airplay randomly kicking in

Apple support article with instructions on turning it off.

AirPlay Mirroring - About

What do you mean by this?

"This is an issue accross my devices, I think osx for what ever reason in a split second cannot find or use optical so decides to default to airplay."?

If it's accorring across all if your devices, then wouldn't it be logical to look at the AVR?

KOT

I myself have 2 Mac Minis, '11 and '12. Neither of them randomly chooses my Pioneer VSX-53.

Although I do have to admit if I were to leave my iTunes set to Airplay to the Pioneer. I stop the music by turning off the AVR. Leave the house, then come back hours later, press play on iTunes. The AVR automatically turns on and starts playing the music. The first time freaked me out because I thought that I turned Airplay off.

How do you have your Macs hooked up to an audio source? Both of mine are hooked up to a set of powered speakers, on their own desk. Which are plugged into the headphone jack.

KOT

I don't have any of those connections, or the ability to. Just don't have the cables. For me, the Sound selection is separated...

Since I have a headphone plugged into the port. I can not choose Display Audio via USB, which belongs to the Apple Cinema display. If I were to try to select it, the blue highlight will bounce back to the headphones. However, I still can select either the AppleTV or VSX-53 avr. I rarely do though, no point for me.

However like I've said I've used the VSX-53 to stream my iTunes music. (But this isn't your problem, right?)

In iTunes I can select just one, in this case the Mac Mini, or all three devices. When I select the VSX-53, if it's off it'll switch ON and tune to the proper input. If ON, it'll still tune into the proper input. If I were to enable only the VSX-53, I still have the ability to turn the AVR off when I am done and what not. iTunes pauses the music and no more action is taken. When I come back home or whatever, I press play. The VSX-53 turns on and tunes to the proper input. (This is what I meant by my previous post).

With that said. I just went to my Sound settings and select the VSX-53 as my main audio producer for the entire Mac Mini, not just iTunes. I am able to control the volume up/down as well as mute via my keyboard, just as if nothing changed. My AVR shows the volume change as well as the mute.

Lets say nothing is playing, no music, video or whatever. I change inputs on the AVR or turn it off. The Mac Mini doesn't change to my headphones. It'll stay on the Airplay, so as soon as I press play for iTunes. My AVR will automatically tune in. If however something is playing, like iTunes, and I switch off the AVR or switch inputs. The Mac Mini will default back to the headphone jack.

Hopefully that gave you some ideas on what is going on. It also wouldn't be a bad idea to switch over to using the headphone jack. Rather than the USB to digital to DA or the digital output to the device that accepts the ditial input. At least try that for testing to see if the problem goes away.

KOT

I wonder if the Mac doesn't see your device that has the optical output for when it's turned off, or on another input. Or in the process of doing either one.

Even though the opitcal should only be a 1-way cable. Test it out, open your Sound settings and start playing around with the device that you are hooked up to. Turn it off, back on, select a different input and what not. Does the Sound setting do anything? If so, what does it do? Also close all windows/apps and what not. But leave the Sound settings open. Reboot the Mac with the "Reopen windows when logging back in" checked, so that the Sound settings will open back up once turned on. Leave the audio device turned on, then reboot with the audio device turned off. Is there a slight indication there's a change in the Sound settings?

KOT

I have a similar problem. Never had it before, but it turned up when I installed Yosemite.

Have a late 2012 Mac mini, connected to Yahama HTR-4065 with HDMI.

This issue has been driving me nuts. Here is my theory: Whenever I set the receiver to another input, so the mac mini loses its hdmi handshake, it starts connectin over airplay. Disrupting whatever I'm doing on my Apple TV and/or making my receiver change to airplay input.

When I change the audio output on the mac mini to internal speakers again, all is well across the land.

I'm having this issue with Yosemite too. My Macbook randomly turns on and starts playing to an Airplay-enabled Yamaha receiver. This is a recent issue. Have had the receiver for a few years.

Thing is, I *never* want the Macbook to play to the receiver. Is there a simple fix to make it forget the receiver completely?

Macbook Pro: v 10.10.2

Yamaha RX-v673

This is how it should be. Sometimes, seemingly randomly, the output will switch to the row at the bottom and turn on the receiver (which is in a different room)...help

I have the same issue. Mac mini (late 2010 running latest Yosemite) as media center connected to Harman Kardon (AVR-171) via HDMI. On random occasions, the amplifier turns into airplay and turns down the volume completely. It seems to be more often when I start up Plex (could be, that the mini for a split second 'looses' the HDMI handshake as described above. Then, picks airplay as output). I then need to switch the receiver off and on, turn to the right source and put up the volume - then it works. But my wife complains a lot and I am not too happy.

As I would never want to use airplay from my Macs, it would be helpful if it was possible to turn this off in Yosemite.

I am also having this issue in my office. There are about 500 people in the office and a good 30 airplay devices, and it happens to several people a day.

I actually created this post to see if anyone else had this problem: Yosemite changing audio output to airplay at random

From that Post:

We have an office of several hundred Macs, most running 10.10.3, as well as about 30 or so Airplay devices

It seems that for some people, every once in a while, Yosemite will at random seem to either change audio devices, or connect to a random Airplay device that it's connected to before.

This usually happens to me when waking from sleep, but has also happened to other people.

Anyone else experienced this? It's a little worrisome that Yosemite might send audio to a random Airplay device/speaker somewhere in the office, especially if you are using your computer for a confidential call or video chat.

Any solutions yet?

Unfortunately, no resolution yet. Well, apart from not using Airplay at all 😕

I should say the latest versions of OS X have left me less than satisfied, and the steady lack of any response from Apple is just seawater lapping away at ones wounds...oh well, the trough of disillusionment.