My MacBook Speakers Stopped Working

My MacBook Speakers Stopped Working

Tagged Troubleshooting by Brent on February 9th, 2007

Recently my sweet, innocent, little puppy, Kaze, step on my MacBook (I know, gasp). Everything seemed fine at first but I soon discovered that the internal speakers on my MacBook stopped working completely. After browsing the Apple Support Site to no avail. I was able to find the following information helpful and ultimately it solved my problem. (whew!)

From iMeowBot on MacRumors:

“That kind of thing happens when of the tabs inside a phono jack is bent. They can often be fixed with a small pick, but it would be very easy to break them off too. You will want to bring it into the shop if you haven’t done that kind of thing before, and the tabs aren’t always accessible anyway, especially on the little jacks.

If you haven’t yanked a cable or anything like that, it’ll probably be covered under the warranty.

If Apple decide that it’s not a warranty item for some reason, and that you need a nice new expensive board, you could you a Griffin iMic or something as a replacement.”

From this, I took my headphone plug and wiggled it around (gently) and it worked. Wierd huh? I definately pulled a Paul and hated my mac for about an hour. All is well though and I’m right back where I should be. Thanks iMeowBot (whoever you are) for the tip!

Nexus2k

My GF drop bag with laptop forgetting is inside, symptoms ? no sound thru speakers + ; - ; mute when pressing show crossed speaker icon. Solution ?
I FIXED THIS WAY, play movie with max sound, put in/out headphone and same time press + and - colume buttons, I ended with working OSD for volume but no sound ! OK, power off macbook, pull out battery and press POWER button for 20s, then put battery back, POWER ON keeping button for 5-10s, it beeeeps long time (3sec) seconds, white screen, loads Leo and VIOLA!!! sound speakers play now my music :) :) :)

Christina

Mine was not as simple. I tried wiggling but to no avail. So i had to use a bobby pin pushed it up agents the sides and vala!

THANKS SO MUCH!

Rfen

yay! it fixed my issue too.

thanks

Blueracer66

"Wiggling" didn't work for me. However, if I left my iTunes playing eventually I would start hearing a sound like that one sound you hear when you throw a battery to the fire (lol) on the left speaker then the right speaker. Then the audio will eventually return. It would start really quiet and gradually get louder. The problem still happens to me but now the sound returns within a few seconds after restarting or waking up my computer. Hope this helps in any way.

ana

thank you soooooo much! i dont know what i would have done without the comments since my warranty already expired!!!!
wiggling the headphone plug halfway really works!!!!! thanks!!!

Blueracer66

Damn, it just happened to me. I see no red light. I'll try the wiggling method and see what happens. f.y.i. I hear no sound through the headphones. I hate no having sound. I listen to my iTunes every time my MacBook Pro is on. :/

Martin Westerstrand

used headphones. yanked them out JUST as it was shutting down.
when I started it back up, the internat speakers were just silent and gone.

I didn't see any red light, but the wiggle thing worked for me as well!

mine is a 15" macbooc pro 2.66.

Segovia

can't see any red light, but the wiggle trick worked for me ;-)

Ben

lol didnt even know there was a red light in the hole til just now wtf

Krystin

mine is the same. I blamed it on my sister for never pushing pause on my music, seems like its a Mac issue. I hate how I have to carry headphones or a pair of speakers with me everywhere.

Clara

I was so frustrated in the beginning not even the red light appeared, but after wiggling like crazy it finally worked.

mumomany

I've tried for 2 weeks to fix this problem and thanks to everyone here its now fixed, and I'm banning headphones from my book! :) THANKYOU soooo much.

Beats Producer

It worked! My contribution:
I have a 09 MacBook Pro 17". Had the speaker/headphone/redlight issue as above. When I peered into the red HAL-like headphone jack, I noticed a tiny tab all the way in the back (like right up against the light), at the 9-o'clock position. Using a paperclip bent with a tiny hook and a lot of patience, I managed to hook it and either pull it or push it in - I made sure I had music playing so that I would know when it worked. Took about 20 minutes and my eyes hurt. Thanks for your help!

cherie

I had such a hard time figuring this out. Oh man i was really mad. finally after trying the "wiggling" trick for about a half hour i almost gave up hope and decided to listen to music with the head phones plugged in. i decided to "pinch" my laptop right where the port it on the top and bottom and then i pulled out my head phones and it worked! yay.

divadavid

You'd think Apple would address this situation...so many people have encountered this problem. Is there any one you know who has experienced this who can show you just where to "tickle" to make it work again?

joelleireland

i was listening to a song via ear phones trying not to disturb those around me, then i took them out and you guessed it. the red beam of light. It has been 5 months since this happened.. i have tried the wiggling, tooth pick, bobby pin, Q-tip, earing, more wiggling, more toothpick.. NOTHING. i've read ALL of these posts, and many other web sites concerning the same problem. I've tried for hours at a time for days, weeks, and months. Nothing is working, and i cant send it in because i bought my MacBook off of the internet. im so frustrated and don't want to have to carry ear phones EVERY where i go! so inconvenient .. WHAT do i do!

