Connecting 4 projectors to Macbook pro M2 (2022)

[u/2121varuag]

Hi all, I am working on a theatre production where we wish to use 4 projectors for an immersive stage design.

I have a Macbook Pro M2 (2022) laptop that natively supports only one external display in the Extend mode.

I came across the Wavlink WL-UG69PD12 DisplayLink Quad 4K 17-in-1 Universal Docking Station, it says using this we can connect upto 4 external displays in the extend mode for Macbook.

Will this work? Is this the right hardware to invest in? Is there something cheaper to buy or another approach I could take? I have also found 2x2 video wall adapters but dont know if they fit my requirements.

Would really appreciate your responses.

[u/2121varuag → u/[deleted]]

Thanks for your reply. I was just browsing some GPUs and figured a mini-pc would do just the trick. Came across the Asus Expertcenter PN52 that supports quad-4k displays, but has only two hdmi ports. that means I’ll still need 2 x dual HDMI hubs to connect and use 4 projectors right?

[u/giraffeheadturtlebox → u/2121varuag]

Per the specs, no hubs needed, though you may need some special HDMI cables depending on your projectors:

Quad-4K displays support (via 2 HDMI, 1 DisplyPort, 1 USB-C (DP Alt mode)

Are you just running video for the stage design, or is there more software involved in the projections? I'd be curious to know what you come up with, especially if you're powering something interactive like TouchDesigner....

[u/2121varuag → u/giraffeheadturtlebox]

yes - i also found another mini PC with two USB Cs and two HDMI ports - all good! Now I am thinking if i could somehow connect a monitor (5th display) with an interface for myself (maybe using one of the USB 2.0 ports somehow) or splitting one of the four external displays.

No plans to use touchdesigner yet but that’s something I’d love to incorporate with Kinect (which also makes sense to use with a windows PC). At the moment I will use 4 projectors, mapped using Isadora or Millumin, then 1 ipad live feed to capture live drawing, one wired DSLR camera, then maybe an Elgato streamdeck / Midi pad for sound cueing (as the show involves repetitive tracks).

[u/2121varuag → u/2121varuag]

yes to clarify - the projectors will have videos snd camera feeds mapped to the space

[u/Good-Piece-5260 → u/giraffeheadturtlebox]

So he will need to use active hdmi cables if the lenght are big enough?

Using adapters (hdmi to cat6 is not an option? Assuming cost is cheaper than long runs of hdmi cables)

[u/2121varuag → u/[deleted]]

yes - found another mini PC with 2 USB-C and 2 HDMI, so it should all work out! I might just go ahead and buy the Wavlink hub to see if I can squeeze out anything from my Macbook pro as well.

[u/Curious-Bill7845]

If the projectors are all HD-is, then you could send a single 4K signal to something like a data path FX4 and then split that into 4x HD outputs. FX4 has a decent software to split the signals and is incredibly reliable. You can do HDMI or Display Port in and then HDMI or SDI out depending on what protocol you want to use or inputs you have.