Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Caldigit TS3+ M1 Pro with dual monitors?

I

ikkysleepy

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 10, 2014
38
17
Does anyone know if Caldigit TS3+ with M1 Pro / Max have any issues with dual monitors using the doc with 1 thunderbolt cable?

I just got a macbook air M1 Mac and was disappointed that dual monitors did not work with my TS3+ and Caldigit said it was the chip's fault but M1 Pro / Max do work with the TS3+. That's what they said but not sure if there are any issues with this setup or not.

Thanks,
-- Jorge
 
The issue with the Air is a limitation of the computer, not the dock. I have a TS3+ and it works with the M1Pro flawlessly. I run 2 4K monitors, one through USB-C and other using DisplayPort.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ader42
I think he is asking if he can connect 2 4k monitors with just single cable. I look specs and TS3 is thunderbolt 3 dock, as far as i know, this capability has thunderbolt 4. but i found this info, so iam not abs. sure. Because there is the mention of some TB3 ports supporting 2 4K monitor(but not certain about Hz)

Compared to version 3, Thunderbolt 4 requires a much stricter set of capabilities to be certified. Take video for example. Every Thunderbolt 4 laptop supports two 4K displays or one 8K display. By contrast, Thunderbolt 3 is only required to support one 4K monitor. So some Thunderbolt 3 ports support two displays at 4K or even one at 8K while others only support one 4K monitor. This gives the manufacturer more flexibility in design and build, but it also makes things very confusing for the customer.
 
Delarock said:
I think he is asking if he can connect 2 4k monitors with just single cable. I look specs and TS3 is thunderbolt 3 dock, as far as i know, this capability has thunderbolt 4. but i found this info, so iam not abs. sure. Because there is the mention of some TB3 ports supporting 2 4K monitor(but not certain about Hz)

Compared to version 3, Thunderbolt 4 requires a much stricter set of capabilities to be certified. Take video for example. Every Thunderbolt 4 laptop supports two 4K displays or one 8K display. By contrast, Thunderbolt 3 is only required to support one 4K monitor. So some Thunderbolt 3 ports support two displays at 4K or even one at 8K while others only support one 4K monitor. This gives the manufacturer more flexibility in design and build, but it also makes things very confusing for the customer.
Click to expand...
All Mac Thunderbolt ports have been able to support two displays (except the original M1 Macs).
 
I have the dock and have no issues on an M1 max computer. One thunderbolt cable to the dock and two monitors run easily. It also worked in the pro chip as I had a 14 inch pro I used for. A few days before returning it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ikkysleepy
rkulpajr said:
I have the dock and have no issues on an M1 max computer. One thunderbolt cable to the dock and two monitors run easily. It also worked in the pro chip as I had a 14 inch pro I used for. A few days before returning it.
Click to expand...
I have a M1 Max as well

Have you tried to hook up a 3rd display to the dock?

I have already bought one Anker TB4 dock, with 3 downstream TB ports and only two monitors worked.

Whereas if I plug the USB C to HDMI cables right into the MBP I can get all 3 to work.
 
rkulpajr said:
I have the dock and have no issues on an M1 max computer. One thunderbolt cable to the dock and two monitors run easily. It also worked in the pro chip as I had a 14 inch pro I used for. A few days before returning it.
Click to expand...
Great. Thank you for your response.
 
jackmando007 said:
Have you tried to hook up a 3rd display to the dock?
Click to expand...
A single Thunderbolt port can support only two displays. Additional displays can be connected to the same Thunderbolt port only if they use something like DisplayLink.
 
C1769F15-CF6A-4B70-AB15-145A80E6EEC6.jpeg
Third display hooked up with hdmi. Easy to connect two cables. I also got 90 degree adapters to prevent unnecessary strain on the cables.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: EzisAA
I have a caldigit mini with M1 pro. 2 displays connected at 60. No issues. The USB ports don’t work. This is a macOS issue from what I understand. Get the mini unless you need all those obscure ports. They have a display port or an hdmi version.
 
Alameda said:
Interesting! I had read that the limit was two external displays, period. But you have a third? And it’s fast, problem-free, etc?
Click to expand...
I have the M1 Max chip so it will support up to 4 monitors. there are not any problems at all. They are all in extended mode and work seamlessly.
 
philosopherdog said:
I have a caldigit mini with M1 pro. 2 displays connected at 60. No issues. The USB ports don’t work. This is a macOS issue from what I understand. Get the mini unless you need all those obscure ports. They have a display port or an hdmi version.
Click to expand...
Wait a minute. The USB ports on the CalDigit Ts3 dock don't work on your M1 Pro? Do the SD Card / Audio Ports work? This seems a bit concerning since I use 14/15 ports.
 
ikkysleepy said:
Does anyone know if Caldigit TS3+ with M1 Pro / Max have any issues with dual monitors using the doc with 1 thunderbolt cable?

