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jdb8167

macrumors 601
Nov 17, 2008
4,859
4,599
Hiya F,

I have a Dell WD19 USB-c Hub, it came with the work laptop. Been using with M1 MBA for over a month. No major issues. I'm pretty OCD about this mind :)


RE: BRICKING
I'm surmising it could be a config issue with the MBA firing up from sleep or from cold, with the Hub not plugged in, or not fired up, or bits of Hardware disconnected from the Hub, since the last time the MBA was fully awake. Waking up, the MBA does not like the different HW config it is presented with, and then Bricks.


So I make sure the MBA is in standalone mode when I turn off, or disconnect the USB-C hub.

I.e. I fully fire up the MBA in standalone, and turn the Hub on separately, let it spin up, THEN plug the USB-c cable in. When shutting down the MBA for the night, I turn off the Monitor, then the Hub. Let the MBA go into standalone mode again (So the Screen resizes to the laptop screen). THEN I disconnect the Hub lead, THEN turn off the MBA.


Pretty crappy to have to do this with a premium laptop, but this has been working for me. Better safe than sorry :)



RE: Dell
I do like Dell kit. Proper rock solid work stuff, not cheap kit in both senses. I'm pretty lucky to have the Work PD Hub. Hell, it even has its own internal fan to keep itself cool.


Hope that helps.


Regards
Martin
Much more likely that your MBA doesn't have whatever flaw is causing the failures. All electronics will have some level of defects. In this case, it seems like the failures occur pretty soon after you start using a dock with power delivery.
 
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Marty_Macfly

macrumors 6502a
Apr 26, 2020
962
272
Much more likely that your MBA doesn't have whatever flaw is causing the failures. All electronics will have some level of defects. In this case, it seems like the failures occur pretty soon after you start using a dock with power delivery.

Hi J,


That's good to know :) Long may it continue!
Gutted for all the guys with issues though. Really shouldn't be happening with premium expensive kit.

Just best to stick with brand name powered hubs with good reputations.
 

jdb8167

macrumors 601
Nov 17, 2008
4,859
4,599
Hi J,


That's good to know :) Long may it continue!
Gutted for all the guys with issues though. Really shouldn't be happening with premium expensive kit.

Just best to stick with brand name powered hubs with good reputations.
Of course it shouldn't happen. It is a failure of quality control. I suspect that if it is a manufacturing defect and not a general problem, Apple is already updating their QC process to check for the problem. It is very expensive to have to do a warranty return and all companies will strive to reduce the number of dead on arrival products.

I also wonder about the number of failures that are caused by marginal equipment. Unless someone tests the Power Delivery devices, it is difficult to even make guesses on where the problem lies. You would hope that there is a measure of protection on a $1000+ MacBook though.

My problem is the number of people suggesting that MacBook owners not use single cable power delivery and data with a monitor or a dock on the off chance that the notebook might fail. I think limiting a very useful feature of the port poor MacBook because of that fear is misguided. If it is going to fail, I want to know as soon as possible.
 
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alexjholland

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Of course it shouldn't happen. It is a failure of quality control. I suspect that if it is a manufacturing defect and not a general problem, Apple is already updating their QC process to check for the problem. It is very expensive to have to do a warranty return and all companies will strive to reduce the number of dead on arrival products.

I also wonder about the number of failures that are caused by marginal equipment. Unless someone tests the Power Delivery devices, it is difficult to even make guesses on where the problem lies. You would hope that there is a measure of protection on a $1000+ MacBook though.

My problem is the number of people suggesting that MacBook owners not use single cable power delivery and data with a monitor or a dock on the off chance that the notebook might fail. I think limiting a very useful feature of the port poor MacBook because of that fear is misguided. If it is going to fail, I want to know as soon as possible.
Exactly.

It's bizzare to think that any Macbook owner would accept that their $1-3K machine has arived with a manufacturing fault and that they should baby it to ensure it doesn't fail.

If my Macbook's got a flaw, then I want it to faily as quickly as possible - so that there's minimal debate about the cause.

I can't think of a worse outcome than babying my Macbook through it's warranty period, just so it can safely die after 18 months - and Apple can laugh in my face and demand I cough up for a new motherboard.

As soon as lockdown ends I'm moving back to Bali.

Our closest Apple Store is in Singapore - and I sure as hell don't want a 3-hour plane flight, just for the joy of trying to argue for a warranty exchange in a foreign country.

