Optical Sound out port won't turn off... No more sound...

My MBP has an optical out port (sound). I plugged in standard analog speakers a lot and all worked fine. Now I once plugged in a mono(!) analog cable and since that time the optical connection stays open (red light in the port), I can't connect standard stereo speakers any more and also the intermal speakers stay off even when nothing is plugged in.
In the system settings nothing can be done, all entries are grey. Rebooting doesn't help either.
What can I do?? ANy help?

I had this problem with my Intel MacBook Pro. It was only an issue when I used Boot Camp to boot into the Windows partition. Apple updated drivers for teh audio card, and once I updated Boot Camp and re-installed the new drivers that fixed the issue.
Note that this issue DID NOT occur on the Mac side for me -- it was only when I booted into Windows.
--Brandon

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HT1338 how do I turn off optical digital-out port?

how do I turn off optical digital-out port?

Just want to report that I too, running 10.6.5 on a MacBook Pro, had the mysterious " Audio Out Stuck On Optical Digital-Out Port" problem whereby I was unable to adjust the volume on my built-in speakers and they were permanently "muted" because the operating system was sending the audio signal to a non-existent device that it falsely thought was plugged in to my unused headphone jack hole. I thought at first the problem must necessarily be software-based because the built-in speakers worked fine when playing the start-up chimes. So I uninstalled something called "Soundflower" which does some mysterious shenanigans with commandeering the internal audio signal so that one can make audio recordings of one's computers' sound effects. But uninstalling Soundflower had no effect. So I uninstalled some other audio-related software, also to no avail. Then I zapped the PRAM, to no avail.
Then I decided to try what some people call "the toothpick trick," i.e. poking around in the headphone jack hole to see if something was stuck in there shortcircuiting it, and initiating the false signal to the OS.
Bingo! Success!
Actually, I did a hyper-sophisticated version of the toothpick trick:
First, I own a home "otoscope," one of those doohickeys that doctors use to look into your ear. One can now buy amateur versions of otoscopes for home use, to looks for kids' ear infections, etc. (They only cost $30 or so.) Anyway, using the smallest attachment designed for babies' ears, I was able to look (with illumination) into the headphone jack hole and yessiree there was a big bunch of dust stuck way deep in there.
So then I took not a toothpick but instead a slender dental prong-pick thingie made of stainless steel, and very delicately was able to snag the clot of dust deep in the hole at the bottom on the first try. Quite a wad!
Then I took one of those rubber ear-bulbs, used for cleaning out your ears, and used it as a micro-vacuum-cleaner: Squeeze the rubber bulb til it is as empty as can be, then place the tip of the bulb at the entrance to the headphone jack hole, then suddenly release my grip: it ***** air out of the tiniest spaces! After doing this a few times, I then did the reverse and blew blasts of air into the hole.
After all this, I looked back into the hole with the otoscope, and it was sparkling clean! Not even the tiniest speck of dust in an area that just three minutes earlier was thick with dust.
I then turned my computer back on and...problem solved! The audio worked again like normal, and it was no longer detecting an imaginary "Optical Digital-Out Port" device. The internal speakers once again worked as normal, and the volume could be adjusted.
I guess the problem for me really was dust causing a short-circuit. It might very well be the same for you -- so try cleaning out the headphone jack hole as I did.
I'm writing this detailed description to help anyone else in the future with a similar problem.

My MacBook Pro has no audio. Sounds preferences showing output is Optical digital-out port. How do I change this to built-in speakers?

My MacBook Pro has no audio. Sounds preferences showing output is Optical digital-out port. How do I change this to built-in speakers?

I experienced this same problem yesterday on my MacBook Pro, still searching for a solution, several other posts here indicate people have been experiencing this since at lease 2007. I have yet to find a clear solution.
It appears that occasionally inserting headphone causes this, it turns on the Optical digital-out port feature (red light glows inside the headphone port) and takes away the internal speakers option. Restarting did not restore it, but for some reason after sitting asleep overnight the sound started working again and the internal speaker option return in the Sound - Output Window, and the Optical Digital-out option went away.
Here is another post with some ideas on this
https://discussions.apple.com/message/4160477#4160477

Port Lights EA6500 won't turn off

As dumb as this is...when i bought the router, the function worked fine, even before my first firmware upgrade. Can CISCO fix this? I tried everything...power off, reboot, etc...that stupid button is not working....
if something as simple doesn't work, what's next on this router to break?

Did you try reset already on the router? You can try to reset it for 15 seconds and unplug it for 15 seconds as well. Then set it up again for internet connection and try after that if you can get the port leds to turn off.

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stevejobsfan0123 wrote:
The Find my iPhone service option is given to you when you first set up the device. If you just reset it, you may have been given that option. So, in other words, the service may have been enabled even if you didn't realize it. You can then go to www.icloud.com and click on Find my iPhone, and have it play a sound. Or, you can use the Find my iPhone app on your mom's iPhone, but the service would still need to be turned on on your iPod.
Unlike Compukid said, Apple will not assist in locating a lost device without the Find my iPhone service.
I found that out 2 years ago, it's just that I thought Apple might have changed that.

Macbook stuck in headphone (optical digital-out port) mode. Plugging and unplugging headphone jack no help.

Stuck in headphone (optical digital-out port) mode. What do I do? Plugging and unplugging headphone jack no help.

Do you see a red light in the headphone jack?? If you do, then the microswitch is stuck and you need to turn it off. Try poking it with a toothpick.
If you don't see a red light, then try resetting the SMC and PRAM and see if these helps. Here are the links.
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3964
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1379

HT1338 audio output defaults to optical digital-out port

M audio out defaults to optical digital-out port; I cannot select internal speakers - it is not in the preferences menu

I experienced this same problem yesterday on my MacBook Pro, still searching for a solution, several other posts here indicate people have been experiencing this since at lease 2007. I have yet to find a clear solution.
It appears that occasionally inserting headphone causes this, it turns on the Optical digital-out port feature (red light glows inside the headphone port) and takes away the internal speakers option. Restarting did not restore it, but for some reason after sitting asleep overnight the sound started working again and the internal speaker option return in the Sound - Output Window, and the Optical Digital-out option went away.
Here is another post with some ideas on this
https://discussions.apple.com/message/4160477#4160477

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ShlomiL wrote:
HI Vern,
Where did you bought the printer? may you bought it from a different region than your current one?
What is the exact cartridge number of both the black and the tri-color ink cartridge, as well as their product number?
I bought the printyer in the US and the cartridges also came from the US, probably no the same state. Cartdridge # 97, black # 96. I don't see a product number. This is the same # that was in the printer before and the same one I always used. As soon as I pull it out the light goes out, and on again as soon as I install it. This is before the printer even cycles through it's "new cartdridge" routine, if you know what I mean.
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Hello dathascome. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
It sounds like you might have a corrupted configuration file or driver with your OS X installation. I suggest the first thing to try is to create a new user account; log off of your existing account, and then, log back on with the new account.
Did this correct the problem?

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Hi there,
How old is your Classic? Often, after a couple of years, rechargable batteries begin to fail, especially after such a long period of inactivity. This happens with any gadget with this type of battery.
Try leaving it plugged in for 24 hours, and try again, to rule out that it isn't just really low on charge. If this doesn't help, it may be a good time to buy a replacement. New iPod Nanos and Touches will be released this October.
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Apple - Batteries
I hope this helps, and I hope upgrading your device will not feel like an unnecessary expense. Let me know if you have any more questions,
Nathan

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Hi P S 13,
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Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
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Optical Sound out port won't turn off... No more sound...

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