New Mac Mini - 5 Displays??

[mhutchinson]

Looking at the new mac Mini. Thinking of using it to power 5 displays. 4 1920x1080 TVs and 1 basic low res monitor.

This is strictly for digital signage only, not a workstation.

On apples Tech Specs they say official support for 3 monitors :

• Up to three displays:
• Two displays with 4096-by-2304 resolution at 60Hz connected via Thunderbolt 3 plus one display with 4096-by-2160 resolution at 60Hz connected via HDMI 2.0

My question is, Can i get 4 USB C to HDMI adapters, plug the 4 TVs in and plug the basic low res monitor into the last remaining HDMI Port?

While I understand performance wise it many not be the best, for the most part we are displaying simply images only with the occasion motion loop of a logo.

Software wise I have that taken care of, just wondering it the mac mini will even detect 5 individual displays.

 

[saulinpa]

Most likely won't work. Intel's CPUs have 3 video outs and the mini splits them up as needed. You probably can do two on USB-C, one on HDMI port, then buy two USB to HDMI converters which are really low end video cards.

 

[DeltaMac]

Going by the published specs, your answer will be "No, the mini supports 2 connected to Thunderbolt 3 ports, plus 1 connected to HDMI 2.0."
I suspect that you may find that you will be limited to two (total) HDMI devices (regardless of how many you attempt to connect, only two will light up when providing an HDMI connection). My suspicion is just a guess, until you see a report of someone who actually tries to connect more displays simultaneously. More displays might need an active/powered external hub.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Typically, the USB to HDMI is one per machine on the latest macOS revisions. DisplayLink powers most of them, their note is here: https://www.displaylink.com/downloads/macos - it's limited to one per system on macOS 10.13.4 or above (the new Mini will be 10.14) - so even with USB you'll be limited to four.

 

[dogslobber]

Three displays max? It's crazy given it's not 1990 anymore!

 

[Sun Baked]

Hopefully some of the eGPU users have tested for multi monitor support and have a better handle on how many monitors a Mac Mini is likely to handle in 4K and lower 1080 resolutions.

 

[mhutchinson]

Thanks All! all good points. Totally makes sense to em. My end goal is simply to save money. - but it doesn't look like thats an option these days

 

[brand]

Three displays max? It's crazy given it's not 1990 anymore!

Someone would have to be ignorant if they thought that three displays were commonplace in 1990. For that matter even in 2000 or 2010 three monitors were not common place.

 

[chinanderm]

Why not just one video out from the machine and into an HDMI distributer?

 

[dogslobber]

Someone would have to be ignorant if they thought that three displays were commonplace in 1990. For that matter even in 2000 or 2010 three monitors were not common place.

Not sure what you're trying to say but sounds like you're agreeing with me.