The PipeWire project has released version 1.4.3, marking another minor update in the 1.4 series of this popular open-source server that manages audio and video streams for Linux systems. This new release arrives around five weeks after version 1.4.2 and introduces several important improvements and bug fixes.
Key enhancements in PipeWire 1.4.3 include significant updates to netJACK2, which features better handling of driver/manager roles, enhanced error detection, and the ability to send custom commands. Additionally, the update improves the management of filter-graph states within filter-chains and rectifies issues related to handling MIDI streams.
ALSA audio.channels support has also seen improvements, now ensuring a valid range is used for its values. The update enhances Universal MIDI Packet (UMP) sysex handling, providing better compatibility and management for MIDI data. There is also support for only skipping the first buffer in raw formats within the Video for Linux 2 (v4l2), optimizing the handling of encoded formats.
The release fixes multiple bugs, including MIDI 1.0 program changes, port name issues, and various control types in the mixer. For a comprehensive overview of all changes, users can consult the release notes.
PipeWire 1.4 debuted earlier in March 2025, incorporating several new features such as support for the RISC-V CPU architecture, a JACK control API, DSD playback for ALSA plugins, improved Bluetooth capabilities, and compatibility with hearing aids via ASHA.
This audio server is pre-installed on many leading GNU/Linux distributions and serves as the default for managing multimedia streams, including camera handling in browsers like Mozilla Firefox.
Users can download PipeWire 1.4.3 from the official GitLab page.