(Solution) No Audio via HDMI-out when docked

[CTSchmidlak]

-- INTRO --

Hey there,

After going back and forth with Steam Customer Support, they concluded that they couldn't help me and I should post my issue here.

Thankfully, I was able to come to a work-around on my own, so hopefully this can help others too (though sadly it does not fix the fundamental problem, so hopefully someone at Valve will see this and ultimately fix this issue).

-- THE PROBLEM --

The Steam Deck's audio interface wont recognize an HDMI-out source under certain conditions. For me, this bug occurred immediately upon receiving a brand new Steam Deck. I performed all of the first-time setup and updates, connected the new Deck to the official Steam Dock, and installed the latest Dock firmware.

After all of that, audio would only come out of the Steam Deck's internal speakers; any attempt to switch the audio out to "External Device" would immediately fail and revert to "Default" or "Speakers".

Switching into desktop mode revealed again that no HDMI-out source was being detected by the audio interface. Attempts to factory reset, enabling the Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller Pro, and numerous reboots did nothing to improve the situation.

-- THE CAUSE --

While I was not able to identify the root cause, I was able to figure out the specific conditions where this problem arises (at least for my setup).

The issue appears to be tied to the fact that I am using a soundbar with my TV, which uses an HDMI ARC connection.

In short, if your TV's audio out is set to HDMI(ARC) for a soundbar, and the Steam Deck turns on for the first time in a while (I was not able to determine the exact length of time, but for me it happens consistently when I wake it up in the morning after it has been in sleep mode overnight), it will fail to detect an "External Device" connection, and the Deck will be unable to find it again until you reset your TV's audio out to it's own internal speakers.

-- THE SOLUTION (WORKAROUND) --

1. Switch your TV's audio out settings to "TV Speakers" (i.e. the TV's internal audio)

2. Unplug your Steam Dock from power
**NOTE: Rebooting the Steam Deck can also work at times, but not every time. The only consistent way I have found to 100% guarantee the Dock's audio interface will reset is to unplug the Dock's power cable with the Deck still attached to the Dock; other users have reported that this has worked for them as well in troubleshooting their Dock for various other issues.

3. Wait for the Steam Dock's connection to reset (your TV screen will likely go black for a moment and then the image should return), it should now recognize the HDMI-out source (aka "External Device" in the Steam Deck audio settings) and use your TV's speakers for audio

4. Switch your TV's audio out settings back to "HDMI ARC" (i.e. the sound bar)

Using the above procedure, the Steam Deck will consistently play audio through my sound bar. You can even put the Deck to sleep or turn it off for a short while after doing this and the audio settings will generally hold - but for me this is usually undone after leaving the Deck in sleep mode overnight, at which point I have to repeat the procedure above.

-- CONCLUSION / A BIT OF SOAP-BOXING--

Hopefully this helps some folks - I spent many hours trying to research and solve this issue, but did not find anything specifically referring to the use of HDMI ARC as part of the problem - so fingers crossed that if you haven't been able to resolve your audio issues with your Steam Deck this could be the missing piece of info you needed!

I also want to acknowledge how especially dispiriting this is to deal with right out of the box, when your enthusiasm and excitement is at its peak, only to be met with hours of frustration and confusion in trying to get basic functionality working.

I really hope someone at Valve sees this and can help us get a more permanent solution, because getting audio to come out of your TV/Sound Bar should not require consumers to spend hours online trolling through user forums.

And with all due respect to the folks working in customer service, the support I received was not helpful and frankly came across as AI generated or copy-pasted form boiler plate responses (which with the volume of requests Valve likely receives, I can empathize with - but it only exacerbates the feelings of frustration when trying to debug your brand new $700 device).

Considering the price, and the way the device is advertised, I am really surprised how many basic issues I have run into when trying to connect the Steam Dock to a TV. I feel like Valve could do a much better job in communicating that this really is intended to be a handheld device, and that playing on the TV is really more of an experimental experience. Had I known that upfront, I likely would not have purchased a Steam Deck.

In short, I've spent significantly more time debugging my Steam Deck than playing on it - and that's a huge shame.

[deaddoof]

Can you run

wpctl status

Wireplumber is the project that does source/sink plumbing for pipewire.

And with all due respect to the folks working in customer service, the support I received was not helpful and frankly came across as AI generated or copy-pasted form boiler plate responses (which with the volume of requests Valve likely receives, I can empathize with - but it only exacerbates the feelings of frustration when trying to debug your brand new $700 device).

Pretty valid criticism. Their support staff isn't that trained....

