Upgrading the GPU in the 2011 iMac - is it worth it?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- My Patreon Link: / curtisgross
The 2011 iMac is incredible to work with, the entire computer can be torn apart and replaced with newer components. This makes the 2011 iMac one of the best options for an upgrade!
In this video I replace the older AMD Radeon 6970m video card with an Nvidia gtx 765m and show how to properly modify the old heatsink to get a perfect fit. I will also talk about the benefits and drawbacks to this process.
NEW: Just released an updated video! Brightness controls and the boot menu are now possible on the 2011 imac! Check it out: th-cam.com/video/0b_YzIjOvOE/w-d-xo.html
I have a 2009 20.5 inch iMac, do you think the GPU is replaceable with a 765m as well?
I saw it and that one is good as well. (:
Hey would you sell that mac
Matthew David McConaughey doing his iMac upgrade
Yes, thats why I watch him.
He also is the voice of the Spliff Radio Show...
Wow, that's why he seemed very familiar ;)
I really like the way you think Curtis, and the summary at the end was perfect.
Thanks.
Done! All Right! All Right! All Right!
Lol that’s why I watch as well. (:
I bought one just a few months ago to tinker with...replaced the hard drive with an ssd....to be honest it wasn’t all that slow when I got it...I was very surprised...it came with a 7,200rpm hard drive...but I upgraded it anyway...and now it’s super quick....I had read that you might be able to flash another graphics card with Apple firmware....using a raspberry pie....thereby getting full functionality.....
Hey SuperMachead1 - While I have heard of a few successful flashing of video cards, it is actually the same set of cards that you can buy from ebay. Just get a dell/alienware 765m and you can save your time rather than buying a 765m that needs to be flashed!
18:40 Unfortunately keeping it on High Sierra wont let you run certain software and web browsers will stop working. Planning to upgrade my brothers 2011 iMac to an SSD (with a SATA y splitter power cable for the fan problem) & OCLP to Ventura. Fingers crossed.
One correction, these machines can go up to 32GB RAM.
Noted!
I'll second that. Upgraded my 2011 iMac with 32gb and it recognizes the extra RAM. :)
32GB is a lot of memory and that’s one reason I liked these 2011 machines.
@Uppili Ra Indeed! just did this to mine today :)
The i5 can go up to 16GB of RAM.
The i7, 32gb of RAM
New sub, great video ill do something like that with mine mid 2011 but ill start with the hd hard drive for the ssd and try to use the Mac os sierra patch for the new operating system!!cheers from Mexico!
The hard drive is key, really helps with the performance.
I just did the i7 and 770m upgrade. Definitely faster machine but still can’t run anything past high Sierra without crazy patch work and my cmd R reboot window won’t come up to run patch 🤦🏻
Is this Matthew mcconehy!
Nice video Curtis, here is another reason to stay in High Sierra for a pro user, CUDA Drivers. In Mojave & Catalina doesn't work.
True. Although that might be fixed with the vbios and dosdude patcher... haven’t tested though, but I remember reading there was a big performance improvement with the vbios update.
Thanks
I have a 27inc 2011 with AMD readon 6770, which graphic card you recommend to be able to install a new macOS
i just attempted to upgrade gpu on my 2011 27" iMac to a GTX 770, but didn't modify the heatsink. I got a chime and then nothing. any suggestions? Do i need a patch for it to work?
Can I use the amd 2gb gpu from a newer iMac in my 2011 iMac and will I need to flash this . It’s 27 inch
So it’s only the brightness that’s a problem afterwards.
Aren’t there terminal commands to control the brightness.
Will have to review the video again and search around to see what to expect.
Recently upgraded to SSD drive and want to take a crack at the GPU.
Brightness and boot menu are the missing bits. But it still works ok. I’m just not a fan of max brightness burning my retinas! Check out my newer 2011 upgrade video for a vbios brightness fix!
I have a Hp desktop with an i7 2600S CPU, 12 gigs of RAM, and 1TB HDD. Would it be worth getting an SSD and looking into making it a dual boot OS "Hackintosh"?
