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Macbook Pro 2019 coil whine

K

keepsec

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 9, 2019
32
10
Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum.

I just unboxed my new Macbook Pro 2019 15" i9 2.3Ghz, 560X, 16GB ram, 512GB SSD. As soon as the device accessed the disc I noticed the coil whine. It mostly sounds like scratching and high pitched whining. I've searched through this forum and found a thread on 2018 models with this issue, but nobody has posted anything about coil whine in 2019 models.

Has anybody experienced this? Has this already been resolved or is it common in 2019 models? Should I try getting a replacement or is this prevalent in all new Macbook Pro?
 
If its not behaving as you'd expect, call Apple and make an appointment at your local Genius Bar.
 
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The problem is not the coil whine itself, all modern PCs suffer from coil whine. The problem could be how much the coil whine is audible. So if the noise level of your MBP is "normal" then it is really nothing to be concerned about but if it is too high you can ask for replacement.
 
maflynn said:
My 2018 MBP was dead silent. While some may suffer from that many do not
Click to expand...
If you put your ear close to your MBP you can hear it for example during read/write of SSD or during high CPU load, there is no 100% silent MBP. The problem is if you can hear it far from your laptop.
 
idark77 said:
If you put your ear close to your MBP you can hear it for example during read/write of SSD or during high CPU load, there is no 100% silent MBP. The problem is if you can hear it far from your laptop.
Click to expand...
I have and the laptop was dead silent. I disagree with the assessment that all laptops have coil whine
 
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I come from a MBP 15 2016. I never noticed a coil whine before on that machine. Today while starting my new MBP for
the first time I instantly heard that coil whine.

The noise is quite loud and frequent. You hear it while browsing and even in IDLE. Sitting 3m away on a different desk while tipping this text I still hear it. Back in the days I had a Thinkpad T420 which had the same loud coil whine.

I think I will go a get a replacement and hope that the new machine is quiet.
 
maflynn said:
I have and the laptop was dead silent. I disagree with the assessment that all laptops have coil whine
Click to expand...

Sorry but I disagree...

keepsec said:
I come from a MBP 15 2016. I never noticed a coil whine before on that machine. Today while starting my new MBP for
the first time I instantly heard that coil whine.

The noise is quite loud and frequent. You hear it while browsing and even in IDLE. Sitting 3m away on a different desk while tipping this text I still hear it. Back in the days I had a Thinkpad T420 which had the same loud coil whine.

I think I will go a get a replacement and hope that the new machine is quiet.
Click to expand...

3m is too much
 
I'm sensitive to all those coil whines and other noises. As far as I can tell, 2017 13 touch bar 1 TB is silent in a sense that you can't hear much from a normal distance in a quiet room. Maybe if I'd fire up SSD benchmark and put my ears closer or next to the keyboard I'd hear it.

This is in contrast to 2015 13 (with SSD from a 2014 model), where the coil whine is clearly audible during macOS setup or SSD read benchmark.
 
My mbp is pretty silent. I won't hear it in normal use conditions. I can only hear it when I have my ears literally touching the keyboard and when I run ssd benchmarks like blackmagic speed test.
 
People are different in the frequencies they can hear and even the volume they peeceive. This can be genetic, due to age, or even exposure to loud noises. Almost all modern electronics can produce coil whine. But because of human hearing difference one person may hear something when others do not.
 
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2018 MBP owner here and my hearing is fine.....I turned off the fan and tv and stressed out my computer. Dead silent.

I have to concur with Mike Flynn.
 
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I went back to the Apple Store to ask if such a noise is normal. They said no nerver heard that an SSD makes noise and if they make noise then just under full load.

So I got a replacement. That machine had the same noise + a noisy screen hinge.

Then I went back and got another repacement. Same coil whine noise + the chasis was BEND. Just 3 rubber feet were touching table.

I went back to the store again an got another replacement. Still the same noise but the rest seems fine...

The 4 machine...

I don't know what to do. I think I have to live with the noise.

I called Apple Care and they say that the coil whine is not normal but that doesn't help to solve the problem.

I compared my 2019 mbp to a 2018 mbp. You can hear the noise on the 2018 too but not so loud.
 
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keepsec said:
I went back to the Apple Store to ask if such a noise is normal. They said no nerver heard that an SSD makes noise and if they make noise then just under full load.

So I got a replacement. That machine had the same noise + a noisy screen hinge.

Then I went back and got another repacement. Same coil whine noise + the chasis was BEND. Just 3 rubber feet were touching table.

