Noise when scrolling

ACK! I have the scrolling noise in my 2008 black MacBook. Only shows up in certain webpages that have a lot of text or graphics. Not this page!

I can't believe I found a thread on this issue! I eventually googled this and ended up here!

I'm fairly sure this noise come from the hard drive (at lest it come from the lower left side of my macbookpro 15 inch. I'm wondering if my RAM is full and by scrolling with two fingers I'm trigerring the hard drive but I'm not sure. I can hear this blip blip.... whenever I scroll with two fingers. I would love to know why! I was watching a movie so maybe the ram went full.. who knows... Is this noise the reading head in the HD? Or the AC/DC as someone pointed it out.. I Would love to know.

Well my friends... I found the command line 'purge' that you can call in the application terminal which is supposed to free up some ram and hd cache. Unfortuantely it does not remove this little sound. So my guess is that it's not necessarily related to the HD. I'm even more lost now!

I've heard it coming from my computer a while back but now I can hear it constantly. Funny that someone else bumped this thread yesterday. I just came in from a google search. S

Sad to see no one knows the cause though :/

Same noise here... early 2011 MBP...

Like you. I assumed it was the hard drive, as it does sound like a very faint hard drive seeking noise. However, I recently changed the hard drive for an SSD (I.e. no moving parts) and the noise remains so I don't think it's coming from the hard drive. Some people have said it could be some capacitors near the power supply.

Also as other people have commented, it's much louder when the power adaptor is connected

For me, it also occurs when scrolling using the arrow keys

It occurs in all apps (at least the ones I've tried - Safari / Chrome / iTunes / Mail / App Store / MS Word)

It doesn't occur when performing the 2-finger-scroll trackpad gesture on a screen that won't scroll (E.g. the desktop background)

It also briefly happens when I use exposé / Launchpad / Dashboard / change from one virtual desktop to another (whether I use the trackpad or the keyboard shortcuts to initiate these).

So I think the issue is actually with scrolling per se, or at least changing the contents of what's on display, not the trackpad. I wonder, then if it's somehow related to the display adaptor. Anyway, we're no closer to finding an answer but hopefully I've narrowed the search a bit?

EDIT: I'm also on a 13" Mackbook Pro (Early 2011).

I have the exact same issue.

It cannot be HDD noise, since I just recently (yesterday) swapt my HDD for an SSD.

The macbook is now so silent that I can hear a noise when scolling up and down, with either my trackpad or the arrow keys.

it sounds like it is comming from the upper left corner of my mavbook.

For your information: I'm using a early 2008 white macbook with 2,4ghz and 4gig ram and a 250gig samsung SSD.

I did however replace the charger and battery recently.
I have an original apple battery and I am using a non original powersupplie.
Maybe that is the cause?

Wesleydeheer wrote:

... I am using a non original powersupplie.

Maybe that is the cause?

Perhaps, or perhaps not, but using a non-Apple power adapter is not recommended. You risk equipment damage, fire, personal injury, or all three by using a cheap knockoff power adapter. Its manufacturer will not care.

I recommend you stop using it immediately. Discard it. Buy a replacement from Apple.

Have you listened to your power adapter when doing the track pad scrolling? That's where my sound is originating. I thought it sounded like the HDD too, but it actually is the power adapter acting up when scrolling.

This is an original Apple power adapter. Quite strange.

Hi

I also have this noise with my one month old Macbook pro 15" retina screen with a 250gb SSD drive.

I can only hear it when it a very quite room with no background noise, it is very faint but can be heard when scrolling using the two finger touch pad. If I adjust my screen brightness either up or down the noise then stops. I have only noticed it when running on battery power.

Don't know if it's anything to worry about or not, I am new to Apple Mac's being a windows user all my life. But loving it so far wish I made the move years ago.

The scrolling noise was driving me insane. Then I realized I was using a spare Macbook Air charger and not the original Macbook Pro (2012) power supply. I switched to the original and the noise was completely gone.

Advice: try different chargers and different circuits in the house.

Cheers

I can confirm it is a power / charging problem, I have a Feb 2011 MBP 15" and searched this on google this evening. Having come across these posts I decided to try unplugging the charger whilst I was using my mac, hey presto! silence whilst I scroll up and down now.

You may also notice there is a LOT of heat in the base top left whilst charging and this can also make the mac scrool screech.

Hope this helps someone?

I just googled "why does my macbook make noise when i scroll on websites," and found your post. I have exactly the same issue, including hearing the sound louder when I have the power plugged in. Did any resolution come of this? I've got a Macbook Pro 15 inch 2011.

Exactly the same problem: noise when scrolling but only with the power adaptor plugged in. Also, too much heat; the magsafe plug became too hot to touch when charging when actually it shouldn't get more than a little warm. Finally, Macbook started to suddenly die with empty battery even though it had shown 100% charged with green light before it died. That prompted me to seek help...

...and the problem was the power adapter. For sure. After getting a new one, no noise and no heat.

I've got some good news for you that have experienced this weird, staticy, rendering, scrolling, crickety, noise when plugged in (but not when unplugged)....

Try plugging your MBP Rentina into a different wall outlet or surge protector. I did and the scrolling noise went away.

Of note; the surge protector that I was pluggd into prior (when the machine was making the noise) was serving mulitple other devices including my TV.

I'm not an electrician but I do know that this can have a dramactic effect on frequency type issues.

Anyway - I was getting worried and all it took was moving to a different wall outlet. Problem solved. Computer still awesome.

Same problem here.

I have dedused that it is a charging problem.

Since I have been having charging problems (cord fraid, pluged in orange light on and not charging, other things) I have noticed that it only happens when the battery is actually charging and I have a high memory (ram) usage screen or app running. Scrolling on a busy screen usually does it. I can wiggle the plug so it isn't charging, and the noise is gone.

The noise goes when the ram usage is low aswell.

Apple replaced my cord and my problems are still there.

My Apple tech had not heard of the noise problem.