This mod is not for the faint of heart
whats a great Nvidia gpu to upgrade to in my mid 2011 iMac. I already have a 256gb SSD, 32gb of ram, 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7. I just want a powerful GPU to run the latest MacOS 10.15.5 and final cut pro x.
Antuan Kendrick - i’m actually going to be releasing a updated video today covering the latest and greatest video cards that will work with brightness controls and a boot menu on these machines. The “best” is a radeon w7100 - but very spendy. Mid range is nvidia k2100m. And the champ is the $14 k610m.
Curtis Gross that K2100M will work inside mid 2011 imac?
Antuan Kendrick yup!
I’m watching this video to try and accomplish the exact same thing. I have the 3.4 GHz i7 as well. How is FCPX running?
Whats the best graphic upgrade card for mid-2011 iMac? And will it accept 32gigs ram and 1-2tb sad?. I need to upgrade my machine to run the latest version of Mojave especially to run Logic Pro X 10.5. Any help would be much appreciated!!
The Best GPU is the 780m, bit pricey, but the best you can get to do this mod with. Just make sure to get the dell/alienware version. The most RAM is going to be 16gb (might handle 32gb... but I haven't tried). And you should be able to get a 2tb SSD in there, or even 2x2tb if you buy the proper imac specific sata cable!
Curtis Gross thanks for getting back so swiftly. Officially these macs support 16gb ram but there are tons of videos where they have ramped it up to 32gb.
@@Ansh-vc3rl That is what I have heard, worth a try! One of these days I am going to also throw an i7 into mine, but the cost is a bit too high still.
Can i upgrade GPU in the 2012 imac?
I want upgrade my 512mb to 2GB AMD-6970.Will i need to upgrade my Power supply as well?.
varmaTrini1986 if you have the 27 inch iMac your power supply is already good to go. For the 21.5 you likely will run into issues with power.
Can you upgrade the 2012 iMAC GPU’s?
No, sadly that was when they moved to a 'soldered' solution that means the motherboard included the gpu in it.
Now the problem is finding a new GPU
HackSmith?
I want to switch my 6750m for the gtx765m do i need buy new power supply? I am using high sierra last updated
If you go for the 765m, you will not need an update to your PSU. The 770 and above (780m for sure) you may want to consider it. But check out my newer video about the k2100m or maybe k4100m - they have an updated vbios for boot screens and brightness controls.
@@messing-with-computers will i need to update the bios of the k4100m? coz i dont have any other PC and external adapters for updating/flashing bios, i watched your last video about the new Quadro one
@@messing-with-computers I really apreciate a lot your work there, you trying to answering everybody that ask you about those platforms, youre really nice! thank ya for doing videos for us!
@@DukesDZN - Yes, if you want the boot menu and brightness controls you will want to go through the process of flashing the bios.
Hello Matthew McConaughey, I was just wondering is there a GPU you know of that I can get and replace my existing one with which will require no software changes or flashing of the card, I want to be able to upgrade from high Sierra.
I’m one of those who just rather not tinker. However I just replaced the HDD with an SSD and threw Linux Mint on it. Runs amazing and all device drivers work flawlessly. FaceTime camera and even an external monitor via Thunderbolt worked with no issues. Love my 2011 iMac 27”. Great video!
Trouble is that after all these upgrade videos, the price of the upgrade components has gone up to the point of not being a a feasible option anymore. Try finding a GTX 765m on Ebay for under 150.00.
100% agree. Also, I think my general recommendation right now is to wait for the m1 iMac. Loving my m1 air at the moment and the price performance for the power usage is insane.
Curtis, thank you for your insightful and comprehensive advise on the iMac 2011. I purchased my iMac in May 2011 and I still enjoy using it.
Great to hear! The 2011 is still my favorite. I might pick up a 2012, but from what I understand the screen is really hard to repair if they break... and I have already repaired 3 2011 iMacs with that issue!
forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/
For those who want to do this upgrade. You can read this to help you not make mistakes.
Upgraded my 21.5 mid 2011 imac to 16gig memory and replaced hd to 1tb ssd! The computer is performing well and i think 10x faster. Enjoyed the process especially the result!
