Soundsticks

[AppleBecks]

I am looking into purchasing the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II. Can anyone tell me if they are Leopard compatible. I have done a little searching and found in a few articles that the sub has issues working with Leopard. Is this true? Does anyone use the Soundsticks with Leopard? Any info would be appreciated.

[queshy]

I am looking into purchasing the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II. Can anyone tell me if they are Leopard compatible. I have done a little searching and found in a few articles that the sub has issues working with Leopard. Is this true? Does anyone use the Soundsticks with Leopard? Any info would be appreciated.

I believe the original soundsticks were USB so you might run into some problems...but I have the soundsticks II and they plug into the audio port of the back of my iMac. They work the same with Leopard as they did with tiger: perfectly.

[AppleBecks]

Thankyou, I just read that they connect through the headphone jack. That's correct I assume. I have a MacBook so I was worried that it didnt have the audio port. Audio port= Headphone jack..... = Newb.

[queshy]

Thankyou, I just read that they connect through the headphone jack. That's correct I assume. I have a MacBook so I was worried that it didnt have the audio port. Audio port= Headphone jack..... = Newb.

lol, that's how we all learn after all, right?

[admiraldennis]

I'm at home using my old USB Soundsticks under 10.5 right now, no problems at all!

[the Otter]

They’re technically compatible, but I often have trouble with them disappearing after sleep (Rev. A Power Mac G5 dual 2GHz, lotsa RAM & HD space). Restarting the computer fixes the problem. (On the bright side, I believe :apple: is aware of the problem and is planning a fix in v.10.5.2.)

[Raid]

I am looking into purchasing the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II. Can anyone tell me if they are Leopard compatible. I have done a little searching and found in a few articles that the sub has issues working with Leopard. Is this true? Does anyone use the Soundsticks with Leopard? Any info would be appreciated. Like admiraldennis I'm using Harmon Kardon Soundsticks (the USB connection) with my Mac Pro with Leopard 10.5.1 and everything was fine before and after the Leopard install... so thankfully no issues here either.

In a related note (which might be adding some confusion) the Harmon Kardon iSubs aren't supported with Leopard for some reason. This issue has affected my Dad's computer and I've seen plenty of posts about it on the Apple support pages. There are some temporary work-arounds but a lot of people are hoping Apple will address the issue soon.

[sunfast]

I've got some Soundsticks II and they sound pretty good for the money. Just be careful with the sticks themselves - both of mine split in half

[AppleBecks]

I also read a bunch of stuff on the iSubs not working. I looked for what the iSubs were in the Apple store and they did not have them. I heard they were discontinued. Originally, I thought the iSub was the lighted component of the Soundsticks which led me to believe there was a problem with Leopard compatibility.

[Raid]

I also read a bunch of stuff on the iSubs not working. I looked for what the iSubs were in the Apple store and they did not have them. I heard they were discontinued. Originally, I thought the iSub was the lighted component of the Soundsticks which led me to believe there was a problem with Leopard compatibility.I think I read somewhere that the Harmon Kardon the iSub has been discontinued for about 5 years! :eek: Though you're not alone thinking that the iSub was the "lighted component" of the sound sticks. They are almost identical in shape and function and I think a lot of people still refer to it as an iSub, however (to be clear) the 'soundstick' sub woofer provides connections to the sound sticks and a woofer volume control ... and for some reason still works in Leopard while the original iSub is left unsupported. A lot of iSubs are still going strong so I'm hoping somebody will slap together a iSub driver that will work with Leopard!

[Stridder44]

I have the iSub (it iSucks by the way) and yes, it doesn't work in Leopard. It doesn't not just work, but actually brings the entire computer to a halt.

Anyway, the Soundsticks II don't use USB like the iSub does, and instead uses a regular audio in/headphone/auxiliary jack/whatever you want to call it.

[je1ani]

I'm at home using my old USB Soundsticks under 10.5 right now, no problems at all!

same :o

[Mugwumper]

same :o

old SoundSticks are not working? ;^) Here's the situation:

I've been running 10.5.1 on a 20" G5 iMac, and everything is fine -
except the sound coming out of iTunes didn't seem like it is the
same as before. I assumed it was Sound Check not working, then I
"discovered" iVolume and fixed my songs.

