FaceTime making strange clicking sound since OS X 10.10

I have the exact sam issue. Mine just started after the last update with is 10.10.2. I also have a late model Macbook pro 2011 with 8GB Ram and 1TB SSD. Everything else works great, but this just started after the most recent update.

I just turned off "Handoff" on my iPhone 6 to see if that helps until Apple FIXES THIS OBVIOUS ISSUE!!!!!!!!!

Update.

After several tries for clarification, I've reached a virtual dead-end with AppleCare on this issue. The last response I was given is unchanged: my options are to "buy a newer Mac or wait for a possible software update" (emphasis mine). I have repeatedly pushed for clarification on "if" a software update would be provided since "possible" is not a definite answer, no concrete answer has been provided. I provided a small video in my last correspondence with Apple's senior advisor, demonstrating the issue in 10.10.2, how the computer loses audio altogether, and I was given a link to Apple's feedback page as a response.

I caution anyone else seeking resolution with AppleCare for this issue not to get your hopes up. My impression is they do not appear to care much about the problem considering how cavalier the answers have been from AppleCare.

Last week, I e-mailed Apple's CEO petitioning for help with this problem, and never received a response. In the meantime, I have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau to petition for a resolution from Apple.

In the meantime, I am running Windows 8.1 (via Boot Camp) without any audio problems--Skype, iTunes, etc., all run fine, even after sleeping/waking the computer.

my gf is having the same problem whenever we make a FaceTime call i can't hear her and all it does is that clicking noise. we are sometimes able to fix it by rebooting or using that itunes trick. she's using a mid 11 macbook pro 15" and an iphone 4S and i'm starting to think this might be an handoff/ FaceTime cellular call problem. we just switched that off but didn't have time to try it yet so if anyone wants to give it a shot and leave feedback here, that'd be awesome. you can switch it off on your phone Settings -> FaceTime > deactivate cellular FaceTime calls

Like everyone else, I have the same problem. It started after I bought my iPhone 6 and upgraded to OS X 10.10.1. The static on FaceTime occurs after I have use my headphone jack, either for headphones or external speakers. If I restart my laptop, FaceTime works again until I use the headphone jack. It's an irritant that I wish Apple would correct but I can at least work around it. My wife and I switched to Apple 6 years ago because we were fed up with memory conflicts between Windows programs.

Update.

Earlier today, I spoke with a new representative calling from Apple about the audio issues with Yosemite and this early 2011 MBP.

He is sending more data off to their engineers but it's a guess as to what will happen next week when I'm supposed to hear from him. I provided a small video demonstration that clearly shows the issue happening in OS X 10.10.2 yet no audio issues whatsoever in Windows 8.1. All the more ironic is how the video shows iTunes did not play any audio in OS X when the issue starts yet in Windows iTunes works fine. 😕

I doubt anything meaningful is going to come of this. Meanwhile, I am perfectly happy running Windows on this thing for the foreseeable future, or at least until it dies and I buy a new laptop (not a Mac, though). Although I imagine it looks really bad for Apple that someone, esp. in my professional capacity, to be using a Mac yet running Windows as opposed to OS X. 😮

I have problem when my MacBook Uniboby Late 2008 wake after sleep.

i found a workaround:

open terminal e enter this command:

sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/AppleHDA.kext

it will ask for your password, enter it.

then enter this one and audio is back.

sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions/AppleHDA.kext

My 2 cents,

Max

Same issue. Horrible cracking noise. Disappointing such a major new aspect fails completely. Weird thing is that I also get this crackle noise when I move a file within Finder....! Apple, fix it...!!

Hello everyone, I have fixed it on my computer (Macbook Pro 15", early 2011, running 10.10.2) permanently.

someone has mentioned it already about Handoff. and yes, it works permanently for me.

all you need to do is to TURN OFF HANDOFF of ALL your IOs devices (i.e. iPhone, iPod, iPad, etc.) connected to the same Wifi as your macbook pro. then, restart your macbook pro. this should fix your clicking sound.

if you don't know where Handoff option is, go to General, and there's an option for "Handoff & Suggested Apps".

let me know if this works for you.

Cheers

1210

Update.

Barring a radical change in the problem, this is my final post on the issue. I am getting all of my work done in Windows 8.1 (via boot camp), and having no problems with audio functionality; Skype, Spotify, iTunes, et al. all work with no degradation or hiccup. In short, the computer runs fine with Windows 8.1 while OS X Yosemite cannot properly use audio any longer. I have explained all of this to AppleCare, providing data captures and (2) two video demonstrations yet have received nothing in terms of a solution, fix, or workaround.

