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Yakov · May 17, 2006, 11:23 PM

Do they whine?
All reviews I've read haven't said anything about a problem, except for one passing mention in the "black flakebook" thread.

Jazzjackrabbit86 · May 18, 2006, 01:29 AM

Originally Posted by Yakov

Do they whine?
All reviews I've read haven't said anything about a problem, except for one passing mention in the "black flakebook" thread.

I just came back from the Apple store to have my MB replaced. I will say with 99% certainty that my first one definitely whines. It's a high pitch noise that can be stopped by opening photobooth. It immediately reappeared after photobooth is closed. The genius at Apple store initially say that he couldn't hear anything thing abnormal. At my insistence, he listened again and reluctantly admit opening photobooth changed the sounds. I got my replacement. I have never owned MBP and do not know what the whining on MBP sounds like. From what I have been reading about the MBP whine, I believe some MB behave exactly like that. I guess most MB owners are not aware of the MBP whine problem but we will hear more complain as time goes by.

Jazzjackrabbit86 · May 18, 2006, 01:43 AM

Got a little conspiracy theory, Apple adopted glossy screen to divert people's attention from the whine.
More seriously, whine or no whine, MB is a very good machine and I really like it. Even the whine is not that annoying

Simon · May 18, 2006, 03:48 AM

From all I've heard, yes, the MB has the CPU whine too.

Gee4orce · May 18, 2006, 05:25 AM

Mine distinctly does NOT whine - it's one of the quietest computers I"ve ever used.

HOWEVER !

a colleague also bought exactly the same model as me, and says that his DOES whine - annoyingly so. Now, he also gets bothered by certain lights in the office whining that I can't hear - so he's got more high-range hearing than I have. Maybe this is the true reason some people can hear the whine and others can't !!

tycheung · May 18, 2006, 07:29 AM

have to say, my ibooks have been whining for a while, think it's an analog circuit thing, maybe related to cpu processing or the graphics card - when the fan isn't running you can hear it and it syncs with what you are doing on screen.

The other thing is...i have external speakers plugged into the iBook which is next to the monitor port, and when themonitor is off, very distinct electric whine coming from speakers.

although, I hear good analog design is a lost art...went out with the COBOL programmers

pbook · May 19, 2006, 01:05 PM

I replaced my first one due to high pitched whining noise that went away when photobooth was opened. The replacement also whines, but not nearly as loud and less frequent. I have the 1.83 version.

masugu · May 19, 2006, 01:10 PM

Anyone do any side by side "Whine-offs" between a MPB and a MB?

Wonder if White MBs are louder than Black?

mindwaves · 01:55 PM

Mine does not whine.

1.83 CD stock config

Severed Hand of Skywalker · May 19, 2006, 01:39 PM

Can you guys list what model you have when you say it does or doesn't whine?

harrisjamieh · May 19, 2006, 01:42 PM

Originally Posted by Severed Hand of Skywalker

Can you guys list what model you have when you say it does or doesn't whine?

If you are trying to look for some sort of pattern, I think you will be hard pushed to find one. AFAIK, it is completely random as to weather you have it or not, regardless of model.

The thing I don't get is why the laptops whine, and the iMac & Mac Mini don't, seeing as they have the same processors in them

seanc · May 19, 2006, 02:29 PM

Originally Posted by harrisjamieh

If you are trying to look for some sort of pattern, I think you will be hard pushed to find one. AFAIK, it is completely random as to weather you have it or not, regardless of model.

The thing I don't get is why the laptops whine, and the iMac & Mac Mini don't, seeing as they have the same processors in them

Could be because people expect a desktop to be noisy or the noise covers up the whine or it blends into the noise of the environment around them and they don't notice it.

Originally Posted by tycheung

have to say, my ibooks have been whining for a while, think it's an analog circuit thing, maybe related to cpu processing or the graphics card - when the fan isn't running you can hear it and it syncs with what you are doing on screen.

The other thing is...i have external speakers plugged into the iBook which is next to the monitor port, and when themonitor is off, very distinct electric whine coming from speakers.

I can hear my G3 hiss when using headphones. It seems to be correlated to whats on the screen and touching the trackpad - maybe static interference.
My G4 also whines when transferring a lot of stuff over the network via ethernet but it doesn't bother me.