Then I noticed (as others posted) that the Sound pref seemed not to
hold the left-right balance of my SoundSticks (original USB). And
tonight, I tried a Kitaro song with tons of bass ("Matsuri" with booming
taiko drums) - and where I used to be able to rattle the windows
with it, I can barely hear any bass. :^(

Since I've had these SoundSticks for 4 or 5 years, I've been wondering
if they are just getting "old" - and thus I'm looking for an excuse to
spend $$ and help the economy. ;^) But if indeed this is a known
problem, maybe all will be well (better?) in 10.5.2 or whatever.

The big question: how do I know where the problem is?

Thanks for any advice . . .

[je1ani]

Ironically my SS1 died 3 days ago lol i bought the SSII and they're much bassier and louder!! Huge difference!

[Mugwumper]

Ironically my SS1 died 3 days ago lol i bought the SSII and they're much bassier and louder!! Huge difference!

je1ani -

Can you tell me what happened when they died? How did you know?
What I'm trying to figure out is whether mine are "near death" or if
this is just a Leopard problem, as others have reported.

Also, where do you have your subwoofer - on your desktop, or on the
floor? Mine has been on a carpeted floor under the desk where my iMac
is, and I just put it on a hard surface to raise it off the carpet.

In general, is USB audio "better" than an audio jack? Do the controls on
the speakers control the sound better?

And I've seen the HK SSII at $109 and the Klipsch ProMedia at $110 - both
seem to be good choices . . .

Thanks . . .

[Freddie473]

I have my sub under the desk the imac is siting on also a carpeted floor like yours. Love the SoundSticks II, they get a lot of use around here.

[nodmonkey]

old SoundSticks are not working? ;^) Here's the situation:

I've been running 10.5.1 on a 20" G5 iMac

Then I noticed (as others posted) that the Sound pref seemed not to
hold the left-right balance of my SoundSticks (original USB).

The big question: how do I know where the problem is?


For me, the clue I had a problem was The Beatles, When I'm Sixty-Four.

When I get older, loosing my hair, many years from now. [silent pause] Will you still be...
"Hey! Where's the doo-doo-doodle-doo?"



Well, I too had this problem with the original USB Soundsticks and Leopard. Oddly, the output through iTunes had the balance all off, so sounds was playing mono (but through both speakers) yet when playing the same aac file through Quicktime, the sound was the correct stereo... weird!

BUT, the wonders of the internet have revealed to me the solution. (http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=44210) By opening the Audio Midi Setup Utility (in Applications>Utilities), I was able to set the system output to Soundsticks, then chose "Properties for: Soundsticks". For some reason the Audio Output settings there were for format "48000.0 Hz, 1ch-16bit". Changing this to "48000.0 Hz 2ch 24bit" SOLVED the problem in iTunes stereo playback.

The funny thing is I have been listening to mono tunes in iTunes probably since installing Leopard and haven't really noticed... though I have felt like something wasn't right, I didn't really know or think to investigate. Shows my poor ear for good stereo! Now, though, music sounds SO much better.

[BaronvdB]

I have the soundsticks II...they work with anything that has an audio jack..they sound great! and look very macish...i've always been a fan of h/k...my dad has the bose companion 5 speaker set and those sound even better (but cost more too).

[marcre]

My USB soundsticks don't seem to be working too well with leopard. I just got a new iMac and I need to do a restart at times to get them to work. They worked fine on my older iMac with 10.4.11 on it. I don't think they've gone bad, but I'm not sure why they wouldn't be compatible.

Hopefully it gets fixed in the next update as I don't want to get new speakers when these work(ed). They work upon starting, but I put my mac to sleep when not in use and it seems to be after a few wake ups that it happens. I've had the new iMac less than a week and just started having the problem today.

[veeco3110]

i want these really bad...im using monster II jbls

[dhc]

No problems under leopard with with my Soundsticks (usb), other than my dog deciding they look pretty tasty..:eek: Not quite transparent anymore (scratches), but functioning beautifully (I got to them just in time).

I get a really open and honest sound from them, unlike my wife's JBL creatures, which sound compressed and (too) tight to my ear.

Must've had these sticks about 5(?) years now; when these sticks finally give up the ghost, my gut feeling is that I'll replace them with the 2nd revision, but who knows what'll be available then?

[eXan]

I have Sound Sticks II connected to the iMac G5 and have no problems running them under Leopard.

[DesignerOnMac]

I have the Soundsticks, running Leopard, and a new Alum iMac.....sound is no different than on my old G4 Dualie I had.

