HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe - Universal UEFI Boot Chime for Clover and OpenCore

[MaLd0n]

We are pleased to release HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe, a UEFI DXE driver designed to play a native boot chime directly through compatible HDA audio hardware before the operating system starts.

The driver dynamically discovers the available HDA controllers, codecs and audio routes at boot. Instead of relying exclusively on fixed codec or motherboard definitions, it validates the live HDA widget graph and selects a compatible playback path at runtime.

It supports both Clover and OpenCore.

Main Features

• Native UEFI boot-chime playback.

• Compatible with Clover and OpenCore.

• Dynamic HDA controller and codec discovery.

• Runtime validation of the complete HDA audio route.

• AppleALC-derived codec and layout profiles.

• Honors alcid=xx when a compatible exact profile is available.

• Validated route fallback when the primary route cannot be programmed.

• Analog output support with conservative hardware detection.

• Optional HDMI, DisplayPort and S/PDIF support.

• 48 kHz and 44.1 kHz, 16-bit PCM format negotiation.

• Automatic stereo-to-mono conversion when required by the selected DAC.

• HDA amplifier capability detection and controlled attenuation.

• EAPD handling for supported internal amplifiers and speakers.

• Immediate Command communication with a controlled CORB/RIRB fallback.

• Transactional restoration of the modified codec state after playback.

• DMA ownership protection and hardened asynchronous cleanup.

• Optional codec dump and diagnostic logging.

• No macOS driver or application is required for playback.

What Is New in v1.0.43

Version 1.0.43 Stable Minimal Volume 30 returns directly to the user-confirmed stable v1.0.39 functional baseline.

All codec discovery, audio routes, AppleALC profiles, hardware programming, stream timing, DMA ownership, asynchronous cleanup and PCM assets remain unchanged.

The only runtime policy change in this release is the boot-chime volume:

• The global boot-chime volume is fixed at 30%.

• The compiled default uses the same 30% limit.

• Both Release and Debug configuration files use 30%.

• Hardware-volume, software-fallback and replay paths enforce the same limit.

• PCM samples are scaled directly to 30%.

• The legacy Volume configuration key remains recognized for compatibility, but it cannot increase or decrease the fixed volume.

This provides a consistent and conservative playback level on every supported path.

Safety and Compatibility

The default configuration is dynamic and conservative.

The driver does not perform generic GPIO polarity sweeps, broad analog pin sweeps, invented codec coefficient writes or motherboard-specific hardware programming.

Optional compatibility switches remain disabled by default and should only be enabled when supported by evidence from a working codec or layout dump.

Digital outputs are also disabled by default. They can be enabled through the configuration file when required.

Installation

Clover

Copy:

HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe.efi

to:

EFI/CLOVER/drivers/UEFI/

OpenCore

Copy:

HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe.efi

to:

EFI/OC/Drivers/

Then add the driver under:

UEFI -> Drivers

in your OpenCore config.plist.

Important Notes

• Firmware audio behavior varies between computers, codecs and motherboard implementations.

• A codec supported by macOS or AppleALC is not automatically guaranteed to expose a usable preboot audio route.

• Some firmware may leave the codec or HDA controller in an incomplete state before the operating system starts.

• Internal speakers may require EAPD or another amplifier control exposed by the codec.

• HDMI and DisplayPort playback require valid connection presence and ELD information during boot.

• The driver restores the selected codec state after playback so the operating system can initialize the audio hardware normally.

• Hardware testing is still required to confirm audible playback on each system.

For systems where the chime does not play, enable the Debug configuration, generate HDAUChime.log and provide the complete log for analysis.

Project Credits

• ®Daniel Maldonado — Olarila.com
  Project development, UEFI driver implementation, dynamic HDA discovery, routing policy, hardware validation, playback engine, configuration, diagnostics, testing and project maintenance.

Third-Party Credits and Acknowledgements

AppleALC

The compact codec/layout database included in this project is generated from resource data provided by the AppleALC project, developed and maintained by vit9696 and the Acidanthera team.

Special acknowledgement is also given to:

• vit9696
• Andrey1970AppleLife
• vandroiy2013
• toleda
• Mirone
• Pike R. Alpha
• 07151129
• roddy20
• All codec dump, layout, platform, patch and resource contributors credited by the AppleALC project

AppleALC is distributed under the BSD 3-Clause License.

The AppleALC project, its maintainers and its contributors do not endorse or officially support HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe.

TianoCore EDK II

This project is compiled using TianoCore EDK II and uses EDK II UEFI headers, protocols, library classes and BaseTools.

EDK II is developed by the TianoCore community and is primarily distributed under the BSD 2-Clause Plus Patent License.

VoodooHDA

The VoodooHDA source was consulted as a technical reference for HDA amplifier capabilities, channel programming, CORB/RIRB behavior and controller teardown ordering.

Acknowledgement is given to CloverHackyColor, Sergey Slice and all VoodooHDA contributors.

VoodooHDA is distributed under the BSD 2-Clause License.

No VoodooHDA kernel-extension binary is included in HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe.

Intel High Definition Audio

The controller-register definitions, codec verbs, widget capabilities and stream-descriptor behavior implemented by this project are based on the publicly documented Intel High Definition Audio architecture and specification.

Intel and High Definition Audio are trademarks or technologies belonging to their respective owners.

Clover Bootloader

Compatibility and installation support are provided for the Clover Bootloader, developed by the CloverHackyColor team and its contributors.

No Clover Bootloader source or binary is included in this package.

OpenCore

Compatibility and installation support are provided for OpenCore, developed by Acidanthera and its contributors.

No OpenCore source or binary is included in this package.

Apple

The included boot-chime audio asset is based on the startup sound associated with Apple computers.

Apple, Mac, macOS and related names, trademarks and audio assets belong to Apple Inc.

HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe and Olarila.com are independent projects and are not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Apple Inc.

Licensing Notice

Third-party source code, generated data, reference material and audio assets remain subject to their original copyrights, licenses and ownership terms.

Redistributions of this project should preserve all applicable copyright notices, license conditions, disclaimers and third-party acknowledgements.

Download HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe HERE

[Alpha22]

HDAUniversalBootChimeDxe with Clover, native boot sound, working