Mac studio v1 fan noise - it's going to be one of the loudest Macs at idle.

[radiotamarillo]

There are currently 13 different models for sale in the Apple Refurbished store. The number of models bounces around like a yoyo there and I assume that there's a lot of churn in this with people returning the models that whine and a number of people accepting the whine for a good discount. That may be the way that Apple has chosen to resolve this issue if the number isn't that high. There will be returns anyway from people that bought a model and found that it's a lot more than they need or not enough. The Studio is one model that is hard to configure well because many don't know how well their legacy software will run in transition to Apple Silicon.

You may be right about Apple's approach with the refurbs, provided they know anything at all about any of this. I received my Mac Studio refurb and can confirm that it has exactly the same high-pitched noise issue as the BTO model I returned in April. It measures exactly the same. Apple Support seemed just as unaware as last time.

While it doesn't tell us anything about the numbers of units affected, or even the likelihood of receiving a refurb with this defect, I think it's safe to say that this issue is not currently being identified, flagged and remedied as part of the Apple refurb process.

 

[DirkSchreib]

Script is running, but has no effect on rpm. Whats wrong?

Ok, your starting temperature is very low. I made a small change to the targetrpm Dictionary.
Please try again.

 

[JohannesO]

I bought the Sengtek mount (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B7KCPPSY?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details), it's really nicely made. I was going to make something myself, but this seemed easier and neater . It works great. With the Mac under my desk, I can't hear the whoosh at all from the fans, but I can still hear the whistle a bit, if the room is quiet.

The pictured placement did not work for me. I had to place it so deep where my knees would be.

 

[DirkSchreib]

I made a small update to my SilentStudio script (https://github.com/dirkschreib/SilentStudio).
You can now modify most of the previously hardcoded values with command line options. (check interval, sensors to check, temperature curve). You can specify multiple sensors and the maximum temperature is used to set the rpm of both fans. You need to know the sensor names.

If you just want a quick test to check how "loud" your Mac Studio is without fans:
sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 0
ctrl-c will reset both fans to AUTO speed (~1330 rpm).

If you want a silent Mac Studio most of the time, you can change to higher rpm values if a threshold is reached. For example:
sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 0 50 0 60 2000
This will set the fans to 2000 rpm at the time 60°C is reached and switch them off below 50°C.
If you are doing CPU/GPU intensive work, please include the specific temperature sensors for CPU/GPU with "-s" and probably use a shorter interval "-i". I didn't had the time to analyze which sensor is which and still use the sensors for the thunderbolt ports as my main indicator.
Disclaimer: Use on your own risk. This script does NOT check the recommended minimum (1100) and maximum (3500) fan speed settings on purpose.

 

[JohannesO]

I made a small update to my SilentStudio script (https://github.com/dirkschreib/SilentStudio).
You can now modify most of the previously hardcoded values with command line options. (check interval, sensors to check, temperature curve). You can specify multiple sensors and the maximum temperature is used to set the rpm of both fans. You need to know the sensor names.

If you just want a quick test to check how "loud" your Mac Studio is without fans:
sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 0
ctrl-c will reset both fans to AUTO speed (~1330 rpm).

If you want a silent Mac Studio most of the time, you can change to higher rpm values if a threshold is reached. For example:
sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 0 50 0 60 2000
This will set the fans to 2000 rpm at the time 60°C is reached and switch them off below 50°C.
If you are doing CPU/GPU intensive work, please include the specific temperature sensors for CPU/GPU with "-s" and probably use a shorter interval "-i". I didn't had the time to analyze which sensor is which and still use the sensors for the thunderbolt ports as my main indicator.
Disclaimer: Use on your own risk. This script does NOT check the recommended minimum (1100) and maximum (3500) fan speed settings on purpose.

Thanks for making it. This could be a way not only for silence, but also to bring a proof that the high pitched sound is not due to coil whine.

 

[DirkSchreib]

Thanks for making it. This could be a way not only for silence, but also to bring a proof that the high pitched sound is not due to coil whine.

Of course, you can try a few different rpm settings. My conclusion leans in the opposite direction: It is most likely coil whine but depends on the speed and therefor power draw from the fans. I‘m currently trying different rpm settings between 1500 and 2000. The fan noise is obviously louder, but I need it for a shorter time frame (30s to 60s) and there is less whine.

 

[Daverich4]

I got my Studio Ultra a couple of days ago and I can hear a real quiet fan sound if I put my ear right up to it but that’s been it so far. I mostly use Photoshop and DaVinci Resolve but at this point haven’t been able to do anything that caused the fans to spin up. That includes transcoding files from my Tivo which used to make the fans on my 2020 Mac Mini wail.

