Dock with dual monitor support

[Velroy]

Hi, I have tried looking for a proper solution for weeks but haven't found one that works for my situation.

I have two monitors (one 1440p@144hz and another at 1080p@144hz) and plenty of usb devices (mouse, keyboard, webcam, audio interface) I would like to connect to my laptops using one cable.

I have an M2 Pro 14" Macbook Pro for personal use and an HP for work that has a Thunderbolt 3 port only.

So far it has been easy to find compatible devices for the HP (pretty much any off the shelf cheap solution works) but I cannot for the life of me find a solution that works on the mac, they all have either mirrored both displays, just straight out not worked, or been super unreliable displaylink hacks. The mac can drive two monitors with no issue using two cables, but that's not optimal.

Does anyone know a dock or dongle that actually works properly? I don't mind dongles on dongles as long as it's reliable. It has to be available within the EU.

Bonus points if it would be possible to also find a way to connect my gaming PC using the same solution, but I am aware that might be an impossible ask.

 

[headlessmike]

I have a Caldigit Thunderbolt 3 mini dock for my M1 Pro 14" and it works great. It comes in two versions, HDMI or DisplayPort, and works with PCs with Thunderbolt as well. It's not the cheapest dongle but it works very well and is a premium product.

Mini Dock | Thunderbolt 3 | HDMI | DisplayPort – CalDigit

www.caldigit.com

 

[Sgaar]

Keep in mind that to use a dock with MacOS you will need to use DisplayLink. There is a problem, or challenge if you want, playing videos on a monitor connected via a dock. More detail here: DisplayLink and MacOS

 

[headlessmike]

Keep in mind that to use a dock with MacOS you will need to use DisplayLink. There is a problem, or challenge if you want, playing videos on a monitor connected via a dock. More detail here: DisplayLink and MacOS

That's not true. You only need DisplayLink if you want to connect more monitors than are officially supported by the hardware, i.e. more than two external displays in the case of the OP's M2 Pro MBP, and even then you would need a specific DisplayLink dock.

 

[dmccloud]

Keep in mind that to use a dock with MacOS you will need to use DisplayLink. There is a problem, or challenge if you want, playing videos on a monitor connected via a dock. More detail here: DisplayLink and MacOS

This is a factually incorrect statement. I am using a CalDigit TS4 dock with two monitors connected, and I never had to even look at DisplayLink. As headlessmike stated, DisplayLink only comes into the equation when trying to run more monitors than the system officially supports.

 

[iStorm]

You'll need a Thunderbolt dock. I’m guessing you were only trying USB-C docks since you said "cheap solutions". Thunderbolt docks are generally much more expensive than USB-C docks. USB-C docks typically use MST (multi-stream transport)...which PCs/Windows support MST, but not macOS. That probably explains the behavior you're seeing.

Like everyone else above, I also recommend CalDigit. Their TS3+ or TS4 dock should work for you, or their "Thunderbolt 4 Pro Dock" sold only in the Apple Store (not sure if it's available in all regions).

I have a Caldigit Thunderbolt 3 mini dock for my M1 Pro 14" and it works great. It comes in two versions, HDMI or DisplayPort, and works with PCs with Thunderbolt as well. It's not the cheapest dongle but it works very well and is a premium product.

Mini Dock | Thunderbolt 3 | HDMI | DisplayPort – CalDigit

www.caldigit.com

This will also work, but just be aware that you'll need to connect it directly to the Mac (or a Thunderbolt dock). It won't work if you use it as a dongle connected to a USB-C dock/hub; nor does it provide power through USB-C power delivery. Sounds like you're looking for a one-cable solution for everything, but not sure if you wanted power delivery to be part of that or not.

 

[JPack]

You'll need a Thunderbolt dock. I’m guessing you were only trying USB-C docks since you said "cheap solutions". Thunderbolt docks are generally much more expensive than USB-C docks. USB-C docks typically use MST (multi-stream transport)...which PCs/Windows support MST, but not macOS. That probably explains the behavior you're seeing.

This is the correct answer.

 

[Velroy]

You'll need a Thunderbolt dock. I’m guessing you were only trying USB-C docks since you said "cheap solutions". Thunderbolt docks are generally much more expensive than USB-C docks. USB-C docks typically use MST (multi-stream transport)...which PCs/Windows support MST, but not macOS. That probably explains the behavior you're seeing.

Like everyone else above, I also recommend CalDigit. Their TS3+ or TS4 dock should work for you, or their "Thunderbolt 4 Pro Dock" sold only in the Apple Store (not sure if it's available in all regions).


This will also work, but just be aware that you'll need to connect it directly to the Mac (or a Thunderbolt dock). It won't work if you use it as a dongle connected to a USB-C dock/hub; nor does it provide power through USB-C power delivery. Sounds like you're looking for a one-cable solution for everything, but not sure if you wanted power delivery to be part of that or not.

I actually tried a Lenovo and a HP Thunderbolt dock and neither worked. What does caldigit do differently from those two?

 

[JPack]

I actually tried a Lenovo and a HP Thunderbolt dock and neither worked. What does caldigit do differently from those two?

What's the model of the docks you tried and how did you connect them?

Some TB docks have an MST hub inside it, as described here:

Re: HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 to Mac book pro

OK. I have the early 2016 MacBook Pro with TB3 Intel Iris 550. What I just figured out after looking at how the ports are attached in the dock is that the the USB-C, DP1 and DP2 ports are all on the same bus and hub. When two monitors are connected to any two of those ports the macOS will...

h30434.www3.hp.com

The CaliDigit mini dock doesn't do this.

 

[headlessmike]

What's the model of the docks you tried and how did you connect them?

Some TB docks have an MST hub inside it, as described here:

Re: HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 to Mac book pro

OK. I have the early 2016 MacBook Pro with TB3 Intel Iris 550. What I just figured out after looking at how the ports are attached in the dock is that the the USB-C, DP1 and DP2 ports are all on the same bus and hub. When two monitors are connected to any two of those ports the macOS will...

h30434.www3.hp.com

The CaliDigit mini dock doesn't do this.

It sure sounds like MST is used by at least one of the docks tested by OP.

To expand on this, MST packs two or more display signals into a single DisplayPort stream. This allows DisplayPort monitors that support MST to be daisy chained with a single cable from the computer. macOS does not support MST and will only give a mirrored output to all of the displays connected over a single stream. Thunderbolt natively supports multiple DisplayPort streams, which is why CalDigit can support two separate displays. Not sure why some docks still use MST over Thunderbolt.

 

[Velroy]

I bought the Caldigit Thunderbolt 4 Pro Dock from Apple, I'll report back once it arrives.

I couldn't find the TS4 anywhere, but as I understand it, they're both the same, just with a different color?