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4K Monitors That Show Mac Boot Screen

S

Stairway

macrumors member
Original poster
Aug 6, 2010
67
11
Hi all,

I've got a 2013 Mac Pro, and am looking at buying a 4K display. Unfortunately, all of the ones I have read about, apparently do not display Apple boot screens -- just dark display until the Yosemite login screen. I'd like to be able to display a boot manager (e.g. the Apple one via holding the Option key at boot).

I'd like at least 30" and do 4K @60Hz. Can anyone here let me know what options would have confirmed boot screen visibility?

Thanks in advance.
 
Stairway said:
Hi all,

I've got a 2013 Mac Pro, and am looking at buying a 4K display. Unfortunately, all of the ones I have read about, apparently do not display Apple boot screens ...
Click to expand...

Maybe try reading Apple's support website instead of the some of the doom and gloom peddlers around here.....

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202856

There are several on the supported list. If find other vendors using the same panel and internals as the ones on the supported list .... those will probably work too.

I'd like at least 30"
Click to expand...

That cuts the list ( and probable works on shared internals ) down because most are not aiming that the larger pixels.
 
Last edited:
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Sorry, I can't help with the size you're looking for - there's hardly any available at that size that aren't basically TVs. However, just in case you reconsider the size...

I have a couple of the Dell P2715Q displays hooked up to my nMP, and they show the boot screen. I have filevault enabled. I use bootcamp as well, and I can hold the option key down at startup, and I see the boot drives listed.

The P2715Q (and the smaller P2415Q) are really great, though both of mine suffer from slow wake from sleep (not the Mac itself, but the displays) and occasionally the bug where the displays go to sleep and then one of them won't turn back on until physically disconnected from power (I hooked mine up to a separate surge protector so I can just flip a switch - happens once or twice a week). It's an annoyance, but part of being on the bleeding edge in display technology. Not sure if that's something that can be fixed through a future Mac update or whether it's a bug in Dell's firmware.

I've had them for about 4 months now, and I could never go back to "normal" screens.
 
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AFAIK, ALL 4K displays suffer from this issue on the nMP. The only 4K screens that show boot screens are ones attached to cards flashed by MacVidCards.
 
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So far, the only way to get bootscreen on 4k display with nMP is to use external videocard in tb2 enclosure and special efi from us.

Or you can try a trick: my samsung U28D590 supports two mode, dp1,1 (max 2560x1440@60hz) and dp1,2, they also called HBR1 and HBR2 respectively.

in dp1,1 mode mac might give bootscreen, then after bootup - switch to dp1,2 mode.
 
netkas said:
So far, the only way to get bootscreen on 4k display with nMP is to use external videocard in tb2 enclosure and special efi from us.

Or you can try a trick: my samsung U28D590 supports two mode, dp1,1 (max 2560x1440@60hz) and dp1,2, they also called HBR1 and HBR2 respectively.

in dp1,1 mode mac might give bootscreen, then after bootup - switch to dp1,2 mode.
Click to expand...

How do you explain ixxx69's experience with the Dell P2715Q's?
 
netkas said:
Don't think I should explain anything. just an exception.
Click to expand...

I was just looking for a reasonable explanation as to why ixxx69's 4K monitors DO show the bootscreen, since you are basically the expert in the field and said it was not possible without that special hardware. My question wasn't meant to offend you (if it did).
 
Stairway said:
Hi all,

I've got a 2013 Mac Pro, and am looking at buying a 4K display. Unfortunately, all of the ones I have read about, apparently do not display Apple boot screens -- just dark display until the Yosemite login screen. I'd like to be able to display a boot manager (e.g. the Apple one via holding the Option key at boot).

I'd like at least 30" and do 4K @60Hz. Can anyone here let me know what options would have confirmed boot screen visibility?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

With a GTX 680 (Mac Edition and/or flashed cards), you will get boot screen if it is connected via HDMI, however, HDMI is limited to 30Hz at 4K. Display Port will run at 60Hz but will not give boot screen.