Even though I did a clean install of Yosemite in December, wiping the computer HDD clean, setting it up as a new Mac....no fix. The only way I can get trouble-fee audio functionality from this MBP is if I run Windows--not an endorsement but the only Apple-supported OS besides OS X we can run on the Mac.

I can't begin to express my disappointment in Apple on this subject! Not one word from them to acknowledge this problem. When I went to the Genius Bar to have them remove Yosemite and reinstall Maverick the guys behind the counter were oblivious to the problem. Is this the start of the “denial phase” of Apple? I ask myself, do Apple employees experience this situation on their computers and if so what do they do? I am due for a hardware update but will not purchase a new desktop until Yosemite is either scrubbed or Apple fixes this very annoying problem. That’s my 2 cents and final word on this subject.

Let me say it once more: The noise is very probably not caused by Facetime! It might pop up when using facetime but I noticed it more than a year ago on my Mac's audio output. I have never used Facetime. It is present on my MacMinis and on my MacPro. I strongly suspect it is a software glitch somewhere in the innards of the sound software. De-connecting and re-connecting the audio output plug sometimes stops the crackling/ popping noise for a short period of time but after a while it's back again. I'm pretty sure that it's a software glitch since my system (hardware) is the same as before the crackling showed up. I'm running 10.6.8, so it's not dependent on newer systems. Maybe it's the noise caused by the worms in the rotten apple.

So last week we went to the genius bar to see what they'd say... At first he said that it clearly is a hardware problem and that they would have to put in a new logic board. Well... After i showed him that it was working for skype and photo booth he went to imovie and wanted to import video from camera and ofc the mac said no camera connected bc there was no external camera connected but he said the isight camera is broken bc he can't access it in imovie (that's not even possible btw) so enough said about their knowledge lol! After that he said it has to be a software problem caused by a third party app so a full reinstall has to be done and ff it's still not working after that it has to be a hardware problem. Luckily my gf didn't have a time machine backup so we just left without solving the problem. He even said they don't have one single entry in their database concerning the same problem and when i told him that there is a 20 page long thread on the forums he said that people talk a lot of crap on the internet and that all of those cases, if true, are caused by different problems. When we got home i hooked up an external drive, put mavericks on it and it was fine (well the audio drivers have been buggy since 10.7 but it was working). so i did some testing, had facetime run for 24 hours, no mic problems or clicking static noises whatsoever. after that i went to update it to yosemite and boom it was back to not working. Once the clicking noise was there it was there for good. Took me quite some time to get it working again and plug in headphones and unplug 'em and it's not working again.

When we left the store he said my gf should give it to them for testing to see if there is something wrong. If they can't find anything it's free, if they do she'd have to pay for it and i know those greedy suckers will find something to make some more money off that horrible problem they created... we took it back home, i'm gonna put a samsung 850 evo in there and install mavericks on it and call it a day. This whole thing is a huge disappointment. My worst genius bar experience ever. He wasn't even listening to what i was telling him and on top of that he was really rude

I can’t believe Apple! I brought up this issue over a month ago after installing Yosemite on my wives 13 inch Macbook Pro. Like many of you the problem never surfaced until the upgrade. Like Maxmw, I talked to Apple representatives in Seattle Washington and got the exact same response about how people “talk a lot of crap” on the internet about problems. I can say without reservations YOSEMITE OSX IS CRAP AND NOT WORTH THE AGGRAVATIONS! If you are thinking about upgrading DON”T. If you are still experiencing problems remove Yosemite and reinstall Maverick! Apple is morphing into Windows by creating operating systems that are flawed. It is obvious Apple doesn’t give a **** about this issue. They see it as an opportunity to sell you a brand new computer. Another example of the bean counters running the technical department.😠

I have a MacBook Pro Mid 2010 with the same problem. I was afraid my computer was getting ready to crash or something. I hope Apple can fix it. I want to FaceTime with my grandson.

10.10.2 and 2.66 GHz Intel Core i7

I don’t think we should hold our collective breath on this issue! Maybe we should change our venue and post our complaints to the “Feed Back “ section of the Apple Website! I highly doubt anyone from the Apple Corporation reads this forum, how else can you explain the lack of response from Apple? Page after page of issues and still no remedies offered by the company! I don’t know how to get them to react to this situation. Many people like myself use FaceTime to keep in contact with loved ones and family all around the world. It is in some cases the lifeline that binds them together. I loved the cute commercials Apple produced last Christmas showing families getting together sharing memories and events with loved ones. The reality is, if you have one of these affected computers they would all be standing around trying to hear the persons conversation! This is not acceptable from a very pricy machine! It is very obvious that this is a software problem since it only affects computers that recently been upgraded from Maverick or earlier to Yosemite!