LG UltraFine 5K - Owners Thread

[jimthing]

So the M1 Max can run two LG 5k Ultrafine Displays at full 5k without issue? I had just assumed that it would be able to, but now I’m seeing some conflicting information about whether this is truly supported. I use this setup in two different locations. This seems to be the only thread I can find with people who actually have this hardware and setup.

I see some people saying they don’t run at full 5k. Sometimes when I connect my current MBP (2016) to the displays one only connects at 4k and upscale to 5k and I hate it (but it’s a simple fix—just disconnect and reconnect), so if the new MBP (2021/M1 Max) can’t do native dual 5k with the 5k LG Ultrafine I will need to cancel my order.

I had a maxed-out MBP15 2016, and now a fully maxed-out MBP16 2021: BOTH work with two 5K3K displays at full resolution. The only difference is that the 2016 one would have the fans blowing loud all the time, while the new 2021 does so without a breath! Good luck. ;-)

EDIT: Here's Apple's official spec page:
https://support.apple.com/kb/SP858?locale=en_GB

So you can actually plug three 5K or 6K @60Hz displays into the Max models (via the 3x TB4 ports) simultaneously with a 4K @60Hz (via the 1x HDMI port). I only have two 5K's, so will have to leave that test for someone else, lol!

Video Support​

Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at 1 billion colors and:

• Up to two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Pro) or
• Up to three external displays with up to 6K resolution and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Max)

Thunderbolt 4 digital video output

• Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C
• VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output supported using adapters (sold separately)

HDMI digital video output

• Support for one display with up to 4K resolution at 60Hz
• DVI output using HDMI to DVI Adapter (sold separately)

 

[ralphthemagi]

I had a MBP15 2016, and now a fully maxed-out MBP16 2021: BOTH work with two 5K3K displays at full resolution. The only difference is that the 2016 one would have the fans blowing loud all the time, while the new 2021 does so without a breath! Good luck. ;-)

Thank you for confirming! Means a lot to me. ?

Are you also using MagSafe for power, or is the power from one of the LG displays enough for desktop use? I know the new MBP (2021/M1 Max) can draw over 100W, but I’m guessing most of the time it wouldn’t.

 

[ralphthemagi]

I had a MBP15 2016, and now a fully maxed-out MBP16 2021: BOTH work with two 5K3K displays at full resolution. The only difference is that the 2016 one would have the fans blowing loud all the time, while the new 2021 does so without a breath! Good luck. ;-)

EDIT: Here's Apple's official spec page:
https://support.apple.com/kb/SP858?locale=en_GB

So you can actually plug three 5K or 6K @60Hz displays into the Max models (via the 3x TB4 ports) simultaneously with a 4K @60Hz (via the 1x HDMI port). I only have two 5K's, so will have to leave that test for someone else, lol!

With regards to your edit, this was the information I was originally going off of. However, I knew the 5k LG Ultrafine has a bit of a special implementation. It uses DisplayPort aggregation to bind two DisplayPort 1.2 connections together over a single physical Thunderbolt connection (instead of a single DisplayPort 1.4, which would be a more “standard” implementation), so you need both Thunderbolt controller support and GPU support at both a hardware and driver level. Without DisplayPort aggregation it just fails over to DisplayPort 1.2 @ 4k and upscales.

 

[jimthing]

Are you also using MagSafe for power, or is the power from one of the LG displays enough for desktop use? I know the new MBP (2021/M1 Max) can draw over 100W, but I’m guessing most of the time it wouldn’t.

Mine is not connected at the moment to any external displays.

I just used the TB3 connection from the display(s), and it maintained charge. So maybe you could test that and advise the thread better.

Dunno about your other question, sorry, except to sy that yes they do 4K when other factors come into play. The 6K XDR's use a similar specialised thing using DSC to achieve connectivity at full res. on Macs.

I just bought the two 5K's back in Mar 2017 (after the shielding issues were fixed on the original ones), as they were (and remain) the only external retina 5K display offering that works reasonably seamlessly with macOS – others have since largely disappeared, and their non-TB3 connections were more finicky. ...and yes, I'd love an Apple offering, but that's ever more unlikely, so this is the best we're likely to get for the moment until maybe 10K ones arrive or something, lol!

