My MacBook Pro headphone jack works intermittently

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Level 1

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My MacBook Pro headphone jack works intermittently

Brand new Macbook M4 Pro, Sequoia 15.5... my headphone jack works sometimes... and sometimes don't. Not a hardware issue, tried with 3 different headphones (Pioneer, BeyerDynamic, Ultrasone). I guess it's something related to the power management because if the computer stays on it works fine, but when the screen saver stars and I get back to the Mac, I lose the sound, and the only way to make it work again is to restart de Mac. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Headphone jack bizarre behaviour

MacBook Pro 14″, macOS 15.5

Posted on Jul 1, 2025 12:26 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Tesserax

Level 10

159,696 points

Jul 1, 2025 8:17 AM in response to Mugabi

Hmm ... The fact that it happens after the screen saver kicks in seems to point toward macOS suspending or mismanaging the audio I/O state during idle or wake transitions.

If you haven't already, try resetting the Mac's Core Audio. To do so, enter the following command in the Terminal app: sudo launchctl kickstart -kp system/com.apple.audio.coreaudiod

This will reset the Core Audio daemon (`coreaudiod`), which might restore headphone jack functionality without needing a full reboot.

Alternately, if you got this Mac laptop within the last 14 days, you have the option to return it for either a full refund or a replacement.

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Answer 2

Tesserax

Level 10

159,696 points

Jul 3, 2025 12:25 PM in response to Mugabi

Yes. You will need to restart your Mac in Recovery Mode to be able to disable SIP.

Ref: How to start up from macOS Recovery - Apple Support

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Answer 3

Tesserax

Level 10

159,696 points

Jul 3, 2025 7:39 PM in response to Mugabi

Then you need to contact Apple Support directly for further assistance with this issue.

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Answer 4

Mugabi Author

Level 1

5 points

Jul 2, 2025 9:12 AM in response to Tesserax

Thanks for the support. I've tried the command in Terminal app, but I get this response:

Could not kickstart service "com.apple.audio.coreaudiod": 150: Operation not permitted while System Integrity Protection is engaged

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Answer 5

Tesserax

Level 10

159,696 points

Jul 2, 2025 9:28 AM in response to Mugabi

As this is a core madOS component, System Integrity Protection (SIP) would need to be temporarily disabled to run this command. (Note: It should be re-enabled afterwards.)

Ref: About System Integrity Protection on your Mac - Apple Support

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