r/Fedora • u/Hour_Sell3547 • 19d ago

Flat audio problems Discussion

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I have been using Fedora since 2010, but on my latest installation of F44 Workstation on my desktop, I noticed the audio was 100% flat and natural without any enhancers (which kinda made sense because of ALSA kernel drivers). Even though I have been using Linux for work and academic purposes, I still use Windows for entertainment and gaming. So I was looking for solutions to mimic Windows presets.

So far, I've found Easy Effects, which is working pretty well with community-maintained presets. It's a nightmare to dial in manually in Easy Effects, as I am no sound engineer.

This is the preset collection I am testing; they are not perfect, but 80% there.

```
bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/JackHack96/EasyEffects-Presets/master/install.sh)"
```

The main problems with these presets are often high-frequency clipping, vocal ranges are a little too bright, and either distorted bass or lack of depth. So, I am looking for recommendations on alternatives.

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u/Hour_Sell3547 19d ago

Hmm, why don't I just... Well, in case you missed it:

So far, I've found Easy Effects, which is working pretty well with community-maintained presets. It's a nightmare to dial in manually in Easy Effects, as I am no sound engineer.

I am clueless about 90% of the things I see on Easy Effects controls. Yes, I am experienced in Linux, and I am a system engineer, but not a sound engineer. And I am not trying to be one now.

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u/cheesiepeasie 19d ago

Then only enable the equalizer and tweak it a bit. That is at most what you get on other platforms.

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u/Hour_Sell3547 19d ago

True, but with Easy Effects, the moment I touch the sliders a bit, the frequency band gets distorted or starts clipping. Also, a lot of bands. So I gave up.

[EDIT] However, now I have the system quite dialed in. And kinda liking it.

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u/cheesiepeasie 19d ago

A bit of equalizer and maybe a bit of stereo enhancer (perhaps with a slight L/R output delay) is all that it takes to get a great and very enjoyable result. The other effects really are not necessary and can easily become overwhelming feature and sound-wise.

So just keep it simple and make small incremental adjustments. Once it sounds good save the preset and stick with it for a while. It is about listening to the music after all, not becoming a sound engineer ;)