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Any one notices the cracking/popping sound of new 16 inch MBP?

Does your 16 inch MacBook Pro have pop/cracking sound issue?

  • Total voters
    379
MengkeMary

MengkeMary

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 16, 2019
84
41
Minneapolis
semistandard said:
How bad is the issue on 16 model?
My primary use is coding/simulations/latex/media consuming.
Should I avoid getting the 16 inch until the issue is solved?
Click to expand...
It depends on your luck. Some units don't have this issue at all. But even if you get one with pop sound, it may not be that severe if you're not primarily working on video/audio.

GlenK said:
That's awful but I got lucky. None of that on mine!!
Click to expand...
Glad to hear some machines are not affected. You are really lucky. Enjoy your machine.

lge1 said:
I just got back from the apple store. They ran the hardware test on my mbp, and it shows there is something wrong with the right speaker. Also, I noticed that cracking sound is only from the right side. So, I guess it is a hardware failure, and they cannot fix this. They just asked me to return my mbp and order a new one.
Click to expand...
So how severe is your machine? Is it only the right speaker? Does it happen every time you forward/close a video?
 
Danny Nava

Danny Nava

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
10
4
I think most of the 16 inches are affected. I went to two different apple stores in Texas and all their demos do it. Some more noticeable than others
 
F

foldpages

macrumors regular
Oct 22, 2014
125
151
United States
Danny Nava said:
I think most of the 16 inches are affected. I went to two different apple stores in Texas and all their demos do it. Some more noticeable than others
Click to expand...

Agreed. I also think the folks who voted "no" here might not know how to check for the issue. It's really not that big of a deal but if you are a heavy video editor in FCPX it's a nightmare!

At this point, I'm probably just going to wait it out until early January. Holiday return policy is in effect and *maybe* Apple will push an update to fix it. I checked two Apple stores in the Miami area and all the demos make the popping sound.
 
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covedrop

covedrop

macrumors member
Nov 16, 2019
51
52
If it is truly 100% of the units, its curious that not a single reviewer has mentioned anything about it. I imagine at least one would have used YouTube or fcpx and noticed..
 
MengkeMary

MengkeMary

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 16, 2019
84
41
Minneapolis
covedrop said:
If it is truly 100% of the units, its curious that not a single reviewer has mentioned anything about it. I imagine at least one would have used YouTube or fcpx and noticed..
Click to expand...
I was wondering the same. I have watched tens of reviews of the 16 inch, none of them mentioned this issue, which is really weird to me. Hope that some reviewer would bring this to table and attracts some media coverage. Then Apple probably would take it serious and offer a fix.
 
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F

foldpages

macrumors regular
Oct 22, 2014
125
151
United States
MengkeMary said:
I was wondering the same. I have watched tens of reviews of the 16 inch, none of them mentioned this issue, which is really weird to me. Hope that some reviewer would bring this to table and attracts some media coverage. Then Apple probably would take it serious and offer a fix.
Click to expand...

I would always take these video reviews with a grain of salt. Criticizing or calling out Apple for an issue could jeopardize their relationship with Apple which in return means no longer access to early events and other invites. Remember what happened to Lou at UnboxTherapy after the whole iPhone 6 bending issue. He has never been to another Apple event or gotten any early hands-on with new/unreleased devices.
 
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poorcody

poorcody

macrumors 65816
Jul 23, 2013
1,316
1,543
My new 16" has this issue. Interestingly, I can cause it to "pop" every single time I pause music using the Amazon Music App. There is no similar pop with iTunes music stopping/starting. Makes me think it is a software issue.

(I also get in in YouTube the same way others do.)
 
MengkeMary

MengkeMary

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 16, 2019
84
41
Minneapolis
poorcody said:
My new 16" has this issue. Interestingly, I can cause it to "pop" every single time I pause music using the Amazon Music App. There is no similar pop with iTunes music stopping/starting. Makes me think it is a software issue.

(I also get in in YouTube the same way others do.)
Click to expand...
Actually, if you play something in background and keep it muted at the same time, then the pop sound issue suddenly disappears. So it's more likely a software issue. Hopefully, it can be fixed in a future release.