Love these 2011 iMacs!
i have the same imac and upgraded it to 16gb memory and 128 gb ssd. It is cool much faster indeed! Wish i have used a larger ssd though :( i am using macos high sierra and don't want to get in the risk to use patcher for Catalina.
@@mertkoral Great to hear! It is possible to buy a bigger drive and 'clone' your smaller drive to a bigger one using a dual-sata drive cloner. They cost about ~$20 and you can use it as an external drive over usb when you are not using them to clone drives.
Hi, I'm having a 21.5inch. Actually I'm planning to upgrade to 32gb ram and 1tb ssd like you did, do I have also to upgrade to gpu given these powerful storage or it is okay to remain to 512mb (will it have a bad effect with the device?)
Airashi Music You’ll be OK with the existing GPU if you decide to stay on high sierra. But, I will be releasing a step-by-step video shortly that goes through installing a new GPU that works better than the 765m and gets you to Catalina. The k2100m gpu is the best bet in that case.
Curtis.Love your video. I like to tinker with my Imac 27 2011-High Sierra OS Apple but after what you said I think I am not going to upgrade the graphics card. I had to take down the the AMD Radeon HD 6970M 2048 MB (GPU) 4 years ago, put it on the oven for 10 min and re-install it still working beautiful until today. Install more memory and I used it everyday. Your video is 2 years old, so I wonder since then have you found a new video card or mother board to super upgrade my 2011 iMac??? Is it worth it?? All the best. Guillermo/Weston/FL
are you Matthew McConaughey brother's?
Hi Curtis, can you give me a hint pls. I bought GTX 870M 3GB, installed it, get chime, but dont have a screen, its black, so is there some firmware for that GPU? and how to install it, if its already connect in iMac? BTW I have mid 2011, 27. Thanks!
Hey BoyLung, I am not sure if the 870m will work. I haven't tried that model before.
There's a firmware for it here: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/page-339?post=28742848#post-28742848
even better - Dual Size Heatsink Copper Pad Shims+Thermal pad Kit, for Cooling Laptop GPU CPU IC Chips VGA RAM Router Copper Shim (24pcs) via Amazon $8.99 no need to buy separate each 1mm .. probably good but I'll check clearance later & see if I even need it.. may be cool enough that way..
Bravo author well done! good work watching you from kazakhstan city alma-ata continue to shoot iMac upgrades
Glad you are enjoying it!
Does DosDudes Catalina patcher work now? As the video card was the only issue. "iMac11,x (systems with AMD Radeon HD 5xxx and 6xxx series GPUs will be almost unusable when running Catalina.)"
I bought one of these a week ago and could not for the life of me get anything but Lion to work. Everything was broken. Safari wouldn’t update, chrome was not supported. Couldn’t even get Mountain lion to work properly. I ended up using Ubuntu. It’s great but I really wanted an apple machine not a Linux. Thankfully I only paid 50 for the computer.
Hi Curtis. My Name is Fredy and Im writing from Rio de Janeiro/Brazil. I have an iMac 21.5 mid 2011 and suddenly it became wierd my screen. Looking on internet for what could be the problem Ifound out that could be a failure of my graphic card, graphic board or whatever. I found some guys that are "baking" the card in the oven and it had worked and their macs were alive again. I love my iMac and now Im not planning (can) to buy a new one. I just would like to have my old one back.....lol
Maria Clara Mathias Schwerdtner baking is something I have heard works, but it can ruin your oven (video cards have chemicals that can be harmful to say the least). So you almost need a spare oven or use a heat gun outside (right way). It’s also a short term solution, cause baking the card doesn’t last forever. Better to find a used 6750 if possible!
I have 2011 iMac 27 but with radeon graphics. Is it possible to get any graphic card for it?
I just bought a 2011 2.7 ghz 12gb ram for 60 bucks from goodwill. the gpu is only 512 mb. what is the best gpu upgrade now?
@Curtis Gross. maaf saya dari Indonesia. apakah di video itu tanpa men flash bios. tolong di jawab. saya akan segera mencoba. doakan saya berhasil
I'm wondering if this card is compatible with 2010 27" iMacs as well.
