FAQ

Short answers. Each links to the page with more detail.

Does Rostrum work on GNOME, or on X11?

It is meant to. Rostrum targets any current Linux desktop running PipeWire and WirePlumber. It is developed and tested on KDE Plasma 6 on Wayland; GNOME and other desktops are in scope but get less testing, and X11 is a fallback. Two things differ outside Plasma:

• Global shortcuts go through the desktop's global shortcuts portal instead of KDE's shortcut service. That path is untested so far. Rostrum does not grab keys directly on X11.
• The tray needs a desktop that shows a system tray. Without one, closing the window quits Rostrum instead of hiding it, and "Start in tray" is unavailable.

Reports from other desktops are welcome.

Do I need PulseAudio?

No. Rostrum needs PipeWire 1.0 or newer with WirePlumber 0.5 or newer. Apps that use PulseAudio still work through PipeWire's PulseAudio service (pipewire-pulse). See Installation.

Is there a package, Flatpak or AppImage?

Not yet. Rostrum is built from source for now. The current version is 0.1.0. The release workflow is ready to build an x86_64 AppImage for each release, which will update itself, but none has been published yet. See Installation.

Does Rostrum replace OBS's audio filters?

No. Rostrum mixes and routes: faders, mute, solo, destinations, mic gain and sidetone. It has no noise suppression, compressor or other effects. Keep your filters in OBS on the source that records Rostrum Mic. When Set Up OBS switches your existing mic source to Rostrum Mic, the source keeps its filters, tracks and scenes. See OBS Setup.

Do I need OBS?

No. Any app that can record an audio device can record Rostrum Mic and Rostrum Stream Mix. The OBS page just makes OBS setup one click.

Does Rostrum change my WirePlumber configuration?

No. Rostrum writes nothing to ~/.config/wireplumber/ and ships no WirePlumber scripts. Outside its own folders it writes only two PipeWire rule files, so apps that start before Rostrum land on their bus:

• ~/.config/pipewire/pipewire-pulse.conf.d/50-rostrum.conf
• ~/.config/pipewire/client.conf.d/50-rostrum.conf

Plus the autostart entry while Launch at login is on, and OBS's scene collection if you run Set Up OBS while OBS is closed. See Files and Folders.

Will Rostrum change my default output or mic?

No. Rostrum reads your desktop's default devices but does not change them, and its own devices are set up so that WirePlumber should not pick one as the system default. Rostrum only sends its headphone mix to the headphones you chose, and takes your voice from the mic you chose.

What happens if Rostrum quits or crashes?

Your audio keeps playing. The buses live in PipeWire, not in the Rostrum process. Apps stay on their buses at the levels they had. What stops is the live part: new apps are not moved, and hotkeys and the tray stop. If Rostrum's buses are removed (for example after restarting PipeWire), apps fall back to your default output.

When Rostrum quits normally, it puts a ducked bus back to its scene level and unmutes every app it muted. After a crash it cannot: a ducked bus stays down (by at most 24 dB) until Rostrum starts again, and an app Rostrum muted stays muted until you unmute it on the Apps page or in any other mixer.

Does Rostrum work with Discord, Steam games and Wine games?

Yes. Discord (and clients like Vesktop) is recognised as voice chat, Steam games are recognised by their Steam app ID, and Wine and Proton games by their program. Games that report no name get a banner so you can name them once. See Apps and Routing.

Can I set a volume for one app, or mute it?

Yes. Each app on the Apps page has its own Volume slider and mute button, on top of its bus fader. With Always on, both are saved with the app's rule in the current scene; with it off, they last until Rostrum quits. See Apps and Routing.

How many buses can I have?

Up to 12 per scene, including Mic. See Mixer and Buses.

Why isn't solo saved?

Solo is a live monitoring aid for checking one bus, not part of the mix you want to recall. Rostrum never writes it to a scene, so nothing is soloed when you load a scene or restart. The same goes for push to talk, push to mute and panic mute, and for ducking and scene fades: they act on the live mix, and the scene never changes because of them. Ducking and the fade length are settings, not part of a scene.

Can I undo a change?

Yes. Ctrl+Z undoes level and bus edits in the live scene, and Ctrl+Shift+Z redoes them. Undo never covers the mic mute, solo or the holds. Loading another scene clears it. See Mixer and Buses.

I deleted a scene by mistake

Open Scenes → Recently Deleted and restore it. Deleted scenes are kept for 30 days. See Scenes and Presets.

Is there push to talk?

Yes. Bind Push to talk in Settings → Hotkeys: the mic is live only while you hold the keys. There is also Push to mute and Panic mute. None has a shortcut until you set one. See Keyboard Shortcuts.

Can I control Rostrum from a Stream Deck or a script?

Yes. The rostrum command and the D-Bus interface can mute the mic, switch scenes, set levels and trigger any hotkey action, for example rostrum --scene "Just Chatting". See Command Line and D-Bus.

Does Rostrum open a network port?

No. Remote control goes through D-Bus, which only works inside your own desktop session. The only connections Rostrum makes are to OBS on your own computer, and the optional update check and crash reports. See Privacy and Crash Reports.

Can Rostrum follow my OBS scenes?

Yes. On the OBS page, under When OBS switches scenes, pick a Rostrum scene for each OBS scene. When OBS puts that scene on program, Rostrum loads it. This needs Follow OBS while it runs. See OBS Setup.

Why is my mic silent after I unplugged it and plugged it back in?

It should not be: Rostrum uses your mic again as soon as it comes back. While it is unplugged, the stream mic is silent on purpose, so another mic never goes live by surprise. If it stays silent, check that PipeWire sees the mic again on the Devices page, and see Troubleshooting. To use another mic while yours is unplugged, turn on Devices → Use another mic while mine is unplugged.

Why does my desktop say the mic is in use?

Rostrum's mic meters keep the mic open while they are on screen. With auto-ducking set to listen to your mic, Rostrum keeps listening even in the tray, so the mic indicator stays on while the mic is live. Mute the mic, or set ducking to Someone speaks in voice chat.

Keep on Top does not keep Compact View on top

On X11 it works. On Plasma Wayland, the desktop may ignore it; its tooltip says so. Use the window menu's Keep Above Others instead. See Mixer and Buses.

Does Rostrum need root?

No. It runs as your user and writes only to your home folder.

Does Rostrum send any data?

Only an optional daily update check and, in official builds, crash reports if you allow them. Copies built from source have no crash reporting. See Privacy and Crash Reports.

Is Rostrum translated?

Not yet. Rostrum is in English only. Every string is ready for translation, and new languages are welcome; see CONTRIBUTING.md, Translating.

Where do I report a bug or ask for a feature?

Use the issue forms, or email hello@getrostrum.dev. See Contributing.