(2019) 16" is HOT & NOISY with an external monitor! :(

[Schismz]

Apple still does not officially support hardware acceleration with Youtube. As a result, if you want to run Youtube at 4K, you must use Chrome, which has a software decoder for VP9.

TL;DR: no matter what you do, 4K Youtube playback on a Mac computer currently will stress the CPU to the max and cause temperatures to shoot up.

IDK, skimmed this thread, but it depends an awful lot on what "Mac computer" you're using. On MP 7,1 w/Vega II. 4K is fine, 8K is fine, neither makes much of a perceptible bump in anything (either CPU cores, or GPU), everything works as expected on current Catalina + Safari.

I'm pretty sure iMac Pro works fine too, as would any recent iMac I guess (albeit I could be wrong about the iMacs, I just don't understand why 4K or 8K would stress either one).

I think all of this is relegated to laptop driving external monitor.

 

[bill-p]

IDK, skimmed this thread, but it depends an awful lot on what "Mac computer" you're using. On MP 7,1 w/Vega II. 4K is fine, 8K is fine, neither makes much of a perceptible bump in anything (either CPU cores, or GPU), everything works as expected on current Catalina + Safari.

I'm pretty sure iMac Pro works fine too, as would any recent iMac I guess (albeit I could be wrong about the iMacs, I just don't understand why 4K or 8K would stress either one).

I think all of this is relegated to laptop driving external monitor.

Right click the Youtube video, choose "Stats for nerds" and it should tell you what resolution you are viewing the video in.

I can assure you with 1000% certainty that unless you are on Big Sur, you are NOT viewing an 8K video in Safari. You absolutely must use Chrome to see 4K and 8K video at full resolution.

Not on macOS 11 Big Sur. 4K Youtube playback on Safari is fine.

Big Sur is not available yet. It's a beta software. Sure, Apple is changing their tunes and making things better, but it's too little too late. Again, my TV has been able to do this since like... 4-5 years ago.

 

[macbookfan21]

Wow, so thankful for this thread and to see so many others are experiencing this same issue.

I'd like to report on my unique case. I had a 16" MBPro, used it on my Samsung widescreen monitor everyday, and fans would always go to high speed even on light tasks with the laptop itself heating up as well. Eventually after a few weeks of constant use on the monitor, the USB-C ports on the right side stopped working completely. They would not recognize the Apple charging cable, nor my USB-C cable for the monitor connection. Few days later, all USB-C ports stopped working, computer died, lost all my data.

I returned the computer to Apple. Now I am wondering if I just had a defective piece, or if the overheating just fried the ports? Should I get a 13" MBPro now, seeing that it might not have this issue? Or should I repurchase the same MBPro 16" I had before (i9, 16GBofRAM, 5500 AMD, 1TB)?

Very frustrated that Apple hasn't done anything about this. I am wondering if the 13" will have same issue or not since it doesn't have the AMD GPU chip? Could someone please help?

 

[bomby0]

Wow, so thankful for this thread and to see so many others are experiencing this same issue.

I'd like to report on my unique case. I had a 16" MBPro, used it on my Samsung widescreen monitor everyday, and fans would always go to high speed even on light tasks with the laptop itself heating up as well. Eventually after a few weeks of constant use on the monitor, the USB-C ports on the right side stopped working completely. They would not recognize the Apple charging cable, nor my USB-C cable for the monitor connection. Few days later, all USB-C ports stopped working, computer died, lost all my data.

I returned the computer to Apple. Now I am wondering if I just had a defective piece, or if the overheating just fried the ports? Should I get a 13" MBPro now, seeing that it might not have this issue? Or should I repurchase the same MBPro 16" I had before (i9, 16GBofRAM, 5500 AMD, 1TB)?

Very frustrated that Apple hasn't done anything about this. I am wondering if the 13" will have same issue or not since it doesn't have the AMD GPU chip? Could someone please help?

Wait what?????? You only used your 16" MBP for a few weeks total with an external monitor and it completely died????

😨😨😨

 

[macbookfan21]

Wait what?????? You only used your 16" MBP for a few weeks total with an external monitor and it completely died????

