Thunderbolt 1 to HDMI external display - will it ever work ?

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Thunderbolt 1 to HDMI external display - will it ever work ?

Hello,

I've just had a MacBook Pro (2011) upgraded to the most recent possible software - High Sierra 10.13. This was done by an Apple Store. All is working. The machine still feels nice - suitable for basic jobs.

I'm trying to connect a brand-new HDMI display to the Thunderbolt port. This pre-dates the "MiniDisplayPort" although physically the same.

I'm now on my third connector. None has worked - NONE detect the external display properly. One expressly states it works with older Thunderbolt. All are third party - as far as I can see, there's no current Apple product.

I've had long sessions with Apple Support - nice people but no solution (restart, purge NVRAM...).

Does anyone have any ideas ? I did have something from StarTech (a connector specialist) saying "Active HDMI" was required.

Or is the software port driver just not functioning correctly ?

Thanks

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 10.13

Posted on May 30, 2024 11:49 AM

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Answer 1

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Xylophone1 Author

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May 31, 2024 12:33 AM in response to Xylophone1

For those interested - it did work in the end. I used a cable (from WARRKY) which is advertised specifically mentioning early Thunderbolt ver 1 and ver 2 as supported.

Another supplier which guarantees Thunderbolt ver 1 and ver 2 is StarTech. Much more expensive - but you get support. Their website talks of "active MiniDisplayPort" as opposed to passive.

There is a difference in the chipset from the really cheap adapters you can buy.

Nevertheless -still a lot of fiddling around. I'm not sure what the critical step is - perhaps turning off the firewall settings (and saving) - see elsewhere on Apple community.

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Answer 2

Xylophone1 Author

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Jun 7, 2024 12:53 AM in response to Xylophone1

All working now - it's a case of using a lead which is "Active" Display port to HDMI 2.0 4k.

These can be found on Ebay. Physically the HDMI connector is larger than in the "passive" ones - I believe it has more chips in it.

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Answer 3

Xylophone1 Author

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Jun 1, 2024 7:56 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thank you for the input again, Grant and Servant of Cats.

The Warrky miniDP to HDMI partially worked. The screen was detected - a step forward.

But I think it is a Passive not Active miniDP. So, what I have is the screen flickering until I reduce the resolution to 720p. Not exactly what I was looking for ! I don't think there is anything wrong with the Mac.

I have now purchased a lead on Ebay which is described as Active mini DP (ver 1.2) to HDMI 4k @ 60 Hz version 2.0.

The chipset in an active lead is not the same ! See Startech.com

My Mac has Thunderbolt version 1 which I believe is equivalent to DP ver 1.1a. But the mini DP ver 1.2 is supposedly backwardly compatible.

Results next week !

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Answer 4

Jun 1, 2024 7:09 AM in response to Xylophone1

Provided the resolution of the display is within what the Mac can support, and your adapter/cable is ONE meter or shorter, the issue that trips up Mac users connecting a display of the first time is how the Mac gets is display settings.

The Mac uses a system that reminds me of “Plug and play” to determine what display is connected, and what its capabilities are.

To get a Mac display to become active, you need the Mac to query the display, and the display to answer with its name and capabilities. Otherwise, the display will not be shown as present, and no data will be sent to the display. "No signal detected" is generated by the DISPLAY, not by the Mac.

This query is only sent at certain times:

• at startup

• at wake from sleep — so momentarily sleeping and waking your Mac may work

• at insertion of the Mac-end of the display-cable, provided everything on that cable is ready-to-go

• hold the Option key while you click on the (Detect Display) button that will appear in Displays preferences (from another display)

so try doing some of those things and see if the display comes alive.

Modern Displays with multiple ports are sometimes busy scanning the other ports, looking for an input, and miss the query from the Mac. They need to pay attention to the port you are actually using, or they will miss the query.

Some displays have On-Screen Display settings that can be used to tell the display a computer is attached on a certain port, or a certain port should be highest priority. Changing those may make your display more responsive.

Some displays include their own private "sleep" settings for the display alone. This can allow the display to enter its own sleep mode, on top of the Mac's not sending it data. A display that is sleeping on its own cannot respond to the Mac's query, and will stay dark.

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Answer 5

May 31, 2024 7:21 PM in response to Xylophone1

Xylophone1 wrote:

Hello,

I've just had a MacBook Pro (2011) upgraded to the most recent possible software - High Sierra 10.13. This was done by an Apple Store. All is working. The machine still feels nice - suitable for basic jobs.

I'm trying to connect a brand-new HDMI display to the Thunderbolt port. This pre-dates the "MiniDisplayPort" although physically the same.

Mini DisplayPort predated Thunderbolt 1 - not the other way around.

The Thunderbolt 1 port on your 2011 MacBook Pro can act either as a Thunderbolt 1 port or as a Mini DisplayPort, depending on what you plug in. It can support a display with a resolution of up to 2560x1600 pixels. That was the resolution of the 30" Apple Cinema Display. Most 27" displays had a resolution of 2560x1440 pixels.

If your monitor has a DisplayPort or Mini DisplayPort input, I would recommend connecting it with a mDP-to-DP or mDP-to-mDP cable. But you can also get mDP-to-HDMI adapters if you need HDMI.

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Thunderbolt 1 to HDMI external display - will it ever work ?

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