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"Right" Docking Station for XPS15 9500? (& problems with my WD15)
Hey,
I got a new XPS15 9500 for my new job. The first weeks I did use a WD19 docking station it was working fine. I bought a 180W power supply and got rid of the message, that I need more power... ^^
I uses my laptop always connected to the dock in the last weeks. Today I used it mobile and tried to reconnect it, but I cant...
I got 2 messages:
- USB device is not recognized
- Dell Power Manager: Using more than one Dockingstations is not supported
The first trys the monitor and all USB devices in the dock were working, but I didnt load the laptop. After some restarts and "plug in and out", even that wont work again... I tried to disconnect the dock from power, like the help says. Nothing helps. I had this one time before, on the first day, I used the notebook. I just had to switch from the right USB (3.0) to one of the left USB (TB).
The last years I used a desktop and Iam a little confused about the docks... ^^'
And what dock would be the "best" for my XPS15 9500? WD19? The TB version? Or is the S version fine? The 19DCS version seems overpowered, because the original power supply of my XPS15 just delivers 130W...
Thank you!
*edit* The driver tool isnt recognizing the dock, too... But typing on my keyboard gets "slower", if I connect the USBC, I I pull it out again, its way faster... huh
jphughan
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March 8th, 2021 13:00
@NewDellUser01 The appropriate dock choices for an XPS 15 9500 are either a WD19 180W or a WD19TB -- or the S models of either one. The "S" models are identical except that they drop the 3.5mm headset jack. There's some semiconductor shortage in the industry that was preventing those jacks and/or audio chipsets from being made, which was preventing Dell from building those docks, which was causing a backlog to pile up. So Dell introduced new "S" variants of their WD19 dock family models that didn't include those parts.
The WD19DC(S) is unnecessary and would be a total waste of money in your case because the XPS 15 9500 wouldn't even use it in dual connector mode even if you connected the dock to it that way. The dock would operate in single connector mode and therefore behave just like a WD19 180W.
The D6000 would not be a good choice. It only supplies 65W to the attached system, so you'd have to keep the XPS's own power adapter attached for optimal performance if you used it, but even worse, it relies on "indirect display" technology called DisplayLink -- not to be confused with DisplayPort. That comes with a lot of drawbacks that I've written about in the post marked as the answer in this thread. Systems with dual GPUs like yours are especially bad candidates for DisplayLink. I can't speak to whether it will support 144 Hz or even WQHD resolution, never mind both at the same time, but even if it can, the way DisplayLink works means you probably won't have a great experience even if it does, especially if you plan to use that high refresh rate for gaming. There's no real reason to consider a D6000 when you have a system capable of Thunderbolt.
DELL-Cares
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March 8th, 2021 07:00
Hi,I see you’re looking for technical assistance. If you require our help, you could initiate a private/direct message with system Service Tag with us, and we’d be glad to assist you.
NewDellUser01
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March 8th, 2021 07:00
Ok, I found something about my problem... I went to the BIOS (F12) and deleted the log files... That did help - wow... O.o
So maybe I dont need a new dock... ^^
My question about the best dock for this laptops stays. thy (even found a D6000 universal dock, that supports 144 hz on my WQHD monitor?!)
NewDellUser01
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March 9th, 2021 10:00
Hey @jphughan, thanks for the clarification.
So a WD19 180W or a WD19TB 180W - the TV version is way more expensive, but the difference is higher data transfer, right? So it should be "better" if I want to start to use 2 monitors,...
It there anything "important" comparted to the WD15? Would it make "sense" to upgrade?^^
My WD15 problems are still there... It seems, like the USB-C plug of my WD15 is kinda loose and every now and then its losing the connection for 1-3 seconds... And SOMETIMES It stops loading after it - so my USB devices and monitor are working, but my notebook doesnt get loaded... I have to restart and delete the system logs in the BIOS again...
=> REALLY annoying and I hope, thats not a "general" problem of Dell docks...
jphughan
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March 9th, 2021 11:00
@NewDellUser01 The Thunderbolt version adds two things:
The WD19 is the replacement of the WD15. When paired with your system, the only real difference is that it offers a different set of ports. The WD19 also supports DisplayPort HBR3, but your system doesn't, so that isn't relevant to you. As for the USB-C cable, I only had that issue on one system where it turned out the metal around the USB-C connector within the laptop itself had become weak, because once I noticed it while using the WD15, I also noticed it when using various USB-C wall chargers, where I was using different cables. I can't speak to whether the connector design is different between the WD15 and WD19 dock family. I just don't remember offhand and I don't have both in front of me right now.