Did you checkout the HK Creatures? Comes in many colors, smaller satellites and sound almost as good for less $$$$.

[ntrigue]

I have the Soundsticks II and am very pleased! They have been problem-free for more than 2 years.

[Brianna]

My soundsticks have been MIA since the 10.5.2 update. They are totally off the Map. There is a USB IO problem that shows up in single user boot mode when they are plugged in. Apples user forums have a lot of users with this problem. Hopefully it will be fixed via software update soon.

[Mugwumper]

My soundsticks have been MIA since the 10.5.2 update. They are totally off the Map. There is a USB IO problem that shows up in single user boot mode when they are plugged in. Apples user forums have a lot of users with this problem. Hopefully it will be fixed via software update soon.

As an update, I've had no problems with my USB SoundSticks with 10.5.2,
so I guess I should be happy. :) Does this I/O problem only occur when you
initially plug them in? Mine are always plugged in, so maybe that helps?

I've also had an opportunity to try the Bose Companion 3 Series II (they
were given to me as "payment" for some Web site work), and it's
interesting to flip back and forth between them and the SoundSticks using
System Preferences. What I notice is that the Bose speakers have a LOT of
bass, almost too much, even with the subwoofer set at minimum. The
opposite is true with my older USB SoundSticks (which is the reason I
posted originally), but in general, the SoundSticks have a much "richer"
and "fuller" sound across the frequencies.

Any idea if there's any real difference between the sound quality when you
use the audio port vs. USB?

Thanks . . .

[Brianna]

As an update, I've had no problems with my USB SoundSticks with 10.5.2,
so I guess I should be happy. :) Does this I/O problem only occur when you
initially plug them in? Mine are always plugged in, so maybe that helps?

I've also had an opportunity to try the Bose Companion 3 Series II (they
were given to me as "payment" for some Web site work), and it's
interesting to flip back and forth between them and the SoundSticks using
System Preferences. What I notice is that the Bose speakers have a LOT of
bass, almost too much, even with the subwoofer set at minimum. The
opposite is true with my older USB SoundSticks (which is the reason I
posted originally), but in general, the SoundSticks have a much "richer"
and "fuller" sound across the frequencies.

Any idea if there's any real difference between the sound quality when you
use the audio port vs. USB?

Thanks . . .

It could be your computer is compatible with them, I don't know exactly why mine are not working, but it's well documented in Apple s forums that users are having problems with them. I am one of them.

[TEG]

I am looking into purchasing the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II. Can anyone tell me if they are Leopard compatible. I have done a little searching and found in a few articles that the sub has issues working with Leopard. Is this true? Does anyone use the Soundsticks with Leopard? Any info would be appreciated.

There are no Intel drivers for the USB SoundSticks, but the Headphone SoundSticks II don't require any drivers since it uses a standard interface instead of USB.

TEG

[Foxglove9]

I have the original USB soundsticks running 10.5.2 on my MacBook and have had no problems with sound so far. I think I've had these about 5 or 6 years now.

[Brianna]

There are no Intel drivers for the USB SoundSticks, but the Headphone SoundSticks II don't require any drivers since it uses a standard interface instead of USB.

TEG

That explains it I guess. My mac pro is intel powered.

[Foxglove9]

That explains it I guess. My mac pro is intel powered.

My MacBook is Intel and it works fine, I haven't read up on Apples site about the problem but maybe it is isolated to Mac Pros?

I'm kinda bummed about it not working with Airport Express, I didn't know until after I bought it. Oh well.

[Brianna]

My MacBook is Intel and it works fine, I haven't read up on Apples site about the problem but maybe it is isolated to Mac Pros?

I'm kinda bummed about it not working with Airport Express, I didn't know until after I bought it. Oh well.

Could be. I am really upset that I can not listen to music. Apple should be too. I have not been buying any music because the sound quality of the built in Mac Pro speaker is a tragedy.

[zer0tails]

I've got some Soundsticks II and they sound pretty good for the money. Just be careful with the sticks themselves - both of mine split in half

how did you fix them? Mine split too and I don't know how to fix them :confused:

[sunfast]

how did you fix them? Mine split too and I don't know how to fix them :confused:

I used superglue but I suspect modelling glue would be a good bet - especially with one of those delicate nozzles on it.

Speaker rely on being solid to reproduce sound well so I was pretty narked about it. They work ok now though