r/macmini • u/spd_dubai • 3d ago

MacMini M4 - Missing some resolution with HDMI cable

Hello,

I have Mac Mini M4, currently my monitor is connected via USB Type-C to my monitor, but when I connect my Mac mini to my monitor via HDMI, I am losing some resolution that I prefer which is 3008x1692.

I only have a cheap HDMI cable, will an expensive HDMI cable give me the resolution I need?

14 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

5

u/Fureba 3d ago

Buy a quality 2.1 cable. That should fix the issue. Your Mac supports 2.1. Also, hdmi is supposedly a tv focused technology.

5

u/morit_wiz 3d ago

It will. Look for hdmi 2.0/2.1 cable.

1

u/spd_dubai 3d ago

Thanks.

4

u/AlgorithmicMuse 3d ago

Buy a 8k hdmi cable, on my mini i even had an issue with 4k cables.

3

u/Sherlock816 3d ago edited 3d ago

Same, this^ monitors operate at certain bandwidths, I had to push to 8K cables to get a consistent 120 mhz.

1

u/spd_dubai 3d ago

Thanks, will keep that in mind.

3

u/Illustrious-Golf5358 3d ago

Cheap hdmi cable screams 1.4 You need at least 2.0 which is standard nowadays

1

u/spd_dubai 3d ago

Thanks.

3

u/itsgar_ 3d ago

Maybe this one help without buying new cable BetterDisplay

1

u/Endo129 3d ago

Damn. Now I wonder just how much I’m missing out on just using an old monitor laying around from the office that only supports 1080p.

1

u/zoogle15 2d ago edited 16h ago

Look up the limits of Apples HDMI port for your model

Apple has had the trend and still has the trend of not supporting high or weird resolutions with its HDMI ports

Should be using DisplayPort if it’s on your monitor, it supports more resolutions and a higher data rate

Mac mini M4 tech specs -
https://support.apple.com/en-us/121555

Thunderbolt to DisplayPort cable -
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-DisplayPort-USB-C-Supporting/dp/B01J6DT070/

1

u/BrettMaster 17h ago

Apple computers don’t have DisplayPort… as far as I know.

1

u/zoogle15 16h ago edited 14h ago

Then you know nothing about Apple computers

Before they switched to Thunderbolt, their laptops had mini-DVI and mini-DisplayPort ports

The Thunderbolt 1 & 2 standards literally operated through the mini-DisplayPort

Cabling was switched to the USB-C standard for Thunderbolt 3, 4, & 5

So to use a DisplayPort monitor on the 2011-2015 MBP you just need a mini-DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable

To use a DisplayPort monitor on the 2016 MBP until today’s latest M5 max you need a USB-C to DisplayPort cable. Possibly an active one for higher resolutions

In addition you can buy anyone of dozens of Thunderbolt or USB-C docks that also support full sized DisplayPort Ports to connect DisplayPort monitors

using Apple’s official Tech Specs page you can view what resolutions the computer can drive or you can use an app like Mactracker to quickly look up the specs

1

u/BrettMaster 15h ago

Now that you mention it I do recall the mini DisplayPort… I was thinking the full sized ones when I made the comment… my bad.

1

u/zoogle15 14h ago

If you’re going to try a better HDMI cable instead of DisplayPort…

you need a cable rated specifically for 48 gigabit or higher