Seiko SM40UNP and Mac Pro 2013

[rougement]

Hi there,

I'm having problems getting this combo to work with the monitor's display port set to 1.2, at 1.1 it works fine but 4k is limited to 30Hz. To get the 60Hz rate I switch to 1.2 but there's some flickering and after a few minutes the screen goes black, the monitor says there is no input and it goes to sleep.

The same thing happens with a MacBook Pro and 1.2, even though the laptop can only do 30z.

Is this thing a lemon or are there known issues using this display and a Mac Pro? I'm using the displayport to minidisplayport adapter.

 

[bookemdano]

I use this monitor fine on a 2009 Mac Pro and Nvidia 750 Ti card I had flashed with an EFI by MVC. Much different setup than you but since you said it happens with your MBP too it sounds like the Mac Pro isn't the culprit anyway.

First thing's first. What version of OS X are you running? I believe it needs to be 10.9.3 or later to work with DP1.2.

The two remaining suspects are the cable/adapter and the monitor. Hopefully it's the former. I'd suggest getting a true DP->mDP cable rather than using an adapter--just one less point of failure. Monoprice makes some good yet cheap ones.

If that doesn't help then the issue must be with your monitor. What happens if you turn off your Mac, plug in the cable to the Seiki (leave the Seiki on DP1.2) and turn on the Mac. Does it properly display the boot screen? I think I remember some posts that the nMP didn't display a bootscreen with DP1.2 but that may have been fixed by now. If no bootscreen, do you see the desktop before the screen goes black? If so, what happens if you change the resolution (maybe you could use screen sharing to do that).

The only other thing I could think of is if your Seiki has different firmware than mine. You can check for that if you bring up the monitor menu, choose Setup->Information. I got mine last November and it's on 20150807 Ver 2.00.

Edit: Something's up because here someone posted about a similar problem https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6988409?tstart=0. You can likely ignore the advice in there about doing a factory reset on the monitor--I think the only reason it "worked" for the one guy who suggested it is because factory reset sets DP back to 1.1 mode.

Yet here's an amazon review saying it works fine on the nMP @ DP1.2 http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-r...f=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00RVGXZ08

 

[pastrychef]

A good quality cable can make all the difference in the world.

 

[rougement]

"I use this monitor fine on a 2009 Mac Pro and Nvidia 750 Ti card I had flashed with an EFI by MVC. Much different setup than you but since you said it happens with your MBP too it sounds like the Mac Pro isn't the culprit anyway."

I suspect you may be right. I did read something (can't for the life of me remember where) about this display using a different method to get the video out, MST maybe? It got me thinking that there's a fundamental difference and that Apple's drivers may be at fault.

"First thing's first. What version of OS X are you running? I believe it needs to be 10.9.3 or later to work with DP1.2."

Up to date on both machines. 10.11.04

"The two remaining suspects are the cable/adapter and the monitor. Hopefully it's the former. I'd suggest getting a true DP->mDP cable rather than using an adapter--just one less point of failure. Monoprice makes some good yet cheap ones."

I'm using a Monoprice 6008 10FT 32AWG Mini DisplayPort to DisplayPort Cable. I'm happy to order something else to just rule out cabling, what's a good alternative?

"If that doesn't help then the issue must be with your monitor. What happens if you turn off your Mac, plug in the cable to the Seiki (leave the Seiki on DP1.2) and turn on the Mac. Does it properly display the boot screen? I think I remember some posts that the nMP didn't display a bootscreen with DP1.2 but that may have been fixed by now. If no bootscreen, do you see the desktop before the screen goes black? If so, what happens if you change the resolution (maybe you could use screen sharing to do that)."

Possibly related: My Mac Pro stopped working last Friday, wouldn't even boot. I suspect the D-500 cards have failed, I wonder if messing about with this damn display pushed it over the edge? It's in the shop for repair. I couldn't manage to get it to display the boot options screen (the one you get to by holding option when booting) over display port. Using the HDMI of the Mac Pro into the HDMI of the Seiki did result in this screen being shown. I seem to recall I couldn't even get the login screen to show, the display only came out of sleep when the desktop was loaded.

"The only other thing I could think of is if your Seiki has different firmware than mine. You can check for that if you bring up the monitor menu, choose Setup->Information. I got mine last November and it's on 20150807 Ver 2.00."

