Apple Cinema Display 30" driving me crazy on Mac mini M1

[toke lahti]

My use case is that I've attached the Club 3D USB-C to a USB-C switch (using a female-female coupler) that allows me to easily share the 30" Cinema Display between my personal Mac Mini and work MBP. (According to ATP podcast this apparently also work with the new Apple Studio Display!)

This works great. USB-C KVM switch for the 30" Cinema Display monitor.

I'd love to also switch the USB 2.0 ports for a shared keyboard, etc. If I could add those to the USB-C chain via a simple adapter I would.

But I suppose just getting a second switch for the USB ports is the more economical choice...

I'm going to try this USB-C + USB-A KVM switch as well, but don't know if it will work with the alt mode signal...

Quite a chain you got there, I presume?
usbc-miniDP-DualDVI?

 

[pkamb]

Quite a chain you got there, I presume?
usbc-miniDP-DualDVI?

The Club 3D adapter luckily lets you skip the OEM Apple miniDP adapter and convert directly to from DL DVI to USB-C.

 

[joevt]

The Club 3D adapter luckily lets you skip the OEM Apple miniDP adapter and convert directly to from DL DVI to USB-C.

Club 3d's USB-C to Dual Link DVI adapters (and maybe their DisplayPort to Dual Link DVI adapters and maybe other manufacturers adapters based on the same designs) have a flicking issue (mostly with black backgrounds) so in that case the Apple adapter may be better.
https://insights.club-3d.com/thread...a-and-apple-cinema-display-30-on-mac-mini-m1/

 

[zefonseca]

Hi everyone,

Got the CableCreation Dual Link DVI Adapter but it's not working properly with my M1 iMac connected to the Apple Cinema Display 30". It only shows 1280x800 resolution...and its not in high DPI mode.

Does anybody had such issue? Is there any workaround?

regards

 

[zefonseca]

Hi everyone,

Got the CableCreation Dual Link DVI Adapter but it's not working properly with my M1 iMac connected to the Apple Cinema Display 30". It only shows 1280x800 resolution...and its not in high DPI mode.

Does anybody had such issue? Is there any workaround?

regards

Replying to my own comment.
The solution was simple.
The scaled preference was not showing the full resolution, but holding the OPTION key while clicking the scaled pref, the native res and more options showed up. I believe somehow MAcOS thinks the native res for the ACD through this adapter is 1280x800 and sets it as default for display. I'm on BigSur.

So, problem solved ;-)

 

[EugW]

I have been using my 30" ACD daily, with a web browser on the left watching video, and my work VPN app on the right. These windows are static, although the content within them changes. I had been noticing significant image retention on the monitors that would persist even when the windows were closed, albeit only when certain colours were displayed. (If I put a white document window there, I couldn't really see the image retention.) Even if I waited many minutes, the image retention would remain. In addition, I was seeing image retention of things on my desktop like the design in my desktop wallpaper.

I assumed my 30" was finally going and that I might have to get a new monitor sooner rather than later. However, later I noticed that after I shut off the monitor for an extended period of time, it was all gone.

Since then I've just added a screen saver that comes on after a few minutes, and occasionally move the locations of the screen windows, and it seems to have almost solved the image retention issue. 95% gone.

Here's hoping this monitor works well with the M2 / M2 Pro Mac mini. If it does, I will continue to use it. It's a great non-Retina pixel density for a desktop Mac monitor. The fact that its pixel density is lower than the old 27" Thunderbolt Displays is a real plus IMO. I like the bigger default text sizes of the 30" Cinema HD Displays.

 

[hornedrum]

Hi everyone, fascinating discussion here, thanks for all the input!
I have 2 x 30" ACDs, running them from my old mac pro 5,1 (2012), with Apple dual link DVI connectors to a flashed RX580, all good.
I am thinking of upgrading to the Apple studio or Macbook pro, but still keeping my ACDs

The trouble is, one is 9232 and the other is 9221, therefore one is HCDP on and the other is HCDP off.
Does that mean I would need to buy 2 different Club adapters?

