You can do it in mint but the easiest way to test it is probably just to try a live usb of a distro that runs a more recent kernel. Arch-based distros come to mind for that, so maybe try endeavourOS on a usb?
this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2026
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Thank you, that's exactly the type of concrete suggestions I was hoping for! I will give endeavourOS a try!
Consider using Ventoy if you want to try out multiple distros. It just lets you put the isos into a folder on the flash drive rather than going through the whole imaging process each time.
Never heard of that, looks interesting! Great tip!
Fedora has very nice infrastructure in place to recompile the kernel but you can do it on any distro. https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/quick-docs/kernel-build-custom/
If you don't know what to look for it may be not be of much help.
Thanks! It feels a bit outside of my skill set, but I'll take a look!
The easiest way would be to boot a live USB of a distro that uses the latest kernel (like Arch or Arch-based distros, OpenSuse Tumbleweed, etc). That way it's temporary and won't modify your current install. If you find that the latest kernel does solve your issue you can always install the distro you were testing with.
Thanks! I've tried EndeavorOS based on another recommendation here, and it was on 6.18. It didn't fix the issue, but it changed the behavior somewhat. I can see more accurate information about the speakers, which feels like a step in the right direction. I'll look into your recommendations too to see if they use the lateat 6.19.
If you can't find an easier way, compiling your own kernel isn't too hard. After you've git cloned the new kernel, you can just copy your distro's kernel config (they're usually in /boot), and then use make deb-pkg -j$(nproc) to compile to a .deb file, so it's easier to uninstall.
At the start of compilation it will ask about a few new options, you can just press enter to use the default option, or decide for yourself. Probably don't worry about make menuconfig unless you want to.
There's proper tutorials online if you wish to do this.
Could be worth a shot just to try it, but it feels a bit overkill for this. Could be good to know how to do it for the future though.
You can install newer kernels from the update manager in the system tray. Then it's View > Linux Kernels iirc.
Your issue is possibly something to do with configuration of Pulse Audio / PipeWire. Probably the best place to ask would be on the Linux Mint Forums.
Thanks! The update manager is a few versions behind. Up to 6.17, I believe. And I've been following several threads on that forum made by users with similar issues. Unfortunately i haven't had much success there either, trying many of the tips and suggestions they had. Trying 6.19 is a bit of a last shot before considering returning the machine.
Not sure how much help it'll be to you but often the best place for technical info is the Arch Wiki. Good luck!
I used to run the Liquorix kernel with Mint. Should work fine. It's based on the latest upstream with some extra tuning for desktop specific performance. Usually only a day or two behind upstream latest.
What model number?
Of the laptop? Here's the probe for it: linux-hardware.org/?probe=bb0d00dce1
What is the symptom?
Low/distorted audio. Not a "I cant understand this"-type distortion, but a "I can hear and understand if I focus, but its also giving me a headache"-type The issue is not present in Windows 11, and Lenovo support have replaced the speakers once already. I've followed several troubleshooting guides as posted on the Mint forums when users there have similar issues.
I have now tested on later kernels, with interesting results. On 6.14 it showed a generic name for the sound device, but on 6.18+ it seems to correctly identify the device as an 800 series intel device. The audio still sounds the same, however.
Present in headphones?
No, issue is not present in headphones or external speakers, regardles of how they are connected. (Tested on several speakers/headphones connected by jack only, jack+external power, and bluetooth )
That’s weird.
It sounds like there’s an additional amplifier used to drive the internal speakers that isn’t getting turned up. When you fire up alsamixer on the command line do you see more controls than in the gui mixer?
I do, though several of them are stuck on muted or without a tweakable bar. I did, however, come across this today, which seems very relevant. I just haven't had time to test it yet as I've been away.
https://github.com/nadimkobeissi/16iax10h-linux-sound-saga
I haven’t had time to look deeply into the fix posted in that GitHub link, but on first read it seems to be fixing exactly what you’re describing by tying the mixer channels used for the integrated speakers together correctly.
A lot of these newer realtek chips have an insane amount of tweakability. Even back in the day if you were able to settle for their latency you’d get access to a very powerful hardware mixer and sometimes synthesizer.
That was my thinking too. I unfortunately haven't had time to test yet. Between work and a baby, time for this is a bit limited. But I'll give it a try soon. Thank you so much for your interest! I appreciate it.
If you don't mind getting your hands dirty and trying something completely different, changing kernels on NixOS almost feels like cheating; Flip a number in your config, rebuild, reboot.
Changed your mind? Pick the previous boot-entry after another reboot, and you're back. Might wanna rebuild with the previous kernel chosen again, or else the new one boots next time around.
Sounds like it's worth trying! Thanks!