# Enable audio
This section shows how to configure hardware for
microphone and speaker connections and gives steps to verify basic audio
use cases.
Tab QCS6490
Tab IQ-9075
Tab IQ-8275
Tab QCS615
- *class* tabincludedirective
-
Setup flow
**Prerequisites**
- Set up your infrastructure as described in the [Qualcomm Linux Build
Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/introduction.html)
- Flash the latest software release to the development board.
- Set up an SSH connection:
1. Enable SSH in Permissive mode. For instructions, see
[Use SSH](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/how_to.html#use-ssh).
2. Connect to the device by running the following command:
ssh root@
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For example, if the IP address of the device is 10.92.160.222, run
the following command:
ssh root@10.92.160.222
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**Set up audio hardware**
1. To activate the digital microphone interface (DMIC) on the board, use
DIP 2. Switch PIN 2 to the ON position.
2. Connect the speaker to the board as follows.
- *class* tabincludedirective
-
Setup flow
**Prerequisites**
- Set up your infrastructure as described in the [Qualcomm Linux Build
Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/introduction.html)
- Flash the latest software release to the development board.
- Set up an SSH connection:
1. Enable SSH in Permissive mode. For instructions, see
[Use SSH](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/how_to.html#use-ssh)
2. Connect to the device by running the following command:
ssh root@
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For example, if the IP address of the device is 10.92.160.222, run
the following command:
ssh root@10.92.160.222
Copy to clipboard
**Set up audio hardware**
Connect the speaker to the board as follows.
Note
EVT boards need hardware rework for audio functions to work.
- *class* tabincludedirective
-
Setup flow
**Prerequisites**
- Set up your infrastructure as described in the [Qualcomm Linux Build
Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/introduction.html)
- Flash the latest software release to the development board.
- Set up an SSH connection.
1. Enable SSH in Permissive mode. For instructions, see
[Use SSH](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/how_to.html#use-ssh)
2. Connect to the device by running the following command:
ssh root@
Copy to clipboard
For example, if the IP address of the device is 10.92.160.222, run
the following command:
ssh root@10.92.160.222
Copy to clipboard
**Set up audio hardware**
Connect the speaker to the board as follows.
- *class* tabincludedirective
-
Setup flow
**Prerequisites**
- Set up your infrastructure as described in the [Qualcomm Linux Build
Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/introduction.html)
- Flash the latest software release to the development board.
- Set up an SSH connection:
1. Enable SSH in Permissive mode. For instructions, see
[Use SSH](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-254/topic/how_to.html#use-ssh).
2. Connect to the device by running the following command:
ssh root@
Copy to clipboard
For example, if the IP address of the device is 10.92.160.222, run
the following command:
ssh root@10.92.160.222
Copy to clipboard
**Set up audio hardware**
1. Connect the audio hardware to the board as follows.
2. Connect the 3.5 mm headset to the board as follows.
3. Connect WiFi as follows. Ensure that:
- SW 12 is set to OFF
- SW 14 is set to ON
## Enable audio with GStreamer
To decode audio using GStreamer apps, see the following.
- [Audio decode
example](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-55/topic/gst-audio-decode-sample.html)
To encode audio using GStreamer apps, use the following instructions.
- Set the default input device for PipeWire.
Use the `wpctl status` command to list available nodes. Run `wpctl set-default` to set the source node to the handset mic.
wpctl status
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wpctl set-default
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- [Audio encode
example](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-55/topic/gst-audio-encode-example-without-flac.html)
Note
To check the GStreamer app for different chipsets, see [Source information for multimedia sample applications](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-55/topic/multimedia-sample-applications.html).
GStreamer is an open source multimedia framework. Qualcomm provides
GStreamer plug-ins as part of the Qualcomm IM SDK.
### GStreamer plug-ins
- GStreamer plug-ins for audio decoder and encoder are part of Qualcomm IM SDK.
Download the entire Qualcomm IM SDK to use
[pulsesrc](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-50/topic/pulsesrc.html)
and
[pulsesink](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-50/topic/pulsesink.html).
- The [Qualcomm IM SDK Quick Start
Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-51/topic/introduction.html)
describes how to download and build the Qualcomm IM SDK.
### GStreamer sample apps
[Sample GStreamer apps for
audio](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-55/topic/audio-sample-applications.html)
use cases are part of the Qualcomm IM SDK. Before running sample apps, meet
these [prerequisites](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-55/topic/mm_sample_apps_prerequisites.html).
Run audio use cases with either command line or the GST app.
#### Play and record audio with the GStreamer app
Use the reference GST commands mentioned in [audio playback/capture](https://docs.qualcomm.com/doc/80-80022-50/topic/audio-use-cases.html).
## Enable audio with PipeWire
PipeWire is a graph-based processing framework that handles multimedia data.
Find the source code for PipeWire at `build-qcom-wayland/workspace/sources/pipewire`.
For more information, see the [PipeWire open source documentation](https://docs.pipewire.org/page_api.html) for detailed APIs available.
Note
The `pw-play` and `pw-record` utilities in this guide demonstrate .wav file usage. PipeWire as a framework supports additional formats depending on available codecs and plugins.
### PipeWire record
1. Set up PipeWire recording:
Use the `wpctl status` command to list available nodes. Run `wpctl set-default` to set
the source node to the handset mic.
wpctl status
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wpctl set-default
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pw-record --rate=48000 --format=s16 --channels=2 /opt/test.wav -v
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The command shell should resemble the following:
2. Select Ctrl + C to stop the recording.
Supported formats are s16le, s24le, s32le, rate can be 8000, 16000, 22050, 24000, 32000, 44100, 48000, 88200, 96000, 176400, 192000, 352800, 384000, 705600, and 768000, and channels can range from 1 to a maximum of 8.
### Volume settings for recording
1. Start audio capture using the `pw-record` utility.
2. Open a new command prompt in parallel. Open `ssh root@ip-addr` and
run the following command to set the volume level:
wpctl set-volume @DEFAULT_AUDIO_SOURCE@ 0.8
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In the above command, a value of 0.8 represents 80% volume. Adjust this value according to the desired volume level.
### PipeWire playback
1. Push the .wav audio file to the device for playback:
scp test.wav root@[ip-addr]:/opt/
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2. After pushing the test.wav file, enter the device shell using
`ssh root@ip-addr`.
3. Set the default sink mode for playback using the below command and choose between two sink modes: one for low latency (LL) and another for deep buffer (DB).
wpctl status
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wpctl set-default
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4. Use the following command to start playback:
pw-play /opt/test.wav -v
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The command shell should resemble the following:
### Volume settings for playback
1. Start audio playback on the speakers using the `pw-play` utility.
2. Open a new command prompt in parallel. Open `ssh root@ip-addr` and
run the following commands to set the volume level:
wpctl set-volume @DEFAULT_AUDIO_SINK@ 0.8
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In the above command, a value of 0.8 represents 80% volume. Adjust this value according to the desired volume level.
Last Published: May 14, 2026
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