I am mainly running ProTools/Lightroom etc, not bothered about watching Netflix etc.

Or will I have the flickering problems regardless and should think about upgrading the monitors anyway?
Thanks in advance...

 

[EugW]

Hi everyone, fascinating discussion here, thanks for all the input!
I have 2 x 30" ACDs, running them from my old mac pro 5,1 (2012), with Apple dual link DVI connectors to a flashed RX580, all good.
I am thinking of upgrading to the Apple studio or Macbook pro, but still keeping my ACDs

The trouble is, one is 9232 and the other is 9221, therefore one is HCDP on and the other is HCDP off.
Does that mean I would need to buy 2 different Club adapters?

I am mainly running ProTools/Lightroom etc, not bothered about watching Netflix etc.

Or will I have the flickering problems regardless and should think about upgrading the monitors anyway?
Thanks in advance...

Interesting question. I suspect you could just buy two HDCP-off, but don't quote me on that.

 

[hornedrum]

Interesting question. I suspect you could just buy two HDCP-off, but don't quote me on that.

Upon reading the link in #78 I really don't want the flickering problem @joevt has discovered.
Joe, might you take the trouble to share your thoughts with me please?

My dilemna now is:
Do I buy a USB-C to mDP adapter, connect it to the Apple DVI to mDP dual link adapter (which I have already) into the 30" ADC?
Or try the Club HDCP-off adapter, and connect a USB-C equipped computer straight into the 30" ACD?

 

[ThunderSkunk]

HDCP must explain why the AppleTv suddenly stopped being able to display on the ACD30 one update.
and then never worked again, with no way to downgrade back to a working state. Apple should put a “this product will self destruct in 1 update” warning on their stuff.

 

[joevt]

Upon reading the link in #78 I really don't want the flickering problem @joevt has discovered.
Joe, might you take the trouble to share your thoughts with me please?

My dilemna now is:
Do I buy a USB-C to mDP adapter, connect it to the Apple DVI to mDP dual link adapter (which I have already) into the 30" ADC?
Or try the Club HDCP-off adapter, and connect a USB-C equipped computer straight into the 30" ACD?

If you have the Apple adapter already, then I would go with using it with a USB-C to mDP adapter since no-one has complained about flickering issues with the Apple adapter.

You could try a USB-C to Dual Link DVI adapter just to see if the flickering issue is noticeable.

 

[hornedrum]

If you have the Apple adapter already, then I would go with using it with a USB-C to mDP adapter since no-one has complained about flickering issues with the Apple adapter.

You could try a USB-C to Dual Link DVI adapter just to see if the flickering issue is noticeable.

Thanks Joe, much appreciated.
Would any brand of USB-C to mDP work? They must be generic I would have thought....

 

[EugW]

I get no flickering with the CableCreation USB-C to DL-DVI adapter, on my M1 Mac mini. One thing I've noticed though is there are several seconds of lag before the screen wakes up after sleep. It's long enough that if I have Apple Watch unlock turned on, my Mac mini is already unlocked and at the desktop by the time the screen actually wakes up. Not a big deal though and after it's awake, it works great with no flickering. However, one issue for me (that others may not care about) is that while Netflix streaming works, Disney+ and Prime Video do not. I had assumed in my earlier testing that it was an HDCP-on adapter since Netflix worked, but the failure of Disney+ and Prime streaming has me questioning that.

I have since ordered a Cable Matters USB-C to 8K DisplayPort 1.4 adapter with Multistream support (to use with Apple's mini-DP to DL-DVI dongle), and the Club 3D CAD-1510 HDCP-on USB-C to DL-DVI adapter. Both of those are supposed to arrive this week.

