Macbook Air Aluminum Body Crackling?

Question

Level 1

2 points

Macbook Air Aluminum Body Crackling?

My Macbook Air makes a sort of cracking/crackling sound occasionally. It happens frequently when I adjust the position of my wrists near the trackpad and when I pick the machine up and/or hold it.

Its not a terribly big deal, but with an expensive product like this I would expect it to not sound "crackly" when in use.

The sound is definitely coming from somewhere on the bottom part of the body, not the screen or the hinges. It sounds like the casing might be loose or does not fit correctly? The sound does not have to do with any programs I am running, fan, etc. It makes the sound even when powered off.

Is this common with the Macbook Airs? What is it? And can it be fixed or should I send for a new one? I don't have a receipt for the machine (it was a gift), how can I go about getting this taken care of?

thanks

Macbook Air Late 2010, Mac OS X (10.6.6)

Posted on Jan 25, 2011 10:56 PM

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Answer 1

rkaufmann87

Level 10

148,458 points

Jan 25, 2011 11:00 PM in response to brittany15

Make an appointment at your local Apple Store and have a Genius look it over. If you don't have an Apple Store in your area locate a AASP and take it in.

Roger

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Answer 2

Tony T1

Level 6

10,247 points

Jan 26, 2011 5:43 AM in response to brittany15

Sounds like a loose screw, see: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12618386

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Answer 3

Jan 26, 2011 11:11 AM in response to brittany15

i had exactly this issue. it was very soon after they were first released. genius bar said use your return option because the machines are new and they dont know enough about possible issues. she said it is not normal for it to make a noise. the new one i didnt make the noise, but now after a couple of months it occasionally does. even if you cant exchange it for some reason, the link posted below sounds promising for tightening screws in the base plate. i might have to try that now. good luck.

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Answer 4

Jan 26, 2011 11:34 AM in response to brittany15

brittany15 wrote:
My Macbook Air makes a sort of cracking/crackling sound occasionally. It happens frequently when I adjust the position of my wrists near the trackpad and when I pick the machine up and/or hold it.

Its not a terribly big deal, but with an expensive product like this I would expect it to not sound "crackly" when in use.

The sound is definitely coming from somewhere on the bottom part of the body, not the screen or the hinges. It sounds like the casing might be loose or does not fit correctly? The sound does not have to do with any programs I am running, fan, etc. It makes the sound even when powered off.

Is this common with the Macbook Airs? What is it? And can it be fixed or should I send for a new one? I don't have a receipt for the machine (it was a gift), how can I go about getting this taken care of?

thanks

Sounds like the bottom half needs to be reseated.

Take it to an Apple Store.

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Answer 5

hawleyrw

Level 3

633 points

Jan 26, 2011 6:54 PM in response to brittany15

Mine does the same, but not enough to bother me...I may take it in sometime.

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Answer 6

mr3cho

Level 1

5 points

Feb 12, 2011 9:10 AM in response to brittany15

I'd suggest not picking it up by the base where the trackpad is located when the lid is up (at least w/ the 13" model). Although it is light I think it's thin enough and heavy enough to where it slightly flexes. Maybe it's just me but i can see some slight flexing. And I also noticed some of my screws are loose (figuratively as well)

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Answer 7

slyguy_28

Level 2

188 points

Feb 12, 2011 11:03 AM in response to mr3cho

I'm accident prone with Apple equipment as I've had to replace two iPhones. One for a shattered screen, and most recently with an accidental submarine test with an iPhone 4, so I'm especially careful with my iPad and MBA. I'm afraid to carry it around with the screen open, so I always close it if I'm going to move it. With other slow IBM based laptops that take longer than a second to wake up from sleep when the lid is reopened, I would carry those with the screens open.

I carry my MBA with the screen closed and with the thinnest edge up. I'd put a case on it, but that negates the ultra-light and thin concept this new laptop is famous for...

Sly

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Answer 8

mac1st

Level 1

0 points

Feb 20, 2011 1:33 AM in response to mr3cho

Yes, I've had the same issue whenever I pick my MBA up by the base, holding the part next to the trackpad. I don't suspect loose screws ... it could be due to some tiny bending movement of the bottom lid that's in between the two screws, as I think the lid itself is pretty thin. Solution is to hold the base closer to the lid/keyboard instead of the trackpad.

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Answer 9

hawleyrw

Level 3

633 points

Feb 20, 2011 7:07 AM in response to brittany15

Funny...mine did this some - then I took it in for a repair (flex cable which was causing startup/run issues). It's back home, and I have noticed I don't hear the occasional crackle from the wrist-rest area like I used. Never really bothered me, but I used to notice it.

Has to be just a reseat of the bottom case....

Cheers!

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Answer 10

Nov 10, 2015 7:01 AM in response to brittany15

I had the exact same problem and it turned out that the fan was stuck. I thumped the top of it to the right of the delete/power key and my fan Rpm's went back up to 26000. I think if you gave it a good thump it would work again. I see this was in 2011 but I hope I can help anyone who has this problem in the future. I had it on mine (in 2015) and its bound to happen to others.

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Answer 11

laccelo

Level 1

8 points

Dec 4, 2016 3:38 PM in response to brittany15

I agree. My 2015 MacBook Pro is also crackling at the bottom on the right side. It's incredible annoying from an expensive device like this.

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