Kernel Panic w/ External Display

this issue has been driving me up a wall. so far i've tried a cirago mdp -> dp adapter from microcenter, and an accell mdp -> dp adapter from amazon. the dp cable i'm using is a 10' QVS cable, also from micro center. my theory is that my problem is either the dp cable, or the fact that i'm adapting, so i thought i'd try a single mdp -> dp cable. i've ordered the startech one from amazon, since it has pretty good reviews, and i'm hoping that solves the issue. are you using a single cable, or an adapter? additionally, have you gotten mdp -> DVI-D to work at 2560x1440 on the air? i tried an adapter like that with the DVI-D cable that came with the monitor (which i normally connect to my mac pro's geforce 7300's DVI port) and it worked, but only at 1080.

i'm still within my 30 days on the monitor but it's so gorgeous for such a good price (and it works fine with my mac pro) that i'm thinking of just keeping it until it works. super frustrating though, i'm relieved to finally find a topic about it. can you point me to any other relevant articles/forum topics you've come across? i've had a terrible time finding anything addressing this precise issue.

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oh and here's the kicker – if you daisy chain the display through a thunderbolt device (with the display being the last device on the chain, obviously) it works 100% fine.

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one more note – i've done a fresh install of lion, and no dice. i'm contemplating trying the latest mountain lion dp on an external drive, just to see if the issue is fixed there. it even kernel panics in the recovery mode partition, which i assume has far fewer kexts loaded (and certainly nothing third party), etc., than the ordinary boot environment.

****! are you using the startech adapter, or the startech cable? i ordered the 6' startech cable.

the monitor works fine on my brother's pre-thunderbolt macbook pro's mdp. i was planning on trying with another macbook air, but i may just wait to hear from you since the only person i know with a 2011 air is a client.

in my opinion the issue must be thunderbolt-related, since daisy chaining works fine. the problem is, once you figure in the cost of either a $100 dvi dual link to thunderbolt adapter or a $200 lacie esata hub (probably the cheapest most useful thunderbolt peripheral to use as a daisy chain to get the monitor working) and a $50 thunderbolt cable, this display no longer looks quite so cheap. i have half a mind to return it and get a dell u2410...even my mac pro can't drive too many games at 2560x1440, and since video isn't available at that resolution anyway 24" 1080 would be fine (plus a nicer manufacturer's warranty, less desk space, a far nicer stand...). maybe the $100 dual link adapter is worth it...i'll buy it and see if it works, i can always return to my local apple store inside 14 days. and the startech cable should connect to my mac pro just as well. the next cheapest 27" ips is double this price, so even with the adapter, the micro center 3yr warranty, and a decent stand ($25 at monoprice or so) this is a cheap way to have gorgeous 27" 1440p.

are you running the mountain lion dp on anything right now? i'll install it to a flash drive when i get home and try the monitor in mountain lion. one thought i had was backing up my air and replacing the relevant kexts in the panic's backtrace with their mountain lion counterparts...dodgy business, but people used to do that between point releases of OS X to solve graphics driver issues, could work between major versions i guess..? i also wonder whether the monitor would work in vanilla 10.7, 10.7.1, 10.7.2, etc. if it worked in any of those we could in theory use the kexts from that point release in 10.7.4 and i bet it'd work there.

worth a try anyway.

edit: looks like monoprice has the adapter for $70, with better review's than apple's to boot (no reports of static like the apple adapter). i assume that usb has to be connected for power, though? that's pretty lame for an air, 50% loss of usb ports just for a display.

gotcha. interesting...so maybe it's a problem with 10.7.x, thunderbolt (perhaps just the mobile 2-lane thunderbolt?), and this monitor (since presumably e.g. apple and dell mdp monitors work fine). i actually tested the 27" cinema and thunderbolt displays in the apple store, neither panicked my air.

how would you rate the display (when it's working)? or have you tried it successfully at full resolution yet with any machine? even just the OS X desktop is breathtaking at 2560x1440, the blacks could be blacker and there seems to be some light bleed along the bottom right, noticeable especially with dark scenes in full screen movies or tv . games look stunning...my 5870 handles starcraft ii and all the valve games at full settings, full resolution.

i'm a little confused as to what the solution is – decent dvi dual link cable + official apple adapter?

and i guess we're to assume this is an software bug...what's weird is how close this monitor is to the official apple displays, spec- and part-wise, and how 'dumb' a device a monitor is generally. you'd think using any third party 27" ips display @ 2560x1440 over mdp would trigger this. not to mention the oddity of the fact that having a thunderbolt device between the machine and the monitor fixes the problem. hmm.

well i'll try it on the latest build of ML when i get home, and if that fixes it at least we'll know (or be mostly sure) that ML will patch the problem. the GM should leak soon enough that it might be worth waiting rather than throwing down for the adapter.

by the way – have you found a decent 75x75 vesa tilt/swivel stand for this monitor? i've found a few but most recommend a maximum screen size of 23" (presumably due to weight constraints?). the included stand is crap, really my only complaint with this monitor.

monitor works perfectly in mountain lion, both with the startech cable and the accell adapter+qvs 10' displayport cable. there's a sleep issue with the startech cable but it might be ironed out in the mean time, i guess. color profiles are also wonky, not so much for the external display as the laptop display, but i assume that'll be ironed out. can't wait to test with/install the gold master.

brady.myers said:

monitor works perfectly in mountain lion, both with the startech cable and the accell adapter+qvs 10' displayport cable. there's a sleep issue with the startech cable but it might be ironed out in the mean time, i guess. color profiles are also wonky, not so much for the external display as the laptop display, but i assume that'll be ironed out. can't wait to test with/install the gold master.

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Hey brady.myers, I'm having the exact same kernel panic on my 2011 Macbook Pro. I was wondering which version of OSX Mountain Lion you were using to get the monitor working.

I have tested the monitor on my PCs and it's absolutely stunning. I had no dead pixels.

Solution: Mountain Lion

Upgrading to 10.8 Mountain Lion is what fixed the auria black screen on start up for me on my 2011 mac mini

I had tried the common suggestions and there was somebody else who had tried the things I had tried and then he upgraded to mountain lion and reported success. I did the same and got the same result. Hope this helps.