BTW, for my 2014 Mac mini which has mini-DP / Thunderbolt 2 ports, I used just Apple's dongle. Everything worked fine (including media streaming, and wake from sleep was immediate) except one weird anomaly that didn't affect actual usage. Occasionally on sleeping the Mac mini, the monitor would not go to sleep and it'd have weird (but often pretty) patterns displayed on screen. Waking the computer up would make those patterns disappear. It'd happen about once every 25 sleeps or something like that. (No, this was not a screen saver, since the Mac would actually be asleep.)

 

[joevt]

Thanks Joe, much appreciated.
Would any brand of USB-C to mDP work? They must be generic I would have thought....

Yes, any brand should work since you only need HBR link rate for DisplayPort to dual link DVI adapters.
But I would try to find one that claims to support HBR3 link rate.

I get no flickering with the CableCreation USB-C to DL-DVI adapter, on my M1 Mac mini

I have since ordered a Cable Matters USB-C to 8K DisplayPort 1.4 adapter with Multistream support (to use with Apple's mini-DP to DL-DVI dongle),

What does "with Multistream support" mean? Which model number? It's not possible to get a DisplayPort cable without multi stream support...

and the Club 3D CAD-1510 HDCP-on USB-C to DL-DVI adapter. Both of those are supposed to arrive this week.

I'm pretty sure all the USB-C to Dual Link DVI adapters are made the same so I don't know why you wouldn't get flickering with the CableCreation version. It will be interesting to see if you have a problem with the CAC-1510 like I did. The issue appears when there's a large black area in a larger coloured area. Move a window around that contains a black background. It's not really flickering - it's more a kind of static.

 

[EugW]

Yes, any brand should work since you only need HBR link rate for DisplayPort to dual link DVI adapters.
But I would try to find one that claims to support HBR3 link rate.

The reason I'm getting a new USB-C to DP adapter is because my old generic no-name USB-C to mini-DP adapter does not work well with the M1 Mac mini. It works with my 27" Intel iMac and it works with my 12" MacBook, but with the Mac mini it's been a problem. Either I get a blank screen or else the connection is unstable. I also see a lot of reviews out there with no-name adapters not working in this sort of setup.

What does "with Multistream support" mean? Which model number? It's not possible to get a DisplayPort cable without multi stream support...

That's just how it was described. I guess they are padding the advertising.

I'm pretty sure all the USB-C to Dual Link DVI adapters are made the same so I don't know why you wouldn't get flickering with the CableCreation version. It will be interesting to see if you have a problem with the CAC-1510 like I did. The issue appears when there's a large black area in a larger coloured area. Move a window around that contains a black background. It's not really flickering - it's more a kind of static.

I checked out the flicker videos just now. I get nothing like that.

I opened up the Netflix login window which is mostly solid black but with some account icons in the middle. No flicker with the CableCreation USB-C to DL-DVI adapter.

I also downloaded some images of solid black, and I get no flicker with those either.

I also went to the Black screen of death wiki page and that freaked me out for a moment, because that had one small flickering line:

Black screen of death - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

However, it turns out that's because it's actually an animated GIF with a flashing cursor line. 🙃

My wallpaper was a darker blue, so I tried changing the wallpaper to a bright coloured one and retested the black image and black websites. Still no flicker.

 

[EugW]

[edit] Don't bother with this adapter. It started glitching out the first day. [/edit]

Cable Matters 8K USB-C to DisplayPort adapter (model # 201086) test

Connected directly to M1 Mac mini

Pros:
- Works at 2560x1600
- Wake from sleep is immediate
- Disney+, Prime Video streaming work fine
- No flickering

Cons:
- Adapter gets quite warm
- Requires Apple mini-DP to DL-DVI adapter, and a DP to mini-DP adapter
- Max brightness with keyboard buttons with MonitorControl.app is slightly too dim. Need to use side buttons to go brighter.

