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Odd "tink" sound from MBP both in use and in sleep mode...

mousouchop

mousouchop

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 22, 2008
814
118
New York
Okay, I just searched google and did forum search and was unable to find anyone describing my exact problem soooo, here is goes.

I just got a new 15" MBP, and I am loving it. I like to lay in bed sometimes when watching TV, and place the Macbook on my chest while I browse the net and chat with friends, I am sure we are all guilty of this. haha. It's sorta comfy. :p

Anyways, this is when I first noticed this "tink" noise. It is very light, and distinct, and definitely metallic. I can only assume it is the HD head parking or whatever. However, in efforts to calibrate my battery, I allowed the battery to go completely dead last night. I have yet to plug it in to charge this morning, but I was handling my MBP anyways, just to get a feel for the new size, and the "tink" sound was still occurring-- even in this state of "deep" sleep.

Am I wrong in assuming that this sound is my HD? Moving the computer around quickly doesn't always produce the sound 100% of the time. But sometimes I get a single "tink", other times a couple in a row, and sometimes I can get movie it in such a way that I get consecutive individual "tinks."

I am just perplexed that this is all happening while the computer is essentially OFF completely...

Is this sound actually the case and caused by the pressure of my chest? (I am skinny 115lb guy, the computer rests on bone essentially. haha.) When I experienced the sound while operating the computer, I did not experience any system lock-ups or anything. Is this just a superficial sound? Or something worse? haha. I am thinking it is nothing.

Any ideas? :p
 
My 13'' uMBP does the same exact thing, normally when it is sleeping, and when I pull it out of my bag, i grab it from the right front corner, and it almost always tinks.
 
Hmmm, I read in Apple Support forums that there are springs that support the bottom panel and keep pressure on it from causing it to come into contact with the logic board and other internals... I suppose that would make sense, and the sound could very well be a spring... any one have a better idea? :p

See post here: Re: Macbook Pro making weird creaking noises?
 
cababah said:
I thought the tink is the hard drive "anti-shake" thing or whatever the technical term for it is?
Click to expand...

In most cases I believe that is what the sound is. That is what I thought it was at first too...

But the sound is occurring even when my laptop is off. It isn't a loose part seeing as shaking it does not produce the sound. But some pressure on the bottom panel can produce it, not 100% of the time, but it happens. The spring theory in that post makes almost complete sense.
 
I opened up the bottom of my MBP, and the logic board does indeed have several spring loaded pegs that I can only assume come into direct contact with the inside of the bottom panel and under concentrated pressure (i.e. picking up one handed), make a "tink" like noise (metal vs. metal).

Again, just a theory... but I am convinced. :p
 
Yeah I think mine does this same exact thing, except I can reproduce it reliably and it happens more often.
 
Brand new MBP makes 'tink' noise when stationary

Nope, my brand new MBP makes the 'tink' noise fairly regularly (haven't paid that much attention) when it is entirely stationary. I haven't noticed the sound at all when the laptop is off or in sleep mode. I wonder what it can be?
 
It does it too on my new MacBook Pro 15 inch. I am sure it is the hard drive. I have heard the same sound before on my Dell notebooks too. This is one of the reasons I am looking forward to replacing it with an SSD once the prices come down a bit.

Disabling the Sudden Motion Sensor and changing the hdapm had no effect either.
 
Could your sound be equated to a candy wrapper crinkling? I have this sound when on and in use, asleep, completely off, battery dead, and several other times. SO odd! Couldn't reproduce at Apple store so geniuses could not do anything
 
Dkota05 said:
Anybody have a solution for this problem or get it addressed by Apple?

I think what the OP described is the same issue I am having on my 2 day old uMBP. Here is EXACTLY what mine sounds like: (max out your volume) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJmpervXe9M&feature=player_embedded (not my video)
Click to expand...

YES! That is EXACTLY what mine sounds like! I haven't got a solution for it... I thought of opening up my case again and putting a small square of electrical tape on all the points in the case where it looks like there is contact-- but I haven't had the motivation to open up my computer again.
 
I am kinda of wondering if getting an Incase Hardshell Case for my MBP would remedy this problem by dissipating the pressure on the bottom case and avoiding whatever stress causes this annoying sound. Then I my MBP will be a little more bulky and heavier-- albeit better protected.

Anyone with an Incase hear this sound ever?
 
I started to hear it on my cousins macbook pro too, just like a tink maybe every 2 minutes, then it stopped for a long while and came back... weird.
 
I've managed to get rid of the noise on mine, somehow. It was definitely coming from the bottom case, mostly from directly below the trackpad. I just put both hands around either side of the trackpad, my thumbs on the bottom of the case, and squeezed both together a bit....did this a few times and rarely do I ever hear the "tink" anymore. Worst explanation ever I know, but it worked for me.
 
Apparently, all the UMBPs do it. It's so subtle that most don't even notice, but once it gets the attention in a silent environment, it's really annoying. Sounds almost like someone winding a watch slightly, every few seconds.
My 17" UMBP did it, and so did the previous 15". Two friends have the same sounds with their MBPs. There have been hundreds of posts on this here and elsewhere. No real solution has been found to my knowledge, apart from getting an SSD. The cause is generally thought to be the sudden motion detection system's affect on the HD. Hopefully, the new models will have cured this.
 
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