Tom

Speakers operational after inserting headphone jack in and out gently about 8 times. I noticed that the red light was going from on to off and then on again; finally, it turned off and my speakers worked... the toothpick method did not work for me!

UsUala

YESSSS it worked! After about 40 mins. Feel like a prick for sitting here wiggling a hair pin in a jack for that long, but it worked.
You have to push the second little button in HARD for a few seconds. Sometimes the speakers will only work if you hold the pin on the button, but push harder, HARDER I SAY! And it will work hopefully (Y)

Prit

Hi All,
I had the same problem. I was tearing my hair out for 2 months. I pressed the from part of the laptop heavily. - and bingo, it worked. To start with there was some distortion , but by pressing it more it improved.

Hope it helps for you.
Prit

timothyndaleyphd

I tried the persistent wiggle and after some persistence (gentle) it fixed my problem for now at least! I'm not so impressed with the Mac in terms of excellence. My daughter just took her's back and got a new Macbook pro due to a keyboard lighting short causing electrical issues. It was $2200.00 to purchase and not even a month old! Then my $1965.00 Macbook pro only 3 moths old started with the sound issue. I now have a 3 year extended macbook pro warranty (252.00) extra because I trust the mac folks so much for quality (NOT!). I think the golden days of Mac superiority are over. Mine came from Shanghai china shipped to me so . . . . perhaps the chinese labor force assembling these MacBook Pro's are not as swift and precise as thought. Two new macs and both have problems! 4200.00 worth of excellence? I think not! Oh well they've got my money once but we shall see if ever again.

Dominique

poke and hold worked for me but now the speakers only work when i hold the bobby pin there. help?

Lexi

Unfortunately, the fix isn't quite permanent. I had this problem last year and without doing any research, it fixed itself on its own. However, I wasn't too careful and I tripped over my headphone cored yanking it out of my comp and causing the problems again.. x< *sniffles*

Chybby

weird... it just happened to me. just plugged in my headphones then took them out. now it works.

Cpod

THANK YOU SO MUCH! I never though of putting in my headphones. The sound hasn't been working for well over a week. Now it works! Thanks so much!

brentspore

Maybe this article will help?

http://iboughtamac.com/2008/07/26/ask-ibam-broken-off-headphone-jack/

Gillian

someone help me!! i can't even try the wiggle option because i can't even plug anything in to the jack. it looks like there is a piece of metal inside. i can only get the headphones about half way in.
there isn't a red light either.

shawn

The wiggly method just worked for me :DDD

Name

Ah, what a bummer :/
Oh well, I'll get that checked out tomorrow, thanks though (:

brentspore

Yeah, that sounds like a loose wire or connection. Something different than what the above stuff is. Time for a call to the Genius Bar? :)

Name

When I plugged in my earphones, I heard static and crackling, and it stopped period. Now my speakers don't work, and neither do my earphones :/
I've tried to plug my earphones in a couple times, and there will be a quick sound of music then it'll stop.
I've tried wiggling and whatnot, and I read this, and noticed that people talked about a "red light" I don't see a red light.
Am I in a situation where I need to send it out for help? :/

Name

hoo-ray for wiggling toothpicks! thanks!

dave284

Same symptoms for my Macbook also.
Tried the audio file delete and reboot.
Tried the cotton bud.
Tried the paper clip.
Tried the rapid insert/withdraw.
Tried the tooth pick method using a wooden kebab scewer>>>
YEEEHAAA!
Worked for me poking it in at 3 o'clock position about 1/3 in.
My life is better now I have found the t-spot.

skaupert

And wiggling worked. But only in the audio-in jack. Not in the headphone jack.

Alain

YESSSSSSSSSSSS !!!
thx :)))
my speakers are siging again lol
the wiggling thing worked I was using an ipod headphones,
I just pulled it off very gentelly and wiggled until I heard them back so I turned the volume up and it's working now
thx again :)
Alain

Name

Oddly enough, the toothpick and a gentle probing at the back of the jack worked for me. It's eerie.

Celeste

You guys are awesome!! The wiggle thing worked for me, too. Thanks a bunch. I was def. getting a bit irritated. :P

skater4shreder

hey idk where to wiggle? where am i supposed to wiggle?

skater4shreder

how?

skater4shreder

hi where do u wiggle?

skater4shreder

how did u do this?? and just the regular headphone input slot?

skater4shreder

can someone tell me where this wiglin takes place!

skater4shreder

hey where is this stuff loacated?

lil john

hey can someone tell me how im supposed to find this cord that i have to wiggle!!!!!!!!????????

lil john

well i have the same problem! but i have no idea where all this stuff is located at so i can wiggle it!! i need help asap!