😨😨😨

Yep. It would overheat everytime I used on monitor, and fans would go off, but I thought that was normal and seeing the threads online, I kept using. But eventually, USB-C ports went out and just stopped responding completely. Then the computer obviously died since there was no way to charge it. I'm thinking it was caused by the heat, but idk if it was just defective logic board issue? The whole struggle is now making me wonder if 13" on external monitor would heat or not like my 16" did? Idk which one to go for now.

Also, I only used it for light purposes, I don't video or photo edit or anything like that. I mainly only use chrome heavily, microsoft office, and adobe. My monitor is a Samsung ultrawide display, but not super high resolution or anything.

 

[ateslik]

Yep. It would overheat everytime I used on monitor, and fans would go off, but I thought that was normal and seeing the threads online, I kept using. But eventually, USB-C ports went out and just stopped responding completely. Then the computer obviously died since there was no way to charge it. I'm thinking it was caused by the heat, but idk if it was just defective logic board issue? The whole struggle is now making me wonder if 13" on external monitor would heat or not like my 16" did? Idk which one to go for now.

Also, I only used it for light purposes, I don't video or photo edit or anything like that. I mainly only use chrome heavily, microsoft office, and adobe. My monitor is a Samsung ultrawide display, but not super high resolution or anything.

(2019) 16" is HOT & NOISY with an external monitor! :(

High end 13" 2020 works great. If I didn't need the power of the 5600M and extra cores I would have stayed with that machine. I went 16" 5500M -> 13" 2020 -> 16" 5600M. Try the 13". If you don't like it bite the bullet and go to the 5600M, or wait for ARM.

forums.macrumors.com

The 13" is a great machine. You won't have problems with it. If it's too slow, go for the 16" with 5600M. I have zero complaints about this machine.

 

[Mity]

Yep. It would overheat everytime I used on monitor, and fans would go off, but I thought that was normal and seeing the threads online, I kept using. But eventually, USB-C ports went out and just stopped responding completely. Then the computer obviously died since there was no way to charge it. I'm thinking it was caused by the heat, but idk if it was just defective logic board issue? The whole struggle is now making me wonder if 13" on external monitor would heat or not like my 16" did? Idk which one to go for now.

Also, I only used it for light purposes, I don't video or photo edit or anything like that. I mainly only use chrome heavily, microsoft office, and adobe. My monitor is a Samsung ultrawide display, but not super high resolution or anything.

The 13" isn't going to help you. It has it's own set of heat problems. This is without using any external monitor at all (go to the 6min mark:

I've found numerous threads on Reddit about people asking why their 13" ran so hot with literally only a browser open:

https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gypvzs
When doing my research, I ended up here, only to find out that the 16" also has a heat problem.

 

[macbookfan21]

The 13" isn't going to help you. It has it's own set of heat problems:

That's without using any external monitor at all.

I've found numerous threads on Reddit about people asking why their 13" was ran so hot with literally only a browser open: https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gypvzs
When doing my research, I ended up here, only to find out that the 16" also has a heat problem.

Do you own a 13" yourself? If so, does it overheat when on monitor? Do the fans go off to help cool it down? I wonder why its happening on 13 if 13 doesn't have the additional GPU chip like 16 does?

 

[Mity]

Do you own a 13" yourself? If so, does it overheat when on monitor? Do the fans go off to help cool it down? I wonder why its happening on 13 if 13 doesn't have the additional GPU chip like 16 does?

I don't. I was deciding between the 13" and the 16" and I bought a 16" but it's still in the box as I'm still deciding on keeping it. My reasoning was that I could solve the overheating problem by using an eGPU because I don't need to use in extended mode; I only need to run 2 4K monitors. I still have it in the box but I'm afraid to open it because there may be a refresh coming in October - still trying to decide if I should just switch to Linux in the meantime or try my luck with the 2019 16".

 

[macbookfan21]

I don't. I was deciding between the 13" and the 16" and I bought a 16" but it's still in the box as I'm still deciding on keeping it. My reasoning was that I could solve the overheating problem by using an eGPU because I don't need to use in extended mode; I only need to run 2 4K monitors. I still have it in the box but I'm afraid to open it because there may be a refresh coming in October - still trying to decide if I should just switch to Linux in the meantime or try my luck with the 2019 16".

