New 4K monitor only works @ 30hz refresh rate - but both monitor and graphics card should do 60hz

[domino66]

I just bought this Samsung 4K monitor (the U28E590D).

I noticed a terrible lag when running it at 4K; moving the mouse is noticeably jittery and the sound is badly mis-aligned on YouTube videos. I just bought this new laptop which should be more than sufficient to run 4K with a Nvidia GTX960M graphics. After some research, problem appears to be with the REFRESH RATE, which I can only set to 30Hz (see image below). I'm told that both my monitor and the graphics card should easily support 4K @ 60Hz, my drivers are all up to date so...not sure why I'm limited to 30Hz?

 

[antoine21839]

What connector are you using ? HDMI 1.4 ? Because HDMI 1.4 only supports 4K@30Hz

 

[reedo_43]

Pretty sure need a special hdmi cable
https://www.amazon.com/Fusion4K-High-Speed-HDMI-cable/dp/B00OC1KD9G

 

[Snipergod87]

How is the monitor connected the HDMI port or the Combo Type-C/Thunderbolt 3/Displayport?
My guess is your HDMI Port may be only version 1.4 on the laptop or the monitor, or the cable is not HDMI 2.0 rated.

Most HDMI ports are only 1.4 and it looks like that display is being driven by your Intel 530 Graphics and not your GTX 960

 

[antoine21839]

Pretty sure need a special hdmi cable
https://www.amazon.com/Fusion4K-High-Speed-HDMI-cable/dp/B00OC1KD9G

It depends more on the plug than on the cable.

 

[domino66]

How is the monitor connected the HDMI port or the Combo Type-C/Thunderbolt 3/Displayport?
My guess is your HDMI Port may be only version 1.4 on the laptop or the monitor, or the cable is not HDMI 2.0 rated.

The monitor has two HDMI ports and 1 DP port.
The laptop has 1 HDMI port and a Type-C USB port.

I can't get the monitor to run through its DP port at all (using an HDMI cable, and this HDMI > DP adapter) adapter since my laptop doesn't have a DP port.

So I'm using a regular HDMI cable from one of the monitor's HDMI ports to my laptop's HDMI port. I also tried running it to my laptop's USB-C port (with an HDMI>USB-C adapter). That at least gets the monitor working, but only at the laggy 30Hz rate I explained. I tried using both my existing HDMI cable AND the one that came packaged with the monitor (it should be 1.4, right...?)

How do I know whether my laptop HDMI *ports* are 1.4 or something else?

 

[sizzling]

I cant see in the manual on the ASUS what resolution and Hz is supported by the HDMI socket. It's entirely possible that 4k 60Hz isn't supported by the socket, try contacting ASUS support for confirmation.

 

[Snipergod87]

I checked and I couldn't find that information in the manual either which is frustrating, I agree contacting Asus may be the best route.
This would work for Typc C to Display port: https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Thunderbolt-Compatible-DisplayPort/dp/B01K51GM46

 

[domino66]

How is the monitor connected the HDMI port or the Combo Type-C/Thunderbolt 3/Displayport?
My guess is your HDMI Port may be only version 1.4 on the laptop or the monitor, or the cable is not HDMI 2.0 rated.

Most HDMI ports are only 1.4 and it looks like that display is being driven by your Intel 530 Graphics and not your GTX 960

YES! I noticed that too, and couldn't figure out what was going on(!?) At first I was concerned that my laptop perhaps hadn't shipped with the right video card, but I clearly see GTX960 as an entry in the Display dropdown of my Device Manager:

Do I have any say in which adapter is driving my monitor? Don't understand why the system would recognize that any external monitor should be using the fancier graphics card, no?

 

[sizzling]

Which gpu used is dependent on GPU load, that won't be the issue. You need to confirm 4k 60Hz is support by the HDMI socket and only ASUS can tell you that.

 

[domino66]

I checked and I couldn't find that information in the manual either which is frustrating, I agree contacting Asus may be the best route.
This would work for Typc C to Display port: https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Thunderbolt-Compatible-DisplayPort/dp/B01K51GM46

As I wrote above, I tried via the Type-C port using [b]this adapter[/b] (which also says that it should do 4K @ 60hz). And still no dice (only 30Hz available). The USB Type-C port should def be able to do 4K@60Hz, right? (i.e. that's part of the Type-C standard specs, so I shouldn't have to worry about whether it's the right model like with the HDMI port, right?)

 

[domino66]

Which gpu used is dependent on GPU load, that won't be the issue. You need to confirm 4k 60Hz is support by the HDMI socket and only ASUS can tell you that.

Checked the Amazon page for the item and "Asus Support" answered several people asking about it saying it had HDMI 1.4, and not 2.0.

Well that sucks. So what can I do from here? The USB Type-C port should be able to handle 4K @ 60Hz, right?...and yet I don't see that option when running it to that port either...

Are there ANY options -- perhaps a dif HDMI cable, or an adapter or something? -- to get 60Hz...? Because if not, then 4K is basically impossible for me with this new machine

 

[domino66]

Update: Figured it out -- for some reason the max resolution differs for each of the MONITOR'S two HDMI ports; it's 4K @30Hz on HDMI-1 and 4K @ 60Hz on HDMI-2. No idea why that is, but says so in the documentation, and confirmed by other users in Amazon reviews.

