I just updated my OS and suddenly my sounds are not playing on a procedure I have used for quite a bit of time.
I’ve tried rebooting and plopping a sound file on my desktop and it does not work.
Anyone else having the same problem?
Thanks
George
It works on macOS 15.1 Sequoia. I haven’t yet updated to 15.2.
I’m on 15.3.2 Jim.
It just started after I did the update.
Works just fine for me.
George, I don’t know if you were using custom sound effects. Apple reduced the number of supported sound formats (e.g. it does not support the MIDI format anymore in the Finder / QuickLook), and also reduced the number of sound effects that you can select in the Audio Tab of the System preferences. It seems Apple is now offering just the 14 AIFF sounds you can find in System > Library > Sounds.
Additionally it seems Apple has deleted the “Sounds” folder in the User Library. So you would have to target the sounds in the System Library e.g.
playsound "/System/Library/Sounds/Tink.aiff"
Kurt,
That is exactly what I am using. Custom sounds in .mp3 format.
Files located in a folder that is within a folder on the desktop.
I located the sounds in the system library and for giggles tried to put a custom sound in the Sounds Folder.
No luck as an MP3. So using a software called “Amadeus Pro”, the latest version (2.8.13), I saved it as an AIFF. But the file saves as an “.aif”. And it grows in size from 164 K to 5.5 Meg!
Looks like I have been “Applefied”.
Does this mean that you cannot play custom sounds on a Mac running Sequoia 15.3.2 in Panorama?
Thanks Kurt.
It works just fine for me on Sequoia 15.2 and Sequoia 15.3.2 (24D81).
Kurt was referring to MIDI files, which describe musical content in terms of the timbre, duration and dynamic level of each note in a piece of music.
AIFF files (for which the MacOS extension is .aiff but the three-letter Windows-style extension is .aif) hold uncompressed pulse-code modulated audio data, i.e. the sampled sound wave rather than the musical notes. The raw data is exactly the same as that held in the more widely used WAV file, but with a different header on the front. At CD quality (16 bits per mono sample, 44,100 samples per second) the size of a stereo file is about 10MB per minute. At 48KHz, the sampling rate usually used for video, it’s about 11½MB per minute. Professional audio is usually recorded at 24-bit, 96kHz, so that’s 34½MB per minute for stereo or just over 100MB per minute for 5.1 surround, for instance.
Losslessly compressed formats such as Apple Lossless (.m4a) and FLAC (.flac) can usually reduce AIFF or WAV files by just over 50%.
MPEG3 files (usually with the Windows-style extension .mp3) use lossy data reduction to reduce file sizes much more drastically, but at the expense of sound quality. Data rates are usually between 64 and 320Kbps, i.e. between 480KB and 2.4MB per minute, i.e, reducing the size an uncompressed AIFF file by between 75% and 95%. However, the quality of sound effects is usually not great and the data rate of such an MP3 might be even lower, meaning that it grows even more when converted to WAV or AIFF.
Are you using mp3 files?
That is exactly the Same Sequoia 15.3.2 (24D81) on my system. It is a Mac studio with Apple M1 Max.
Yes, I tested mp3 files.
just now running my Pan Audio Player program ( iMac M1 15.3.2 ) which makes full use of all the Panorama audio statements while playing mainly MP3 music files. Everything is working as expected - no problems. I assume you have checked the Output settings for Sound in System Settings to make sure it is being directed to the proper output device and is not set to Mute.
Thanks
gary. Sound plays everywhere else. Safari, Music, Armadeus, QuickTime, etc. But your comment on your Pan Audio Player Program motivated to fire it up.
Sound plays!!!
I tried some backup databases of the same databases and they don’t play.
Next step is to try on my laptop that has not yet upgraded to 15.3.2.
I’ll report back when I figure this out.
Unfortunately this routine is rather new for me so other databases have not employed it.
Thanks for all the help guys.
Very strange!
George
I have finally identified the problem and have for myself made a workaround.
DON’T HAVE DESKTOP IN MP3 FILE PATH
UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS:
First I replaced Mac OS, Panorama, and painstakingly looked at the code that worked before. I made a simple database that basically only tried to play a sound. Made new sounds files. NOTHING worked for my Panorama problem database or the Simple One. Sound worked everywhere else! Music, Amadeus, Safari, YouTube, Sirius, Word, etc. Preferences in sound were properly set. Stymied.
GARY YONAITES’ COMMENT TO THE RESCUE:
Then I tried Gary Yonaites “Pan Audio Player program” after he reported that it worked while commenting on my problem, or should I say “issue”.
I had already downloaded it ages ago and it worked!
GARY’S PROGRAM WORKED! WHY?
One salient difference was that the sound file path did not go through the desktop.
That was the problem. DON’T HAVE DESKTOP IN MP3 FILE PATH
BACKGROUND
I recall after l updated the OS (likely) a window came up in Panorama X that asked:
“Allow “Panorama” to find devices on local networks? Don’t Allow Allow”
I think I said “No.” Window that I don’t recall ever seeing before I think when booting up Panorama.