Same here.

"Edit: Something's up because here someone posted about a similar problem https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6988409?tstart=0. You can likely ignore the advice in there about doing a factory reset on the monitor--I think the only reason it "worked" for the one guy who suggested it is because factory reset sets DP back to 1.1 mode."

I saw that thread, same exact problem but no resolution. I've contacted Seiki support, I hope they can shed some light on this, I'll have to return it if not as I bought the thing to get rid of the lag my 39" Seiki 4k TV had as it was limited to 30Hz. I'm really just trying to figure out if I need a refund or a replacement display. I'll try another cable first though. Thanks for your help.

 

[bookemdano]

1. What year and model is your MBP?

2. As for a new cable, any DP->mDP cable should be compatible. No need to look specifically for one that states DP1.2 compatibility, because all displayport cables are DP1.2 compatible. You might even want to buy it locally so you can return it if it doesn't help you.

I've used both of these cables:
http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=6007
http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=12001

3. The nMP not showing the boot screen over DP I think is a known issue--at least it is with DP1.2. I wasn't sure if Apple had resolved that with an EFI update but I guess not. I know you questioned whether or not the Seiki was responsible for the D500 failure, but I really doubt that. There have been many instances of D500 and D700 failures on the nMP. See here: https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/06/late-2013-mac-pro-video-issues-repair-program/

Edit: Oh yeah about the MST/SST thing. MST (multi-stream transport) is actually the older method of achieving 4K resolution @ 60Hz. It's a total kludge that involves driving half the screen (1920 x 2160) via one input and the other half via another input. Then the monitor stitches them together and displays them side-by-side. Both the monitor and the OS must specifically support MST for it to work, and even then there are lots of quirks.

Fortunately, that's no longer necessary. With the advent of better scalers we now have SST (single-stream transport) which can deliver the entire 3840x2160/60Hz picture via one DP 1.2 input. So yeah the Seiki and most other 4K monitors made these days are SST displays. OS X didn't fully support them until 10.10.3.

 

[rougement]

1. What year and model is your MBP?

MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014)

I just got word from the shop that the D-500s failed, as I suspected. That it happened after 2 years of heavy use straight after this new Seiki was connected is quite a co-incidince.

2. As for a new cable, any DP->mDP cable should be compatible. No need to look specifically for one that states DP1.2 compatibility, because all displayport cables are DP1.2 compatible. You might even want to buy it locally so you can return it if it doesn't help you.

I've used both of these cables:
http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=6007
http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=12001

I ordered one from Cable Matters. I guess it's possible that a cable could work at 30Hz and not at 60Hz yet the MBP will only do 30Hz anyway and changing the Seiki to DP1.2 still causes the same problems.

3. The nMP not showing the boot screen over DP I think is a known issue--at least it is with DP1.2. I wasn't sure if Apple had resolved that with an EFI update but I guess not. I know you questioned whether or not the Seiki was responsible for the D500 failure, but I really doubt that. There have been many instances of D500 and D700 failures on the nMP. See here: https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/06/late-2013-mac-pro-video-issues-repair-program/

Edit: Oh yeah about the MST/SST thing. MST (multi-stream transport) is actually the older method of achieving 4K resolution @ 60Hz. It's a total kludge that involves driving half the screen (1920 x 2160) via one input and the other half via another input. Then the monitor stitches them together and displays them side-by-side. Both the monitor and the OS must specifically support MST for it to work, and even then there are lots of quirks.

Fortunately, that's no longer necessary. With the advent of better scalers we now have SST (single-stream transport) which can deliver the entire 3840x2160/60Hz picture via one DP 1.2 input. So yeah the Seiki and most other 4K monitors made these days are SST displays. OS X didn't fully support them until 10.10.3.

Ahh! Thank you, that's what I was trying to find out about. So the MST/SST difference is moot and DP1.2 *should* just work with my Mac Pro. I suspect I have a faulty model.

 

[AidenShaw]

2. As for a new cable, any DP->mDP cable should be compatible. No need to look specifically for one that states DP1.2 compatibility, because all displayport cables are DP1.2 compatible.

In theory, yes. In practice, not always.

I bought a couple of cheap no-name cables, and the Dell P2715Q+Quadro spit out a message of the nature "max 2560x1440 resolution with this cable".

You might even want to buy it locally so you can return it if it doesn't help you.

