MacBook Pro M1 2020 Skipping Video/Audio via HDMI

PROBABLE SOLUTION - HDMI CABLE

I had this problem since 2021 (Monterey?) but was not always evident. Restarting with the HDMI output hooked up never helped me, but on some setups it just did not happen and the sound was flawless.

I went to the Genius Bar yesterday and although they said they were not tracking this issue, they sat and troubleshot with me using one of their LG monitors with speakers. I used all the different dongles I had tried (anger x 2, Apple etc) and we tried our best to re create the issue but the sound glitching never happened. The ONLY thing I did not bring was all the HDMI cables I was trying, and I had tried a lot. BUT I had always just been trying old cables that I had in my drawer of 100 HDMI/DVI/VGA cables thinking surely trying lots of different ones would discount the cable....I think I was WRONG. Cables matter for bitrate, we all know this, but I figured surely these were a good cross section, even using the one from my (old) Apple TV or my kids switch.

Then I bought a $2.99 monoprice one from Amazon that is 4k certified. And it solves the issue. On every setup I have, with every dongle I have tried. Even the 8k certified one is only about $10 and monoprice have become pretty trustworthy in the cable space.

So, YMMV, but even when you think you have tried everything, and lots of HDMI cables, maybe buy a new one, and give yourself permission to throw all those old ones out. Good Luck!

PROBABLE SOLUTION - HDMI CABLE

I had this problem since 2021 (Monterey?) but was not always evident. Restarting with the HDMI output hooked up never helped me, but on some setups it just did not happen and the sound was flawless.

I went to the Genius Bar yesterday and although they said they were not tracking this issue, they sat and troubleshot with me using one of their LG monitors with speakers. I used all the different dongles I had tried (Anker x 2, Apple etc) and we tried our best to re create the issue but the sound glitching never happened. The ONLY thing I did not bring was all the HDMI cables I was trying, and I had tried a lot. BUT I had always just been trying old cables that I had in my drawer of 100 HDMI/DVI/VGA cables thinking surely trying lots of different ones would discount the cable....I think I was WRONG. Cables matter for bitrate, we all know this, but I figured surely these were a good cross section, even using the one from my (old) Apple TV or my kids switch.

Then I bought a $2.99 monoprice one from Amazon that is 4k certified. And it solves the issue. On every setup I have, with every dongle I have tried. Even the 8k certified one is only about $10.

So, YMMV, but even when you think you have tried everything, and lots of HDMI cables, maybe buy a new one, and give yourself permission to throw all those old ones out. Good Luck!

I’ve found that the only work around is to first connect the MacBook to the external monitor/tv with HDMI, set the external sound to the monitor/tv, then restart the computer. This will fix the issue. Not sure why those steps need to be taken but it’s the only solution I’ve found until Apple comes up with an OS update.

I’ve found that the only work around is to first connect the MacBook to the external monitor/tv with HDMI, set the external sound to the monitor/tv, then restart the computer. This will fix the issue. Not sure why those steps need to be taken but it’s the only solution I’ve found until Apple comes up with an OS update.

Hey Jordan,

So sorry to hear that you’re experiencing technical difficulties with this model of MacBook as well.

I’m an IT Specialist at a church and a private school, and all of the teachers at our school utilize this model of MacBook. Originally we thought it was the HDMI Cables, but soon figured out that wasn’t the issue. We then thought it may be the USB-C to HDMI Adapters, but figured out quickly that wasn’t the issue either. The only thing that alleviated the issue was by rebooting the MacBook. After a reboot the issue goes away. That’s a temporary fix of course because the issue has popped back up on multiple occasions; however, we’ve seen 100% success rate after rebooting the MacBook.

I certainly hope this will help you and everyone that is experiencing the same issue; however, it seems as though Apple needs to find a way to fix this on their end whether it be the specific version of MacOS and/or the hardware utilized on this model of MacBook.

Blessings

SOLVED in my case. What a headache this was for a week. Caught me out in middle of public presentation. The following may help others!

I bought a new MacBook and migrated without updating the system. FWIW old Mac had Intel chip, new has Apple's chip.

Movies played fast when HDMI cable connected and only solved by moving sound to Mac speakers.

Dictation did not work in any app - the mike icon popped up but no action.

As soon as I updated my OS on the new MacBook Pro (14" Apple M3) to Sonoma (14.4) both issues were resolved.

Probable solution - HDMI cable.

I’ve posted this before, but it seems to keep disappearing so I’ll keep it short. After troubleshooting at the Genius Bar, we narrowed it down to the HDMI cable. At some point apple must have upped the data rate being pushed through, even if it’s not a high res output. So, I bought a 4k certified cable (monoprice brand $2.99 on Amazon) and this solved my issues on every setup I’ve tried.

YMMV but this definitely was the fix for me. Good luck.

Rebooting the mac helped. I was away from my monitor for a while and perhaps because I was in a different country that was using a different power voltage, the combined effect of charging + audio + video playback was causing some issues. Several system processes had also been up for a really long time using a lot of CPU power so that could also have been it. Anyway - rebooting fixed it!

fOrest94 wrote:

I have the same problem only after waking up from sleep either fast forwarding video or audio distortion occurs. Only rebooting or using the MacBook speakers helps.

Has anyone tried to reset the SMC and NVRAM (PRAM) parameters? Will this help?

You can't reset the SMC in the same way on Apple Silicon Macs that you can on Intel Macs.

According to MacWorld, Apple Silicon Macs have no SMC – the SoC has taken over the functions for which Intel-based Macs used a SMC chip. Other World Computing phrases it another way – that to reset the SMC on Apple Silicon Macs, all you have to do is to restart them.

OWC may have left some details out. According to MacWorld (who was reporting this tip second-hand), Apple Support says that you can do a reset by

• Powering off the computer
• Leaving it turned off for at least 30 seconds
• Turning the power on again

https://www.macworld.com/article/669231/how-to-reset-the-smc-on-an-m1-or-intel-mac.html

https://eshop.macsales.com/blog/77729-how-to-reset-the-smc-on-intel-and-m1-macs/

Thank you so much! Fixed my problem right now with a reboot.

I've read that force quitting the "coreaudio" process (it immediately relaunches) in Activity Monitor > CPU should resolve this, but I haven't tested it myself.

it worked after the reboot. hard to believe that such a basic thing is broken since March this year

Restart seems to be the only solution. Crazy that this issue has literally existed for 2 years now and they still have not done anything about it.

We do have the same issue. The only solution that works for us temporarily is to restart the Mac and it goes back to normal function. It goes back once or twice a month in some cases depending on the usage. But yeah it works.