MacBook Pro 13" with M1 - Volume is way too low

I've just done the update - this could be a placebo effect buttttttttt - It sounds like they've boosted the treble quite a bit - talk to Siri and he'll speak with less bass.

Now, from my experience - when the treble is increased it makes the volume sound louder, however, this is just an effect because the pitch is higher. - the volume is actually still the same.

I honestly think that the speakers are the same volume, however, they do sound a bit better but not as good (or as loud) as my previous 2019 13 inch MacBook Pro.

I was thinking that maybe Apple put smaller (cheaper) speakers into the M1 to save costs (because of all the £££ they spent on R&D for the new chip) - they could easily make the M1 speakers the same volume as intel MacBooks (through a software update) but the speakers would get damaged due to the extra power (chemical power(battery)>electrical potential energy) driving them.

Let me know if I've got anything technical wrong here, GCSE science is as good as it gets 😅:).

So quick update. TS called me back and wanted me to collect system diagnose files so could be sent to engineering. Fast forward a few days and was called back saying the files were not complete when sent. The goal was to see if the speakers were defective. Told TS I wasn't going through the process of sending them back to Apple as I feel its a waste of time.

The speakers IMO are not defective i.e not working or static sound etc. Its that the volume has to be cranked up almost to max which doesn't seem right. Volume levels up to 50% are not usable in most scenarios . Told them either a software update will improve them or Apple decided to use sub Pro speakers. Either way if the hardware is subpar software can only do so much to improve them (as Lord Pump pointed out). Told them to keep my case open. Along with submitting your feedback to Apple I would encourage all of you to call TS and open a case. Feedback is good but its not something they are going to call you back on. A created case is and gives more visibility of the issue. BTW I did download the latest update and its very hard to tell if it did anything and yes as others mentioned the update didn't state anything about speaker improvements. Has anyone thought they should have waited for 2021 model?

Hi

First the air pods not connected to the M1 MacBook Pro and now this . The volume is incredibly low and mine is straight out the box with Big Sur .

Also there’s a funky cursor issue as well where the cursor gets stuck .

I imagine hundreds, if not thousands - knowingly or unknowingly have been affected by this issue. It is really poor.

I don't want compensation for this, I want it fixed if it is a software issue. If its a hardware issue, oh well, it doesn't matter as much.

edit: looks like my free speech regarding the speaker issues has been moderated! - unconstitutional!

[Edited by Moderator]

I have just called the service with the same issue and subjectively I think it helped a lot (I have compared my m1 macbook pro with my macbook pro 2018 at the same volume level ). Try with restarting your mac in the safe mode:

1. Turn off your mac

2. Hold for 10 sec the power button

3. It should start in the safe mode --Safe mode options should appear, then hardrive icon next to it

4. Click shift and hold it till the moment when the "continue" button on the hardrive icon will change into "continue in the safe mode"

5. Click "continue in the safe mode"

6. Log in on your account

7. Log in again

8. Then shut it down

9. Turn on in normal mode.

10. It should work:)

I do not want to give anyone false hope but I have been on the live chat with Apple regarding this (*again*😭) I have quoted key bits from the conversation below regarding the M1 speakers:

"In this case, I will note the reported issue and explore having it looked at further."

"You're welcome and absolutely. Apple's discussion forum is designed to gather customer feedback so that software related issue can be addressed by upcoming updates. In this case, it won't be necessary for me to collect your information but I greatly appreciate your willingness!"

"So, I cannot be certain as to when the issue will be addressed but I'm confident that it will be fixed as it is our mission to correct these sorts of occurrences."

From this, hopefully in the next Big Sur update, we will have a solution!

I have the same exact issue. I just bought 13 inch MacBook Pro m1, the reason I bought is the sound of my old MacBook Pro early 2015 sound had issue (buzz sound in speaker output), and now I found the sound output is very quite, my wife challenge me with her 12 inch Macbook and sound is amazing in her MacBook ! how ironic old models sound is much better than newer MacBooks.

Big Sur 11.2 is out!

Has anyone noticed a change from the speakers? - as the new MBP/MBP will be released this year, Apple are probably quietly slowing the Macs down every update until the next release, forcing you to upgrade.

Nothing changed on my M1 MacBook Pro after update...

Btw, Apple does not intentionally slowing performance to force us to upgrade. The hardware we have is what as time goes by becomes slower in relation to the progress in software/OS...

Same issue here. I just got my MBP a couple of days ago (my first Mac) but instantly noticed that speakers are too low.

I started looking if anyone has same issue, and found this discussion

Hopefully is a software issue.

I have submitted feedback too, there is no fix as of now.

From a marketing perspective, Apple did not promote the speakers as a unique selling point on the 2020 M1 MBP/MBA. However, I am pretty sure they did in all previous intel models.

The next MBP is going to be marketed as having better speakers than the 2020 M1 MBP - built in obsolesce. This will make it look like they have made the speaker better, but in reality, they will be the same as the intel 2013-2019 MBPs.

If a moderator deletes this, I will not be impressed

The software is setting the maximum volume on a movie too low to hear clearly, and this needs to be fixed by Apple. The speakers go loud with some webpages, so they are not the problem. Please turn up the volume.

I am having the same issue as well. Did not perform a backup restore so I am positive the issue has nothing to do with older audio software incompatibilities as it is strait out of the box. My new Macbook Pro M1 audio is much lower than my older 2015 Macbook. I am rather disappointed with its performance in that regard must say. Would be great if the Apple team could come up with a solution soon.

No changes after 11.3.1.

When it comes to the Volume slider behaviour, I can confirm that while using EarPods on minijack the volume works normally, while on MBPM1 speakers it's not linear. It increases slowly to 3/4 of it and then it's a huge increase in the fourth quarter.