Macbook pro 16" M1 pro 2021 popping sound OS 12.0.1

2. Delete the com.apple.audio.DeviceSettings.plist and com.apple.audio.SystemSettings.plist files

I have Mac OS 13.4 and I can't find such files. Could you, please, help me? )

dan1829 wrote:

1. Ok, I have just tried this and seems to be working ok for now (i have managed to listen to one full song without the issue which is a win at the moment)

Go > Computer > Macintosh HD > Library > Preferences > Audio

2. Delete the com.apple.audio.DeviceSettings.plist and com.apple.audio.SystemSettings.plist files

3. Empty bin

4. Restart your Mac

5. Keep your fingers crossed

I found a SOLUTION for the crackling on 16" 2021 M1 Macbook pros which might be the same case for many MANY people with the same model

It was not software related NOR hardware 'failure' but something very simple. This is linked to a slight flaw in the design, which is not really talked about.

PROBLEM: Crackling and popping on Right OR Left speaker during "bassy" sounds. Software updates and sample rate changes fix nothing.

Note: Generally, software issues will happen on both sides as the sound engine should be sending the same signal to all speakers.

Solution: Clean your the grills on the sides of the 16" M1 macbook pro & if necessary, the subwoofer.

How I came about this issue:

I bought an 2021 M1 16" only a few months ago because I heard of such great reviews and it was second hand (only used once by a company then packed up). I actually LOVE it.

To my dismay, the crackling and popping started and I was distraught after spending the money. Software updates and changing sample rate did absolutely nothing.

Thankfully I still had about a month of Apple Care left and so I sent it over to apple thinking the speakers had popped or something.

A week later, I get my M1 16" back with a note from the Apple Repair Centre stating that "Dirt was cleaned" as the "Fix" to my problem. That was surprising as it's not in a particularly dusty area.

But it worked and things played perfectly for a well with the audio... at least for a few months.

Then the crackling started again on my lower right speaker.

I figured it was the BASS speaker which is located on front right area of the 2021 M1 16" right where there is a grill.

Apple Care had ran out and I wasn't going to send this all the way back and pay for it to be "cleaned". So I decided to check how to (safely) remove the bottom case to check the bass speaker and got all the tools.

Low and behold, the right bass speaker had a couple tiny stones/grains of sand or debri. I brushed it gently off and used an air spray to dislodge any debri then closed the case.

The Crackling and Popping disappeared once more!

I do hope that in the newer models / future models that Apple address this flaw as this was overlooked in the design for sure.

The grill next to the bass speaker is wide open for any debri to drop in it. Once lodged in the subwoofer, you get a wonderful crackling from the vibration of the diaphragm. There are no filters or anything to stop small bits of dust of debri from slipping in - say you are working outside and wind blows something in or if your travel bag stores the laptop on it's side and debri falls in the unprotected grill.

Most laptops would some form of spongy filter - perhaps this was never thought of or ommitted to improve sound dispersal. Either way - it was a bad idea.

I hope this helps someone! If you have apple warranty, please send it in and don't open it. It's not worth voiding warranty unless it's out of it AND Apple will realise people are having this problem. It's an expensive piece of kit to have such a simple but annoying flaw.

lank699 wrote:

For me the issue applies to when I'm wearing headphones, and through the internal speakers, so I don't believe cleaning the internal speakers will affect the popping noise in my Bluetooth headphones

Different problem entirely - the solution I proposed relates to the internal speaker in addition to:

« PROBLEM: Crackling and popping on Right OR Left speaker during "bassy" sounds. Software updates and sample rate changes fix nothing.

Note: Generally, software issues will happen on both sides as the sound engine should be sending the same signal to all speakers. »

In other words, it’s rather obvious that cleaning the internal speakers of the Mac for the specific problem I mention will not fix your Bluetooth speaker problem but it will help other people who’s problems are not like yours [=

These kind of issues can be from different sources. That’s why we troubleshoot and try to find out the issue. I have Bluetooth headsets that work perfectly, so you have a different problem entirely.

Hi Tommy8850

has this problem stopped for you.

mine has shrunk, and every now and then I think it's over but the it kicks in.

theres no way to send messages to the techs or programmers.?

technicians here in Iceland have no solutions and no way to get answers from Apple.

fantastic products, but when something breaks , you are fudged.

I've been back and forward with Apple on this for a long time now.

Every time I contact them about it, they say they are working on it and they will contact me with an update and never get back to me. It's getting to a point where it's like talking to a brick wall.