Flashed Maxwell cards (i.e. GTX 970, GTX 980, GTX 980 Ti) from MacVidCards will give boot screen at 60Hz via Display Port.
 
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pastrychef said:
With a GTX 680 (Mac Edition and/or flashed cards), you will get boot screen if it is connected via HDMI, however, HDMI is limited to 30Hz at 4K. Display Port will run at 60Hz but will not give boot screen.

Flashed Maxwell cards (i.e. GTX 970, GTX 980, GTX 980 Ti) from MacVidCards will give boot screen at 60Hz via Display Port.
Click to expand...


With one problem, MacPro 2013 isn't compatible with cards meant for Classic Mac Pro.

dmylrea, I said, it's exception.
 
I'm no expert on this but suspect it'll need a firmware update for the nMP to show the boot screen. I'd be surprised if it was something to do with the monitors themselves (as they all do it - notwithstanding the comments above about the Dell).

I have an LG 31MU97. I was thinking about the Dell mentioned earlier, but like you I wanted a larger screen. This one is 31" but as it's true 4K (so slightly wider than the UHD format used by most of the others) it's comparable in size to a 30". In fact, if I put my 30" ACD next to it the vertical height is more or less the same.

Agree with the comment earlier that once you go to 4K you won't want to go back!!

No boot screen on the LG, I'm afraid. I have an old DVI based Dell plugged in so I can see booting on there but haven't found it to be much of a problem. Wake from sleep hasn't been an issue on the LG.
 
nMPs don't show bootscreens when the display is set to SST 60Hz mode because the nMP firmware predates the widespread availability of SST 60Hz monitors. The old MST 4K monitors like the Dell UP2414Q will show bootscreens in 60Hz mode, although generally those older monitors have other problems (primarily wake-from-sleep) and aren't recommended. Anyone with an nMP that is seeing bootscreens with the newer Dell P2415Q or P2715Q is almost certainly running in 30hz mode. This is likely what is happening with ixxx69's displays. You can cause the displays to go into 30Hz a couple of ways - if you're daisy chaining your 4K displays, you're always in 30Hz mode. If you connect to the HDMI display, you're also always in 30Hz mode. If you go to the Dell menu and turn on the MST setting to Primary or Secondary, you'll be in 30Hz mode. If you need the bootscreen because you're option-booting into Windows or the recovery mode, then you can temporarily go into 30Hz MST mode by setting Menu>Display>MST>Secondary (never set it to Primary unless you are daisy chaining, you'll lock up the display). In general, you want to be in 60Hz mode, so this is usually something you'd do just to get through the boot and then turn MST off when done.
 
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edanuff said:
nMPs don't show bootscreens when the display is set to SST 60Hz mode because the nMP firmware predates the widespread availability of SST 60Hz monitors. The old MST 4K monitors like the Dell UP2414Q will show bootscreens in 60Hz mode, although generally those older monitors have other problems (primarily wake-from-sleep) and aren't recommended. Anyone with an nMP that is seeing bootscreens with the newer Dell P2415Q or P2715Q is almost certainly running in 30hz mode. This is likely what is happening with ixxx69's displays. You can cause the displays to go into 30Hz a couple of ways - if you're daisy chaining your 4K displays, you're always in 30Hz mode. If you connect to the HDMI display, you're also always in 30Hz mode. If you go to the Dell menu and turn on the MST setting to Primary or Secondary, you'll be in 30Hz mode. If you need the bootscreen because you're option-booting into Windows or the recovery mode, then you can temporarily go into 30Hz MST mode by setting Menu>Display>MST>Secondary (never set it to Primary unless you are daisy chaining, you'll lock up the display). In general, you want to be in 60Hz mode, so this is usually something you'd do just to get through the boot and then turn MST off when done.
Click to expand...
Excellent information. Thanks.
 
edanuff said:
nMPs don't show bootscreens when the display is set to SST 60Hz mode because the nMP firmware predates the widespread availability of SST 60Hz monitors... Anyone with an nMP that is seeing bootscreens with the newer Dell P2415Q or P2715Q is almost certainly running in 30hz mode. This is likely what is happening with ixxx69's displays.
Click to expand...
They're running at 60Hz in 4K. Both of them.
 
edanuff said:
That's pretty interesting.

