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

Toss4

macrumors member
Oct 29, 2021
34
18
Just bought the new active usb-c alt mode DP to HDMI 2.1 UNITEK V1414A for ~40$

And what do you know, it connects to my tv in FRL6 4lanes 12gbs mode with HDR.
Ventura 13.0
My intention was not to get 120 fps 4k, but to get rid of chroma.
Also, it has support for VRR, but that only works on my windows pc.

Incidentally, FRL6 is enough bandwidth to support 4k120 10bit 444 (even 12bit)
Realistically though, we can only get the converted DP 1.4a 32gbps, so that is FRL 4 - without any DSC, which I doubt will ever work with these adapters.

Its really interesting that this mode even works, because 4k60 10bit 444 HDR is way out of range of HDMI 2.0 protocol, (~22.28Gbps vs ~18Gbps), which indicates to me that m1 chipset is capable of using the whole DP 1.4a bandwidth even when converted to HDMI 2.1
Did it just work out of the box without any additional setup? Or did you have to create a custom resolution using SwitchRes?
 

Chancha

macrumors 68020
Mar 19, 2014
2,308
2,134
Your running on HDMI 2.0 standards with the 4:2:0 8bit 120hz @ 4k

We are seeking 444 120hz @ 4k (HDMI 2.1)
Screenshot 2023-01-31 at 23.01.32 copy.png
Can you or someone tell me if my setup is the same? It is still not HDMI 2.1?
The connection:
MBP2019 16" > UGREEN CM491 (50338) > HDMI 2.1 cable > LG CX 55"
 

Toss4

macrumors member
Oct 29, 2021
34
18
Can you or someone tell me if my setup is the same? It is still not HDMI 2.1?
The connection:
MBP2019 16" > UGREEN CM491 (50338) > HDMI 2.1 cable > LG CX 55"
Press the green button on the remote multiple times til you see a little windows pop up on your screen. Note what it says and post it in the thread. :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chancha

Chancha

macrumors 68020
Mar 19, 2014
2,308
2,134
Press the green button on the remote multiple times til you see a little windows pop up on your screen. Note what it says and post it in the thread. :)
IMG_1022.jpeg
Well. Look like 4:2:0 still. At least 4k120 is now accessible without installing anything in Ventura.
 

Mizouse

macrumors 6502
Nov 5, 2014
434
652
Did those options just pop up for you with that adapter or are you using some other software to get 4k120hz?
 

Chancha

macrumors 68020
Mar 19, 2014
2,308
2,134
Did those options just pop up for you with that adapter or are you using some other software to get 4k120hz?
It was a fresh Ventura install, nothing else except Chrome (Safari cannot be used to test 120Hz). If you mean the list of resolution then you access these by alt-clicking any of the 5 scaling icons.
 
  • Wow
  • Like
Reactions: Toss4 and Mizouse

jdjingdian

macrumors newbie
Mar 18, 2022
24
8
View attachment 2151318
Can you or someone tell me if my setup is the same? It is still not HDMI 2.1?
The connection:
MBP2019 16" > UGREEN CM491 (50338) > HDMI 2.1 cable > LG CX 55"
MBP 16Inch 2019 is exception, it can do 4K120 4:2:0 mode with HDMI2.1 adapter(VMM-7100).

I'm hoping mbp with m1 chip can also use adapter to output 4k120 on my tv……
 

Pressure

macrumors 603
May 30, 2006
5,179
1,544
Denmark
Interesting video here...

Just stay with 2x scaling and you will be fine. That way you get the sharpest picture in macOS.

At some point macOS should adopt the 3x scaling found in iOS though, so an 8K display an be used at 2560x1440 for example.
 

