Dual 4k support for MacBook Pro Mid 2014

Hello Hohanahlen,

It sounds like you need some info on whether or not dual 4k resolution monitors @ 60hz is supported with your MacBook Pro. Check out this info from the following article:

Using 4K displays and Ultra HD TVs with Mac computers

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT6008

Supported displays and configuration

You can use 4K displays and Ultra HD TVs with your MacBook Pro (Retina, Late 2013 and later), Mac Pro (Late 2013), and iMac (27-inch, Late 2013) computer. You can use these displays at the following resolutions and refresh rates with the built-in HDMI port.

• 3840 x 2160 at 30 Hz refresh rate
• 4096 x 2160 at 24 Hz refresh rate (mirroring is not supported at this resolution)

With OS X Mavericks v10.9.3 or later, the following DisplayPort displays are supported at their default usingsingle-stream transport (SST) at 30Hz.

• Sharp PN-K321
• ASUS PQ321Q
• Dell UP2414Q
• Dell UP3214Q
• Panasonic TC-L65WT600

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013) or Mac Pro (Late 2013) also support multi-stream transport (MST) displays at 60 Hz . These displays need to be manually configured to use MST. Follow the steps below to use the display's built-in controls to enable this feature.

• Sharp PN-K321: Choose Menu > Setup > DisplayPort STREAM > MST > SET
• ASUS PQ321Q: Choose OSD menu > Setup > DisplayPort Stream
• Dell UP2414Q and UP3214Q: Choose Menu > Display Setting > DisplayPort 1.2 > Enable
• Panasonic TC-L65WT600: Choose Menu > Display Port Settings > Stream Setting > Auto

Your Mac will automatically detect an MST-enabled display. However, your display may require a firmware update to support 60Hz operation. Please contact your display vendor for details. If your specific DisplayPort display is not listed above, check with the display’s manufacturer for compatibility information.

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.

Regards,

Sterling

Yes. With HDMI you can use 1 display at the aforementioned resolution and refresh rate. If you are using the thunderbolt ports they can go up to the following resolution which is not 4K:

Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 2560 by 1600 pixels on up to two external displays, both at millions of colors

From:

https://www.apple.com/macbook-pro/specs-retina/

I have 2 Dell UP2414Q 4K monitors on a Late 2013 Retina Macboo Pro 15-Inch.

I can

- Run both monitors at 4K on thunderbolt ports at 30Hertz

- Run ONE monitor at 4K 60 Hertz on Thunderbolt and the second at 4K 30 Hertz on HDMI (Current Config)

I can not

- Run 2 monitors at 60 Hertz

- Plug 2 monitors on Thunderbolt as soon as one monitor is at 60 Herz.

The second thunderbolt port STOPS WORKING PERIOD.

Would prefer both monitors at 60Hertz but I can't truly notice since the second monitor is always for browsing or tools while I work on the primary. I also keep the laptop open for a third screen for consoles and stuff like that.

If anybody can explain the second Thunderbolt port stops working I would like to know.

Cheers

Stephane - which rMBP Late 2013 do you have? The one with integrated Iris Pro Graphics, or the one with the separate GPU?

I have the Intel Iros Pro AND the NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 2048

Hi Stephane,

Thanks for the information. Can you please tell me how much load the CPU and GPU get when the rMBP hooked up to the 2 monitors? Is the Iris Pro driving them or is the GT750M active? Do the computer run hotter than using just the laptop monitor? With both monitors running at 30Hz, can you daisy chain both monitors from a single Thunderbolt port? Thanks.

Sorry for asking too many questions, I myself have the same rMBP and I am looking in the market to buy a pair of 4K monitors but I'm not sure how well can my mac drive them.

For the answer to your question, each Thunderbolt port on your MacBook has 10Gbit/s of bandwidth per channel. Streaming 4K video @30Hz requires ~8Gbit/s of bandwidth, therefore streaming 4K with MST @60Hz requires ~16Gbit/s of bandwidth which is over the 10Gbit/s limit of the Thunderbolt channel. However, with Thunderbolt v2 (comes with late-2013 rMBP model and up) it is possible to combine/aggregate channels and stream the combined up to 20Gbit/s worth of bandwidth through a single port, I believe in order to do that the other unused thunderbolt port needs to be shut down.

Cheers!

Hi,

No noticeable CPU load for daily tasks.

The CPU fan will turn on when playing FULL 1080i Mp4 videos but it also did the same on my old 1080 monitor.

I'm always on the GT750M when plugged in and switch to Iris Pro when on the battery but then the 4k displays are not connected.

I did not try daisy chaining the Monitors (Not sure they even support it).

As for GPU load there is a very small difference when doing long redraw tasks like page down 30 pages in a heavy PDF or Word Doc.

I do not play games but I would probably switch the monitor to 1080 when doing so.

As for the monitors I got them half price on ebay. Would not pay 1200$ per monitor.

Hi Stephane, thanks you for your input. Losing faith in Apple for an refresh of their Thunderbolt Display lineup. I'm going to get a third-party 4K display to test it out because I'm not used to such dense resolution on a screen I usually place it around 60cm away from me (I still think that high number of pixel density is an overkill), if I'm okay with the resolution I'm going to get another one. I don't mind running the second 4K display at 30Hz since I'm going to use it mostly for browsing along or real time colour proofing of what I retouch on my first screen.

FWIW. Just bought two 4k displays from Monoprice (Item 12156) for $575/ea. Awesome. Make sure you also buy mini displayport -> displayport cables too 🙂

EVILoptimist

Just curious, they both work at 4k? What mac you have? Thank you!

I have mac book pro mid 2014, 13".

Will they work?!

I've had the same issue - I cannot plug in even a 1080p monitor on thunderbolt, once I have the 4k monitor running at 60Hz. In theory, the bandwidth should be just enough?

I too have the MBP Retina 15" Late 2013 .. with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 2048 MB ... Can I get the Dell UP2414Q full resolution of 3840 x 2160 on my computer?

Hugh

Are you sure two 4ks can be connected via Thunderbolt? I tried connecting a standard 4k (Asus) and a 2560*1440 monitor via Thunderbolt/DP, and one of the two always shuts down when I try to connect both. The only way to connect both is if I use DP on one, Thunderbolt on the other. I have a mid-2014 RMBP.