Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Audio skipping / crackling...help?

Lvivske

Lvivske

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Aug 22, 2011
615
259
🇺🇦
I'm fairly certain that this has only started occurring post-ML, but I'm noticing on my MBP-R that audio has intermittent skipping / crackling. This is on either iTunes or flash video so it's not program specific, but something is causing this to happen. It's not hardware related because I've noticed it while using my DAC as well (which bypasses the audio card if I'm not mistaken)

How to I find out what process is causing this or otherwise try to fix the OS's audio?
 
Basic questions:

How certain are you its ONLY post ML upgrade?
Have you restarted your computer?
Is the crackling at a certain volume or just any?

Do you have a time machine backup in case you want to try re-installing?

Is there an Apple store near you, just because your laptop is still under warranty, and while I hope we can resolve the issue here, its good to know someone has the ability to go and be covered locally.
 
fins831 said:
Basic questions:

How certain are you its ONLY post ML upgrade?
Have you restarted your computer?
Is the crackling at a certain volume or just any?

Do you have a time machine backup in case you want to try re-installing?

Is there an Apple store near you, just because your laptop is still under warranty, and while I hope we can resolve the issue here, its good to know someone has the ability to go and be covered locally.
Click to expand...

I only had Lion for a week before upgrading to ML, didn't notice it before (I have a high quality audio listening setup so if things were crackling with any frequency I feel I would have noticed it; right now I notice it often enough to bother me)

Yes.

Any.

No.
 
Simple things that I am sure you have tried.

Lower the sound volume in system preferences for outbound...
Try not using the huge sound setup and just check and see if its pure software

Otherwise, put in a ticket/call Apple and see if they can log in for a software patch.
 
I'll try volume but it's not clipping, it's really at random. I have a feeling it's a process causing it but I haven't been able to see something spiking enough to catch my eye. I'm not using a lot of system resources either.

When it has happened, it's felt like the computer was slowing down a bit - I started typing in Safari and it felt like the keys were showing up slower than usual and hitting a lot of buttons increased the frequency of the audio blips. Swiping between spaces in MC seemed to help trigger more as well.

When it just happened right now while watching a flash video (a podcast) things did feel *slightly* off.

I'm unfamiliar with the second part....log them in for a software patch?
 
Yeah when you call and complain to Apple via phone, especially with a retina macbook and you detail the issue, they elevate it quick...with a 2k+ purchase, they want to make sure its streamlined, so if you elaborate the details they will most likely patch it if its not just you.

If they determine its just you, they will prob have you do a clean install of Mountain Lion.
 
Install the latest update. It fixes the issue (I just posted a topic about the same issue, and fixed it by downloading the Mountain Lion update from the App Store).
 
What update to Mountain Lion?

Hi, CFoss.

You mentioned that there is an update to ML. I just did Software Update, and it says that nothing is available.

What update is there?

I've tried about everything, and I put details here: https://discussions.apple.com/message/19091774?ac_cid=tw123456#19091774

Thanks for helping.

David

----------

Hi, everyone.

I know this doesn't help any of us now, but if you are wondering when Apple might release 10.8.1, read on:

http://bit.ly/Mf78Fl

David
 
CFoss said:
Install the latest update. It fixes the issue (I just posted a topic about the same issue, and fixed it by downloading the Mountain Lion update from the App Store).
Click to expand...

no updates available at the moment, unless i already installed it, I'm currently on OS X 10.8 (12A269)

----------
tungchihyu said:
You are not the only one.

I am also experiencing this issue even with a clean install of OS. There are a number of people having this problem too.
Click to expand...

wow, okay, at least I know now not to waste my time doing a clean install
 
Lvivske said:
no updates available at the moment, unless i already installed it, I'm currently on OS X 10.8 (12A269)

----------



wow, okay, at least I know now not to waste my time doing a clean install
Click to expand...


That's the build version I'm on. If the "Power Nap" update wasn't the solution, then I don't know what to recommend. All I can suggest is checking the thread where everyone is posting about the issue.
 
JoshGlzBrk said:
My system audio starts crackling as soon as i mount a remote location with transmit.
Click to expand...

Hi, Josh.

I have Transmit, but I rarely use it, so that isn't the problem. Well, it's not causing the sound problem on my computer.

Unless Transmit has some low-level system files that are always running.

I'm not sure about this.

Thanks.

David
 
I have noticed this problem with my rMBP as well. I don't think the problem happened pre-ML. It seems to happen to me when I am watching a video, then bring up another window to the foreground and have the video still playing in the background.

I do also have transmit, but I have not been using it when this problem has been happening for me.
 
Add me to the list as well. I don't use Transmit, whatever that is, but I notice my music skip ever so slightly every few minutes in iTunes.

I think you are right that it only started after ML; I didn't notice it previously.

I barely ever have any applications open and the music skips. Very annoying. Thought this was a powerful machine.
 
This is really weird: I've importing a lot of music into iTunes (and have been running low on internal space), and it seems the crackling has returned. I have no idea what's causing it, and I hope Apple addresses this issue asap. As a musician, this is VERY problematic.

Edit: It seems to go when I restart the system.
 
Last edited:
Same issue here. I've a feeling it only occurs when I am on battery power... I will look into that when I get home and plug in.
 
I have the same issue on my iMac. I have used Lion on the iMac since Lion was first introduced and have never had the problem before. With ML, I have the issue regularly. It occurs when listening to audio through iTunes, Pandora One app, and safari (youtube, html5 video, etc). The audio pops or cracks and sounds a little like static. I have made zero changes to my hardware configuration since the upgrade to ML. Yes, I did the upgrade to ML, not a clean install.

Here's hoping that Apple is able to figure it out and give us a fix in ML.1

Oh, and I do not use Transmit.
 
This issue can be cured by simply unchecking the 'Automatic graphic switching' option in energy saver option within system preferences. It's the integrated graphics causing the stutter for some reason.
 
No such option on my iMac

Hi, entraik.

My iMac is 1 year old. Never had a problem with video & sound stuttering (and sometimes bringing system to a halt) as well as serioius mouse/menu lags UNTIL I installed ML.

There is no such option in my Energy Saver sys prefs.

David

entraik said:
This issue can be cured by simply unchecking the 'Automatic graphic switching' option in energy saver option within system preferences. It's the integrated graphics causing the stutter for some reason.
Click to expand...
 
entraik said:
This issue can be cured by simply unchecking the 'Automatic graphic switching' option in energy saver option within system preferences. It's the integrated graphics causing the stutter for some reason.
Click to expand...

The iMacs don't have the "automatic graphic switching" option...just the notebooks.
 
Same here.

I have high specification 2011 3.4ghz i7 iMac, 16GB RAM, 2GB AMD Video RAM so system requirements are not an issue.

I have stuttering music on iTunes, stuttering video on YouTube that eventually results in a complete crash of the system and processing images in Photoshop CS6 causes the computer to slow and eventually die. Every now again the mouse starts to lag and then stops for about 10 seconds.

I've used Lion on the same machine without a single hitch in over a year. Upgrading to Mountain Lion has caused the issues.

Please Apple, sort the problems out.
 
Is Transmit a Java app?

I was having these same issues--crackling sound (in iTunes, Youtube, Rdio.app, etc.)--freezing mouse--etc.

"killall java" fixed it for me. However, I need Java. There seems to be something wrong with the kernel thread scheduler in Mountain Lion.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back