New late 15" rMBP makes strange sound when pressing on back.

R

richard371

macrumors 68040
If I barely press on the back of the MBP around the center it makes a strange crunching sound. My 13" does not exhibit this behavior. Its toward the middle back where it says macbook pro. Its very crunch sounding and a 2599 machine should not do this.

Is this normal? Can anyone replicate this on their late 2013 15?
 
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Not normal but is a tendency for the 15" models. Just have a genius reseat your bottom plate or you can do it yourself by purchasing a pentalobe screwdriver.

Just be careful, a genius and myself have rounded off the head of the screw. An ponging that one has to go thru this with a brand new CPU.
 
Where can I get the screwdriver locally?

ducatiti said:
Not normal but is a tendency for the 15" models. Just have a genius reseat your bottom plate or you can do it yourself by purchasing a pentalobe screwdriver.

Just be careful, a genius and myself have rounded off the head of the screw. An ponging that one has to go thru this with a brand new CPU.
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Thanks. The noise is pretty loud and comes from a pretty large area. definitely not an OCD issue. My friend said its very apparent. Its not a small creek but very crunchy sounding and a pretty large area. That and the fact the screen tint is not as even as my 13 rMBP I may just return the 15 and keep the 13.

Im to tired to have to restore all my apps to another 15 and chance getting one with an even worse screen etc. I had to go through several iPad airs because of uneven screen tint and the final one still is uneven but I decided to live with it. Not on a 2599 laptop though.

ducatiti said:
I believe that this is an apple specialized tool but it can be ordered online. I purchased it from amazon but you will find it on ebay as well, to include ifixit.com.
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I have a video where it shows the bottom is completely flush and moves a bit when handled.

Check around the vent areas on the side. It may have some movement when pressed. You have to look closely.

I will find the video when I get home.

Hope this helps. I know what exactly you feel. I've been thru this several times and ultimately returned them and settled for an Air last year, and 13 rmbp this year. I guess it has to do with the size of the 15", just prone to flexng.
 
Thanks. Yea it doesn't feel loose. It definitely pressing against some internal components. I can't imagine reseating it will fix it in this case. Maybe the Genius bar puts something in there like black electrical tape lol.

ducatiti said:
Now seeing your video I remember people in the past claiming the case a hitting an internal component but I can't recall what.

Here is a thread I posted way back with the first gen retina.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1429950/
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I would just return it and ask for a refund not even mentioning the problem. Then buy again. If you get another defective one such as a screen problem, maybe it's not meant to be. Like mentioned, I've had problems with my first and second gen retinas. Returned both and now enjoying my 13" retina mid spec. Happy with my purchase since I only paid $1249 :)
 
There should be (I think) tiny plastic spring clips that are near the center inside. Those might not be engaged completely, letting the bottom move around a little too much. A couple of minutes with a good repair tech should fix that right up.
My opinion - $400 laptop, acceptable flex. $2500 laptop, (OCD or not) that noise is not acceptable - and should be an easy adjustment.
 
That exactly the model and price I ended up paying for my late 13 mid model. I talked myself into the 15 because I run VMs and thought the quad cores, extra RAM and SSD would help (which it does) but at double the price to get these issues I think Ill just return it and stick with the 13.



ducatiti said:
I would just return it and ask for a refund not even mentioning the problem. Then buy again. If you get another defective one such as a screen problem, maybe it's not meant to be. Like mentioned, I've had problems with my first and second gen retinas. Returned both and now enjoying my 13" retina mid spec. Happy with my purchase since I only paid $1249 :)
Click to expand...
 
richard371 said:
That exactly the model and price I ended up paying for my late 13 mid model. I talked myself into the 15 because I run VMs and thought the quad cores, extra RAM and SSD would help (which it does) but at double the price to get these issues I think Ill just return it and stick with the 13.
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Join the club hehe. Will end up selling my 13 around the same price I bought for next year and purchase the next major revision, not update (15").
 
Yea I'm thinking the same thing. I really like the for factor of the 13 now that I have it next to the 15. Its a pretty big difference as far as size and weight.

ducatiti said:
Join the club hehe. Will end up selling my 13 around the same price I bought for next year and purchase the next major revision, not update (15").
Click to expand...
 
richard371 said:
Yea I'm thinking the same thing. I really like the for factor of the 13 now that I have it next to the 15. Its a pretty big difference as far as size and weight.
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Yep. I just found the 15" too bulky my use. I mainly use it around the house and will just end up hitting something such as furniture and doors :) Significant weight and form factor difference for me. It was like I had to be extra careful with 15" in addition to the price I paid for it.
 
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