Interface mics not working at all now (Arch, Linux Mint Cinnamon, & now Manjaro)

[Phydoux]

I've looked over everything to try and figure this one out. I tried putting my laptop in the place of the main PC I have in there, I've tried re-initializing my mixer, I've checked the firmware update on my mixer, I've tried 3 different distros. I started with a standard Arch install (that actually worked for several months up until this past weekend (January 18, 2025)) and installed just what I needed to record with (OBS mainly but I also copied all of my music to that PC and I installed Spotify on it as well...). I've tweaked everything with the 2 added Linux installs I've done on it. I've pretty much ruled out OS issues and Mixer issues. I can see the levels moving for all of the mics I have connected to it. So the audio is getting TO the mixer from the mics and the desktop audio. OBS can pick up the Desktop audio, just not the mics. It's just not getting to OBS. I have OBS installed on this PC and I have a Blue Mic installed and I have my Desktop Audio setup to play music and both work the way they're supposed to (Mic audio to one Global Audio Device and Desktop Audio going to another Global Audio Device). So, I have this one setup perfectly. The other one, Not so much. I'm running OBS 31.0.0 on this machine and 31.0.0-1 on the other. Maybe there's an issue with 31.0.0-1? Both are 64 Bit but maybe the other one has something wrong with it. I am seeing issues posted HERE about 31.0.0 having issues. But I wouldn't doubt if they all have some sort of small issues.

So, here's the setup I have:
TASCAM Model 24
PC with 11th Gen i7 with an AMD Graphics card and 64GB RAM

I can hear the mics perfectly fine along with the desktop audio. Before, when it was working fine, I had the Desktop audio running along with the audio from the mixer. Since the audio was going through the mixer I figured that was working great. The Desktop audio is being fed to inputs 1 & 2. The mics are setup starting at input 3 going to 11 or 12 (I have lots of mics setup on my drums).

As I said, I can HEAR my drums fine listening through the mixer. The levels on the mixer are working fine too. I'm just not seeing the meter moving when I hit a drum AND I can't hear any drums in a video when I hit them.

I'm hoping this is an OBS thing because I really don't want to use Windows. I tried setting up Windows 7 on my laptop but it won't work with the current version of OBS. I think I have to put Windows 10 on it and I'm not sure how that's going to work. I'm trying to avoid Windows at all costs. But if I HAVE to... I guess I'll use it. There may have been an update to OBS that made it incompatible with my mixer. I was thinking maybe it was a kernel update with Arch but when I tried Linux Mint (uses an older, more stable kernel) I had the same exact issues. So I am ruling out the kernel. It's why I installed Manjaro last night. Thinking it's not a Kernel issue at all.

If anyone knows what this issue is and knows how to fix it, I'd greatly appreciate any help. I'm currently at a loss of ideas. I've tried so many things! I may have missed something really simple.

I haven't really looked here for any related posts. I probably should have before posting this. If I do find one that has the same issues and a commented solution that works, I may delete this.

 

[tackleza]

Sorry, but your text is reallyyyy longgggg. and it too much information for me and maybe to much to other user that try to help you.
Your text is too much background on how your workflow works and doesn't provided any useful information.

Expected useful information is something like.

- I have those input interfaces as follows...
- Some pics of your selected input of OSB
- Did you just use custom audio router software? Helvum Patchbay?
- Pipewire or PulseAudio
- Did your desktop or your system saw the input level? from your mixer
- What you have done and what have you tried already

And please troubleshooting step by step. not throwing all your whole workflow instruction. otherwise no one is going to reply to this thread. I've tried to read this thread more than 5 times. and I still don't understand, please simplify your message. and wait for another user

 

[AaronD]

Agreed on the confusing wall of text. But there's one thing that *might* point to a solution, if I ignore everything else:

The mics are setup starting at input 3 going to 11 or 12 (I have lots of mics setup on my drums).

OBS HATES multi-channel interfaces!

It was originally made for the stereotypical bedroom streamer, that has one game in surround sound and one mono mic, and that's it. So to make things easier and not confuse him, every device is assumed to be an entire single source, with a surround format determined by the channel count. OBS then downmixes that to stereo or whatever it's set for in Settings -> Audio, and THEN lets you play with the mess that that makes of your band.

That's an OBS thing, not the operating system.

To make that work, you'll probably need a DAW to connect everything to - something that can use each channel of the interface separately - do all of your audio work in there, and then send the final, finished soundtrack to OBS to pass through completely unchanged. No audio processing whatsoever in OBS, and no other audio sources except the DAW.

If you want to use multiple tracks in OBS, then you'll need a separate loopback for each, that appear as separate virtual devices, so you can have that many sources and select a different device for each. Then put each source on its own track.

Another possibility is to use a physical mixing console instead of a DAW. Same idea: do *all* of your audio work in there, and only give OBS the final, finished soundtrack that matches the channel count in Settings -> Audio, to pass through completely unchanged with no other sources. If the console gives you a different channel count than what OBS is set for, then it'll make that mess again, so make sure it matches!

---

It took me a while, with a Behringer XR18, to figure all that out. It has two options for its USB sound card: 18/18 multitrack or 2/2 stereo. OBS needs it to be 2/2, then save the setting and reboot the mixer to take effect, and then you ignore channels 3-18 when routing the console side of the USB cord. It also technically works to keep it as 18/18, as long as you keep channels 3-18 silent so that OBS's downmixer simply adds zeros, but it's cleaner to just make it stereo.