I just got a macbook air M1 Mac and was disappointed that dual monitors did not work with my TS3+ and Caldigit said it was the chip's fault but M1 Pro / Max do work with the TS3+. That's what they said but not sure if there are any issues with this setup or not.

Thanks,
-- Jorge
Click to expand...
I purchased a 16' M1 Max and also have a Caldigit TS3+, with a dual monitor setup. I also have issues, but only when connecting the M1 Max. Connecting my '17 Macbook Pro with 16gb ram, works fine, however.

After troubleshooting the **** out of the issue, I have been able to determine that with the M1 Max, the following setup does not work for me:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works perfectly with my '17 Macbook Pro, but does not work when using my M1 Max Macbook Pro at 60hz (it does work at 30hz).

The following setup does work for my M1 Max Macbook Pro:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C to HDMI adapter on TS3+ then HDMI to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works with 60hz.

The TS3+ dock definitely has some quirks to it, despite what Caldigit says or claims, however in this case, I'm fairly confident the issue is my M1 Max, as certain keys on the internal keyboard become non-responsive at times. As a result, I'm returning the M1 Max for a new one. I realize the pandemic has screwed up a lot of things, however Apple's response to the situation with my computer is pretty pathetic. Senior tech support not only has asked me to help them troubleshoot the issues with them (not in an effort to fix it with my computer, but because I'm guessing this has been a recurrent issue that has been reported with them). Meanwhile, I had to go into the apple store just to get someone to agree to extend the return deadline, so I could use the M1 Max with an external keyboard until they can ship a new one in December. Phone support said they weren't able to do anything. The amount of time I have wasted (not to mention the new cables I had to buy to troubleshoot the issues) are unacceptable. All of this on top of Monterey being buggy as hell for certain functions and having to reinstall the OS three times just to get it stable. I'm not sure what they should have done, but it certainly would have been nice if they offered me some money off my purchase or something else for all the ********. I love Apple products, and have literally used them since the 90s, but this definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Btw, in order to "exchange" the product, I had to put another $3,500 on my cc as they "couldn't" just input an order for a replacement/exchange without it.

Bottom line to OP, I'm fairly certain some of these new MB Pros are duds, and that is what is causing the majority of the issues.
 
nevets23 said:
I purchased a 16' M1 Max and also have a Caldigit TS3+, with a dual monitor setup. I also have issues, but only when connecting the M1 Max. Connecting my '17 Macbook Pro with 16gb ram, works fine, however.

After troubleshooting the **** out of the issue, I have been able to determine that with the M1 Max, the following setup does not work for me:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works perfectly with my '17 Macbook Pro, but does not work when using my M1 Max Macbook Pro at 60hz (it does work at 30hz).

The following setup does work for my M1 Max Macbook Pro:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C to HDMI adapter on TS3+ then HDMI to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works with 60hz.

The TS3+ dock definitely has some quirks to it, despite what Caldigit says or claims, however in this case, I'm fairly confident the issue is my M1 Max, as certain keys on the internal keyboard become non-responsive at times. As a result, I'm returning the M1 Max for a new one. I realize the pandemic has screwed up a lot of things, however Apple's response to the situation with my computer is pretty pathetic. Senior tech support not only has asked me to help them troubleshoot the issues with them (not in an effort to fix it with my computer, but because I'm guessing this has been a recurrent issue that has been reported with them). Meanwhile, I had to go into the apple store just to get someone to agree to extend the return deadline, so I could use the M1 Max with an external keyboard until they can ship a new one in December. Phone support said they weren't able to do anything. The amount of time I have wasted (not to mention the new cables I had to buy to troubleshoot the issues) are unacceptable. All of this on top of Monterey being buggy as hell for certain functions and having to reinstall the OS three times just to get it stable. I'm not sure what they should have done, but it certainly would have been nice if they offered me some money off my purchase or something else for all the ********. I love Apple products, and have literally used them since the 90s, but this definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Btw, in order to "exchange" the product, I had to put another $3,500 on my cc as they "couldn't" just input an order for a replacement/exchange without it.

Bottom line to OP, I'm fairly certain some of these new MB Pros are duds, and that is what is causing the majority of the issues.
Click to expand...
Here is a stupid suggestion that might work: Try a different USBC port on the laptop.

Years ago, on a older MBP, i got different video results from different connectors on the laptop. Shocked that I'm the only one who noticed, but one connector would overscan, and the other would properly underscan. Costs you nothing to try.
 
nevets23 said:
I purchased a 16' M1 Max and also have a Caldigit TS3+, with a dual monitor setup. I also have issues, but only when connecting the M1 Max. Connecting my '17 Macbook Pro with 16gb ram, works fine, however.