 

[PianoPro]

My conclusion leans in the opposite direction: It is most likely coil whine but depends on the speed and therefor power draw from the fans.

Yes, except from the behavior at low current loads I'm guessing it may be from a ceramic capacitor(s) (piezoelectric effect) rather than "coil whine", and therefore a function of the switching supply design (which interestingly there are two different supply designs in use in the Studio - neither unique to either the max or ultra). But my Studio, purchased on introduction day, has no such sound (checked with spectrum analyzer) so I'm not about to tear it apart and experiment. And without doing that, it's only a guess. I'm certain Apple knows the answer by now.

As to shutting off the fans - Have you wondered why Apple's Mac Studio design engineers decided to unnecessarily run the fans at a minimum 1325 rpm to blow air across the power supply and other components even when the CPU/GPU/Memory/SSD were drawing very little power? Have you monitored the temperature of all those other components with and without the minimum fan speed when the external ports were in use, and across the rated ambient temperature range? I'll bet Apple did.

 

[DirkSchreib]

Have you wondered why Apple's Mac Studio design engineers decided to unnecessarily run the fans at a minimum 1325 rpm to blow air across the power supply and other components even when the CPU/GPU/Memory/SSD were drawing very little power? Have you monitored the temperature of all those other components with and without the minimum fan speed when the external ports were in use, and across the rated ambient temperature range?

I can't really answer the first question. I assume someone thought ~1300 rpm is quite enough (I agree) and didn't had any other noise problems.

For the second question. I have not monitored all other components completely but at least I checked which temperature sensors are showing rising temperatures. For me the two most critical parts were the thunderbolt ports #0 and #1 (in use with my Apple Studio Displays). This is the reason for the default "TT0D" and "TT1D" in my script. (Disclaimer: without heavy load on CPU/GPU)

If you want to check other sensors without changing the fan rpm, you can use SilentStudio with the following parameters:
sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 AUTO -i 1 -d -s <list of four character sensor names separated by blanks>

 

[PianoPro]

Have you wondered why Apple's Mac Studio design engineers decided to unnecessarily run the fans at a minimum 1325 rpm to blow air across the power supply and other components even when the CPU/GPU/Memory/SSD were drawing very little power? Have you monitored the temperature of all those other components with and without the minimum fan speed when the external ports were in use, and across the rated ambient temperature range?

I can't really answer the first question. I assume someone thought ~1300 rpm is quite enough (I agree) and didn't had any other noise problems.

I'd guess that they didn't pick that minimum fan speed at idle out of thin air (so to speak), or arbitrarily decide to just run the fans all the time without a very good reason. So unless one does a thermal profile and/or analysis for all the relevant (TBD by analysis) components in the Studio, not just those with temperature sensors, with the ports fully loaded in an otherwise idle state, I wouldn't shut down the fans in my Studio. But that's just my paranoia as an electronic product design engineer of over 45 years.

 

[mikeboss]

... transcoding files from my Tivo which used to make the fans on my 2020 Mac Mini wail.

you mean Mac mini 2018 (intel), right? because 2020 is M1 and so far the fans in my M1 minis have been 100% inaudible, no matter what I threw at them...

 

[DirkSchreib]

..., I wouldn't shut down the fans in my Studio. But that's just my paranoia as an electronic product design engineer of over 45 years.

And I totally respect that. I just can't stand the whine. If you don't want to shut down the fans, don't want whine, but tolerate a little bit more fan noise, you can use SilentStudio with

sudo ./SilentStudio.swift 0 1350

This rpm setting is just a little bit higher than the default and eliminates the whine completely (at least in my Mac Studio)

 

[JohannesO]

Whineless

 

[Horizon Man]

I didn't realize how much noise the Studio puts out until I just shut it down to rearrange the set up. The difference is very surprising, and I had no idea how wearing on me it was until experiencing this relative silence.

 

[pshufd]

I didn't realize how much noise the Studio puts out until I just shut it down to rearrange the set up. The difference is very surprising, and I had no idea how wearing on me it was until experiencing this relative silence.

Location and acoustics can make a huge difference. Mine is three feet away behind a monitor with the airflow to the back and lots of space behind it and I don't hear mine at all.

