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2020 MBP "13 - Coil Whine - Here we go again?

antoine92

antoine92

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 30, 2020
19
4
Beijing
I have been looking for some info on this hot topic - coil whine, but this time in 2020 MacBook Pro "13, and unfortunately I found out that some users still experience this annoying high pitched and/or scratching sound coming from their new machines


Is anybody experiencing this here too?

The matter is I have ordered a new MBP "13 a couple of days ago hoping I won't be dealing with this issue ever again! I have had this 'problem' with two 16" machines which I had to return, because those noises were unbearable and sometimes painful for ears.
 
Just got my 1.4 GHz 13" 2020 a couple days ago. I'm a stickler about things like this and I hear no coil whine whatsoever. It's a great machine.
 
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No coil whine.
No random snaps and pops from speakers.

It’s quiet.

2020 13” 10th Gen i7 - received this past Friday. I’ve used it at least once everyday since.
 
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i5 10th gen here ... can't hear anything. Have had multiple MacBooks in the past with coil whine/clicking/chattering but this one appears to be totally quiet. I do think it's a "lottery" thing... some will do it, some won't based on my experience.
 
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Thank you guys for your replies! It does seem to me new MBPs have less cool whine problems. I’ll have to wait for mine and see though
 
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These 2020 13” (high-end) models are the best laptops Apple has ever made. Usually I need to exchange my unit a few times to get a good one ( screen issues, coil whine, crackling/popping speakers, and so on .... ).

The first try was already an excellent unit without any issues.
 
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UBS28 said:
These 2020 13” (high-end) models are the best laptops Apple has ever made. Usually I need to exchange my unit a few times to get a good one ( screen issues, coil whine, crackling/popping speakers, and so on .... ).

The first try was already an excellent unit without any issues.
Click to expand...

great to hear since I just ordered one.
 
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Ocnetgeek said:
great to hear since I just ordered one.
Click to expand...
You'll be happy with it, I'm sure. I am enjoying mine coming from a 2017 15". Just be realistic about the limitations in graphics performance (looks like you're coming from and AMD dGPU). The CPU should be the same or faster, even in sustained performance to your 2015 15".
 
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my 2020 13" actually does make some kind of constant noise, though it's fairly quiet. You have to put your ears within like 6" away from the keyboard to hear it. Not sure if It's coil whine or something else... always there even when the fans are off. Here is a recording made with a large diaphragm condenser hovering ~6" over the center of keyboard, alternating with the mic about a foot away from the machine:

www.dropbox.com

coil whine.wav

Shared with Dropbox
www.dropbox.com www.dropbox.com

my world is usually much louder than this, so it's not too much of a issue for me.
 
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Got mine yesterday (i7/32/1TB), it has coil whine, but not that noticeable like in 16". I can hear it within a foot away from the computer only in a completely quiet room at night. I can hear it when moving layers in Photoshop, or scrolling timeline in FCPX.
Other than that the machine is perfect, I'm very happy with it. BUT if the whine bothers me too much, I will return it. I'm aware that this issue is very common in almost every modern laptop, but I just don't want to put up with it
 
antoine92 said:
Got mine yesterday (i7/32/1TB), it has coil whine, but not that noticeable like in 16"...
Click to expand...

Interesting. Do you think it's coming from the 1TB nVME SSD? Maybe the louder whine in the 16" is from the additional dGPU.

In normal use I don't really ever pick up on the noise. I have a bit of tinnitus and have become accustomed to filtering out strange sounds :)
 
jabbr said:
Interesting. Do you think it's coming from the 1TB nVME SSD? Maybe the louder whine in the 16" is from the additional dGPU.

In normal use I don't really ever pick up on the noise. I have a bit of tinnitus and have become accustomed to filtering out strange sounds :)
Click to expand...

no, the SSD is completely quiet. I can hear the whine when moving layers in Photoshop, or rendering project in Final Cut, for example. I don’t want to send it back, I’m really exhausted of exchanging machines because of that all the time.

The scratching sound is coming somewhere from the left, probably where caps lock button is
 
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