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buran-energia

macrumors 6502
Oct 9, 2017
298
115
Coil whine is everywhere these days. I even hear it in my EV from one of the displays. Good thing is the motor whine drowns it out at speed.:)

Of course it's everywhere, but coil whine varies in intensity.
 
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Donnation

Suspended
Nov 2, 2014
1,686
2,083
OP that is definitely annoying. I have the 2.3 model and have tested in a completely silent room and don't hear anything like what you have shared with us. I can hear what you uploaded in a silent room but I can't make mine replicate it. I hope this isn't a recurring issue...
 

jerryk

macrumors 604
Nov 3, 2011
7,421
4,207
SF Bay Area
OP that is definitely annoying. I have the 2.3 model and have tested in a completely silent room and don't hear anything like what you have shared with us. I can hear what you uploaded in a silent room but I can't make mine replicate it. I hope this isn't a recurring issue...

It also depends on the listener. If the listener is young they are more likely to be able to hear coil whine. As you get older you can't hear certain frequencies as well. And you also like end up suffering from internal whine anyway due to tinnitus.

They even have created devices to drive younger people (13-25) from hanging out based on their ability to hear higher frequency. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mosquito This link has a sound clip so you can see if you can hear the frequencies.
 
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Krevnik

macrumors 601
Sep 8, 2003
4,101
1,312
Or even just what you are doing can change the coil whine to be more audible.

A good example is the GPU in my gaming PC. At 60Hz, no real coil whine. But kick up certain games at 120Hz on a fast refresh rate monitor, and it's clearly audible if you have the speakers turned down.
 

happyhippo1337

macrumors 6502
Jul 3, 2013
260
143
Didn't know this thread existed so I opened up one an hour ago. Shame on me. I had this issues with all my 2016+ models and this 16" is by far the worst. Yesterday evening when setting it up, I could barely here any noise, but when plugged in, it is absolutely bonkers. 2799€ for a machine that is the same speed as my 2018 model, but now with a supposedly durable keyboard and better speakers. I guess I'll pass.

Might have to check for alternatives that let you swap the m2 SSD. You guys know one except the X1 Extreme?
 

Zadillo

macrumors 68000
Jan 29, 2005
1,546
49
Baltimore, MD
Didn't know this thread existed so I opened up one an hour ago. Shame on me. I had this issues with all my 2016+ models and this 16" is by far the worst. Yesterday evening when setting it up, I could barely here any noise, but when plugged in, it is absolutely bonkers. 2799€ for a machine that is the same speed as my 2018 model, but now with a supposedly durable keyboard and better speakers. I guess I'll pass.

Might have to check for alternatives that let you swap the m2 SSD. You guys know one except the X1 Extreme?

Got some bad news for you:

 

nudoru

macrumors 6502
Feb 27, 2012
294
76
Near Charlotte NC
Ironically, I heard it on my 2018 model for the first time while in my kitchen restoring my new 16" from a time machine backup. I don't hear anything from the 16".
 

fokmik

Suspended
Oct 28, 2016
4,909
4,688
USA
Ironically, I heard it on my 2018 model for the first time while in my kitchen restoring my new 16" from a time machine backup. I don't hear anything from the 16".
Give it time....under load, full load, under notification...probably will happen someday
 

fokmik

Suspended
Oct 28, 2016
4,909
4,688
USA
That's why I have Apple Care ;) As long as it's not as bad as my Dell from a few years ago, I'll be ok.
Again, its an millisecond sound issue, thats all...after 1 year nothing went wrong...
what happened with your dell?? i think dell was fine for me for several months...comparing with surface laptop and other hp...if you hated Dell, dont buy hp :)
 

nudoru

macrumors 6502
Feb 27, 2012
294
76
Near Charlotte NC
what happened with your dell?? i think dell was fine for me for several months...comparing with surface laptop and other hp...if you hated Dell, dont buy hp :)

It was on a 2009 era Dell Precision. I just lived with it. I only noticed it really quiet rooms - I wasn't in them very often. That Dell went to my mother-in-law when I bought my first mac in 2011. She just plays Bejeweled on it and I don't think she can hear it.
 
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ThisBougieLife

Suspended
Jan 21, 2016
3,259
10,664
Northern California
Well, I received my 16" today and I have to say I'm pretty disappointed in the coil whine sound. It seems to be SSD related. My 15" in contrast you can hear some noise if you put your ear right up next to it, but this is audible in a quiet room when I'm just sitting there. I've heard much worse on some PC laptops: my friend has an MSI that whines and squeaks constantly; I don't see how he can stand it. But that was something I liked about Macs, how much quieter they were than PC laptops. So I guess my keeping this will depend on how noticeable it really is. I hope I can ignore it, but unfortunately I tend to be quite sensitive to these things :(
 

milhous

macrumors member
Original poster
May 17, 2007
67
20
OP that is definitely annoying. I have the 2.3 model and have tested in a completely silent room and don't hear anything like what you have shared with us. I can hear what you uploaded in a silent room but I can't make mine replicate it. I hope this isn't a recurring issue...
Would you mind going to the Applications folder, right-clicking on iMovie, selecting Duplicate and try listening again? The copy process takes a few seconds, and the noises can be heard continuously until the copy finishes. Also, please confirm your model has the 512GB SSD.
[automerge]1574314857[/automerge]
I guess you hear this kind of noise, if you do, its just the ssd noise so nothing wrong with your mac
But depends of your level of your noise, if its more than this, then you can replace it. You should not hear this when you normal work, you should hear this in a very quiet room/when you put your ear next to the speaker where the ssd is placed