I'd much rather it failed here in England, if anywhere.

That said, I'm not going to plug in a potentially dangerous hub (Satechi).

But I'm using power passthrough constantly from my Caldigit Soho.

As I damn well should, considering it's got two USB ports.
 

camotron

macrumors member
Mar 7, 2021
31
2
Can I ask a dumb question in regards to the Apple Multiport Adaptor for anyone using it. Do I just plug my Macbook Air M1 power adaptor/cable into the charging port to keep power to the Macbook?
 

camotron

macrumors member
Mar 7, 2021
31
2
Thanks Alex. Waiting on delivery of my Air and only just realised it doesn't have a dedicated charge port. I'll catch up :)

Just on the Apple Mutliport adaptor, I can't find info on the speed of the USB 3 data port. I'm assuming it's 5gbps?
 

joevt

macrumors 604
Jun 21, 2012
6,967
4,262
Just on the Apple Mutliport adaptor, I can't find info on the speed of the USB 3 data port. I'm assuming it's 5gbps?
Yes, the Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter only supports 5 Gbps because of the USB 3.0 hub that it uses.

The CalDigit SOHO supports 10 Gbps but unlike the Apple adapter, I don't think HDR works from the HDMI 2.0b port (probably a macOS driver problem?). The CalDigit SOHO is twice the size of the Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter for twice the number of ports and speed. It has these additional ports: USB-C data port (10 Gbps), SD 4.0 | microSD 4.0 (UHS-II) slots, and DisplayPort 1.4.
 

camotron

macrumors member
Mar 7, 2021
31
2
Yes, the Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter only supports 5 Gbps because of the USB 3.0 hub that it uses.

The CalDigit SOHO supports 10 Gbps but unlike the Apple adapter, I don't think HDR works from the HDMI 2.0b port (probably a macOS driver problem?). The CalDigit SOHO is twice the size of the Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter for twice the number of ports and speed. It has these additional ports: USB-C data port (10 Gbps), SD 4.0 | microSD 4.0 (UHS-II) slots, and DisplayPort 1.4.
Thanks so much for that. I saw the Apple Mutliport on Ebay for about 2/3 the price from Apple so decided to buy that and use as my primary monitor out and charging solution. I now need to find a second hub for a Samsung T5, USB peripherals and ethernet. The SOHO seems to be one the very few (within a semi-reasonable price range) that has 10gbps USB. I was actually thinking of giving up on 10gbps for now and am looking at the Dell D6000 or D3100. Reason being that it has enough USB ports (granted 5gpbs), ethernet and also the bonus of DisplayLink monitor outs. I am not sure if running the T5 is going to be a bottleneck issue on a 5gbps port versus a 10?

Again, thanks to all the comments and discussion here. It's helped hugely!
 

joevt

macrumors 604
Jun 21, 2012
6,967
4,262
I am not sure if running the T5 is going to be a bottleneck issue on a 5gbps port versus a 10?
T5 is a 10Gbps USB device with a max of 540 MB/s (maybe it uses SATA 6Gbps internally?).
If you want max speed USB, then a USB NVMe enclosure would be better (1000 MB/s).

5Gbps USB ports will limit 10Gbps USB devices to 450 MB/s. That's not bad if your device is only 540 MB/s.
 

lostom

macrumors regular
Nov 11, 2010
227
157
I’m late to the party , I’ve had network Issues using my hub, Self assigned ip, if I disconnected the hub the issue is solved, ( should say was, as it appears it’s now fixed),

Big Sur 11.2.2 directly addresses the issue, Apple dropped the update without any beta, so they’re taking it seriously,
since the update I’ve had zero issues.
 

Chozes

macrumors member
Oct 27, 2016
75
97
Have not got HDMI 4K 60HZ working fully on my Mokin hub. Displayport works fine though.

edit: Was faulty, contacted support. Rest of the hub is excellent though. With faster USB 3, similar to a direct M1 connection.
 
Last edited:

camotron

macrumors member
Mar 7, 2021
31
2
T5 is a 10Gbps USB device with a max of 540 MB/s (maybe it uses SATA 6Gbps internally?).
If you want max speed USB, then a USB NVMe enclosure would be better (1000 MB/s).

