Troubleshooting multiple monitors on a Surface Dock 2 (Surface Pro 7)

Anonymous
2020-08-24T04:46:23+00:00

I'm trying to connect a new Pro 7 to two external monitors (Acer) through the Surface Dock. I'm using two USB C to HDMI cables. 

The Surface can detect the monitors and assigns them numbers (2 and 3) but the screens remain black and no numbers (or other display) shows up.

If I disconnect one of the monitors, the other one immediately turns on. It's quite bizarre.

I have updated the driver, downloaded firmware updates, disconnected/reconnected everything, and generally done everything that it says on the support page. 

I would be grateful if someone could let me know what I need to do to fix this.

Surface | Accessories | Surface Dock

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  1. Anonymous
    2022-02-23T00:01:34+00:00

    Hi Guys,

    Glad the info is helping. Sorry for late reply.

    Basically I nailed down two particular brands that work for us. I'm based in the UK so not sure if these are easily available outside of EU region.

    Budget - Which I bulk buy for my firms general deployment of dock setups (Dual HD screens)

    Brand: Benfi

    USB Type C(Thunderbolt 3) to HDMI 4K UHD 1.8M Cable, BENFEI USB 3.1 (USB-C) to HDMI Adapter Male to Male Gold-Plated Cord: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

    or

    Brand: Uni

    USB C to HDMI Cable 4K, uni USB Type C to HDMI Cable[Thunderbolt 3 Compatible]for Home Office, Compatible with iPad Pro 2018, MacBook, Samsung S20, Huawei P30, Surface Pro 7, XPS and More - 3ft/0.9m: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

    Higher End (60Hz) - For our deployments with Dual UltraWide or one or more 4K monitors

    Brand: Uni

    USB C to HDMI Cable for Home Office [4K@60Hz High Refresh Rate], uni Type-C [Thunderbolt 3] to HDMI Cable Compatible with MacBook Pro/Air, iPad Pro, iMac Mini/Pro, Surface Book, Galaxy etc. 6ft/1.8m : Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

    Also available as a dual pack. If you can stretch to this one, i'd go with this one for complete peace of mind or if you think you may upgrade to 4K in future,

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  2. Anonymous
    2022-02-22T22:12:03+00:00

    Thanks for this - I've ordered two of these cables and fingers crossed it solves the problem. I'm a little further away (Australia) so it won't get to my quite that quickly, but suspect I should have them end of this month, early next month and will report back in here as to how they go.

    Thanks for everyone's thoughts!
    Cheers,

    Mike.

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  3. Anonymous
    2022-02-21T04:52:35+00:00

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  4. Anonymous
    2022-02-21T02:22:47+00:00

    Mike, I tried Anker straight-up USB-C to HDMI and they did not work. What got my monitors’ input recognized by the Surface Dock was a USB-c to HDMI adapter. I guess it really is a dongle. It was made by Onn. See link. Then I was able to use the HDMI cables that came with my monitors.

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/onn-USB-C-to-HDMI-Female-Adapter-and-4k-30hz-HDMI-Compatible/442206404

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  5. Anonymous
    2022-02-21T02:06:14+00:00

    Thank you to you and "Mark the Developer" for your responses on this - before I throw a few more coins into this potential solution, are you able to direct me to which Thunderbolt cables you purchased? I'm assuming they're USB-C connector on one end and HDMI on the other? If not, and they're USB-C both ends, I assume I'll also need a "compatible" USB-C -> HDMI dongle.

    If you can guide me via link or otherwise to the specification of cable needed, that would help me greatly and I'll examine giving that a go.

    Best wishes and thanks to you both.

    Mike.

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