For the record, if the speaker is truly blown (ruined) this is a problem with the hardware - not the software. If you can't design a speaker and amplifier combination with a limiter that won't let itself self-destruct, you are an audio design failure.
Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
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Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#32The amount of hardware issues with the new MBP are kinda staggering.... USB-C issues, GPU issues, image corruption, now this.
Has there been as contentious a Mac release as there has been with the new MBPs? I've been using Macs since the mid 80s, and I'm trying to think of some, but am drawing a blank. The only possibilities I can think of are the two processor switches (680x0 -> PPC followed by PPC -> Intel) or maybe the first release of OSX (but that's not necesarily hardware related).
There have been quite a few, actually, especially during the '90s. Low End Mac has a nice list: http://lowendmac.com/2007/the-10-worst-macs-ever/
The first item on the list contains this gem:
> Anyhow, Apple put a 32-bit CPU on a 16-bit bus and created a monstrosity that worked okay as long as you didn’t use the modem or a network connection.
And the PowerBook 5300 was on the honorable mentions list. I remember that machine: it was notorious for the batteries catching on fire. And I've got personal experience with one of the machines on the honorable mention list, the Performa 630: the IDE hard drive was the bane of my existence back then, and the use of the execrable 68LC040 meant I was locked out of using certain software.
Oh, and here's another, much longer, list, from the same website: http://lowendmac.com/2014/road-apples-second-class-macs/
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#33Sounds like the audio amp is too powerful for the speakers if it permanently damages it. I'm betting the amp is integrated into a multi function chip or codec where it was selected because of integrated features rather then matched to the required speaker power.
Huh. So "we'll fix it in software" is the consumer device equivalent of the entertainment industry's, "we'll fix it in post"?
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#34I think I am starting to get worried about the future of Apple. 2016 was a bad year. New iPhone has been the worst selling one in relative numbers since the iPhone. New MacBooks has several issues and controversial choices, while not bringing anything substantial to the table. New Watch changes are so small, nobody noticed an update.
Anecdotally, among my (20 something year old) friends, the iPhone used to be a must-have for many reasons; now, it's only a must-have for imessage. If android phones could send "blue texts" than I'm sure many would switch over.
Blackberries were a must have among my friends because we all wanted BBM. Some of us were pretty late getting off of Blackberry because of it.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#35Followup post showing Apple is willing to replace the devices damaged by their faulty drivers > https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comments/5e7whh/update_bootca... and have since also updated their drivers > https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comments/5e7whh/update_bootca...
Seems like a reasonable and responsible solution to this issue. Perhaps the "Apple is imploding" comments were a bit premature.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#36The amount of hardware issues with the new MBP are kinda staggering.... USB-C issues, GPU issues, image corruption, now this.
That's the lot of early adopters. Too be fair any widely popular product will have its share of problems, and since we in the west basically stopped caring about the conditions in which these products are built...
I'm not saying that we should ignore the plight of people working in less than subpar conditions to give us our new device fix, but what does the latter part have to do with a faulty release product?
Early adopter is a misnomer, because these are not prototypes nor dev boxes. This are released to the public computers that should be in working order.
I'm not big on new hardware, so I don't follow releases like this too closely. However, this seems to be one of the worst consumer hardware releases in recent history.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#37Sounds like the audio amp is too powerful for the speakers if it permanently damages it. I'm betting the amp is integrated into a multi function chip or codec where it was selected because of integrated features rather then matched to the required speaker power.
More than likely the op amp is not powerful enough and is being overdriven. Hard clipping, like when an op amp is being overdriven, is more likely to damage speakers than overpowering them.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, the GPU issues - but like you said they didn't manifest themselves right away. I got hit by the 2011 MBP issue a year or so in. I had to buy a new laptop because Apple didn't issue the repair order until well after my AppleCare expired and I wasn't going to pay $500+ for the repair not knowing whether Apple would eventually pick up the tab.
It took 4 years for the GPU in my 2011 MBP to die. Apple still covers GPU repairs on those models (or at least they did in 2015). They refused service on my laptop because I had upgraded the hard drive (to an SSD) and RAM (upgraded to 16 Gigs). I pointed out that the user's manual for the 2011 Macbook Pro specifically says that upgrading these components does not void the warranty for the entire machine, just that Ap…
I was hit by the same GPU issue twice now. Even with the Superdrive removed they replaced the motherboard both times. That is weird.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#39This makes me wonder if the Linux drivers have been damaging my (several years old) MacBook Air speakers.
The sound always seemed to be louder and more distorted in Linux than in OS X, but I have never tested the level with a microphone.
Re: Windows on New Macbook Pro Permanently Damages Speaker Due to Poor Drivers
#40I think I am starting to get worried about the future of Apple. 2016 was a bad year. New iPhone has been the worst selling one in relative numbers since the iPhone. New MacBooks has several issues and controversial choices, while not bringing anything substantial to the table. New Watch changes are so small, nobody noticed an update.
I'm also worried. At first, I rationalized weakness on the Mac front as a side-effect of a strategic prioritization of the mobile & cloud ecosystem. But then I got the new iPhone, and I've been surprised by my emotional reaction to it feeling buggy.
It's all relatively minor in isolation; voicemail consistently fails to load messages multiple times before it succeeds, voicemail occasionally crashes, apps get stuck halfway down the screen after I swipe to check the notification screen, texts and iMessages sometimes show up hours or days late, notifications appear on the lock screen but are missing when I unlock the phone, the weather app sometimes displays a blank temperature, web sites have broken behavior with auto-playing, the state of the device when using volume controls changes unpredictably, and so on.
Most of these are undoubtedly caused by my service provider, or a 3rd party app, or me fat-thumbing an interface, or my complete misperception of a UI paradigm, or are otherwise not Apple's fault. But that's entirely besides the point, because we're talking about my emotional reaction, not reality, and we're talking about something Apple used to bend over backwards to control.
If the common narrative about Apple's modern successes being rooted in design sensibilities is correct, I don't see them being able to sustain leadership in the areas where they've been leading. The good news for Apple is that there still aren't better alternatives for customers who are heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem. The bad news is that there eventually will be, and also that there is material economic harm in keeping customers but losing their enthusiasm.