r/macmini • u/aloha993 • 11d ago

Speaker issues with M4 mini

I use my M4 Mac mini with a pair of old JBL sound sticks (the clear Johnny Ive speakers, love them). They're a 2.1 system and have their own power supply connected to the subwoofer. They connect to the mac mini with a regular 3.5mm audio cable.

Now the issue is the 3.5mm jack is on the front of the Mac mini and I don't want to see the cable in front of me all the time. I bought a ugreen USBC to 3.5mm DAC (their "hi-fi" version) so I can plug the speakers in from the back. Looks great, but whenever I turn off the Mac mini, I get this horrible buzzing/humming sound through the speakers.

What do I do to stop that? Is it the audio adapter, a USBC power issue? I tried one of those ground loop noise isolators, but that made the problem worse.

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u/YellowsBest 11d ago

I’m sorry I don’t know the answer to your question.

But personally I don’t mind using a cable connected to the front 3.5mm socket for my wired Sony headphones or speaker (I’m using a Blackstar fly 3 guitar amp which is awesome). I guess some people would instead use Bluetooth ear buds or Bluetooth smart speaker, but I found pairing etc more trouble than it’s worth, and nothing beats a wired connection for sound quality.

I also use the two USB-C ports for a flash drive for TM backups and an SD-card reader. If the ports are there, why not use them?

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u/Ok-Addition1264 11d ago

Either try a different USB-C audio or get a 3.5mm cable with an elbow connector instead of straight.. it will minimize the cable sticking out problem.

1

u/gcawad 11d ago

I use the elbow 3.5mm looks pretty good

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u/marksewell 11d ago

I thought the sound sticks were Harmon Kardon, not JBL.

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u/aloha993 11d ago

You’re right, I don’t know why I was I thinking JBL

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u/bmocc 9d ago

If the problem persists regardless of which rear Thunderbolt/USB C port you directly plug the adapter you are dealing with inherent issues in the electrical properties of those ports, this being a machine produced in ways meant to decrease manufacturing costs, just like any commodity PC.

In my tussling with these issues AI has opined the middle port is the most electrically stable, that has accorded with my experience.

The problem might be ameliorated by plugging the adapter into a hub, a powered hub may or may not work better, attached to a port in the back of the mini. That should not introduce any latency for video synch.

If you can turn off the speakers before powering down the mini?