Big Sur 11.1 External Display Issues!

I think this really depends on the make and model of your display. I'm using a fairly new display that has direct usb-c to usb-c capability. Within the settings on the display's OSD I am able to select which version of the display port it uses. My options are 1.4, 1.2, or 1.1. Factory default is 1.4. This is the version that allows for HDR and what I was using prior to Big Sur 11.1 with no problems whatsoever. Immediately after installing the 11.1 update the display wasn't recognized properly and the OS showed it's maximum native resolution to be 1080p and sometimes 800x600 depending on what sequence I plugged and unplugged the connection. The only way I got it back to 4k was by changing that setting directly within the monitor OSD. However, as I mentioned the OS is still incorrectly identifying the make and model of the display.

I'm having the same issues. Big Sur 11.1 on a 2019 MBP 16".

Connection is USB-C to an LG 4K 32" which has been working fine for a couple years @ 60hz. After the update, the monitor has a bevy of issues including wrong resolutions, wrong refresh rate, and variations of that depending on what order I plugged in the cable and what color t-shirt I am currently wearing.

Reset PRAM and SMC probably 80 times at this point. I even swapped the LG provided USB-C cable with an Apple Thunderbolt 3 cable which had the same issues.

It's likely a software thing and I've seen enough reports online such that I'm surprised that this issue survived the beta period.

Hello. I am having issues with Big Sur 11.1 as well.

I have a Dell WD19 docking station and two brand new Samsung LS22T350FHNXZA 22inch running at 1080p. They work perfectly with Intel MacBook Pro 2019 and MacBook Pro 2014. I got a Macbook Air M1 and when I was on Big Sur 11.0 it would mirror the two external monitors and when I upgraded to Big Sur 11.1 none of my monitors work.

Congratulations Apple for making my dual monitor setup obsolete.

As the topic imply, I have issues with a setup of 2 external monitors running with Mac OS Big Sur 11.1. (Issues was already with 11.0)

I work in a mixed environment with Windows & Mac which some would argued is "Not supported", but it worked absolutely fine with MacOS Catalina.

Setup:

2 x HP Z27n G2 (2560x1440)

Daisy-chained via DisplayPort and connected to a HP USB-C Dock G5.

Dock via USB-C to MacBook Pro. Using 2 different models:

15-inch, 2018 (GPU: Radeon 555X)

13-inch, 2019 (GPU: Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655)

Due to the fact that MacOS does not support MST it will only see 1 Monitor connected to the Dock

(Windows see both on 1 cable)

I have therefor connected a separate USB-C cable from the MacBook to monitor 2.

Issues:

When connecting the MacBook to the docking station it is random if it finds 1 monitor connected to the dock.

When the docking station is connected the Mac is unresponsive for a few seconds. (Cursor cannot be moved)

Goes for the 15-inch with dual GPUs.

13-inch with just one GPU does not freeze up and monitor is found most of the time.

When the monitor 1 is identified from the Dock the image "twitches" randomly.

Twitching happens with both models, independent of GPU.

The Mac directly identify monitor 2 connected directly with USB-C (No lock-up)

Monitor 2 over USB-C works without issues, no twitching.

This all worked perfectly fine with Catalina, no issues.

I have seen many posts relating to monitor issues and this thread points to all issues I myself experience.

I have no remedy, unfortunately, I only add my own experiences / issues.

Personally I experience more issues in the dual GPU setup, but the general "twitching" glitch is constant.

Turn it off and on again!

I spent ages reading posts and fiddling with my MBP 2019 16" and BenQ EW3270U.

Just turned the monitor off and on again and the situation had righted itself completely!

Unless Apple have slipped an unnoticed fix in during the night...

Thanks, but I think I have turned it on and off and unplugged it enough times to meet the criteria for David Hume’s regularity theory of causation to rule this one out.

A few people have suggested this has worked, but not, alas, for me.

I have found HDMI (instead of USB-C) works for me, although some say this doesn’t work for them either.

Can’t say I know much about about hardware i/o, but seems it’s an issue recognising the display hardware? So with the right cable/display model combo you might find it works.

I’d be interested to see if anyone who finds that HDMI doesnt work around the problem if they tried another monitor model it might work?

Someone has said a fix is in the 11.2 beta so should be incoming soon-ish.

I'm experiencing a similar problem.

My external Dell (SE2719H) monitors no longer work following the Big Sur update. I'm using a j5create USB to Dual HDMI Adapter to connect the monitors to my iMac USB 3.0 port. The following is posted on the j5 site:

"Attention macOS® 11 Big Sur users: j5create USB™ Display and USB™ Ethernet adapters are not currently compatible with macOS® Big Sur 11. To avoid loss of functionality with the j5create USB™ Display and USB™ Ethernet adapters, we advise all Mac® users to delay updating to macOS® Big Sur 11"

Obviously, I was not aware of this issue prior to updating my OS.

Does anyone know of a work around until they fix the bug?

Very similar issue here, I have a BenQ PD2720U, connected with Thunderbolt 3 and it either ignores the screen completely or shows a slow and very reduced choice of resolutions. I got it "back to normal" only when switching from DisplayPort version 1.4 to 1.2 in the display itself.

You can find another thread here (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/after-udpate-to-11-1-external-4k-monitor-is-no-longer-working-over-1080p.2275376/page-2?post=29413261#post-29413261)

Have a MacBook Pro 16 (2019) with a monitor BenQ PD2700U that doesn't really work, unless I unplug all the time and it is still only in 30Hz.

Do you guys think that Apple has noticed this bug?

Same here. I have the same monitor and a MacBook Pro 16". Since the 11.1 upgrade, the Mac is not recognising the screen properly and seeing its maximum resolution as 1080p. Scaled options are non-existent and there seems to be nothing I can do on the screen itself to force a higher resolution. I can't believe that a system upgrade would brick a £1,000 monitor in this way. Absolutely infuriating!!

Same over here! MBP 16'' with an external LG 4K monitor (32UD88-W).

With DP to USB-C and USB-C to USB-C the OS does not recognize the monitor correctly. The resolution switches from 720p to 1080p with 30Hz.

My solution is to connect the monitor with a HDMI to USB-C cable. Now the OS is saying my monitor is 5120 x 2880 (5K/UHD+ - Ultra High Definition Plus). lol. But it is looking good.

This workaround worked for me. Thank you!

It was quite a frustrating experience to go from 11.0 to 11.1 and get my workflow disrupted. I now have full 4K resolution but I have lost HDR.

Not sure how this have escaped QA. Looking at the blast radius of this, I hope that Apple rolls out a fix soon.

My case is MacBook Pro 2019 + USB-C hub + HDMI connection to Samsung S24D300HL (1920x1080). I can only have either 1024x768 or 1080p. Never see 1920x1080. For the time being it is okay, but you cannot move your movies to Samsung screen to play.

I too am having the same issue after 11.1 update. I first noticed my mouse was jerky, and quickly realized it was the monitor refresh rate of 30hz. If I reboot my computer while plugged in, it seems to work correctly until I disconnect and reconnect my USB-C video cable. Quite annoying when switching to my external monitor to have to reboot every time. Apple, please fix this issue ASAP.

I have an LG 34WN80C and nothing changed other than the 11.1 Big Sur Update.

Same issues on Big Sur 11.1 on 2019 MBP 16" with an LG 32UD99 32" 4K display connected via USB-C. Worked fine on Big Sur prior to 11.1 update.

Interestingly, I have an older 2016 MBP that works just fine on the same monitor with the same settings, also under 11.1.

I can enable/disable Displayport 1.2 (not 1.4!) on the monitor settings, makes no difference.