Level 1

31 points

MacBook Pro 2019 Speakers are making pop sounds

Hello everyone,

I know this problem has been reported before but i have a brand new (two months old) BTO 2019 machine and i find it impossible to work like this.

I have a random click - pop sound coming from the right speaker almost every 30 seconds. I have done all the troubleshooting, reset SMC, NVRAM, logged in as a new user, even a disk reset and fresh install. Nothing worked.

This is very easy to replicate. Every time a video starts playing in Vimeo, You Tube or any other platform, a pop is coming through the right speaker. If i place the cursor at any moment of the video, there is always a click sound after loading and just before playback begins.

It happens even if i open a video from my desktop at the time the playback begins.

The problem goes away if i plug in an external audio device or headphones. So it may be related to the internal audio interface, although i can't hear the pop while using the headphones.

I took the machine to an authorised reseller, the tests showed that everything is ok and i just got it back. Apparently it's not ok as i can replicate this at any time (i did this in front of the technicians) and it's really frustrating. My work has to do with audio and i can't deal with this on such an expensive device.

MacBook Pro 2019, i9 2.3, Vega 20, 32GB Ram, MacOs 10.14.6

Any Ideas?

Thanks for your time

MacBook Pro 15”, macOS 10.14

Posted on Oct 18, 2019 3:51 AM

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70 replies

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Nov 14, 2019 5:51 AM in response to huseynm

Hi Huseynm!

Of course it could be a software issue. The lack of interest though from Apple’s perspective is beyond my understanding. Even if this is a software issue, will this ever get resolved by Apple? And do we deserve to know this in advance? 10 years before an Apple advisor would leave a “useful” comment here (by useful i mean something more meaningful that suggesting an SMC - NVRAM reset as it’s clear that we have done all the standard troubleshooting). Can you hear the silence?

It’s been almost 3 months since i bought a 4500$ machine that i can’t use without headphones, i can’t return it, i can’t sell it and i have spent all those hours searching online for a solution that does not exist. Just yesterday a new version with half of those issues resolved was introduced (bringing back the good old keyboard that we are asking since 2016 plus better thermals).

I was always a loyal Apple’s pro customer, building my entire portfolio using these machines and trying to persuade all my colleagues to step into the mac world to enjoy it’s benefits.

Now this is a different story. I am feeling that this is the worst investment i have ever made. And the worst part is that nobody cares.

Cheers!

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Nov 14, 2019 6:09 AM in response to dimitrios212

PS. You have to see this issue in action while using Final Cut. Every time the cursor falls on a clip inside the library or just on the timeline, a pop is generated. This means that as a full time video editor i will be hearing almost 3000 pops a day, lol.

imacproX

Level 1

8 points

Nov 14, 2019 7:21 AM in response to dimitrios212

Hi dimitrios212!

I understand how you are feeling right now. Luckily, I haven't found any issue with my machine since I got an exchange. The only thing I feel sad is a new macbook pro 16 inch was just released and I want to buy it. The new one is even faster than my top speed machine. I think I can wait a couple years to upgrade to MBPr 16 to see if Apple really fixes some issues (software/hardware) that still exist on previous 15 inch model.

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Nov 18, 2019 5:53 AM in response to dimitrios212

Here is a second video i made, where you can see this issue in action while working with a video editing program, in this case Final Cut Pro X:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptiAy9z7xrI

This is where it gets really bad...

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Oct 19, 2019 1:05 AM in response to imacproX

Thanks! I would be glad if you leave some feedback here when you get your new unit.

imacproX

Level 1

8 points

Oct 20, 2019 6:10 PM in response to James1812

Thank you for your information! I'm very disappointed about a macbook quality nowadays.

Oct 20, 2019 6:23 PM in response to imacproX

Yeah, I am frustrated as well.

BTW, are you running the latest Catalina version? Because I only started to notice this issue since I upgraded to Catalina few days ago.

imacproX

Level 1

8 points

Oct 20, 2019 6:28 PM in response to James1812

Yes, I'm running the lastest Catalina version. I don't know Apple could fix this issue or not.

Oct 20, 2019 6:29 PM in response to imacproX

If it's a software caused issue, I think they can, but might need to wait for a while.

Oct 20, 2019 6:45 PM in response to imacproX

You might be right. I will let you know once I got some information after I finishing conversation with Apple support.

huseynm

Level 1

8 points

Oct 23, 2019 1:29 AM in response to dimitrios212

Changing top case did not fix the issue. In addition, now my laptop wobbles on flat surface

imacproX

Level 1

8 points

Oct 23, 2019 7:53 AM in response to James1812

Could you tell me how you got a new one? Mine is running great so far.

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Oct 24, 2019 1:02 AM in response to James1812

Hi James, are you referring to the new unit?

So both the devices (old and new) have the issue but the new one produces a more subtle sound?

Oct 24, 2019 1:07 AM in response to dimitrios212

Exactly.

dimitrios212 Author

Level 1

31 points

Nov 8, 2019 5:44 AM in response to dimitrios212

Here is a video where you can see the issue:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9bd_olj3q4

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MacBook Pro 2019 Speakers are making pop sounds