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Macbook Pro with ThunderBolt Dock A Solid Solution?

fleks said:
I was actually referring to that dock. It's the black version, but they seem to be identical. In a test report it was written that the RGB colours could not be controlled if the dock was used on a Mac because the software does not exist for the Mac. According to the test report, the LEDs would always be switched on. Unfortunately, it is in German: https://www.computerbase.de/2021-05/razer-thunderbolt-4-dock-chroma-test/
Click to expand...
I wonder if the LEDs are a HID device. There are apps that can report the HID info and maybe affect it. USB Prober.app? ControllerMate.app? I'm not sure.

fleks said:
In addition, I have received interesting information from Caldigit support for people who want to connect 3 monitors. It was not clear, at least to me, that you have to connect the third monitor to the right side of the MacBook.
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All three Thunderbolt ports are Thunderbolt 4 which means any of them can have two displays connected using a Thunderbolt dock. What's unclear is if you can connect 3 or 4 to the left side or if you can connect 4 to just the Thunderbolt ports (not using the HDMI).

What's also unclear is if it has 3 extra DisplayPort connections that can only be used by a dual link SST displays so that you can, for example, connect 3 LG UltraFine 5K displays (each display uses two DisplayPort connections of 2560x2880). That would mean that the M1 Max has 6 or 7 DisplayPort connections (#7 for the HDMI port).

An ioreg -filw0 > ioreg.txt output for an M1 Max would give some clues.
 
so I found that the DP is what's causing the razer to wake up along with my peripherals. I guess it's a known issue with mac and DP external monitor setups. I used my USB to HDMI dongle to my monitor (no USB-C) and the razer has stayed asleep for over 2 hours. Now I just gotta find an HDMI cable or dongle to usb that has over 1080 resolution. For some reason my pro doesn't show anything above 1080 resolution for an external monitor using HDMI.

edit: spoke to soon, oh well
 
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I haven't been through every post so not sure if this has been confirmed but my MBP 16 M1 Max works fine with the HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 with two external displays (1440p HP Z27n), one via full DisplayPort and the other via Thunderbolt to DP adapter. Power from the HP dock is 100w to the MBP so enough for most tasks, will just add the MagSafe cable if I need more power occasionally.

This is the same setup I used with the Intel MBP 16, having to use one full DP port and a TB to DP adapter for the other. I also tested my Dell W19TB Dock with different configurations (DP, adapter, HDMI, etc) but couldn't get the two displays to work in extended mode, only mirrored. This dock worked fine using this method on the previous MBP but I could have been doing something wrong this time, just ended up going with the HP for now.
 
Chevron said:
I am seriously considering moving from my Tower to the new 16" MacBook M1 Max. One thing that I often wonder is how solid and realistic is it to run a MacBook Pro with a Thunderbolt Dock?

Particularly if you are likely to use 5 USB A ports, 2 USB C ports and Ethernet all at the same time for MIDI controllers, hard drives, DAW control surfaces plus power to the MacBook etc etc?

The OWC ThunderBolt 3 Dock looks like something that could work for me.

How do you guys get on with these ThunderBolt Docks?
Click to expand...

I use the Thunderbolt 4 dock from OWC. I have ethernet, three SSD drives and a Thunderbolt 4 mini hub (giving 3 more TB4 ports), plus a 100 HZ Thunderbolt 3 monitor all running off the dock. Though I do plug in the computer AC adapter, as well as the Thunderbolt data cable. The 16 inch needs 96 watts and the docks generally output 90 watts.
 
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Rafterman said:
I use the Thunderbolt 4 dock from OWC. I have ethernet, three SSD drives and a Thunderbolt 4 mini hub (giving 3 more TB4 ports), plus a 100 HZ Thunderbolt 3 monitor all running off the dock. Though I do plug in the computer AC adapter, as well as the Thunderbolt data cable. The 16 inch needs 96 watts and the docks generally output 90 watts.
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You chain the Thunderbolt 4 hub to the Thunderbolt 4 dock or connect it to a different Thunderbolt port on the Mac?
 
