Refresh cap at 50hz and monitor upgrade suggestion

[gabrielmulle]

Hi people,

I'm hoping to get some insights with you here, I want to

1. Understand why refresh rate was capped at 50hz in Macbook Pro with the monitor Dell S3422DWG
2. Get your opinion about the 2 monitors that I have selected
3. Understand usb c connection for video
   

Just so you understand, I use my monitor for work and games.
For work, I use it with a Macbook Pro 13, M1, 2020 (thunderbolt 3, 6K@60hz), through a Baseus HDMI 2.1 cable (8K@60hz or 2K@165hz) and a Baseus 8-in-1 hub/dongle (4K@30hz).
For games, I use it connected to my desktop PC (RX 6750 XT) through a DP 1.4 cable (8K@60hz).

Currently, I have a Samsung Odyssey G3 F27G35T, which is 27" FHD, and I use it with 144hz in windows and 120hz in macbook.

Last week, I bought a Dell S3422DWG, which is 34" WQHD. With my setup that I described above, I got the expected 144hz in windows, but my work macbook only got 50hz max. I assume it is because of the hub/dongle, but would like your opinion.

I returned the monitor, I also had a hard time to get used to the ultra wide aspect, combined with the small letters in the screen due to the high resolution.

Now I still want to upgrade, but I learned that I dislike ultrawide and curved monitors

I selected these 2 monitors below

- Dell Alienware AW2724DM

- Cooler Master GM32-FQ

Both IPS, flat screen, QHD (2K), but the CM is 31.5" and the Dell is 27".
The CM is ~$160 cheaper than Dell. Here in Brazil, today, the Dell is R$3000,00 and the CM is R$4000,00.

If I upgrade to either of these monitors, most likely I will still have the same refresh rate problem on Macbook, because of the high resolution, right?

I'm thinking, if I go with the Dell, it has 2 DP ports, so I could buy a USB C to DP cable and connect both desktop and macbook to the monitor, and the DP directly in my mac, without using the hub/dongle. I "think" it will solve the issue and allow the bigger refresh rates.
If I go with the Cooler Master, I could either (1) buy a USB C to USB C cable and use it directly in my mac, or (2) use my HDMI cable in my desktop and a USB C to DP cable in my macbook. The CM HDMI is 2.0 only, but regardless, it will still display at least 144hz in a QHD monitor, which if fine for me.

I have zero experience with USB C port for video, or Thunderbolt .... what that looks like? I searched and saw some USB c to USB c cables, but they only mentioned "fast charge 100W" etc, and nothing about video. I think I must search for thunderbolt cable instead, right?

Anyway, what would be best, a USB C thunderbolt cable or DP?

With this all said (sorry for the long text, but I wanted= to provide as much information as possible, since there are a lot of variables), which monitor would you pick? Any suggestions is appreciated. Thank you guys

[ToastyX]

When using HDMI, the only reason 3440x1440 would be limited to 50 Hz is if something along the line doesn't support HDMI 2.0, likely the hub because 4K @ 30 Hz indicates only HDMI 1.4 support. With HDMI 2.0, the S3422DWG would be limited to 100 Hz, and the other two would be limited to 144 Hz.

DisplayPort would give the full refresh rate on all the monitors you mentioned. USB-C video is just DisplayPort, so you can use a simple USB-C to DisplayPort cable with any DisplayPort monitor. Some monitors support USB-C directly, but that's not any different from DisplayPort. Thunderbolt ports can also support DisplayPort video, so that's not any different either.