Filed under: OS, Software Update
OS X 10.4.10 causes audio pops in some Macs
Well of course I would find this right after I updated. I normally wait a bit after Apple System Updates to see if any problems develop among those of you who just can't wait to hit that update button. According to this thread over at the Apple Support forums, quite a few users are reporting problems with the recent 10.4.10 update. Apparently some folks are hearing snaps and pops in their audio playback after installing the update. Perusing the thread seems to indicate that most of the problems are on Intel Macs with external speakers. So if you haven't updated yet, you may want to wait a few days to see how this one develops.[via Digg]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
bstoekl said 1:11AM on 6-24-2007
I got the pops, I was wondering why it's been doing that on occasion. Here's hoping they can patch things up.
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Tim Luckey said 4:30PM on 6-24-2007
I heard about this problem so I waited to update. I am glad I did. I tried to get one of my friends to update to see if he had the problems too but he didn't update either. Trying to hurt my friends is not what I do but I thought I might try it this time!
-Tim-
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Gist said 1:13AM on 6-24-2007
It seems to be a rather specific group of people with a specific problem... one that a lot of people are complaining about. It's not a little pop, either. It's enough of a pain in the neck that you'll need to turn off your externals and use the (pathetic) built-in speakers for the time being. I'm really surprised Apple hasn't posted a fix by now for what seems to be an easy bug to squash.
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Kevin said 1:25AM on 6-24-2007
I have also been getting the "popping" sound after updating to 10.4.10, but it seems to happen more-so when iChat is open and I'm online. Don't know if anyone else has noticed that, or maybe it just happens to me!
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uros said 1:25AM on 6-24-2007
Huh, this update actually FIXED the sound problems I had on 10.4.9
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Quine said 1:33AM on 6-24-2007
I got the pops x_x. Oh well, it's an easy enough fix until apple patches it - just leave itunes playing with volume at 0 and it never happens.
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derek said 1:35AM on 6-24-2007
It is because it shuts off the headphone jack when no sound is being played, then turns it back on when sound is being played.
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ryan said 1:39AM on 6-24-2007
i've had this problem for about the past 3 months...
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Able-X said 1:45AM on 6-24-2007
thank god, I thought I was going insane for a minute there. I've been getting the pops since I updated as well, but for some reason I didn't put 2 and 2 together.
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Victor Carr, Jr said 2:22AM on 6-24-2007
I updated, and now I'm hearing the Boston Pops on my MacBook Pro
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Ondra Soukup said 2:40AM on 6-24-2007
Yes, on iMac 20", Core 2 Duo 2.16GHz and external JBL Duet speakers...it makes those "cracks" like if you play a vinyl record with dust on it...
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Matias said 2:52AM on 6-24-2007
I think it has another problem too, since I updated to 10.4.10 (I have a Macbook Core Duo/2 Ghz/ 2GB RAM / Week 36) it doesn't show my external hard drive on the desktop. If I go to Disk Utility I have no External HDD mounted, but at System Profiler, under the USB menu it shows the external hdd connected. The weird thiing is that Mac OS X 10.4.10 "Improves reliability when mounting external USB hard drives." as Apple says on the Update Info. HEEELP!!
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LordShank said 3:28AM on 6-24-2007
I've got the popping problem as well in my Mac Pro, yet I have not noticed it in my PowerBook or iBook, maybe an Intel only problem. At first I thought it might be due to the nature of my M-Audio firmware, but after this outcry, I think not. I get it any time I move a file on my desktop, as in to and from folders. Considering audio is why I use a Mac, and this is my main system, this is very unfortunate.
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Philip said 3:36AM on 6-24-2007
Same here. I own a Intel Core Duo iMac 20 Inch and I here this "pop" everytime I startet to play a sound. I had the same problem with 10.4.6
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Joey said 4:42AM on 6-24-2007
I've been hearing pops since 10.4.7 (or since I got my MBP). The clicks/pops happen every time I start playing something from silence, even if it's a video. I read about this on a forum, so I thought I'd get it checked out at an Apple Store. The bloke at the bar claimed that he couldn't hear anything (noisy store and all) and made me feel like I was imagining the whole problem!
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Raz4life said 4:46AM on 6-24-2007
My MacBook's been popping since last July when I bought it. Are the pops really that annoying? After about a week, I didn't mind or even notice the pops. Anyway, I'm going to go have something to drink. Perhaps a can of pop would be nice. After that I might call my mom and pop and see what they'd like to use for email. Maybe a POP service would work well. :)
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David Scott said 3:13AM on 6-25-2007
I've been getting clicks when playing iTunes tracks and when playing mp3s using QuickTime player, but they go away after a restart. It started happening before the 10.4.10 update though. I'm using a G5 iMac (ambient sensor) with no external speakers. So much for the intel/ speakers theory!
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Daniele Nicolucci said 7:02AM on 6-24-2007
My iMac 20" C2D 2.16 started popping after installing 10.4.10. I even tried replacing the IOAudioFamily kernel extension from the combo update but it didn't fix it, so there's something wrong indeed.
However, as someone on the Apple Discussion Forums found out, it is related to the sound system going to sleeping and occasionally waking up with a pop. The workaround is to have something keeping it busy. Someone on the forums made a four-second mp3 of silence, and suggested to use mpg123 (a command-line player) to play it continually. Someone else wrapped a faceless application around it.
This is the application: http://www.tpiper.com/popstop/popstop.zip
and this is the thread where it was discussed:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1008163
Very dirty, but it works.
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Danny said 5:51AM on 6-24-2007
Sounds like I'm waiting til 10.4.11 then... (no pun intended)
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mark said 5:57AM on 6-24-2007
I get the pops!!! But I also just started getting them on my Windows HTPC running iTunes, obviously this doesn't run OS X
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