Ubuntu Version
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS
Desktop Environment (if applicable)
GNOME
Problem Description
How to Use a USB Audio Interface at 192 kHz on Ubuntu
I put this together after running into a real conflict on my own machine. Getting my mic to run at 192 kHz kept knocking my Bluetooth speakers down to Hands-Free quality, or dropping them off the device list.
The fix is letting PipeWire run both rates at once, so each device gets what it actually supports. Writing it down here for reference, and for anyone else who hits the same wall.
This guide walks through configuring a USB audio interface for 192 kHz on Ubuntu with PipeWire. It isn’t tied to one brand. It works with interfaces from MOTU, Focusrite, Audient, PreSonus, RME, Behringer, Steinberg, and others, as long as the Linux ALSA driver exposes 192 kHz.
Why this matters
A USB audio interface may support 192 kHz while another device on your computer doesn’t. A Bluetooth speaker, for instance, might handle high-quality A2DP playback fine at its normal Bluetooth sample rate, but choke on a 192 kHz PipeWire graph.
Forcing the entire audio system to 192 kHz can cause Bluetooth speakers to disappear from the normal speaker list, lose their A2DP profile, or fall back to the lower-quality Hands-Free/HFP profile.
So rather than forcing everything to 192 kHz, we let PipeWire use both 48 kHz and 192 kHz, and pick the right one per device.
1. Check that Ubuntu detects your USB interface
Open a terminal:
arecord -l
Your audio interface should show up as a capture device, something like:
card 3: M2 [M2], device 0: USB Audio [USB Audio]
The card number will differ on your machine.
2. Check whether the interface supports 192 kHz
Use the card number from the previous step. If your interface is card 3, device 0:
arecord --dump-hw-params -D hw:3,0
Look for a line like:
RATE: [44100 192000]
or a list that includes:
192000
You might also see:
FORMAT: S32_LE
That tells you what the hardware and driver actually support.
If 192000 isn’t listed
Don’t force the device to 192 kHz. The interface or its Linux driver likely doesn’t support that rate for the mode you’re using.
3. Check that Ubuntu is using PipeWire
pactl info | grep "Server Name"
A modern Ubuntu install usually shows something like:
Server Name: PulseAudio (on PipeWire 1.x.x)
That means PulseAudio-compatible apps are actually being routed through PipeWire.
4. Allow both 48 kHz and 192 kHz
Create the config directory:
mkdir -p ~/.config/pipewire/pipewire.conf.d
Create the config file:
nano ~/.config/pipewire/pipewire.conf.d/10-usb-audio-rates.conf
Add:
context.properties = {
default.clock.rate = 48000
default.clock.allowed-rates = [ 48000 192000 ]
}
Save and restart PipeWire:
systemctl --user restart pipewire pipewire-pulse wireplumber
Why not just set 192 kHz everywhere?
You’ll find configs online like this:
default.clock.rate = 192000
default.clock.allowed-rates = [ 192000 ]
That forces the whole PipeWire graph to 192 kHz. Skip this if you have Bluetooth speakers. A2DP on Bluetooth speakers often can’t handle 192 kHz, so the speaker either loses its high-quality profile or drops to Hands-Free/HFP. Allowing both rates avoids that problem.
5. Check the USB interface
pactl list sources | grep -A5 "alsa_input.usb"
Find your interface and look for:
Sample Specification: float32le 1ch 192000Hz
or, depending on the profile:
Sample Specification: float32le 2ch 192000Hz
What matters is the 192000Hz at the end, confirming the input is actually running at 192 kHz.
6. Check your Bluetooth speakers
pactl list cards | grep -A25 -B5 -i "YOUR SPEAKER NAME"
For high-quality playback you want to see:
a2dp-sink: High Fidelity Playback
and:
Active Profile: a2dp-sink
A2DP vs Hands-Free
A2DP (High Fidelity Playback) is the normal profile for music and geneal playback.
HSP/HFP (Headset Head Unit) is built for two-way calls and sounds noticeably worse.
If your speaker switches to Hands-Free mode right after you change the PipeWire config, check whether you accidentally forced the whole audio graph to 192 kHz.
7. The principle
PipeWire sits between your apps and your different audio devices, giving each one the rate it can actually handle: the USB interface runs at 192 kHz while Bluetooth stays on its own appropriate A2DP rate, instead of forcing everything to one setting.
8. Check overall status with wpctl
wpctl status
This shows every audio device PipeWire currently sees and which ones are active. Look under Sinks and Sources for your USB interface and your Bluetooth speaker, and confirm both show the profile you expect: no unexpected fallback to headset mode, no missing USB device. You can also re-check steps 5 and 6 once you’re done. If you want to be sure.
Troubleshooting
My USB interface still shows 48 kHz
Check the device again:
arecord --dump-hw-params -D hw:X,0
Confirm 192000 is in there. Restart PipeWire:
systemctl --user restart pipewire pipewire-pulse wireplumber
Then check again:
pactl list sources | grep -A5 "alsa_input.usb"
My Bluetooth speaker disappeared
Check the card:
pactl list cards | grep -A25 -B5 -i "YOUR SPEAKER NAME"
If only Hands-Free/HFP shows up, make sure your config has:
default.clock.rate = 48000
default.clock.allowed-rates = [ 48000 192000 ]
and not:
default.clock.allowed-rates = [ 192000 ]
Restart:
systemctl --user restart pipewire pipewire-pulse wireplumber
You may need to disconnect and reconnect the Bluetooth device too.
Please note - 192 kHz isn’t automatically better
A higher sample rate doesn’t audibly improve every use case. It can help with certain recording, production, or processing workflows, but it also means more data and more CPU/storage load. For voice calls, podcasting, streaming, and most recording, 48 kHz is plenty. Use 192 kHz when you actually need it and your hardware supports it.
Heads up
If you notice any mistakes above, please let me know, as this is only a summary of my debugging. If you have any suggestions for improvements, please feel free to share them as well, especially if there are ways to make it clearer or simpler for others. Thanks!