Rafterman said:
I use the Thunderbolt 4 dock from OWC. I have ethernet, three SSD drives and a Thunderbolt 4 mini hub (giving 3 more TB4 ports), plus a 100 HZ Thunderbolt 3 monitor all running off the dock. Though I do plug in the computer AC adapter, as well as the Thunderbolt data cable. The 16 inch needs 96 watts and the docks generally output 90 watts.
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Is it this dock?
 
tried the mercury "mac" razer version and same issue. Keyboard and external HDD's randomly turn on when macbook is sleeping. Will return and go with the caldigit when available.
 
In the meantime, I installed my CalDigit Element hub. It's working fine with my Intel 16", even for PD (not doing too much heavy stuff). I have mouse, keyboard and synth connected to USB, and my Motu M4 audio interface to a TB4 port. A second TB4 goes to a HyperDrive USB-C to DP.

I require DP because I have a Dell U2711 monitor that only gets its max resolution through DP. When connecting it to my MBP directly, the HyperDrive always required me to unplug the cable from the HyperDrive, then connect the HyperDrive to the MBP's USB-C, then connect the cable. And with the CalDigit, that hasn't changed. So it's a one cable - but unplug and replug DP as well - solution at the moment... Not 100% elegant, but much more elegant than plugging everything in every time...
 
Tried a razr tb 4 dock. Took my ssd from 500 mb/s to 125, so that one went back. Looks like the element hubs are coming back in stock, so ordered a second one of those.

I am figuring out some of the usb issues. moving the monitors out of the docks and direct into the machine helped stabilize things...and being more careful to split bus powered devices across multiple hubs seems to have fixed the rest.

except for two things. First, enumeration and mounting the drives during boot up takes freakin forever. Like 10 minutes to get everything mounted. And for the life of me I cannot erase any drive plugged into any of my docks...it hangs forever. On the 2019 intel, the drives would all mount in under a minute, and erasing drives takes seconds.

I think the latter is a Monterey issue introduced in 12.0.1, so hopefully we get a fix soon.
 
rolling green said:
tried the mercury "mac" razer version and same issue. Keyboard and external HDD's randomly turn on when macbook is sleeping. Will return and go with the caldigit when available.
Click to expand...

I would imagine it's because of Apple's power nap feature. Power nap causes the device to be turned on periodically (even while sleep) to update emails, etc. I've experienced this on Teamspeak a few times, as I kept connecting to the server despite being in sleep mode.

See: https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/what-is-power-nap-mh40773/mac

To test, you could disable PowerNap: https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/turn-power-nap-on-or-off-mh40774/12.0/mac/12.0
 
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Crossposting due to relevant info re: Thunderbolt docks.

So I really did not get a chance to set it up at all until this evening. It's still not 100% where I like it settings-wise, but I thought I'd share a few images, and a short video.

I wanted this to connect to:
  1. ethernet
  2. 4k Logitech webcam
  3. Audio interface (Mic, speakers)
  4. Pair of 27" 1440p monitors
And I wanted this done with one cable.

View attachment 1906316

Too many people who posted about docks, and docking solutions talked about hooking up one monitor to this dock, and another through the HDMI or a second TB port, and the thought of a spaghetti nest coming off the sides of this machine made me lurch.

But the good thing about Thunderbolt 4 is, that for it to be TB 4, an individual port has to support at least 2 displays. I'll admit, I was nervous, especially with the base 14" M1 Pro (sans SSD, upgraded to 1 TB).

But here it is. And it worked like a charm.

I routed the TB4 cable around the back of my desk to a cabinet, and mounted the TB 4 port to the inside of the door. That way if I ever need access to any USB A ports, there's always one readily available.

View attachment 1906317

So it worked. A one cable solution for the office, and if I need to be on call upstairs while getting the kiddos lunch, it's easy to dock at another second monitor at a PC station up there. Super flexible. Super powerful. Exactly what I needed.

View attachment 1906320

Here's a youtube video of it too; I also use the KVM switch to go between Windows & Mac OS in it.

M1 Pro MacBook Pro Thunderbolt Dock & Dual Displays
 
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R56L said:
Crossposting due to relevant info re: Thunderbolt docks.

So I really did not get a chance to set it up at all until this evening. It's still not 100% where I like it settings-wise, but I thought I'd share a few images, and a short video.

