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Headphone Jack Broke (Only Right Headphone Plays)

D

Dblcut3

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 10, 2015
6
0
So, while using headphones, out of nowhere the left headphone stopped working. I figured it was just the headphones. Then, I tested 2 others and neither of those had sound in the left side either. There is a small trace of some muffled sound though.

It does also seem that I have to keep the volume almost at the max to hear the right side correctly.

I also did notice that when I was trying to fix it, it did play it like normal, but then stopped working when I started my Mac the next day.

Any help would be appreciated. Will I need a USB sound adaptor or is there some way to clean out my headphone jack to fix it or something? Thanks :)
 
First things first, have you checked System Preferences to make sure that in the Sound section, the balance and output volume are properly set up?
 
try this (with headphones in jack)...once again go into System Preferences /Sound section/Balance...move balance needle left and right and then back to center.
 
Do you get better audio on the dead side if you apply pressure at different angles to the headphone jack?

My Mac pro had dead audio on one side. And knowing that my history with Apple is unimpressive, I wasn't taking a chance on getting a refurbished main board for a minor audio issue. Inside the headphone jack there are essentially spring loaded pads (not really springs, but folded metal that exerts pressure).

I applied a solder glob to my headphones plug so that when inserted it exerted more pressure on the connection. Actually, I wrapped a thin strand of wire around the plug where thickness was needed and soldered the wire to the plug. Basically for strength. This worked fine and has worked fine for about 8 or 9 years now.

Another option would be to use mono headphones. That should essentially bridge the left and right channels. And give you audio on both headphones. Mono headphones are rare these days. You might be able to find a simple stereo to Mono adapter at RadioShack.
 
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