[deaddoof]

Considering the price, and the way the device is advertised, I am really surprised how many basic issues I have run into when trying to connect the Steam Dock to a TV. I

Looks basic, but its actually pretty complicated underneath. We are entering a future where HDMi is just unreliable....

https://hackaday.com/2023/07/11/displayport-a-better-video-interface/

The price is actually quite low. Valve pretty much push down prices for all gaming handheld.

[CTSchmidlak]

Originally posted by deaddoof:

Considering the price, and the way the device is advertised, I am really surprised how many basic issues I have run into when trying to connect the Steam Dock to a TV. I

Looks basic, but its actually pretty complicated underneath. We are entering a future where HDMi is just unreliable....

https://hackaday.com/2023/07/11/displayport-a-better-video-interface/

The price is actually quite low. Valve pretty much push down prices for all gaming handheld.

Interesting - I was not aware that there were so many issues with HDMI. Thanks for sharing that article.

With that said, while I can appreciate that there is likely some legit engineering issues, from just a consumer perspective it does really stand out to me that this is the only device I have bought in the last 15 years that seems to have issues with HDMI out of the box.

And while I understand $700 is low relative to the other devices in the market, it still represents a significant investment for most consumers. While the problem may not be basic from a technical perspective of the engineers, I do think it's a fair expectation from consumers that HDMI audio should work out of the box. Especially since this device has been on the market for over two years now.

Again, I don't mean to be too critical - I know hardware and software engineering is hard, and I do believe there are better times ahead for myself with this device. It's just left a very rough first impression and I'm still feeling some of that frustration.

Thanks again for the comments though - I will try running that command and will follow up.

[deaddoof]

Originally posted by CTSchmidlak:

With that said, while I can appreciate that there is likely some legit engineering issues, from just a consumer perspective it does really stand out to me that this is the only device I have bought in the last 15 years that seems to have issues with HDMI out of the box.

You have not been paying attention. HDMI is starting to throw legal resources everywhere. It's a famous business tactic.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embrace,_extend,_and_extinguish

And while I understand $700 is low relative to the other devices in the market, it still represents a significant investment for most consumers. While the problem may not be basic from a technical perspective of the engineers, I do think it's a fair expectation from consumers that HDMI audio should work out of the box. Especially since this device has been on the market for over two years now.

Define work out of the box. I tested on two TV and it works out of the box. Anecdotal evidence doesn't really tell the scope of the problem. You need to provide harder data than ARC HDMI.

Again, I don't mean to be too critical - I know hardware and software engineering is hard, and I do believe there are better times ahead for myself with this device. It's just left a very rough first impression and I'm still feeling some of that frustration.

Thanks again for the comments though - I will try running that command and will follow up.

You will be surprised. The crappiest engineering problems are due to disagreement. When you have disagreement, you have to create internal databases because parties cannot agree on a damn work. Lots of coder will have to write translators because nobody wants to follow the standard....

HDMI is becoming a connector where parties disagree......

You are the victim of HDMI forum shenanigans.

https://www.theverge.com/2016/1/4/10708346/intel-warner-brothers-hdfury-lawsuit-HDCP

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2024/02/hdmi-forum-to-amd-no-you-cant-make-an-open-source-hdmi-2-1-driver/

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30870549

[CTSchmidlak]

Originally posted by deaddoof:

Can you run

wpctl status

Wireplumber is the project that does source/sink plumbing for pipewire.

Here's what I got from running this:

ipeWire 'pipewire-0' [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, cookie:1407686383]
 └─ Clients:
        36. WirePlumber                         [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1046]
        37. WirePlumber [export]                [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1046]
        38. pipewire                            [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1045]
        41. pipewire                            [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1045]
        42. pipewire                            [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1045]
        43. pipewire                            [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1045]
        59. Chromium input                      [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:5005]
        85. Plasma PA                           [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:3825]
        87. xdg-desktop-portal                  [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:3763]
        97. Steam Voice Settings                [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:4322]
        99. Steam                               [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:4322]
       101. pipewire                            [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1461]
       106. wpctl                               [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:5039]