Often good advice...

 

[rougement]

Some progress, per Seiki support:

"can you please confirm your displayport cable is version 1.2 or higher to support 4K at 60Hz?"

So I checked, I ordered the cable I'd seen recommended by a few people, this one:

http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=6008

Near the bottom:

"Important Note! This cable supports the DisplayPort version 1.1, which does not support audio and has a maximum data transmission rate of 8.64 Gbps."

Once my Mac Pro gets its new D-500's in a couple of days, I'll test with the Cable Matters one I ordered. This explains the no audio issue I was having also.

The Cable Matters one I ordered doesn't mention which standard it supports:

http://www.cablematters.com/pc-25-3...e-2-port-compatible-to-displayport-cable.aspx

 

[omvs]

FWIW: I've successfully used the Accell B143-B007J cable with my seiki 40" (though I'm driving from a GTX 970 & 2009 MP).

 

[bookemdano]

Some progress, per Seiki support:

"can you please confirm your displayport cable is version 1.2 or higher to support 4K at 60Hz?"

So I checked, I ordered the cable I'd seen recommended by a few people, this one:

http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=6008

Near the bottom:

"Important Note! This cable supports the DisplayPort version 1.1, which does not support audio and has a maximum data transmission rate of 8.64 Gbps."

Once my Mac Pro gets its new D-500's in a couple of days, I'll test with the Cable Matters one I ordered. This explains the no audio issue I was having also.

The Cable Matters one I ordered doesn't mention which standard it supports:

http://www.cablematters.com/pc-25-3...e-2-port-compatible-to-displayport-cable.aspx

I remember reading that same proviso while doing my research. And that's what led me to this: http://www.displayport.org/cables/how-to-choose-a-displayport-cable-and-not-get-a-bad-one/ where it reads:

Despite what you may read, there is no such thing as a DisplayPort 1.1 cable and DisplayPort 1.2 cable. A standard DisplayPort cable, including the so-call DisplayPort 1.1 cables, will work for any DisplayPort configuration including the new capabilities enabled by DisplayPort 1.2, including 4K and multi-stream capabilities. All standard DisplayPort cables support RBR, HBR (High Bit Rate), and HBR2 (High Bit Rate 2), which can support 4K at 60Hz, or up to four 1080p displays using multi-stream.

But AidenShaw's advice is still sage--cheapie cables may not be made properly and could cause issues.

That said, I've used both of those monoprice cables I linked with my Seiki Pro @ DP1.2 with no problems. I haven't messed with audio over DP (it's a hassle on the cMP) so I can't offer any advice there. Was it not showing up as an available output device in System Preferences->Sound?

I think the CableMatters one is actually a certified cable, so if that doesn't work then you know cabling isn't your problem.

 

[rougement]

I remember reading that same proviso while doing my research. And that's what led me to this: http://www.displayport.org/cables/how-to-choose-a-displayport-cable-and-not-get-a-bad-one/ where it reads:



But AidenShaw's advice is still sage--cheapie cables may not be made properly and could cause issues.

That said, I've used both of those monoprice cables I linked with my Seiki Pro @ DP1.2 with no problems. I haven't messed with audio over DP (it's a hassle on the cMP) so I can't offer any advice there. Was it not showing up as an available output device in System Preferences->Sound?

I think the CableMatters one is actually a certified cable, so if that doesn't work then you know cabling isn't your problem.

Thanks for all your help by the way. The MP sees the Seiki as an audio device but there is no sound. I didn't pursue it further as I'm sure the speakers are absolutely terrible. I did ask Seiki support if the Cable Matters one will work and if there are any they recommend. If they reply I'll share here.

 

[bookemdano]

Thanks for all your help by the way. The MP sees the Seiki as an audio device but there is no sound. I didn't pursue it further as I'm sure the speakers are absolutely terrible. I did ask Seiki support if the Cable Matters one will work and if there are any they recommend. If they reply I'll share here.

Glad to help! The reason you didn't hear sound is because the SM40UNP doesn't actually have speakers built in. In order to hear anything you have to either plug headphones or powered speakers into the audio out jack on the left side.

Let us know how it goes with the new cable.

 

[rougement]

Per Seiki:

Here is the displayport cable you can use:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A7R9I2M/ref=twister_B00A9SWFC4?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1