PipeWire

PipeWire is a server for handling audio and video streams on Linux. It aims to improve upon and replace PulseAudio and JACK to provide a unified audio/video server.

Audio & Music Audio Processing

audio video streaming linux

PipeWire alternatives ➤

PipeWire: Unified Audio/Video Server

PipeWire is a server for handling audio and video streams on Linux, aiming to improve PulseAudio and JACK, providing a unified audio/video server

What is PipeWire?

PipeWire is an open source project that provides a low-latency, multimedia server designed to replace PulseAudio and JACK on Linux systems. It handles routing, devices, sessions and metadata for audio and video streams.

Some key features and goals of PipeWire include:

Unified handling of audio and video streams
Low audio/video latency for pro audio and video production
Support for audio and video devices, metadata and policy
Replacement for PulseAudio and JACK with backwards compatibility
Simplified audio routing and session management
Improved security through sandboxing

By providing a single multimedia server, PipeWire aims to overcome limitations and fragmentation from having separate PulseAudio and JACK servers. This allows easier routing between audio applications and devices, simplified policy handling, better compatibility across various media frameworks, and sets the stage for future improvements in Linux multimedia handling.

PipeWire Features

Features

Low latency audio
Unified audio and video streams
Replaces PulseAudio and JACK
Supports Bluetooth audio
Built-in echo cancellation
Screen sharing support
Can emulate PulseAudio and JACK APIs

Pricing

Open Source

Pros

Simplifies audio setup on Linux

Improves audio quality and reduces glitches

Allows easy audio routing between applications

Enables advanced audio use cases like pro audio production

Unifies audio and video streaming

Cons

Still relatively new software, may have bugs

Breaking changes from PulseAudio and JACK

May require adjustment for some existing applications

Limited hardware support on some distributions

Official Links

Official Website
https://pipewire.org

The Best PipeWire Alternatives

Top Audio & Music and Audio Processing and other similar apps like PipeWire

Here are some alternatives to PipeWire:

JACK Audio Connection Kit

PulseAudio

GStreamer

Advanced Linux Sound Architecture

Suggest an alternative ❐

JACK Audio Connection Kit

JACK Audio Connection Kit (or JACK) is an audio server designed for low latency audio performance and flexible routing of audio signals between applications and devices. It works by taking over the audio card and providing a common interface that audio applications can connect to in order to share audio...

Compare JACK Audio Connection Kit and PipeWire

PulseAudio

PulseAudio is an open source sound server designed for Linux operating systems. It serves as an intermediate layer between audio applications and the audio hardware, providing features like:Audio routing - Allows routing audio from applications to different audio devices like speakers, Bluetooth headsets, USB headphones etc.Concurrent access - Multiple applications...

Compare PulseAudio and PipeWire

GStreamer

GStreamer is an open-source, cross-platform multimedia framework for creating streaming media applications. It provides a pipeline-based model for connecting together a wide variety of media handling components, including video and audio playback, recording, streaming, editing, encoding/decoding, filters, effects, and more.Some key features of GStreamer include:Modular design with over 200 plugins...

Compare GStreamer and PipeWire

Advanced Linux Sound Architecture

The Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) is a software framework and set of components that provides audio functionality to the Linux operating system. It was designed to replace the original Open Sound System (OSS).ALSA provides kernel driven audio device drivers for sound cards and related hardware. It supports audio devices,...

Compare Advanced Linux Sound Architecture and PipeWire