Apple just release Catalina 10.15.2 public beta 3, but not mentioning what is being added or fixed. Anyone opted in beta program and tried this version?

macOS Catalina 10.15.2 Beta 3 Release Notes
 
poorcody

poorcody

macrumors 65816
Jul 23, 2013
1,316
1,543
The popping noise is also happening on the speakers of my LG Ultrafine 5K monitor.

(Never had popping noise with it using my 2016 MBP 15" just for the record.)

I notice the volume of the pop is dependent on how loud the noise is at the time I perform the action that causes the pop: i.e. loud noise leads to louder pop.
 
globalmatt

globalmatt

macrumors member
Jul 9, 2016
71
56
16-inch MBP arrived an hour ago. I get the pops 50% of the time (with varying volumes) when jumping around a YouTube video in Safari - seems to come randomly from the left or right speaker, just after the music abruptly stops. Doesn't happen when pausing/playing at all for me.

Doesn't happen in the Spotify app at all, even when jumping around. (Spotify seems to quickly fade music in and out when seeking, which might help.)

Doesn't happen at all when playing an MP4 music video in QT Player and jumping around.

This has to be a driver/firmware issue surely? Maybe related to 1 or more specific codecs? Sounds like maybe it's not properly flushing the audio buffer when the music stops abruptly.
 
Ming Gao

Ming Gao

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
1
0
Hey,

I have the same issue on my new MacBook Pro 16 inch. I just bought it and went to a local Apple store to replicate the issue on their new demo computers.

We tested 4 demo Macbook Pros. 3 of the 4 we can replicate the issue.

Steps to replicate:
1) Open Youtube.com/SoundCloud.com
2) Play a media content with audio
3) Jump to another webpage, you will hear an audible POP as the system exits the page.
4) If you don't hear a pop,... navigate to previous page, and repeat step 3.

Notes:
Tested YouTube/Soundcloud on Safari, and Google Chrome (2 different browsers with 2 different webpages)
Tested Spotify by exiting the application instead of skipping to new song, creates a popping sound. Spotify Application has a built-in gradual descent on the audio, to 'mute' the sound instead of actually cutting the audio out completely like the other applications.

Dear Apple, do you plan to address this hardware/software issue? I am inclined to say it is a driver/firmware issue, but only your company is able to provide this statement.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
M

MikeVera

macrumors regular
May 5, 2014
131
38
Yep mine does it as well.

Would the fact that speakers work well while its playing, and in audio only apps, indicate that this is more likely a software issue then a fundamental flaw with the speaker hardware?

I may be completely off base, but it seems like if it was a fundamental issue with the speakers themselves, it would maybe occur during playback, or across more apps, etc.
 
globalmatt

globalmatt

macrumors member
Jul 9, 2016
71
56
Ming Gao said:
Tested Spotify by exiting the application instead of skipping to new song, creates a popping sound. Spotify Application has a built-in gradual descent on the audio, to 'mute' the sound instead of actually cutting the audio out completely like the other applications.
Click to expand...

Yes, that's what I was saying in my post earlier. And just to add another data point - you also get the pop in Spotify if you plug in headphones or close the laptop lid while music is playing. Anything that abruptly cuts off the music basically.
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MikeVera said:
Yep mine does it as well.

Would the fact that speakers work well while its playing, and in audio only apps, indicate that this is more likely a software issue then a fundamental flaw with the speaker hardware?

I may be completely off base, but it seems like if it was a fundamental issue with the speakers themselves, it would maybe occur during playback, or across more apps, etc.
Click to expand...

Yeah I reckon the speakers themselves are OK. But it could be a fault in the DA converter. Hopefully it's a bug in the audio driver though!
 
G

gymnast79

macrumors newbie
May 13, 2010
14
0
What are the changes this get fixed in the next 10 days? Otherwise Im returning it with Apples buyers remorse policy.
 
D

DubCity

macrumors member
Aug 8, 2019
38
32
Mine is going back tomorrow due to the same issue. What a complete joke of a computer for the price.
 
E

Erlendks

macrumors member
Jun 18, 2017
36
8
Do you get the pop after system notification sounds? And do you get it when using Airpods or other headphones?
 
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