[EDIT] After using it a while, it started not waking the screen up. I had to unplug it and plug it back to wake the screen. [/EDIT]

Connected through Plugable Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 5-in-1 hub

Pros:
- Works at 2560x1600
- Frees up a USB-C port on the Mac mini
- Disney+, Prime Video streaming work fine
- No flickering

Cons:
- Wake from sleep does NOT work. Must unplug and plug-back in to wake monitor.
- Adapter gets quite warm
- Requires Apple mini-DP to DL-DVI adapter, and a DP to mini-DP adapter
- Max brightness with keyboard buttons with MonitorControl.app is slightly too dim. Need to use side buttons to go brighter.

-----------

Cost:
US$19.99 at Amazon.com
CA$21.99 at Amazon.ca

P.S. Interesting serial number:

 

[joevt]

[edit] Don't bother with this adapter. It started glitching out the first day. [/edit]

Cable Matters 8K USB-C to DisplayPort adapter (model # 201086) test

Connected directly to M1 Mac mini

Pros:
- Works at 2560x1600
- Wake from sleep is immediate
- Disney+, Prime Video streaming work fine
- No flickering

Cons:
- Adapter gets quite warm
- Requires Apple mini-DP to DL-DVI adapter, and a DP to mini-DP adapter
- Max brightness with keyboard buttons with MonitorControl.app is slightly too dim. Need to use side buttons to go brighter.

[EDIT] After using it a while, it started not waking the screen up. I had to unplug it and plug it back to wake the screen. [/EDIT]

Connected through Plugable Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 5-in-1 hub

Pros:
- Works at 2560x1600
- Frees up a USB-C port on the Mac mini
- Disney+, Prime Video streaming work fine
- No flickering

Cons:
- Wake from sleep does NOT work. Must unplug and plug-back in to wake monitor.
- Adapter gets quite warm
- Requires Apple mini-DP to DL-DVI adapter, and a DP to mini-DP adapter
- Max brightness with keyboard buttons with MonitorControl.app is slightly too dim. Need to use side buttons to go brighter.

-----------

Cost:
US$19.99 at Amazon.com
CA$21.99 at Amazon.ca

P.S. Interesting serial number:

View attachment 2121201

Club-3d CAC-1567 don't get as warm as the Cable Matters 201086.
It's billboard device has this info:

USB-C dongle:

  Product ID:	0x0100
  Vendor ID:	0x2109  (VIA Labs, Inc.)
  Version:	3.00
  Serial Number:	0000000000000001
  Speed:	Up to 480 Mb/s
  Manufacturer:	VIA Technologies Inc.         
  Location ID:	0xfd433000 / 6
  Current Available (mA):	500
  Current Required (mA):	100
  Extra Operating Current (mA):	0

The Cable Matters adapter has a more descriptive name for the billboard device (at least my version 3.02 does, your newer 9.02 billboard device has a sadly undescriptive name):

Cable Matters USB-C 8K Video Adapter:

  Product ID:	0x5442
  Vendor ID:	0x0bda  (Realtek Semiconductor Corp.)
  Version:	3.02
  Serial Number:	123456789ABCDEFGH
  Speed:	Up to 12 Mb/s
  Manufacturer:	Cable Matters Inc.
  Location ID:	0xfd433000 / 6
  Current Available (mA):	500
  Current Required (mA):	0
  Extra Operating Current (mA):	0

 

[hornedrum]

I've ordered a generic mDP to USB-C adapter, and the Club 3D CAC-1510-A (HDCP-off) adapter. I will report back on any findings for the group. Will test them out with a MBP 13" M1.

At least this way, I can test both monitors (1 x HDCP-on and 1 x HDCP-off) with the same HDCP-off adapter and know if both/either work.
Weirdly, I can play Netflix on both monitors now through the MacPro 5,1, I wonder if the Apple dual link DVI to mDP adapter negates HDCP handshake?

 

[EugW]

I've ordered a generic mDP to USB-C adapter, and the Club 3D CAC-1510-A (HDCP-off) adapter. I will report back on any findings for the group. Will test them out with a MBP 13" M1.

