Why is my HDMI-connected display cutting out periodically?

I have a Mac Mini hooked up to a 40" Phillips LCD LED 1080p television using an HDMI cable. This setup worked awesome for about six months, but it has started giving me problems this week. I never really used the television for anything besides as a display for the Mini until last week, when I plugged in a couple of different older video game consoles (N64 and a PS2) into the YPbPr ports and switched sources on the T.V. Not sure if this is related or not, but it seems like that's when I started having these probelms. From what I've read about HDMI handshaking, it makes sense that switching devices can mess with it?
Anyway, the visible problem is that periodically, the video AND audio will cut out and the display goes blue. Audio usually comes back a little before video does, and sometimes the Mini will try to play the audio in the interim.
It happens more often when I'm playing videos on Netflix, YouTube, etc., but it has happened when I'm just sitting on the Desktop, not doing a thing. It will sometimes not do it for up to an hour, and then it'll start doing it every five minutes so that you can't even watch video.
I've tried two different HDMI ports. Don't have another cable to try, but would rather not invest the money in a new, good one if that's not the problem. Any ideas?

Something to check first.
The Mac (all Macs) has an energy-save setting which will automatically power down the video connection if the Mac detects you have not used the mouse or keyboard for a defined period. This might be the cause. Similarly many TVs also have an energy saver setting, in the case of the TV it might trigger if you have not changed channel for a number of hours, or it might have an IR sensor to try and detect the heat of a human body. If it does not detect a person 'watching' it, it would then turn off.
In your case the former sounds more likely. Open System Preferences, then click on Energy-Saver and check the settings.
Note: If the Mac does disable the video output due to this setting, it will almost certainly result in sound being switched back to the built-in speaker instead of going via the HDMI.

Similar Messages

Why does my airport express keep cutting out?

Why does my airport express keep cutting out?

I have a 1st gen Airport Express and use it to stream music from my PC, iPhone 4, iPad and iPod Touch. My Airport Express is connected to a Teac UD-H01 DAC via an optical cable which is connected to an amp and speakers. I had no problems at all with this set up until I upgraded the Airport Express firmware to 7.6.3. The sound then started to drop out frequently. To cut a long story short after various testing, the problem had to be the Airport Express. I called Apple support but they were not much help and couldn't fix the problem and said they would speak to engineering and phone back. While I was waiting I decided to have another go to find the problem and opened the airport utility and saw that there was an option to downgrade the firmware. At this point I realised that the problems started about the same time that I upgraded the firmware to 7.6.3 but didn't think at the time that Apple would release a firmware that didn't work. Anyway I downgraded to 7.6.1 and hey presto, everything worked again. A couple of days ago I noticed that firmware 7.6.4 was available and thought I'd give it a go, not good - same problem as 7.6.3. I've downgraded to 7.6.1 again and all is well. Hope this helps.

Hi Can anyone help. I'm having problem with FaceTime on my IPAD .It connects but cuts out Simolarly when someone calls me it connects , then cuts out ThanksBrian

Hi Having problem with FACETIME on my IPAD Connects to call but then cuts out , similarly calls in connect & cut out Can someone help. Brian

My ipad is doing the same thing to it won't let me except a incoming call on Facebook and I don't know what to do

13" 2012 Non-Retina display cuts out

Like the title says, I'm having an issue with my 2012 non-retina 13" display cutting out when the bottom cover is installed. Without the bottom cover, the computer is perfectly fine and the display is normal. However, once I put the bottom cover on and begin tightening the screws or put any pressure (metal to board contact?) the display cuts out, displays lines or begins or distorts.
What is the issue causing this? I'm pulling my hair out at this moment

If I were you, I would take the machine into your local Apple Store and compare it with similar models on display. My late 2011 15" has a bright, vibrant screen and so should your new 13".
If you see that your display is simply not up to par, exchange your computer for another - you have 14 days from date of purchase to exchange or return for a full refund.
Good luck,
Clinton

Audio cutting out periodically

Just what the subject says. About a week ago I would unplug my external speakers from my Powerbook and the sound would not come out of the internal speakers. This could easily be fixed by plugging the headphone/speaker jack back in, and then taking it back out. The sound would come back.
Now the sound is cutting out periodically with and without headphones or speakers plugged in. This seems to happen randomly, whether I've been playing music or just using the computer without running any audio.
Any thoughts? I am thinking it's hardware problem, either the headphone jack itself or a short on the sound card. It's my understanding that the 'sound card' is on the motherboard and not easily replaceable, but we'll go there if we need to. Are there any easy fixes, or a way to test it to see what's wrong?
Message was edited by: gsgeorge
Message was edited by: gsgeorge

Hi gsgeorge
sounds a bit like a bad contact of the earphones-jack. I'd try to apply a tiny bit of electronic contact spray onto a plug, insert it into the socket and move it gently, if your lucky it might help.
Regards P

ITunes Cuts Out Periodically When Using Airport Express

I have a new Airport Express (with current software) hooked up to my Bose Home Theater system. I am streaming iTunes the Stereo but it periodically cuts out. Apple Help had me reset my Extreme and 2x Expresses to Channel 6. Still cuts out periodically, but much less than before. Anyone else seen this and can offer what to do?
Thanks,

i just bought a brand new airport express from apple and hooked it up to my brand new speakers. it also started periodically cutting out. so i followed apple's advice and tried different channels on my router. i went from 1 to 11 and still had the same problem.
then i tried decreasing my security down to WEP 40-bit. still had the same problem.
then i tried moving the airport to the middle of the room, about 6 feet away from both router and macbook pro. still the same problem. btw - i was using an optical cable from airport to speakers.
then i removed all security from my belkin router - and it worked. in the end i sent it back to apple for a refund. there's no way i can have my router running without security.