YES! This is the noise I’m hearing, so it’s safe to say that it’s coming from the SSD. This can easily be tested by swapping in a new SSD... oh wait.
 
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bsbeamer

macrumors 601
Sep 19, 2012
4,313
2,713
Anyone with the issue:

Please go to Apple menu  > About This Mac > System Report
Click on storage on left column

Please copy/paste your report for the main volume or screenshot.
 

laflame

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
10
0
Hey,

I just received my new MacBook 16" and it is great beside the fact there is an ongoing noise.

I upgraded from a Retina MacBook Pro 13" from 2012 and it was always very quiet (obv fan noise under pressure).

Is it normal for the 15 and now 16" MacBooks to have a "grinding" sound coming from them almost constantly? Is it the GPU?

The sound reminds me of those old HDDs you would have in a tower. I can hear them in a quiet room in my normal sitting position.
 

foldpages

macrumors regular
Oct 22, 2014
129
160
United States
Hey,

I just received my new MacBook 16" and it is great beside the fact there is an ongoing noise.

I upgraded from a Retina MacBook Pro 13" from 2012 and it was always very quiet (obv fan noise under pressure).

Is it normal for the 15 and now 16" MacBooks to have a "grinding" sound coming from them almost constantly? Is it the GPU?

The sound reminds me of those old HDDs you would have in a tower. I can hear them in a quiet room in my normal sitting position.

It's coil whine - more here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/psa-coil-whine-on-mbp-16.2211580/
 
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Pepe4life

Suspended
Nov 15, 2018
396
3,416
Hey,

I just received my new MacBook 16" and it is great beside the fact there is an ongoing noise.

I upgraded from a Retina MacBook Pro 13" from 2012 and it was always very quiet (obv fan noise under pressure).

Is it normal for the 15 and now 16" MacBooks to have a "grinding" sound coming from them almost constantly? Is it the GPU?

The sound reminds me of those old HDDs you would have in a tower. I can hear them in a quiet room in my normal sitting position.
It’s the coil whine issue, does yours happen all the time or only when the SSD is under load?
 

laflame

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
10
0
It’s the coil whine issue, does yours happen all the time or only when the SSD is under load?
how do I know if the SSD is under load?
Right now its happening all the time while just browsing in safari.

Really disappointed that a MacBook that almost costs 3k€ has this happening. I have the base model btw
 

Pepe4life

Suspended
Nov 15, 2018
396
3,416
how do I know if the SSD is under load?
Right now its happening all the time while just browsing in safari.

Really disappointed that a MacBook that almost costs 3k€ has this happening. I have the base model btw
It only happens when I’m working with large files. If it happens even when browsing safari, I’d get it exchanged. Unacceptable for a $3000 machine.
 
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laflame

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
10
0
You can run Blackmagic Disk Speed Test from the App store.

If it's bothering you just exchange the unit - some are worse than others.
The Disk Speed Test does not seem to affect the issue. The noise is almost constant and when it paused for a it I tried the test and at first it didn't came back but with a second test it came back. Could be "normal" behavior though.

Do you know if I can get a replacement at the apple store if I ordered online? And would I need an appointment?

this sucks...
 

Pepe4life

Suspended
Nov 15, 2018
396
3,416
The Disk Speed Test does not seem to affect the issue. The noise is almost constant and when it paused for a it I tried the test and at first it didn't came back but with a second test it came back. Could be "normal" behavior though.

Do you know if I can get a replacement at the apple store if I ordered online? And would I need an appointment?

this sucks...
Do not go through the Genius Bar. You are within the return period so exercise that right. Return in store and re-buy (yes you can return apple online purchases in the apple store).

Make sure you tell them the reason for the return because apple tracks these information, especially for new products.
 

laflame

macrumors newbie
Nov 21, 2019
10
0
Do not go through the Genius Bar. You are within the return period so exercise that right. Return in store and re-buy (yes you can return apple online purchases in the apple store).

Make sure you tell them the reason for the return because apple tracks these information, especially for new products.
Just got off a call with support and they told me if I return it they can't get me a new one until mid December. Bunch of clowns.

I will see how it develops until next week and go to the apple store if nothing changes.
A repurchase might not be that easy because the Macbook got bought through work for.
 
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