Skype can't find microphone! Help!

[quixote]

Forgot to answer re backports: as far as I can tell, no, none installed. I searched for "backports" in synaptic, and there's quite a number with "alsa" in the name, but none of them are installed.

Update a bit later: I tried adding this line to the end of /etc/modprobe.d/alsa-base.conf:

options snd-hda-intel model=thinkpad

but that changes nothing. Likewise with model=lenovo. (I should mention, I do reboot between attempts, so the changes should take effect, if they're going to.)

[lidex]

Try re-installing kernel headers. Not sure of the command so use synaptic.

[quixote]

This is getting weirder and weirder. Reinstalling the header didn't solve the problem, but I figured if it's a kernel problem, maybe I should boot into one of my older kernels. Sound works in 2.6.32.22! So then I tried reinstalling all three kernel files for 32.23 (the one I was using when I tried the linuxant version), image, header, and header-generic, but still refuses to see the sound card. Very strange. I guess I could just uninstall 32.23, and see if an update-manager update is more effective.

One odd thing: when I was in the older kernel I opened alsamixer from the terminal, unmuted S/PDIF (I don't even know what that does), upped the volume on a couple of things, and exited. Then I ran "sudo alsactl store 0" to store the settings and got the error? warning? "/home/quixote is not ours".

?? I haven't seen that before. I also don't see any ~/.alsa* ~/.pulse* ~/.sound or anything similar, either files or dirs, it could be trying to write to. So what's that all about? Could it be that the linuxant alsa version changed the permissions on some obscure file and that's what's causing the problem?

[lidex]

More likely the issue was present before and causing the problem. Do you log in as root?

Maybe try booting into next-to-latest kernel, completely remove newest kernel and header packages, then this:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade

Reboot

[quixote]

No, I never login as root. The problem wasn't present before the attempt with the linuxant alsa install. I'm sure of that because the whole thing started with me trying to get Skype working, so I know the speakers, mic, all both internal and external, were all functioning. As I mentioned, the problem with the mic turned out to be that it was muted somewhere way down in the bowels of the system and only alsamixer started from the command line actually dealt with that. Playback from the mic input sounded awful though, and the idea with trying the conexant-alsa was to fix that. So this is definitely some weirdness associated with either the linuxant-alsa install or with uninstalling it using a complete purge.

I'll try completely removing the 32.23 kernel and then using update.

(By the way, brain hiccup in my previous comment: of course there's a .pulse dir in my ~/ ...)

[quixote]

Since I removed the 32.23 kernel manually, the system seems to be assuming I don't want it and is not offering it in the upgrade. Frustrating! If I just reinstall it again via Synaptic, I still have the no sound issue.

I've just been booting into the 32.22 kernel. But I'm still mystified how a driver could so totally change a kernel that even when you remove it, the problem remains. It's like magic. Hopefully, the next kernel upgrade will make it magically go away!

[lidex]

Probably a good thing. That kernel was causing problems so stay away from it.
What is your audio status now?

[quixote]

Sound works fine under the older kernel. And hopefully will again when the next new kernel shows up. From the perspective of using the system, there's zero difference between the two kernel versions for me, so it doesn't matter either way. All's well that ends well.