Ultrafine 5k Thunderbolt Display Build

[uller6]

So, I came across an LG ultra fine 5k display for rather cheap. It's (ultra)fine, and it works well with my M1 iMac, but the stand is flimsy. When the cat rubs up against it the display wobbles around like crazy. I want the sturdiness of an Apple display, but had issues with the Studio display (electrical buzzing) and don't want to pay for the XDR. I've seen posts like this one: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/5k-apple-thunderbolt-display-build.2283725/ and thought that might be fine, but was also a bit hesitant to spend that much money for parts that might arrive in 6 months.

A few weeks after I picked up the 5k, I suddenly came across a free broken Apple Thunderbolt Display. Hmm I thought to myself, why not pull a switcheroo and put the 5k display and guts into the Thunderbolt Display housing? Is that even possible? Has anyone ever done this before? Some internet sleuthing later and I can't find anyone stupid/crazy enough to try this at home. So of course I decided to try this at home.

I gutted the Thunderbolt Display and disassembled the ultra fine 5k display. I took the screen from the ultra fine display and put it into the metal bracket from around the Thunderbolt Display LED screen. That way the magnets to hold the glass are in the correct place and the screen is automatically centered in the housing when I put it all together. I have the LCD centered with two popsicle sticks on each side

I cut holes for the USB-C ports into the casing using first a drill to open the holes, then a Dremel to enlarge and elongate them. The USB-C ports fit, but it's not pretty. It's still better than a Boeing job!!

Here's the final component fit into the casing (before I taped it all down with electrical tape.). Everything fits reasonably well! I spliced the Thunderbolt Display power cable assembly (and RFI-filter) to the power cable for the Ultrafine 5k display power board. The speakers and webcam also fit, but they're kind of jammed in there right now. It's not pretty. I plan on opening it up again in the near future to add some heat sinks and shims behind the display.

Attaching the display! Everything fits, and I can screw the display down using the original screws!

And here's the final setup! Running alongside my M1 iMac using the Apple Thunderbolt 4 cable. I'm happy to report that everything works! All in it took me about 4 hours from start to finish. Not bad for an evening project! I will have to open it up again to add some padding inside so I can actually use the USB ports, but for now I'm awfully pleased.

 

[johnmarki]

Awesome! Keep us posted on any more developments!

 

[Seanmitc]

Congrats! Appreciate the reference to my project. Next best thing to a studio display, and much more economical. I would say I definitely would trade the I/O that I have on the thunderbolt display version for the three (mine only has one that I added one and it rarely works properly as a thunderbolt port). If I were going to do it again I would probably leave it off tbh just because it would be cleaner.

Out of curiosity, what camera are you using? I know there's minor difference between the Thunderbolt Display camera and the camera on the LG 5k

 

[uller6]

I'm using the LG 5K camera, which fits surprisingly well into position. It's a bit farther from the front of the screen because of how the circuit board is placed near the camera, but I'm using gorilla foam tape to hold it in place and it works well enough. I use my iMac camera for video conferencing anyway.

 

[Seanmitc]

I'm using the LG 5K camera, which fits surprisingly well into position. It's a bit farther from the front of the screen because of how the circuit board is placed near the camera, but I'm using gorilla foam tape to hold it in place and it works well enough. I use my iMac camera for video conferencing anyway.

Cool, makes sense!

 

[uller6]

Update: I took it apart again tonight to replace some of my hacks with newer, better hacks.

1. I added some padding behind the USB ports on logic board so there was something to push against when inserting USB devices. I used some high density foam I had in a drawer, and the motherboard is now quite snug. Plugging/unplugging devices is solid.

2. I added some padding to the top right corner of the display, which was sagging down away from the cover glass without sufficient support. Problem solved.

3. I used my Dremel to slice a hole in the plastic of the Ultrafine 5k speaker unit so it would fit over the screw holding the RF power line filter to the case. That lowers the speaker enough to let the cover glass now sit completely flush with the front. I forgot to take pictures during the work, but the audio is noticeably better after cutting a hole in the speaker assembly.

Overall I'm very pleased with this conversion. It's a retina Thunderbolt Display.

 

[uller6]

Update: here's a picture of the back of the monitor better showing the location of the USB-C cutouts. The original port cutouts are unused. It's extremely clean with only the Thunderbolt cable and the original white Thunderbolt Display power cable.

