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24 inch iMac sound problem?

F

fireballer55

macrumors member
Original poster
May 6, 2007
75
0
Hey, does anyone who has the 24in iMac have any problem with the sound from the speakers? Sometimes when I listen to music on iTunes I will then get a screeching sound for a few seconds then it will go off. Anyone that can help I would appreciate it. I bought it refurb about 3 weeks ago, so its newer.
Thanks
 
I get the same problem with my 24" iMac. At first i assumed it was Microsoft's Messenger messing up the sound because it seemed to happen every time someone signed in. But it has been around 6 months since i last used Messenger and i still have the problem.

I even get the problem when nothing else is running. Is this a known issue or does anyone know of a quick-fix for the problem it makes me very angry. like punchy angry.

Like the above post says.... it last for 1-4 seconds and is a screeching or hissing sound. This isnt just with iTunes this is with VLC, iTunes, DVD Player and even Skype so it's a global issue.

Help anyone? please....
 
don't that issue, only got a blue tint in the top left part of my screen... nice gradient apple :rolleyes:

i'm taking a wild guess here, but there have been random issues blamed on Safari 3.1.1 update... just a thought...
 
This was last year and i can't see it being a safari issue because i dont run safari and also because im guessing this release of safari you are talking about was not released back then.

I want to say it is Grawls fault but i cannot be certain.
 
Just got my new 24" iMac and am having the same sound issues. I get a loud hiss and pop seconds before any system audio or alerts. I am using a set of external speakers connected via the headphone port.

It goes away after about 10 seconds but is very noticeable and quite annoying. My old early 06 iMac never did anything like this.

Has anyone found a remedy for this, is this a problem specific to the new iMac models?
 
My imac has a popping sound too (New 2.8 version)
Mine makes a pop sound every 30 minutes EXACTLY. What the hell is it?

Oh and hello, new here etc.
 
dinojr said:
My imac has a popping sound too (New 2.8 version)
Mine makes a pop sound every 30 minutes EXACTLY. What the hell is it?

Oh and hello, new here etc.
Click to expand...

weird... goto Sys prefs > Date & Time > Clock

see if you have "Announce the time" checked. i know this is suppose to announce the time on the hour, or half hour, with voices, but maybe your issue lies there somehow.
 
Darkroom said:
weird... goto Sys prefs > Date & Time > Clock

see if you have "Announce the time" checked. i know this is suppose to announce the time on the hour, or half hour, with voices, but maybe your issue lies there somehow.
Click to expand...



Hello.

I checked there but no joy. My pop sound is 8 minutes past and 38 minutes past the hour. I notice this morning it can be plus or minus a minute or so.
 
It seems like the hissing noise for me is getting worse. It is doing it more and more. I tried to use headphones the other day and that seemed to cure the problem, but i dont have external speakers and i'm not spending money to fix a problem Apple should be aware of.

Has anyone tried contacting Apple support to find out what they say, it seems to be a global issue with just the 24" iMac.

My best guess is that it's a problem with the build in speakers seen as the headphones work, then again the headphones didn't do the system sound justice and may have been such bad quality i couldnt notice it.

The iMac speakers are perfect, the sound is perfect when it working nicely and the virtual surround is amazing. I just cant understand why this issue only acurs on the expensive version of their system.

surly we could be having the best iMac experience. Someone needs to kick up a public fuss about this to get Apple to acknowledge the problem and offer a solution.
 
My iMac used to have a hiss noise problem and got my speakers changed but nothing improved, so I demanded apple to change the whole system for me which is now working fine.

So I would suggest you call apple care and let them know the problem.
 
My mac is outside the phone support period (i did not get apple care. yet.) so i cannot ring them for a replacement.
 
I have the same problem with my 24" iMac. First I thought Hear was the source of the problem, removed it but it didnt help, I was so annoyed I even made a clean install but nah, its still there. I can only hear it when i connect external speakers, when i remove the speakers I cant hear any noise from the intternal speakers, maybe there is a problem with the headphone thing.
 
Seems like we all have the same problem but different things effect it. Cant believe apple hasnt offered a fix yet. Does someone want to raise this to their attention?
 
My imac still pops. Random times now, with or without music playing.

Should I risk Apple repairing it or leave it? Thing is the popping thing is pretty common judging by all the threads here and around the web, so I presume they don't have a fix for this anyway. They could fit another sound card and I'd have the same problem.
Also this imac has none of the display problems that afflict some. Don't want a replacement imac either really!

