TBT4-UDZ - Both Display Ports Not Working. (Using Dell laptop with Acer Monitors)

Thunderbolt TBT4-UDZ
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I have Dell Precision 5570 which I am trying to connect with 3 monitors (all are Acer KA240HQ).
I can use 2 monitors at a time when they are connected to hdmi port only. Any of the 2 DP ports just does not respond at all whether there is one other monitor or two or three.
I am using hdmi to hdmi cable to connect to hdmi ports.
For the DP port, I tried an hdmi to hdmi cable with ‘comsol’ DP male to hdmi female adapter. Did not work. Then I went and bought a DP port to DVI cable. Did not work either. What to do???

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Hello there,

Thank you for reaching out on the forums!

I am sorry to hear that you are running into issues with your TBT4-UDZ, but I would be happy to help diagnose the issue here.

The issue seems to be a cable issue, as I suspect that your adapters are not active adapters, which is required in order to do the video signal conversion. Unless mentioned, most adapter cables are not active adapters but instead passive adapters, which will work with Dual Mode DisplayPort (DP++) outputs, which our TBT4-UDZ does not have.

If you are looking for an active DisplayPort to HDMI adapter, I would recommend this one we sell here:

https://plugable.com/products/dp-hdmi

If you suspect that your adapters are active and still are not working, please let me know.

Thank you,

Evan

Plugable Technologies

www.plugable.com/support

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I have 3 questions:

  1. You mentioned ‘Dual Mode DisplayPort (DP++) outputs’. Are you saying it will only work with 2 screens? But the display port doesn’t work if you only connect 1 monitor. Please clarify.

  2. You mentioned about adapters being active or passive. But I have just bought a cable with one end having DVI male (that goes to the monitor) and the other one is DP male (that goes to the dock). Do I still need to buy your active adapter to use the DP ports? Even if I have a cable with the required ends???

  3. Your docking station took almost a month to arrive. Is there another third party active adapter that you recommend???

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Hey, still waiting for your reply before I go ahead and do any further purchase…?

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Hello there,

Thank you for your patience.

1. You mentioned ‘Dual Mode DisplayPort (DP++) outputs’. Are you saying it will only work with 2 screens? But the display port doesn’t work if you only connect 1 monitor. Please clarify.

This has nothing to do with the amount of displays the port can support, but instead deals with converting video signals from DisplayPort to something else. In order to convert DisplayPort to a different video output, like HDMI or DVI, there needs to be a signal conversion. With DP++ ports, the signal conversion occurs in the port itself. With standard DisplayPort outputs, like the ones that the TBT4-UDZ has, the signal conversion needs to happen in the adapter/cable. Active adapters are able to do this signal conversion, but passive adapters are not.

2. You mentioned about adapters being active or passive. But I have just bought a cable with one end having DVI male (that goes to the monitor) and the other one is DP male (that goes to the dock). Do I still need to buy your active adapter to use the DP ports? Even if I have a cable with the required ends???

Yes. This is because your adapter is likely still a passive adapter. Even though your adapter has the correct video outputs, it doesn’t have the ability to perform the signal conversion. Our active DisplayPort to HDMI adapter does have that ability.

3. Your docking station took almost a month to arrive. Is there another third party active adapter that you recommend???

While I don’t have any specific recommendations, any adapter from a reputable brand that mentions being active should work if you don’t use ours.

Thank you,

Evan

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