The de facto Linux sound-mixing system
Manage Your Audio Life

© Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
PipeWire lets you transparently handle ALSA, JACK, and PulseAudio applications, making it useful for both general and professional audio users.
PipeWire [1] is a software layer that handles audio mixing on a GNU/Linux-powered computer. Chances are, you are running PipeWire on your Linux PC right now, although you might not be aware of it because PipeWire transparently emulates the three most important audio systems: ALSA, JACK, and PulseAudio. For this reason, you can take advantage of PipeWire's facilities while still continuing to run your existing software.
PipeWire attempts to balance the needs of professional audio users, such as musicians, with the needs of general users such as gamers and general desktop users. If desired, you can simply sit back and benefit from what PipeWire is doing behind the scenes. But if you're a more advanced audio user, you can also get into the details of PipeWire's configuration and routing capabilities.
This article breaks down what PipeWire is and what it can do, along with some examples of how to handle some common audio scenarios.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.
-
KDE Linux Alpha Available for Daring Users
It's official, KDE Linux has arrived, but it's not quite ready for prime time.
-
AMD Initiates Graphics Driver Updates for Linux Kernel 6.18
This new AMD update focuses on power management, display handling, and hardware support for Radeon GPUs.
-
AerynOS Alpha Release Available
With a choice of several desktop environments, AerynOS 2025.08 is almost ready to be your next operating system.
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for more than two weeks.
-
RingReaper Malware Poses Danger to Linux Systems
A new kind of malware exploits modern Linux kernels for I/O operations.
-
Happy Birthday, Linux
On August 25, Linux officially turns 34.