Apple Investigating 16-Inch MacBook Pro Popping Sound Issue, Fix Planned in Future Software Updates

Apple is investigating a popping sound issue with the new 16-inch MacBook Pro and plans to make a fix available in future software updates, the company has indicated in an internal document obtained by MacRumors.

16 inch macbook pro top down
The memo shared with Apple Authorized Service Providers reads as follows:

If a customer hears a popping sound when playback is stopped on their MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019)

When using Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, QuickTime Player, Music, Movies, or other applications to play audio, users may hear a pop come from the speakers after playback has ended. Apple is investigating the issue. A fix is planned in future software updates. Do not set up service, or replace the user's computer, as this is a software-related issue.

Shortly following the launch of the 16-inch MacBook Pro last month, some customers began to voice concerns about the popping sound issue across the MacRumors forums, Apple Support Communities, Reddit, and elsewhere. The exact cause is unclear, but Apple confirms it is a software issue, not a hardware issue.


Apple seeded the fourth beta of macOS Catalina 10.15.2 to developers for testing today. It is unclear when the fix will be implemented.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forums: MacBook Pro, macOS Catalina

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Apple Says iOS 18.4 Will Be Released in April With These New Features

Wednesday February 26, 2025 7:15 am PST by
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 18.4 will be released in April. From the Apple News+ Food announcement:Coming with iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 in April, Apple News+ subscribers will have access to Apple News+ Food, a new section that will feature tens of thousands of recipes — as well as stories about restaurants, healthy eating, kitchen essentials, and more — from the...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

Latest iPhone 17 Series CAD Images in Line With Redesign Rumors

Friday February 28, 2025 2:51 am PST by
Apple is expected to embrace a new camera system design for some models in its upcoming iPhone 17 series, and the latest purported CAD images don't deviate from what we have been hearing lately about Apple's new lineup. If you do not like the sound of an iPhone with a Google Pixel-style camera bar, look away now. Seasoned leaker Sonny Dickson shared the following images in a post on X...
iphone 16e usb c feature

Apple Provides Reason for iPhone 16e's Lack of MagSafe

Friday February 28, 2025 4:39 am PST by
Apple has offered a reason why the iPhone 16e doesn't include MagSafe, one of the more notable omissions from its latest entry-level smartphone. According to Apple representatives who spoke to Daring Fireball's John Gruber, MagSafe is not included in the iPhone 16e because "most people in the iPhone 16e's target audience exclusively charge their phones by plugging them into a charging...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Rumored to Include These New Features for Your iPhone

Saturday March 1, 2025 11:00 am PST by
iOS 19 is still around three months away from being unveiled, but there are plenty of rumors about the upcoming update. Below, we recap iOS 19 rumors so far. Redesigned Camera App A leak earlier this year allegedly revealed a redesigned Camera app coming with iOS 19. On his YouTube channel Front Page Tech in January, Jon Prosser shared a video showing what the new Camera app will...
apple intelligence black

These New Apple Intelligence Features Are Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday February 28, 2025 3:17 pm PST by
iOS 18.4 was supposed to bring new Apple Intelligence Siri features, but Apple ended up needing to pull those capabilities from the update to continue testing. There are fewer new Apple Intelligence additions now, but there are still some new features that will make the update worth installing when it comes out in April. Priority Notifications Apple introduced Priority Notifications back at ...
cook trump

Trump Responds to Apple Keeping Diversity Policies

Wednesday February 26, 2025 6:32 am PST by
In an all-caps post on Truth Social today, U.S. President Donald Trump said Apple should fully end its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. Tim Cook meeting with President Trump in 2017 "APPLE SHOULD GET RID OF DEI RULES, NOT JUST MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO THEM," he wrote. Trump's post comes one day after Apple held its annual shareholders meeting, during which a majority of...
airpods pro purple

Here's When AirPods Pro 3 Are Rumored to Launch

Monday February 24, 2025 9:14 am PST by
According to a post on X today from a leaker known as Kosutami, Apple plans to launch AirPods Pro 3 in May or June this year. The leaker also claimed that an AirTag 2 will launch around the same time. Kosutami is best known as a collector of prototype Apple hardware, but they have occasionally shared accurate information about Apple's future product plans. For example, they accurately...
apple watch ultra snow

6 Features Coming to the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:00 am PST by
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements. While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way. By the time the ...
apple c1

How Fast is Apple's First-Ever 5G Modem? The Results Are Surprising

Friday February 28, 2025 10:08 am PST by
iPhone 16e reviews are now out, and Apple's custom-designed C1 modem has been put to the test. The results so far are quite surprising, as the C1's speeds are not as slow compared to Qualcomm modems as originally expected. While the C1 does not support ultra-fast mmWave 5G in the U.S., it appears to offer comparable 5G performance to Qualcomm's Snapdragon X71 modem found in the iPhone 16,...

Top Rated Comments

dspdoc Avatar
68 months ago

Hey Macrumors, how many were impacted?

No, this isn't the death of Apple or the MacBook.

It's also not a referendum of quality control at Apple.
Oh boy... SMH. You might wanna do a LOT more research before cheerleading and rushing to the defense of Apple.
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Andy-V Avatar
68 months ago

Apple releases a universally acclaimed new MacBook Pro with a huge battery, massive performance boost, radically improved keyboard, and surprise surprise, some people are still not happy.
Weird post. This is an issue with the new MacBook that people are experiencing. "It's got a good keyboard though" is not an excuse for a $3k pro laptop having audio issues. It's literally targeted at audio professionals.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dspdoc Avatar
68 months ago

I think the opposite. You guys are totally off the reservation with your hate.

300M products annually are shipped with the Apple logo. Let's be serious. These aren't serious issues and issues are going to happen. It's amazing it's not 100X worse.
What a shame. All you are doing is weakening the companies potential to be great and not just good. Not only that, but you are watering down people's cases. It is a major problem for pro audio/video people like myself. You clearly don't fall in that category. It's fine if you don't have the issue with your $2500+ machine while surfing the web or checking email. But it is not fine for those of us who use our machines to work on professional audio/video projects. SMH
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
seadragon Avatar
68 months ago

Hey Macrumors, how many were impacted?

No, this isn't the death of Apple or the MacBook.

It's also not a referendum of quality control at Apple.
You sound ridiculous at this point. You keep asking how many are impacted in various threads knowing damn well nobody can answer that question. This is an issue showing up and MR posted about it. Nothing wrong with that at all. I would imagine this IS an issue and of interest for people that use their MBP for A/V work. This is stuff that matters to them, not AAPL stock prices, the valuation of Apple or how many they sold.

To MacRumors, from a potential purchaser of this machine, thanks for posting and keep the articles coming.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dspdoc Avatar
68 months ago

Apple are always held accountable. No company is more heavily scrutinised.
And no other company also has such a cult following full of apologists that defends their every mistake.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dspdoc Avatar
68 months ago

Apple releases a universally acclaimed new MacBook Pro with a huge battery, massive performance boost, radically improved keyboard, and surprise surprise, some people are still not happy.
You are joking right?! Do some research! It is a serious issue for pro audio/video people. SMH
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)