Weird ticking sound in Batt mode on ibook

bradj_aaronbradj_aaron
Posted:
in Genius Bar edited January 2014
Hi all,



I just got my new iBook. It is, of course, the greatest thing in the world. However, whenever I am using it in battery mode there is a ticking sound that repeats at random intervals and volumes. It seems to be coming from the speakers, but it only occurs when I am unplugged and using the battery for power. It occurs even when I mute the speakers.



Has anyone else experienced this? I don't want to call AppleCare just yet as I just got the laptop and don't want to give it back for a week while they try and fix it.



Thanks in advance,



--Brad--



P.S. I am using the Airport card to access our wireless network.



iBook 900 w/640 RAM and Airport.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    I had something that sounds just like what you are describing when I play DVD's. But I was using OS9 and it was caused by a bug with the platinum sounds. (menu clicks, drags and sorts) I think I also remember a bad power supply causing a ticking sound in some powerbooks.



    Maybe I should shut up until I have something useful to say.

  • Reply 2 of 8
    aquafireaquafire Posts: 2,758member
    Most Apple computers make ticking sounds..PeeCees make Clunkin sounds..But don't worry I'm not doubting you..it's because these machines are relatively silent..aka no fan, that we tend to hear odd clicks & even a little bit of feed back thru the speakers.



    I went to Google and put in " Ibook clicking power" & suprise suprise it seems this not an unheard of problem.



    Nor is it new..



    One site suggested that it might be hard-drive related..

    ".....could be caused by IOAudio errors being written repeatedly to system.log " ....end of quote...



    See http://www.macdatanet.com/v01/?news=47.



    Mind you they were referring to OS-X 10.2.1..



    But who is to say the problem isn't on going ?
  • Reply 3 of 8
    skalmanskalman Posts: 42member
    Hi,



    if having an iBook with OS X 10.2.5 or 10.2.6 it is likely that its a SW problem.

    As a workaround turning the sound down to a minimum or having iTunes open might get the ticking noise to go away. (has helped for some people anyway)

    If it doesnt work then the only thing you can do is to downgrade to 10.2.4 or to wait for SW update.

    Hope this helps
  • Reply 4 of 8
    paulpaul Posts: 5,278member
    if it happens even when he mutes the speakers then iTunes may not help...



    does it happen when you plug in headphones? does the sound play through the headphones?



    this is NOT supposed to happen. Reminds me of

    http://forums.appleinsider.com/showt...threadid=15012

    and

    http://forums.appleinsider.com/showt...threadid=15878
  • Reply 5 of 8
    bradj_aaronbradj_aaron Posts: 2member
    In way of a followup to my initial post I would like to let everyone know what happened. About a week after I reported the ticking sound coming from my ibook, my screen went black and would not display even after multiple restarts and a call to Applecare. The techs at AC couldn't diagnose the problem over the phone and they asked me to send in the laptop. After the requisite 5-day wait my ibook was returned to me with a working display and a VERY scratched upper lid (making me very unhappy but reluctant to send back my new ibook once again so Apple could fix the damage).



    So, anyway, the problem turned out to be a bad logic board. They replaced the malfunctioning board and the clicking sound has disappeard.



    Thanks for all of your suggestions, and watchout for the "click of death".



    --b--
  • Reply 6 of 8
    aquafireaquafire Posts: 2,758member
    Send it to Apple tech and they'll post internal memo:



    Please remove " weird Ticking sound " replace with normal ticking sound...
  • Reply 7 of 8
    macsrwemacsrwe Posts: 3member
    One variant of the "ticking sound" is a loud ticking from the speakers, often starting right as the "on" switch is pressed, ticking at a very fast rate, then stopping, then starting again at a slower rate as the desktop is coming up, and going on forever. It does not respond to the volume or mute buttons, and occurs in both battery and AC power modes. The boot chimes are not heard, nor are any other sounds.



    This is caused by a shorted/pinched speaker cable. Often the solution is very simple:



    Lift the keyboard out of the keyboard well. You do not need to remove the memory shield. Lift the tape from the left hand side of the keyboard well. You will see the speaker cable running top to bottom. Remove the screws (two in a G3, do equivalent in a G4) in the top shell nearest to the cable to give yourself some wiggle room. Lifting the shell slightly, adjust the position of the cable to ensure that it is not being pinched under the top shell. Plug in the AC power and start up the machine to see if the ticking noise went away. If not, manipulate the cable some more while the machine is ticking and see if you can make it go away. If you find a position for the cable that turns the ticking off, tape it down with the tape strip, then close everything back up. If moving the cable doesn't solve the problem, it probably has a hard short in it and will need to be replaced.
  • Reply 8 of 8
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bradJ_aaron View Post


    However, whenever I am using it in battery mode there is a ticking sound that repeats at random intervals and volumes. It seems to be coming from the speakers, but it only occurs when I am unplugged and using the battery for power. It occurs even when I mute the speakers.



    Have you considered there might be a bomb inside your computer?
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