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Scale 1680x1050 on rMB without an app

Hello itsphilgeorge!

I bought a Mac Mini M1 and a ViewSonic ViewSonic VA2719-2K, WQHD 2560 x 1440 monitor. I would like to know if it is possible now with Big Sur 11.3 to scale. Some items are just too small and there seems to be some blurriness too. The monitor works perfectly with Windows. Thank you!
 
Hey Folks,

Appreciate all the info here. I just bought a new M1 Mac mini, and off course to my suprise to native support for HiDPI for 1440p.

Looks like a few of you were able to get HiDPI 720p scaled with 1440p monitors with the beta version of SRX and a specific beta version of Big Sur.

My question is now that 11.3.1 is released, do I still need to be on the beta version to make this work ?

I can't get passed the Not Active - Invalid message. Even tried being on 3840 x 2160 while applying the settings with no luck.

My return window is the 17th, if I can't figure something out by then, it's sad to say I will have to return this puppy.

My monitor is a benq ex2780q 1440p @144htz connected with a HDMI 2.0 cable.

​

​

 
Sorted! I have got HIDPI working on an external QHD monitor at whatever res I want on an M1 MBP!
Also @ 144hz, despite preferences reporting different. Will also work for your Ultrawide.

SwitchResX -> create a custom resolution for INTERNAL display. Make it 2x the resolution you want, i.e. 3840x2160 for 1080p. Save it and reboot.

Then, connect your laptop up to your monitor. Select the SwitchResX icon in the menu bar at the top. Activate the custom HIDPI res for your internal monitor.

Once you've done that, press "turn video mirroring on", also in the switchres menu bar. This makes the display menu in Mac preferences behave weirdly (pictured below), but it does the trick! Obviously you can only use your external monitor, and not your internal one (they show the same thing) but who cares.

Screw you Apple! And your attempts to destroy the QHD monitor!

Sidenotes:
Since you can’t use clamshell, my advice would be to turn off the keyboard backlight, turn the screen brightness of the internal display down enough so that it’s off, and make sure the touch bar is off so it doesn’t get unnecessary use. I know this sucks, but Apple has a “budget” monitor coming up soon and this is a ploy by them to make us buy that. On Reddit, there are people stating that they’ve thrown out their QHD monitors due to this.

(This should definitely be possible on a Mac Mini. You’ll have to use a 4K EDID spoofer HDMI plug. And then make a custom res for that, and then mirror that - analogous to the internal display.)
 

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calpine said:
You bought an Apple product. Part and parcel unfortunately. Just looked, they cost around $25 from Amazon.
Click to expand...
I guess that’s not so bad.. could you explain how this works though.. Do they come in pairs where one connects to the monitor and one to the Mac mini itself? And would I still need the actual Hdmi cable too?
 
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Thebnt said:
I guess that’s not so bad.. could you explain how this works though.. Do they come in pairs where one connects to the monitor and one to the Mac mini itself? And would I still need the actual Hdmi cable too?
Click to expand...
Put the plug in the HDMI port. Connect another port, usb-c, dp, whatever, to your desired monitor. Treat the fake 4k HDMI display as your “internal monitor”. You’ll be creating the HIDPI res for the plug. Then you’ll be mirroring to the actual display.

Let’s say Amazon prime then you can return it if it doesn’t work :)
 
Would this work then?

www.amazon.co.uk

EVanlak 3rd Generrtion Hdmi Edid Emulator Passthrough Eliminated Emulator Adapter Work with Mac Thunderbolt to HDMI Switches/Extender/AV Receiver/Video Splitters 4k- 3840x2160@60Hz-2pack

How to Fix PS5 120Hz Not Showing with EDID Emulator？ Step1:Select Performance Mode&Disable HDCP. Step2:Rest on Resolution option.Plug the Edid emulator to PS5.If the screen is black,press X----press down（or up）----press X.This is a blind operation to adjust the resolution to 1080P.done.
www.amazon.co.uk
 
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Thanks, I am trying to get a decent image on my 4K TV from my M1 Mac Mini so fingers crossed, it is all washed out at the moment.

Do you take a performance hit doing it this way?
 
SpitUK said:
Thanks, I am trying to get a decent image on my 4K TV from my M1 Mac Mini so fingers crossed, it is all washed out at the moment.

