USB-C/Thunderbolt Dock Megathread

[gido5731]

Hey, I have a Dockcase 10-in-1 (the new one) and it worked really well the first time I used it, but now the two monitors (one DP 2600x1400, one HDMI 1920x1080) keep flickering on and off intermittently. Sometimes there are random lines across the screen which then devolve into the screens (either one both) disconnecting and then reconnecting from the hub (the hub recognizes they disconnected, Xorg does not.)

I’ve tried a new DP cable and that changed nothing, it seems like if I unplug everything from the dock, plug it in to my laptop, then plug everything else in, it works? It has a 100w power brick on it and the dock is set to use up to 24w of that.

13th gen Framework fwiw.

[gido5731]

@gido5731

Hey, I have a Dockcase 10-in-1 (the new one) and it worked really well the first time I used it, but now the two monitors (one DP 2600x1400, one HDMI 1920x1080) keep flickering on and off intermittently. Sometimes there are random lines across the screen which then devolve into the screens (either one both) disconnecting and then reconnecting from the hub (the hub recognizes they disconnected, Xorg does not.)

I’ve tried a new DP cable and that changed nothing, it seems like if I unplug everything from the dock, plug it in to my laptop, then plug everything else in, it works? It has a 100w power brick on it and the dock is set to use up to 24w of that.

13th gen Framework fwiw.

Figured out that it has to do with charging via the dock when my laptop hits the 90% battery charge cap I have set, it doesn’t have this issue if I charge my laptop not via the dock. I would be interested in having this fixed but tbh now that this is figured out it’s not nearly as big of a deal.

[evebyte]

The dell WD19TB works great out of the box on my 11th gen!
Note: the non TB version of the dock doesn’t support dual 4k/60hz.

[Kevin_Howe]

@Kirill_Safin

Hey all, I just got the Plugable TBT3-UDZ which is on the “working docks” list in the first post.

I’m having an issue of a disconnect/reconnect cycle (somewhat randomly) every 10-15 min where the Framework 13 disconnects from the dock, and after about 10-15 seconds of trying, reconnects. My primary experience with this is both of my monitors turning off and then reconnecting.

I’m using the authentic thunderbolt cable from the dock, the back-left bay with a USB-C expansion card, Windows 11, and two 4K monitors @ 60Hz. Latest driver from Plugable is installed. It works great while it’s working, but it’s unlivable with the constant cycling.

Anybody have a similar experience with this dock or others, and any suggestions? This is my third experience with a thunderbolt dock doing this with the Framework laptop, I’ve not had a single successful dock experience yet…

I’ve had the an issue with the TBT3-UDZ, TBT4-UDZ, and UD-4VPD. I’ll sometimes turn off my OLED monitor and disable it in windows settings when I’m not using it. Once the monitor goes to sleep, it will disconnect and then the dock will wake it up again and it will reconnect. Windows sees that is disabled, and this process repeats. Forever.

Usually turning the monitor completely off fixes the issue, but it is really annoying.

[Jason_Banahan]

@Kevin_Gilliatt

Follow up to the Dell TB16 dock. One problem was discovered. The dock will not charge the laptop if the laptop is powered on after it is connected to the dock. It will charge it after Windows loads and then it is connected to the dock.

I’m experiencing similar with TB16, but I cannot get it to charge and connect at the same time ever. I have the AMD 13 Framework.

Dock works fine with my work machine and all my drivers in windows seem to be already up to date with the previously linked site for drivers. The only thing I cannot seem to check is the firmware of the dock.

[Jordan_Long]

@Jason_Banahan

The only thing I cannot seem to check is the firmware of the dock.

FWIW, I can check the dock firmware on the WD 19 series with the firmware update application. Not sure if it is available for the 16 series.

[EricCarroll]

Just wanted to let the thread readers know I bought the Anker PowerExpand 13-in-1 USB-C Dock on advice of this thread (Model A8392) and its working great out of the box on Framework 13 AMD with Ubuntu 22.04.3 OEM.

I also am using the UGREEN KVM Switch 2 in 1 Out (Model CM664) successfully with the Anker USB dock and Framework 13 AMD.

[Adrian_Joachim]

I did some initial testing on the AMD framework with a Lenovo 40AN dock (TB3 gen2 with the usb-c backwards compatible mode) that I got pretty cheap. It’s on the latest firmware and works fine with my t480s.

If I plug it into the dedicated device port on the dock, it seems to sometimes connect as a charger and in usb fallback mode, and often not at all.

However if I plug it into the tb3 output port it works fine, apart from the charging part. I tried networking, 2 1440p 60 displays and usb.

[tristan957]

I am using the Lenovo ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt 4 dock with my Framework 13 (AMD 7040U), and it is working great (no power button).

The main reason I am posting however is that given that there is no standard for docks to turn on laptops (lame), I wonder if Framework has thought about creating their own dock or partnering with a manufacturer so that their docks will also turn on Framework laptops. I would definitely buy such a dock in a heartbeat because a good clamshell experience is very important to me.