MacBook Pro high CPU with external monitors

Question

I recently ordered two 4K monitors (LG 27UD88). I connected them using Mini DisplayPort to DisplayPort Adapter cable to my MacBook Pro.

When I have the monitors connected, the CPU load is very high with fans  running at 5500-6000 RPM and a processor temperature of 54°C. This does not seem healthy to me. It's kernel_task which is using absurd amounts of CPU (sometimes spikes up to 600%)

Things I've tried so far

Before I used to have a high CPU load as well (with the additional monitors connected), but that got resolved after following the instructions in this article, CPU usage is too high with Yosemite and an external monitor, kernel_task spikes to 600%+.
Disabling X86PlatformShim.kext
Resetting the SMC.

This all seems very odd to be. I have a maxed out MacBook Pro which can't handle two monitors?

Here is the system configuration:

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015)
Processor: 2,8 GHz Intel Core i7
Memory: 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Graphics: AMD Radeon R9 M370X 2 GB
          Intel Iris Pro 1536 MB
Storage: 500GB Flash Storage

Information from sensors:

UPDATE #1:

Here is the information on the GPU load. It seems that the GPU load is high, but that the processor of the AMD Radeon is not used. I'm currently looking into this, if you have any suggestions on how to make more use of the AMD Radeon GPU please do.

I do have Automatic graphics switching turned off (this should increase high-performance graphics).

Also the system preferences tell that the AMD Radeon is being used for the external display. Though the iStat data suggests otherwise.

Update #2:

I've installed gfxCardStatus and put it to discrete only. Looks like the AMD Radeon GPU is actively being used. This does not make a difference.

Update #3:

I've ran iStat for a while now. Looks like the CPU has many spikes, even up to 90 degrees. This would obviously trigger the fans to start blowing (also the MacBook itself feels hot near the processor). Looks like the average temp at the moment is 70 degrees.

Here is the CPU frequency:

Mohit Kanwar · Answer

While @Varun's answer above helped me find the below solution, I am adding it as a separate answer, so that it might help others as well.
Varun's answer speaks of dust in the fans, however, I got this laptop only a few months back, and thanks to coronavirus, the dust is very low surrounding the places where I live.
Hence I did not bother checking the fan's conditions. Instead, I thought about the other changes that I did along with adding a monitor.
When I purchased a monitor, I bought out a new table to keep this monitor and laptop as well.
And as Indians, we like to cover everything, including the table. This table-cover that I was using was a bit fluffy and made of cotton. The air-vents of my mac-book are on the bottom sides of the machine.
The table cover, being soft was blocking the air vents. I kept a book at the bottom of my mac-book (don't have a stand or something) which allowed a gap between the MacBook and table cover, and voila it was back to normal.

Kuldip Patel · Answer

Restarting SMC chipset helped fixing it.

Shut down Mac
Hold. CTRL+OPTION+SHIFT+POWER button for 10 seconds
Start mac

Varun · Answer

Folks this is an image of my fans before I had them cleaned.

I faced the very same issue that you guys are facing and based on input from another forum decided to get my 2016 MPB fans cleaned out. This made an immediate impact where when I connected my external display to the MBP.pre-cleaning, it would overheat causing the fans to spin at 6000 rpm or thereabout and the kernel_task would eat up 500%-900% of the CPU rending the system unusable. This simple cleanup of the fans has allowed me to connect the monitor with no kernel panic anymore and even though the fans run around 5000 rpm now the CPU and GPU are running around 10 degrees cooler now.

wish467 · Answer

I had this same issue with my Macbook Pro. Although it might look like an issue with the CPU or some application using too much CPU but it's not. You can reset SMC but it may not solve your problem. I bet you must be using this external display with HDMI port, a lot of times, the problem can be caused by a cheap HDMI cable, try using Thunderbolt/Display Port on your Macbook and see if it helps because in my case, using the Display port instead of HDMI solved the issue.

Answered by wish467 on February 14, 2021

Gonzalo Foligna · Answer

Did you ever think about forcing to set a higher speed for the fan? Maybe smcFanControl or Macs Fan Control it would help.

MacBook Pro high CPU with external monitors

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