When a user presses 'm' for 'mute' in alsamixer, then a string "MM" appears at the bottom of a volume control. This makes it obvious to the user that "MM" stands for "Mute" (in both channels).

However, when a user opens alsamixer after some software on his computer has automatically muted a volume control, perhaps erroneously, the "MM" doesn't indicate anything obvious to the user. Among other things, this makes it difficult for new users to debug issues with the auto-mute feature. The fact that the volume control can be at maximum, even when the control is muted, contributes to the potential for confusion. The problem would be solved if, for instance, the "Item: " string at the top of the alsamixer screen were changed to contain the word "(muted)" for muted controls.