My rMBP HDMI display cuts out once per session

I have a rMBP (15 inch) that I use mostly with the lid closed and connected to dual monitors, (both identical ASUS monitors with HDMI and DVI-D connections). I use the Thunderbolt DVI-D adapter and a HDMI cable. When either running Windows 7 via Bootcamp or using Mountain Lion, the HDMI connection goes dark for about 3-5 seconds when I first start using the computer, then the picture reappears. The DVI-D connection is not affected.
All software updates are current and I've switched monitors and cables to no avail. Has anyone else encountered this issue?

Thanks. We are using the same setup the salesman sad he had at home: Mac Mini as media server with TV as monitor. We bought the server, not for the services, rather for the two 500GB drives. We let the default services run when we first set it up. I suppose I could shut everything non-essential down and see what happens.
I finally isolated the problem to today to either the HDMI cable, the miniDVI-to-HDMI adapter, or the Mac Mini itself. I would love for it to be just the adapter. Funny thing is the guy who sold us the system didn't know an adapter came with it so he sold us another one--which we promptly took back. Blergh!
This was supposed to be an easy migration. Imagine the naivete!
-starkravingchad

HT6114 external display cutting out

since the new update every few minutes my external display keeps cutting out and have to unplug and re plug the hdmi cable back in

Hey there jamie0105,
It sounds like your external monitor is not funcitoning correctly with the computer after updating to Mavericks even after reseating your HDMI cable. I recommend these troubleshooting steps from the article named:
Apple computers: Troubleshooting issues with video on internal or external displays
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1573
Reset the system
You can reset the Mac's parameter RAM and SMC.
Reset the resolution
Start by resetting the Mac's parameter RAM. If the display does not come up, was previously set to an unsupported resolution, and still results in no video:
Start up in Safe Mode.
From the Apple () menu, choose System Preferences.
Choose Displays from the View menu to open the preferences pane.
Select any resolution and refresh rate that your display supports.
Restart your computer.
Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.
All the very best,
Sterling

Audio out from HDMI to TV cuts out

I'm looking for help to troubleshoot the following problem:
I have a brand new iMac, 27", i7 (my first Mac ever). Using the Moshi Mini DisplayPort HDMI adapter, I output video and audio to my LG 55LH90 1080p LED TV. Everything is fine except that approximately every 15 seconds, the audio will cut out for 2 seconds completely.
The problem occurs regardless of whether the audio is from iTunes, YouTube, VLC, Quicktime, etc.
Does anyone have any ideas about what could be causing this problem or how to fix it?
Thanks

I have solved my problem.
After spending an inordinate amount of time trying to troubleshoot this (trying different cables, adapters, settings on my TV and iMac, different devices, scouring the internet for help, etc.), and with both LG and Apple customer service pointing the fingers at each other, turns out Apple was right (and LG was incompetent).
The fix was simple. When I was about to give up, I played around with my TV settings one more time. I disabled the "Clear Voice II" setting on my LG TV and it made the problem go away. Audio is 100% fine over HDMI now. Hurray!

Why does my iphone 4 keep cutting out in conversation after 2-3 minutes

why does my iphone 4 cut out when calling someone after 2-3 miutes

Sounds like something got corrupted during your upgrade.
I would restore from a last known good backup if I were you.
If that doesn't work I would set the phone up as new and re-install all of your apps and re-sync your music again.
Fred

Single Beep, Display cuts out, then comes back

I've had my macbook for a little over a year. Recently the hard drive died. I replaced it, and figured I'd put new memory in it while I was at it (2GB, Samsung). For a while I ran 10.4 (I was on vacation and didn't have access to my external), and everything seemed to work fine. When I finally got back to my apartment and restored my system with Time Machine, things started off well, but then some weird things started happening. First, when I installed new updates, my computer restarted itself a couple times during the installation (after the initial restart), but then stopped, and installation was successful. I figured things had resolved themselves, but then I started getting these weird problems.
When I close my macbook, it goes into standby, but will sometimes start up randomly while still closed. Also, when I go to open it, it will sometimes load, only to cut out again, make a single loud beep, and then come back and boot up fine.
I've read that a single beep usually means a RAM issue, but I'm curious if the problem is maybe with my system, and I should reformat, since it seemed to run fine with 10.4.
Hopefully I've been detailed enough, but let me know if you need more info. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Not resolved!

AirTunes CUTTING out periodically... Help?

