Audio lag on everything with sound

I have a constant problem with audio lag on Zorin 17.2. Short sections of audio get repeated during playback, whether its a video or just music. My computer is built with hardware about 10 years old now, but I didn't have any issues on Windows.

OS information:
cat /etc/os-release
PRETTY_NAME="Zorin OS 17.2"
NAME="Zorin OS"
VERSION_ID="17"
VERSION="17.2"
VERSION_CODENAME=jammy
ID=zorin
ID_LIKE="ubuntu debian"
HOME_URL="Zorin OS - Make your computer better."
SUPPORT_URL="https://help.zorin.com/"
BUG_REPORT_URL="Send Feedback - Zorin OS"
PRIVACY_POLICY_URL="Privacy Policy - Zorin"
UBUNTU_CODENAME=jammy

Audio information:
inxi -A
Audio:
Device-1: Intel Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor HD Audio
driver: snd_hda_intel
Device-2: Intel 8 Series/C220 Series High Definition Audio
driver: snd_hda_intel
Device-3: NVIDIA GM206 High Definition Audio driver: snd_hda_intel
Sound Server-1: ALSA v: k6.8.0-49-generic running: yes
Sound Server-2: PulseAudio v: 15.99.1 running: yes
Sound Server-3: PipeWire v: 0.3.48 running: yes

Thanks in advance!

Welcome to the Forum!

Is this with built-in Speaks, connected Speakers, Headset (wired, wireless)?

Primarily connected speakers. I think it has also happened with my USB headphones as well but it's been a while since I checked with them.

And how they are connected? USB? Audio Jack?

You could try it with PulseAudio Volume control. You can install it with the Terminal Command sudo apt install pavucontrol

It is a Tool for set up Audio Input and Output. when You have open it, go to the Configuration Tab and choose Your Audio Profile and then go to the Output Tab and click there on the Marker to set Your Audio as default. Then make a Reboot and test it.

Plugged in via audio jack.
I don't see a tab for "Your Audio" under Configuration. Under the Output tab I find the speakers, labelled as "Line Out". But I also don't see any options for setting it as default.

Your GUI looks different that mine ... Are You using zorin 16 or 17?

On the configuration Tab, You have several sources active. Unmark the One's that You don't use. then make a Reboot and test the sound.

The OP states in his detail he is running Zorin 17.2

I suspect the issue is that you clearly have 3 different sources for audio to be processed. You need to decide which two need to be blacklisted. I would certainly blacklist HDMI source. What I suspect is you are having the software not knowing which hardware source to use.

Whilst my tutorial that I wrote was for a SoundBlaster AudigyRX card, you can decide which device you want to deal with sound and blacklist the two you don't need/want:

Also check out my last post on ensuring that you get sound out of each speaker:

Zorin 17.2.
So when I uncheck two of the boxes and reboot, one of them checks itself again:


And the problem persists. I've done several reboots to confirm. After testing them individually, the top one doesn't play sound. The bottom one plays sound as normal.

Thanks for the links. After accessing /proc/asound/modules, I see three lines with the same source names:
Screenshot from 2024-12-03 22-01-40
How do I tell which one is which?

Usually the first one is hdmi based on my personal experience. Go for the first two to blacklist, save the blacklist.conf file, power off and reboot. See what happens.

When You click on the Dropdown-Menu, You should see an Option called ''Off''. Use it for the Option that You don't want to have active.

1 Like

I tested this with one entry in the blacklist file, and two entries (because they are the same entries, I didn't think it would make a difference). After a reboot, no sound was playing whatsoever.

Unfortunately, I don't. There's just a list of possible devices, some of which are unavailable. I couldn't grab a screenshot of the menu while it was open, so you'll have to trust me :grin:
However, after several reboots, now only the Built-in Audio profile is checked. So that's a win?
But the problem still persists.

The problem being "Audio lag" as per title, but you describe it as "audio get repeated" which to me sounds like echo or loopback.

Can you open alsamixer in terminal.
Hit F5 to show all channels. Post a screenshot showing all channels (some may spill off right side of screen).
Look for channel [Auto-Mute] try toggle that to Disable to see any effect.
Look for channel [Loopback ] try toggle that OFF to see effect.

Out of interest, have you tested sound using "Try Zorin" mode from the Live USB?

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No, never used it from a live USB.
I don't see any options for Auto-Mute or Loopback. Alsamixer screenshot:

I did a websearch using search term:- "Intel Haswell HDMI poor sound Ubuntu 22.04".
I wonder if this will help or steer: sound - HDMI Audio Issue Ubuntu 22.04 - Ask Ubuntu

But is alsamixer different if you untick the "GM206 High Definition Audio Controller item in Pulse Audio (post #8), leaving just the "Built In Audio - Analog Stereo Output" item.

The alsamixer output is the same if the GM206 option is unchecked.
Checked:

Unchecked:

I haven't had a chance to try the fix in the above link, but I'll give it a shot and update later.

Update: after following the solutions on the link, I still have an echo.

Could this possibly be a problem with flatpaks? I realized I'm running everything as flatpaks, which I haven't used as much in a Linux system.
I also have to admit my hardware is 10 years old, or older, so it could be that Zorin isn't playing well with it.

You could check that with installing the APT Version of the Program and test if there the Sound works without Issues. Flatpak's can sometimes be a bit ... difficult because of there limited Permissions.