At least this way, I can test both monitors (1 x HDCP-on and 1 x HDCP-off) with the same HDCP-off adapter and know if both/either work.
Weirdly, I can play Netflix on both monitors now through the MacPro 5,1, I wonder if the Apple dual link DVI to mDP adapter negates HDCP handshake?

The Apple dual-link DVI adapter does appear to support HDCP.

Also, I recently found out that Netflix in Safari works on setups where Disney+ and Amazon Prime do not. So in retrospect it seems that Netflix's DRM requirements may not be as restrictive. Maybe Netflix in Safari is just limiting the resolution when HDCP isn't there? (I dunno, because I haven't checked. On these monitors I usually just watch in a small window in the background while doing work, so I usually wouldn't notice the difference between 720p and 1080p anyway.)

BTW, I now have on order:
- Club 3D 8K CAC-1567 USB-C to DisplayPort adapter that @joevt mentioned
- Plugable 4Kp60 USB-C to DisplayPort adapter
- Club 3D CAC-1510 HDCP-on USB-C to DL-DVI adapter

In the meantime I am returning my flaky Cable Matters USB-C to DisplayPort adapter, and continuing to use my CableCreation USB-C to DL-DVI adapter (which works great with no flickering, but which doesn't support Disney+ or Amazon Prime, and which has several seconds of lag after wake from sleep until the monitor turns on).

 

[EugW]

The Apple dual-link DVI adapter does appear to support HDCP.

Also, I recently found out that Netflix in Safari works on setups where Disney+ and Amazon Prime do not. So in retrospect it seems that Netflix's DRM requirements may not be as restrictive. Maybe Netflix in Safari is just limiting the resolution when HDCP isn't there? (I dunno, because I haven't checked. On these monitors I usually just watch in a small window in the background while doing work, so I usually wouldn't notice the difference between 720p and 1080p anyway.)

BTW, I now have on order:
- Club 3D 8K CAC-1567 USB-C to DisplayPort adapter that @joevt mentioned
- Plugable 4Kp60 USB-C to DisplayPort adapter
- Club 3D CAC-1510 HDCP-on USB-C to DL-DVI adapter

The Plugable 4Kp60 USB-C to DisplayPort adapter is a no-go. While both Amazon Prime and Disney+ both work great with it, the display won't wake up after sleep until unplug and re-plug-in the adapter. This is true both if I plug it into my Plugable Thunderbolt hub or directly into the Mac mini. That's a non-starter.

The Club 3D CAC-1510 HDCP-on USB-C to DL-DVI adapter looks and acts EXACTLY the same as my CableCreation.

The good news is it runs fine so far through my Plugable Thunderbolt hub. If this keeps up, I'll just keep it on the hub and put my external SSD on the Mac mini's USB-C port.

Wake from sleep works, but as mentioned previously, there is a delay of 4-8 seconds before the monitor wakes up. This is acceptable, because most of the time the computer is automatically unlocked by my Apple Watch anyway.

Streaming video
- Netflix runs fine at 1080p, confirmed by both the Test Patterns and the video stats (see thumbnail).
- The Prime Video app doesn't work at all. Neither does Prime Video in Safari. Prime Video does work in Chrome, but only in SD, so it looks like crap. It tells me HDCP is not supported. So I guess having HDCP-on doesn't actually help.
- Disney+ does not work at all in Safari. However, Disney+ does work in Chrome. I'm not sure of the resolution, but it is noticeably better than Prime Video so I'm guessing 720p due to Chrome's built-in DRM support. This is serviceable because I usually just watch it in a small window anyway.
- My iTunes movie library in Apple TV works, but at reduced resolution. I don't know if Apple TV+ would work or not, because I don't have a subscription.

I have no flickering lines on black backgrounds. I tried the black Netflix login window and downloaded very black images, and saw nothing.

