External speaker sound only coming out of one speaker!

Question

Level 1

6 points

External speaker sound only coming out of one speaker!

I have a 2.1 Logitech Z4 setup, and the sound is only coming out of the left speaker. I have checked the wires, they are fine, and both speakers do work - but it could be the socket that's the problem. It's plugged into the line-in socket, I have put the output in System Preferences to Headphones, and everything is inserted correctly. The balance slider in System Prefrences is in the middle. My sound system is plugged into the headphones jack. I have tried putting headphones into the headphone jack and the sound also only comes out of the left earbud.

What do I do?

Thanks

iMac 2.0GHZ Aliminum, Mac OS X (10.5.2), 2007 model

Posted on Dec 21, 2009 10:48 AM

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Answer 1

den.thed

Level 10

91,534 points

Dec 21, 2009 11:06 AM in response to Abc233334

Hello Abc233334

If you are getting both channels from the internal speakers it is most likely an output jack problem, but you might also want to test it with another set of headphones or buds.

Also go to Applications > Utilities and do some poking in the Audio MIDI setup to see if the right channel is muted there and not showing up in the Sound preference.

Dennis

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Answer 2

Abc233334 Author

Level 1

6 points

Dec 21, 2009 12:46 PM in response to den.thed

Hmm... The left speaker is being found by the iMac, and the levels are up, but when I tried to test the left speaker, no sound came out. I tried unplugging the right speaker and the music was playing in the left speaker, but very very quietly. So I don't know whether it's the speaker or the Mac itself now, but I'm still leaning towards it being a Mac problem.

Thanks

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Answer 3

den.thed

Level 10

91,534 points

Dec 21, 2009 1:47 PM in response to Abc233334

Do you have an iPod, MP3 player, Sony Walk-man or similar audio device that you can plug the Logitech Z4 into and test it?

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Answer 4

Abc233334 Author

Level 1

6 points

Dec 21, 2009 2:56 PM in response to den.thed

Yes, I just tested my iPod with it and it comes out of both speakers. It is definitely the Mac itself, but I just need to know now whether to get it repaired or to get an external sound card.

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Answer 5

den.thed

Level 10

91,534 points

Dec 21, 2009 2:59 PM in response to Abc233334

You will need to Contact Apple, your Apple Store or Local Apple Service provider.

http://www.apple.com/support/contact/

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Answer 6

Dec 21, 2009 3:04 PM in response to Abc233334

If the iMac is out of warranty and AppleCare, and you don't want to pay to get it fixed, you can get a USB device like Griffin's iMic.

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imic/

This will add an extra audio output (and input) over USB. You can select it as your sound output in System Preferences Sound pane Output tab. It also gives you the advantage of being able to switch between using external speakers and built-in speakers on the preference pane, without unplugging anything physically.

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Answer 7

Abc233334 Author

Level 1

6 points

Dec 21, 2009 4:21 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

How much would you estimate a socket repair costing from the official Apple company?

Thanks

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Answer 8

Dec 21, 2009 5:03 PM in response to Abc233334

More than $30 for the Griffin device. You should contact an Apple Store or Apple-certified repair shop to find out an estimated cost for repair.

http://www.apple.com/retail/
http://www.apple.com/buy/locator/service/

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Answer 9

KeliM

Level 1

0 points

Jan 14, 2010 5:51 PM in response to Abc233334

We actually have a different problem that maybe you can help us solve. Something became lodged in the headphone jack of the MacBook Pro and the macbook pro will not play sound. We just purchased this macbook for my son for college and the only solution so far is to replace the board which would cost 1000 because it is not included under the warranty. We recently purchased the iMic to see if we could get sound, set the system preferences for the iMic and still can't get sound out iTunes. We cannot pay another 1000 for a fix-does anyone have any other ideas on how to get the iMic to work. We've always loved mac, I'm an assistive tech coordinator for a school and love the capabilities of a mac! Someone please help us!!!

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Answer 10

Jan 14, 2010 6:38 PM in response to KeliM

For the iMic, does it appear listed in System Preferences Sound pane Output tab? When you select it, have you set the volume level properly? Mac OS X maintains separate volume settings for each output device. Try connecting something else to the iMic's output mini-jack, such as iPod earbuds or other headphones, to see if you can hear anything. And make sure you are using the correct mini-jack, since there are two (one for audio input). It is always possible that the iMic is defective; if possible, try it on another Mac to see if it works there.

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