13" rMBP HDMI sound problem

have you verified that it's not a faulty hdmi cable problem?

I'm thinking the cable is not negotiating properly between your tv n rMBP.

timsaxman said:

Hi

I have a 13" rMBP (late 2013) and lately the sound output when using HDMI has given me problems. It might be since I updated to 10.9.2 but when I plug in the computer to my TV via HDMI I get the sound from the computers speakers. When holding alt and pressing the sound icon the TV doesn't even show. The only solution I've found is to keep the TV plugged in and restart the computer (which I seldom do otherwise...). And after the computer sleeps or I unplug the TV I have to do the same routine again.

Anyone else experienced or heard of this? Is there some way to report this problem and get an answer if a fix is coming?

Click to expand...

This is actually an issue with the HDMI specification itself and how HDCP and handshaking is handled between devices. A lot of cable boxes (primarily Motorola and Pace boxes, but Tivos as well) will occasionally drop the audio portion of the signal. Restarting the computer effectively resets the HDMI handshake between the computer and TV.

I worked in Tech Support for a Cable provider/Telecom (not Comcast or TWC) for six years, and it was common to see this issue with audio multiple times a day.

(EDIT: because it's an issue with the HDMI spec itself, any update would need to come from the HDMI Forum, which is the group that creates the specs. HDMI 2.0 was just announced last September, and it may address this issue)