So if I run an HDMI cable from the monitor's HDMI-2 port and connect it to my laptop's USB Type-C port with my Plugable HDMI > Type-C adapter, I get 4K @ 59Hz. Hooray.

I guess I have to ask, though: why would Asus put a GTX-960M graphics card -- which boasts of its ability to deliver 4K@60Hz -- into a laptop and not outfit the laptop with an HDMI 2.0 port(!?) Isn't that essentially a complete waste? What good is a graphics card's max resolution if the machine you're dropping it into only has an HDMI 1.4 port?

 

[antoine21839]

How is the monitor connected the HDMI port or the Combo Type-C/Thunderbolt 3/Displayport?
My guess is your HDMI Port may be only version 1.4 on the laptop or the monitor, or the cable is not HDMI 2.0 rated.

The monitor has two HDMI ports and 1 DP port.
The laptop has 1 HDMI port and a Type-C USB port.

I can't get the monitor to run through its DP port at all (using an HDMI cable, and this HDMI > DP adapter) adapter since my laptop doesn't have a DP port.

So I'm using a regular HDMI cable from one of the monitor's HDMI ports to my laptop's HDMI port. I also tried running it to my laptop's USB-C port (with an HDMI>USB-C adapter). That at least gets the monitor working, but only at the laggy 30Hz rate I explained. I tried using both my existing HDMI cable AND the one that came packaged with the monitor (it should be 1.4, right...?)

How do I know whether my laptop HDMI *ports* are 1.4 or something else?

HDMI 1.4 can't run 4K at 60Hz.

 

[domino66]

Thanks - yeah, see my post above. Only way i managed to get 4K @ 60hz was by running cable (which i presume to be a HDMI 2.0 cable) from the Monitor's HDMI 2.0 port into my USB Type-C port using a $20 adapter. Seems as though it'd be impossible to ever achieve 60hz 4K thru my laptop's HDMI port in any way shape or form.

 

[bukowski3]

Thanks - yeah, see my post above. Only way i managed to get 4K @ 60hz was by running cable (which i presume to be a HDMI 2.0 cable) from the Monitor's HDMI 2.0 port into my USB Type-C port using a $20 adapter. Seems as though it'd be impossible to ever achieve 60hz 4K thru my laptop's HDMI port in any way shape or form.

Hello Domino,

I have Asus G552VW-CN287D and the same problem as you have / had. 4k @30Hz. I have also tried connection through USB-C - DP cable and I didn't get any connection. Does your laptop still work at 4k @60Hz? Are there any other solutions for my laptop?

 

[turbocaff]

Thanks - yeah, see my post above. Only way i managed to get 4K @ 60hz was by running cable (which i presume to be a HDMI 2.0 cable) from the Monitor's HDMI 2.0 port into my USB Type-C port using a $20 adapter. Seems as though it'd be impossible to ever achieve 60hz 4K thru my laptop's HDMI port in any way shape or form.

Hello Domino,

I have Asus G552VW-CN287D and the same problem as you have / had. 4k @30Hz. I have also tried connection through USB-C - DP cable and I didn't get any connection. Does your laptop still work at 4k @60Hz? Are there any other solutions for my laptop?

I have the exact same laptop, you will never run the glorious 4K 60HZ resolution and refresh rate. But come to that dark alley, i have something for you, An external GPU, you can just plug that in and have your fix.

 

[Spacekiller2090]

HDMI 1 only supports up to 30hz and HDMI 2 supports up to 60hz.
Friend of mine had the same problem and we fixed it with the manual.

 

[Glenwing]

I guess I have to ask, though: why would Asus put a GTX-960M graphics card -- which boasts of its ability to deliver 4K@60Hz -- into a laptop and not outfit the laptop with an HDMI 2.0 port(!?) Isn't that essentially a complete waste? What good is a graphics card's max resolution if the machine you're dropping it into only has an HDMI 1.4 port?

The capability of the port is determined by the graphics chip, ASUS doesn't decide to attach an "HDMI 1.4 port" or an "HDMI 2.0 port" to the chip, they just attach an "HDMI port" to it. The capabilities come from the chip itself.

HDMI 2.0 is only supported by the GTX 965M and above. The GTX 960M and below are limited to HDMI 1.4. These are the capabilities that NVIDIA decided to give them.

 

[rodrigolsp10]

Update: Figured it out -- for some reason the max resolution differs for each of the MONITOR'S two HDMI ports; it's 4K @30Hz on HDMI-1 and 4K @ 60Hz on HDMI-2. No idea why that is, but says so in the documentation, and confirmed by other users in Amazon reviews.

So if I run an HDMI cable from the monitor's HDMI-2 port and connect it to my laptop's USB Type-C port with my Plugable HDMI > Type-C adapter, I get 4K @ 59Hz. Hooray.

I guess I have to ask, though: why would Asus put a GTX-960M graphics card -- which boasts of its ability to deliver 4K@60Hz -- into a laptop and not outfit the laptop with an HDMI 2.0 port(!?) Isn't that essentially a complete waste? What good is a graphics card's max resolution if the machine you're dropping it into only has an HDMI 1.4 port?

Thanks mate! i just bought this monitor and had this problem and you saved me!
You are the beeeeeeeeest