Display always wakes from sleep in low-res mode

[Jeff3Git]

Hello, I'm on Better Display Pro and have run into an issue for quite some time that's a bit frustrating. Every time my computer (Intel iMac on Sonoma 14.5) wakes from sleep my 1 external monitor's (LG 5K HDR) resolution isn't remembered and is restricted to the LowDPI resolutions so my favorite modes aren't available in BD. It always starts off in a low resolution, often with black bars on the sides, and I need to unplug/replug then it always comes right back to my preferred resolution of 2560 x 1080.

It's a bit of a hassle to go behind the monitor every time and unplug/replug. Other than this I really like BetterDisplay and all its features. Any ideas for how I could address this issue? Is there a setting for this somewhere? Thanks!

[waydabber]

There are some displays that have trouble waking up or reconnecting to Macs. Sonoma introduced an additional bug with these displays so they don't properly reload their configuration. You can check whether simply selecting Tools/Displays.../Reinitialize External Displays fixes the issue. You can add a keyboard shortcut to this or configure certain displays to have the reinitialization performed on every wake or if you use flexible scaling, when the app detects missing resolutions.

[waydabber]

More info: https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/wiki/Fully-scalable-HiDPI-desktop#display-configurationcustom-resolutions-bug-with-macos-sonoma--fix

[Jeff3Git]

Hi waydabber, thanks for your input on this. Looking at the article linked above, I see a screenshot showing a setting called "Reinitialize external displays with flexible scaling enabled if needed" in the Displays > Overview section. In my version of the app (2.3.8) I'm not seeing that. Has it been removed or moved?

[waydabber]

It should be in the same section in 2.3.8/2.3.9, maybe moved around a bit.

[waydabber]

Note: the issue seems to be (mostly?) fixed in Sequoia betas (at least on my config), so you might want to try upgrading.

[Jeff3Git]

Hmm very odd, just updated to the latest version 2.3.9 and that setting from your screenshot isn't there in the Overview > Additional settings section. Any reason it would be hidden? Is it related to another setting that I have enabled/disabled somewhere else? I would upgrade to Sequoia but other apps I need aren't supported yet.

[waydabber]

This setting is visible only on macOS 14 and Apple Silicon Macs as these are the affected systems - there is no any other condition.

[Jeff3Git]

Ah didn't realize that, thanks. I'm on still on an Intel based iMac. Unfortunately every time it sleeps the only way to get it to reinitialize is unplugging the Thunderbolt cable, waiting 5-7 seconds, and plugging it back in. For some reason the Redetect Displays button in tools doesn't do anything when clicked, that would be perfect if it worked. Anything else in BetterDisplay that I could use to get it to reset to avoid physically unplugging?

[waydabber]

Hmm. Not sure. This seems to be a different issue then, something apparently related to Intel and Thunderbolt? Do you have the high resolution variants in the resolution list still? If so, you can use Configuration Protection to force a switch to the right mode.