I wanted this to connect to:
  1. ethernet
  2. 4k Logitech webcam
  3. Audio interface (Mic, speakers)
  4. Pair of 27" 1440p monitors
And I wanted this done with one cable.

View attachment 1906316

Too many people who posted about docks, and docking solutions talked about hooking up one monitor to this dock, and another through the HDMI or a second TB port, and the thought of a spaghetti nest coming off the sides of this machine made me lurch.

But the good thing about Thunderbolt 4 is, that for it to be TB 4, an individual port has to support at least 2 displays. I'll admit, I was nervous, especially with the base 14" M1 Pro (sans SSD, upgraded to 1 TB).

But here it is. And it worked like a charm.

I routed the TB4 cable around the back of my desk to a cabinet, and mounted the TB 4 port to the inside of the door. That way if I ever need access to any USB A ports, there's always one readily available.

View attachment 1906317

So it worked. A one cable solution for the office, and if I need to be on call upstairs while getting the kiddos lunch, it's easy to dock at another second monitor at a PC station up there. Super flexible. Super powerful. Exactly what I needed.

View attachment 1906320

Here's a youtube video of it too; I also use the KVM switch to go between Windows & Mac OS in it.

M1 Pro MacBook Pro Thunderbolt Dock & Dual Displays
Click to expand...

Really nice setup, and I like the effort to make it slick and neat.

I appreciate posting, and it is good to know that the Razor docks works well.
 
R56L said:
Crossposting due to relevant info re: Thunderbolt docks.

So I really did not get a chance to set it up at all until this evening. It's still not 100% where I like it settings-wise, but I thought I'd share a few images, and a short video.

I wanted this to connect to:
  1. ethernet
  2. 4k Logitech webcam
  3. Audio interface (Mic, speakers)
  4. Pair of 27" 1440p monitors
And I wanted this done with one cable.

View attachment 1906316

Too many people who posted about docks, and docking solutions talked about hooking up one monitor to this dock, and another through the HDMI or a second TB port, and the thought of a spaghetti nest coming off the sides of this machine made me lurch.

But the good thing about Thunderbolt 4 is, that for it to be TB 4, an individual port has to support at least 2 displays. I'll admit, I was nervous, especially with the base 14" M1 Pro (sans SSD, upgraded to 1 TB).

But here it is. And it worked like a charm.

I routed the TB4 cable around the back of my desk to a cabinet, and mounted the TB 4 port to the inside of the door. That way if I ever need access to any USB A ports, there's always one readily available.

View attachment 1906317

So it worked. A one cable solution for the office, and if I need to be on call upstairs while getting the kiddos lunch, it's easy to dock at another second monitor at a PC station up there. Super flexible. Super powerful. Exactly what I needed.

View attachment 1906320

Here's a youtube video of it too; I also use the KVM switch to go between Windows & Mac OS in it.

M1 Pro MacBook Pro Thunderbolt Dock & Dual Displays
Click to expand...
glad it worked out well for you, great setup! I've been thru 3 Razer's (2 chroma and 1 Mercury) and all had an issue sending signals to my keyboard (lights up) and external HDD's randomly when sleeping. All three have gone back and now using a Caldigit TS3 plus.
Really happy with the Caldigit, seems more responsive coming out of sleep and going to sleep. No issues so far, will add an additional monitor soon. Also love how all the necessary cables are in the rear.
 
joevt said:
The first M1 Macs only support one display from a Thunderbolt port or dock. The M1 Pro or M1 Max should be able to connect two displays to a dock. In the case of the WD19TB, one display connects to the downstream Thunderbolt port of the dock. The other display connects to one of the four display type ports. The dock contains a three port DisplayPort MST hub where the HDMI port and MFDP (Multi-Function DisplayPort) Type-C port share one of the MST ports. I guess the HDMI port has priority - if a display is connected to it then a display can't be connected to the MFDP Type-C port but the MFDP Type-C port can still be used for USB devices.
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@joevt have you had any luck with the WD19TB on the new M1 Pro/Max models? We have a bunch of those docks which worked fine with intel MBP's using the extra TB3 port + DP port (full size). Unforutauntly, we are getting mixed results thus far with the new MBPs.

