daisy chain monitors

How do you daisy chain three monitors to a Mac Pro?


Mac Pro, macOS 10.15

Posted on Aug 7, 2022 3:36 PM

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3 replies

Aug 7, 2022 4:01 PM in response to Blackout2022

These cables are switching hard against the physical limits of how fast you can switch Digital Logic. There is no way to get three displays on any cable.


On a Mac, its one display per cable, except:


Up to two displays on a genuine ThunderBolt cable connected to a genuine ThunderBolt device (Dock or Display) whose other connectors for a second display if desired can be any of ThunderBolt, USB-C, DisplayPort, or HDMI.


USB-C to the first device will not chain any farther on a Mac.



Aug 8, 2022 6:13 AM in response to Blackout2022

That would normally be the case. But the Mac Pro 2013 has only ThunderBolt-2 connectors (20 Gbits/sec), which have only half the maximum bandwidth of ThunderBolt-3 40 Gbits/sec).


ThunderBot-2 is now 'old' technology. You will have a very hard time finding a ThunderBolt-2 device (Dock or Display) to attach.


Depending on what display(s) you want to connect, daisy-chaining might have too much data to fit. In addition, large displays that are 'common' today did not exist when that Mac was designed.


Your Mac supports up to six displays, but you may be forced to use one display to a cable.

Aug 7, 2022 7:07 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thanks very much for your reply. So, if I understand you correctly, I could connect two monitors with thunderbolt to any of the six thunderbolt outlets in the Mac Pro (ca. 2013) and one more with the HDMI connector in the back of the Mac Pro, is that correct? (I have two connected now, one via the HDMI connector and one with an HDMI to Thunderbolt adapter.)

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daisy chain monitors

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