Hi I'm Ben · May 19, 2006, 05:24 PM

Black Stock, no whine, all quiet.

JAR · May 19, 2006, 10:14 PM

Mine "moos" like a little cow when the fan revvs up every few seconds. I think it's because the damn thing runs so hot! I'm sure if I redo the mess that Apple and Asus made with the thermal paste inside, it'll run much cooler and the fan won't have to "moo" as much. The "mooing" is kind of quiet and not very noticable, and when I do notice it it isn't annoying, actually kind of cute haha.

NightEyes · May 19, 2006, 10:35 PM

no whine on mine either. Very quiet and relatively cool.

Voch · May 19, 2006, 10:45 PM

I finally heard the infamous ("it means more than famous") moo sound. It was the fan spinning up and down quickly while I was playing Bejweled 2. Big deal.

popstand · May 20, 2006, 12:19 AM

Mine whines (white 2GHz), I have a thread here about it. I went to the Apple store today, and I heard two of them whining (both kinds of models) and one black 2GHz not whining. Looks like it's hit or miss. FYI, mine is absolutely silent when the power cord is not attached. It only whines when plugged in, so those who state they have quiet machines should check with and without the power attached. The whine is actually mirrored in the power brick, they both make noise. Also, weirdly, the whine goes away when using a bluetooth mouse or keyboard, and of course when photobooth is on. It seems like it should be such a simple software/firmware fix, but maybe I'm missing something. The problem is that if one exchanges you can't guarnatee that the new one won't whine too, or whine even worse. I'm tempted to ask for an exchange with one of the display models that is quiet.

Meadowfield · May 21, 2006, 08:39 AM

Originally Posted by Hi I'm Ben

Black Stock, no whine, all quiet.

Same here. Haven't even heard the fan kick in yet. Incredibly quiet.

galarneau · May 22, 2006, 05:42 AM

Any other new MacBook owners with comments on whine/noise?

May 22, 2006, 06:03 AM

Last night, in a perfectly silent house I heard the whine while browing the web - seemed to go away when I was scrolling and of course, when I had Photobooth open. I had been using the MB most of the weekend and that was the first I had heard it.

I did ask my friend if they heard it and though she strained to, she didn't. We are convinced I probably have dog hearing as I can also "hear" when something electronic is on in a room.

Stock 1.83

Yakov · May 22, 2006, 06:09 AM

yeah... i'm trying not to be too stressed out about the whine because i sometimes hear lightbulbs, TVs on mute, power lines, my grandmother's malfunctioning hearing aids... note that i haven't seen a macbook in person yet, since i'm in Israel thru June 8

michaelb · May 22, 2006, 06:11 AM

Will any stores let you check the machine for whining before handing over the cash?

Or is it a case of buy it, THEN put it into for a warranty exchange, etc? Will all stores do an exchange?

I wonder what the odds are of getting a whining MacBook... Based on the numbers I've seen here, it would seem to be about 1 in 3. But aside from the regulars, people often only come to the forums if there's a problem, so it could only be something like 1 in 10.

Yakov · May 22, 2006, 06:45 AM

Don't ever judge a problem by its representation on the internet.

harrisjamieh · May 22, 2006, 07:02 AM

Originally Posted by Yakov

Don't ever judge a problem by its representation on the internet.

erm, why not

Maflynn · May 22, 2006, 07:05 AM

My white 2.0GHz does not whine, which I'm so happy (relieved) because my PB had the infamous sizzle, so its nice to have a quiet laptop.

Mike

dialo · 08:43 AM

I've had 3. All of them had the whine. I didn't have a lot of time with the first two, but with them I couldn't hear it at all without putting my ear up to the left size of the computer, and even then it was quiet. Same with the 3rd one until early this morning when I noticed I could barely hear it if I leaned in a little and listened for it. Personally, I'm not worried about it on these machines.

harrisjamieh · May 22, 2006, 08:51 AM

If you could not hear it without putting your ear up to it, then it probably wasn't the 'whine', but a general operating computer noise

fesdds · May 22, 2006, 08:54 AM

I haven't heard a whine on either of my Macbooks. But then I have bad hearing, haha, so if I had it I still may not notice it.

dialo · 09:19 AM

It's definitely the whine. Among other things, it goes away with photo booth open. It's very quiet, however, and not audible to me during normal use in even quiet environments.