The october refresh is only for 13" I think, new ARM 16" probably wont be till 21. I'm in the same situation as you. We shouldn't have to purchase a whole eGPU device just to be able to use a laptop on a display, its ridiculous that this is even an issue with such a pricey device. Lmk what you end up deciding and rationale.

BUT, with the 13" I have not heard of this being an issue anywhere, other than the video you shared and maybe 1-2 other random comments and isolated issues. Only the 16 has a widely known issue with overheat on monitor. Trying to see if anyone else on here can confirm...

 

[Mity]

The october refresh is only for 13" I think, new ARM 16" probably wont be till 21. I'm in the same situation as you. We shouldn't have to purchase a whole eGPU device just to be able to use a laptop on a display, its ridiculous that this is even an issue with such a pricey device. Lmk what you end up deciding and rationale.

BUT, with the 13" I have not heard of this being an issue anywhere, other than the video you shared and maybe 1-2 other random comments and isolated issues. Only the 16 has a widely known issue with overheat on monitor. Trying to see if anyone else on here can confirm...

They could be isolated cases but there enough issues to put me off toward the 16", that is, until I found this thread.

https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gxyblm
https://www.reddit.com/r/macbook/comments/hiph8c
https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gvg4n1

 

[macbookfan21]

They could be isolated issues but there enough cases to put me off toward the 16", that is, until I found this thread.

https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gxyblm
https://www.reddit.com/r/macbook/comments/hiph8c
https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/gvg4n1

Wow lol, thanks for sharing these. I guess I didn't deep dig enough into the 13", had no idea it had these sort of issues. Apple really needs to get their game together.

 

[antipodean]

I have the 2020 13” (10th gen i7, 32GB, 1TB SSD) and no such problems driving a 4K external (Dell u3219q CIA usb-c) at retina 2560x1440 with internal display open. In fact, it often stays at 0rpm for both fans even when playing YouTube videos.
In my experience you need to push it quite hard for the fans to spin up noticeably (eg transcoding). Fans stay quiet with regular editing in FCPX.

 

[mbpistop]

Hey guys, would love to hear your opinions: Got a full refund for MPB Jun 2019 15" due to BATTERY EXPLODING. Does the 16" model also overheat with external monitors?

 

[Corncab44]

Hey guys, would love to hear your opinions: Got a full refund for MPB Jun 2019 15" due to BATTERY EXPLODING. Does the 16" model also overheat with external monitors?

There are over 140 pages in this thread that answer your question.

 

[mbpistop]

There are over 140 pages in this thread that answer your question.

So what's the TLDR? Does the 13" overheat or not? I need to buy a new one ASAP and need to decide between the two. I won't go for the 16" if it still has heating issues when connected to external monitors but some people say it doesn't have any problems, others say it does.

 

[antipodean]

TLDR: 16” 5300 and 5500 run hot with an external monitor + internal open even with moderate tasks, 5600 does not.
13” does not run hot with external + internal and light/moderate loads.
All may run hot and noisy if running heavy loads.

 

[mbpistop]

TLDR: 16” 5300 and 5500 run hot with an external monitor + internal open even with moderate tasks, 5600 does not.
13” does not run hot with external + internal and light/moderate loads.
All may run hot and noisy if running heavy loads.

Thank you. That's very strange and unexpected since I would expect the 5600 to consume more power and produce more heat than the 5500s?

 

[antipodean]

Thank you. That's very strange and unexpected since I would expect the 5600 to consume more power and produce more heat than the 5500s?

I’m no expert, but I believe the reason the 5600m fairs better is the HBM2 RAM, which copes with the external/internal monitor timing difference without needing to increase power draw significantly.
Perhaps someone more knowledgeable will provide a more technical explanation.

 

[Robin Didier]

Hi everyone.
I spent this whole morning reading everything I could on internet about this problem.
I created an account here just for this thread.

I have a 16inch macbook pro with an i9 and a 5500 Radeon.
My MB is constantly burning, making fan noise, and cpu usage is between 5 and 10%.
I'm a web developer, I've been working on on a 2013 macbook pro.
I have two monitor plugged into a CallDigit usb-c hug (on left).
I need those monitor. It's been years I'm working like that, I really dont want to change that. I need space.
(FYI, my old 2013 Macbook was old but could handle the same workload being slowly for sure but way more cold and less noisy).
I've tried turning off turbo boost, using safari over chrome, resetting SMC blablabla...
I know it comes from Apple but, can I do something else ?
More than the fan noise, I would like my system to last. It was very expensive.
There is an issue on apple support page and a guy describe my exact configuration and explained that he tested it hardly.
The result was the gpu showing artefacts after it. He conclude that the macbook can simply not handle i9 + 5500Radeon + 2 monitors
I'm scared, what can I do ?

