27" Cinema Display Sound Issues

Camicus - are you joking? I spend $1099 on a monitor and I'm supposed to relax a little? You don't think Apple has the resources to burn the midnight oil and fix this thing if it was a software issue? The reason it's not fixed is that it is a hardware issue. I returned mine after trying two. I just picked up a brand new 24" and no sound issues. For $600 BTW. Oh yes one last thing, you work for Apple right?

Nope. I don't work for apple...I work for myself. I just don't believe this is a hardware issue. Period. This is a monitor that happens to have speakers attached to it. And yes, I'm a little peeved that this issue exists. But in the same breath, I fully believe it will be fixed in an update. And yes, it could be more. But if hardware was failing. Unplugging and restating in theory shouldn't fix it. I have no issues with the monitor...as far as the monitor goes...IT GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT I EXPECTED. I did not buy this monitor for the speakers. And yes, they should work regardless, and I believe they will when they find the bug. And once again, no I do not work for apple. My website is www.centralfirephoto.com. I am a photographer. And as far as graphics are concerned. It is amazin. Period. The only thing I fault Apple for, is putting speakers in that can fail and take away from the graphic quality.


Cameron

Camicus, that's not the most diplomatic posting I've ever seen. Your reasons for buying are of no interest to me, and my reasons for spending $1000 are different to yours. Like many on here, I'm exercising patience, but the real concern is a question over quality control at Apple. How does something like this get missed on such a high-end product?
Anyway, my reason for posting is that your first sentence is incorrect. The majority of people on here have stated the OS they are running. It's on their profile.

1.2Kube: what monitor did you end up getting?

I still do not believe this is a software fix. If it was, Apple would have figured it out by now. Also, and take this for what it is worth: yesterday I was at Best Buy looking for a monitor and was told that they had a recall from Apple on all the 27" displays. No explanation given from Apple. My local BB sent all of theirs back. I do not know when this happened. BUT, they are still available on-line, so who knows.

namurphy - I called around and found a display model Apple 24" Cinema and got it for $600 with the full warranty. Then I went to BestBuy and they had 2 new in a sealed box. I showed them the receipt and they beat the price by 10% so I picked up another for $540. Now I have a dual set up for $41 more than one 27".

1.2 Kube: thanks. Well done!

I have the same issue. I've tried all the fixes listed above. I called Apple and reported two issues. Sound, and color issues (display leans to purple and I think green). I was called back and asked to collect a lot of info and take pictures. The call took about an hour.

Oddly whether the display sound works or not Quicktime does not play sound. I wonder if removing the plist files did that. Using VLC now for playback.

I found it interesting the a firmware update was released for the mid-2010 13" Pros to address a purple issue with this display. I wonder if I'll see a firmware update for my late 2008 15" Pro.

I've been waiting 2 months for a fix.

Just my 2 cents. This is hardware related NOT osx related.

I run exclusively in bootcamp windows 7 on my macpro with a radeon 5870.

The easiest fix is just unplugging/plugging the power cord.

I can tell when my sound is no longer going to work because when I try to adjust my display (either sound or brightess) It becomes very laggy and doesn't respond (to the sound).

Also, it has happened before without my computer going to sleep. I have had good success waking it and having my controls work. :/

I love this screen to death, but I got it to reduce clutter (ie: built in speakers/webcam) and have until the 4th to make a return.

I'm just praying for some kind of firmware update that can fix this.

edit:
One thing I've noticed is that it often changes my preferences from having fn + F1/F2 (for brightness) to not needing to push fn and just being able to push F1.

Even though it is set a specific way in my bootcamp options.

Same problem, I have to unplug the 27" ACD and plug it back in to get the sound back. Fortunately it has happened only twice since I bought it. However, if the MacBook Pro going to sleep triggers the problem then I have another issue. When my MacBook Pro is closed while using the ACD it goes to sleep even though I have power connected and "never" selected in the energy saver preference. It seems with the lid closed the MacBook Pro has a mind of its own.