Audio
 ├─ Devices:
 │      79. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor   [alsa]
 │      93. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
 │  
 ├─ Sinks:
 │      47. Filter Chain Sink                   [vol: 1.00]
 │      50. Virtual Sink                        [vol: 1.00]
 │  *   92. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller Digital Stereo (HDMI 3) [vol: 0.77]
 │  
 ├─ Sink endpoints:
 │  
 ├─ Sources:
 │      46. Filter Chain Source                 [vol: 1.00]
 │      51. Virtual Source                      [vol: 1.00]
 │  
 ├─ Source endpoints:
 │  
 └─ Streams:
        45. filter-chain-capture                                        
             80. monitor_FR    
             94. input_FR      
            103. input_FL      
            105. monitor_FL    
        48. filter-chain-playback                                      
             81. output_FL       > LG TV SSCR2:playback_FL      [paused]
             82. output_FR       > LG TV SSCR2:playback_FR      [paused]
        49. output.virtual-sink                                        
             66. output_FL       > LG TV SSCR2:playback_FL      [paused]
             67. output_FR       > LG TV SSCR2:playback_FR      [paused]
        52. input.virtual-source                                        
             70. input_FL        < LG TV SSCR2:monitor_FL       [paused]
             71. monitor_FL    
             72. input_FR        < LG TV SSCR2:monitor_FR       [paused]
             73. monitor_FR    

Video
 ├─ Devices:
 │  
 ├─ Sinks:
 │  
 ├─ Sink endpoints:
 │  
 ├─ Sources:
 │  
 ├─ Source endpoints:
 │  
 └─ Streams:

Settings
 └─ Default Configured Node Names: 

[deaddoof]

Originally posted by CTSchmidlak:

Audio
├─ Devices:
│ 79. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor [alsa]
│ 93. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
│
├─ Sinks:
│ 47. Filter Chain Sink [vol: 1.00]
│ 50. Virtual Sink [vol: 1.00]
│ * 92. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller Digital Stereo (HDMI 3) [vol: 0.77]


Settings
└─ Default Configured Node Names: [/code]

Yea. You already fixed your problem. You can grok the internal settings with the command. The command can set the default sink.

wpctl --help

This command provide you a list.

LG TV SSCR2

Looks expensive. I hope you are getting the correct hz.

[CTSchmidlak]

Got it - thanks for the help!

[Space-bible]

Originally posted by deaddoof:

Originally posted by CTSchmidlak:

Audio
├─ Devices:
│ 79. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor [alsa]
│ 93. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
│
├─ Sinks:
│ 47. Filter Chain Sink [vol: 1.00]
│ 50. Virtual Sink [vol: 1.00]
│ * 92. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller Digital Stereo (HDMI 3) [vol: 0.77]


Settings
└─ Default Configured Node Names: [/code]

Yea. You already fixed your problem. You can grok the internal settings with the command. The command can set the default sink.

wpctl --help

This command provide you a list.

LG TV SSCR2

Looks expensive. I hope you are getting the correct hz.

I have a very similar looking output to the OP here. I cannot get my Steam Deck to output audio via HDMI from Gaming Mode, only through desktop or Big Picture. What am I doing wrong?

My terminal output for ref:

PipeWire 'pipewire-0' [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, cookie:3451172157]
└─ Clients:
36. WirePlumber [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1157]
37. WirePlumber [export] [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1157]
38. pipewire [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1156]
41. pipewire [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1156]
42. pipewire [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1156]
43. pipewire [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1156]
87. Steam [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:23254]
89. Chromium input [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:24287]
165. Plasma PA [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:22580]
169. pipewire [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:1656]
170. wpctl [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:24632]
177. PulseAudio Volume Control [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:22785]
201. Steam Voice Settings [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:23254]
202. libcanberra [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:22580]
204. pavucontrol [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:22785]
206. Firefox [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:2]
220. xdg-desktop-portal [0.3.62, deck@steamdeck, pid:22519]