Because my USB-C hub is very hot, I was wondering if buying a better one (I was thing about the stone pro which is powered) could help ?
Can buying a eGPU could help ?

I'm working 6 to 10 hours a day on it. It is how I can earn money to live. I've waited a long time to buy it. I'm very disappointed.

 

[mbpistop]

Hi everyone.
I spent this whole morning reading everything I could on internet about this problem.
I created an account here just for this thread.

I have a 16inch macbook pro with an i9 and a 5500 Radeon.
My MB is constantly burning, making fan noise, and cpu usage is between 5 and 10%.
I'm a web developer, I've been working on on a 2013 macbook pro.
I have two monitor plugged into a CallDigit usb-c hug (on left).
I need those monitor. It's been years I'm working like that, I really dont want to change that. I need space.
(FYI, my old 2013 Macbook was old but could handle the same workload being slowly for sure but way more cold and less noisy).
I've tried turning off turbo boost, using safari over chrome, resetting SMC blablabla...
I know it comes from Apple but, can I do something else ?
More than the fan noise, I would like my system to last. It was very expensive.
There is an issue on apple support page and a guy describe my exact configuration and explained that he tested it hardly.
The result was the gpu showing artefacts after it. He conclude that the macbook can simply not handle i9 + 5500Radeon + 2 monitors
I'm scared, what can I do ?

Because my USB-C hub is very hot, I was wondering if buying a better one (I was thing about the stone pro which is powered) could help ?
Can buying a eGPU could help ?

I'm working 6 to 10 hours a day on it. It is how I can earn money to live. I've waited a long time to buy it. I'm very disappointed.

Are you throttling or not? If it's not throttling and is usable, then don't worry about it. Yes, the total life will be lower due to these issues but at least you can use it while it lasts.

 

[petterihiisila]

Hi everyone.
I spent this whole morning reading everything I could on internet about this problem.
I created an account here just for this thread.

I have a 16inch macbook pro with an i9 and a 5500 Radeon.
My MB is constantly burning, making fan noise, and cpu usage is between 5 and 10%.
I'm a web developer, I've been working on on a 2013 macbook pro.
I have two monitor plugged into a CallDigit usb-c hug (on left).
I need those monitor. It's been years I'm working like that, I really dont want to change that. I need space.
(FYI, my old 2013 Macbook was old but could handle the same workload being slowly for sure but way more cold and less noisy).
I've tried turning off turbo boost, using safari over chrome, resetting SMC blablabla...
I know it comes from Apple but, can I do something else ?
More than the fan noise, I would like my system to last. It was very expensive.
There is an issue on apple support page and a guy describe my exact configuration and explained that he tested it hardly.
The result was the gpu showing artefacts after it. He conclude that the macbook can simply not handle i9 + 5500Radeon + 2 monitors
I'm scared, what can I do ?

Because my USB-C hub is very hot, I was wondering if buying a better one (I was thing about the stone pro which is powered) could help ?
Can buying a eGPU could help ?

I'm working 6 to 10 hours a day on it. It is how I can earn money to live. I've waited a long time to buy it. I'm very disappointed.

I had a very similar setup (Caldigit Mini, which is not to blame for these symptoms btw) and did a lot of research. Turbo Boost and Volta provided some help, but they were not a complete cure.

Ended up with a Razer Core enclosure and an AMD 580 card. They worked out of the box, and the computer runs cool with 2 external monitors connected to the eGPU. I'll hopefully be able to reuse the eGPU with the next Mac, maybe even an ARM Mac Mini. The 580 can be upgraded to something else later, but it's plenty fast as it is. It's not 100% sure that eGPU works with Apple Silicon, but they did promise TB3 support. We'll see if it includes eGPUs.

The key is to find a situation where the dGPU consumes no wattage, or only 5 watts. iStats Menu, Radeon High Side is the measurement to watch.

