Need Switchable Audio Inputs on Computer

[APinDC]

Hello from Washington DC. Here is my situation: I am configuring a Centos computer as a recorder for a newsroom bullpen. I need this computer to be able to:

1) Record line level audio coming in to a soundcard from a TV (Audacity preferred)
2) Be able to record (not extract) audio in real time from the web. These could be web videos, podcasts, streaming sources, Skype calls from correspondents, etc.
3) Be able to switch between the two fairly effortlessly and monitor whatever audio is selected at that moment.

Under WinXP, this was easy: open the audio mixer window and switch between MIX or LINE IN to choose an input. Win7 doesn't have this feature and I've not been able to find an equivalent function under Centos 6.

I would like to know what audio hardware I should be using -- brands and models if necessary -- and what I should be doing 'under the hood' for this to work. Please reply if you've actually done it; I've already tried all the "it should work" suggestions. Thanks ahead of time.

Alan P in DC

 

[APinDC]

I suppose a simpler way to put this is: how can I do a "What U Hear" on this computer; where Audacity captures whatever is passing thru the soundcard?

Again, Centos 6, currently with an older Ensoniq audio card.

 

[arochester]

http://manual.audacityteam.org/o/man/tutorial_recording_audio_playing_on_the_computer.html ?

 

[atanere]

I'll have to take a look at arochester's suggestion too. This is one of the few reasons I have to occasionally revert to Windows. I've used a program for years, called Audials Tunebite, that will capture live streaming audio or video. If you want to check it out, it's at:

http://audials.com/en/tunebite/index.html

It's not Linux, and it's not free, but it sure works well for this purpose. After paying the full price of $40, future upgrades cost about $25. I don't think it is hardware specific... if you can hear it or see it, I think it will capture it. Good luck!

 

[ryanvade]

https://trac.ffmpeg.org/wiki/Capture/ALSA

you could also create a monitor of the output speakers with Pulse audio then use it in audacity

 

[leaf244]

Hello from Washington DC. Here is my situation: I am configuring a Centos computer as a recorder for a newsroom bullpen. I need this computer to be able to:

1) Record line level audio coming in to a soundcard from a TV (Audacity preferred)
2) Be able to record (not extract) audio in real time from the web. These could be web videos, podcasts, streaming sources, Skype calls from correspondents, etc.
3) Be able to switch between the two fairly effortlessly and monitor whatever audio is selected at that moment.

Under WinXP, this was easy: open the audio mixer window and switch between MIX or LINE IN to choose an input. Win7 doesn't have this feature and I've not been able to find an equivalent function under Centos 6.

I would like to know what audio hardware I should be using -- brands and models if necessary -- and what I should be doing 'under the hood' for this to work. Please reply if you've actually done it; I've already tried all the "it should work" suggestions. Thanks ahead of time.

Alan P in DC

To achieve your desired setup on a CentOS computer, you can follow these steps:

1. Audio Recording from TV: To record line level audio from a TV, you can use a soundcard that supports line-level input. Some popular soundcard brands/models known for good Linux compatibility are ASUS Xonar, Creative Sound Blaster, and Focusrite Scarlett series. Ensure that the soundcard is compatible with CentOS 6 and has appropriate Linux drivers available. Once the soundcard is installed and recognized by CentOS, you can use software like Audacity to record the audio.

2. Real-Time Audio Recording from the Web: To record audio from the web, including web videos, podcasts, streaming sources, and Skype calls, you can use software like PulseAudio. These tools provide command-line options to capture and record audio from different sources. FFmpeg can capture audio from web streams, and PulseAudio can capture audio from applications running on your system. You can install these tools on CentOS and configure them to record the desired audio sources.

3. Audio Switching and Monitoring: CentOS provides a range of audio control tools, including the alsamixer command-line utility and GUI tools like pavucontrol, which provide better control over audio inputs and outputs. Using these tools, you can switch between different input sources, such as line-in or web audio, and monitor the selected audio source in real time.

Ensure that your CentOS system has the necessary audio drivers installed and up to date. Refer to the documentation and community forums for CentOS or the specific hardware you choose for any additional configuration steps or troubleshooting.

Please note that CentOS 6 reached its end-of-life status in November 2020. Consider upgrading to a newer version of CentOS or using a different Linux distribution with more up-to-date software and hardware support.

 

[dos2unix]

This thread is almost 10 years old.

 

[f33dm3bits]

@KGIII @wizardfromoz It's probably best to lock this thread.

 

[KGIII]

@KGIII @wizardfromoz It's probably best to lock this thread.

Yeah, I might as well...

I sort of wish that threads over x-number of years would lock themselves if nobody has responded to them in that amount of time. Then, the active threads should remain open while older threads are locked to prevent additional comments. Solved threads should probably be locked 24 hours after the last response or something along those lines.

I'm sure there's an option or plugin for that.

 

[wizardfromoz]

One more note, to @leaf244 , is that if you are going to quote from an AI exercise, you could at least attribute it to the respective AI source.

Chris Turner
wizardfromoz