mpv/DOCS/sound.html

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<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2>2.3.2. Audio output devices</A></B></P>
<P><B>MPlayer</B>'s audio interface is called <I>libao2</I>. It currently
contains these drivers:</P>
<TABLE BORDER=0>
<TR><TD COLSPAN=4><P><B><FONT CLASS="text">General:</B></P></TD></TR>
<TR><TD>&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">oss</TD><TD>&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS (ioctl) driver (supports hardware AC3 passthrough)</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">sdl</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">SDL driver (supports up/downsampling, <B>ESD</B>, <B>ARTS</B> etc)</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">nas</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">NAS (Network Audio System) driver</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">alsa5</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">native ALSA 0.5 driver</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">alsa9</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">native ALSA 0.9 driver (works, but has problems -> use OSS) (supports hardware AC3 passthrough)</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">sun</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">SUN audio driver (/dev/audio) for BSD and Solaris8 users</TD></TR>
<TR><TD></TD><TD VALIGN=top><FONT CLASS="text">arts</TD><TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">native ARTS driver (mostly for KDE users)</TD></TR>
</TABLE>
<P>Fact is, Linux sound card drivers have compatibility problems.
It <B>may</B> take a while to find your optimal settings.</P>
<UL>
<LI>If you have an OSS driver, first try <CODE>-ao oss</CODE> (this is the default).
If you experience glitches, halts or anything out of the ordinary, try
<CODE>-ao sdl</CODE> (NOTE: you need to have SDL libraries and header files
installed). The SDL audio driver helps in a lot of cases and also supports ESD,
ARTS, and up/downsampling. (ESD is the sound daemon from GNOME, ARTS is from KDE.)</LI>
<LI>If you have ALSA version 0.5, then you almost always have to use <CODE>-ao alsa5</CODE> ,
since ALSA 0.5 has buggy OSS emulation code, and will <B>crash MPlayer</B> with
a message like this:<BR>
<CODE>DEMUXER: Too many (945 in 8390980 bytes) video packets in the buffer!</CODE></LI>
<LI>If you have ALSA version 0.9 you may choose between <CODE>-ao oss</CODE> and
<CODE>-ao sdl</CODE>. You can also use <CODE>-ao alsa9</CODE>. It works, but
there are problems like lost sync and disappearing audio.</LI>
</UL>
<P>On <B>Solaris/FreeBSD</B> systems, use the SUN audio driver with the
<CODE>-ao sun</CODE> option, otherwise neither video nor audio will work.</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.1>2.3.2.1. Sound Card experiences, recommendations</A></B></P>
<TABLE BORDER=0 WIDTH="100%">
<TR><TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">VIA onboard chipset (via82cxxx) 48kHz only</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Driver:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text"> from <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=3242&amp;release_id=59602">here</A></TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">Aureal Vortex 2</B></TD><TR>
<TD>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">no driver</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS/Pro:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">no driver</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD>48</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Driver:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text"><A HREF="http://aureal.sourceforge.net">aureal.sourceforge.net</A></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Driver2:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text"> from <A HREF="http://makacs.poliod.hu/~pontscho/aureal/au88xx-1.1.3.tar.bz2">here</A><BR>
(<I>buffer size increased to 32k</I>)</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">GUS PnP</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">no driver</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS/Pro:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">48</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">SB Live!</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Analog OK, SP/DIF not working</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Both OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">192</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">SB AWE 64</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">max 44kHz</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">48kHz sounds bad</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">48</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">Gravis UltraSound ACE</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">not OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">44</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">Gravis UltraSound MAX</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK (?)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">48</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">ESS 688</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK (?)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">48</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">C-Media cards (which ones?)</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">not OK (hissing) (?)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK (?)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">?</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">Yamaha cards (*ymf*)</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">not OK (?) (maybe <CODE>-ao sdl</CODE>)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK only with ALSA 0.5 with OSS emulation <B>AND</B> <CODE>-ao sdl</CODE> (!) (?)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">?</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">Cards with envy24 chips (like Terratec EWS88MT)</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">?</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS/Pro:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">?</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">?</TD><TR>
<TD COLSPAN=3><B><FONT CLASS="text">PC Speaker or DAC</B></TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OSS:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">OK (Use the SDL driver: <CODE>-ao sdl</CODE>)</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">ALSA:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">no driver</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Max kHz:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">The driver emulates 44.1, maybe more.</TD><TR>
<TD></TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text">Driver:</TD><TD><FONT CLASS="text"><A HREF="ftp://ftp.infradead.org/pub/pcsp">ftp://ftp.infradead.org/pub/pcsp</A></TD>
</TABLE>
<UL>
<LI>On Linux, a 2.4.x kernel is highly recommended. Kernel 2.2 is not tested.</LI>
<LI>If sound clicks when playing from CD-ROM, turn on IRQ unmasking, e.g.
<CODE>hdparm -u1 /dev/cdrom</CODE> (<CODE>man hdparm</CODE>). This is
generally beneficial and described more detailed in the
<A HREF="cd-dvd.html#4.1">CD-ROM section</A>.</LI>
<LI>Sharing your sound card with another application like XMMS is <B>strongly discouraged</B>!
