Apple Remote (Mac)

Question

Apple Remote (Mac)

So the Apple Remote I bought with my Macbook works fine, except for the volume buttons. Play/Pause, Previous/Next, and Menu all work as they should, but my attempts to change the volume with the remote are met with the system alert sound (funk, submarine, etc.), as if I'm attempting to do something that isn't allowed or isn't possible. Has anyone else run into the same problem?

Unibody Macbook, Mac OS X (10.5.7)

Posted on May 19, 2009 11:31 PM

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Answer 1

May 20, 2009 12:09 AM in response to Sai the Explorer

If you use the volume buttons on the keyboard, do they work to change the volume? Since noticing this problem, have you shut down (powered off) and restarted your Mac?

Speaker volume is stored in PRAM, so have you try resetting PRAM?

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379

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Answer 2

May 21, 2009 12:42 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

Volume buttons work on the keyboard. Both restarting the computer and resetting the PRAM didn't do anything.

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Answer 3

May 21, 2009 3:26 AM in response to Sai the Explorer

As a test, create a new admin user account in System Preferences Accounts pane.

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.5/en/8235.html

Log out and log in to the new account. Try using the remote in the new account. If it works in the new account, there is something wrong in your normal account (or something running in the background) that is preventing the use of the remote for volume control.

If it still does not work, then the problem may be the overall system or hardware. To check the system possibility, you can restart from your Mac OS X installation disc (or another full installation if you have one). I'm not sure if the remote (or even volume control) is supposed to work when booted from the minimal system on the installation disc, but you can give it a try. If you have an external drive that is not being used, you can install a full Mac OS X system on that drive, boot from it, and try the remote control with a fresh system.

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Answer 4

May 21, 2009 4:38 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

Testing it with a new administator account worked: I was able to change the volume with the remote in the other account. Any ideas as to what sort of programs might be interfering with it in my main account? My plan of action right now is to go through all my background apps and quit them one by one and test the remote.

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Answer 5

May 21, 2009 10:29 PM in response to Sai the Explorer

That's good. So it is not a hardware problem, and it is not an overall system problem, just something in your current user account. It may be a program or background process, but it may also be a specific user preference file that has become corrupted or mis-set.

If you are hunting for the process, you should open System Preferences Accounts pane +Login Items+ tab and check the list of items. Make sure everything that starts automatically upon login makes sense.

On the preference file side, it would make sense that the preference is related to using the Apple Remote. Try these procedures related to pairing the remote to the computer.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1619

Your remote seems to be working with your computer, but maybe if you unpaired it and paired it again, the current preference will be over-written and the remote will work 100%.

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Answer 6

May 22, 2009 12:09 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

I looked through all my login items, and all of them seem to make sense. I know that the remote is working with the computer and with my own administrator account because the remote's other functions (play/pause, prev/next, Front Row) all work perfectly. Peculiarly, the ONLY two functions that are met with an error sound are the Volume Up and Down. My guess is that there seems to be some background program or utility that may be controlling volume settings and preventing the remote from changing system volume. What that program is, I have no idea. I have tried uninstalling all media related programs I have (VLC, file converters, etc.) and tried the remote again, but to no avail. Unpairing and re-pairing the remote also didn't do anything.

P.S. Here is some strange behavior I noticed that may shed light on the situation: if the volume is maxed out, and I try to increase the volume with the remote, I don't get an error sound but just silence. If I try to lower the volume from this point or increase the volume from a non-maximum level, I get the error sound.

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Answer 7

May 22, 2009 12:25 AM in response to Sai the Explorer

Figured it out. I have a program installed called FunctionFlip, which essentially allows the user to select which of the F keys to operate as F keys and which to act as whatever they are assigned to do (Dashboard, Expose, Volume, etc.). Ironically, I wasn't even using this program. However, the program was preventing my remote from changing the volume. Also, the FFHelper app was in my login items as well. I discovered it by chance, quitting all the helper apps I could find in my Activity Monitor (probably not the best solution, but hey, it worked). Thanks for all your help!

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Answer 8

May 22, 2009 12:31 AM in response to Sai the Explorer

That's an excellent bit of tech sleuthing. Hopefully, this topic thread will help someone else with a similar problem.

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