Even though the Club 3D dongle is no different from my existing CableCreation one, it cost me less than US$25 from Amazon Warehouse so I'll just keep it, with the CableCreation one as an identical backup.

By the way, just to confirm: Those of you with the Club 3D, does its tag state CAC-1510-A? My supposedly HDCP-on version is correctly labelled as CAC-1510.

 

[joevt]

By the way, just to confirm: Those of you with the Club 3D, does its tag state CAC-1510-A? My supposedly HDCP-on version is correctly labelled as CAC-1510.

A is only for HDCP-OFF version (A is for Apple's Cinema HD 30 inch displays that don't have HDCP - except the newer 30 inch displays do have HDCP).

I think there were at least 2 versions of the HDCP-OFF adapter.
Some early HDCP-OFF adapters don't have the A.
Later 1510-A also add HDCP-OFF text to the label.

The only real difference between the HDCP-ON and HDCP-OFF adapters is the firmware. I don't know if they made internal changes.

 

[EugW]

I think I now have the definitive answer, after testing with my Intel 12-inch MacBook with my HDCP-enabled 30" Cinema HD Display.

CableCreation USB-C - DL-DVI adapter - Neither Disney+ nor Prime Video work. I guess it's HDCP-off after all.
In fact, after plugging this CableCreation adapter in, Disney+ won't even work on the laptop screen.

Club 3D CAD-1510 USB-C - DL-DVI adapter - Both Disney+ and Prime Video work perfectly, confirming HDCP-on.

However, from my M1 Mac mini, neither adapter supports Disney+ nor Prime Video. I guess Apple Silicon machines may have an issue with HDCP through these devices. It's interesting though to see 1080p Netflix support even on the M1 Mac mini, both with Netflix originals and with movies from other studios, as confirmed by the decent quality and Netflix's hidden video stats command.

 

[joevt]

I think I now have the definitive answer, after testing with my Intel 12-inch MacBook with my HDCP-enabled 30" Cinema HD Display.

CableCreation USB-C - DL-DVI adapter - Neither Disney+ nor Prime Video work. I guess it's HDCP-off after all.
In fact, after plugging this CableCreation adapter in, Disney+ won't even work on the laptop screen.

Club 3D CAD-1510 USB-C - DL-DVI adapter - Both Disney+ and Prime Video work perfectly, confirming HDCP-on.

However, from my M1 Mac mini, neither adapter supports Disney+ nor Prime Video. I guess Apple Silicon machines may have an issue with HDCP through these devices. It's interesting though to see 1080p Netflix support even on the M1 Mac mini, both with Netflix originals and with movies from other studios, as confirmed by the decent quality and Netflix's hidden video stats command.

There's a firmware updater from Synaptics for Windows.
VmmDPTool.exe - can dump firmwares and do other stuff.
VmmUpdater.exe - updater for Synaptics VMM2320 used in the CAC-1510 and possibly other similar adapters.
Maybe you can use it to copy firmware from one device to the other (to switch from HDCP-on to HDCP-off). Backup the firmware. Then apply new firmware.

 

[EugW]

There's a firmware updater from Synaptics for Windows.
VmmDPTool.exe - can dump firmwares and do other stuff.
VmmUpdater.exe - updater for Synaptics VMM2320 used in the CAC-1510 and possibly other similar adapters.
Maybe you can use it to copy firmware from one device to the other (to switch from HDCP-on to HDCP-off). Backup the firmware. Then apply new firmware.

Thanks. I don’t need to copy over the firmware. I was just disappointed to find out the issue with streaming services can’t be fixed with the HDCP-on model.

Here’s hoping the USB-C to DisplayPort dongle that’s coming today works well.

 

[joevt]

Thanks. I don’t need to copy over the firmware. I was just disappointed to find out the issue with streaming services can’t be fixed with the HDCP-on model.

Maybe I've lost track and you already mentioned this, but does the issue go away with built-in display or DisplayPort display?