Caldigit TS3 Plus - Wake from Sleep problem

[feiticeira]

Hi folks,
I've seen various iterations of this problem on other threads, some a little old or involving multiple monitors but thought I'd try and see if anyone has more recent tips or leads.

I bought a 13"MBP M1 recently (the wait for the fabled M1X was too long for my old MBP15 alas), and so far so good. After some technical issues with the OWC 14port Thunderbolt dock, I switched to the Caldigit TS3 Plus. It works fine, except it has trouble waking from sleep half the time. If I step away on a call or something, or if I manually set it to sleep overnight, it is a bit of a lottery as to whether I can wake the computer from sleep without resorting to unplugging/replugging the cable. I've been trying to figure out if the program I'm using at the time has something to do wit it, or how the blue active light on the dock being lit/unlit has something to do with it.

So far, its pretty random, and it's getting kind of frustrating. The operating system is the latest Big Sur update 11.5.2, and I've updated the Caldigit firmware as well. No discernable difference as yet.

I contacted Caldigit support who said they're working with Apple on this as this problem isn't uncommon, so until that happens has anyone got any tips short of never setting my computer to sleep how I can mitigate having to unplug/replug half the time.

Many thanks

 

[MNGR]

Familiar problem. I frequently have to disconnect/ reconnect.
(and was not aware of firmware update procedures to update Caldigit. Thanks for the hint)

 

[feiticeira]

No worries! We'll watch and wait I guess
And yes, there is a firmware update but it's a little old. I bought my unit last month and it was already at the latest version. I installed the update anyway and it didn't seem to make any difference.

I was curious is this was a problem with Big Sur more so than previous OS versions.

 

[CMMChris]

I (and numerous other people) have opened feedback about this with Apple. I personally update it with every beta release to let them know it isn't fixed. No reply until today. My feedback was opened in March. I attached a screenshot for reference. Feel free to quote my feedback ID in case you want to open your own report.

 

[feiticeira]

I (and numerous other people) have opened feedback about this with Apple. I personally update it with every beta release to let them know it isn't fixed. No reply until today. My feedback was opened in March. I attached a screenshot for reference. Feel free to quote my feedback ID in case you want to open your own report.

Hi Chris, ah good to know! Yes I was emailing the Caldigit technician and have asked to keep my feedback open as well, and to be contacted with any updates. Fingers crossed for this to be resolved in the near future.

 

[NordmoleX]

Hi guys,

i suppose I am in a similar situation. I only recently got a Mac again, in this case the MacBook Air M1, and because of connectivity, I got myself the CalDigit TS3 Plus. Same issues here, in this case with me its usually the monitor that at some point doesn't get a signal anymore. And on the Mac settings at that point the external display, and LG monitor, is not recognized anymore. Only unplugging and replugging in the power of the CalDigit will bring things back to normal. For around 300 Euro that sucks.

I guess there is no other way to fix that ?

 

[CMMChris]

Complain to CalDigit and open a bug report with Apple for additional pressure. Issues still have not been fixed in Monterey.

 

[NordmoleX]

Is it a general problem, are there other hubs of that caliber that are maybe a better choice ? Right now I could still return the CalDigit, I mean, if you pay that much for a hub, you expect it to work.

Are there Hub / Docks like this that work better ?

Thanks in advance. You guys are really great here, thanks for all your help in all my topics. Appreciate it.

 

[feiticeira]

Is it a general problem, are there other hubs of that caliber that are maybe a better choice ? Right now I could still return the CalDigit, I mean, if you pay that much for a hub, you expect it to work.

Are there Hub / Docks like this that work better ?

Thanks in advance. You guys are really great here, thanks for all your help in all my topics. Appreciate it.

Hi Nord,
Yeah it's frustrating isn't it. So I actually started with a OWC Thunderbolt 14 port dock. That was a similar price and was similar in function, but it lies flat on the table and has a larger footprint. It does have slightly different ports, a mini SD card reader, MiniDisplayport instead of regular Displayport for example. I had it for a couple of weeks but returned it as there was a fault with the unit and it made a high pitched noise when processing heavily. I think that's a faulty part, not a problem with the unit itself, but I still returned it and got the Caldigit which has the smaller footprint. I don't remember having this 'sleep' problem with that dock in the short time I had it, so perhaps have a think about it. I would have been happy to keep that if it didnt have the fault.

