Samsung ViewFinity S9 with 2017 27" iMac

Question

Level 1

64 points

Samsung ViewFinity S9 with 2017 27" iMac

I just purchased a Samsung ViewFinity S9 5K and I cannot get it to work at 60Hz. It connects via USB-C Thunderbolt at 30Hz, but I just get garbage at 60Hz. This would be my second monitor with the iMac 27" as my main monitor. I have tried the USB-C cable that came with the Apple Monitor and the (shorter) USB-C cable that came with the Samsung.

I had been using the Apple 5K as my second monitor and it works great. But I purchased this S9 so that I can have a second monitor when I upgrade to a Mac Mini.

Is this an issue with my older iMac? Or is the S9 defective? The iMac has a Radeon Pro 570 4 GB, 3.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5, and is running Monterey.

iMac 27″ 5K, macOS 12.7

Posted on Dec 30, 2023 02:02 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Jotek

Level 1

16 points

Feb 26, 2024 04:48 PM in response to LexVAPin

In theory iMac 27" 2017 should utilise 5K @ 60Hz easy accordingly to this specification:

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2017) - Technical Specifications (UK)

However important is how you connect your Mac to external display. With certified Thunderbolt 3 and 4 cable you get easy 5k @ 60 Hz. But ... but, this is Samsung so accordingly to their notification on the website:

https://www.samsung.com/us/computing/monitors/5k/27-viewfinity-s9-5k-monitor-with-thunderbolt-4-matte-display-and-smart-features-ls27c900panxza/

*Only Mac computers with Apple silicon introduced after 2020 are supported.

- MacBook Pro introduced in 2021 or later, plus MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020)

- MacBook Air introduced in 2022 or later, plus MacBook Air (M1, 2020)

- iMac introduced in 2021 or later

- Mac mini introduced in 2020 or later

- Mac Studio introduced in 2022 or later

- Mac Pro introduced in 2023

So, nice monitor but Thunderbolt implementation is wrong.

I hope it helps.

Reply

Answer 2

LexVAPin Author

Level 1

64 points

Feb 27, 2024 08:37 AM in response to Jotek

An extremely helpful post. Thank you.

Interesting. I had not seen that the ViewFinity S9 would not support the 2017 iMac.

I had contacted Samsung and they did not mention this either - nor were they particularly helpful.

I used the same Thunderbolt cable that I use to connect the Mac Studio to my iMac.

I am going to upgrade my iMac to a Mac Mini Pro whenever Apple comes out with the M3. So it is nice to know that this monitor could work with it.

Too bad that I returned it already.

Reply

Samsung ViewFinity S9 with 2017 27" iMac

Similar questions