I would like to take the time to give mad props to the folks working on the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) project. Their drivers are constantly improving, and, in many cases, have far surpassed the quality of the drivers contained within the stock Linux kernel.

One of the best tricks I’ve seen yet: taking advantage of the C-Media CMI8738 chipset’s two DSPs. Normally, the secondary DSP is there to be used as a generic DSP, perhaps even as a modem. The cmipci driver from ALSA allows the user to hook the secondary DSP up and have its output directed over the rear speaker output. Voilà! Two soundcards for the price of one. And, since the C-Media cards are dirt cheap (around $10-$15 from most dealers), you get quite the bang for the buck.

Now if I can just get the aforementioned sound card to play well with the ethernet card in the next PCI slot over, I’ll dance a jig. Right now, the sound card emits the occasional pop and click when the ethernet card is installed (it behaves much better with the ALSA driver, but the pops are still there). Swapping PCI slots doesn’t help. I have yet to try a different Ethernet card; that’s an exercise left for tomorrow.