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Speaker popping?

J

jodi swift

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 3, 2009
7
0
Hello everyone,

I'm experiencing a problem with the sound on my macbook. Occasionally (especially when using GarageBand ) there is a "pop" from the speakers, and the volume on the laptop drops to barely audible. A restart solves the problem but I would like to find a permanent solution.

I would really appreciate any help, as I have no idea what is causing this to happen.

Thanks in advance for any info.
 
I will update tomorrow on a repair that is being done. I have been working with apple on this issue and so far it is either the speakers or the logic board.

They are swapping out the speakers and will see how they do.

Been dealing with this for over 6 months as of now.
 
Thanks for the replies,

first @ Yadmonkey; It happens both on battery power and when plugged in, I read the page you linked but it appears the SMC doesn't manage sound.

Could it possibly be a driver issue or is it more likely to be a hardware problem?

@ ZebOfMac how often did this happen on your Macbook? For me it is very infrequent but should not be happening at all, so any info on the source of the problem would be ace.

Thing is.. as the problem occurs so infrequently, I'm not even sure how to test if a solution worked or not because it seems to happen quite randomly. Although any suggestions are much appreciated.

Thanks guys.
 
The SMC doesn't manage sound, but it does manage power. Often when speakers pop (in computers or otherwise), it has something to do with power.

It does sound like it might be a hardware issue and a hard one to nail down at that, since it happens so infrequently. If it were my computer, I'd probably back it up and reinstall the OS to be sure.
 
Hello,

Tech had my computer in for repairs. Well the surgery wasn't too long just at an hour. The computer was stripped and padded clean just to be safe. Speakers and sub woofers were replaced as agreed upon with the AppleCare call center.

The pops are still there :eek:
I gotta call the tech tomorrow as he says there is nothing else he can think of. Apple has agreed on a replacement of this did not work so this one is going back. I have had the computer ~339 days

Tried:
Logic Board
Speakers
OSX fresh install
system tweaks sent from apple
Apple Engineers have gotten several console logs
 
Hey Zeb, how often does this happen on your mac? When the speakers pop does the sound become barely audible or cut out all together?
 
jodi swift said:
Hey Zeb, how often does this happen on your mac? When the speakers pop does the sound become barely audible or cut out all together?
Click to expand...

Actually, I have my speakers on zero all the time and just keep hearing it popping.
 
Intell said:
Its possible that its just the sound hardware going into and returning from sleep mode. Most, if not all, portable Macs do this, but most people don't notice it. Use Antipop to fix it: http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/29024/antipop
Click to expand...

The tech at the new store has gone over the logs and the hardware changes. The computer should work fine out of the box and this is something that should not be happening on a 2800.00 computer.
 
ZebOfMac said:
The tech at the new store has gone over the logs and the hardware changes. The computer should work fine out of the box and this is something that should not be happening on a 2800.00 computer.
Click to expand...

The computer can be $100,000 and itd still have problems. I'm very sure its just the sound hardware and it's sleep mode.
 
Intell said:
The computer can be $100,000 and itd still have problems. I'm very sure its just the sound hardware and it's sleep mode.
Click to expand...

Talked with Apple Care this afternoon some more. They want to tear my computer apart piece by piece. So they are going to send a new computer next week and then I send them this one back.

They said the audio going to sleep and waking up would not be a concern as the popping can come as close as 30 seconds apart.
 
Zeb, sorry to hear they didn't resolve your problem yet, good luck with that mate.. it must be really irritating.

It sounds like a different issue though, my speakers don't pop continuously.. it just happens once then the sound is lost to barely audible levels, the speakers don't continue to make a popping sound. The first time it happened I thought the speakers had blown, that's what it sounded like.. but a restart fixes the problem so obviously not. Anyway, I have a feeling it could be heat related. Is there any chance that the laptop getting too hot could cause such a thing to happen?

Thanks everyone for your input, much appreciated.
j
 
Jodi, have you tried running it with the battery out? It's worth a shot.

Yes heat could be a big factor. A failing soldering point can work or not work when a certain temperature is reached. Is your Macbook under warrantee or Applecare?
 
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