 

[eicca]

Very interesting project. I'd love to pull this off with the Cinema Display variant and somehow keep the 3 stock USB ports working. I wonder if it would be possible to combine the stock internals of the two displays if the speakers were omitted. I never use built-in speakers anyway.

I like the Thunderbolt Display design way better than the Studio Display. It's just so much more imposing.

 

[aean]

I'm very interested in doing this, myself. I've found a cheap Ultrafine with a scratch on it. I'd like to know, was there a film layer that you removed from the panel when gutting the LG?

& sorry for necro.. There's no other resources about this online.

 

[uller6]

No, I didn't peel any film off the LG screen before I put it into the Cinema Display. If there was one I didn't see it, but I didn't completely disassemble the entire LCD assembly.

 

[aean]

Thanks,

Decided to go with the Ultrafine 4K 27” instead because my primary use case is a Windows machine without Thunderbolt. I really don’t think I could tell the difference anyway. Sourced a Cinema 27” with a dead LCD but in otherwise good condition.

The goal is to make this my main monitor for the foreseeable future. I’ll take some pics and post a write up when I’m done next week.

 

[Fontana011]

Thanks,

Decided to go with the Ultrafine 4K 27” instead because my primary use case is a Windows machine without Thunderbolt. I really don’t think I could tell the difference anyway. Sourced a Cinema 27” with a dead LCD but in otherwise good condition.

The goal is to make this my main monitor for the foreseeable future. I’ll take some pics and post a write up when I’m done next week.

Did you managed to assemble the monitor?

I'd be grateful if you could post your project with instructions and images.

I'm Windows user and would like to replace monitors for my self and my partner who's also Win user. At the moment it's too much for us to pay a couple of thousands just for two monitors so I decided to research a bit and was like "why don't I just buy 2 used Apple Thunderbolts?", they are much better built then all the other options out there, and the screens are just fine even with 2K resolution. Eventually I somehow came across a tutorial on how to upgrade iMac with 5K LG panel, and now I'm here, stuck with this idea. Of course, 4K would be also great option, maybe even better, I mean, it's not like we really needed 5K at the first place.

Anyway, we use Dell laptops. My partner use Dell Precision 7530 with Thunderbolt connections, and mine is some old Dell Latitude E5570, but I plan to replace it soon.

Sorry for the lengthy message!

Thank you,

Fontana

 

[PaulD-UK]

@Fontana011 "I somehow came across a tutorial on how to upgrade iMac with 5K LG panel, and now I'm here, stuck with this idea."

Did you find this thread? DIY 5K Monitor - success
All the info is there, especially the later, more up to date posts.
You have a choice of USB-C, DP or HDMI inputs which which work well with Windows, at 4K or 5K.

 

[Fontana011]

@Fontana011 "I somehow came across a tutorial on how to upgrade iMac with 5K LG panel, and now I'm here, stuck with this idea."

Did you find this thread? DIY 5K Monitor - success
All the info is there, especially the later, more up to date posts.
You have a choice of USB-C, DP or HDMI inputs which which work well with Windows, at 4K or 5K.

@PaulD-UK Hey mate, thanks for such a quick reply! I found that post already but the thing is I'm not into electronics that much so it's a bit challenging and risky for me to try to just replicate something I'm not even sure is going to work on my computer(s). I mean, I know it's lame to just ask for a solution but I guess that's what I can at this moment.

Anyway, what do you think about using let's say 2019 iMac LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) panel and try to fit it into Thunderbolt Display shell, and make it work with Windows? Do you maybe know is it possible to succesfully remove the broken glass and its particles from the atual LCD panel?

Example below:

LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) Cracked Working LCD | eBay

2019 iMac assembly LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) Glass is smashed but shockingly the LCD is still working. I think it's a refurbished screen.

www.ebay.co.uk

Thanks,

Fontana

 

[PaulD-UK]

Removing the glass from an iMac 5K screen is an extremely difficult process, it's described in the thread.
So a broken iMac screen is not easily fixable.

To fit a 5K screen into a Thunderbolt Display case you need the LG Ultrafine 5K screen LM270QQ2.
These work with the same controller boards, but with different cables.

 

[Fontana011]

Removing the glass from an iMac 5K screen is an extremely difficult process, it's described in the thread.
So a broken iMac screen is not easily fixable.

To fit a 5K screen into a Thunderbolt Display case you need the LG Ultrafine 5K screen LM270QQ2.
These work with the same controller boards, but with different cables.