Do you take a performance hit doing it this way?
Click to expand...
Hmm.

The 4K TV should offer HIDPI options by default, this is intended functionality by Apple - you only need one of these plugs if you’re trying to Custom Res a sub-4K or Ultrawide display. What custom res are you planning to do?

As for looking washed out, again, that’s not really what we were trying to defeat here? This sounds like a different issue. If you can explain more what you’re trying to achieve I’ll see if I can help.
 
Thank you. I use a Samsung 43" 4K TV as my screen, with my 16" MBP and Windows machine the image is perfect at 3840x2160 60Hz but plugging the mini in via either HDMI or Thunderbolt I get a washed out slightly fuzzy image. It seems to be because the M1 detects it as a Television and uses YCbCr instead of RGB.

I don't get an option for HiDPI on SwitchRes, see attached.

I just want a true 4k 60Hz image.

I have an M1 MBA so was going to try your trick with that on the screen.

Screenshot 2021-05-07 at 13.19.34.png
 
calpine said:
Put the plug in the HDMI port. Connect another port, usb-c, dp, whatever, to your desired monitor. Treat the fake 4k HDMI display as your “internal monitor”. You’ll be creating the HIDPI res for the plug. Then you’ll be mirroring to the actual display.

Let’s say Amazon prime then you can return it if it doesn’t work :)
Click to expand...
Heyyy seems easy enough. Thanks for the help! Now to hunt down one of these EDID spoofers in India is the only remaining challenge lol
 
Hello. So for @SpitUK I don’t think your issue is the same as mine. This is a known issue tracked here:

forums.macrumors.com

M1 Mac External Display - Fuzzy Fonts & Colors - YPBPR vs RGB

Finally got RGB on my Dell U3419W with the new 11.4 Beta 1 on my Macbook Pro M1 Flawless, better picture than Macbook Pro i7 with stable release.
forums.macrumors.com forums.macrumors.com

I believe this is fixable with a software update but don’t quote me on it. Very time pressured due to exams!

As for finding it in India @Thebnt:



General rule for life. If it’s on Amazon, and not by a known brand, it’s “dropshipped”, I.e. bought from AliExpress, branded, and resold to western customers at a high price. I’m from the U.K. myself and anything small like this I’d get from Ali.
 
Last edited:
Well fam, I caved in. Bought a 4k IPS panel, and I will tell you its a world of difference. I was going to return my mini, but I'm in love all over again.

I bought the newly released:

LG 27UP850-W 27”​

^ its predecessor was almost unanimously voted as the best external display for the m1 machines. And I will say its a very beautiful panel for a mid-budget monitor. This is the latest version of it.

Just kind of sucks, because I will have no use for my awesome BenQ EX2780Q 27 Inch 1440P 144Hz IPS Gaming Monitor. I really loved this thing. But 1440p just won't cut it on a Mac, and 4k is glorious.


PS - If anyone is interested in a good deal on a great 1440 144Hz IPS monitor, hit me up. I have only had it since Feb of this year.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
calpine said:
Sorted! I have got HIDPI working on an external QHD monitor at whatever res I want on an M1 MBP!
Also @ 144hz, despite preferences reporting different. Will also work for your Ultrawide.

SwitchResX -> create a custom resolution for INTERNAL display. Make it 2x the resolution you want, i.e. 3840x2160 for 1080p. Save it and reboot.

Then, connect your laptop up to your monitor. Select the SwitchResX icon in the menu bar at the top. Activate the custom HIDPI res for your internal monitor.

Once you've done that, press "turn video mirroring on", also in the switchres menu bar. This makes the display menu in Mac preferences behave weirdly (pictured below), but it does the trick! Obviously you can only use your external monitor, and not your internal one (they show the same thing) but who cares.

Screw you Apple! And your attempts to destroy the QHD monitor!

Sidenotes:
Since you can’t use clamshell, my advice would be to turn off the keyboard backlight, turn the screen brightness of the internal display down enough so that it’s off, and make sure the touch bar is off so it doesn’t get unnecessary use. I know this sucks, but Apple has a “budget” monitor coming up soon and this is a ploy by them to make us buy that. On Reddit, there are people stating that they’ve thrown out their QHD monitors due to this.

