I recently purchased a Studio Display XDR and I'm having trouble setting it up properly with my older Studio Display. My MacBook Pro M4 (2024) runs on version 26.3.1, and I've connected the XDR using the provided Thunderbolt 5 cable, which works perfectly. However, I'm struggling to daisy chain my old Studio Display to the XDR using a Thunderbolt 4 cable. The old display doesn't turn on at all when connected this way. When I try to connect both displays directly to my MacBook Pro, the XDR is functional, but the older one remains off. The only successful configuration I found involves connecting the older Studio Display directly to the MacBook, waiting for it to turn on, and then connecting the XDR, which allows both displays to stay on. I'm confused about the daisy chaining capability; it seems like I should be able to connect them in sequence. Is there something I'm missing?
3 Answers
It sounds like you're having a compatibility issue. Just a heads-up: the 14" MacBook Pro M4 supports Thunderbolt 4, while the M4 Pro and M4 Max models have Thunderbolt 5. You might need a Thunderbolt 5 capable machine for full functionality with the daisy chain setup.
I've dealt with the same issue! I noticed when I follow your connection sequence, the XDR only runs at 60Hz instead of 120Hz. Apple Support mentioned that the older 2022 Studio Display isn't really compatible for daisy chaining, which is a bummer!
I faced a similar problem at first! My first-gen Studio Display didn’t work when I plugged it into the XDR at first, but it started functioning after a while. My setup is:
MacBook Pro 14" M1 Max > XDR with a Thunderbolt 5 cable > First-gen Studio Display using a Thunderbolt 4 cable. I plugged the older display into the XDR first, then connected that to the MacBook.
I managed to get it working after a reboot, but I still only get 60Hz. Just curious, are you seeing 120Hz when daisy chaining?
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