding a networking layer over ALSA, where inputs & outputs are pooled in 'sinks', taking to the ALSA system, o in effect PA is the 'app' talking to ALSA & PA does some mux & threading.

Needlessly complicated IMHO, caused no end of headaches when prematurely introduced, but that's where we are.

So, in this context, I don't think ALSA is the right answer, and on top of that it seems there are no good/great TUI tools to admin PA from shell.

I've managed to set this up fairly easily in Windows (seemingly a much stronger focus on usability) & even Ubuntu & Fedora desktops (pavumixer), but loading a full DE for what should be a simple tweak is preposterous.

- J

[Wayne Rooney]

My Raspberry Pi FM radio station outputs the same audio to two audio devices
at the same time - one is a usb sound card, one is a usb audio FM transmitter.
All I had to to was set two output devices in mpd.conf. There was no other
setup required under Raspian.

Maybe you could get it to work if you got a USB sound card and used it for
your 3.5mm output. It will sound better anyway.

Wayne

[Jaco vdM]

Not a bad idea (re USB sounder).

I've found MPD to be easier to set up - the config talks to PA in turn,
"automagically" doing the sink setup in the background IINM.

If I really want to complicate my life more, then JACK might be the way
to go - JACK talking to PA talking to ALSA.

But this seems a needless complication for what seems a simple problem.

- J