 

[pshufd]

I made a video this morning and noticed the fan noise on the finished product. It is slight but I could hear it. This is with the microphone about 18 inches from the Studio. I moved the microphone to two feet away and the sound was gone. So the microphone is a lot more sensitive to the airflow out the back than my ears are. I amplify to 400% in iMovie so that explains why I can hear it on the video but I can't hear it myself. Another solution would be to just move the Studio back by another 6 inches or put the microphone on my right side (it's on the left side where the Studio is).

 

[Daverich4]

you mean Mac mini 2018 (intel), right? because 2020 is M1 and so far the fans in my M1 minis have been 100% inaudible, no matter what I threw at them...

Yes, the 2020 Intel Mac Mini. I realize it’s the same as the 2018 Mac Mini but Apple called it the 2020 when I bought it.

 

[jerryk]

Whineless

View attachment 2117928

I like this setup. I also have my Studio mounted under my desk. I have no idea if my fans make noise, but I do not hear anything when sitting at the desk in my quiet room. I also like the desk space mounting the unit under the desk frees up.

 

[Whitelie10]

Is the loud fan noise something that happens over time or right away? I'm have my Studio for about a week and it's quiet. I'm a mix engineer and my studio is very quiet because of my room treatment. I'm pretty sensitive to sound in general and I have 0 issues with my studio. Currently it's sitting behind my desk but for the first few days while I was setting it up I had it about a foot away from my on my desk and had no problem working on music even at low levels.

 

[bobcomer]

Is the loud fan noise something that happens over time or right away? I'm have my Studio for about a week and it's quiet. I'm a mix engineer and my studio is very quiet because of my room treatment. I'm pretty sensitive to sound in general and I have 0 issues with my studio. Currently it's sitting behind my desk but for the first few days while I was setting it up I had it about a foot away from my on my desk and had no problem working on music even at low levels.

It can happen right away, or afterwards, no telling. Mine sounds like that the first time I powered it up, and there are others on this forum that said theirs took months to start whining.

But really, yours is quite -- be happy and don't worry about it.

 

[designerdave72]

Placed the Mac Studio at the back of the Studio Display on a riser with holes and it’s really quiet. There is a presence of the fans but they’re very low and no sign if any whine. The fans also ho off when it’s in sleep. Pretty impressed with it so far 👍🏻

 

[ixxx69]

Yes, the 2020 Intel Mac Mini. I realize it’s the same as the 2018 Mac Mini but Apple called it the 2020 when I bought it.

Just friendly FYI - actually, no they didn't. A lot of other folks did, but not Apple. They referred to it as "updated" on their website (due to the base config changing), but not "2020".

In macOS, you can go to "About This Mac", and you'll still see the mini is listed as a "Mac mini (2018)".

If you go to Apple's support pages, you will not find a 2020 Intel mini.

So you can keep calling it a 2020 mini if you want, and people will just keep getting confused. Or you can call it a 2018 mini, and people will know what model you're referring to.

 

[pshufd]

Just friendly FYI - actually, no they didn't. A lot of other folks did, but not Apple. They referred to it as "updated" on their website (due to the base config changing), but not "2020".

In macOS, you can go to "About This Mac", and you'll still see the mini is listed as a "Mac mini (2018)".

If you go to Apple's support pages, you will not find a 2020 Intel mini.

So you can keep calling it a 2020 mini if you want, and people will just keep getting confused. Or you can call it a 2018 mini, and people will know what model you're referring to.

The use of purchase date as opposed to Apple's naming is one of the big confusing things on the used Mac market. This is like someone advertising a 2012 iMac and I look at it and it's a 2008 or 2009 iMac - but they bought it in 2012 so they call it a 2012 iMac.

 

[bobcomer]

Just friendly FYI - actually, no they didn't. A lot of other folks did, but not Apple. They referred to it as "updated" on their website (due to the base config changing), but not "2020".

In macOS, you can go to "About This Mac", and you'll still see the mini is listed as a "Mac mini (2018)".

If you go to Apple's support pages, you will not find a 2020 Intel mini.

So you can keep calling it a 2020 mini if you want, and people will just keep getting confused. Or you can call it a 2018 mini, and people will know what model you're referring to.

I also have a 2020 Intel Mac Mini, it doesn't say any year at all in About this Mac, it just says "Mac mini". And fwiw, I just call it an Intel Mac Mini.

 

[EugW]

I also have a 2020 Intel Mac Mini, it doesn't say any year at all in About this Mac, it just says "Mac mini". And fwiw, I just call it an Intel Mac Mini.

What OS? This is what it says for my M1 Mac mini in Ventura:

Mac mini
M1, 2020