Sound menu volume slider does not take amplification into account

[Romano Giannetti]

If your sound card has a volume with an "amplification" part, the indicator do not consider it. For example, if you set the volume with the applet to max, no amplification is selected.

The worst part if that if you set using sound preference some amplification, the applet indicates 100%, but as soon as you touch the indicator, you lose your set amplification, so even you try to rise the volume, it will be reduced.

<https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Sound#PC>: "'Output volume:' ... should be followed by checkboxes for 'Mute' and 'Allow louder than 100%' (with a translation note advising to keep the label brief)."

<https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Sound#Output_volume_item>: "Whenever 'Allow louder than 100%' is checked, the slider should include a red area for greater-than-maximum volume."

[Conor Curran (cjcurran)]

This should be fixed in the coming cycle. It's on our radar. First we needed to redesign the sound settings, next up we'll ensure all system vol controls respect each other and the idea of over amplification which has a definite use-case for laptops.

[Lars Karlitski (larsu)]

Matthew, how do you think the sound menu should behave in this case? The spec doesn't mention amplification at all.

[Romano Giannetti (romano-giannetti)]

My opinion is that the volume in the applet should work as in the sound-settings. IOW, present the user a linear "volume"slider; when it is at the top it has full amplification, and in some point midway there is 100% volume with no amplification.

See the attached screenshot. The applet is showing 100% volume --- maybe that is technically correct, but in reality the volume could be upped more (see position of the cursor, in B). Worse, if I close the sound-settings window, an then simply touch the indicator trying to up the volume, the level is snapped back to point C (where it says 100%). You can't see that in real time (you have to close and reopen sound/settings to see it), which is another bug in itself ;-), but you can hear it.

My opinion is that the behavior of the sound-settings slider is the correct one, and should be mimicked by the applet.

[Matthew Paul Thomas (mpt)]

Specification updated. <https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Sound?action=diff&rev2=99&rev1=98>