After troubleshooting the **** out of the issue, I have been able to determine that with the M1 Max, the following setup does not work for me:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works perfectly with my '17 Macbook Pro, but does not work when using my M1 Max Macbook Pro at 60hz (it does work at 30hz).

The following setup does work for my M1 Max Macbook Pro:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C to HDMI adapter on TS3+ then HDMI to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works with 60hz.

The TS3+ dock definitely has some quirks to it, despite what Caldigit says or claims, however in this case, I'm fairly confident the issue is my M1 Max, as certain keys on the internal keyboard become non-responsive at times. As a result, I'm returning the M1 Max for a new one. I realize the pandemic has screwed up a lot of things, however Apple's response to the situation with my computer is pretty pathetic. Senior tech support not only has asked me to help them troubleshoot the issues with them (not in an effort to fix it with my computer, but because I'm guessing this has been a recurrent issue that has been reported with them). Meanwhile, I had to go into the apple store just to get someone to agree to extend the return deadline, so I could use the M1 Max with an external keyboard until they can ship a new one in December. Phone support said they weren't able to do anything. The amount of time I have wasted (not to mention the new cables I had to buy to troubleshoot the issues) are unacceptable. All of this on top of Monterey being buggy as hell for certain functions and having to reinstall the OS three times just to get it stable. I'm not sure what they should have done, but it certainly would have been nice if they offered me some money off my purchase or something else for all the ********. I love Apple products, and have literally used them since the 90s, but this definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Btw, in order to "exchange" the product, I had to put another $3,500 on my cc as they "couldn't" just input an order for a replacement/exchange without it.

Bottom line to OP, I'm fairly certain some of these new MB Pros are duds, and that is what is causing the majority of the issues.
Click to expand...
I talked to Caldigit via chat and they were aware of the issue but for some reason there website was not clear on this. I was able to get a response via twitter with this image:
FEQ6SueUcAMiErh

That sucks about the ports not working correctly but that's been my suspicion about M1 hardware having I/O issues. Thanks for beta testing the hardware for us.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ader42
nevets23 said:
I purchased a 16' M1 Max and also have a Caldigit TS3+, with a dual monitor setup. I also have issues, but only when connecting the M1 Max. Connecting my '17 Macbook Pro with 16gb ram, works fine, however.

After troubleshooting the **** out of the issue, I have been able to determine that with the M1 Max, the following setup does not work for me:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C out on TS3+ to DP on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works perfectly with my '17 Macbook Pro, but does not work when using my M1 Max Macbook Pro at 60hz (it does work at 30hz).

The following setup does work for my M1 Max Macbook Pro:

Computer: TB3 cable to TS3+,
Display 1: DP out on TS3+ to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor
Display 2: USB-C to HDMI adapter on TS3+ then HDMI to HDMI on Dell 4K Monitor

This setup works with 60hz.

The TS3+ dock definitely has some quirks to it, despite what Caldigit says or claims, however in this case, I'm fairly confident the issue is my M1 Max, as certain keys on the internal keyboard become non-responsive at times. As a result, I'm returning the M1 Max for a new one. I realize the pandemic has screwed up a lot of things, however Apple's response to the situation with my computer is pretty pathetic. Senior tech support not only has asked me to help them troubleshoot the issues with them (not in an effort to fix it with my computer, but because I'm guessing this has been a recurrent issue that has been reported with them). Meanwhile, I had to go into the apple store just to get someone to agree to extend the return deadline, so I could use the M1 Max with an external keyboard until they can ship a new one in December. Phone support said they weren't able to do anything. The amount of time I have wasted (not to mention the new cables I had to buy to troubleshoot the issues) are unacceptable. All of this on top of Monterey being buggy as hell for certain functions and having to reinstall the OS three times just to get it stable. I'm not sure what they should have done, but it certainly would have been nice if they offered me some money off my purchase or something else for all the ********. I love Apple products, and have literally used them since the 90s, but this definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Btw, in order to "exchange" the product, I had to put another $3,500 on my cc as they "couldn't" just input an order for a replacement/exchange without it.

Bottom line to OP, I'm fairly certain some of these new MB Pros are duds, and that is what is causing the majority of the issues.
Click to expand...

I'm 100% certain these issues will be fixed with software updates. You scrambling around to get a new machine and to get support is a gigantic waste of time on brand new hardware. There are undocumented issues that no one is going to know anything about or have any solutions for.

I have seen the M1 Pro have issues with peripherals in general. We need to wait for a fix.
 
