Mac Mini (2012) HDMI losing sync (blank screen/snow)

I had mine less than 10 days and the snow has happened twice. I think I will return it and maybe buy one later?

I am using my MM with a ASUS VE278Q monitor (new). However, I originally was using HDMI cable to my monitor which I was not able to adjust the contrast/brightness to my liking. After exhausting all possible settings/calibrations, I tried the HDMI/DVI adaptor that came with the MM and all is good.

I will call apple care tomorrow to report the problem.

I bought mine this past Sunday and have the same issue you guys have with either the HDMI to DVI adapter or HDMI to HDMI. My Mac mini is the top model here in Chile, 2.3 QC i7, I upgraded memory to 8GB and 1 TB HDD. The mac is connected to a Samsung Syncmaster BX 2450. Also I am having a hard time whenever I have to restart the mac mini, the monitor loses signal and keeps looping into Analog, HDMI1, HDM2 over and over. I tried turning the monitor off to make it find the right input to no avail. The only way I get signal back is turning the mac off and on, then monitor finds the right HDMI input.

alberto.benamu wrote:

The only way I get signal back is turning the mac off and on

Have you tried putting the mini to sleep, and then waking it up? Does that also fix it?

Like I said that happens when the mac is restarting. How can you put a mac to sleep while booting up?

You choose the sleep option (lower left button).

Appearently from what you're saying this is happening earlier in the boot cycle.

I'm into my third week of owning a 2012 Mac mini. Its a 2.6Ghz i7 Model with the 1TB Fusion Drive. I upgraded the Ram to 16GB. The mini is connected to my 42" HD LCD TV via HMDI cable.

I've been experiencing the same random black screens and the snowy flashes (I rpeorted this on Macrumors) and I am really starting to get frustrated by this issue. The issue was also present with the factory installed 4GB of ram before I upgraded it to 16GB.

I hope Apple resolves this issue with a software update or firmware update. I did not buy this unit so that I would have to waste my precious time sending the unit back or taking it to a local Apple store and be without it for extended periods of time.

Please Apple if you're listening, please correct this problem quickly. Thanks for listening.

Jaden85 wrote:

I hope Apple resolves this issue with a software update or firmware update.

Or with a new Mac Mini revision based on a discrete GPU. Funny is that they crippled the GPU in order to "scale" the Mac product line and get more income, but this is going to cost them more money. If they'd put a decent GPU on the 2012 Mac Mini from the beginning, this issue wouldn't happen, and they'd sell even more units than they did, because the GPU was a purchase-stopper for quite a number of users...

The 2012 Mini wants a discrete GPU desperately. Period.

Dear MyMac8MyPC,

I awoke this morning to read your post. I will try to avoid going toe to toe with you but I have to make a few responses.

You started with a quote and your response:

"BobH47 wrote:

Apparently they may ask me for data from my Mini, surely they wouldn't ask for that if they understood the problem."

You said “It may be how you worded it but I think you meant to say that Apple is not sure what is the best road to take to solve this issue.”"

I write lectures for a living – please do not tell me what I meant to say! (Please don’t tell anyone else either – it’s just not done in polite correspondence.)

“Of course they understand this issue. You have no technical background and yet you understand the issue. Everyone here understands the issue.

HDMI flickers or goes black. What's not to understand? What's the best method of fixing the issue that will solve everyone's symptoms is another matter, and that takes time to chart.”

I didn’t say issue, I said problem…

“Hi Bob, here’s the deal, at this time no one here knows how, or even IF this issue will ever be resolved. While it’s true that a firmware update could easily resolve this problem, again, for better or worse no one knows what Apples intentions are at THIS time. For all you know this issue may drag out to 6 or 7 months or longer. I have seen this happen before as have others.”

And you still buy Apple Products?

“If that happens (and that’s a big if) then I don't see how this won't become a legal issue, and so now is the time when posters need to be sticking to facts. I asked for your clarification for that reason, that’s all. I assure you that posting in a unbiased factual nature is in everyone's best interest.”

Quite, but, whether you intend it or not, and I know you are trying to help, your posts can come over to me as biased in favour of Apple. You have even contradicted me! The other day I said that: “it is highly likely that the replacement mini will be from the same batch and have the same fault.” Your response was: “Can't happen. All of the returned minis will become refurbs.” I already had a brand new replacement with an identical fault but you didn’t trust my post; that isn't helpful.

“To answer your other question, while I do not have a 2012 mini, I DO have a 2011 mini with a similar HDMI issue. I also recommended to several friends that they buy a new mini just before this issue popped up, and since they are not technically minded and are close friends, I find it my responsibility to seek a solution and address this issue for them.

Sounds like a triumph of optimism over experience! 😉

“You and your friend have only been a member of this forum for several weeks.”

Let me make one thing very clear; I am my own man. I have no friends on this site, I have no knowledge of whom anyone is, we all use pseudonyms. If someone happens to agree with what I say, that’s very nice but that is all.

“This thread needs to be as unbiased and factual as possible. Everyone posting here needs to also contact Apple directly. The more people that report this directly to Apple, the quicker this issue will get resolved. Not because it puts pressure on Apple, but because it gives Apple a larger pool of information to diagnose this issue and work from.”

We agree!

“I am still confident that Apple will address this issue in a timely and professional manner, but I am also preparing for the worst just in case.”

Oh dear.

Bob

Yes, it happens way before the black apple comes up.

