Skype - No microphone

[oliverjames]

Very impressed with Saluki. Here on version 018, running on Aspire 4820TG.

All works well aside from:

problem with video card driver, ATI Radeon Mobile HD5650. Boots OK but any attempt to use XORGWIZARD fails.
Display
Resolution
1366x768 pixels
OpenGL Renderer
Mesa DRI Intel(R) Ironlake Mobile x86/MMX/SSE2
X11 Vendor
The X.Org Foundation
Multimedia
Audio Adapter
HDA-Intel - HDA Intel
Audio Adapter
HDA-Intel - HD-Audio Generic


Skype, cannot get the inbuilt microphone to work although the inbuilt webcam works well. The Skype microphone is also an issue in 5.2.8 and Slacko, and generally causes problems in Linux.

Otherwise Saluki is a very useful OS.

[OscarTalks]

Are you using Skype 2.2.0.35 ? I have it running in Saluki 018 and Lucid 528-005 and Slacko 5327 and it works fine in all. Are you selecting the right audio device in the Skype options? Sometimes the list is long and confusing. How about sound mixer (ALSA or Retrovol) settings? They can be hard to fathom too. Does the mic work on any application? Could the mic itself be faulty?

[oliverjames]

Skype is version skype_static-2.1.0.81, the pet from the Puppy-wary5 repo. The Skype mic config is set to default. I've tried all likely alternative settings but no go.
Sound mixer set to XFCE4.mixer, searching system shows no retrovol available.

But I have just tried setting the sound card to Realtek ALC271X (OSS Mixer) and the mic works nicely.

[fefifofum]

This fixed my mic issue when using skype

I have a Logitech H150 headset, though it does not matter what headset I use, I could hear them perfectly well on Skype (version 2.1.0 and 4.0.0.1) but they could not hear me. This was almost always the case. On their end they would experience a faint or no voice or high static noise or buzzing noise. Most times I could hear my breath on the mic even though they could not hear me. I've tried various other headsets on both my desktop and netbook both running puppy linux 5.2.8 -005 and the experience was the same.

BTW... I believe the problem was worse when calling landlines or cellphones. Either way I discovered that the problem was not Skype but with the Alsamixer setting. I've uploaded a screen shot on my alsamixer as a guide. This setting was used on both my desktop and netbook and my skype now works flawlessly. Have a look at the screenshot and duplicate. If your alsmixer looks different, don't fret, just duplicate all available setting and that should take care of it.

Just note that the Capture control is used to adjust the intensity of background noise (that's my experience anyways). So keeping it at half mass clears out 99% of the garbage noise that the receivers hears. It's also important to check the right checkbox (Lock, Rec., etc...). Not doing so prevents the receiver from hearing you. Also be sure to log into skype and uncheck the check box "Allow skype to automatically adjust my mixer level." This is very important and always leave it unchecked.

If for what ever reason this does not work on your computer then I suggest that you play around with your alsamixer until you find the right settings. If you have two machines or a bored friend, have two skype accounts setup and call it. Listen to the sound quality and adjust your mixer level until your get it right. Again, be sure to log into skype and uncheck the check box "Allow skype to automatically adjust my mixer level."

One last note, I noticed that when adjusting the controls in the alsamixer the change was not immediate. There was a few sec delay sometimes.

Good luck..