Audio
├─ Devices:
│ 112. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
│ 214. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor [alsa]
│
├─ Sinks:
│ 46. Filter Chain Sink [vol: 0.40]
│ 49. Virtual Sink [vol: 0.65]
│ 93. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor Speaker [vol: 0.33]
│ 99. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor Headphones [vol: 1.00]
│ * 139. Rembrandt Radeon High Definition Audio Controller Digital Stereo (HDMI 3) [vol: 0.55]
│
├─ Sink endpoints:
│
├─ Sources:
│ 45. Filter Chain Source [vol: 1.00]
│ 50. Virtual Source [vol: 1.00]
│ * 193. ACP/ACP3X/ACP6x Audio Coprocessor Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone [vol: 0.18]
│
├─ Source endpoints:
│
└─ Streams:
44. filter-chain-capture
84. monitor_FL
161. input_FR < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FR [active]
162. input_FL < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FL [active]
164. monitor_FR
47. filter-chain-playback
85. output_FR > BenQ EW3270U:playback_FR [active]
86. output_FL > BenQ EW3270U:playback_FL [active]
48. output.virtual-sink
66. output_FL > BenQ EW3270U:playback_FL [active]
67. output_FR > BenQ EW3270U:playback_FR [active]
51. input.virtual-source
74. input_FL < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FL [active]
75. monitor_FL
76. input_FR < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FR [active]
77. monitor_FR
95. PulseAudio Volume Control
137. monitor_FL
175. input_FR < Speaker:monitor_FR [active]
186. monitor_FR
237. input_FL < Speaker:monitor_FL [active]
166. PulseAudio Volume Control
183. monitor_FL
200. monitor_FR
233. input_FL < Filter Chain Sink:monitor_FL [active]
270. input_FR < Filter Chain Sink:monitor_FR [active]
181. PulseAudio Volume Control
113. monitor_2
146. input_1 < Filter Chain Source:capture_1 [active]
176. monitor_1
250. input_2 < Filter Chain Source:capture_2 [active]
190. PulseAudio Volume Control
171. input_FL < Virtual Source:capture_FL [active]
179. monitor_FR
182. input_FR < Virtual Source:capture_FR [active]
235. monitor_FL
205. PulseAudio Volume Control
132. input_FR < BenQ EW3270U:monitor_FR [active]
184. monitor_FR
223. monitor_FL
273. input_FL < BenQ EW3270U:monitor_FL [active]
208. PulseAudio Volume Control
191. input_FL < Virtual Sink:monitor_FL [active]
234. monitor_FL
236. input_FR < Virtual Sink:monitor_FR [active]
271. monitor_FR
216. PulseAudio Volume Control
155. input_FR < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FR [active]
254. monitor_FR
255. input_FL < Headset Microphone + Internal Microphone:capture_FL [active]
274. monitor_FL
217. PulseAudio Volume Control
80. input_FL < Filter Chain Sink:output_FL [active]
83. input_FR < Filter Chain Sink:output_FR [active]
226. monitor_FR
265. monitor_FL
222. PulseAudio Volume Control
40. monitor_FL
203. input_FL < Headphones:monitor_FL [active]
239. input_FR < Headphones:monitor_FR [active]
262. monitor_FR
229. Firefox
187. output_FL > PulseAudio Volume Control:input_FL [paused]
221. output_FR > PulseAudio Volume Control:input_FR [paused]
230. PulseAudio Volume Control
188. monitor_FR
197. monitor_FL
232. input_FR < Firefox:output_FR [paused]
243. input_FL < Firefox:output_FL [paused]
257. PulseAudio Volume Control
104. input_FR < Virtual Sink:output_FR [active]
105. monitor_FL
129. input_FL < Virtual Sink:output_FL [active]
275. monitor_FR

Video
├─ Devices:
│
├─ Sinks:
│
├─ Sink endpoints:
│
├─ Sources:
│
├─ Source endpoints:
│
└─ Streams:

Settings
└─ Default Configured Node Names:

[deaddoof]

Originally posted by Space-bible:

Originally posted by deaddoof:

Yea. You already fixed your problem. You can grok the internal settings with the command. The command can set the default sink.

wpctl --help

This command provide you a list.



Looks expensive. I hope you are getting the correct hz.

I have a very similar looking output to the OP here. I cannot get my Steam Deck to output audio via HDMI from Gaming Mode, only through desktop or Big Picture. What am I doing wrong?

big picture?

Big picture is game mode unless you open big picture in desktop mode.

You have to run wpctl command in game mode. Game mode and desktop mode uses different compositors so one settings may not transfer over to the other.

Yes, this problem is why many maintainers frown upon uses having their own set of settings.

[UP!artig]

Solution for me go Desktop mode + steam big picture.
In dekstop Mode u can select under the system Audio the correct Audio source and the correct speaker configuration e.g. 5.1/2.0/7.1 then the Audio has no Problem for me. For some reason the fault source is chosen.

[matticgreek]

@CTSchmidlak, I finally remembered to come back to this thread and say THANK YOU SO MUCH for posting your solution. I had—and still have, occasionally—the exact same problem. Found this thread after increasingly desperate searching back in September of last year, when I was despairing of ever getting docked play to work right. Your solution worked like a charm, and continues to as needed. I doubt I would ever have figured this out on my own. Thanks again!

[CTSchmidlak]

Originally posted by matticgreek:

@CTSchmidlak, I finally remembered to come back to this thread and say THANK YOU SO MUCH for posting your solution. I had—and still have, occasionally—the exact same problem. Found this thread after increasingly desperate searching back in September of last year, when I was despairing of ever getting docked play to work right. Your solution worked like a charm, and continues to as needed. I doubt I would ever have figured this out on my own. Thanks again!

Glad it helped out! Hopefully Valve can come up with a more permanent solution, but until then it's good to know this still works.

[OuhPii]

fckn KNEW the moment I encountered this problem today, that cause & solution are equally stupid

...fckn Steam Deck man