I'd like to share my experience. I have a CalDigit TS3 Plus with 2 Dell S2721QS 4K monitors. I had a working one-cable solution on a 13" Intel MacBook Pro (2020).

I just replaced the machine (and nothing else, same dock, monitors, cables) with a 16" M1 Pro MacBook Pro (2021), and have nothing but trouble. The screens blank out every 5-10 seconds.

I contacted Apple Support who was utterly useless. They tried telling me that you can only connect ONE monitor through a TB3 cable. I explained how this was all working flawlessly on my Intel Mac, and he said some things about how they are different, etc, which I responded to that this is a serious feature regression.

Fast-forward some 30 minutes of Apple not acknowledging the real problem and telling me I just need to plug monitors directly into the MacBook. Uhm, no. I reached out to CalDigit who provided this helpful blurb:

We’re aware of the issues currently happening with our docks on M1 chipsets especially, and had more customers report the same issue since receiving their products. Our engineers are looking into it as it’s a MacOS 12.2(and 12.2.1) issue. Unfortunately, there have been a lot of issues with Monterey since 12.1 and now also with 12.2 and 12.2.1. A lot of customers have come to us with an array of issues since updating to 12.2 and 12.2.1 and this appears to be an issue with the OS itself and not the dock as the reports are global with different dock manufacturers. Our engineers have confirmed they are looking into this and working with Apple directly to see if they can assist them in fixing the issue on the OS side. They messaged us recently and reckon it’ll be 12.4 or even 12.5 before Apple have sorted out a fix for the issues on Monterey. They’re still working with them to push an update out sooner but we have to wait now as it’s in Apples hands.


The issues being reported vary from power cycling issues, sleep issues, monitor connectivity problems, charging not working or slow, USB ports stop working randomly and ethernet either not working at all or dropping out sporadically. We spoke with our engineers and they're going to discuss with Apple directly about this as, the Ethernet issues, were due to a newly released ethernet driver and our engineer has found a lot of issues with it which has been a very long discussion and a uphill struggle to get them to look at it and address the issues. Our engineers in the US have some contacts with the Apple engineers over there and can report to them directly.


For the time being, we’re all having to wait for an update from Apple on all the issues current affecting the latest MacOS versions.
Click to expand...

Essentially, my whole setup is cooked for probably another year (and maybe longer!)
I would not rely on monitors through docks at the moment on an M1 setup.

If anyone has ANY ideas about how to get this to work, I'd love to test them out.

This is my setup:
Dell S2721QS -> DisplayPort to USB-C Active -> TS3 Plus
Dell S2721QS -> DisplayPort -> TS3 Plus
TS3 Plus -> Included TB3 Cable -> Any TB port on M1 Pro MacBook Pro
 
jostermacedo said:
The issue with the Air is a limitation of the computer, not the dock. I have a TS3+ and it works with the M1Pro flawlessly. I run 2 4K monitors, one through USB-C and other using DisplayPort.
Click to expand...
@jostermacedo Can you share more information about your setup?

  • 14" or 16"
  • Stock or customized?
  • What monitor brand and model?
  • Are both monitors plugged into the TS3+?
  • Which TB port on the M1 Pro are you plugged in to?
 
I read somewhere that M1 Macs aren't too keen on DisplayPort, so I got an HDMI to USB-C Adapter from CalDigit (this one https://shop.caldigit.com/us/Adapters and Cables?product_id=206), and it seems like things are stable after 15 minutes...

I now have one monitor going from a new HDMI 2.0b Cable -> HDMI to USB-C Adapter -> USB-C Monitor port on the TS3+, and the other monitor is straight HDMI to the MacBook Pro's HDMI port.

For anyone else that stumbles upon this, I also saw slightly fewer occurrences of full screen blanking when I changed the refresh rate from 60Hz to 30Hz. I'm still not happy about this regression, and would like to go back to a single cable solution, which means that one of my screens will have to use the DisplayPort port on my TS3+.
 
Anyone considering the TB 4 Element Hub. Be aware that if you have a Lacie 2Big Dock for storage, you may end up with problems. My 2Big dock running the latest firmware etc that has been stable with the M1 Pro suddenly started to randomly disconnect drives internal and any daisy chained to it.

Tried a load of different cables and positioning in the TB chain but every 30 mins or so, a big freeze followed by disks being disconnected.

The Lacie drives certainly didn't like it when it was connected to the TB4 hub and then the laptop, struggled to get some disks to mount at all. Connecting th 2Big dock to the M1 and the TB4 hub to the other TB 3 connector on the 2Big dock mounted all drives... just with random disconnects.

Disconnected the TB 4 Element hub now and everything is back to working normally.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back