Miguel

taking the risk to be like everyone else ... it worked thanks.

still i think it is COMPLETELLY stupid comming from this kind of product - i mean ... wiggling! ... seriously? u pay thousands for such a stupid "bug". pfff... whatever.

well anyway - it worked for me - thanks a lot anyway :)

Eve Double

Hooray for the wiggle! Thanks so much!!!

William Mazurek

Thanks so much guys!
My speakers were out for almost 2 months and it was really annoying because I had to have head phones with me whenever i wanted to do anything. The wiggling didn't work at first for me, but then i tried it with the headphones almost all the way in with just enough space to move the end of the jack around, it worked! Thanks so much, my warranty is expired and I just saved some dough!

Jimmy

Thanks guys!
The exact same thing happened to me: the speakers stopped working on my Macbook pro, a red light was on in the headphone plug. I Googled it and found this trick: I wiggled and after a few tries IT WORKED!!!!!! awesome! Thanks!

Nickblaqk

HOly crap!
The headphones thing worked IMMEDIATELY
I was surprised, I thought it was B.s.!

THANKS!

Lauren Selig

THANK YOU!!!! I was seriously freaking out. You are an absolute lifesaver!

lauren

I have a similar problem except the end of my speakers came off in the jack. The speakers still work if you plug the other half in, but the internal speakers do not work. Ive tried wiggling a toothpick and it didnt work because i think the end of the speaker needs to come out of the jack. Does anyone know what i could do?

john C. Ortega

ok I did use the paper clip and put it into the jack almost all the way in but not quite and rotated pin in a circle while playing a song and it came right on

Yiscah

YaYYY! Thanks so much for posting this. Went to skype w/ my Mum and no sound would come out. After finding this, I looked in the lil hole where my headset plugs in and found a red light on. Jiggled the pointy end bit of my earrings in it lol, cause I couldn't find my headset and the light went off, sound came on :)

Jessie

hahaha princley! you saved my life and my lappy :) did the push half way through method and push it to the left.. it worked :)
(you only have to press gently...

thanks!!!! funny though the song "do you believe in magic" came on :P ohh thee irony :D

robert

Wiggle Wiggle Chicken Dinner. Cha-Ching.

rina

Wiggling worked for me!! yeay!!

Mike

I have a slightly different problem. My speakers aren't working, and my headphones aren't working. They just gave out yesterday, not really sure why. I didn't really do anything to them. There is NO red light in the headphone jack.

Wiggle trick and toothpick trick don't seem to work. I've reset the nvram with the command + option + p +r, I've rebooted, I've shut down and restart. Might be a lost cause I dunno.

Anyone have any tips at all?

Joey

WOW thank you so much. i just heard a pop and all of the sudden my left internal speaker stopped working. I typed in "speaker blow out macbook" and the first post was yours. I grabbed the nearest earphones, stuck them in, heard another pop and now it works perfectly. You saved me a trip to the mac store. Thank you

Marcus

Paper Clip @ 6/7pm worked perfectly for me.

Liese Birdie

And then, there was no sound.. I found this post and yeah, it is the same problem and teh same solution.. but weird.. I heard it never before and my Macbook is the late 2008 alu? And here are dozens of people with the same problem. Mij speakers stopped after listen to music via headphonejack. Sometimes he could find the internal speakers and then they where gone and my mac was 'ticking' searching for the intern speakers. After putting the jack in my mac again and out, the problem was solved (as far as I can see for now..) Thanx!

Star

So I went into System Preferences - Sound and un-muted the Output!
I am not sure why it was muted in the first place! :) Good luck!!!!

Stencil

Thank you :] I just used some headphones to plug in and wiggle around a bit, messed with the port till the glow was gone, and my internal speakers are back. Weirdest thing ever.. something's bent in the external port so the internal speakers won't work? Doesn't even make sense :]

Frank

omg.... Thank u for the information, it work just like you said it. who knew a little "wiggle, wiggle" would work.

Andy

Wooo... I pushed in a pen middle (the thin bit with the ink in when you unscrew a pen) and it's all working now. :)

Danielle

Thanks for the wiggle technique. I was doubtful that it would work for me, but after doing it for a few minutes it worked! Thanks, I appreciate it.

wiggle, wiggle

Irina

Ok I called Apple support and this worked for my Mac Book Pro :
Insert the Speaker cord or headphone cord into your Mac Book Or Mac Book Pro repeatedly 5 times while the computer is on. Then Go into System Preferences > Sound> Click on OutPut and make sure the Internal Speakers are Selected . IT should work! Good Luck!

TINYDANCER6513

The other day i was playing music through a cable in my car and the sound was working fine. But just now i turn on my computer (macbook) and the sound wont work!! there is a little circle with a line through it whenever i try to turn up or down the volume. And nothing comes out of the internal speakers. HELP! and how do i fix it?

Bananalegs!

