ReSpeaker Lite Stability Issue

[florian-asche]

Description:
I am experiencing an issue with the ReSpeaker Lite board (https://github.com/respeaker/ReSpeaker_Lite) when using it with a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W via USB. The microphone initially works but stops functioning after some time.

I want to create a ready to use image and documentation in consultation and release with Homeassistant, but only when this hardware is stable.

Here are the details of my setup and troubleshooting steps...

Hardware & Software Setup:
Device: ReSpeaker Lite
Connection: USB
Raspberry Pi Model: Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W
Power Supply: 5V, 2.5A (verified sufficient)
Firmware Version: 2.0.7 (latest available)
OS: Debian GNU/Linux 12
Kernel: Linux 6.6.74+rpt-rpi-v8 #1 SMP PREEMPT Debian 1:6.6.74-1+rpt1 (2025-01-27) aarch64 GNU/Linux

Image Build for PI: https://github.com/florian-asche/PiCompose/tree/feature/initial-base

How i use the device?
I use it with wyoming-satellite by exec this commands:

      - "--mic-command"
      - "arecord -D pipewire -r 16000 -c 1 -f S16_LE -t raw"
      - "--snd-command"
      - "aplay -D pipewire -r 22050 -c 1 -f S16_LE -t raw"

Troubleshooting Steps Taken:
Verified that the power supply is stable and sufficient.
Tested with different USB cables and ports.
Disabled USB autosuspend and experimented with various kernel parameters.
Reloaded the snd-usb-audio module.
Tested on another Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W with similar results.
(Monitored dmesg -w but found no errors related to the issue.)

This is the sate when no audio output or input is working...

root@sattelite-newboard:~# lsusb
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 2886:0019 Seeed Technology Co., Ltd. ReSpeaker Lite
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub

root@sattelite-newboard:~# lsusb -t
/:  Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=dwc_otg/1p, 480M
    |__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
    |__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 1, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
    |__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 2, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
    |__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 3, Class=Application Specific Interface, Driver=, 480M

Debugging:
syslog_pipewire_bad.log
syslog_pipewire_good.log

Wireing:

Questions:

• Is there a known compatibility issue between the ReSpeaker Lite and Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W?
• Are there any firmware updates available that might resolve this issue?
• Are there recommended settings or configurations to ensure stable USB operation?
• Any guidance or troubleshooting recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

[florian-asche]

I used usbmon to capture traffic, i hope this can help debugging this issue:

usbmon.log

[florian-asche]

I am able to reproduce this issue. After the 8-12 time using satellite by wake word it stops working.

After the device stops working i try the following without success:

echo '1-1' | sudo tee /sys/bus/usb/drivers/usb/unbind
sleep 1
echo '1-1' | sudo tee /sys/bus/usb/drivers/usb/bind

usbreset 2886:0019
Resetting ReSpeaker Lite ... ok

echo "0000:01:00.0" | sudo tee /sys/bus/pci/drivers/xhci_hcd/unbind
sleep 2
echo "0000:01:00.0" | sudo tee /sys/bus/pci/drivers/xhci_hcd/bind

root@sattelite-newboard:~# cat /proc/asound/cards
 0 [Lite           ]: USB-Audio - ReSpeaker Lite
                      Seeed Studio ReSpeaker Lite at usb-3f980000.usb-1, high speed
 1 [vc4hdmi        ]: vc4-hdmi - vc4-hdmi
                      vc4-hdmi
root@sattelite-newboard:~# 
root@sattelite-newboard:~# 
root@sattelite-newboard:~# cat /proc/asound/devices
  1:        : sequencer
  2: [ 0- 0]: digital audio playback
  3: [ 0- 0]: digital audio capture
  4: [ 0]   : control
  5: [ 1- 0]: digital audio playback
  6: [ 1]   : control
 33:        : timer
root@sattelite-newboard:~# 
root@sattelite-newboard:~# 
root@sattelite-newboard:~# ls -l /dev/snd/
total 0
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root       60 Apr  3 20:29 by-id
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root       80 Apr  3 20:29 by-path
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  4 Apr  3 20:29 controlC0
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  6 Apr  3 20:29 controlC1
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  3 Apr  3 20:29 pcmC0D0c
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  2 Apr  3 20:33 pcmC0D0p
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  5 Apr  3 20:29 pcmC1D0p
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116,  1 Apr  3 20:29 seq
crw-rw---- 1 root audio 116, 33 Apr  3 20:29 timer

When unplugging and replugging the devices gets detected but still no audio.

Restarting pipewire does not help.

Stopping Satellite, Pipewire and unloading/reloading module snd-usb-audio does not help either.