Some of our findings.

With two Dell 4K monitors attached - the display connected to the TB3 port will pulse or not display. The only way we've been able to get both monitors working is to reduce the refresh rate of that monitor to 30hz which isn't ideal.

The combination that works with no issue is two Dell U2414HB monitors (same cabling as above). They run as expected on the new M1 Pro/Max. Note, these are unique monitors that support daisy chaining via display port. So there must be something about the chipset they have that makes them play well together.

We've confirmed our WB19TB docks are running the latest firmware available. (Updated with Windows PC)
 
fleks said:
I would imagine it's because of Apple's power nap feature. Power nap causes the device to be turned on periodically (even while sleep) to update emails, etc. I've experienced this on Teamspeak a few times, as I kept connecting to the server despite being in sleep mode.

See: https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/what-is-power-nap-mh40773/mac

To test, you could disable PowerNap: https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/turn-power-nap-on-or-off-mh40774/12.0/mac/12.0
Click to expand...
Pretty sure PowerNap is not a thing anymore on Apple Silicon. That was a feature built for intel Macs.
 
PeterJP said:
Looks like a good hub indeed. But in this forum, many people have problems with devices disconnecting from the TS3. It's why I steered away from CalDigit at first. TB4 hubs seem much simpler than the TB3 hubs that try to provide a port for everyone, so they may be more stable?
Click to expand...
I think it is wise to be cautious when investing in these hub/docks. I am running Mini m1 using a CalDigit Elements with great success. Presently I only run drives off of the Element - TB drive, USB 3.2 gen 2 drive and a 3.0 drive. None have been problematic at all. I also connect from time to time other drives with again, no issues. For me it works but I don't make recommendations as everyone's mileage may vary. (I have had hands on with OWC offerings and they seem to work quite nicely for me as well).
 
phrehdd said:
I think it is wise to be cautious when investing in these hub/docks. I am running Mini m1 using a CalDigit Elements with great success. Presently I only run drives off of the Element - TB drive, USB 3.2 gen 2 drive and a 3.0 drive. None have been problematic at all. I also connect from time to time other drives with again, no issues. For me it works but I don't make recommendations as everyone's mileage may vary. (I have had hands on with OWC offerings and they seem to work quite nicely for me as well).
Click to expand...
I have the Element Hub now as well. Works a charm, except for my USB-to-DP adapter that I need to replug every time. I haven't tried drives yet, but pretty sure it'll be OK.

I actually tried plugging it into my iPad Pro and it works exactly the same - keyboard, mouse, screen... I still need to test if my Motu M4 audio interface works on the IPP ?
 
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PeterJP said:
I have the Element Hub now as well. Works a charm, except for my USB-to-DP adapter that I need to replug every time. I haven't tried drives yet, but pretty sure it'll be OK.

I actually tried plugging it into my iPad Pro and it works exactly the same - keyboard, mouse, screen... I still need to test if my Motu M4 audio interface works on the IPP ?
Click to expand...
Happy it is working out for you so far (Element Hub). Let us know if your Motu M4 works well, please.
I got for my iPad the CalDigit "SOHO" which is more than enough for my needs. It won't get too much use but it is there. My next challenge is a good multi-port charger and good cables.
 
I have been reading some reviews on the Kensington SD5700T and some uses with MacBook Pro 16" are complaining that the 90W is not enough to supply the MBP under load?
 
Chevron said:
I have been reading some reviews on the Kensington SD5700T and some uses with MacBook Pro 16" are complaining that the 90W is not enough to supply the MBP under load?
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That would be surprising because the PSU of the 16" is 96W. Except if 1) the Kensington doesn't really deliver the full 90W, or 2) the Kensington lowers this wattage when other peripherals are connected.
 
PeterJP said:
That would be surprising because the PSU of the 16" is 96W. Except if 1) the Kensington doesn't really deliver the full 90W, or 2) the Kensington lowers this wattage when other peripherals are connected.
Click to expand...

The PSU of the 16" MacBook Pro M1 is actually 140W, in the specs roughly a 1/4 down this page

Good point, I guess the power supplied to the MBP from the TB port would be variable based on other peripherals attached
 
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