The release of the PulseAudio 15.0 sound server has been announced, which acts as an intermediary between applications and various low-level audio subsystems, abstracting the hardware interaction. PulseAudio allows for managing volume and mixing sound at the level of individual applications, organizing input, mixing, and output of sound with multiple input and output channels or sound cards, enables on-the-fly changes to the sound stream format and the use of plugins, and allows for transparent redirection of the audio stream to another machine. The PulseAudio code is distributed under the LGPL 2.1+ license. It supports operation in Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, DragonFlyBSD, NetBSD, macOS, and Windows.
Key improvements in PulseAudio 15.0:
- Significantly enhanced Bluetooth support: New A2DP codecs LDAC and AptX have been added. Built-in support for the HFP (Hands-Free Profile) based on the mSBC codec has been implemented, improving audio quality. Support for AVRCP Absolute Volume for software volume control of connected A2DP devices has been added.
- The ability to pin sound card profiles has been implemented, where the state does not reset after unplugging and reconnecting (useful for HDMI reconnections).
- A new messaging API has been added, simplifying the creation of extensions for the base API.
- The sink module has been completely rewritten, implementing a virtual surround sound effect (module-virtual-surround-sink).
- Support for the Autotools build system has been discontinued in favor of Meson.
- Users can now place ALSA configuration files in their home directory ($XDG_DATA_HOME/pulseaudio/alsa-mixer/paths) instead of just in /usr/share/pulseaudio/alsa-mixer/paths.
- Improved hardware support: SteelSeries Arctis 9, HP Thunderbolt Dock 120W G2, Behringer U-Phoria UMC22, OnePlus Type-C Bullets, Sennheiser GSX 1000/1200 PRO.
- Improved FreeBSD support. Hot plugging and unplugging of sound cards have been successfully managed.
Source: opennet.ru
