Audio Problem with 2012 MacBook Air and Thunderbolt Display

Sorry to hear that. I'm surprised, mine was quite bad - but has been fine for some time. I think it was probably fixed with 10.8.1 as per this article: http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-57498888-263/os-x-10.8.1-update-fixes-thund erbolt-audio-issues-and-more/.

I was hopeful when I got that update.

For me the problem exists when using third party software, most notably Google Chrome. Sound (even system sound) becomes very garbled only fixable by removing physical cables or switching back and forth in audio output.

Happens many times a day.

Mavericks (10.9) should be out in a few weeks, fingers crossed that fixes it for you.

Thank you for your reply, robgough. As I've mentioned, I am not really an audio expert and therefore I am also not 100% sure whether it is the same problem as others were describing. Nevertheless, everything is updated, but the humming (that's how it sounds maybe) is still there. Fortunately no loud cracks or similar really annoying sounds. But still, as I am in the 2weeks period, I will replace it, hoping not to get another "monday" product in return.

Glad for you that it is fixed now and good luck to the others.

Hi janinafee, that does actually sound like a slightly different issue. Could be a hardware thing, but it sounds a little like a grounding issue.

If you have a moment, it's probably worth ensuring that your TBD is plugged directly into a wall socket (and not an extension lead) .. and perhaps worth trying in a different socket too. I'm no expert, but it may be worth reading this thread https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5278216?start=0&tstart=0.

Hey robgough,

I tried this as well, but it did not help unfortunately, now I've replaced it with another one and so far, everything is fine. As you said, after reading many different threads and blogs, I also think my problem was a slightly different one.

Thank you for your suggestions!

So, here we are November 7th, Mavericks is out, and I have the same issues on the final release. 13" late 2012 Air connected to TBD. Very frustrating, as I cant do anything with audio. Is there a known workaround for this until Apple fixes in an update? (I've tried stopping coreaudio process, plugged headphones, restarted...nothing)

The best thing about Apple products--high resale value. I recouped 75% of the purchase price and bought an Asus for 1/3rd of the remainder. It is non-glossy, silent, black and beautiful.

Yes, I install Mavericks and now the sound issue is back again. **** this is so frustrating. Apple how about resolve quickly this time. Last time it was months for an update to correct it.

I've not read all the posts (there are 15 pages now), but I just wanted to say it's no isolated to the macbook air. I have exactly the same problem on my mac mini using maverics...

• os x 10.9.1
• mac mini 2011
• 8GB ram
• thunderbolt display

It doesn't always happen, but when it does restarting the audio fixes it for about a minute. Removing the usb devices from the display seems to have made an improvement - thanks for the tip. Does anyone know if apple will replace out-of-warantee displays? They're good like that sometimes for known manufacturing faults.

I have two MBP's, noise happens with both.

Curious... no fix yet?

Same issue here... 15 rMBP (earlier gen)... sound works if switching back to MBP and then back to TD; but only temporarily.

Folks,

I just began having this issue on my MacbookAir and Thunderbolt display -- but curiously, not until I upgraded to Yosemite. Killing the coreaudiod process, or switching between audio destinations will solve the issue for a short period of time. I've reported this to Apple by opening up a support case, and I'm working with a specialist now to try and isolate the issue. I'm certain they're going to ask me to do a clean installation, so I'm going to try to reproduce the issue on an external (clean) installation of OS X Yosemite. So far, they simply asked me to create a new userID on my system (Which I did, and did not resolve the problem).

Like other users, I'm using the external thunderbolt display audio, and have WiFi enabled (although my primary network interface is the display wired-ethernet interface).

I will typically see the problem within 30 minutes of active use. I use no external disk storage when this occurs, and can get it to happen without large volume transfers over the ethernet-- I'm curious to know whether the issue has resurfaced from the 10.8.1 fix by apple, or whether this had never really been resolved.

Golan.

I just noticed it makes noise only when it's connected through the Electricity Backup / UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply) maybe because of the voltage difference... Anyone using UPS with it?

The issue I was facing had to do with corruption of the audio, not background noise interference that may have been caused by a power-source. Since the Thunderbolt 1.2 firmware update was released about a week ago, I have not had another occurrence of the issue. Prior to the update I would run into audio corruption within 15 to 20 minutes. I believe the issue may have been resolved in this update, although the release notes make no mention of addressing the problem.

http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1775

Golan.