There is always a static noise that goes on for ten seconds after any noise. Help?

What Mac do you own? Does it happen using internal speakers? External? With headphones? Optical? Does the static get louder if your volume is set higher, or is it always at the same level? Does it happen if music is playing in the background, or a video?

It could be a hardware issue, but if you really want some answers, you need to supply more info.

You never answered the question: what Mac do you own?

Almost certainly, you're hearing the noise generated by the soundcard. After 10 seconds, the soundcard shuts off, so the noise stops. Most people don't notice it, but if you notice it, it's annoying as heck.

Does it happen when using headphones, or only through the external speakers?

Big-TDI-Guy said:

Does it happen when using headphones, or only through the external speakers?

Click to expand...

tbb07 said:

The same noise occurs when I am using earbuds as when I am just using the internal speakers, so I thought it isn't an issue.

Click to expand...

If the "problem" is the soundcard, as I am 99.99% sure it is, then it will happen regardless of what is connected. It's probably the most noticeable on headphones, as the sound is getting piped directly into one's ears.

Unfortunately, the soundcards in most Macs produce background noise when active. There's absolutely nothing that can be done short of getting a different soundcard.

Is there an Apple store nearby where you can test for the same thing on the display models? Take your headphones.

If it seems worse on yours then talk to Apple about repair/replacement.

Are you using external speakers? If your system volume is very low, and your speakers are set very high, then while you will hear normal volume sound, hissing and static from the system might be amplified above usual levels. There is static during and after every sound played by the system, which is either due to compression or the audio card switching off to save power after a while, I'm not sure, but it's normal, it's just not supposed to be loud enough to bother you at all!

So if it's loud even without external speakers, something could be wrong with sound settings or the hardware, get it checked!

It could be the soundcard / amplifier. I have a late 2006 (24) and it does this extremely bad - it was a defective amplifier, and I missed the warranty period. Using the optical output - with external speakers - and it's not there at all.

I've seen other iMacs that do not have this problem at all. So it's possible what he's experiencing is louder than normal, as mine you can hear from rooms away. Whereas on others, you have to be in an extremely quiet environment to notice it.

If you've got the warranty, make use of it. Considering in my case, the sound card is part of the mainboard, which costs more than the purchase price of the computer, to replace...

I have to say this issue is far more common in Class-D amplifiers, than on the old-school ones.... Sometimes, analog is better.