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Since updating to 14.04, I'm unable to set a lower volume. According to the alsamixer, it automatically mutes when I try to go below 18%.

How can I restore access to the quieter volumes? Ubuntu 14.04 running on a Dell Inspiron 1501

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  • Are you sure it mutes, and isn't just that it is too quiet to hear?
    – Tim
    Aug 14, 2014 at 12:55
  • Yes. looking in alsamixer, it goes from 18 to muted. listening in my headphones, it goes from "louder than I'd like" to "silence"
    – SFischer
    Aug 14, 2014 at 13:01
  • What does the command pactl set-sink-volume 2 15% do? Does that also mute it, or go to 15%?
    – Tim
    Aug 14, 2014 at 16:03
  • 1
    Yes. It also goes to silent. Using the pactl set-sink-volume 0 XX% command reveals that the sound cuts on at 17% and above and is silent at 16% and below (index 0 used, because others do not exist)
    – SFischer
    Aug 14, 2014 at 18:09
  • That's very odd, I think it's a bug and needs to be reported on launchpad.net
    – Tim
    Aug 14, 2014 at 18:10

4 Answers 4

9

Setting volume-limit works for headphones but will, probably, make sound too quiet while using other speakers.

As alternative solution, try setting ignore_dB=1 in /etc/pulse/default.pa.

load-module module-udev-detect ignore_dB=1

From ArchLinux Wiki

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  • 2
    This fixes my issue with an USB sound card (041e:30d3 SoundBlaster Play). The pulse audio system volume now is in sync with the output "Speaker" mixer, both start at 0%.
    – istepaniuk
    Mar 24, 2020 at 17:46
  • 2
    Works like a charm with a USB headset on ubuntu 20.10
    – David B.
    Nov 17, 2020 at 16:28
  • Worked for me. But the sound is too high right now. Either my speakers has always been so powerful, or linux overloads them.
    – berkus
    May 21, 2022 at 20:58
6

I found the solution here worked for me.

As root, you'll need to edit the file:

$ sudo vim /usr/share/pulseaudio/alsa-mixer/paths/analog-output.conf.common

Find the section that looks like the following:

[Element PCM]
switch = mute
volume = merge
override-map.1 = all
override-map.2 = all-left,all-right

Add a new setting for volume-limit so it looks like this:

[Element PCM]
switch = mute
volume = merge
volume-limit = 0.05    # This is the new line
override-map.1 = all
override-map.2 = all-left,all-right

Then you need to restart PulseAudio with the following command:

$ pulseaudio -k

If you had any applications playing sound, they will be muted. You'll have to restart them to get sound again and then you can test your new settings.

The original author of the solution suggested setting volume-limit = 0.01, but I found that to be too quiet, so I use 0.05. You can test smaller or larger values to fit your preferences.

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  • 2
    This is not a solution to the problem, it just reduces the volume of my whole system...
    – xeruf
    Sep 16, 2018 at 19:29
  • It broke the system: linux cannot recognize the sound card anymore. Beware!
    – berkus
    May 21, 2022 at 20:57
4

I've also had this problem for several years now in all the releases of Ubuntu.

@Tim, it is already reported in launchpad. Related bug report: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/443131

According to the last comment, this bug won't be fixed :(

PS: This was meant to be / should have been a comment like the ones above, but apparently I need 50 reputation points to be able to do that..

0

I found I had a similar problem: with my Antlion USB adapter (which I bought with my ModMic 4 setup), volume would completely mute below 25%, and at 25%, it was pretty loud.

The solution I found, in pavucontrol, is to go into Configuration and pick the Pro Audio profile (default is Analog Stereo Output + Mono Input). This gives me a much smooth range of volumes, all the way down to zero percent. I can actually get it down to a level that is barely perceptible to me (~-60dB).

And of course recording still works. So all good!

Note that before switching to Pro Audio mode, it might be better to put the ALSA mixer volume to its maximum, as that will be the 100% mark in Pulseaudio/PipeWire after... In my first experiments, the 100% volume was quite not loud enough. Now, of course, 100% is much too loud, but sometimes you do want it really loud... ;)

I'm on Debian 12 "bookworm" (currently in testing), with a Pipewire 0.3.60 audio backend. The exact USB device is:

Bus 001 Device 013: ID 0d8c:002b C-Media Electronics, Inc. Antlion USB adapter

So this might not help your actual case, but I hope it may help others having this problem.

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