README for alsa-utils alsa-utils includes an init script in /etc/rc.d called "alsa". In order to save and restore your soundcard mixer levels at shutdown and boot, add "alsa" to the SERVICES array in /etc/rc.conf. NOTE: If the "alsa" init script attempts to restore mixer levels that have not been saved yet, it will produce an error that looks like: "alsactl: load_state:1677: Cannot open /var/lib/alsa/asound.state for reading: No such file or directory" This just means that the mixer settings have not yet been saved and can be fixed by running "alsactl store".