Thank-Youuuuuuuuuuu! It works! What I did was put the toothpick all the way in and just keep turning it in an anti-clockwise direction. Go slow and listen to it,'cuz mine made a click noise and then I actually had to do it a couple of times, but Success!!! Don't give up, just take a deep breathe and keep at it! Good luck!

Soe

Great Tip!

Glad that I saw red light, saying something is wrong there and could see clearly what happening inside,

For someone whose toothpick is not working, because there are TWO clicks to be bounced back to normal.

After that, the red light will went off and WALA, sound is back

Dale from Wales

YES!! I was fearing another long trip to the Apple Store when my speakers wouldn't come on (previously it wouldn't boot up), but I stuck it in the little hole, jiggled it about a bit and everyone (me) was happy. And that's an innuendo it there ever was one.

Erin

Yet another in favor of wiggling. There was no red light coming from the port, but the wiggle fixed it.

Mac Lover

OMG! It does really worked. wiggling it....
thank you so much. but the problem persist everytime i plug and unplug my earphones.

Radical Missus

I LOVE YOU!!!
The sound has been broken for weeks after I leant it to a friend, and i was about to send it away tomorrow, despite major coursework deadlines, and i tried this, and it worked! YAY!

greg

wigle it works!!! thank u all!!!

Dan

I was having the same trouble. Plugging and unplugging as well as wiggling did not work. However, when I plugged 1/2 way into the audio-in port and wiggled a bit, voila, it started working again. Thanks Andrew!

brentspore

That sounds to me like a loose connection on your motherboard. Might need a trip to the genius bar for that one. Does it do the same thing (sound the same) when you plug in headphones?

Janith

I have been getting a static sound from the speakers, and the volume of music playback is very soft, even at full volume. The wiggle trick isn't helping the volume or static, but does cause the sound to cut in and out.

Any ideas?

awei

Been trying the wiggle/toothpick/air moethod for about an hour no luck, however i seem to found a temporary fix, if your headphone is pluged at the right location (about 2/3 of the way), speakers come back, but if i remove the headphone then red light comes back on. Still gonna keep trying.

Tara

Mine stopped working like 20 minutes ago... i just put the headphones back in and wiggled it gently, pulled them back off and it works now. Thanks!

beatnik

My macbook has had some problems but Apple always took care of it, even several months after the warranty was up. This just happened to me and I did the wiggly thing. Small circles as I gently tugged I thought I could feel something and then the sound came back through the speakers. I really didn't doubt Apple would fix it, I just dread having to go on the business weekend... Problem solved, thanks to all of the info on this list.

mitch

it works!! but i have to keep on wiggling it everytime though. but its better than what i had before

Anton

Wiggling works! What fun! Too bad wiggling doesn't solve more of life's problems...

Tulkas

Always look on the wiggle side of life!

Cherio

sandro

wiggle!!!! thanks everybody!!!

jamie

the wiggle worked!!!! i was so happy, thank you!!!

colin

i had to wiggle quite a bit - but then it worked !!!!

WIGGLE WIGGLE

Ami

speakers on macbook white cut out,
yes after reading these solution,
put in headphone jack 1/3 inch,
twist slightly upwards and round,
got it unstuck from digital out mode!
straight away!!!
thanks

Hai

toothpick worked for mine... get the red light on so went it works the light will turn off... Thanks for the tips to start with.

Samuel

My girlfriend's MacBook's right speaker just dropped out while watching a show during dinner, and 3 minutes later after Googling and finding this site and plugging in and removing headphones, everything is back to normal. I have no idea what happened or why, but it did the trick. Thanks for making this post!

Drew

Ive spent about 2 hrs straight trying to fix this to no avail. I tried blowing in it, tried spraying pressurized air, tried wiggling a headphone jack, and tried a paper clip.
Looks like Im gonna have to try throwing my laptop down a flight of stairs next.

Heather

THANK YOU!
I've had to use headphones/speakers via headphone jack for a few weeks now because of this.

I tried just inserting and reinnserting the jack several times then went with a matchstick, a Q-tip (cut in half - the smooth side, not the fuzzy side) and finally back to the jack again - but this time i *very* gently wiggled it around. While doing this, I had itunes playing so that, as i wiggled the jack, i was hearing the crackle and the music - once i heard the sweet music coming from my mac- i stopped jiggling the jack and all is well (for now).

How silly.

Thanks for posting the solution!

BEN Steiger

yesssssssss it worked 4 me .lol. im so stoked now i dont need those god damn hed phones any more. thanx guys for the hot tip.

at firs i thought it wouldnt work because i was wiggleing alot but i got pissed and wiggled hard and BAMMMMM!!!!!!!!! MUSICAAAHAAAAAAAAAA

tom

YAY!!!!!!!!!!

<3333

tom

maybe you need new headphones?

tom

the wiggle wasnt working for me. try a paper clip and just press down in random places youll find the spot the problem is comming from eventually. Thank you so much to who posted this to begin with!!!!!!!!!!!! i cant tell you how gratful i am for not having to send it off.

