Hidpi resolutions not available

[Namu-Lee]

Hi, I'm using a QHD(2560*1440) external monitor connected via HDMI natively.
I turned on the smooth resolutions option, but I cannot use the native hidpi option for 1080p. I tried rebooting the device several times, and adding some custom resolutions, but it doesn't work. The available hidpi resolution is only 720p.
In dummy mode, I can use the hidpi resolutions, but I want to use native display because of 120hz refresh rate.
Thanks.

[waydabber]

Hmm. Things look all right though. What do you see in the resolution list (if you switch to it - and enable all resolution list subsettings )?

Also, can you zip and attach the contents of the /Library/Displays folder?

Thank you!

[Namu-Lee]

Displays.zip

Almost all of HIDPI resolutions are invalid.

[waydabber]

Hmm. The updated configuration does not seem to be applied properly. It might be that the issue is with the model id being 0. Can you please try what happens if you rename the file located in /Library/Displays/Contents/Resources/Overrides/DisplayVendorID-30b8 to DisplayProductID-0 and reboot? Thank you!

[Namu-Lee]

It worked. Most of HIDPI resolutions(except 2560*1440) are now valid, and I can use 1080p HIDPI (120hz) natively for my external monitor. Thanks a lot.

[waydabber]

Thanks for the feedback!

I'll convert this into an Issue as this is a bug that must be fixed, other displays might have 0 model ID as well.

[waydabber]

#740

[cheynewallace]

So im having a similar issue @waydabber , just updated to Pro, and im using an LG 1440p 144hz monitor.

Everything was working fine with the old Better Dummy (Dummy mode in HIDPI) but cannot see any HiDPI modes now. Am I missing something?

Using an M1 Pro Macbook Pro

In the listing of resulutions I dont see any HiDPI modes

[waydabber]

Yes, something doesn't seem to be all right here either.

• Are you on 12.4?
• Did you Apply the settings in the red banner, it turned to blue and rebooted?
• Can you please zip and attach the contents of the /Library/Displays folder?

Thank you!

[cheynewallace]

Ah actually im on 12.3, is 12.4 a requirement? (Sorry might have missed that part).

Yep, I applied the settings.. Did this a number of times and rebooted each time.

Attached is the DIsplayProductID file from Libary/Displays

DisplayVendorID-1e6d.zip

[waydabber]

Yes, 12.4 is required for this to work!

[cheynewallace]

My mistake, upgraded to 12.4 and i see the HIDPI resolutions now. Thanks for the great product!

[rklamichhane]

Hi, I am facing the same issue connected via Caldigit ts4 dock to an LG Ultragear 1440p monitor. I can see all the HiDPI resolution when connected directly to laptop's HDMI but it shows all HiDPI resolution entries invalid when connected through dock. Here is a zip file and I am on macOS 12.4. Thank you!
Contents.zip

[JoyDivision1926]

Hi, guys. I got the same issue. HiDPI not available (invalid). BD settings should be alright.
Tried to rename DisplayVendorID-472 folder to DisplayProductID-0, but it looks like I don't have access to the rename feature.

I am on 12.4
Thank you in advance for your help.

Displays.zip

[waydabber]

Hi @JoyDivision1926, @rklamichhane -

I think your situation is not the same. Renaming the DisplayProductID-* file is only relevant for displays with product id 0-9 (as due to a bug, v1.2.7 will always create a two digit number which is not good). This is probably not relevant for your display as for most displays with a proper firmware this won't happen.

You guys should check if you are on Monterey 12.4 or newer. If so, then you can try cleaning the Overrides folder and recreate the configuaration files using the app (if you make any change, the red banner should appear and you can click Apply...).

You can remove all display configurations with the following command in Terminal:

sudo rm -rf /Library/Displays/Contents/Resources/Overrides

after creating clicking Apply you can double check if the new configuration files are indeed created.

[waydabber]

What is the native resolution of your display?

[waydabber]

Oh but I see the resolution list you posted, I wasn't paying attention well enough, sorry. If this is an FHD display, then the FHD resolution won't be available as HiDPI, as the native resolution is always LoDPI. See this for more info: #735 (comment)

[gabrieloyk]

Hi, I'm experiencing similar issues with my QHD monitor, only low resolutions are showing up but no HiDPI. However, my 4k monitor is able to have HiDPI resolutions. Here's my content file.
Contents.zip

[waydabber]

Are you sure you are running Monterey 12.4 or newer?

[rklamichhane]

Hi @JoyDivision1926, @rklamichhane -

I think your situation is not the same. Renaming the DisplayProductID-* file is only relevant for displays with product id 0-9 (as due to a bug, v1.2.7 will always create a two digit number which is not good). This is probably not relevant for your display as for most displays with a proper firmware this won't happen.

You guys should check if you are on Monterey 12.4 or newer. If so, then you can try cleaning the Overrides folder and recreate the configuaration files using the app (if you make any change, the red banner should appear and you can click Apply...).

You can remove all display configurations with the following command in Terminal:

sudo rm -rf /Library/Displays/Contents/Resources/Overrides

after creating clicking Apply you can double check if the new configuration files are indeed created.

I again got some time to play with it but this time only 720p HiDPI mode is available when connected through Dispaly Port ( via caldigit ts4 dock) but 1080 HiDPI shows up again just after switching to HDMI. Anything that I might be missing here?

Display Port

HDMI

[jjatczak]

Hi, I have the same issue. My display has 2560x1440 resolution and almost all HiDPI resolution are invalid.
Second problem that I have is with "Manually add custom resolutions". After reboot previously set resolution is cleared.