@PaulD-UK I presumed it's difficult, but had to ask! Anyway, thanks for pointing me to the related thread, again. You think his solution can work on Windows? I might ask the question in that thread directly. Is the panel I mentioned in the previous post good enough? Can't find it's Adobe 1988 Gamut percentage. Sorry for being annoying but I'm trying to find the cheapest yet reliable solution.

Thanks!

Fontana

 

[PaulD-UK]

The video 5K boards to use with the iMac/Ultrafine panels have inputs that work with any modern 2020 or later computer, and probably work better with Windows nVidea drivers, which allow more control than MacOS.

If you want colour accuracy then the cheapest board (JRY--AA1) only does 8 bits, but the others do 10 bit RGB with DP/USB-C, but all of them except the R1811 v4 HDMI 2.1 board work less well with the HDMI input.

There is no official testing of the colour gamut, but they work extremely well with the RGB DCI-P3 colour space of the 2017/19/20 iMac panels. Looking as good as the Apple Studio Display IMO.

The 2019 panel you linked to has badly damaged glass. but its picture image quality will most likely be the same as an undamaged one.

The R1811 V4 HDMI 2.1 has the most recent and fully-featured firmware, and the best controllability, but of course it is the most expensive.

 

[uller6]

@PaulD-UK Hey mate, thanks for such a quick reply! I found that post already but the thing is I'm not into electronics that much so it's a bit challenging and risky for me to try to just replicate something I'm not even sure is going to work on my computer(s). I mean, I know it's lame to just ask for a solution but I guess that's what I can at this moment.

Anyway, what do you think about using let's say 2019 iMac LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) panel and try to fit it into Thunderbolt Display shell, and make it work with Windows? Do you maybe know is it possible to succesfully remove the broken glass and its particles from the atual LCD panel?

Example below:

LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) Cracked Working LCD | eBay

2019 iMac assembly LM270QQ1 (SD)(E1) Glass is smashed but shockingly the LCD is still working. I think it's a refurbished screen.

www.ebay.co.uk

Thanks,

Fontana

I did exactly this but I used a LG ultra fine 5k screen. It is now inside a Thunderbolt Display, with control board, and works great. The iMac screen has differently-shaped glass edges so doesn't fit on the Thunderbolt Display without cutting down he bottom corners. You don't want to do that.

 

[Fontana011]

The video 5K boards to use with the iMac/Ultrafine panels have inputs that work with any modern 2020 or later computer, and probably work better with Windows nVidea drivers, which allow more control than MacOS.

If you want colour accuracy then the cheapest board (JRY--AA1) only does 8 bits, but the others do 10 bit RGB with DP/USB-C, but all of them except the R1811 v4 HDMI 2.1 board work less well with the HDMI input.

There is no official testing of the colour gamut, but they work extremely well with the RGB DCI-P3 colour space of the 2017/19/20 iMac panels. Looking as good as the Apple Studio Display IMO.

The 2019 panel you linked to has badly damaged glass. but its picture image quality will most likely be the same as an undamaged one.

The R1811 V4 HDMI 2.1 has the most recent and fully-featured firmware, and the best controllability, but of course it is the most expensive.

Thanks man, you helped a lot, even I'm still not quite sure what to do with all the info at the moment, but I'm sure it will be valuable when I get closer to working on this project!

 

[Fontana011]

I did exactly this but I used a LG ultra fine 5k screen. It is now inside a Thunderbolt Display, with control board, and works great. The iMac screen has differently-shaped glass edges so doesn't fit on the Thunderbolt Display without cutting down he bottom corners. You don't want to do that.

I congratulate you on that! Could you please post exact panel and control board specification and model numbers. @PaulD-UK is trying to help me, as you can see in the previous posts but I'm still not sure which board should I use for Windows. Did you try to run it on Windows? How did you manage OSD buttons? Is it similar to how this guy managed it:

DIY 5k Monitor - success :-)

My "latest Macs" are a heavily upgraded 2009 Mac Pro (6c CPU, M.2 SSD, USB 3, RX580...) and more recently a 12c 2013 Mac Pro with an eGPU (Vega 56) - both machines with more than enough CPU power, GPU power and RAM for my needs, but I long aspired to upgrade to a nice 5k monitor to replace my...

forums.macrumors.com

I'm using Dell Precision 7530, if that's of any importance.

Thanks in advance, man!