 

[joevt]

So the M1 Max can run two LG 5k Ultrafine Displays at full 5k without issue? I had just assumed that it would be able to, but now I’m seeing some conflicting information about whether this is truly supported. I use this setup in two different locations. This seems to be the only thread I can find with people who actually have this hardware and setup.

I see some people saying they don’t run at full 5k. Sometimes when I connect my current MBP (2016) to the displays one only connects at 4k and upscale to 5k and I hate it (but it’s a simple fix—just disconnect and reconnect), so if the new MBP (2021/M1 Max) can’t do native dual 5k with the 5k LG Ultrafine I will need to cancel my order.

@Kier-XF posted some conclusive or at least very compelling evidence that three LG UltraFine 5K displays do all work at 5K60. And he had a display connected to HDMI. And the internal display. And a sidecar display (not a DisplayPort GPU). So that GPU is outputting 8 DisplayPort connections. AMD GPUs are limited to 6.
https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ax-support-without-hdmi.2322772/post-30625582
Read my post after that one - the Spoiler section shows each LG display was set to 5K60 tiled display. Just because the GPU can do 8 DisplayPort connections doesn't mean it can do 8 displays - M1 Macs have special support for tiled displays (some kind of display abstraction) which seems to make them appear more like a single display than they do on Intel Macs. On an Intel Mac, you can use the AGDCDiagnose command to see the separate connections and the individual EDIDs of the tiles. This information is more hidden on M1 Macs. So the weirdness of only allowing half as many 5K tiled displays than 4K displays on Intel Macs doesn't exist on M1 Macs (except for the fact that you can't connect two 5K tiled displays to the same Thunderbolt port - that's a Thunderbolt 3/4 limit that will always exist at least until Thunderbolt 5?).

This is a more impressive test than 3 Apple Pro Display XDR displays since the LG UltraFine 5K actually requires two DisplayPort connections over Thunderbolt. The XDR can do 6K60 with DSC @ 12bpp using just HBR2 x4 bandwidth so you can connect two XDR's per Thunderbolt port. LG UltraFine 5K doesn't support DSC and therefore uses 30bpp. I would like to see someone test connecting two XDR to a single Thunderbolt port. And also test 4 XDR displays (the question is, did Apple say it only supports 3 XDR's because there's only 3 Thunderbolt ports or because the GPU can't handle 6K60x4 pixels per second?).

 

[-Ryan-]

Anyone else have problems with hard drives not remounting after wake up from sleep (hub connected to ultrafine usb c port)

I've got 2 USB-C WD SSDs connected to my display and have never had any issues. The display is connected to an early 2019 iMac 27".

 

[jimthing]

@Kier-XF posted some conclusive or at least very compelling evidence that three LG UltraFine 5K displays do all work at 5K60. And he had a display connected to HDMI. And the internal display. And a sidecar display (not a DisplayPort GPU). So that GPU is outputting 8 DisplayPort connections. AMD GPUs are limited to 6.
https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ax-support-without-hdmi.2322772/post-30625582
Read my post after that one - the Spoiler section shows each LG display was set to 5K60 tiled display. Just because the GPU can do 8 DisplayPort connections doesn't mean it can do 8 displays - M1 Macs have special support for tiled displays (some kind of display abstraction) which seems to make them appear more like a single display than they do on Intel Macs. On an Intel Mac, you can use the AGDCDiagnose command to see the separate connections and the individual EDIDs of the tiles. This information is more hidden on M1 Macs. So the weirdness of only allowing half as many 5K tiled displays than 4K displays on Intel Macs doesn't exist on M1 Macs (except for the fact that you can't connect two 5K tiled displays to the same Thunderbolt port - that's a Thunderbolt 3/4 limit that will always exist at least until Thunderbolt 5?).

This is a more impressive test than 3 Apple Pro Display XDR displays since the LG UltraFine 5K actually requires two DisplayPort connections over Thunderbolt. The XDR can do 6K60 with DSC @ 12bpp using just HBR2 x4 bandwidth so you can connect two XDR's per Thunderbolt port. LG UltraFine 5K doesn't support DSC and therefore uses 30bpp. I would like to see someone test connecting two XDR to a single Thunderbolt port. And also test 4 XDR displays (the question is, did Apple say it only supports 3 XDR's because there's only 3 Thunderbolt ports or because the GPU can't handle 6K60x4 pixels per second?).

