2021 MacBook Pro users complain about crackling and popping audio issues

The 2021 MacBook Pro was introduced only six months ago, and yet a number of users seem to be experiencing audio issues. More specifically, they complain about the speakers crackling and popping when there’s any sound output being played.

Multiple complaints can be found on the Apple Community forum and also on Reddit. According to the users affected, the issue occurs randomly when there is a song, video or other audio on the MacBook. This popping sound is more apparent when volume levels are high or have high pitch sounds.

I’m having an issue with the 2021 M1 Pro 16-inch (Base Model). When I watch videos, or listen to music on my laptop’s speakers, crackling sounds are heard. I had this same issue with the M1 Max which I exchanged for this M1 Pro.

This issue is most common when I have multiple videos open at once or when I am opening a new window. It gets really annoying when it constantly does it throughout the video. This doesn’t always happen.

A 9to5Mac reader sent us a video showing the audio issue on a 14-inch MacBook Pro, and it is definitely noticeable. Some of the affected users believe that the issue is a software bug, as Apple has replaced their machines and yet the bug has persisted.

A Reddit user corroborated this theory by saying that the problems can be temporarily fixed after killing the macOS process “coreaudiod” by going to the Activity Monitor app. Some users claim that the issues disappeared after installing macOS 12. 3, but other users are still experiencing crackling speakers.

At this point, Apple is yet to acknowledge that there’s a problem with the 2021 MacBook Pro, whether it’s a hardware or software malfunction. Have you been affected by the crackling speaker issues with your 2021 MacBook Pro? Please let us know by commenting below.