Zorast

macrumors 6502a
Jan 29, 2021
617
211
It's crazy that Apple limit this again, every time when they realease something they limit something else. They DONT CARE about other Displays. They want u buy an Apple display. Can't believe that 4k HiDPI with 120hz and HDR is not possible... It also works with 6k and Pro Display XDR but with 60hz
 
Last edited:

joevt

macrumors 604
Jun 21, 2012
6,964
4,259
It's crazy that Apple limit this again, every time when they realease something they limit something else. They DONT CARE about author Displays. They want u buy an Apple display. Can't believe that 4k HiDPI with 120hz and HDR is not possible... It also works with 6k and Pro Display XDR but with 60hz
6K60 is actually more bandwidth than 4K120.
 

kasakka

macrumors 68020
Oct 25, 2008
2,389
1,075
Just stay with 2x scaling and you will be fine. That way you get the sharpest picture in macOS.

At some point macOS should adopt the 3x scaling found in iOS though, so an 8K display an be used at 2560x1440 for example.
2x scaling is just way too large on even smaller 4K screens, let alone something as big as the LG OLEDs.

The issue is entirely MacOS stupidity with scaling. Windows has no trouble handling 4K @ 150% scaling or "looks like 2560x1440". Or even lower scale if you want. Text is sharper than MacOS and everything from 10-bit 4:4:4 HDR to 144 Hz works just fine - over DP 1.4 which has less bandwidth than HDMI 2.1!

This is an absolutely ridiculous limitation from Apple when ultimately it should not matter if your framebuffer is huge because the end result gets scaled back to native res before it is output to the display. So it should not require these bandwidth shenanigans at all, just some GPU horsepower to render and scale.
 
  • Like
Reactions: robotica and Zorast

Rams1976

macrumors newbie
Jan 30, 2023
11
5
Has anyone attempted to do an EDID Override Patch such as this which allows you to set the refresh rate? See this Russian guys blog:

 

kasakka

macrumors 68020
Oct 25, 2008
2,389
1,075
Has anyone attempted to do an EDID Override Patch such as this which allows you to set the refresh rate? See this Russian guys blog:

As it says on the blog, these don't work on Apple silicon Macs.

Even on Intel there has been no way to make it work with EDID overrides.
 

dharmaone

macrumors newbie
Aug 27, 2013
3
2
Just bought the new active usb-c alt mode DP to HDMI 2.1 UNITEK V1414A for ~40$

And what do you know, it connects to my tv in FRL6 4lanes 12gbs mode with HDR.
Ventura 13.0
My intention was not to get 120 fps 4k, but to get rid of chroma.
Also, it has support for VRR, but that only works on my windows pc.

Incidentally, FRL6 is enough bandwidth to support 4k120 10bit 444 (even 12bit)
Realistically though, we can only get the converted DP 1.4a 32gbps, so that is FRL 4 - without any DSC, which I doubt will ever work with these adapters.

Its really interesting that this mode even works, because 4k60 10bit 444 HDR is way out of range of HDMI 2.0 protocol, (~22.28Gbps vs ~18Gbps), which indicates to me that m1 chipset is capable of using the whole DP 1.4a bandwidth even when converted to HDMI 2.1
View attachment 2149453 View attachment 2149452


Are you using the
V1416B or V1414A ?

This:


or this:


Looks like you're getting 4k60 with 4:4:4 and 10bit (hdr)? I'm in the same boat with M1 max and LG C2, would love to get that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: codyfyi

Chancha

macrumors 68020
Mar 19, 2014
2,308
2,134
MBP 16Inch 2019 is exception, it can do 4K120 4:2:0 mode with HDMI2.1 adapter(VMM-7100).

I'm hoping mbp with m1 chip can also use adapter to output 4k120 on my tv……
IMG_1026.jpeg
Just to report back with a confirmation:
The exact same setup with a Ventura 13.2 M1 Pro instead:
MBP2021 14" base > UGREEN CM491 (50338) > HDMI 2.1 cable > LG CX 55"
4k at max 60Hz HDR
need to drop down to 1440p to get 120Hz
If I take away the adaptor and plug the HDMI cable directly into the built-in HDMI port of the MBP14", frequency limits remain the same, with the subsampling dropping to 4:2:0.