Briana

I literally just blew into it and the sound came back on, i recommend people try this way first before the wiggling and toothpick idea because that didnt work for me

Yos

Use a toothpick and move it an anti-clockwise direction. you're trying to push between 6 and 7 o'clock position. It happened to me before and it worked. Don't push it too hard, you don't wanna break the toothpick. Good luck.

donald

You all just saved my life!!!

Betsy

I had given up hope and just was almost in tears. I need my speakers and as a college student, can't part with my computer for too long, but just keep trying! the wiggling works eventually! I don't think I've EVER been so happy to hear sound coming from my computer! :D

Brian

Haha...yes!! I was getting so frustrated too! I kept thinking... "Man, my computer must a have a different problem than all of these people because it is not f-ing working! But.....

IT DID! FINALLY. I spent about 10 minutes with a toothpick to no avail. Finally, I took my headphone plug and RAPIDLY stuck it in and out about 10-15 times....and suddenly my MUSIC STARTED WORKING AGAIN on my internal speakers. YAY!

KEEP TRYING FRUSTRATED MAC USERS!

:-)

REd5

O
M
G
That totally worked!!
For those who haven't had it work, you just gotta keep trying, it's a royal B*tch, but here's my process (just like everyone else, lawl)
1. thumbtack (no avail)
2. plastic fork "tong" (no avail)
3. wire hanger cut off and inserted straight into the jack, wiggled around a bit (if your looking at the comp as if it were on your lap it would be the inside of the jack most towards you.. however if you were looking at the jack itself it would be the right side, poke around there a bit. I was about to quit when i pulled it out one last time with a mighty force (omg O.o macrotica) and it just started working

samara

Soooo frustrating! TSA dropped my computer at the airport the other day. Bastards! I turned it on and everything worked fine, so no harm no foul. Then on the plane, I plugged in my headphones and watched a movie. When I pulled them out, the internal speakers wouldn't turn on and the "red light of silence" poured from the jack. I had no toothpicks, so I cut the fuzzy end off a q-tip and poked around with the stem until the light went out. Bowie is now playing through my speakers! Of course, the internal speakers still kinda blow, but that's another problem! Thanks again!

Red Avo

OMG. This trick actually worked for me too! I was growing more and more frustrated about the entire thing. I first used the headphone plug and wiggled it to no avail, but then I used a paperclip and gently pressed on the last tab in the back of the jack and music started playing from my computer. So strange that those things are so sensitive to moment via the headphone plug..

esh kosh ka

OK....so i tried to mess with my dj lite and I found out my built in speakers weren't working. So I googled n came across this thread. I tried the wiggle but that didn't work. Then I tried the toothpick n that wasn't working. I gave up for a bit n went back at it with the toothpick.

Here's how I fixed the problem. It looks like there are a few jack buttons in there so I poked at each one. When I started poking at the furthest one the red light began to flicker on n off. So I held the toothpick on that last button for three seconds(light off for 3 seconds) and voila built in speakers startd working...problem fixed. Thanks for the thread guys...saves me from calling the geeksquad =P

ian

wiggling works! thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dunsh

WIGGLING WORKS!!!!!!!!!! But i wiggled the toothpick inside. I tried inserting the headphones but it didn't work so i tried the toothpick trick and VOILA!!..MUSIC!!! woohoo! thanks to whoever discovered the toothpick trick.

jenny

I had the same problem with the little red light and having no sound coming from my internal speakers and the headphone thing didn't work for me. However I put a pin carefully into the speaker jack and lightly pressed down and it fixed the problem. Thanks!

Vanessa

Has the same problem as everyone else here; the internal speakers suddenly stopped working.
After reading a few posts, I went for the 'hair bobby pin' solution (I didn't have a toothpick nearby). It worked beautifully. It took about 10 min of gentle wriggling and patience, but alas, I was relieved to hear the music suddenly start playing!

I just gently pressed the round-ended bobby pin of each of the little tabs you can see if you carefully inside your headphone jack. Press each one gently and hopefully your internal speakers will suddenly start playing for you too!

The last thing anyone wants to do is send their Mac in for repairs, unless its absolutely crucial.

junior

just take a head phone jack, push it in half way and ring it round and round till you hear sound. note: make sure you have music playing

Jack

After several days later I bought my Macbook a little bug seemed to have got into the machine through the holes where the cooling air comes out (beneath the monitor). I'm not sure if it really got into it or it's just my mistake, but since then, when I tried to change the volume of the internal speaker, occasionally it keeps switching between 'internal speaker' and 'external speaker' and wouldn't change the volume. When that happens, there is clicking sound coming out from the internal speaker.
If I reboot Macbook then it works fine again. The clicking sound and malfunctioning happens spontaneously so I can't really take it to Apple store.
But wiggling seemed to work, too. Strange.
My brother's Macbook, exactly the same model, has no such problem.

sumeet

hey it worked for me as well. thanks =) i just kept poking it in and out real fast (the headphone plug) and the red light went off.. i guess i confused it? hah =x

Etienne

Wiggled jack : nothing... I thought I was doomed and started to weep...But with a toothpick : perfect. gentle little nudges inside the hole did the trick!