Gee4orce · May 22, 2006, 11:20 AM

Originally Posted by harrisjamieh

erm, why not

You're kidding right ? Erm...because only a tiny, vocal minority will ever bother posting about their problems ? And that the vast, silent majority never post about the fact they don't have problems. When was the last time that you heard something like "Consumers angered over lack of problems with new Gadget" ?

harrisjamieh · May 22, 2006, 11:27 AM

Originally Posted by Gee4orce

You're kidding right ? Erm...because only a tiny, vocal minority will ever bother posting about their problems ? And that the vast, silent majority never post about the fact they don't have problems. When was the last time that you heard something like "Consumers angered over lack of problems with new Gadget" ?

I will agree that it gives you a relativly small cross section of cases, some of which will be biased due to what you said, people only coming to the forum to tell of problems. Whilst this is true, I think, from what I have read, the majority (if not all) of the problems being reported are relativly isolated incidences.

SLiMeX · May 23, 2006, 02:28 PM

I think mine might be a whiny BlacBook. I have been installing a bunch of stuff, and I think it may be the superdrive. I'll be finding out soon enough when I eject the install disc of my Garageband Jampacks.

PS. I am getting a headache from it.

machack · May 23, 2006, 03:30 PM

Mine has a bit of whine. It is a 1.83 combo drive stock model. The whine is variable with what the computer is doing, it goes away completely if busy enough, like with PhotoBooth. Like dialo's, it is so quiet that I can only hear it in a quiet room (2am) with my ear within a few inches (say 10" or less) of the keyboard. I do have excellent hearing. If the AC/heat kicks on in the house, I can't hear it.

Actually, it's my wife's computer, and she'll never notice it. And she often has it plugged in, anyway. Not a problem here.

galarneau · May 23, 2006, 04:03 PM

I just sold my iBook on eBay to upgrade to a MacBook...

I just know I'll be pissed if it has an audible whine while it's running.

That kind of noise drives me up the wall.

blackbird_1.0 · May 23, 2006, 04:52 PM

My CTO'd 2GHZ Black MacBook does NOT whine.

TheoCryst · May 23, 2006, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by galarneau

I just sold my iBook on eBay to upgrade to a MacBook...

How much did you get for it? I just got a job and am looking forward to doing the same.

galarneau · May 23, 2006, 06:01 PM

$850

Had a gig of RAM and a 100GB hard drive in it, though.

bballe336 · May 23, 2006, 11:35 PM

I got my BlackBook on Monday....

I hear no "whine" under any conditions....I've seen some videos of the MacBook Pro's whine...nothing like that at all going on with my BlackBook.

Also...no dead pixels....and i think my TiBook got hotter than this thing... Awesome product, no quality issues... I just wish I had 2 gigs of ram to make Parallels run just a tad smoother.

luisito · May 23, 2006, 11:52 PM

I purchased a base model Macbook last week (the day Apple announced them), and I just noticed the whine. This really bums me out because it didn't whine until now. It has (until now) been perfectly quiet. The whine goes away when I open Photobooth, but immediately reappears the second I close photobooth.

I know a lot of people are saying the whine is CPU related. It might be, although I'll just throw this in to the mix: it only whines when plugged in, not when it's on battery power. When I originally got my MacBook, it didn't whine when plugged in. I've been using the MB on battery power for the last two days. Today, when I plugged it in to recharge and use the computer at the same time, that's when I heard the whine.

Any chance recharging and whining are related?

Spliff · May 24, 2006, 12:39 AM

They "moo" rather than "whine." It's caused by airflow through the fan. See the video here:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...33167064230159

From the Apple Discussion pages:

CONFIRMED - Mooing sound caused by intermittent fan
Posted: May 23, 2006 4:56 AM

Since so many people talk about the mooing sound, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I took apart a MacBook (I'm not gonna say who's macbook.

and ran the computer WHILE the cover was off. So I had a clear view of the MacBook's one and only cooling fan. The result?