With 1440 me too, you'd think they would acknowledge that this is a problem. Nothing... Maybe they're working on a fix but I wonder if they're just waiting for these machines to run out of warranty so they don't have to deal with a recall program.

In my case, I noticed it a few months into buying the machine but I didn't report it because as an IT professional, I was so busy fixing other people's computer problems and I just ignored it and had enough confidence and reliability of previous hardware that I had bought that it would be sorted with a firmware or software fix.

I've worked with them to try all sorts of troubleshooting, I went to the Apple store where they said a firmware update may fix it. Nothing has worked.

It appears to have to do with certain audio frequencies in my testing.

It's getting to the point where I'm tired of testing stuff for them which is their problem. I've provided them examples of where the issue happens. Not to mention other products and systems like HomePod Mini, FaceTime, Continuity. It's all been buggy and unreliable for quite a few years now.

I didn't buy AppleCare either but after mid 2012, it seems their product quality has declined dramatically. It's either that or they have some problems with their new hardware that they are not willing to admit.

Really disappointing.

This is still happening (I've got a M1 Max 16" MBP, 2021) as of Dec 2023.

I just read another Apple Community post by a new M3 owner who reports the same thing.

I've seen a number of potential work arounds / solutions, but many of these do not work or are not durable - half measures.

Apple really needs to address this, head on.

There are 12 pages of posts on the subject on this thread alone, and over 1000 people have upvoted it.

There are a multitude of other websites this issue is being discussed on (just Google the topic).

This issue is clearly systemic, widespread, and requires a software fix (I hope it's not hardware).

I migrated from a 2017 MacBook Air to this new M3 Pro 14-inch MacBook Pro. Maybe the migration messed it up, so I tried deleting those plist files. Will update when I experience it again. But ****, it'll be unfortunate if this persists since today is the last day of me asking for a replacement.

Crackling occurred in my left speaker after about a year of usage. ATM using MacOS Sonoma 14.4.1.

Deleting the plist files worked for a day or two, but the crackling came back.

Installing eqMac did nothing.

Switching between frequencies did nothing.

I've used Audio MIDI Setup and moved 'Balance' all the way to the right in my speakers configuration. There is no crackling anymore. It's a bit weird, but seems to work. Will see how long it lasts..

In December 2022, I purchased a MacBook Pro M1, only to encounter an immediate issue—a distracting throttling sound emitting from the right speaker. Though I temporarily remedied it by force-quitting Inter Processes via the Activity Monitor, it proved unsatisfactory.

The root cause, as discovered through discussion with a technician, lies in the MacBook Pro's design: two openings flanking each side where the speakers are situated. Should any metal object come into proximity with these openings, the speaker's magnetism may draw it in, resulting in the unwanted sound.

The solution entails delicately opening the MacBook (do not open if you have Limited Warranty) and removing any foreign objects ensnared by the speaker—a process essential for restoring optimal audio performance. While specific to the MacBook Pro M1, it's prudent to remain vigilant for similar issues in subsequent models like the M2 and M3.

I have a Macbook pro 16" M1 pro 2021 I purchased used almost a year ago, no occurances of this issue until yesterday. I tried the plist delete, clear Trash, etc, and that worked for a while but back again. The issue happens even at boot time when the OS first starts to load, which made it look like a hardware issue but being effected by plist files points to OS/software.

Also interesting, I just saw the 48,1 to 44,1 fix mentioned above, mine was already at 44,1 and putting it to 48,1 seems to have fixed it. ??? Time will tell.

I don't know why this works, but it does. Try disabling Siri. It worked for me. I even turned Siri back on and the popping didn't come back. We will see if over time it comes back. I also closed Ableton Live which was running in the background but particularly the popping went away when I shut off Siri. Perhaps Siri is occupying too much memory. I am not sure. We will see.

I don't know why this works, but it does. Try disabling Siri. It worked for me. I even turned Siri back on and the popping didn't come back. We will see if over time it comes back. I also closed Ableton Live which was running in the background, but particularly the popping went away when I shut off Siri. Perhaps Siri is occupying too much memory. I am not sure. We will see.

Has anyone gotten any real answers from Apple? shouldn't we get the computers reimbursed or something. I keep waiting for an update that will fix this problem but the clicks keep coming back.

I can't believe that I spent this much money for something that doesn't fully work and Apple gives no answers or offers to help out/ fix it.

This fixed most of these problems for me. Open Audio MIDI Setup. Change the format to 44,100 Hz. Mine was set 48,000 Hz at default.

Hi check my solution here. It seems to work for 10 days now :-D

https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/132423?page=16