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The problem

I have a new M1 Mac mini connected to a Philips monitor, connected via the Thunderbolt (USB C) port. Whenever the Mac wakes from sleep, the audio is not working and is fixed by toggling the following setting: Audio Midi Setup > Format

I can see that there is an error, but there's no tooltip to explain what it is.

Philips audio settings

Hardware

Mac

Mac mini M1 with 16Gb and Mac OS 11.1

Monitor

Philips 499P9 with a built-in docking station, featuring:

  • Audio
  • Ethernet (which appears as USB Ethernet in Network settings, but won't connect)
  • Multiple HDMI and USB C inputs
  • USB B connector for HDMI 1 device
  • Multiple USB A ports for shared peripherals (keyboard, mouse, headsets, etc.)
Jason Berryman
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  • Do you have anything non-Apple in your audio setup? I had similar issues through Sierra/High Sierra which eventually "just went away" by Mojave. I blamed my 3rd party pro audio drivers, but there was never any real conclusive proof. – Tetsujin Feb 04 '21 at 18:28
  • Where does the audio fail, on the Mac mini, or on the Philips 499P9? – IconDaemon Feb 04 '21 at 18:37
  • From what I've seen at the Phillips website, this is monitor is designed more for Windows, than macOS. So it's not surprising there are issues. At the moment, I'd suggest automating the repetitive task of toggling the setting using AppleScript. – user3439894 Feb 04 '21 at 18:56
  • I also have a USB headset adapter (for connecting a professional telephony headset) which works perfectly. – Jason Berryman Feb 05 '21 at 10:42
  • The Philips has worked flawlessly with my ChromeOS tablet (via USB C dock) and my Ubuntu PC (connected via the USB B). Connecting it to the Mac is the first time that I've encountered these issues. – Jason Berryman Feb 05 '21 at 10:43
  • 3rd party drivers I don't have any 3rd party drivers installed. Applescript automation I've never used AppleScript before. If anyone can recommend a good starting point, I'll be happy to look (I'm a JS/Bash developer, so familiar with scripting). – Jason Berryman Feb 05 '21 at 11:45
  • I once did one for switching outputs, but I've never tried flipping formats; I'm not sure how you'd interact with a drop-menu. If it's any help at all, it's here - https://apple.stackexchange.com/a/218223/85275 You might be best asking how to do that in a new question & leave this one in case anyone comes up with a more direct answer. – Tetsujin Feb 05 '21 at 14:55
  • I've noticed that there is a ! flag in the Audio Deices page, but no way of seeing what the error is. I've added a screenshot to the original question – Jason Berryman Feb 11 '21 at 10:36
  • Where is the "Format" setting in Audio MIDI Setup? – benwiggy Feb 11 '21 at 11:37
  • @benwiggy - https://i.stack.imgur.com/cLLs5.png - one for each input/output, assignable separately – Tetsujin Feb 11 '21 at 11:42
  • Ah: It says "Sample Rate" for the devices I was looking at. – benwiggy Feb 11 '21 at 11:42
  • Is this still happening with the latest macOS? – pion Mar 13 '21 at 15:45
  • @pion I switched from a USB C connection to direct HDMI. I'll swap back, test and let you know – Jason Berryman Mar 31 '21 at 16:24

1 Answers1

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The Exclamation mark in a speech bubble is not an indication of an error, but shows which audio output is configured for system alerts and sound effects.

Having said that, I've experienced problems with external audio after sleep on my 2018 Mini. I suspect it's a bug. I have to kill the coreaudiod process to get things working again.

sudo killall coreaudiod

Then enter an admin password.

If you are changing the Sample rate to get things working, then it may be that doing that restarts coreaudiod. (Assuming it's the same issue.)

Note that some audio apps may crash or get confused if you change the sample rate while they are running.

benwiggy
  • 35,635
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    is that the new icon? I don't have Big Sur to see. Always used to be 'Mac Face' system, mic for input, speaker+waves for output, though I don't have a display that registers as a DP output. – Tetsujin Feb 11 '21 at 11:49
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    Yes, fraid so.... – benwiggy Feb 11 '21 at 11:50
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    Thank you for letting me know about the exclamation mark. Normally, I'd associate this with a warning or an error. I'll try sudo killall coreaudiod. However, toggling the sample rate is easier than typing my password. From what I've experienced, I haven't had any app issues when toggling it, so far. – Jason Berryman Feb 11 '21 at 16:23