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I'm currently on Windows, and want to switch to Linux, but some hardware issues are preventing me. Mainly, I have a sound card that supports Line-In. On Windows, anything I plug into the line-in gets outputted to the speakers.

However, when I installed Linux, because there is not a control application that comes with the driver, I have no idea how to set this up. I tried going to the sound settings and it doesn't seem to be there.

I also want to configure it for 2.1 sound, and do not know how to do that...

Anyone here done it before?

Thanks in advance for the help!

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  • What sound card do you have? Does sound work in Linux? Why do you want to switch to Linux? What is your experience with Linux? Answering these will help us help you
    – basszero
    Aug 10, 2009 at 11:28
  • I have a RealTek sound card, I'd have to check exactly which one. Sound works fine in Linux. I want to switch to Linux because I've always liked Linux better, just haven't had a chance to install since I bought this machine new. I'm experienced with Linux, I work on a Linux machine at work, and have used Linux for many years, including for development.
    – hwrd
    Aug 10, 2009 at 11:56
  • Did you manage to get this working?
    – user4358
    Aug 14, 2009 at 15:54

6 Answers 6

Reset to default
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Your sound-card does it. Just open the volume control applet, and move "Line in" channel top the top (you might need to enable the channel configuration slide so it's not hidden).

Also try opening console (gnome terminal), and launch there:

$ alsamixer

You'll get a command-line volume control. Find "Line in" by pressing →, and hold ↑ untill it reaches 100%. Also check the slider's bottom: if "MM" is there then the channel is muted. Hit M key, and it will become enabled.

Cheers!

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  • 1
    Couldn't find one called 'Line in' In Ubuntu 18.04. I got it working by turning up the Loopback slider located near the end and the 'Mic' slider near the middle.
    – DaReal
    Apr 16, 2020 at 13:06
  • Same for me, turned on Loopback slider, and then adjusted Line In volume
    – Jake Rayson
    Dec 12, 2023 at 19:29
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I am not sure which versions of Ubuntu this applies to but I know in 10.04 the loopback module to enable monitoring the line-in is not enabled by default. To enable this function issue this command in the terminal:

pactl load-module module-loopback
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  • Careful for the above command, set you master volume low at first as you may get terrible feedback noise and damage your speakers.
    – Jaco Van Niekerk
    Mar 9, 2021 at 6:49
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You can also enable Loopback in alasmixer if you keep arrowing to the right, although I am not sure if that change will enable it permanently. Since I imagine other users may have to un-mute and raise the level of Line In (at least in the most current version of Linux Mint these settings are not in the Volume Control/Sound Settings) through alasmixer, it is handy to know you can also enable loopback at the same time.

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Im not sure if this helps, But i came across this article a little while ago, and while not specific to your problem is about proffesional audio on linux

http://createdigitalmusic.com/2009/08/04/linux-music-workflow-switching-from-mac-os-x-to-ubuntu-with-kim-cascone/

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On some machines there are line in and mic in connections on the front as well as the back of the case, and they are selectable. When using the colume control applet, you might poke around to see if there is a linein-front that needs to be enabled.

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I am not sure which versions of Ubuntu this applies to but I know in 10.04 the loopback module to enable monitoring the line-in is not enabled by default. To enable this function issue this command in the terminal:

pactl load-module module-loopback

Adding this to your ~/.bashrc (or the start script of your choice) makes it persistent after each logout/logon.

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