In addition to the eGPU, I've got a direct LG 5k TB3 connected in clamshell mode. In total that's 3 monitors. dGPU stands at 5.0 W. (If I open the lid - up to four displays - then it jumps to 20 W, with or without the eGPU. But it's always clamshell, vertical, fans up.)

Open lid, eGPU with additional displays, that setup should be OK as well.

Razer+580 isn't a completely silent setup, but much more quiet than the MacBook fan concerto was. Currently the Mac fans stand by at 1840 RPM, 51 °C. For a silent option, Blackmagic eGPU works well, the 580 model.

Attach the power source (even if it's a monitor) to the right-hand-side ports. Left side can trigger heat sensors more easily. The eGPU offers 100 W, I've got it connected to a right side TB3 slot.

I bought the Razer Core X Chroma model, for the extra USB ports. Ethernet doesn't work well with it, so that's what I lost when transitioning away from the CalDigit hub. Non-chroma version works fine and is cheaper, if you keep the Caldigit for extra USB + Ethernet connectivity.

 

[mbpistop]

I had a very similar setup (Caldigit Mini, which is not to blame for these symptoms btw) and did a lot of research. Turbo Boost and Volta provided some help, but they were not a complete cure.

Ended up with a Razer Core enclosure and an AMD 580 card. They worked out of the box, and the computer runs cool with 2 external monitors connected to the eGPU. I'll hopefully be able to reuse the eGPU with the next Mac, maybe even an ARM Mac Mini. The 580 can be upgraded to something else later, but it's plenty fast as it is. It's not 100% sure that eGPU works with Apple Silicon, but they did promise TB3 support. We'll see if it includes eGPUs.

The key is to find a situation where the dGPU consumes no wattage, or only 5 watts. iStats Menu, Radeon High Side is the measurement to watch.

In addition to the eGPU, I've got a direct LG 5k TB3 connected in clamshell mode. In total that's 3 monitors. dGPU stands at 5.0 W. (If I open the lid - up to four displays - then it jumps to 20 W, with or without the eGPU. But it's always clamshell, vertical, fans up.)

Open lid, eGPU with additional displays, that setup should be OK as well.

Razer+580 isn't a completely silent setup, but much more quiet than the MacBook fan concerto was. Currently the Mac fans stand by at 1840 RPM, 51 °C. For a silent option, Blackmagic eGPU works well, the 580 model.

Attach the power source (even if it's a monitor) to the right-hand-side ports. Left side can trigger heat sensors more easily. The eGPU offers 100 W, I've got it connected to a right side TB3 slot.

I bought the Razer Core X Chroma model, for the extra USB ports. Ethernet doesn't work well with it, so that's what I lost when transitioning away from the CalDigit hub. Non-chroma version works fine and is cheaper, if you keep the Caldigit for extra USB + Ethernet connectivity.

Did you do all this because you were experiencing only overheating OR were you experiencing both: overheating and kernel_task throttling? If latter, then it makes complete sense.

 

[petterihiisila]

Did you do all this because you were experiencing only overheating OR were you experiencing both: overheating and kernel_task throttling? If latter, then it makes complete sense.

I guess it's a question of personal priorities. What makes full sense to one doesn't necessarily make any sense to another, if the personal priorities are different.

But yes, I did have kernel_task throttling on some hot days, when the ambient temps were high. Thankfully not all days, not even close. Just hot and noisy.

More importantly, I had to adjust the CPU capacity with TBS/Volta, having to switch settings back and forth when switching from light to heavy loads. Too much nannying over the workday. I wanted a silent, portable powerhouse, and it seems that an eGPU is required to achieve that with Apple's current lineup.

 

[macbookfan21]

(2019) 16" is HOT & NOISY with an external monitor! :(

High end 13" 2020 works great. If I didn't need the power of the 5600M and extra cores I would have stayed with that machine. I went 16" 5500M -> 13" 2020 -> 16" 5600M. Try the 13". If you don't like it bite the bullet and go to the 5600M, or wait for ARM.

forums.macrumors.com

The 13" is a great machine. You won't have problems with it. If it's too slow, go for the 16" with 5600M. I have zero complaints about this machine.

But some have commented that the 13" also has overheating problems? Can you confirm? Will it be an issue on the monitor, if not, I would go for i7 13", but not sure if should just wait for the October model?