I originally thought iTunes kept pausing but now I've realized the signal to the AirPort keeps cutting out. The song keeps playing in iTunes but the signal to the AirPort/AirTunes keeps going all jerky, cutting in and out with annoying frequency. Could my AirPort be dying? I've had it for 4+ years now. I just reset it and renamed the network, etc. I've also tried deleting the file in my preferences but to no avail. Is there anything else I can do?
Spencer

Have you updated to iTunes 8?
I did and I've had many connection problems since then. It started with my AirTunes not working, then I tried all the suggestions here: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1701084&tstart=0
Some solutions worked for a short time, now AirTunes won't work at all and when it was playing it was jittery, the volume control ceased to work (blared at me last time).
All day since I updated iTunes there's been nothing but problems. I'm leaving it off now so it doesn't interfere with my Wifi connections. I have an Airport Extreme and an Express, and a few times now both devices couldn't be found (it happened while I was playing my touchy AirTunes when it was working a little bit). As long as I don't play iTunes, everything else is peachy, with no disconnections from the internet or anything.

Is there an automated way to cut out periods of no-activity from footage?

I've got a screen-cap from a training session that I did, and the first thing I want to do is cut out all the footage in which there is no action at all for more than 5 seconds- basically any time that I stopped showing something on-screen and switched to explaining things and making gestures etc. since it was an in-person training session. The total training was about 3 hours long, so doing it by hand is not looking fun.
I haven't found any tools yet to do this- someone suggested the Magnum edit detector for After Effects, but that I don't think is going to pick up on the different periods of no motion vs. motion, just when I change screens between apps and things like that.
Is there anything out there I should be looking at tools-wise?

There is another thread (different forum) where the poster wants to automatically cut any part of the training video when he is not speaking (cut all silence). I understand what he is getting at, but that seems to assume that he is NEVER doing any mouse activity unless he is talking. Just don't see how this will suit every situation, as nothing beats the human interaction of editing. I've seen enough of the "automated" photo montages that cut off people's heads when moving the image, or zooming in on body parts other than the face...just weird results a lot of the time.
I've done several training videos and certainly understand the desire to "tighten things up" as much as possible. What works quickly for me in Premiere is "Mark In, Mark Out, Extract". Use the mouse or keyboard shortcut keys. Extract removes the selected area and closes the gap. Don't know what would be much quicker other than the requested robotic app. I know that some software can identify "scene changes", but that is a drastic change in content versus "no activity" on the screen. With screen captures, there is so little activity to begin with, could be just a little mouse pointer moving a bit.
Anyway, when an app can edit the video for us, video editors will be out of business ;-)
Thanks
Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

OVMS - Local display cuts out after boot DMS 59 Video Card

Hey All -
We use OVM/OVS on what you might call 'desktop servers'. We have several setup. We recently purchased some more machines that I am installing OVS onto and will add them to the cluster.
However, these machines only video connection is DMS 59. As such, we are using a default DMS 59 to DVI splitter, and then just running a single connection from the splitter to a DVI capable monitor.
Using this, OVS can be installed. However, on each successive boot after installing the display will show GRUB, the boot, and then right before OVS loads its console the display ceases to function.
Now I assume this has to do with our DMS 59 connections - but I can't find any documentation about why this may not be supported or if I am missing a driver.
Thoughts?
Edited by: 1009782 on Jun 4, 2013 11:46 AM

The bug is known, and a patch has been submitted: https://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=80151. There's been no update since friday, so I wonder what the current status is, or if it's up for review at all.
Does anyone know how we can be notified when this patch hits the kernel?

Mac pro cinema display cuts out and can't access Mac with screen sharing

Hi
A weird thing has started happening to my Mac Pro today. After using it for a few minutes the cinema display it is attached to on the Mac Pro just goes black. The Mac Pro is clearly still on - the light is on and i can hear the fans. The Mac Pro shows up on my local network and i can connect to it and access files from my Macbook, but screen sharing doesn't work (i just get the message 'contacting mac pro' and nothing else) and i can't connect to shared iTunes library either, which makes me think it is not just a display issue. I cannot wake the computer with the mouse or keyboard, which makes me think it isn't just a sleep issue. All i can do is physically turn the Mac Pro off, start it up and it will start up successfully and then work for a few more minutes before i get the same problem. I have reset the PRAM and SMC and still have the same problems. Can anyone suggest anything else i can try?
I should mention that i have another problem with the Mac Pro in that it has been spontaneously waking up from sleep and starting up from shutdown, and i still haven't resolved this. I don't know if it is connected to the above issue.
thanks
nick

I have experienced almost the exact same thing with my new 2008 Mac Pro and my 30" Apple display. It has happened to me twice in the last few weeks. The first time I chalked it up to a fluke, but now that it's happened again I searched the forums. In both cases I've had music playing in iTunes which continues playing, goes on to the next track, and so on. So the machine has not crashed in full. I too can connect to the files via another computer on the network, but cannot share the screen.
I have not had the sleep issues you have had.
I'll look at the link you provided in your next post to see where that gets me, but I wanted to let you know you were not alone on this one.

Why is my HDMI-connected display cutting out periodically?

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for