No audio from Nothing Ear (a)

Hardware Support
1

Connecting to Nothing Ear (a) shows two inputs for connections, for some reason, one looks like a generic bluetooth that never actually connects, and the other one is an actual headphone connection that does connect. However, neither of them give me audio output.

I also tried using https://earweb.bttl.xyz/ but it keeps saying it wants to connect to a serial port, and then it won't even let me click the connect button, even though the device is connected and bluetooth is on.

I have tried installing blueman, it did nothing, but it did give me a ping in my ears when I clicked Connect to Serial Port. Nothing Ear (a) also doesn't show up in the audio devices.

Any advice? Thanks!

2

Hi and welcome! Sadly a lot of hardware has been designed with systems other than GNU/Linux in mind.

Brave A.I. search engine via mojeek search engine brings up this:

Linux Driver for Nothing Ear

Based on the provided search results, it appears that there is no official Linux driver for the Nothing Ear (a) headphones. However, there are some community-driven solutions and workarounds that can help you connect and use the Ear (a) with Linux.

  1. Blueman Bluetooth Manager: According to a Reddit post from August 2022, installing Blueman Bluetooth Manager on Ubuntu 22.04 (or possibly other Linux distributions) allows the Ear (a) to be detected and used as an audio device. This solution involves installing Blueman, connecting the Ear (a) through the manager, and selecting the correct input and output devices in the system settings.
  2. PulseAudio: Another Reddit post from August 2024 mentions using PulseAudio to troubleshoot Bluetooth connectivity issues with the Ear (1) (not specifically Ear (a)), but the principles might apply. The user suggests checking the PulseAudio logs, restarting the service, and adjusting the Bluetooth settings.
  3. Custom Linux app: There is an unofficial Linux app, “nothing-linux,” created by a user (u/sn99_reddit) on GitHub, which provides a simple interface for controlling the Ear (2) (not Ear (a)) on Linux. Although this app is not specifically designed for Ear (a), it might serve as a starting point for developing a custom solution.

To summarize:

  • There is no official Linux driver for the Nothing Ear (a) headphones.
  • Community-driven solutions like Blueman Bluetooth Manager and custom Linux apps might help you connect and use the Ear (a) with Linux, but these are not officially supported by Nothing.
  • You may need to experiment with different Bluetooth managers, PulseAudio configurations, and custom scripts to achieve successful connectivity.

Keep in mind that the availability and effectiveness of these workarounds might vary depending on your specific Linux distribution and setup. If you’re interested in exploring these options further, I recommend searching for more recent and detailed information on Linux forums and communities.