alsamixer

Interactive ncurses audio mixer

TLDR

Select the soundcard to use

$ alsamixer -c [soundcard_number]

Select mixer device to control

$ alsamixer -D [device_name]

Start in playback view mode

$ alsamixer -V playback

Start with black background

$ alsamixer -B

SYNOPSIS

alsamixer [-c card] [-D device] [-V mode]

DESCRIPTION

alsamixer is an ncurses mixer program for use with the ALSA soundcard drivers. It supports multiple soundcards with multiple devices and provides a graphical interface for adjusting audio levels.

PARAMETERS

-c, --card number

Select soundcard (numbered from 0)

-D, --device id

Select mixer device to control

-V, --view mode

Set starting view (playback, capture, or all)

-B, --black-background

Use black background color

-g, --no-color

Disable colors

CONFIGURATION

/etc/asound.conf

System-wide ALSA configuration file.

~/.asoundrc

Per-user ALSA configuration file for custom device definitions and plugin settings.

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

Navigation:

Left/Right arrows or n/p: select channels

Up/Down arrows or +/-: adjust volume

Volume Control:

PageUp/PageDown: increase/decrease by 5%

End: set to 0%

0-9: set to 0-90% volume

Q/W/E: raise left/both/right

Z/X/C: lower left/both/right

Muting & Capture:

M: toggle mute (both channels)

Space: enable recording for current channel

View Modes:

F3/F4/F5: playback/capture/all modes

Tab: toggle views circularly

F6 or S: select sound card

Other:

B or =: balance left/right channels

L: redraw screen

Esc or Alt+Q: quit

CAVEATS

Requires ALSA drivers to be installed and configured. Some options may not be available depending on the soundcard capabilities.

HISTORY

Part of the ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture) utilities package, which replaced OSS as the standard Linux sound system.