Thanks guys!

Luke G

It seems like everyone is missing an important step:

1. More yourself a tall drink, a cold beer, or a glass of wine. And be sure there's more where that came from.
2. Frack with the headphone jack for anywhere between 60 seconds and 3 hours. I have best luck with a headphone plug itself...
3. Enjoy the sound while it lasts. If not, sorry.

wendy

Same problem, but in reverse- my internal speakers work, but the jack does not. no red light. I saw someone else wrote about this, but no one responded. Can anyone suggest anything?

wendy

PROBLEM IN REVERSE

peter honeyman

wiggling and inspecting a few times until the red light went off worked for me -- thanks! (next time i'll try compressed air.)

Frustrated

I hate my mac. I hate apple. My mac is always giving ALL sort of problems the most recent thing is this infuriating red light. I managed to repair with the wigglin but the very next day it came back. I wiggled for hours and then i tried the toothpick thing for another hour or so. I got so frustrated that i was about to smash the da** macbook into the floor so i hit it gently 3 times near the jack and it worked.

Philip

Thanks for the help, the wigglin didn't work for me. I was ready to scream, but the toothpick did. If I wanted stupid problems like this I would have gotten a pc.

steve

good job with the wiggle whoever came up with the "original wiggle" i just wiggled it a bit back and forth with iTunes playing and sound came back out of speakers within 2 seconds

Brent

For me it was permanent (so far anyway). I only had the issue once and never since. (fingers crossed) :)

lak

Thank You SO Much! My parents bought me my mac as a bday/christmas present. and my speakers have not been working for about 4 days. and i was way to scared to tell them. ha, but the wiggle thing worked for me also!

do you know if it is a permanent fix??

Princeley

Same prob out here, solved it though.... Kinda simple jus follow the steps below:

1. Play some music
2. Take a earphone and plug it in halfway down the earphone port..
3. Gently push the headphone to the left, this will make sure the the earphone plug will come in contact wit a tiny button(on the right side) inside the port.
4. Shake the earphone a bit n voila ur macbook will start playing again.....

Jon

I don't know if anyone can help me out here - owing to an unlucky stumble, I have the tip of a half a (snapped) headphone plug stuck in my MacBook's headphone socket. It's just come back from the Apple shop and they can't do anything about it. So before I investing in a set of jewellers drills, does anyone know if there's a software override for this? It's very frustrating - it makes the Mac sound on boot, but is otherwise mute.

Michael Henn

Wiggle did not work, toothpick also did not work.

But a can of compressed air did the trick. Just give a few short blasts into the headphone jack and all that dust that is making your switch stick comes right out. I recommend everyone with this problem try the compressed air first! Much safer and more effective!

Paul

Just tried blowing into the headphone jack after two Leopard re-installs and hours of research to fix missing internal speakers that started immediately after the first Leopard install (for 3 total).

It worked!

I don't know whether I should be happy it's working or sad that that was all it needed the whole time..

Andrew

I found something else that worked! The same issue happened on a customers' MacBook. The Sound control panel only allowed the option to choose Digital Audio, the internal speakers did not show up as an option, and the prohibit sign (circle with a line through it) showed up when pressing the sound up, sound down keys.

As suggested, I tried plugging and unplugging a set of external headphones into the headphone jack and wiggling them, but no luck after several tries. I wasn't ready to try the toothpick suggestion yet.

However, I decided to turn my attention to the audio-in jack, so I plugged the same headphones into the that jack (next to the headphone jack), removed them, and voila - all was back to normal.

Hope this helps some of you out there. --Andrew

tatin

OMG i was about to give up, the wiggling DOES work haha!!just dont give up! put the heaphone jack half way and keep wiggling it!

Dr. Awkward

Thank the LORD! It worked! I was getting frustrated because it happened at just the worst moment (trying to show my friend a funny video, then we have to wait, fix it, then it's not funny, ect) anyways! You are my hero. I was getting seriously cheezed off.

Roux.

Woow. It worked. Saw someone's posting about the blowing method, I tried, and voila!!! It worked. Amazing, can you imagine people were solving these kind of problems when there wasn't the internet?!?!

Thanks. R.

Kate

Thank you! The toothpick worked after an hour or two of panic! I had to wiggle it in a specific spot in order to hear the sound on the internal speakers. It is now working perfectly. If only the flaw didn't exist to begin with. Thanks for the help.

elena

same thing with me, wiggling worked after having found out what that is (i am not a native english speaker...) THANKS

Elena

Same thing happened to me after using the iphone headset on my sony vayo..it seems that the iphone headsets have some wired effect when used with any pc..very strange

lurch

I tried the toothpick trick and it worked immediately...