(This should definitely be possible on a Mac Mini. You’ll have to use a 4K EDID spoofer HDMI plug. And then make a custom res for that, and then mirror that - analogous to the internal display.)
Click to expand...
Awesome.

I don't think that the steps around mirroring are necessary. I've been able to insert custom resolutions into the dedicated external monitor since the early Beta's of 11.3 without needing to take those steps. Both on the internal and external monitor.

The issue is that you still cannot insert any resolution above 6016 pixels wide. Even using your new method.

I'm assuming your monitor is not a higher resolution than 6016 pixels wide?
 
itsphilgeorge said:
I have successfully managed to inject a 1920x1200 resolution into the Macbook Air M1 running Big Sur 11.3 Beta 3.

OS: macOS Big Sur 11.3 Beta (20E5196f)
Tool: SwitchResX Beta 4.11.1a4 (Build 2022)

Method:
  1. Install SwitchResX Beta.
  2. Open SwitchResX within System Preferences.
  3. Navigate to About SwitchResX
  4. Install Helper tools and Launch Daemon.
  5. Select Internal Display on the left-hand menu.
  6. Select Custom Resolutions
  7. Click the + icon at the bottom left-hand side.
  8. Ensure the options dropdown on the top left-hand side is Scaled resolution
  9. Enter 3840 under Horizontal Resolution
  10. Enter 2400 under Vertical Resolution.
  11. Click OK
  12. On the System menu for SwitchResX on the top left hand of the entire screen click Display.
  13. Click Write System Settings
  14. Reboot your machine.
  15. Navigate back to SwitchResX upon reboot
  16. Under the Current Resolutions tab, look for a new HiDPI resolution of 1920 x 1200. 60 Hz.
  17. Activate by clicking the radio button to the left of the resolution.
Comments: Resolution works well and without issue. At present, I am unaware of how to accomplish this without an app, but SwitchResX is extremely light and effective.
Click to expand...
This works! Thank you so much.

I had a Intel 13" MBP and enjoyed the screen real estate with the original hack, but when hack stopped working in whatever new version of MacOS, I got rid of the 13" and moved to the 16" MBP.

Just picked up a M1 MBA and the above directions work, using the latest non-beta versions of MacOS and SwithResX. Enjoying 13" high res real estate again.
 
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taphil said:
This works! Thank you so much.

I had a Intel 13" MBP and enjoyed the screen real estate with the original hack, but when hack stopped working in whatever new version of MacOS, I got rid of the 13" and moved to the 16" MBP.

Just picked up a M1 MBA and the above directions work, using the latest non-beta versions of MacOS and SwithResX. Enjoying 13" high res real estate again.
Click to expand...
Amazing. Glad I could help. The extra real-estate is a welcome relief!
 
Thebnt said:
I don’t understand guys. Are you saying I can get Hi-DPI working on my Mac mini with switchresx now for my external QHD monitor?
Click to expand...
If your monitor has a resolution of 4K or greater, chances are you can. If it is lower than 4K, I am unsure. Sorry!
 
I have a MacBook Air M1 and Dell U2515H.
I have followed all the tips from this topic, but I have never been able to raise the resolution from 2560 x 1440 to 2880 x 1620, or set it higher.

The only option that works for me is buying a spoofed HDMI EDID? Which one is better to buy on AliExpress?
 
Evdenek said:
I have a MacBook Air M1 and Dell U2515H.
I have followed all the tips from this topic, but I have never been able to raise the resolution from 2560 x 1440 to 2880 x 1620, or set it higher.

The only option that works for me is buying a spoofed HDMI EDID? Which one is better to buy on AliExpress?
Click to expand...
You won't benefit from doing HiDPI on your monitor.

What resolution would you like? I will write you a guide.
 
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itsphilgeorge said:
You won't benefit from doing HiDPI on your monitor.

What resolution would you like? I will write you a guide.
Click to expand...

I want to enlarge my workspace by increasing the resolution. To make more windows fit on the screen. I would like a resolution of 2880 x 1620 pixels (16: 9).

I need HiDPI (x2) resolution in order to take screenshots in high resolution. So it would be great to do 2880 x 1620 pixels in HiiDPI
 
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