Quick update on my original post. I've since picked up a logitech mx master keys and master 3 mouse, and that "seems" to wake the computer more frequently than when I had my original apple magic keyboard and mouse set. It may still be random, but for me it has felt that the logitech accessories woke the computer from sleep more often. I may be dreaming however

good luck!

 

[lordhamster]

Had the same problem with the TS3. Solved it by replacing the computer to monitor thunderbolt with an old school DisplayPort cable instead. So DisplayPort on the ts3 to display port on the monitor. Problem with not waking up intermittently seems to have gone away.

 

[NordmoleX]

Problem is, i am using my PC already on the same monitor with DP cable, not to mention that without the USB_C i cant use the Mac with 4k 60 as far as I know. Guess i have to live with the issue for now.

Wolf

 

[anomaly44]

Been having this problem for 2 years on my intel based MBP (and TS3) Problem happened about 1/10 times when the machine went to sleep, so it was annoying but tolerable. Recently switched to a m1 max MBP, the problem has gotten much worse. HALF the time it goes to sleep my 2 external monitors dont wake up anymore. It's driving me crazy. Sometimes replugging the ts3 helps (easiest) if that doesnt help I can unplug and replug one monitors power cable from the rear of the monitor ( that wakes them both of them up), sometimes i have to sleep the laptop again and power cycle the monitor, and wake the machine after. If nothing helps I just have to reboot and everything works again. But the problem with rebooting is I have to reopen my editor, terminals, and rerun all my development processes, which is a realy PITA and productivity killer.

Really need a solution now, because its causing me a lot of headaches and lost time, that I simply cannot afford, my income depends on this.

 

[CMMChris]

Have you submitted a report to Apple about this?

 

[anomaly44]

No only posted here and mailed Cal Digit. Where can I report with apple ?

 

[CMMChris]

You can submit bug reports to Apple using Feedback Assistant on your Mac or online at https://feedbackassistant.apple.com/

 

[sionell]

I don't think this issue is limited to MBP. I have the same issue with my caldigit ts3 which I use with my windows 10 laptop (for work). 50/50 if the monitor wakes up after it's gone to sleep. Unplugging the cable from the laptop and replugging in works 99.9% of the time there. I'm using a displayport -> displayport cable from the dock to the monitor. I'll have to check for the firmware update now.

 

[Starmina]

I'm really mad, just bought the CalDigit TS3, get the issue every single time. One screen DP to DP and the other One DP To USB-C, reconnecting the USB-C Cable (Screen) seems enough so both wake up but it's ultra annoying. (MB M1 Max)

 

[CMMChris]

Edit: Just happened again. LOL!

Have been watching sleep behavior of the CalDigit TS3+ on macOS 12.2 Beta 1 for a couple of days now, and it looks like Apple started working on this (despite my bug report still remaining with no attention from Apple).

So far, it seems like the screen is not waking up every couple of minutes when in sleep like it used to do before. Also, the status light of the dock remains off now. Let's see if it stays like that, but it certainly looks promising.

I also haven't had any issues with waking from sleep. It still needs a couple of key presses for the login prompt to appear, but I haven't had any failed wake attempts so far.

Maybe you guys in here want to try 12.2 Beta 1 as well and check if the dock works better for you as well.

 

[Starmina]

Well I updated to 12.2 Beta 1 unfortunately I still get issues. Maybe it's just my LG screen ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I tried a lot of different setup, I found nothing working perfectly for now.
Going so far as connecting my main screen directly to the MBP, but the backlight of the screen stays on all the time if TS3+ is connected...

What do you mean by status light of the dock ? The TS3+ blue light is supposed to turn off ?
Mine always were blue all the time, so I put some electric tape on it

 

[CMMChris]

Well, I just had it happen again as well. Dunno why it stopped for a couple of days.

What do you mean by status light of the dock ? The TS3+ blue light is supposed to turn off ?

The blue light stays on for around a minute and then turns off once the MacBook goes in a deeper sleep state.
For me, this is what happens from then:

1. After around 15 minutes the blue light turns on again
2. Screen wakes up with no signal (thus drawing unnecessary power)
3. Screen goes to sleep after timeout
4. After another 15 minutes the blue light turns off again
5. Screen wakes up with no signal again
6. Screen goes to sleep after timeout
7. Cycle starts from 1

 

[Starmina]

Well, I just had it happen again as well. Dunno why it stopped for a couple of days.