Dci521

Same thing happened to me when i was at the airport and had my headphones plugged in. the next thing i know the internal speakers dont work. I read the post that said to put the headphone jack in 1/3 way in and wiggle around a little why playing a song and it just came right on, even after wiggling for a while with the jack farther in.

garrett

Just had the same problem occur. wiggling the headphone plug fixed it. i was about to start getting annoyed until i found this page.

thanks for the tips.

David Ballantyne

OH MY GOODNESS
IT WORKS!
It took me ages! BUT IT WORKED

Claton

ok, thanks for the posts people. i'm in San Jose kickin it for biz, and my speakers just stopped working on the plane over. I didn't bring any headphones, and was getting a little antsy because i wanted to listen to music in my room on the macbook. Soooo... i just took the little string from one of my Puma track pants and shoved it in the laptop. BINGO!!!

Take that Macgyver!!

M

i had the same problem. no sound and red light comming out of the jack stick. tried wiggel, pull it out plug it in over and over again. restart and use diskutillty repair. then i triede to restart in Windows. and restart in mac workede for a coupel of minutes but then the musik startede to, fall out and in, if i look in system pref. evertime it falls out the internel speaker disapers. looks like a bad wirering. hops it is going to last...........

it comes and goes at the moment, i will see how it goes over the weekend, and if it keeps falling out i have to send it to repair, or is there any other way, would prefer to not give away my mac for a month

my mac is about 4-5 months old macbook 13.3 black.

darrin

It worked!! I read this and all I had to do was blow really hard into the head phone jack and BINGO! It's kind of lame that I had to look on the internet for hours to fix a problem for a brand new computer.

R

Thanks a lot! Damn was I pissed when this happened to me. Thank god I have the entire mac-community armed with toothpicks and hairpins right behind me. Haha.

Renee

Hi everyone, how frustrating is this!!?!??

I have EXACTLY the same problem with the red light and have tried toothpicks, needles, safetypins, bobyypins, headphones etc to no avail.

It would really help is someone could tell me how hard I should be wiggling? And how many times - ie a few times, what does this mean?

And if I try the headphone method, should I spin it around the entire jack?

Thanks for your help!

alina

OK SO i totally just had the same issue my outbound stopped working and only when external speakers were plugged in it worked..apple couldnt help for shit..enough though i heart them..heres what u do..take your ipod headset plug it in and out a few times and it should make ur outbound the same again :)

Lookas

Worked fine for me, i plug my earphone plug for 1/3 of its lenght and I turn it around quite fast and it worked perfect!

Adrian Lee

Y'all, this is insanity - the WIGGLE WOO worked for me also!
Craziness! I can't believe it, especially after the "I'm a Dell and You're a Mac" commercials where we're like haha the p.c. isn't very sophisticated!
Apple should put the wiggle trick in their help menu!
My speakers are working again! Woo-woo!
Thanks!

Rachel

I seem to be having the same problem as everyone else. both my internal and external speakers aren't working and the headphone jack is always lit up red. the only thing is, this all started when i accidentally spilled some water near the speakers. i tried wiggling and the toothpick but nothing seems to work. do you think my spilling water might have caused permanent damage?

Dardan

i did toothpick trick and it worked now. thank you guys.

gabe

WOW! Great advice. Sound just stopped suddenly after i listened to music using my iphone headset. perhaps i should not use that anymore on the macbook.;)
red light came on. i googled and got here. a wiggling persistently solved the problem, for now, at least.

David

Wiggling worked! Has anyone had this recur? Or is this a long term fix?

jenny

i'm sort of having the opposite problem...?
my internal speakers work fine, but something seems to be wrong with my headphone jack. i suddenly can't get sound to headphones or external speakers with a 3mm audio cord. i always use external speakers to listen to music, so this is very frustrating. my 2 month old white macbook (not pro) does recognize that there are headphones though, because the internal speakers shut off when they are plugged in. i do get a little bit of static through to the headphones though. does anybody have suggestions or know what could be wrong?

Brent

That's great! I'm so glad it worked for you.

- Brent

Richard

Hey, just did the toothpick trick and it worked beautifully. I just wiggled against one of the bumps on the inside of the jack VERY gently. If you try, make sure to turn on a tune so you can tell it worked. Thanks guys!

Tasha

Ben,

I had the same problem, and I use my computer for school too so I didn't want to send it in and I delt with the speakers not working for 4 months or so, when it first happned i tried the wiggle thing with the headphones and that didnt work then i tried the hair pin and that didnt work. and then 4 months later there was a bobby pin laying next to my computer so just for the heck of it i wiggled it like crazy and nothing happened and i just had it in there an was wiggling it and wiggling it, and i finaly was just like I GIVE UP and i pulled the thing out and a song started playing. so if you really dont want to send it in, (completely understand) just try the hair pin thing, after i tried and it didnt work i thought for sure i must be having a different problem but dont give up on it, just wiggle it like crazy and then stop if your getting frustrated and try the next day.

best of luck!
hope it works for you eventually!

ben

yea i have had the same exact problem but my macbook i have through school and i tryed the wiggle thing and it didnt work if i get it sent in i wont have it for a long time its starting to piss me off nothing is working and all i want is my internal speakers to work..

