Mac Mini 2012 video blinking out

BobH47 wrote:

I cannot recall seeing any posts on this forum identifying a problem from the Thunderbolt port.

The thread is getting too long for people to remember every detail so let me restate that my Thunderbolt port failed entirely. The mini went to sleep on schedule, woke up the next morning to find the port died in its sleep. That left me with just the flaky HDMI port. No amount of troubleshooting by myself or the Apple techs could revive the port. The Genius at the Apple Store wouldn't even look at it as he'd seen the problem before. I returned the mini for refund.

Please note that Macworld is asking for people to contact them if you're having problems. Presumably, they'll do a story on the problem and that would raise the visibility of the issue so perhaps others would come forward.

See: http://twitter.com/Macworld/status/269544496998522880

I think OSX Intel HD4000 driver for HDMI is really Bad, on windows works fine. (tried on 2 samsung LED displays)

BAD(OSX):

HDMI - HDMI (colors are burned , too white and bright)

TB - HDMI (colors are burned , too white and bright)

GOOD(OSX):

HDMI-DVI (not tried since I do not have a monitor with DVI, others report that this works fine)

TB-VGA (works good normal colors)

GOOD(Windows 7 on mac mini late 2012):

HDMI - HDMI

TB - HDMI

HDMI-DVI (not tried since I do not have a monitor with DVI, others report that this works fine)

RB-VGA

APPLE NEEDS TO UPDATE INTEL HD4000 driver/firmware , I think. since in windows works fine I think is a software issue.

mrxad81 wrote:

He sent me two tools which i had to run on my mini. The names are capture data and timing snoop. I ran both and send him back the protocols. He told me that it will take 3 days after i will get an respone.

Yes, this is standard protocol for Apple. This is also how you know that Apple is taking the matter very seriously. These tools are provided under a single-use license by Apple Support, and they can be requested from Apple in these kinds of situations. Capture Data.app is a diagnostic tool and will generate a file called "ACCD_(your computer name here)_1.dmg”. The more people who send in their data captures, the faster the issue will get resolved. The engineering team is looking for (among other things) patterns, and the larger the data pool that they have to work with from different minis, the quicker those patterns appear.

Ordinarily these diagnostic tools do a total hardware and software dump of the present state of the system at the moment of the capture. Think of it as a snapshot of your system in technical form. The capture file is then sent directly to Apple’s engineering department where they candissect and interpret the data for the needs of that particular capture. This is very good news and it shows that Apple is not only aware of the issue, but looking for a viable solution. It wouldn't surprise me to see a firmware update forthcoming.

Doc O wrote:

I want evidence that a single working Mac mini exists.

Here's one posted just yesterday. It is from MacRumors post #466;

Quote: "FYI I exchanged mine 2 weeks later and my new one has yet to have black screen issues with 2 different monitors (have had it for 11 days now). My first mini had the issue with a monitor that I have since returned too but the new one was great on that same monitor."

So his new mini has been tested by him with the same exact setup as the bad mini, only this time with no issues. Others have posted that they have also read about similar results from other people with new minis. In fact the very next post stated:

"I feel left out 😟 I have run my Mini 2,6 Ghz for more than two weeks using the supplied HDMI -> DVI-thingie connected to an HP LP2065 monitor.

I have never had a blackout.

I got the noise once for a second when the monitor was coming out of sleep. But that has been it. Never saw it since (two weeks ago) and I pull it out of sleep several (5+) times a day."

There are also several people on 123MacMini that have new minis with no issues. So if you're getting all of your information from just one source, then maybe that's half your problem, but they do exist. You just need to research it.

Not surprising at all if you have read all 33 pages of this thread (difficult, I know). Take HDMI (port or adaptors) out of the equation and the issue hasn't been seen (except one person with a dud thunderbolt port) - someone correct me if I'm wrong...

Philip Tyler wrote:

I think Apple are aware there is a problem because they are 'capturing' faulty units to study. If they are going to those lengths they know they have a problem.

Correct. I was just on the Intel site and they posted this information regarding the issue:

"We are aware of the flickering issue, and there will be a fix provided in the future. The overall flicker issue is also being addressed here; http://communities.intel.com/thread/32932

Your OEM (Apple) will provide the driver with the fix when they are done configuring our driver (that has the fix)."

Sounds like a firmware update is coming and Apple just needs to time its release with the newly seeded 10.8.3.

SUCCESS!

I spoke to the Senior AppleCare advisor. Apple recognise this as a known issue!!

My case number is 376856972.

He told me that Apple are researching a fix - no time frame - but at least its recognized!

AppleCare Netherlands are aware - he said he only got an email from Apple US on this today

It's NOT just the HDMI port! These exact problems occurred to me while the monitor was connected through mini display port (-adapter to DVI). It's the video card. I started out with the mini display adapter to DVI, because i own an MacBook unibody which i use with a monitor aside.

We get some more compliance.

