Is a single cable setup for 2021 Macbook Pro really not possible?

[Webster's Mac]

[Intel Certified] Cable Matters 40 Gbps 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 Dock with Dual 4K 60Hz DisplayPort or HDMI, 100w Charging, Gigabit Ethernet, Compatible with USB 4 / Thunderbolt 4 for MacBook Pro, Dell

Cable Matters 107044 computer docking stations

www.amazon.com

-This is what I use with my 2019 16". Has 96 watt PD too

-Edit: I drive 2x 4k monitors that are hooked up to Display port. Everything hooks up through it except for audio, which I prefer to directly connect to the Macbook (until I get some kind of external audio interface)

 

[eddjedi]

Perhaps don't make obnoxious posts asking for help when all you want is someone to tell you you're right, the entire industry of hubs doesn't work.

All I'm looking for is a solution that works, I appreciate all of the constructive and real-life experience posted so far by others in this thread. Aside from lying about yours working perfectly when it does not, and being rude, you have also posted wrong information (Audio Interfaces needed a direct connection, USB-C hubs can't do power delivery, etc.) Your contribtution to this thread is literally nothing.

 

[eddjedi]

How are you connecting the monitor to the dock? If you are using DisplayPort, have you tried Thunderbolt, or vice-versa?

It did seem to work better using DP, but then I lost the Bluetooth mouse and keyboard paired with the monitor, which is a bit of a deal breaker unfortunately. So it needs to be USB-C or Thunderbolt.

 

[zhenya]

It did seem to work better using DP, but then I lost the Bluetooth mouse and keyboard paired with the monitor, which is a bit of a deal breaker unfortunately. So it needs to be USB-C or Thunderbolt.

It seems pretty clear to me that the problem is with your monitor, not with the various docking solutions out there that many of us are using without issue. You might consider if there is a different way of organizing your workflow if you can't make the hardware work to your satisfaction. I too work between Windows and a Mac side by side all day, however I keep only one of them docked to the large monitor at any given time, and use a mouse/keyboard sharing application to allow me to work between them almost as if they were a single device.

 

[eyeseeyou]

I just upgraded my old 2014 MacBook Pro to a now old but new to me 2020 m1 macbook and am looking for a way to get a single cable setup but also use my trusty thunderbolt 2 display.

I already have the tb3 to tb2 adapter and that works perfectly but I wanted to see if there was a single cable solution so I’m not taking up 2 of the 2 ports on this macbook.