Full Alsa Info: https://alsa-project.org/db/?f=1be13c74666996865a8100d035f72de978d23b0f

[florian-asche]

I updated the system (kernel) and the rip-firmware to the latest version:

root@sattelite-newboard:~# uname -a
Linux sattelite-newboard 6.12.21-v8+ #1870 SMP PREEMPT Wed Apr  2 20:18:03 BST 2025 aarch64 GNU/Linux
root@sattelite-newboard:~# cat /etc/issue
Debian GNU/Linux 12 \n \l

root@sattelite-newboard:~# rpi-update 
 *** Raspberry Pi firmware updater by Hexxeh, enhanced by AndrewS and Dom
 *** Performing self-update
 *** Relaunching after update
 *** Raspberry Pi firmware updater by Hexxeh, enhanced by AndrewS and Dom
FW_REV:949cf1a280ce0044925c3e924f64115eee82512a
BOOTLOADER_REV:7f66ffe483698e788858fe51000217849fa6331f
 *** Your firmware is already up to date (delete /boot/firmware/.firmware_revision and /boot/firmware/.bootloader_revision to force an update anyway)

[tieppm]

hello!
I have the same error as you, have you fixed it yet?
maybe the USB FW version is not stable yet?

[florian-asche]

hello! I have the same error as you, have you fixed it yet? maybe the USB FW version is not stable yet?

I did not find any way to fix it yet. What i can tell is, that playing music is working perfect, but after the 8th time using voice input with wyoming-satellite the board stops working.

What software did u use ?

[tieppm]

Tôi vẫn chưa tìm ra cách nào để sửa lỗi. Tôi có thể nói rằng, việc phát nhạc hoạt động hoàn hảo, nhưng sau lần thứ 8 sử dụng đầu vào bằng giọng nói với wyoming-satellite, bo mạch ngừng hoạt động.

Bạn đã sử dụng phần mềm nào?

i'm using it with pi zero 2W and Vbot project - Vietnamese virtual assistant
https://github.com/marion001/VBot_Offline
initially it worked very well, but after a while it seems like pi zero 2 lost connection with mic lite. I guess it's because the USB FW of mic lite is not stable. Have you contacted Seeed Studio yet?

[tieppm]

i am on FW USB v2.0.7 and i am stuck here. i cant flash other FWs. do you know the reason and can help me switch to FW i2s?

[florian-asche]

i am on FW USB v2.0.7 and i am stuck here. i cant flash other FWs. do you know the reason and can help me switch to FW i2s?

Hi, sorry, cant help you with that. I dont have any issue flashing. Get in contact with the Seeedstudio Support.

[tieppm]

thank you!!!

[tieppm]

Have you fixed the mic lite instability yet?

[florian-asche]

Have you fixed the mic lite instability yet?

No. But i am in contact with SeeedStudio, please give it some time!

[tieppm]

No. But i am in contact with SeeedStudio, please give it some time!

Thank you, if there is any new information, please share with me.

[florian-asche]

More information

I was able to find out, that the issue has to do with the multiple use/connect to the speaker output.

When using speaker-test -D plughw:CARD=Lite,DEV=0 -twav like ~10 times the board stop's working. But i stopped it by CTRL + C. So maybe a not clean closed connection since something like

for i in {1..20}; do
  echo "Run $i"
  speaker-test -D plughw:CARD=Lite,DEV=0 -twav -l 2
  #sleep 1
done

works perfectly.

When the board is no longer working, i find pipewire in this state:

S   ID  QUANT   RATE    WAIT    BUSY   W/Q   B/Q  ERR FORMAT           NAME                                                                                                                                                                                                    
S   31      0      0    ---     ---   ---   ---     0                  Dummy-Driver
S   32      0      0    ---     ---   ---   ---     0                  Freewheel-Driver
S   42      0      0    ---     ---   ---   ---     0                  Midi-Bridge
S   66      0      0    ---     ---   ---   ---     0                  alsa_output.usb-Seeed_Studio_ReSpeaker_Lite_0000000001-00.analog-stereo
R   67      0      0   0.0us   0.0us  ???   ???     0    S16LE 2 16000 alsa_input.usb-Seeed_Studio_ReSpeaker_Lite_0000000001-00.analog-stereo
R   36      0      0   0.0us   0.0us  ???   ???     0    S16LE 1 16000 ALSA Capture

I hope that helps! Regards,
Florian

[florian-asche]

This is the Feedback i got from SeeedStudio:

After testing, we currently determine that it is a system bug with the Raspberry Pi Zero 2W (there is a compatibility issue). If you still need to continue using it, there is a more complex solution: you can use I2S instead of USB on the Raspberry Pi to communicate with the ReSpeaker Lite.

I can confirm this. The same sd-card (same software) running on a raspberry pi 4 is running perfect without any problem.

[Spejbl]

Having the same issue... @florian-asche @tieppm did anyone manage to make it work with Zero 2W, without using the l2S?