 

[uller6]

I congratulate you on that! Could you please post exact panel and control board specification and model numbers. @PaulD-UK is trying to help me, as you can see in the previous posts but I'm still not sure which board should I use for Windows. Did you try to run it on Windows? How did you manage OSD buttons? Is it similar to how this guy managed it:

DIY 5k Monitor - success :-)

My "latest Macs" are a heavily upgraded 2009 Mac Pro (6c CPU, M.2 SSD, USB 3, RX580...) and more recently a 12c 2013 Mac Pro with an eGPU (Vega 56) - both machines with more than enough CPU power, GPU power and RAM for my needs, but I long aspired to upgrade to a nice 5k monitor to replace my...

forums.macrumors.com

I'm using Dell Precision 7530, if that's of any importance.

Thanks in advance, man!

I’m the OP for this thread - see the first post for build details. My display is just a re- housed LG Ultrafine 5k. No OSD buttons on this one.

But, since I posted I also did a second build with the same panel and a 9A18 control board running at 5k over usbC to DisplayPort cable. Both monitors run fine in windows (bootcamp) but I can only change the brightness in Mac OS using a program called “monitor control” for the display with 9A18 control board. I dremeled out holes in the back of the monitor for the control board.

 

[Fontana011]

I’m the OP for this thread - see the first post for build details. My display is just a re- housed LG Ultrafine 5k. No OSD buttons on this one.

But, since I posted I also did a second build with the same panel and a 9A18 control board running at 5k over usbC to DisplayPort cable. Both monitors run fine in windows (bootcamp) but I can only change the brightness in Mac OS using a program called “monitor control” for the display with 9A18 control board. I dremeled out holes in the back of the monitor for the control board.

Yes, I saw that you're the OP.

I guess there's no difference when speaking of Win (bootcamp) and a regular PC with Windows installed?

When you say control board, are you reffering to R1811 V4 HDMI 2.1 ?

Would you consider laser cutting for the holes in the back, for some future build?

When you say USBC to DisplayPort, do you mean Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter/cable?

I wish I could find that panel like second hand or something, but there's nothing on Ebay. Importing to EU from China would cost to much.

Thanks again,

Fontana

 

[PaulD-UK]

@Fontana011 "When you say control board, are you reffering to R1811 V4 HDMI 2.1 ?"

No, he just took the 5K LG monitor's control board and screen and fitted that into a TB Display case.

Then he built a second iMac 5K conversion with an R9A18 control board. This is an older (cheaper) version of the R1811 board.

Quote: @uller6 "I also did a second build with the same panel and a 9A18 control board running at 5k over usbC to DisplayPort cable. Both monitors run fine in windows (bootcamp)..."

If they run with bootcamp they will also run at 5K with Windows if the PC's graphics card supports DP 1.4 output. Or 4K with HDMI into the R9A18, 5K with the R1811 HDMI 2.1 board.

A USB-C to DP 1.4 adapter is used to drive the R9A18 board from a Mac, which only has USB-C ports.
The R9A18 only has DP and HDMI inputs. The R1811 has DP, HDMI and USB-C inputs.

USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 ports and cables (on Macs and some PCs) carry a DP signal in an alternative mode, so the USB-C to DP adapter really doesn't have to do a conversion, just have a different plug on each end.

 

[Fontana011]

@Fontana011 "When you say control board, are you reffering to R1811 V4 HDMI 2.1 ?"

No, he just took the 5K LG monitor's control board and screen and fitted that into a TB Display case.

Then he built a second iMac 5K conversion with an R9A18 control board. This is an older (cheaper) version of the R1811 board.

Quote: @uller6 "I also did a second build with the same panel and a 9A18 control board running at 5k over usbC to DisplayPort cable. Both monitors run fine in windows (bootcamp)..."

If they run with bootcamp they will also run at 5K with Windows if the PC's graphics card supports DP 1.4 output. Or 4K with HDMI into the R9A18, 5K with the R1811 HDMI 2.1 board.

A USB-C to DP 1.4 adapter is used to drive the R9A18 board from a Mac, which only has USB-C ports.
The R9A18 only has DP and HDMI inputs. The R1811 has DP, HDMI and USB-C inputs.

USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 ports and cables (on Macs and some PCs) carry a DP signal in an alternative mode, so the USB-C to DP adapter really doesn't have to do a conversion, just have a different plug on each end.

Thank you for the explanation! I'm still far from building my own monitor, but I will definitely come back for more help when I decide to start building it. Thank you for everything, guys!