[Guide] Dell XPS 15 9560: 4K Touch, 1TB SSD, 32GB RAM, 100% AdobeRGB

[RehabMan]

As for the BCM94352Z suggestion, I mentioned I was assuming you meant the broadcom FakePCIID kext which I already have installed. Am I wrong in assuming that?

Wrong assumption.
My suggestion was to change the WiFi hardware.

 

[sbeanie]

Wrong assumption.
My suggestion was to change the WiFi hardware.

I can see why that would be a valid test, but before I spend money on yet another wireless card, could there not be anything software wise that could be causing this issue? It seemed to function correctly for Sierra.

 

[RehabMan]

I can see why that would be a valid test,

Yes.
If you had both cards, you could compare results, which might help isolate the problem.

but before I spend money on yet another wireless card, could there not be anything software wise that could be causing this issue? It seemed to function correctly for Sierra.

No idea.
I may not be in the same region (of the world), nor have the same networking hardware you do.
And I don't have your laptop...
And I would probably not patch ACPI in the same way... (looks like over-patched).

For all we know, this is a new problem on High Sierra that will require a new fix, or it is something specific to your networking scenario. Note that this guide is for Sierra, not High Sierra (no mention of High Sierra in post #1).

FYI: MacBookPro14,3 is a mistake. Use MacBookPro14,1 or even MacBookPro11,1 or MacBookAir6,2 or MacBook9,1 or MacBook10,1/etc (eg. use an SMBIOS that doesn't have dual-GPU with GMUX).

 

[RehabMan]

Sorry, here are the updated files.

BTW, one thing I notice...
Your country code patch is for AirPortBrcm4360.
But your ioreg shows that kext is not loading.
The kext loading is: com.apple.driver.AirPort.BrcmNIC

The patch will have no effect. If you need a country code patch for some reason, you will need to find a different one. The one you have has no effect with your scenario.

 

[sbeanie]

BTW, one thing I notice...
Your country code patch is for AirPortBrcm4360.
But your ioreg shows that kext is not loading.
The kext loading is: com.apple.driver.AirPort.BrcmNIC

The patch will have no effect. If you need a country code patch for some reason, you will need to find a different one. The one you have has no effect with your scenario.

Your comment on the loaded kext helped me figure it out. Thanks a lot for the help!

After doing some googling of the driver I came across this post:
Country Code Patch for High Sierra

I removed my kext wifi patches, the BrcmRamPatch and Firmware kexts, updated Lilu to 1.2.0 (out yesterday) and updated all Lilu plugins. I then installed the AirportBrcmFixup.kext. This seemed to do the trick.

Again, thanks a lot for taking the time to look into it. I've attached my Clover folder for use by others.

EDIT: Folder attached in post below.

 

[RehabMan]

Your comment on the loaded kext helped me figure it out. Thanks a lot for the help!

After doing some googling of the driver I came across this post:
Country Code Patch for High Sierra

I removed my kext wifi patches, the BrcmRamPatch and Firmware kexts, updated Lilu to 1.2.0 (out yesterday) and updated all Lilu plugins. I then installed the AirportBrcmFixup.kext. This seemed to do the trick.

Again, thanks a lot for taking the time to look into it. I've attached my Clover folder for use by others.

I don't think AirportBrcmFixup.kext deals with bluetooth.

 

[sbeanie]

I don't think AirportBrcmFixup.kext deals with bluetooth.

You are correct. Forgot to check bluetooth. Re-adding the BrcmPatchRam and FirmwareData kexts made this work too.

Again, thanks a lot for the help!

 

[ferchizzle]

@ferchizzle... I did it, but didn't have to perform such a big "surgery".
I only cut off one of the clips on the inside of the antenna cover, at the height of where I attached the 3rd antenna. Otherwise you get a little bump on the cover. For the rest you can get the 3rd antenna cable next to the other ones without any problem.
I'd take a picture, but my laptop is back for repairs at Dell right now...

Have you received your laptop back from Dell as of yet?

 

[tgmac]

XPS 15 (9560) on macOS 10.13 (17A405)

Motherboard: Dell 05FFDN
CPU: i7-7700HQ
RAM: 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Storage: Samsung EVO 960 250GB
Wi-Fi: Dell DW1560 (BCM94352Z)
Extras: Dell DA200 USB-C Travel Adapter & Dell WD15 180W Docking Station (USB-C)

BIOS Settings (aside from OP):

Thunderbolt Adapter Configuration: All Disabled with No Security
SD Card: Disabled
TPM: Off
Computrace: Disabled
Intel SGX: Disabled
Wake on Dell USB-C Dock: Disabled
Battery Charge Profile: Standard
Numlock: Enabled
FN-lock Mode: Disable/Standard
Fastboot: Minimal
BIOS POST Time: 0s
Intel Virtualization Technology: Enabled
VT for Direct I/O: Disabled
Wireless Switch: All Disabled (WLAN & Bluetooth)
Wireless Device: All Enabled (WLAN & Bluetooth)
Auto OS Recovery Threshold: OFF
SupportAssist OS Recovery: Disabled

Not Working:

• Shutting down while either DA200 or WD15 are connected to the USB-C port results in a restart. Without either connected the machine shuts down correctly.

