Apple confirms Studio Display speaker fault, offers workaround

An unknown number of Studio Display owners are having issues with sound failing intermittently, or completely, which Apple now says is a software problem.

Apple previously said that initial webcam issues with the Studio Display were a software rather than a hardware problem, and promised a fix. This time, while again insisting that it is not a fault with the display's speakers, Apple has so far only offered a temporary workaround.

In a note to authorized repair and service centers, Apple recommends that users should unplug the Studio Display from power. Then they should also disconnect any other accessories connected to the display, wait ten seconds, and finally plug the display back in.

The note, first seen by MacRumors, reportedly also hints that a future iOS update will properly fix the issue.

Some users have been reporting issues since May 2022. It's not known how many people are affected, but anecdotal evidence suggests that the problem is becoming more widespread.

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45 Comments

maggot777

said about 1 year ago

At this point in time I didn’t think a monitor would be so hard to get right…

jimh2

said about 1 year ago

They have gone from what were probably ASIC’s which greatly simplifies things. Adding a what is an iPhone less a few parts has probably made it ridiculously more complicated. It’s kind of like the effort to computerize everything. Simple things become overly complicated with no benefit. Simplicity with minimal functionality always wins.

I’ll add that firmware updates have made it possible to deliver incomplete products knowing they can be “fixed” later. I’m not talking about legitimate fixes to products that come out occasionally. Similar to what was done to the Thunderbolt monitor twice I think.

foregoneconclusion

said about 1 year ago

I own the new Studio Display and haven't had any sound/speaker issues at all. Per the issue becoming "more widespread", I've seen tweets posted on other rumor sites where the person complaining about the issue is running the Ventura beta. Hmmmm...

keithw

said about 1 year ago

I had this issue and doing what it says here fixed the problem. Hopefully they will fix the problem in a future update. Like most things in modern, software enabled hardware, an occasional reboot doesn't hurt.

john-useless

said about 1 year ago

keithw said:

Like most things in modern, software enabled hardware, an occasional reboot doesn't hurt.

Although I am generally satisfied with my Apple Studio Display, there have been two occasions during three months of ownership that it failed to wake from sleep and I've had to "reboot" it — and the only way to do that is to unplug it, which for me is a hassle because it's connected to a power strip in a hard-to-reach spot.

My Macs start becoming wonky after about 45+ days without a full restart (a sleep/wake cycle is inadequate) … so since the Studio Display is essentially now a computer with its own operating system, I wish Apple would program the Studio Display to reboot automatically every so often. Perhaps once per week, a certain number of hours after it went to sleep? This might keep its OS happy without much chance of interrupting actual use (presuming, of course, that it isn't in 24/7 use by its owner).