If your Mac’s speakers, jack socket or microphone aren’t working, you may be able to fix it yourself by trying some of these solutions from our in-house tech experts. And, if you give it a whirl and you’re still stuck, you can always contact us via the link at the end of this article.
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Reset NVRAM
The non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM), sometimes called the parallel random-access machine (PRAM), is a small portion of memory that your computer uses to save and have lightning-speed access to certain settings such as sound, start-up disk selection and even the time zone. Most of the time you can control these settings in your System Preferences, but if you can’t, resetting your NVRAM may help!
If your Mac has Apple silicon
If your Mac computer has Apple silicon, you don’t need to worry about resetting your NVRAM as these devices don’t include a manual reset option.
If your Mac is Intel-based
If your Mac doesn’t have Apple silicon, then your computer has an Intel processor and features an NVRAM reset option. Follow the instructions below to reset it.
- Shut down your Mac.
- Turn on your computer and immediately press and hold Option-Command (⌘)-P-R.
- You can release the keys after about 20 seconds – you may start to hear the restart sound a few times or see the Apple logo pop up on the screen.
- When your Mac does restart, make sure to readjust your system settings as they could have been reset in the process.
- If these steps didn’t work, see these guidelines to continue troubleshooting.
Reset SMC
The System Management Controller (SMC) controls the power on your Mac. Resetting it can solve some uncommon issues related to power or temperature management.
Step 1. Determine if your Mac has Apple silicon
See if you have a Mac with Apple silicon
If you do:
- Check that your computer is connected to a reliable power source.
- Restart your Mac, or shut it down and turn it back on.
Step 2. If it doesn’t, determine if your Mac has a T2 chip
See if you have a Mac with the Apple T2 Security Chip
If you do:
Laptop computer with the T2 chip
- Shut down your computer if you can.
- Press the power button for 10 seconds, then release.
- Remember, all Macs have this button, even if you have TouchID – you can also use it to restart your computer.
- Wait for a few seconds, then press the power button again to turn your computer back on.
If the issue doesn’t resolve:
- Shut down your computer.
- Press and hold Control (⌃)-Option (Alt) ⌥-Shift ⇧ – your Mac may turn on during the process.
- Continue to press and hold all the keys for around 7 seconds, then press and hold your Mac’s power button without releasing the other keys – if your laptop is on, it will turn off during this step.
- Keep pressing the keys for another 7 seconds, then release them.
- Wait for a little while, then press the power button again to turn your Mac back on.
Desktop computer with the T2 chip
- Shut down your computer and unplug the power cord.
- Wait for 15 seconds, then plug the power cord back in.
- Wait for another 5 seconds, then press the power button to turn your Mac back on.
How to reset your Mac if it doesn’t have Apple silicon or a T2 chip
Laptop computer
- Power down your Mac.
- Press and hold Shift ⇧-Control (⌃)-Option (Alt) ⌥ at the same time.
- Press and hold the power button at the same time as the keys above.
- Hold the four keys for around 10 seconds.
- Release all of the keys, and then press the power button to turn your computer back on.
Desktop computer
- Shut down your computer and unplug the power cord.
- Wait for 15 seconds, then plug it back in.
- Wait for 5 more seconds and then press the power button to turn your Mac back on.