[waydabber]

Hi there - this is the normal default behavior of macOS 12.4+. You should either add some custom resolutions manually (enter the desired resolution and click on the + icon under Manually add custom resolutions) or enable Allow smooth resolution scale. Don't forget to apply the configuration settings and reboot when instructed!

[a-voityuk]

@waydabber Hi, could you please help me to configure monitor?

I'm using a 1920*1080 external monitor connected via DisplayPort. Can I setup HiDPI for this monitor?

[Kissena]

According to #737 (reply in thread) , HiDPI in FHD is unavailable natively, but you can use dummy for hidpi.

[waydabber]

Hi guys,

@Kissena is right in a strict sense - but you can still enable HiDPI and smooth scaling for an FHD display, however you'll have to choose 99% in the resolution slider since the native resolution (1920x1080) is available as LoDPI only. That will give you an essentially similar (a slightly larger) GUI size and a supersampled desktop.

[waydabber]

@a-voityuk - I see your screenshot and it seems you did enable smooth scaling. You need to apply the changes (red bottom banner button + enter credentials when prompted) and reboot when instructed (blue botom banner after entering credentials). Then you should have more resolution options for the display. If this is not the case then something might be wrong and we'll need to figure out what - let me know if you are stuck with this!

[a-voityuk]

@waydabber

The options for HiDPI are visible but I can't choose anyone. When I chose nothing happens and LoDPI is still selected.

In the second screenshot, you can see the difference between macbook screen and the external display (smoothing resolution scale is already enabled). Is there any option to configure the external display in good quality?

[waydabber]

What mac model and OS version do you have?

[a-voityuk]

@waydabber MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015), MacOs 12.5

[waydabber]

I see. To be honest, I did not have the chance to test this feature much on Intel macs so this feature might not work properly with those devices (especially those with AMD cards or both integrated and discrete GPUs with switching). :( You can try SwitchResX as that app should work better on Intel (SWX does not have this exact feature but can create custom resolutions - however that feature is not free in SWX unlike in BetterDisplay).

[a-voityuk]

@waydabber Maybe I can setup DummyDisplay with some resolution and stream it to an external display? It will increase the render quality?

[khaishgi]

@waydabber Would like your help with my M2 Air on Sinoma connected to 1440p LG ultrawide via USB C. For HiDPI, I only see 2560x1080. How can I get it to work at 3440x1440 HiDPI?

[waydabber]

You can enable smooth scaling by following this tutorial: https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/wiki/Fully-scalable-HiDPI-desktop

This will unlock extra resolutions (note: you are using app version v1.4.x while the tutorial is geared towards the v2.x app version).

However the M2 Air does not support horizontal HiDPI resolutions beyond 3072px so you won't get 3440px HiDPI I am afraid (that would require an M2 Pro).

[khaishgi]

@waydabber Thank you! I do have a 14 inch M2 Pro and it is working flawlessly. Suck that the M2 Air does not support it.

[tavicu]

Hi @waydabber,

I have a MacBook Pro with M1 (first generation) and a ultra wide monitor with 3440x1440 resolution.

First when I tried your app I had the option for 2752×1152 (HiDPI). Don't know what I did but now the only option available with HiDPI is 2560x1080.

From what I understand from the message with khaishgi that is normal but then, why did I had the option for 2572x1152 in the first place?

Thank you :)

[Vlupke]

Hey @waydabber,

I am using a MacBook Pro M1 with a Samsung M7 monitor. It's a 4k display but with it's native resolution everything is way to small. I'd like to scale it to 2560x1440. I have the monitor connected via a Dell D6000 hub. I was able to get it to run at my desired scaling and HiDPI yesterday after some issues, but today I can't get it to work whatsoever.. I've followed everything on this thread.
I am running the latest version of Sonoma and BetterDisplay is also up to date.

Some help would greatly be appreciated!

Thanks :)

[MiLabuda]

Hi @Vlupke. Did you found the solution for your problem?
I happen to have exact setup. MacBook M1 Pro with Dell 6000 with Samsung 32" monitors.
I have exact same problem as you described here.
@waydabber If I can politely ask if maybe you have some ideas why is that a problem here?
Personally when I turn on the hiDPI check, I cannot find any higher resolution than 1920x1080.
No other option is available. I granted permissions for the app etc. but still can't see any other hide variants

[MiLabuda]

I read the wiki and found a point that the feature 'enable smooth/flexible scaling' (which I can't see in my app) will be available only
"The feature works if the system properly detects the Native panel pixel resolution. If this is not correctly shown for your display under Settings > Displays, please select the Edit native panel pixel resolution option and enter the correct values!"

I can't see anywhere that the app detects the basic resolution of both of my monitors Samsung 32" Smart bm7
I also don't see any chance to set it ups manually as it is shown in wiki page. Is there any other way I can enable smooth scaling?

[MiLabuda]

Right now I have found a list of features available in trial version (which I use) and found that flexible HiDPI scaling is unpaid version. I just wanted to confirm that information if this feature is the same that is being described in the tutorial for enabling flexible scaling? Thank you in advance

[waydabber]

Hi all,

sorry for not responding @Vlupke, it seems this did not catch my attention.

Afaik the D6000 uses a combination of native and DisplayLink connections. Flexible scaling, custom resolution and other config editing stuff is only available for natively connected displays. Depending on which port(s) you use out of the 3 display outputs the dock might be using different connection methods (I don't have first hand experience though). I believe this and the resolution limitations of the specific DisplayLink chipset used might cause the issues.