• Mini DP on the WD15 gives no video output. System does see a second monitor but I get a black screen resulting in sleep mode after a few seconds. HDMI on the WD15 works fine though.

• Boot is noticeably slower on HS compared to Sierra. Up to 30sec compared to <10s before.

• No Windows partition to compare, but the Wi-Fi feels really slow. On a 500mbps connection I barely scratch the 20mbps down, and up is always 10-15mbps faster. USB LAN 10/100/1000 hits 520-535mbps up&down so that’s good.

• Not sure if it’s a HS bug, but the “show item info” in “Show View Options” in Finder seems to get “stuck”. For instance, having 10 items in folder, going in, deleting 3, going back, you still see “10 items” info under the folder. Relaunching Finder updates the values but doesn’t really fix the issue.

• Not a problem really, but while shutting down, when macOS is killing all tasks I get a green screen(on built-in display or external monitor when connected). Might be related to one of the display issues mentioned above so I thought I’d add it.

All else seems to be working correctly.

Side note; Bluetooth is working better than it did on Sierra for me. Much larger range, no drags, lags or cut offs in BT audio, BT mouse/keyboard etc.

Still need to figure out how and what to patch correctly. Using OP SSDTs which I’ve been informed are over patched and not a good idea to do so to begin with (differences in BIOS, hardware etc etc), but have to do for now until I figure out how to do it myself and get around the PARSEOP errors etc.

 

[ferchizzle]

XPS 15 (9560) on macOS 10.13 (17A405)

Motherboard: Dell 05FFDN
CPU: i7-7700HQ
RAM: 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Storage: Samsung EVO 960 250GB
Wi-Fi: Dell DW1560 (BCM94352Z)
Extras: Dell DA200 USB-C Travel Adapter & Dell WD15 180W Docking Station (USB-C)

BIOS Settings (aside from OP):

Thunderbolt Adapter Configuration: All Disabled with No Security
SD Card: Disabled
TPM: Off
Computrace: Disabled
Intel SGX: Disabled
Wake on Dell USB-C Dock: Disabled
Battery Charge Profile: Standard
Numlock: Enabled
FN-lock Mode: Disable/Standard
Fastboot: Minimal
BIOS POST Time: 0s
Intel Virtualization Technology: Enabled
VT for Direct I/O: Disabled
Wireless Switch: All Disabled (WLAN & Bluetooth)
Wireless Device: All Enabled (WLAN & Bluetooth)
Auto OS Recovery Threshold: OFF
SupportAssist OS Recovery: Disabled

Not Working:

• Shutting down while either DA200 or WD15 are connected to the USB-C port results in a restart. Without either connected the machine shuts down correctly.

• Mini DP on the WD15 gives no video output. System does see a second monitor but I get a black screen resulting in sleep mode after a few seconds. HDMI on the WD15 works fine though.

• Boot is noticeably slower on HS compared to Sierra. Up to 30sec compared to <10s before.

• No Windows partition to compare, but the Wi-Fi feels really slow. On a 500mbps connection I barely scratch the 20mbps down, and up is always 10-15mbps faster. USB LAN 10/100/1000 hits 520-535mbps up&down so that’s good.

• Not sure if it’s a HS bug, but the “show item info” in “Show View Options” in Finder seems to get “stuck”. For instance, having 10 items in folder, going in, deleting 3, going back, you still see “10 items” info under the folder. Relaunching Finder updates the values but doesn’t really fix the issue.

• Not a problem really, but while shutting down, when macOS is killing all tasks I get a green screen(on built-in display or external monitor when connected). Might be related to one of the display issues mentioned above so I thought I’d add it.

All else seems to be working correctly.

Side note; Bluetooth is working better than it did on Sierra for me. Much larger range, no drags, lags or cut offs in BT audio, BT mouse/keyboard etc.

Still need to figure out how and what to patch correctly. Using OPs SSDTs which I’ve been informed is over patched and not a good idea to do so to begin with (differences in BIOS, hardware etc etc), but have to do for now until I figure out how to do it myself and get around the PARSEOP errors etc.

@tgmac - thank you for taking the plunge into High Sierra and sharing your results with us. I am currently doing my research for an install on a 9560 as well. are you also running APFS (Apple Filing System) on your install?