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Level 1

9 points

How do I permanently mute the start-up sound?

As stated in the title: How do I permanently mute the start-up sound?

Before answering, please note:

+ I do Not want to use sleep (my MBA starts fast enough, and I don't consider it neither environmentally friendly nor economical to always use sleep. I am not going to be forced to use sleep by an annoying start-up chime either)

+ I know that the start-up sound has the use of indicating errors, but I do not think that this is prioritized over a silent start-up (The sound is very embarrassing in class etc). (Besides, if I happen to mute the sound before turning shutting down, I won't hear the chime either, so I will have to plan when my mac is going to crash either way.)

+ I furthermore do not want to mute the sound every time I shutdown, as I will forget to do this.

I have tried the following solutions:

+ Startninja - Works often, but has turned off at occasions without me knowing it. I therefore do not trust this program.

+ Startup.prefpane - Does not work at all.

+ Psst - Does not work.

+ Plugging in a headphone chord - does not work.

A common problem is that a program supposed to mute the start-up sound only mutes it when the headphones are not plugged in, even though the start-up chime always come from the internal speakers.

I am using:

+ Macbook Air 13 inch (new, mid 2012)

+ OS X 10.8.2

I am seriously considering switching back to Windows right now, because while I really like Mac, fearing that the sound will go off inhibits my usage of my computer and makes me feel a bit fooled that I spent $1500 (actually a bit more because I wanted a faster processor) on a computer that doesn't mute properly (I understand that this might not be a big deal for everyone but it is for me).

MacBook Air (13-inch, Mid 2012), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)

Posted on Nov 15, 2012 12:42 AM

24 replies

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 18, 2012 5:14 PM in response to uujm

If I understand you correctly, you mean the startup.prefpane. I have tried this already and it didn't work. Thanks anyway.

Nov 18, 2012 11:30 PM in response to Vetebullen

Here you go... Use the Automator app (in your application folder) and build this workflow:

Save this workflow as a 'workflow' and as an '(shutdown) application'. Save both the workflow and (shutdown) application to your Document folder. Drag the (shutdown) application that you just made to your dock. Click on the (shutdown) application in your dock when you want to shutdown/mute sound. This all take less a second or two to execute. (Let go of the mouse when running this... you will see the pointer moving on the screen to open the System Preferences/Sound Preferences/Mute check box.)

You can also make an un-mute application that execute when you startup the computer. Just delete the Run Applescript section and have the 'un-mute application' open at startup.

It's late and I have to dash... I hope you understand the above... I'm not an Automator or Applescript guru... I'm sure you can figure it out. If not there are others here to help you with it.

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 19, 2012 1:39 AM in response to David M Brewer

This worked for one startup, then stopped working. Thanks anyway.

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 19, 2012 1:42 AM in response to David M Brewer

This will not work if I shut down the computer with head phones plugged in and boot it with them unplugged (or the other way 'round), right? (Since those are different sound settings). Thanks anyway!

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 19, 2012 1:44 AM in response to David M Brewer

This will not help if I for example shut down the computer with headphones plugged in and boot it with them unplugged, right? (Since those are different settings, and only one is available at a time). Thanks anyway!

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 19, 2012 1:52 AM in response to Vetebullen

Update: This problem is still unresolved. I have tried all the suggestions so far, and none have worked satisfactory (satisfactory meaning that the chime is always off when I start and not just occasionally). I am however thankful for the many suggestions. The reason one of the suggestions is marked as an answer is because of a misclick, which (apparently) cannot be undone (for mysterious reasons). I couldn't find any way to post this update in my original question, sorry about that. Further suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

Nov 19, 2012 7:27 AM in response to Vetebullen

It only worked one time because you didn't turn on your sound when the computer restarted. I told you you can have the sound un-mute at startup by removing the Applescript. You need to place the startup app in your login items.

Vetebullen Author

Level 1

9 points

Nov 19, 2012 2:23 PM in response to David M Brewer

"It only worked one time because you didn't turn on your sound when the computer restarted. I told you you can have the sound un-mute at startup by removing the Applescript. You need to place the startup app in your login items."

I think there is a confusion because all my replies stack up at the end of the discussion (I thought they would appear next to the comment they replied to, which imho should be the intuitive way to do it. I guess I have to cite what I'm replying to). The reply about only working once was about cocktail. The reply concerning the applescript was this: "This will not help if I for example shut down the computer with headphones plugged in and boot it with them unplugged, right? (Since those are different settings, and only one is available at a time). Thanks anyway!" Does this sound reasonable?

Jan 30, 2013 3:44 AM in response to Vetebullen