Tip: While we value your specs breakdown, perhaps you can simply summate the info into yes or no tl;dr type summary at the end - for those that get lost in the detail.

 

[jterp7]

I've got 2 USB-C WD SSDs connected to my display and have never had any issues. The display is connected to an early 2019 iMac 27".

Yea i mean directly connected its been fine. Its mainly for the spinning disks that are plugged in a satechi then through a converted into the usb c port

 

[byronracki]

Has anyone had any luck using the displays in full 5K with Windows laptops that have Thunderbolt 4? Specifically, I've got a Razer laptop that has a 3080 in it and was trying to determine whether it would support 1 (or 2) at full 5k with 60 refresh.. Thanks

 

[joevt]

Has anyone had any luck using the displays in full 5K with Windows laptops that have Thunderbolt 4? Specifically, I've got a Razer laptop that has a 3080 in it and was trying to determine whether it would support 1 (or 2) at full 5k with 60 refresh.. Thanks

You can only connect one LG UltraFine 5K per Thunderbolt port since each Thunderbolt port can only have two DisplayPort connections (ignoring MST which would require a Thunderbolt add-in card to convert the two streams back to Thunderbolt 3).

How many Thunderbolt ports do you have? How many pairs of displays can you connect to them? The number of pairs will be how many 5K tiled displays you can connect.

 

[byronracki]

You can only connect one LG UltraFine 5K per Thunderbolt port since each Thunderbolt port can only have two DisplayPort connections (ignoring MST which would require a Thunderbolt add-in card to convert the two streams back to Thunderbolt 3).

How many Thunderbolt ports do you have? How many pairs of displays can you connect to them? The number of pairs will be how many 5K tiled displays you can connect.

The Razer has one Thunderbolt 4 port on each side (2 in total) so I was thinking I might have a shot at having 2 connected. Way back when there were various dimming issues with using a Windows PC, etc. so was trying to figure out if that problem had been solved as well as whether I could actually rock 5k on both (trying to find one monitor set that works with both Windows and PC!)

Appreciate the thoughts!

 

[joevt]

The Razer has one Thunderbolt 4 port on each side (2 in total) so I was thinking I might have a shot at having 2 connected. Way back when there were various dimming issues with using a Windows PC, etc. so was trying to figure out if that problem had been solved as well as whether I could actually rock 5k on both (trying to find one monitor set that works with both Windows and PC!)

Are the Thunderbolt 4 ports from Tiger Lake CPU? That means they will use the Tiger Lake GPU instead of the 3080 (the 3080 may render to the Intel GPU frame buffer?). The Tiger Lake GPU is limited to 4 displays so maybe it could connect two LG UltraFine 5K? But you have to check the specs of your specific laptop to be sure. If one DisplayPort connection is always reserved for the laptop's display, then that's one less that can be used by an LG UltraFine 5K display. But you also have a 3080. Laptop specs don't usually describe how their display connections are setup so you have to test it.

 

[JDHiro]

My Thunderbolt port finally gave up the ghost. I have the wiggle the cable at very specific angles to get a signal.

I'm going to try replacing the mainboard in the monitor myself. Does anyone have experience ordering one of the mainboards from LGs supplier and swapping it in? It sounds like they have a weird core-exchange policy.

 

[AeroUK]

I returned mine, tired of all it's quirks and bugs. Bought the Pro display and am now broke but very happy!

 

[Scary Spice]

I returned mine, tired of all it's quirks and bugs. Bought the Pro display and am now broke but very happy!

I just did the same! Tired of waiting for something apple and something cheaper than the Pro XDR.

 

[AeroUK]

I just did the same! Tired of waiting for something apple and something cheaper than the Pro XDR.

Congrats! It will suck if they update it next year but that’s tech for you.

 

[JDHiro]

Pro Display XDR is worth every penny. I'm pondering not even fixing the LG and throwing it in the trash but... nice to have an office setup in a 2nd room.

 

[JDHiro]

Congrats! It will suck if they update it next year but that’s tech for you.

Spec wise, I'm not sure what they could really do in the short-term. Price drop? Maybe.

I think the next major Pro Display update will be a micro-LED in about 3-4 years.

