pacmd(1)

pacmd is a command-line interface to the PulseAudio sound daemon. It connects to the running PulseAudio server and allows you to execute administrative commands, such as switching audio devices, adjusting volumes, listing sinks and sources, and managing audio streams.

Commands can be passed as arguments or entered interactively. If no command is given, pacmd starts an interactive shell where you can enter commands one at a time.

List all available audio output devices (sinks) with their details and indices

pacmd list-sinks

Set sink index 1 as the default audio output device

pacmd set-default-sink 1

List all available audio input devices (sources)

pacmd list-sources

Set the volume of sink 0 to 100% (65536 is max)

pacmd set-sink-volume 0 65536

Mute sink 0 (1 = muted, 0 = unmuted)

pacmd set-sink-mute 0 1

Show all active playback streams and which sink they're using

pacmd list-sink-inputs

Move audio stream 2 (sink-input) to sink 1

pacmd move-sink-input 2 1

Display general PulseAudio daemon statistics and server info

pacmd stat