So yes the Intel MBP2019 16" was an exception for whatever reason, where a 4k120 4:2:0 is possible somehow.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: Mizouse

espacioami

macrumors member
Nov 10, 2022
50
27
I have a LG27GL850 1440p@144 monitor and was wondering if the mac mini m2 (no pro) is able to get that resolution with G-sync on. I had a bad experience with an M1 and it only reached 1440@100Hz with G-sync on. If i disabled the G-sync it reached 120Hz and 144Hz but in the latter option I had black screens. I never understood it.

Does HDMI Mac M2 work better than M1?, any experience? M2 hdmi gets 1440@144 10bit? is there any thunderbolt to hdmi adapter /cable that works (I don't know where I read that Apple blocked it by software)? (With the M1 I bought some adapters that did not work)

To be honest I'm confused and I want to save some money and not have to buy the M2 Pro. (M2 is perfect for me)

thanks
 

waydabber

macrumors 6502
May 27, 2010
363
273
EDID is what describes the display's capabilities. By changing the EDID you can create custom timings (resolutions, frequencies) and also a lot of other aspects of how the display behaves (color encodings, capabilities, identifiers etc). So far it was not possible to use a custom EDID with Apple Silicon (Intel macs had this), but now there is a way to do this.

This will not solve the 120Hz issue on the Mac but might be an useful tool as it is now possible to experiment with various timings and see what works and what doesn't, what factors trigger limitations and what doesn't.

I am yet to test this with HDMI, works well with USB-C/DisplayPort.
 

magbarn

macrumors 68040
Oct 25, 2008
3,018
2,386
Hi guys, just wanted to let you know it is now possible to override the EDID on Apple Silicon macs. This might help with experimenting.
Can you use it to fool macOS into thinking my HDMI 2.1 LG C2 OLED is using displayport?
 

UnklemacX

macrumors newbie
Jan 24, 2023
7
0
Can you use it to fool macOS into thinking my HDMI 2.1 LG C2 OLED is using displayport?

That seems too easy :) But I dream of this too. Currently running active displayport -> hdmi 2.1 with LG C2 confirming 48gbit connection, but only allowed 4k 60hz RGB 10bit.
 

Toss4

macrumors member
Oct 29, 2021
34
18
EDID is what describes the display's capabilities. By changing the EDID you can create custom timings (resolutions, frequencies) and also a lot of other aspects of how the display behaves (color encodings, capabilities, identifiers etc). So far it was not possible to use a custom EDID with Apple Silicon (Intel macs had this), but now there is a way to do this.

This will not solve the 120Hz issue on the Mac but might be an useful tool as it is now possible to experiment with various timings and see what works and what doesn't, what factors trigger limitations and what doesn't.

I am yet to test this with HDMI, works well with USB-C/DisplayPort.
Is the process the same as it is on Intel Macs? Couldn't find any articles describing how to do it.
 

waydabber

macrumors 6502
May 27, 2010
363
273
Is the process the same as it is on Intel Macs? Couldn't find any articles describing how to do it.

No, it's entirely different. You can use the BetterDisplay app to download the EDID file, alter its contents via AW EDID Editor and then use BetterDisplay to apply the new EDID. You have to upload it here (see below) and click `Apply EDID Now` which will briefly disconnect the display and reconnect it with the updated EDID:

Screenshot 2023-02-08 at 17.31.53.png

I wonder if somebody edited the EDID file for a HDMI dongle connection and altered the interface from HDMI to DisplayPort at Video Interface bits (to 0101 - you can also find the setting under Video Input Definition / Interface in AW EDID EDitor) - would it does make a difference for HDMI dongles? I don't know how exactly macOS classifies a connection as HDMI if it actually receives the signal as DisplayPort from an USB-C dongle besides this - this change should not affect the dongle itself as the EDID override stays on the Mac, but might trigger a change and the DCP (or macOS) will impose a different set of limits on the connection (allowing 4K@120Hz maybe)?
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: bodija and Toss4
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.