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Silly John Fatty

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 6, 2012
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Is that possible? It seems like no but I can't find a definite answer. There *must* be a possibility to do so. I believe my card is making problems. (even though it's bypassed by an external one) So I thought I might change it.
 
I think the audio is integrated into the intel chip. For general information...

http://www.intel.com/design/chipsets/hdaudio.htm

I'm sure there are others who could give a more detailed answer.

You can get fancy PCIe audio cards like the one below, but I think most people find that connecting an interface via USB or firewire works quite nicely.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...C9r0oOiE0k0fD9PIHZtbSANoJZefgUA9wfhoCstjw_wcB

Another potential source of information is the 'digital audio' forum here on macrumors. When I was setting up a home studio, they were extremely helpful.
 
Hmm, so I guess it can't be exchanged. I actually already have a USB one (RME Babyface), but I have the feeling something is wrong with my chipset then. I have some hardware issues I believe. I never noticed that forum :) So thanks, I'll make a round there, perhaps someone can help me further…
 
You can disable or delete the Apple audio driver for the onboard sound. I believe it is AppleHDA.kext. The hardware will still be there of course, but it won't be used by OS X.

Unfortunately most cheap audio adapters want to use that driver too, so you'll need a card that has its own manufacturer's driver.
 
You can disable or delete the Apple audio driver for the onboard sound. I believe it is AppleHDA.kext. The hardware will still be there of course, but it won't be used by OS X.

Unfortunately most cheap audio adapters want to use that driver too, so you'll need a card that has its own manufacturer's driver.

But when you connect a different interface (which has it's own driver), this will be bypassed, right? I have an RME Babyface and I use RME drivers. Does this mean the Mac's sound card is not in use *at all*? What about the "core audio"? From what I read, this is a driver too (the only one for Mac), but I get core audio messages sometimes. Which is weird since I have my RME Babyface connected, no?
 
But when you connect a different interface (which has it's own driver), this will be bypassed, right? I have an RME Babyface and I use RME drivers. Does this mean the Mac's sound card is not in use *at all*? What about the "core audio"? From what I read, this is a driver too (the only one for Mac), but I get core audio messages sometimes. Which is weird since I have my RME Babyface connected, no?

Yes, if you remove the HDA driver, the sound card should not be in use at all. OS X might be aware that the hardware is there, but it won't use it.

No, it's not weird, that is expected. Core Audio is a software API, not a driver for hardware.

However, I think the odds of you having a faulty chipset are pretty low. Have you tried a clean OS install? For troubleshooting purposes, that would eliminate software and configuration problems.
 
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