I went back to the store again an got another replacement. Still the same noise but the rest seems fine...

The 4 machine...

I don't know what to do. I think I have to live with the noise.

I called Apple Care and they say that the coil whine is not normal but that doesn't help to solve the problem.

I compared my 2019 mbp to a 2018 mbp. You can hear the noise on the 2018 too but not so loud.
Click to expand...

Can you return it again and try a different Apple Store?
 
keepsec said:
I went back to the Apple Store to ask if such a noise is normal. They said no nerver heard that an SSD makes noise and if they make noise then just under full load.

So I got a replacement. That machine had the same noise + a noisy screen hinge.

Then I went back and got another repacement. Same coil whine noise + the chasis was BEND. Just 3 rubber feet were touching table.

I went back to the store again an got another replacement. Still the same noise but the rest seems fine...

The 4 machine...

I don't know what to do. I think I have to live with the noise.

I called Apple Care and they say that the coil whine is not normal but that doesn't help to solve the problem.

I compared my 2019 mbp to a 2018 mbp. You can hear the noise on the 2018 too but not so loud.
Click to expand...

Bad batch maybe? Unlikely but, maybe try a different store or order online to shake up the dice a little bit.
 
applesed said:
Bad batch maybe? Unlikely but, maybe try a different store or order online to shake up the dice a little bit.
Click to expand...

I got the 2019 mbp as a replacement. I had a 2016 mbp with 3 failed repairs.

So I think I can't get the money back and order somewhere else.
 
keepsec said:
I went back to the Apple Store to ask if such a noise is normal. They said no nerver heard that an SSD makes noise and if they make noise then just under full load.

So I got a replacement. That machine had the same noise + a noisy screen hinge.

Then I went back and got another repacement. Same coil whine noise + the chasis was BEND. Just 3 rubber feet were touching table.

I went back to the store again an got another replacement. Still the same noise but the rest seems fine...

The 4 machine...

I don't know what to do. I think I have to live with the noise.

I called Apple Care and they say that the coil whine is not normal but that doesn't help to solve the problem.

I compared my 2019 mbp to a 2018 mbp. You can hear the noise on the 2018 too but not so loud.
Click to expand...


Was the 2018 the same capacity? I wonder if different sizes have different average noise levels?
 
You are not imagining this. Same config we picked up from the Albany, NY Apple Store had the exact same issue. It was so loud in comparison to another 2018 in the office, I thought the fan was busted till I zeroed in on the SSD.

I replaced it with a 1TB model which is dead silent. I have a feeling it's the 512ssd.
 
pshifrin said:
You are not imagining this. Same config we picked up from the Albany, NY Apple Store had the exact same issue. It was so loud in comparison to another 2018 in the office, I thought the fan was busted till I zeroed in on the SSD.

I replaced it with a 1TB model which is dead silent. I have a feeling it's the 512ssd.
Click to expand...

So same problem. I picked mine up from Berlin Apple Store in Germany.

So only fix is to pay more money on an SSD upgrade...
 
I have 2016 mbp tb and yes it has no coil whine. I also returned 2018 Mac mini due to whine and bad wireless, so I can hear it. Some say that T2 chip machines are exhibiting this more so than other generations. As to ssd size, not sure about that, my Mac mini did have 512 (as does mbp but that is pre T2 and different ssd anyway).

It’s been quite a while since I looked at Mac mini user reports, but pretty sure the larger ssd had reports of whine too, as different ssds were thought to be the first culprits.
 
I called Apple and send them a video with the noise. Their answer was a bit strange. First of all they said that they had several cases with the noise since 2018 and that the noise is normal. They said that some people hear it better than others. BUT somehow 2TB models should be quiet and that I should get that model or a refund. I don't understand why it should be normal for small capacity drives to be loud and the big ones to be quiet. So the only fix is to pay more for an upgrade or live with it.
 
keepsec said:
I called Apple and send them a video with the noise. Their answer was a bit strange. First of all they said that they had several cases with the noise since 2018 and that the noise is normal. They said that some people hear it better than others. BUT somehow 2TB models should be quiet and that I should get that model or a refund. I don't understand why it should be normal for small capacity drives to be loud and the big ones to be quiet. So the only fix is to pay more for an upgrade or live with it.
Click to expand...

I returned the one I had and a few days ago and picked up a 512 model at Best Buy taking advantage of their $300 off sale, which was a bigger discount compared to our apple business discount. No coil whine what so ever!
 
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