Has anyone else seen this phenomena?

since everyone seems to find a solution in trying the various aforementioned 'fixes', i just quickly repost the overview (updated) i posted a while ago here: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1026132

don't hold your breath: non of them fix the issue for good. in fact, i'm unplugging my screen at least once a day meanwhile. here we go:

quick recap of what is reported in now 5 threads in various forums:

- the problem occurs when the ACD-sound is connected via USB instead of MDP (possible only in mid-2010 models or later)
- the symptoms are/can be: sound output stops, sound input stops, sound input moves back to MBP, onscreen level indicators react sluggish, video playback becomes sluggish or freezes, CPU load is maxing out - fan revs are going through the roof (only some machines), (update:after unplugging headphones, sound has to be manually re-set to ACD speakers; also skype often does not start the camera)
- the problem occurs on: MB, MBP, Mini and even Windows 7 PCs (!!)
- the problem can be fixed ONLY temporarily by: resetting SMC, unplugging (incl. power) of the ACD, deleting various .plist files in preferences
- the problem re-occurs, depending on use, after 2-10 days (update: at least daily)
- people, who had their screens replaced by Apple continue to have the same issues with the replacement displays
- LED Display Software Update 1.0 does not fix the problem
- 10.6.5 does not have any influence on the issue

The fact that the problem now occurs not only across Macs, but also affects Windows machines seems to indicate that this problem is hardware related and not just a driver issue. There probably is either a batch production flaw or an inherent design flaw going on with the 27" ACD.

Discussions are now filling 5 threads in numerous forums, with 5 (update: 14 pages) pages alone at the Apple support forums ( http://discussions.apple.com/thread....13427#12513427).

I personally expect another 27" ACD to arrive tomorrow, but have little hopes that this display will perform any better that the one i already have. In the past two weeks i tried all 'fixes' put forward by various people and have experienced the issue 6 times myself. (update: second display has same symptoms, apple support suggests to bring the system to a store and have a 'genius' check it out, as long as i can ensure the problems occurs there)

It is appalling how this issue is non-handled by Apple. *I strongly believe the only way to get attention is to go through the various blogs and make the aware that there is an ACD-gate brewing. Also potential new customers need to be made aware, before they purchase.*

Let's all work on making this known beyond the forums.

You can add the Mac Pro on the list, as that is my main system with the audio issues.

I also don't see how you can show an Apple employee the sound issue over there? When you unplug the monitor it can take up to a day + for it to show up. I did film the issue when it happened so I can show something.

I also emailed some of the Apple sites a while back and nothing was posted. The Apple level II support is also not responding to my emails and essentially ignoring me. I've only sent two, but both have gone unanswered over many weeks.

I think what will happen is the problem will never be admitted. After a certain amount of time, the "fixed" monitors will be put in the distribution channel. We would then replace the monitors and won't have the issue "fixed". Once we can confirm that there are actually monitors without this problem, then it's a good time to have them replaced. Doing so now is just a huge waste of time.

well, experienced the infamous "lost all sound" from my ACD 27 incher connected to my mac mini server mid 2010. Called Apple support... they acknowledged the problem, and wanted me to return it on a "capture", but reading this thread convinced me this was not a good solution, as they would just replace it with an identical performing monitor. they dont have a fix for this yet. I am ticked. I sure hope this turns out to be something that can be solved with a software or firmware update. Unplugging the power for a few secs has fixed it, at least for the moment.....for now, i am playing wait and see, waiting for a development to help me decide how to deal with this.

Add another disappointed user to the list:
MacBook Pro 2009 15"
Running 10.6.5 (all updates) and Apple Soundsticks

"Fix" that's worked for me: UNPLUG the 27" monitor.
A reboot did not fix the issue. I've not tried the plist deletion yet, but I'm not holding my breath. Seems to be a hardware issue. Soundsticks and MacBook Mic continue to work flawlessly.

I've also noticed these repeating entries in the log, when trying to MOVE the slider on the Display volume:
11/29/10 11:17:53 AM kernel USBF: 981.462 AppleUSBEHCI[0x8681800]::Found a transaction which hasn't moved in 5 seconds on bus 0x26, timing out! (Addr: 5, EP: 0)

Looks like the Mac has completely lost the ability to communicate with the 27" via USB.

Possibly related: on a VERY quiet night, I can hear a very slight buzzing with an ear over the top of the monitor. And, a few days ago, I could have sworn I detected an ever-so-slight electrical smell and noticed the top of the 27" was quite warm to the touch. Likely nothing to this, but...

Same problem here. After just 24 hours the speakers stopped working. I turned off the computer, changed the usb port and it started working again. Let's see for how long...

Just want to say I'm having the same issue with my LED display. I love it other than this, but the sound issue is extremely annoying. I hope there's a patch soon!