Subject: Re: [linux-audio-user] Soundcard supporting several audio streams
From: Patrick Shirkey (pshirkey_AT_boosthardware.com)
Date: Thu Nov 08 2001 - 10:30:08 EET
dave willis wrote:
>
> On Wed, 7 Nov 2001, Stefan Schwandter wrote:
>
> > is there a (not too expensive) soundcard, that supports multiple output
> > streams natively (i.e. without the need for a sound server).
> >
> > I hate it when applications stall just because another is keeping the audio
> > device open.
>
> you don't need mutiple analog outputs, right? just a card that can mix
> multiple streams together for the standard stereo out. i have a yamaha
> ymf744b based card (i forgot who made it) that i paid $50 for last year
> that can mix 32 streams under alsa. it works great as a consumer card,
> though it seems to only like 48000 and 96000 rates when using it in
> real-time with low-latency. also, the midi does not work on my card under
> linux. but, for just general audio mutimedia use, it has great sound
> quality. i have it installed as a second card in my system (my main one
> is an m-audio delta, which is a nice pro card which only supports as many
> streams as it has outputs for).
>
> anyway, in my ~/.asoundrc to use my yamaha card (2nd card), i have simply:
>
> pcm.card1 {
> type hw
> card 1
> }
>
> i can mix multiple streams just with using "aplay -D card1 <wavfile>."
> no fancy configuration!
>
Yes but you are still limited by the amount of streams that your card
can support. there is supposed to be a way to use the .asoundrc to get
around this. It is to do with using the pcm share option instead of pcm
hw.
This would allow all the people who for one reason or another (ie
laptops cheap sound cards, m-audio delta, no specs released....) can't
use hardware mixing to do it via the alsa-lib layer.
I would rather know how to do this with .asoundrc than buy another card.
-- Patrick Shirkey - Boost Hardware Ltd. http://www.boosthardware.com - For the discerning hardware connoisseur. http://www.boosthardware.com/LAU/Linux_Audio_Users_Guide/ =======================================================================
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