[SOLVED] Looks like Zorin 9 has wacky audio driver issues

Trying the new Zorin 9 and I remember the trouble I had last year trying to boost the low sound volume - having to install a pulse audio EQ. Today I noticed there was a feature in the sound settings to boost the volume past 100 percent.

This worked to boost the sound but it didn't sound right.. too tin canish. I tried my regular small audio port with headphones and the sound was better BUT, on pulling out my headphones Poof - no more sound. I tested the headphones with my wife's computer and had no problems. I tested the headphones in my dual booted Windows and still - no audio from that port - It's dead. Other headphones do not work from this port either.

It just seems like a Really odd coincidence don't you think? I do.. too uncanny.

So I'm posting this so all will KNOW to beware and If this kind of thing happens again, please post about it so it can become a known issue and this can get fixed before it harms anybody else's PC.

EDIT 20 minutes later:

O.k, THIS is really odd.. it seems my port is NOT broken BUT Restarting the PC via Restart would not fix the problem - ONLY shutting down completely then restarting the PC would allow my port to work again BUT IN ZORIN ONLY - I still get no sound from Windows ! This is Odd because the problem Originated IN Zorin.

It looks to me like something - either my pulling out the cord while testing the Boost feature or one or the other by themselves, in Zorin - somehow effected my sound cards ability to output to that port In Windows.

Now, this Might make sense if the cards driver or output was damaged somehow.. Linux's driver being the simpler of the two still works because that part of the card is not effected ( anymore) er..

Let me put it another way.. i'm not making this too clear - I think somehow the drivers got things messed up and the result was hardware being effected but it only damaged the part of the hardware that uses the Windows drivers ??? Does that even make any sense to you hard core hardware geeks?

I'll try to re-install my windows drivers but it is really odd to me that it now works in Zorin but not in Windows.....Please someone help me figure this out.. I dont wanna be mad at Zorin for breaking my PC - Obviously there Is an issue and since i know my audio port isn't completely dead, I'd like to get this sorted out to help myself and others who may have this problem.

Edit: I renamed this thread because I at first thought Zorin broke my audio port (the title suggested as much) - now I know it's not broken just seems like some kinda odd drivers issues

I reinstalled the drivers in Windows and i am now getting sound in the headphones from that port (Thank God that fixed my Windows problem - which is Really odd because the problem did originate while using Zorin) BUT...

I decided to experiment back in Zorin 9 and I CAN duplicate the problem - every time I pull out my headphones jack, the sound refuses to go through that port again but not when I restart or reboot but only when I shut down completely first, then restart the PC - This does NOT happen in Windows. I can unplug and plug in my jack over and over and (thankfully) it still works.

Hopefully whatever happened in Zorin to effect my sound in Windows won't happen again but if it does - hopefully reinstalling the drivers again will fix it again...)

Ideas?

I still need ideas for the post above but FYI, I think I know why and how my Zorin issues effected my Windows. There is a difference between shutting down and rebooting in that on a Reboot the signal to the hardware shuts down at the very last moment. The OS had shut down but the hardware, my sound card was still active for a time - perhaps it never shut down the hardware completely and it's troubles beginning in Zorin carried over to the Windows OS.

I get that idea from this post: http://superuser.com/questions/200556/d ... art-reboot

This is the question: ( I'm quoting the above URL)

"What is Difference between shutdown (power off) and restart (reboot) ?
What type of signals passing at time of reboot and poweroff, to where ?
What is difference between these two signals ?
At the time of reboot,
Is the operating system go to shutdown mode ?
If it goes shutdown, Which is make it to start again ?
Please correct it, if you find and mistakes in my questions"

This is the answer:

"For the operating system, shutdown and reboot are practically the same thing.
The OS will shut down as usual in both cases. The only difference is the signal sent to the hardware at the very last moment.
To switch off/reboot the computer, the OS will send a special signal to the hardware once it is finished shutting down. It's only this signal which will be different between a reboot and a shutdown.
The way the signal is sent depends on the exact hardware platform. On modern systems it is usually done via ACPI."

When Windows booted after my sound quitting in Zorin, the hardware still was locked up form Zorin, and this somehow corrupted my Windows drivers for this same sound port. Thats the best I can come up with anyway.