I believe someone in this thread stated earlier that they were told by an Apple tech to reset their computer's PRAM to see if that resolved the issue. That person said they had taken the Apple tech's advice and reset the PRAM, but it did not fix the problem.

I also took that advice and reset my PRAM yesterday. Since doing so, my computer's video has been fine.

It's possible this other person didn't know how the proper way to reset PRAM. The following instructions are from this Apple support page [http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379]:

Resetting NVRAM / PRAM

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command (⌘), Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer.
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
6. Release the keys.

After resetting NVRAM or PRAM, you may need to reconfigure your settings for speaker volume, screen resolution, startup disk selection, time zone information. If issues persist, your Mac's logic board battery (not a portable Mac's rechargeable battery) may need to be replaced. The logic board battery helps retain NVRAM/PRAM settings when your computer is shut down. You can take your Mac to a Mac Genius or Apple Authorized Service Provider to replace the battery on the logic board.

I was on the phone with Apple Care for about 30 minutes about this problem. The first person I talked to said he had never heard of it. The second person acted surprised that I was having this problem. I told him that I had two older Minis connected to this monitor and an Apple TV, all of which worked fine and I told him I swapped the cables form one mini and from the Apple TV to eliminate variables. While on hold I changed the resolution from 1080P to 1080i and the problem went away. This works for me since I am using the mini as a Filemaker server and the resolution is not critical, but I am hoping that Apple figures out what is wrong and fixes this problem. Apple Care said he would do some checking and email me what he found.

As others have mentioned it is important to call Apple Care about this so that Apple realizes they have a problem. Had I not had the other minis and the Apple TV connected to the monitor I feel sure they would have blamed it on the monitor. In fact, the second tech asked if I had another monitor to try, I told him no but I did not see what that would prove since the other Minis are working just fine with this monitor.

Lennie

cesarpixel wrote:

Jaden85 wrote:

I hope Apple resolves this issue with a software update or firmware update.

Or with a new Mac Mini revision based on a discrete GPU. Funny is that they crippled the GPU in order to "scale" the Mac product line and get more income, but this is going to cost them more money. If they'd put a decent GPU on the 2012 Mac Mini from the beginning, this issue wouldn't happen, and they'd sell even more units than they did, because the GPU was a purchase-stopper for quite a number of users...

The 2012 Mini wants a discrete GPU desperately. Period.

I hear your disappointment ceasarpixel. I agree that the lack of a discrete GPU is a step backwards. I don't play games much anymore and really only play older stuff like Marathon of wineskin'd version of UT99. Under those conditions they work great. But for my purposes I've work to do and use applications such as motion, rapidweaver, pixelmator and the like for my projects. In that regard the macmini performs very well.

Back to the issue at hand; I've noticed that the black screen issue is more frequent during the first 30 minutes that the machine is first turned on. After several hours the snow screen flashes become more common. Also while watching purchased movies via iTunes (When the black screen occurred) I was presented with a HDCP error, indicating that the video was not supported and could no longer be viewed. That was very annoying. A simple quit and restart of iTunes resolved the issue until the next black screen when it did it all over again.

So yes my annoyance factor is growing. No I will not return my macmini, though I am unaccustomed to having Apple products perform this badly. As I mentioned before I hope that it can be resolved.

Thanks for listening

It was only a matter of time. Looks like resetting PRAM is not the answer, after all.

However, I did find that turning the monitor off and then on again restores the correct image. And that baffles me.

It seems that it happens with greater frequency with video intensive applications (hulu, Games) but rarely while doing more writing, e-mailing, spreadsheets, etc

BobH47 wrote:

I write lectures for a living – please do not tell me what I meant to say!

For someone who supposedly writes lectures for a living you certainly don't know the definition of a simple word like ‘may’. You know, as in may or may not? Perhaps this has something to do with being lost in the translation but to verify you can simply right click on the word and choose ‘look up may’ and you'll learn that it means ‘expressing possibility’. Bottom line; no one was putting words in your mouth, and I’d appreciate it if you didn't put them in mine or anyone else’s either. Thank you.

BobH47 wrote:

And you still buy Apple Products?

Absolutely. What anyone buys is their business.

BobH47 wrote:

your posts can come over to me as biased in favour of Apple.

I am only biased in favor of the facts. Because of that I see the glass as being half full, not half empty. The full story about this flicker/black screen problem has yet to be written. For all you know we could be in chapter one of many. As a tech I don’t see product issues like you do, although I can certainly understand why you feel the way you do. I think it’s best to let Apple run Apple. It’s frustrating I know, but the bottom line is that only Apple can help us, and I have no reason (at this time) to believe that they won’t.

BobH47 wrote:

The other day I said that: “it is highly likely that the replacement mini will be from the same batch and have the same fault.” Your response was: “Can't happen. All of the returned minis will become refurbs.” I already had a brand new replacement with an identical fault but you didn’t trust my post

Because as I stated the first time, it can’t happen. I know you don't live in the states but here it is illegal for a company to sell a returned product as new. That is why those products will become refurbs. So let me get this straight, you get a second ‘new’ mini and in your mind it HAD TO BE a returned product from someone else? I don't know how things are in your country, but I know when I buy a new Apple product here it is precisely that, a NEW product. I had always thought that consumer laws in your country were actually stronger than here, but from what you're suggesting I guess I was wrong. Luckily it’s a non-issue here. New products are new products. Yes they may (there’s that word may again) contain the SAME problem I’ll grant you that, but they are still new, that's all I was saying. Hope that helps clear things up. Have a great day 🙂