EDIT: By any chance are you using a D300? There was a post on the Dell P2715Q and P2415Q 4K IPS Displays thread in the Mac Peripherals forum from a D300 user who said they had bootscreens on their D300 nMP.
Click to expand...

I don't think that's got anything to do with it. I'm running D300's on mine with an LG 31MU97 4K and I get no boot screen either. Hopefully a nMP firmware update will come along at some point to fix this.
 
AJClayton said:
I don't think that's got anything to do with it. I'm running D300's on mine with an LG 31MU97 4K and I get no boot screen either. Hopefully a nMP firmware update will come along at some point to fix this.
Click to expand...

My point was that no one with a D500 or D700 has (yet) reported having 4K bootscreens. Two D300 users so far report having 4K bootscreens. D500s and D700s have the same ROM Revisions of 113-C3861J-687. The D300s appear to have a different ROM Revision of 113-C4012F-687. So, it looks like the D300 is not running the same firmware. I'm just speculating, but your LG Display is a 4096x2160 display which only recently got OSX driver support, it's possible that while the ROM in the D300 can do 3840x2160 bootscreens, that it doesn't support 4096x2160 bootscreens.
 
edanuff said:
My point was that no one with a D500 or D700 has (yet) reported having 4K bootscreens. Two D300 users so far report having 4K bootscreens. D500s and D700s have the same ROM Revisions of 113-C3861J-687. The D300s appear to have a different ROM Revision of 113-C4012F-687. So, it looks like the D300 is not running the same firmware. I'm just speculating, but your LG Display is a 4096x2160 display which only recently got OSX driver support, it's possible that while the ROM in the D300 can do 3840x2160 bootscreens, that it doesn't support 4096x2160 bootscreens.
Click to expand...

That's a fair point and would explain why I'm not getting the boot screen with my D300's while others are saying that they are.

On the plus side, it points to what we all know which is with appropriate software fixes (in this case a nMP firmware update) this problem will likely go away.
 
AJClayton said:
That's a fair point and would explain why I'm not getting the boot screen with my D300's while others are saying that they are.

On the plus side, it points to what we all know which is with appropriate software fixes (in this case a nMP firmware update) this problem will likely go away.
Click to expand...

Can you confirm your ROM Revision in System Information > Hardware > Graphics/Displays > AMD FirePro D300?
 
edanuff said:
Can you confirm your ROM Revision in System Information > Hardware > Graphics/Displays > AMD FirePro D300?
Click to expand...

No problem, here's a screen grab of it:
 

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AJClayton said:
No problem, here's a screen grab of it:
Click to expand...

Thanks, looks like the same info that was posted by other D300 users. BTW, I think if you go into the LG's OSD Menu > Settings > DisplayPort 1.2 and set it to "Disable", that you should be able to force a 30Hz mode that will let you get the bootscreen back if you need it for option-booting into Windows.
 
Hi

I'm using an Eizo EV3237 and unfortunately I have the same issue - no boot screen with 4k at 60Hz in SST mode. I contacted Apple support and they informed me today that they are aware of the problem but it's uncertain if they are going to release a fix (new EFI). The supported even suggested to writ a feedback on the issue (www.apple.com/feedback) in order to increase their attention for this issue.
It's sad that the support for this product is not matching to it's price.
 
Sephiroth0 said:
Hi

I'm using an Eizo EV3237 and unfortunately I have the same issue - no boot screen with 4k at 60Hz in SST mode. I contacted Apple support and they informed me today that they are aware of the problem but it's uncertain if they are going to release a fix (new EFI). The supported even suggested to writ a feedback on the issue (www.apple.com/feedback) in order to increase their attention for this issue.
It's sad that the support for this product is not matching to it's price.
Click to expand...

You 're not alone. Same issue with our EV3237 displays.
 
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