 

[Weaselboy]

‎LG Screen Manager (LG Monitor)

‎LG Screen Manager is an application that provide monitor software update feature. LG Screen Manager displays all connected LG monitor information. This software is compatible with supported LG monitors only. *Supported monitors - 22MD4KA - 27MD5KA - 24MD4KL - 27MD5KL

apps.apple.com

There is an M1 Mac update out for the LG Screen Manager app.

 

[-Ryan-]

‎LG Screen Manager (LG Monitor)

‎LG Screen Manager is an application that provide monitor software update feature. LG Screen Manager displays all connected LG monitor information. This software is compatible with supported LG monitors only. *Supported monitors - 22MD4KA - 27MD5KA - 24MD4KL - 27MD5KL

apps.apple.com

There is an M1 Mac update out for the LG Screen Manager app.

I have just downloaded it. I expected there might be a firmware update as well, but nothing showing for me.

 

[cube4ever]

Has anyone found files to update the FW manually via the Screen Manager app?

My 27MD5KL-B defaults to ~50% brightness every time I wake up the MB from sleep and it annoys me quite a bit.

 

[Weaselboy]

I expected there might be a firmware update as well, but nothing showing for me.

Same here.

 

[jimthing]

Has anyone found files to update the FW manually via the Screen Manager app?

My 27MD5KL-B defaults to ~50% brightness every time I wake up the MB from sleep and it annoys me quite a bit.

Same here.

So why on earth are LG dragging their heels here, and still not fixing this via the just released LG Screen Manager app update??

TBH, at this point users have to wonder why Apple aren't putting more pressure on LG to fix the damn thing, given they 'partnered' with them on these displays from 2016 to now, as Apple's supposed 'go to' user display (sure I get XDR now exists for the select few, but Apple still on/off sell the 5K in their store to the non-rich mass market!), and tens of thousands of Apple's users rely on these things actually working.

Just look a few posts up: two buyers returning them accordingly – presumably Apple think the fact those two were effectively forced to put themselves into hardship buying the XDR just to have a normal experience, as a good thing. I've news for them: it isn't.

Instead what it does do, is leave a bad taste in normal Apple users mouths, YET AGAIN (remember the omni-shambles of the trash can MP, et al.!), when buying into the expensive Apple ecosystem, in order to get stuff that 'just works' without the fuss associated with other cheaper platforms, only to have the same problems anyway. As users, why bother?

The lack of low-volume nuance in the volume control still p*sses me off on my two originals, today, nearly FIVE YEARS later. Why even bother, LG?! Pfft!

 

[saulinpa]

Has anyone found files to update the FW manually via the Screen Manager app?

My 27MD5KL-B defaults to ~50% brightness every time I wake up the MB from sleep and it annoys me quite a bit.

Brightness after sleep has been a problem with the M1s since day one. It's an Apple issue as the logs show setting to 200 nits after wake.

 

[cgarmstrong420]

I've recently upgraded to a new 2021 MacBook Pro with M1 Max chip.

I was previously running a 2017 MacBook Pro.

My monitor previously was a crappy 1080p thing given to me by work.

When getting the new laptop, I figured I'd upgrade to the LG 5k display, so I ordered one (can't afford the XDR as much as I'd love it).

The 5k display arrived before the MacBook Pro M1 Max did, so I've been using it for a few weeks with my 2017 MacBook Pro and it's been perfect.

However, the other day the M1 Max MBP arrived and connecting it with the exact same cable etc to that machine, the monitor only runs in 4k and not 5k. The brightness works fine, keyboard controls etc, but it just only runs using 20gbps over the single cable instead of the 40gbps that's required for the 5k.

I wrote another post just now about it on this thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/anyone-tried-lgs-ultra-fine-5k-with-latest-mbp.2320009/

Have contacted apple support without too much success, am worried about contacting LG because I bought the monitor used so it might end up costing a lot to replace or get fixed.... my only consolation right now is that the M1 Max chip laptop is pretty new, and it seems like there were issues last year with the regular M1 Macs and external displays until they got fixed with software updates, so am keeping fingers crossed.

Have tried installing the LG app in the app stores and it says the monitor is fully up-to-date, and the Mac is too. If anyone has any advice it would be appreciated, but maybe it's a bit of a mistake my side to be using such a ridiculous display that does 2x DisplayPort things over a single thunderbolt cable... maybe should have gone with a 4k instead! Or sold my kidneys for the XDR...