Tasha

hey humber is the small button youre talking about straight back?

Humber

Use a toothpick to reset the port. Insert the toothpick gently and try to press some kind of little button inside.
It worked for me.
Be carefully not to break the toothpick inside.

Tasha

I hear ya.. Mine is glowing as I type and i have been very persistent about wiggling, and i called someone to ask for help and they sent me a box for my macbook and want me to ship is out. Nooooo waaaayyyy. i cant have it gone for that long...

Heather

Nope. This problem has happened on my I-Mac... red light on. No sound on external speakers. I've wiggled for ages... nothing. Red light remains on. Speakers remain silent. Driving me insane! Especially because lugging a large-screen I-Mac back to the store is a huge pain in the *** - especially so they can fix something as small and seemingly insignificant as a faulty jack... and especially since there are always long lines at the store at the repairs dept. and I have a neverending stream of deadlines....!!
And they'll probaby tell me to leave it with them and come back in a week!

Jake

wiggling it... nothin. I'm tryin this solution for my girlfriend's computer, but to no avail. I'm extremely persistent, so whenever I'm over here, and I see that red light, I'll start jigglin ad wigglin again. thanks for the posts so I cnan get an idea of how to fix this.

Edgar

one more Question... it's not about speakers though... when i put a cd in my Computer it's sometimes gets stuck... i have the APPLECARE PLAN so They should be able to fix it, but if it's left like that would it cause any permanenent damage to my computer????

Brent

Only thing I can think of is that you might actually have a wire disconnected on your motherboard. The wiggle trick probably won't work and you will need to either take or send it in for repair. Sorry...

Edgar

everything s fine in my macbook except when i put my external speakers.. only the left side of the external speaker works. the right external speaker doesnt work... i've tried other speakers on my computer and the same thing happens.. I connect my Mp3 player to the external speakers and the L and R speakers seem to work!! what could it be???

Tasha

Same thing happened here, expect i came across this forum before calling apple..and the wiggling didnt work for me..i spent over an hour on the phone doing everything this man made me do..still didnt work. now hes making me send it out for repairs. can anyone tell me who has a macbook when u look into the headphone jack how many little tab things do u see? on the right i see 2 stickin out a little but on the left i can only see one closer to the front of the hole, i am sure i am having the same problem, i just cant seem to solve it by wiggling. can u tell me if maybe im missing a tab? or if its pushed in? i would rather not have to send my computer out, and have to back up all my files..that is just a pain =[ ugh.

Kevin

Right On! After the initial alarm of seeing my laptop emitting an ominous red glow, I came across this site. So like everyone else I too tried some persistent wiggling and voila!, it's fixed. Thanks for the thread - Peace

bayla

Same thing happened to me, except I wasn't using headphones. It just stopped working.

Wiggle wiggle, it works. Brilliant. Yeah, Macs are a huuuuge step above PCs. Right.

Bren

Yay! I love you. Stupid red light, no sound. Wiggle... wiggle... sound!

Thanks muchly.

Brent

That's great to hear! Glad we were able to help

susie

i was having the same problem and this cured my computer! i have been using my headphones all week and the first time i tried to listen to something through the internal speakers nothing! i wiggled my headphones around a little after i plugged it in and it after a few tries my speakers worked just fine.

Brent

I'm sorry Jennifer,

Have you tried taking it in to the store and having them look at it? (I know that's probably not what you were wanting to hear.)

jennifer

Same thing just happened to me. I was listening to music last night with my external speakers as I always do every day...and then got to work with my macbook and went to listen to something online and now the internal speakers are not working and the red light in the plug hole is on.

ARGH.

I swear this Macbook is the most annoying computer I have ever bought. One thing after another. It isn't even 6 mos old.

Colleen

Man, I'm sorry to hear your speakers stopped working, it's so frustrating, I know. The red light only flashed for me for a brief period and turned off, also I was working in the dark and was able to notice it. That's when I tried plugging my headphones and it did work, but when they were unplugged, no sound. I found that forum and MacGyvered it from there. Good luck, and let us know how it turned out. Thanks!

Thomas

Mine just stopped working today. Works fine over the stereo but internal speakers are gone when I unplug. I don't see any red light so I guess it's not the same problem.

Brent

Sorry to hear that. Keep us posted on your progress so we can add it here for others. Thanks!

Matt

Yeah the same thing happend to me, you can see the optical glow coming out of the port when nothing is plugged in. Alas the wiggly solution doesn't work for me, I guess mine are a little too bent, but I'm glad all is well for you!

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