However some people may find this works, A "keep sound chip awake" app.
http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/17751
 
Hi everyone,

There is a solution to our problem but its not for free. If u really get annoyed with this issue like me, just get an external USB sound card and live in peace. No fuss no buzz no glitch no nothing...
 
This subject keeps coming up and the answer is the same as before – anyone remotely interested in sound quality wouldn't be using the cheap and nasty headphone socket in the first place. A decent USB soundcard is the only acceptable course and it need not cost a lot of money.
Complaining about the headphone socket is not too disimilar to moaning about the lack of quality from the computer's built in speakers. It's amazing that people expect more from such basic facilities.
There's no arguing the fact that what is there should work properly and not display screeches and other noises (!), but for goodness sake, do yourself a favor and take advantage of the OUTSTANDING sound that's available through the USB connection, instead of making do with that 10 cent headphone outlet with 10 cent sound.
 
Quality is not the problem is it. Interfearence is the problem and when i spend over £1,000 on a computer i expect their to be no interfearence with the speakers and i also expect their to be an update to fix it, from what i have read it is a software problem that is causing my problem and Apple has failed to fix it.

I'm getting very close to selling the mac and just going back to PC's again because i didn't have problems like this with the built in speakers on my ViewSonic 20" monitor, so why the hell should Apple have problems when their PC's cost over £1,000
 
I think that is sensible

johnslater said:
Quality is not the problem is it. Interfearence is the problem and when i spend over £1,000 on a computer i expect their to be no interfearence with the speakers and i also expect their to be an update to fix it, from what i have read it is a software problem that is causing my problem and Apple has failed to fix it.

I'm getting very close to selling the mac and just going back to PC's again because i didn't have problems like this with the built in speakers on my ViewSonic 20" monitor, so why the hell should Apple have problems when their PC's cost over £1,000
Click to expand...

Obviously I don't know what is wrong with your mac but it seems to me that it has to be resolved before you think about issues of sound quality. Good luck with it...
 
Just another thought on this.
If the noises are due to interference, ground loops etc, then does a optical cable cure the problem?

Does anyone connect to an amp via an optic cable? Do the pops go away?
 
External Sound Card Ideas

Does anyone have any recommendations for reasonably priced external sound cards. I looked at Griffins iMic. Any others to consider. The popping is driving me crazy.
Kyan
 
alptibet said:
Hi everyone,

There is a solution to our problem but its not for free. If u really get annoyed with this issue like me, just get an external USB sound card and live in peace. No fuss no buzz no glitch no nothing...
Click to expand...

Can confirm that! Used to have som distinct background noise when playing movies and music with headphones. Irritating since I´m usually on headphones. Got the Creative X-mod externals sound card. Good looking little thing too, and it enhances the soundquality of mp3, works really good! :)
 
Hello everyone,

Since upgrading to 10.5.4 i am not having any problems with the sound...It seems like they have fixed the problem with the update...

Cheers
 
I have an 06 24" imac and it makes all kinds of noises - REALLY annoying, it has something to do with the digital amplifier used in it (in my case), as when I use a toslink fiber - the sound is not there. So if the source is clean, it must be the amp.

Another irk, is how horrible the speakers / sound are on the 24", my old 20" CD imac sounds like a million bucks by comparison. And the 24" digital amp was marketed as "superior" . :confused:

Anyhow, problem is avoided (not fixed) when using optical cable - running on internal speakers, sounds like poopie.

This is common to Tiger, Leopard and XP - so I don't think its a driver issue in my case.
 
Big-TDI-Guy said:
Another irk, is how horrible the speakers / sound are on the 24", my old 20" CD imac sounds like a million bucks by comparison. And the 24" digital amp was marketed as "superior" .
Click to expand...

I've never had a problem with the sound quality on mine. In my opinion they are the best imac speakers since the G4 iMac globe speakers.
 
I must have a totally FUBAR amp then - because my Performa 550 had richer sound than this. Seriously, these sound inferior - from bass to treble and everything in between - compared to my 20" CD imac. (to reiterate - the bad sounding iMac is a 2006 24" C2D imac)

I use digital output 99% of the time, but on the occasions I have to run off the internal speakers I kick myself for not pestering apple about it when I had the warranty. :(
 
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