Hi, I don't think that your Windows Drivers will be corrupted, but somewhere (and don't get me wrong, I am NOT a hardware specialist - I just try to think things through logically) there is a remnant of contact with Zorin in the soundcard that will have made some changes - No GNU/Linux touches the Windows Operating System. I would highly recommend that you install any flavour of GNU/Linux in future when dual-booting the 'Matthew Moore' method at the very top of this amended thread I posted:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6075

I'm in the middle of watching the video - his idea is very cool. Thanks. There is also another way to do this or something kinda similar by using a tool called Grub2Win found here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/grub2win/ The SourceForge page says,

"Safely dual boot Windows and Linux without touching the Windows MBR.
Grub2Win installs to Windows 8, Windows 7, XP or Vista. It boots native, open source GNU grub version 2.02 code. Everything is contained in one 8 MB directory on your Windows C: drive.
The simple Windows GUI and instructions will help you get Grub booting quickly and safely. Messages and help can be displayed in your native language.
You can select from a nearly unlimited number of OS choices at boot time. Samples for Ubuntu, Suse, Fedora, Mint, Free BSD and Windows are included." ( I haven't tried this yet but I will try both methods to see how well they work)

I don't think any Linux/GNU software touched my Windows system, rather because the sound chip was still locked up when Windows started, this somehow caused the drivers to stop working.. thus reinstalling those drivers solved the problem.

Thanks.. But still.. do you have any clue why my audio will crash every time I unplug my headphones jack.. right now that is the biggest issue.

Hi ElectricRider, I don't I'm afraid - at the moment I am a bit downhearted as I cannot install Zorin 32-bit Ultimate! I burned 2 disces (think I am having same issues as Allied Forces - they boot into live mode but will not install any which way!

Swarfendor437 wrote:Hi ElectricRider, I don't I'm afraid - at the moment I am a bit downhearted as I cannot install Zorin 32-bit Ultimate! I burned 2 disces (think I am having same issues as Allied Forces - they boot into live mode but will not install any which way!

I'm actually loving the Zorin 9 long term release except for the headphones jack issue - if it were not for that, I'd gladly pony up for the 64 bit Ultimate edition. Best of luck getting your copy running. - I do think that the blue theme and the black theme are too close in color though to the point it doesn't really matter which you choose to use. Still glad we have this new cool option.

FYI for those reading this thread - I finished watching the video But I do not like the ending of the story. Here you get two boot menus you have to go through in order to boot your Liniux distro. That is what I like to avoid.

If your Windows installation somehow deletes Grub it is easy enough to reinstall or fix Grub using the tool called Boot-Repair-Disk found here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/boot-repair-cd/

If your Windows MBR gets corrupted it is easy enough to use the options in the Recovery Partition or from a Windows 8 DVD at the command prompt to restore your MBR: (If Automatic repair does not work, but try Automatic Repair first folks) by typing at the command prompt:

bootrec.exe /fixmbr [Hit Enter]
bootsect.exe /nt60 all /force [Hit Enter]
bootrec.exe /rebuildbcd [Hit Enter]

Done, Reboot.

Each of these operations takes less than 5 minutes to do. In this way, I solve the problems the fellow in the video is trying to avoid and I don't have to go through two bootmenu screens to load Linux. Note that preforming the steps above to restore the MBR will result in your losing your Grub so after these steps are preformed you must reinstall grub either via the Terminal in a live Linux distro or by using the Boot-Repair-Disk I mentioned above - which is much faster than doing it via the live terminal.

Actually I do like it - because you can actually modify Easy BCD to boot into Zorin first - it is fully customisable. I have had issues with GRUB before and GRUB repair failed! Each to their own - but I think Windows hard core will prefer the solution - I have 9 installed - I was just impatient as it is a longer install than previous versions I have installed of Zorin! (and used Easy BCD in Windows 7 - which by the way got rid of my 'Windows 7 (repaired)' boot message to just 'Windows7' (Occurred as a result of a bad install of AVLinux - my bad - forgot to disconnect the Windows drives!)

Glad you got it installed ! Good to know I can configure the BCD to load grub first too.

So, no trouble with your headphones jack?

Not got that far yet - just replaced ZorinMenu with GnoMenu - much better!

I decided to reformat the partition and reinstalled Zorin 9. The problem with the headphones jack is fixed - it all works normally now - the sound does not cut out on the audio port like it was before when unplugging the headphones jack..

I should have tried this first you might think but I didn't think of it since the problem also seemed to effect the same port in Windows. I guess I kinda Freaked prematurely but honestly.. you would too folks given my odd problems LOL.

At least I learned something from this experience. (gee, now I sound like the kids in SouthPark) I learned that a shutdown and reboot is not the same as far as hardware is concerned and a locked up hardware problem from one OS can carry over to another OS. Perhaps at least that can help someone in the future. I'll try to mark this thread as Solved.