If the other sound application is using ESD, start <B>MPlayer</B> with the <CODE>-vo sdl:esd</CODE> option
to combine both sound streams! In fact, the option <CODE>-vo sdl:esd</CODE> could be used with ESD
even when playing <B>Mplayer</B> alone.</LI>
<LI>Feedback to this document is welcome. Please tell us how <B>MPlayer</B> and
your sound card(s) worked together.</LI>
</UL>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2>2.3.2.2. Audio plugins</A></B></P>
<P><B>MPlayer</B> has support for audio plugins. Audio plugins can be used for
changing the properties of the audio data before the sound reaches the sound
card. They are enabled using the <CODE>-aop</CODE> switch which takes a
<CODE>list=plugin1,plugin2,...</CODE> argument. The <CODE>list</CODE> argument
is required and determines which plugins should be used and in which order they
should be executed. Example:
</P>
<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=resample,format</CODE></P>
<P>would run the sound through the resampling plugin followed by the format
plugin.
</P>
<P>The plugins can also have switches that change their behavior. These
switches are explained in detail in the sections below. A plugin will execute
using default settings if its switches are omitted. Here is an example of how
to use plugins in combination with plugin specific switches:
</P>
<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop
list=resample,format:fout=44100:format=0x8</CODE>
</P>
<P>would set the output frequency of the resample plugin to 44100Hz and the
output format of the format plugin to AFMT_U8.
</P>
<P>Currently audio plugins can not be used in <B>MEncoder</B>.</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.1>2.3.2.2.1. Up/Downsampling</A></B></P>
<P><B>MPlayer</B> fully supports up/downsampling of the sound. This plugin can
be used if you have a fixed frequency sound card or if you are
stuck with an old sound card that is only capable of max 44.1kHz.
Limitations in your hardware are not auto detected, so you have to specify
the sample frequency explicitly. This plugin has one switch:
<CODE>fout</CODE> which is used for setting the desired output sample
frequency. It defaults to 48kHz, and is given in
&lt;Hz&gt;.
</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=resample:fout=&lt;required
frequency in Hz, like 44100&gt;</CODE></P>
<P>Note that the output frequency should not be scaled up from the default value.
Scaling up will cause the audio and video streams to be played in slow motion
in addition to audio distortion.</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.2>2.3.2.2.2. Surround Sound decoding</A></B></P>
<P><B>MPlayer</B> has an audio plugin that can decode matrix encoded
surround sound. Dolby Surround is an example of a matrix encoded format.
Many files with 2 channel audio actually contain matrixed surround sound.
To use this feature you need a sound card supporting at least 4 channels.</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=surround</CODE></P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.3>2.3.2.2.3. Sample format converter</A></B></P>
<P>If your sound card driver does not support signed 16bit <CODE>int</CODE> data type,
this plugin can
be used to change the format to one which your sound card can understand. It
has one switch, <CODE>format</CODE>, which can be set to one of the numbers
found in <CODE>libao2/afmt.h</CODE>. This plugin is hardly ever needed and is
intended for advanced users. Keep in mind that this plugin only changes the
sample format and not the sample frequency or the number of channels.
</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop
list=format:format=&lt;required output format&gt;</CODE>
</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.4>2.3.2.2.4. Delay</A></B></P>
<P>This plugin delays the sound and is intended as an example of how to develop
new plugins. It can not be used for anything useful from a users perspective
and is mentioned here for the sake of completeness only. Do not use this
plugin unless you are a developer.</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.5>2.3.2.2.5. Software volume control</A></B></P>
<P>This plugin is a software replacement for the volume control, and
can be used on machines with a broken mixer device. It can also be
used if one wants to change the output volume of <B>MPlayer</B>
without changing the PCM volume setting in the mixer. It has one
switch <CODE>volume</CODE> that is used for setting the initial
sound level. The initial sound level can be set to values between 0
and 255 and defaults to 101 which equals 0dB amplification. Use this
plugin with caution since it can reduce the signal to noise ratio of
the sound. In most cases it is best to set the level for the PCM
sound to max, leave this plugin out and control the output level to
your speakers with the master volume control of the mixer. If there is an
external amplifier connected to the computer (this is almost always
the case), the noise level can be minimized by adjusting the master
level and the volume knob on the amplifier until the hissing noise
in the background is gone.
</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop
list=volume:volume=&lt;0-255&gt;</CODE>
</P>
<P>This plugin also has compressor or "soft-clipping" capabilities.
Compression can be used if the dynamic range of the sound is very
high or if the dynamic range of the loudspeakers is very
low. Be aware that this feature creates distortion and should be
considered a last resort.
</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop
list=volume:softclip</CODE>
</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.6>2.3.2.2.6. Extrastereo</A></B></P>
<P>This plugin (linearly) increases the difference between left and right
channels (like the XMMS extrastereo plugin) which gives some sort of "live"
effect to playback.
</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=extrastereo</CODE><BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=extrastereo:mul=3.45</CODE></P>
<P>The default coefficient (<CODE>mul</CODE>) is a float number that defaults
to 2.5. If you set it to 0.0, you will have mono sound (average of both
channels). If you set it to 1.0, sound will be unchanged, if you set it to
-1.0, left and right channels will be swapped.</P>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.7>2.3.2.2.7. Volume normalizer</A></B></P>
<P>This plugin maximizes the volume without distorting the sound.</P>
<P>Usage:<BR>
&nbsp;&nbsp;<CODE>mplayer media.avi -aop list=volnorm</CODE><BR>
<P><B><A NAME=2.3.2.2.8>2.3.2.2.8. Surround</A></B></P>
<P>Someone should document something, sometime.</P>
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