0 A.D. 0.0.24b-alpha has no sound in fullscreen mode under Windows 10 when using HDMI-HDMI cable

[Ceres]

Hello!

My monitor (no 4K) is connected to the PC via HDMI cable, and Windows 10 sound is ok. When playing 0 A.D. 0.0.24b-alpha in fullscreen mode, there is no sound. When playing in windowed mode, there is sound. I found a possible explanation for this, but I am unsure whether this is the root cause here as well. See what Intel says about it:

Quote

How to fix it:

We've identified that this issue actually comes from the game(s) code. The reason why this issue doesn't occur on previous drivers is due to a code bug, they were taking longer than 8 seconds for 'modeset.' However this was actually undesired behavior since it affects a number of other scenarios.

Intel has been reaching out to most developers so they can look into this and fix their code.

A workaround users can try for now is making sure that the game resolution matches the one set in Windows* (e.g. in the game settings set 1920x1080 if that is the one you have in Windows*).

Intel is also looking for a workaround for this known issue using our driver code, but it is still work in progress.

Cause & More Information:

When the application launches, the driver does a 'modeset' with a max delay of 8 seconds (max time defined by the HDMI specification) during which the audio gets disabled. It is at this point that the application checks for audio presence (shows disabled), hence audio drop occurs. The application(s) that run into this problem need to be updated so they detect the audio for more than 8 seconds upon launch.

When I alternatively connect the monitor via Thunderbolt 3/USB-C - HDMI - Adapter to the PC, there is 0 A.D. game play sound also in fullscreen mode.

Could the explanation provided by Intel be plausible? Do you developers think you can further look into this and maybe find a solution?

Thank you so much for this great game and your huge efforts!

Edited April 11, 2021 by Ceres

[Stan`]

Mmmh, sound detection is only done once, at the game start. if it picks the wrong soundcard then you will get no sound. There is a ticket for it but Soundcard hotplug is a bit hard to do.

[Ceres]

@Stan`

Hi Stan! Long time no talk. I hope you are doing well. I'm still around but not very active as there are currently so many other things ongoing (family etc.).

Now our kids asked me if there is a way to get the sound problem resolved on their NUC PC when playing in fullscreen. It is still not working, so we use the window mode and automatically hide the Windows taskbar. However, when the mouse pointer reaches the bottom, the taskbar comes up which is a bit cumbersome in the game.

Are you aware of any possibilities to find another workaround or even a solution?

Thank you so much, and my best wishes for you and all other kind people!
 

[Stan`]

@Ceres Do you know how many sound cards the NU PC has ? You could try setting different ones as default and see what happens.

[Ceres]

@Stan`

They all have one sound-over-HDMI way, additionally Realtek sound-over-jack. Only the HDMI is affected (and only in fullscreen mode).

I haven't found out the reason but our solution is as follows:

We have set up a local mumble server and use mumble with headsets at home (is fun anyway). This includes game sound over headset, which works fine also in fullscreen mode.

@Norse_Harold FYI, too!

[Stan`]

What if you disable the HDMi soundcard ?

[Ceres]

Then I would need to connect the monitors' speakers to the jacks (out) of our NUCs, but our monitors don't have jacks (in), only HDMI.

[Norse_Harold]

13 hours ago, Ceres said:

our solution is as follows:

We have set up a local mumble server and use mumble with headsets at home (is fun anyway). This includes game sound over headset, which works fine also in fullscreen mode

Thanks for sharing this. By using the headset, it is completely bypassing the HDMI audio output device. It's not a solution to the HDMI audio output issue, but it's certainly an effective workaround to the problem.

Likely your headset is configured as the default audio communication output device, and your HDMI audio output is configured as the default audio output device. When Windows detects a voip program in use like Mumble then it sends all audio to the default audio communication output device.

Edited February 9, 2023 by Norse_Harold

[Ceres]

Yes, it's rather a workaround and not a solution. I only came up with the idea of using headsets because of this strange behaviour of Intel NUCs' HDMI audio when playing certain games in fullscreen mode (0ad is not the only one with this problem).