NewDellUser01
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March 11th, 2021 00:00
Thanks for your help.
Well, the notebook is new and even if I slightly touch the USB-C-cable, it disconnects for 1-2 seconds... SO annoying and it cant be the notebook, both USB-C ports have the same problem and well, its new... ^^ So it has to be the plug, I bought a old (used) WD15.
With all the restrictions to the video (no 144hz, no g-sync, no adaptive v-sync,...), the problems with disconnects and the following problems, that just can be fixed by deleting system logs in the BIOS,... Maybe its not worth to use a docking station from DELL...
Maybe I should go for a TB-adapter (or is this called "passive dock" or something like this?!^^) with enought ports and use my powerplug as a 2nd cable... I did hope for a really clean desk, but one cable more seems to be a better solution...
There is no other benefit from using a dockingstation, or do I miss something? ^^
NewDellUser01
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March 11th, 2021 00:00
A little bit sad, is, that I could get this monitor from my new employer: "UltraSharp 27 4K-USB-C-Monitor: U2720Q"
But the 90W power delivery is not enough for my XPS15 9500... So it wouldnt spare me the 2nd cable... ^^
NewDellUser01
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March 11th, 2021 01:00
And one - maybe last - question^^: Could I use my 180w power supply from the WD15 to power the WD19TB?
On the official DELL site, they just sell one version of the WD19TBS. The site says, its the 130w version, the DELL support says, its the 180w version...
If I buy this one, and the support was wrong, but I could use my old power supply, it wouldnt matter...
jphughan
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March 11th, 2021 07:00
@NewDellUser01 Quite a few new items to address here.
The limitations around G-Sync and Adaptive V-Sync are not due to the dock. They are due to the fact that the XPS 15 has its video output ports wired to the Intel GPU rather than the NVIDIA GPU. That means that you wouldn't be able to use G-Sync or Adaptive V-Sync even with a display that was connected directly to the system. And conversely, if the system had its outputs wired to the NVIDIA GPU, then you would be able to use G-Sync and Adaptive V-Sync even on displays connected through the dock. Not sure what's going on with issues that are fixed by deleting BIOS logs.
The only TB adapter I can think of would be a TB3 to Dual DP adapter, but that only handles video outputs. Other than that, there are USB-C multi-purpose travel hubs, but many of them only support a single display, and even if you get one that supports USB-C power passthrough, it won't work properly with the system's 130W power source. Other than that, I'm not sure what you're thinking of when you talk about a Thunderbolt "passive dock". The benefit to a docking station is that you get a single cable that handles power, video, and other connectivity (USB, Ethernet, typically audio).
As for the U2720Q, I personally don't recommend a 27" 4K display due to the pixel density that this combination creates. It's high enough that you have to enable Windows display scaling, which some applications still don't support very well, but not high enough to give you a razor sharp image presentation. So I consider it the worst of both worlds. But that's another discussion.
Yes, the 180W power supply from your WD15 would work for a WD19TB since both docks use Dell's standard 7.4 mm barrel style connector for their power source. As for 130W vs. 180W, it depends on what spec you're looking at. The WD19TB and WD19TBS only come with a 180W power source, but that allows the dock to pass 130W through to the attached system. So one place you're looking probably talks about the wattage of the power source, while the other talks about the amount of power it can provide to the laptop. The WD19 comes in two versions: 180W w/ 130W passthrough, and then 130W w/ 90W passthrough. So if you see "WD19 130W", you have to be especially careful about what that means. But if you buy a WD19TB or TBS, it should never come with a 130W power supply.
NewDellUser01
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March 11th, 2021 12:00
Great help and clarified a lot - thank you very much!
I requested a WD19TB and get it next week. While using just one external monitor, it seems to supports 144hz WQHD. That would be an improvement.
And I did read, that the "problems" with short disconnects are a widespread problem with thunderbolt cables and it gets worse, when the cable doesnt lie on the table (iam using a stand).
So I did order 90 degree usb-c cables, that support thunderbolt 3, so improve the tight fit...
NewDellUser01
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March 11th, 2021 13:00
Just an small adapter!
(https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B078YRKTKM)
jphughan
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March 11th, 2021 13:00
@NewDellUser01 You can’t use regular TB3 cables with the WD19TB. The system cable is semi-permanently attached on the dock side, and even if you unscrew it from under the dock, it doesn’t use a regular TB3 connector to plug into the dock.