I can't open the sound panel is system preferences. I lost all sound on my computer, however my usual way of fixing this (opening sound and selecting my headphones/other speaker) didn't work because every time I try to open sound, it makes the preferences app unresponsive, then says "could not open sound preference pane".
MacBook Air (Mid-2012)
Running MacOS Catalina 10.15
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.15
1 - Restart in Safe Mode. This will perform a Disk Repair, clear cache files and only load Apple Software, extensions and fonts. The boot up will be slow and can take some time - Normal.
2 - Safe Mode will also eliminate Third Party Software, extensions and drives from loading
3 - Does the issue present in this mode ?
4 - Sometimes a Safe Boot followed by a Normal Boot will just put things right.
5 - If not - there could be something in the main User Account playing up. To further isolate this - Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac. Then log out of the Main User account and log into the dummy account and test again if the issue persists.
6 - If the issue is present in the dummy account - then, this appears to be a System Wide issue on the computer.
7 - Download the Application Etrecheck directly from the Developer.
This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer.
It makes a coherent and readable inventory of both the Hardware and Software used on the computer
The application is free or paid from added features.
The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information.
Post back the Full Report - copy and paste - >>>> using the Additional Text Icon ( 3rd Icon to last ) <<<<
We can have a look at the report for possible issues and may have possible suggestions to resolve the issues.
1 - Restart in Safe Mode. This will perform a Disk Repair, clear cache files and only load Apple Software, extensions and fonts. The boot up will be slow and can take some time - Normal.
2 - Safe Mode will also eliminate Third Party Software, extensions and drives from loading
3 - Does the issue present in this mode ?
4 - Sometimes a Safe Boot followed by a Normal Boot will just put things right.
5 - If not - there could be something in the main User Account playing up. To further isolate this - Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac. Then log out of the Main User account and log into the dummy account and test again if the issue persists.
6 - If the issue is present in the dummy account - then, this appears to be a System Wide issue on the computer.
7 - Download the Application Etrecheck directly from the Developer.
This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer.
It makes a coherent and readable inventory of both the Hardware and Software used on the computer
The application is free or paid from added features.
The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information.
Post back the Full Report - copy and paste - >>>> using the Additional Text Icon ( 3rd Icon to last ) <<<<
We can have a look at the report for possible issues and may have possible suggestions to resolve the issues.
See this Similar error, previous discussion: Preference Error: could not load Sound pr… - Apple Community
Check if clearing/removing associated "plist" file helps in resolving the issue.
Also in safe mode: "Some features may not work in safe mode, such as film playback in DVD Player, video capture, file sharing, Wi-Fi, some accessibility features, some audio devices and some devices that connect via USB, Thunderbolt or FireWire. Accelerated graphics are disabled, which can cause flashing or distortion of your screen during startup."
Hope it helps.
Looking at the supplied report and specific to the No Sound issue.
Though, in conscience there are other important elements about this computer worth mentioning
Q - Battery failure - Your battery is reporting that it needs to be serviced.
Q - Battery: Health = Service Battery - Cycle count = 568
A - This is self explanatory and would require immediate attention.
A - Batteries are considered Consumable Products. Over time it will degrade to a point where it needs to be replaced. The usage is normal as the capacity will go up and down all the time and never stay always at 100%. Apple Batteries are rated for 1000 Full Battery Cycles and / or 80% Capacity before needing Evaluation or replacement.
Q - Unsigned files - There are unsigned software files installed that could be malicious and should be reviewed.
A - This is self explanatory and worth the users time to investigate the third party software used on this computer
Q - Low disk space - This computer is running critically low on free hard drive space.
Q - disk0 - APPLE SSD TS064E 60.67 GB (Solid State - TRIM: Yes)
A - Running this machine as it is with the Third Party Software installed with such a small Internal Drive is a receipt for issues
A - It is generally considered good computer practices to keep between 15 % and 20% of the Total Drive Capacity as Empty Space . That would mean between 9.6GB to 13 GB as Empty Space.
Q - No Time Machine backup - Time Machine backup not found.
A - As it stands now - the user is running without any Safety Net. They are prepared to loose all personal data and believes that this lost data is not important enough to protect.
A - Time Machine Backup is very useful and is built into the operating System
Q - Apps crashing - There have been numerous app crashes.
A - This dovetails into the Amount of RAM on this computer as well has small internal drive plus the Age of this computer. Going on 10 - 11 years old.
A - Computer parts to fail over time and do not last for ever
Hardware Information:
Q - MacBook Air (13-inch, Mid 2012)
Q - Obsolete hardware - This computer may be considered obsolete.
Q - 4 GB RAM - Not upgradeable
A - All is not lost though.
A - If the user wishes to explore the Apple Trading In option where the Value of the exiting machine could be used against the cost of a new Apple Computer
Or Shop Refurbished Apple computers at an Apple Reduced Cost
Have used both previously and have been satisfied each time.
Audio Plug-ins:
Q - ImmersedAudio: 1.6 (Immersed Inc. - installed 2022-10-02)
Q - VirtualDesktopSpeakers: 0.3.0 (Virtual Desktop, Inc. - installed 2022-09-21)
Q - OculusRemoteDesktopASP: 1.0.1 (Facebook Technologies, LLC - installed 2022-11-25)
Q - VirtualDesktopMicrophone: 0.3.0 (Virtual Desktop, Inc. - installed 2022-09-21)
A - Any of the Above Plug-In maybe the Source of the No Sound on this computer
A - All the above are fairly recent installations so suggest removing one and then test. Keep testing after each is removed to check if Sound on this compute returns to Normal - working
There's the Etrecheck report.
Of the three files mentioned in the best answer in the article, only one of them was on my computer that I was able to find.
Thank you for the Report. We will dissect it in detail.
Will get back to you shortly
Why can't I open sound preferences?