The blue light stays on for around a minute and then turns off once the MacBook goes in a deeper sleep state.
For me, this is what happens from then:

1. After around 15 minutes the blue light turns on again
2. Screen wakes up with no signal (thus drawing unnecessary power)
3. Screen goes to sleep after timeout
4. After another 15 minutes the blue light turns off again
5. Screen wakes up with no signal again
6. Screen goes to sleep after timeout
7. Cycle starts from 1

Oh yeah well, I had this issue without the CalDigit lmao but with a way cheaper "usb-c connected dock" cheap on amazon. Now it's either the backlight stay on all the time, or if screen connected to CalDigit, none of the screen wake up until I power cycle the caldigit.

 

[CMMChris]

Yes, this is what sometimes is happening to me as well after longer times in sleep. Sometimes the screen just is blank but permanently lit-up, sometimes it displays a mouse pointer on the black background.
And then sometimes, especially when it was connected to the dock overnight, I can't wake it up with key presses and have to re-connect the dock in order for it to wake up.

 

[Starmina]

I really wonder if I just should send back the caldigit to amazon since I just go it honestly.
It may be a macOS issue, but I've read about those issue since at least 2 to 3 years back.
Not sure if it'll be fixed any time soon, and the TS3+ is quite pricey for something not working correctly.

 

[CMMChris]

The CalDigit TS3+ is working correctly. It's a macOS bug. I am in touch with CalDigit about this because Apple does not react to my bug reports about it. They say that Apple is even ignoring them. They have tried everything themselves to fix it with various firmware workarounds but have not succeeded. They say Apple needs to fix their Thunderbolt implementation, but they simply get no response when trying to talk to Apple. The issue started sometimes during late Mojave / early Catalina according to CalDigit.

I personally have no experience from these days because back then I was using a Hackintosh and had no need for a Thunderbolt dock. However, I did test the CalDigit TS3+ on some Intel Macs and the issue only exists on macOS but not when running Windows or Linux. I also know that people with different Thunderbolt docks are having the same issues.

 

[choreo]

This may not be relevant to this thread as I have never connected any of my displays via a hub. I have never experienced a problem with waking displays from sleep, but have experienced almost daily crashes, panics and auto-restarts - mostly during or waking from sleep. The problems got so bad that Apple replaced my entire Mac Pro with a new unit 4 months later; however, the problems persisted and I finally just decided it must be the w5700x GPU drivers in Catalina - truth will never be known.

The reason I am posting here is because I have a Mac Pro 7,1 with (3) 27" monitors connected via the w5700x GPU. I purchased the Mac Pro in July of 2020 (running Catalina) and at the same time installed a TS3 mainly to be able to connect my Logitech Z906 speakers to the TOSLINK port. I noticed that when I disconnected the TS3 my random crashes would almost vanish. Finally 3 months ago, I decided to purchase the OWC 14-port hub to replace the TS3 to see if maybe that was the problem. The OWC unit came with two lights on the bottom - a blue power light and a green light to show connection via USB-C to the Mac. I immediately started having the same crashes, but then I noticed that the OWC hub's green light would occasionally go out when it should stay on and I would have to unplug and reconnect to unit to get it back online? So, I think there is a problem with hooking up external devices via USB-3 - as to whether it is the architecture, w5700x driver (in my case), or the OS, I have no idea, all I know is when I disconnect either hub the crashes go away.

One thing I did last Friday, is finally upgraded from the last version of Catalina to the most recent version of Big Sur. It is still too early to take a victory lap, but I have not had a single crash, freeze or auto-restart since the upgrade! I am cautiously optimistic - we will see. I have had the OWC Hub connected the whole time and the green light comes on every time so far when I wake the computer from sleep - before that was not always the case - when I would wake the computer I would lose all external peripheral connections (wired keyboard, wired Wacom tablet and the hub) most of the time.

On my machine with Catalina it just did not like having any external devices connected via USB-C - very erratic - I recorded over 300 crashes/restarts over the past year. Still to early to tell for sure if Big Sur actually solved "my" problem.