How to Install DeaDBeeF on Manjaro Linux

DeaDBeeF is a free, open-source music player for Linux, Android, and other UNIX-like that supports various audio formats, including MP3, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, and WAV. The following tutorial will show you how to install the audio player on Manjaro using the Arch Linux user repository and command line terminal.

Update Manjaro

First, update your system to ensure all existing packages are up to date. This will ensure no conflicts arise as best as possible during the installation.

sudo pacman -Syu

Sometimes, you may need a complete database download if you have not upgraded your Arch Linux system for a while; use the following command if the above update command does not work.

sudo pacman -Syyu

Lastly, for users that have Pamac installed, which most Manjaro desktops do, I would optionally suggest running an update; this will ensure that your Arch Linux and Manjaro packages are fully up-to-date.

sudo pamac checkupdates -a

sudo pamac upgrade -a

Troubleshooting Updating Manjaro Packages

Manjaro/Arch Linux is a rolling release; occasionally, updating packages with Pacman GPG keys can become invalid or corrupt. If both commands do not work, use the following command.

Note, this is only if you have errors updating with the first two commands above if you can skip these.

sudo pacman -S archlinux-keyring manjaro-keyring

sudo pacman-key --populate archlinux manjaro

The above should work in nearly all cases, but if it does not, use the following steps as a last resort.

sudo rm -r /etc/pacman.d/gnupg

sudo pacman-key --init

sudo pacman-key --populate manjaro

sudo pacman-key --populate archlinux

sudo pacman -Syvv manjaro-keyring

Then repeat the update process.

Install DeaDBeeF Player

The following method will use the default installed Manjaro packaged manager and enable the AUR for users who have not yet enabled it.

Situational – Enable AUR for ‘pamac.’

First, by default, AUR is disabled. You will first need to enable it, which you can do with the following command.

sudo sed -Ei '/EnableAUR/s/^#//' /etc/pamac.conf

Install DeadBeeF with AUR

Next, run the install command; you can use install or build, given it’s only available from the AUR, but I would stress using the build command for best practice.

pamac build deadbeef-git

Given that you are using the Manjaro package manager, this will be easier to keep updated with your other Manjaro packages.

Next, you can install some of the alternative packages/plugins.

DeaDBeeF Pipewire output plugin

pamac build deadbeef-pipewire-plugin-git

DeaDBeeF MPRISv2 plugin

pamac build deadbeef-mpris2-plugin-git

How to Launch the DeaDBeeF Player

Now that you have the application installed, launching can be done in a few ways.

deadbeef

Additionally, you can launch from the applications menu by following the path.

Taskbar > Multimedia > DeaDBeeF.

Example:

Once open, you can begin loading and using the audio player.

Example:

Additional Commands & Tips

How to Update DeaDBeeF Player

The best way to upgrade the software is to use the following terminal command.

sudo pamac checkupdates -a

sudo pamac upgrade -a

Note it is advised to run terminal commands now and then, even if you have set up AUR auto-updates using the automatic GUI updater; this ensures you are not missing anything.

How to Remove DeaDBeeF Player

If you no longer want the DeaDBeeF software installed, use the following terminal command.

pamac remove deadbeef-git

Lastly, this is optional but good practice, clear up orphans and clear your cache to reduce clutter.

Clear orphan leftovers that are no longer required.

pamac remove -o

Clear packages deleted from the package cache.

pamac clean -uv -k 0

Clear redundant package versions from the package cache (keep the last two versions)

pamac clean -v -k 2

Lastly, for users that enabled pamac and then had second thoughts about using it and instead wanted to use something else, you can easily disable it using the following command.

sudo sed -Ei '/EnableAUR/s/^/#/' /etc/pamac.conf

Conclusion

In the tutorial, you have learned how to install the latest version of DeaDBeeF Player on Manjaro Linux utilizing the Arch Linux repository. Overall, I found this one of the better players that worked well on all audio formats. Given how lightweight and easy it is to install, I would suggest testing it out regardless to see if it is to your liking.