MaCNN: http://www.macnn.com/articles/12/11/28/apple.expected.to.provide.new.drivers/

German Mag: http://www.maclife.de/mac/rechner/mac-mini-2012-intel-will-fehlerhafte-hdmi-bild ausgabe-beheben

Yes, the Model Identifier is: Macmini6,2

Boot ROM Version: MM61.0106.800

Day 4 now and still no flickering and no snowing screens. I was getting 4-5 snowy screens a day and flickering every 5-10 minutes prior to the main board being changed.

Tiberia wrote:

Day 4 now and still no flickering and no snowing screens. I was getting 4-5 snowy screens a day and flickering every 5-10 minutes prior to the main board being changed.

Thanks for the update Adam. Hope you continue to have good luck with it 🙂

sc25893 wrote:

I wish I could have kept the i7 quad core but this is getting ridiculous. Now people are reporting both HDMI and DVI getting the same problem.

Waiting for a fix is just way too risky if you've got the chance to get your money back. You could always hold on to the cash until this blows over and then buy one again. Of course this is only good if you have another machine to work on while you wait!

I have a bad feeling it's the HD4000 itself, not a firmware/software update but a return computer to shop job. I hope not for other peoples sake but I couldn't take that risk.

Sam.

I bought the MacMini 5,3 Server from the Apple Refurb store, and it has the same problem, could this be a software problem because I don't remember any hoopla over this when it came out. HD 3000 chip set. 8 gigs of ram. 2.0 ghz quad core i7

I just dug out MDP to HDMI and plugged it in, had a couple short blinks but no major sync problems.

77slevin wrote:

Quote: Now the flicker issue is one thing, I hope they also correct the wrong color profile for HDMI. (washed out light colors) This is as important to me as the flicker issue. But I'm sure you folks will report the results once 10.8.3 is there.

Hi Fellow Belgian,

I completely agree on the Flicker issue, they should provide a solution soon or give me my money back. But the washed out colors via HDMI is a simple matter that you can easily remedy yourself. I did, just use the Calibrate function under Displays->Color.

Hi 77slevin, sorry for the late response.

I stopped checking this thread everyday, since I went for the refund. But I've followed & participated it from the beginning, I've read all 43 pages over the past month, and although it is not as widely reported and documented, it is also a Intel HD4000 issue, and I've seen it reappearing occasionally.

(you can read a more specific explanation of my issues on page 10 of this thread, my second post on that page.)

Here are other threads about this specific issue:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4480354?start=0&tstart=0

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1482487

there are more, just google , I didn't bookmark 'em all.

Conclusion:

Colorsync calibration improves the overly saturated default profile a bit, to more or less acceptable, but by no means I can obtain the same image quality I have when I connect the same monitor with my 2010 MacBookPro (discrete nvidia gpu)

You can calibrate until your socks fall off: the very light colors remain unvisible, and colors seem a bit unnatural.

The reasons I think this is less reported are

1) many people don't even notice because they have only one monitor set up, it's more visible if you compare in a dual monitor set-up. The HDMI output is more saturated and has crushed whites.

2) It's also possible that it is brand dependent, I have two samsung monitors, maybe people with other brands have another default color profile, don't know, did not receive much feedback on this secondary issue when I posted it (page 10). Luckily above mentioned other threads confirm that I'm not the only one, and I could cancel my appointment with the eyedoctor ;-).

3) people are so used to overly saturated colours on their TV-sets, that they don't notice and don't care. Many TV brands have way too saturated color settings by default, in a stupid attempt to fool people in the stores into thinking that this TV has better colors.

I know I can't expect the same quality from a Intel integrated GPU compared with a discrete, but here the HDMI implementation is really poor, and unsatisfying. I don't do graphic work on it, but even then it is a big deal to me. If this GPU can't deliver, they shouldn't use it in a premium product with a premium price tag.

Hi,

Thanks for everyone's hard work. I will throw my hat in, got my first Mac Mini last week, using it for HTPC. I also have the video blinking problem. Mine is an i7 2.3 and I do have 8GB of ram from my original order. On mine it goes for about 3-5 seconds then it comes back.

I gave up trying to read the 44 pages of post but from what I gathered, it is an issue that only Apple can resolve and we are all waiting for a new OSX update to fix the issue.

I wll also call support just to give another "unhappy" customer case on that matter.

mfearby wrote:

I'm interested to know more about your dead TB port. You say that it died in its sleep... I can't recall now but it's quite likely that's what happened to me, too. I remember not being able to get it to boot up but it was probably asleep at the time. You also say that it happened "several times", so does this mean that it dies for a while then comes good? If so then this would also concur with mine apparently rising from the dead on Friday, but being dead ever since.

Sorry for the confusion. By "several times" I meant that I posted about it here several times.

My mini went to sleep according to schedule and when I tried to wake it in the morning, the TB port was dead. Tried the usual, unplug/replug, monitor off/on, restart mini, reset PRAM, boot in safe mode, etc. Nothing. Called AppleCare, they suggested a couple more things. Nothing. Saw the Genius. Wouldn't even look at it as it was a known problem.

I left the monitor plugged in while I continued to use the flaky HDMI port. One afternoon the TB port came alive and the HDMI port blacked out. They ping-ponged back and forth every couple of seconds continuously until I unplugged the TB cable to get it to stop.

Now you know why I returned my mini for a refund. 😀