TS1574: Troubleshooting issues with no audio from built-in speakers on Macs

Learn about Troubleshooting issues with no audio from built-in speakers on Macs
AngryAppleUser

Q: Great, but the article very carefully AVOIDS one key point:  What do you do when the MUTE is checked but grayed OUT so that you can't uncheck it?  This whole problem is ruining my MAC experience, since now mp4s won't play since there's an unexpected error

iTunes doesn't play the songs.  And QuickTimePlayer won't play:  The document “TestNewMac.mp4” could not be opened. An unknown error occurred (-101).  Isn't this wonderful?  I've seen 100s of articles and complaints about the same thing.  How come Apple doesn't fix it?  Now I want my money back.  VERY Angry at Apple for these problems.  Furthermore, the beachball of death spins for an unreasonable amount of time upon startup, and I have a solid state drive!  Come on Apple.  I bet my $4000 is working for you.  How come your machine isn't working for me?

iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Jun 21, 2012 5:43 PM

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Q: Great, but the article very carefully AVOIDS one key point:  What do you do when the MUTE is checked but grayed OUT so that y ... more

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  • by baltwo,

    baltwo baltwo Jun 21, 2012 6:04 PM in response to AngryAppleUser
    Level 9 (62,256 points)
    Jun 21, 2012 6:04 PM in response to AngryAppleUser

    Sound prefPane allows muting ON and OFF. A couple of things to try.

     

    1. Create a new admin user account, log into it, and see if the issue persists.

    2. Move the com.apple.systemprefences.plist file out of your Preferences folder, log out and back in, and see if that fixes the issue.

    3. Reinstall Lion and see if that fixes the issue.

  • by Digitolic,

    Digitolic Digitolic Jun 21, 2012 11:00 PM in response to AngryAppleUser
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 21, 2012 11:00 PM in response to AngryAppleUser

    I have the same problem since a week or two. Sometimes it helps to do a SMC and PRAM reset but the problem keeps coming back.

  • by AngryAppleUser,

    AngryAppleUser AngryAppleUser Jun 22, 2012 10:38 AM in response to baltwo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 22, 2012 10:38 AM in response to baltwo

     

    2. Move the com.apple.systemprefences.plist file out of your Preferences folder, log out and back in, and see if that fixes the issue.

     

     

    I looked in the Library/Preferences folder and found that I DO NOT have that particular file at all.  Is that a problem?

  • by Kurt Lang,Helpful

    Kurt Lang Kurt Lang Jun 22, 2012 10:44 AM in response to AngryAppleUser
    Level 8 (37,999 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 22, 2012 10:44 AM in response to AngryAppleUser

    Wrong Library folder. From the desktop, hold down the Option key and at the menu bar, choose Go > Library. This will open the Library folder in your user account. You'll find the file baltwo mentioned in that folder's Preferences folder.

  • by AngryAppleUser,

    AngryAppleUser AngryAppleUser Jun 22, 2012 10:53 AM in response to Kurt Lang
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 22, 2012 10:53 AM in response to Kurt Lang

    Thanks everyone.  It finally started working again (along with iTunes, QuickTime, and the Mute is not grayed out), after I unplugged, counted to 15, plugged back in, counted to 5, then rebooted.

     

    Only God, it seems to me, knows why.

     

    NOTE TO APPLE:  I should NOT have had to go through any of this, nor should anyone else who spends $4000 on a computer.  We are paying the extra cash so we DON'T have to put up with Microsux-like bugs.  PLEASE fix whatever is wrong in your OS Lion X so that this bug never happens....PLEASE.

     

    Not-so-Angry-anymore AngryAppleUser (but still Angry)

  • by Kurt Lang,

    Kurt Lang Kurt Lang Jun 22, 2012 11:20 AM in response to AngryAppleUser
    Level 8 (37,999 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 22, 2012 11:20 AM in response to AngryAppleUser

    Only God, it seems to me, knows why.

    Not laughing at you, I just think it's a funny line.

     

    No, you shouldn't have such issues on a new machine, but then, it is a computer, and they're complicated beasts. The main issue for you at this point is OS X is so foreign compared to the Windows OS you're used to. It's the same (files, folders, programs), but it's not the same. It's going to take a while to learn how to troubleshoot a Mac as easily as you likely can a PC.

     

    I started with an IBM XT clone running DOS 3.2 way back when. Built all of my own PCs for years. I often knew more about the computer and the OS than people who did tech for a living (I read a lot of tech magazines). I started using Macs in prepress, and like you, all I knew how to do was use it. Fixing? Forget it.

     

    I switched to Macs completely about 15 years ago for the prepress business I started out of my home, and haven't looked back to Windows. I do actually like Windows 7, just have no real need or use for it.

     

    Anyway, my point is you'll get there. I think I spent the first 3-4 months on these boards just reading, reading, reading. I copied any points I thought I could use to help me learn the OS better. Now, it's as familiar as DOS/Windows was all those years beforehand.

  • by TomyHomy,

    TomyHomy TomyHomy Jul 17, 2012 2:50 PM in response to baltwo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 17, 2012 2:50 PM in response to baltwo

    Thanks everyone.  It finally started working again (along with iTunes, QuickTime, and the Mute is not grayed out), after I unplugged, counted to 15, plugged back in, counted to 5, then rebooted.

     

    What did you unpluged?