Image attached called: " Allow Panorama to find devices on local network.png"
Below Images of Pan X message saying “Cannot play………”
The Images called " Pan X error - Sound.png"
and
" Screenshot 2025-03-26 at 3.39.07 PM.png"
NOT A FIX BUT A WORKAROUND
The bottom line is I have not been able to fix this issue until I relocated the Sound Files to another directory that does not include the Desktop in its path. I tried fixing this network allowance thing but no success. Sorry for being so verbose but if I can save someone here the pain of troubleshooting of a similar problem its worth it,
Panorama Error Message when trying to play sound
ChatGPT QUESTION
I even asked ChatGPT about a Software find devices on Local Networks -----It gave me a clue. Below, if you are interested.
I asked ChatGPT:
How to allow a software on a Mac running sequoia to allow that software to investigate or look at local network networks
ChatGPT said:
To allow a software on a Mac running macOS (including the Sequoia release) to access or inspect local network networks, you’ll generally need to adjust settings within the System Preferences and potentially grant additional permissions.
Here’s a step-by-step guide:
1. Allow Network Access via Firewall Settings:
macOS has a built-in firewall that can block or allow network access. You might need to configure the firewall to allow the software to communicate over the network.
- Go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Firewall.
- Click the lock icon in the lower-left corner and authenticate (using your admin credentials).
- If the firewall is turned on, click Firewall Options.
- In the Firewall Options, you can add the software in question by clicking the + button, selecting the app, and ensuring it’s set to allow incoming connections.
2. Grant Accessibility Permissions (if needed):
Some apps may require accessibility permissions to inspect network connections or interact with other apps on your system.
- Go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy.
- Select Accessibility from the left-hand sidebar.
- Ensure the app you want to allow access is listed and checked. If not, click the + button to add it.
3. Grant Full Disk Access (if needed):
If the software needs broader permissions to access system-level resources or logs, you may need to grant Full Disk Access.
- In System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy, select Full Disk Access.
- Add the software to the list by clicking the + button and selecting the app.
4. Allow App to Access Local Networks:
On newer macOS versions, apps may ask for permission to access the local network. If prompted, you will see a notification asking whether to allow the app to discover devices on your local network. You can click Allow when prompted.
- If you missed the prompt, go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Local Network.
- Find your software in the list and make sure it’s checked, granting it permission to access the local network.
5. Network Configuration:
If the software still can’t connect, check that the network configuration is correct:
- Ensure that the Mac is connected to the same network as the devices you want to interact with.
- If using a VPN or proxy, make sure the software can bypass it, or set up appropriate routing.
6. Check for Software-Specific Settings:
Some software might have its own settings or configurations for enabling network access, such as choosing a specific network interface. Check the software’s documentation or preferences to see if such an option exists.
7. Testing and Troubleshooting:
After adjusting the settings, you can test the software’s ability to access the local network. You can use the Network Utility (located in Applications > Utilities) to check the network and troubleshoot any connection issues.
By following these steps, you should be able to configure macOS to allow software to investigate and interact with the local network.
George, I am sorry, but I have to disagree.
There is NO problem with .mp3 files in the desktop folder, and permissions for access to network devices have nothing to do with playing of audio files — except your files are located on a server in your local network.
When I tested Gary’s Player database today, I got one additional macOS permissions dialog I had not seen before:
It asked for access rights to Music and Videos activities and my Media Library. I granted them.
So Panorama X has now in my System Privacy Preferences Full Disk Access, Music Access and, yes, even Network Access.
Then I opened a sound playing database of my own, that I had created in 2019. And while it must have been working with several methods of playing music or sound files then in 2019, today I saw all the issues you reported, too: “Can’t play pathtosoundfile.mp3”
My solution was to recreate the file paths by drag’n drop the .mp3 file into an active “FilePath” cell of my database. I edited the paths to delete the detailed user folder part.
The files play now seemlessly with this code
playsound info("userfolder")+FilePath
Many thanks Kurt and I will look at your suggestions later today.
I am not on a local network. I have my Mac Studio only. NO other computers connected.
Or perhaps I really don’t know what a network is.
I look forward to your “trick” on file dropping. I highly respect your opinion and your help is much appreciated.
Just to be clear I am on OS 15.3.2 with M1 Max Apple Silicon.
Perhaps my Machine is poorly configured. Fortunately I’ve solved my immediate problem.
Thanks again.
I am on an M3 MacBook Pro with macOS 15.3.2, too.
That “trick” is working well for a small number of files. It avoids accidental misspelling of the path. But if you have a folder with a greater number of sound files, you might consider using Panorama X’s filecatalog statement (or function).
Despite the documentation examples show quotes around the path to the sound file, quotes seem to break the function in my test. E.g.
playsound info("userfolder")+FilePath
does work, the quoted version
playsound quoted(info("userfolder")+FilePath)
does not work; it gives the “Can’t play …” error.
The quoted path is only for hard coded paths and would not be used when using functions and variables to create the path. If you use a function or variable together with some hard code like the file name then only the file name would be quoted.
playsound dbinfo("folder")+"mySound.mp3"
I just had a thought about George’s original problem. Is there any chance you have your system set up so that iCloud can move files to the cloud, loading them only onto your computer on demand? If so, playsound definitely would not work with a file that has been booted to the cloud.
Personally I think this feature of Apple deciding to remove files from your system to “help” you free up space is pernicious. I always make sure this feature is turned off. I wonder if your system upgrade might have turned on this option, causing all of your problems.