5Gbps USB ports will limit 10Gbps USB devices to 450 MB/s. That's not bad if your device is only 540 MB/s.
Yeh that's what I thought. 450 m/s is fast enough and it saves me having to make sacrifices in regards to the hub I buy. Cheers!
 

jdb8167

macrumors 601
Nov 17, 2008
4,859
4,599
I just started using an Anker PowerPort Atom III Slim Wall Charger USB C Charger, 65W 4 Port PIQ 3.0 & GaN Fast Charger Adapter (that's a mouthful) with the Caldigit USB-C SOHO dock and my M1 MacBook Air. We'll see how it goes but I doubt that there will be any trouble. The 30W MacBook Air charger just didn't have enough power to handle both the MBA and 2 or 3 peripherals with the dock.
 
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Chozes

macrumors member
Oct 27, 2016
75
97
Any update on your experiences? I am trying an Anker and it works really well. Only issues are that the USB 3.1 speeds are slower than 10 gbps so far. Rest of it works flawlessly.

The Mokin hub 4K 60hz started working for a few months and then recently went out again. Rest of the hub works fine but prompted me to get an all one like the Anker with an ethernet and 10 gbps usb.
 

alexjholland

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
My Caldigit Soho dock is still going strong.

It'd be great if it had more than one USB C and one USB A.

However, they're both extremely fast - so I've got a 16-port USB A hub connected to it at home and a compact, lightweight 3-port USB A hub on the move.
 

gxtpo

macrumors newbie
Dec 7, 2021
1
0
Hey, I'm struggling to choose a USB-C dock for my incoming M1 MacBook Pro.

It needs to connect several hard drives, an audio interface, and a webcam - although I might group those all onto one USB 3 hub.

It needs to be portable-ish and work with my PixelBook Go, too.

So, those huge desk boxes are out of the picture.

Here are my conclusions:
  • Most 'all-in-one' docks only do 4K @ 30Hz - NOT 60Hz.
  • Thunderbolt docks MIGHT deliver the goods, but wouldn't work with my PixelBook Go.
  • I could just connect the display directly, but then I've only got one port left for dock + power.
Three USB-C slots would be easy. One dock. One power. One hub for hard drives.

But with just two slots, I need to combine either my power or monitor output with the dock.

Here are my current solutions:
  • Anker does one or two USB-C hubs with 4K @ 60Hz but recent reviews are flaky.
  • A Hyperjuice Hyp
    My Caldigit Soho dock is still going strong.

    It'd be great if it had more than one USB C and one USB A.

    However, they're both extremely fast - so I've got a 16-port USB A hub connected to it at home and a compact, lightweight 3-port USB A hub on the move.

    erDrive Viper takes both USB-C slots over, but does everything-in-one...
    • However, I have to ship it from the US to the UK.
Any other suggestions?
Hey Alex - can't say I've read every post on this thread, but did you ever have any issues with your audio interface through the hub? I was using a pretty entry level hub https://www.orico.cc/us/product/detail/7232.html and I got terrible audio artefacts when playing my focusrite scarlet 2i2 through it. Same thing when I borrowed another hub to test (https://www.takealot.com/adam-elements-casa-hub-a01-6-port-usb-c-hub-grey/PLID44948126). But when i plugged it into the little usb C to USB 3 adapter that came with my graphics tablet - no problem. Is there a particular technical spec one needs to look for to run audio through a hub? My other connection requirements are pretty simple - a wired mouse(yes yes i know i can't stand the bluetooth ones) and to be able to plug in an external hard drive as as at later point and external monitor. Running a Macbook air 16GB 512 config.
 

abhi182

macrumors regular
Apr 24, 2016
173
121
Here are my conclusions:
  • Most 'all-in-one' docks only do 4K @ 30Hz - NOT 60Hz.
  • Thunderbolt docks MIGHT deliver the goods, but wouldn't work with my PixelBook Go.
  • I could just connect the display directly, but then I've only got one port left for dock + power.
Most thunderbolt docks are backward compatible with USB C devices as well.

I use a Dell wd19tb and a HP g2
both connect reliably with Macbook M1, a Dell Latitude and LG gram (both intel 10th gen) over thunderbolt. 4K60 + other USB 3.1 peripherals work without bandwidth constraint

However, they also connect reliably with an older USB C only Lenovo laptop as well with no hiccups - other than 4k30
However, the lenovo is a 6th gen Intel Integrated IGP machine and does not support 4k60 even over HDMI.
Everything else works as expected
 
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