The fan turns on and off at exactly the same interval as the mooing sound. The noise does NOT come from a faulty fan or any kind of physical rubbing. It comes simply from the airflow turbulence created by the fan.

I took VIDEO FOOTAGE of the fan turning on and off at exactly the interval of the mooing sound. Once I figure out how to post a video link, I'll upload it for you all to see. I hope the sound quality is good.. we'll see.

At exactly 67C (CoreDuoTemp) the fan turns on/off, on/off, and so on.

Thread

dialo · May 24, 2006, 01:54 AM

Originally Posted by dialo

It's definitely the whine. Among other things, it goes away with photo booth open. It's very quiet, however, and not audible to me during normal use in even quiet environments.

Just an update: I now have a new replacement (late serial #) and it too has the whine. That makes 4 MacBooks from 3 different Apple Stores that I had that have had the whine.

This one and the one before it also have the "moo," which is basically the fan going on and off at about 67 degrees C. The two before that may have had it, but I didn't use them for long enough to find out. Some people might not notice that they have it because a) it only happens in a certain temp range and b) it can be very quiet depending on the ambient noise and the fan itself. This fan problem, however, is pretty damn annoying.

SLiMeX · May 24, 2006, 11:25 AM

So I've figured out that my MacBook only whines when running the superdrive. Does anyone else have this problem?

harrisjamieh · May 24, 2006, 11:34 AM

Not to undermine your intelligence, but are you sure its not just the superdrive making optical drive noises... because the slot loaders are relativly noisy, so I am wondering how you can actually hear the whine over the sound of the optical drive

Heavy · May 24, 2006, 11:52 AM

I have tinnitus so everything whines.

seriously, thankfully my blackie doesn't whine.

SLiMeX · May 24, 2006, 01:36 PM

I am not sure, by any means, because I've never heard the whine, so I dont know what I'm comparing it to. All I know is that it makes a very high pitched noise when the superdrive is in action. Its not the lens because you can hear that moving back and forth, and the spin-ups and downs are clearly audible. I don't know this third noise is, so I call it a whine...

Hi I'm Ben · May 24, 2006, 02:15 PM

Originally Posted by dialo

Just an update: I now have a new replacement (late serial #) and it too has the whine. That makes 4 MacBooks from 3 different Apple Stores that I had that have had the whine.

This one and the one before it also have the "moo," which is basically the fan going on and off at about 67 degrees C. The two before that may have had it, but I didn't use them for long enough to find out. Some people might not notice that they have it because a) it only happens in a certain temp range and b) it can be very quiet depending on the ambient noise and the fan itself. This fan problem, however, is pretty damn annoying.

You should stop buying them. It's quite obvious this is the wrong computer for you.

harrisjamieh · May 24, 2006, 02:18 PM

Just got mine; it whines, but I have yet to see if it is acceptable to me - i'll wait until I am in a quiet room

dialo · May 24, 2006, 03:11 PM

Originally Posted by Hi I'm Ben

You should stop buying them. It's quite obvious this is the wrong computer for you.

No kidding. I'm looking for a widescreen iBook running OS X on intel that works a well as the PPC iBooks, but apparently there's no such thing on the market. It's really too bad since it's almost an absolutely fantastic machine, aside from the QC and engineering flaws that have pretty annoying side effects on many machines.

machack · May 24, 2006, 05:51 PM

Originally Posted by SLiMeX

I am not sure, by any means, because I've never heard the whine, so I dont know what I'm comparing it to. All I know is that it makes a very high pitched noise when the superdrive is in action. Its not the lens because you can hear that moving back and forth, and the spin-ups and downs are clearly audible. I don't know this third noise is, so I call it a whine...

That's not it. That is the SD making noise. The processor/power whine is from the motherboard area, left side of the keyboard. I have to have it quiet and put my ear pretty close to hear it. It happens when the computer is doing nothing, and goes away when it is busy.

NOT hearing it is a GOOD thing.

Frans · May 24, 2006, 06:23 PM

As far as I can say after having worked with my BlackBook 120 Gb: VERY quiet machine. My 12" PB is standing next to it and wow, that baby makes much more noise. No wining as far as I can tell, or it is the sound of the HD starting up. But that is hardly audible.