CLI to switch audio outputs on Linux

I typically have headphones permanently connected to my desktop computer but still find the need to quickly switch the audio to the desktop speakers. I’d prefer to avoid plugging/unplugging my headphones so came up with this approach.

This uses the Pulse Audio controller command: pactl

First identify your available audio outputs:

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$ pactl list short | grep alsa_output | grep -v monitor
0	alsa_output.usb-Logitech_G635_Gaming_Headset_00000000-00.iec958-stereo	module-alsa-card.c	s16le 2ch 44100Hz	SUSPENDED
1	alsa_output.pci-0000_08_00.1.hdmi-stereo	module-alsa-card.c	s16le 2ch 44100Hz	SUSPENDED
2	alsa_output.pci-0000_0a_00.4.analog-stereo	module-alsa-card.c	s16le 2ch 44100Hz	SUSPENDED

Then create some scripts to set the chosen output / sink.

/usr/local/bin/switch_2_headphones.sh

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#!/bin/bash

pactl set-default-sink alsa_output.usb-Logitech_G635_Gaming_Headset_00000000-00.iec958-stereo && espeak  "headphones"

/usr/local/bin/switch_2_speakers.sh

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#!/bin/bash

pactl set-default-sink alsa_output.pci-0000_0a_00.4.analog-stereo && espeak -g 0 "spee kurz"

Then setup some keyboard shortcuts to run the scripts. I chose ALT-SHIFT-S and ALT-SHIFT-H for speakers and headphones, respectively.

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*UPDATE NOV 2022: * After upgrading to Mint 21 there needs to be an additional change to /etc/pulse/default.pa for the CLI sink changes to work.

Change line load-module module-stream-restore to load-module module-stream-restore restore_device=false

Then restart pulseaudio via pulseaudio --kill then pulseaudio --start.