Hey Curtis! I like your aaproach.
I'm not a tinker myself, just looking to get the baked 2011 iMac going, so I thought you may be the right person to ask for an opinion on byuing a new unit. Thing is, there are plenty of nVidia 6970m's for sale, but my trusted repairsman suggests we go for just changing the chip as those full units you'd get from ebay are most probably just refurbished used ones, that would last for some time - maybe a week, maybe 5 years. Thing is, chust swapping a chip would leave me with that stock 1gb of memory, while a "new" graphics card comes with 2gb for nearly the same price. Is that true? No real deals on these graphic cards?
why not just put thermal pad on the VRAM instead of cutting
32GB of Memory! Apple say 16GB but 32 works fine!
Nice. Gonna max out the officially supported specs on a 21.5" i7, plug it into an amp, and use it to run the software for an old Novation Twitch DJ controller and a Launchpad X. The stock GPU (with new paste) should be fine for audio applications.
Does this gtx 765m working with snow leopard?
This is all I have. Looking to upgrade it. I want it to last another year or two. I need something to hold me over until I get my gaming PC.
Essentially why I bought one was because I already was going to make it a Mackintosh, he he hee. Running Mojave and btw the patches mentioned are set-up to automatic so no extra work there. Been about 4 months now with the pandemic so it's become my kid's computer for now, but it's been running flawlessly with just a mandatory SSD, more Ram, and Mojave. I'll update the GPU when it dies or grab a 2012 model if the price is right. Currently eyeing a eMP 4,1 as my next project, nice vid, altho I would've liked to see the performance of the upgrade.
Yeah, I should have run some basic benchmarks, my bad! I do run the benchmarks a bit more often now ;)
hi mate, wondering if this method works for 2011 imac 21' version?
thx
Would the same card work in a 2011 iMac 21”?
there is an efi mod that alows boot screen orrrr you can simply flash open core
I have a mid 2011 27 inch iMac with a 3.4ghz i7 which I think is still very usable, I put a 500gig SSD and a 1tb hard drive. The only real inadequate part I think is the older AMD Radeon HD 6970M 1024 MB. What benefit would I have if I upgrade the GPU? Is it worth it?
I've been meaning to do this for a while, since my 27" is just currently functioning as a target display mode monitor for my other PC. However, now that the new m1 mac mini's are out, the mainboard is so small, I think I could probably gut the imac and stuff the M1 inside. Would need a control board for the display and run an internal HDMI or display port cable. Haven't figured out how to route IO yet, but probably some male to female adapter cables will do. Would be awesome if you want to try something like this
and make a video.
Thank you for the video. Very well done and clear. I have a 2011 iMac 27" that the GPU is dead. I'm going to try this and am very comfortable with all aspects of this work being an engineer kind of guy. I had read the macforum thread - most of it. This video helps. I'm wondering what the power consumption is like and the heat generated. Is it better or worse that the original.
Jeff Moore - the biggest power draw is the monitor being stuck at 100% brightness. The gpu actually uses less power at load.
@@messing-with-computersare you planning on revisiting this any time soon? I've been on the fence about upgrading the gpu for a while now.. Getting ready to take the leap
@stevenbenson9976 - not really looking to revisit for newer graphics cards , the older Intel machines are just… getting real long in the tooth. They are best served with Linux or chromeOS at this point.
watching on a 21.5 inch with high sierra, i have a 2009 modified 20in that runs mojave, runs great and gave one just like it to my folks they use it for shopping online
Very nice! I am amazed you were able to get the 2009 running Mojave, ill look into that.
Hi Curtis, I have a 2011 mid 27” iMac.. love the old thang. I’ve updated the RAM to 16 GB, SSD 256 GB and I have the higher version of the graphics card that was offered at the time (don’t remember the model)...running High-Sierra.
The machine is giving me a white screen and doesn’t startup... I’m assuming it’s the graphics card again. What’s the best graphics card that can be installed straight out the box without modifications. Where do you recommend buying it?
The iMac is also getting extremely hot. What can be done? The fans are working fine.. I want to keep the machine but I’m need some guidance. I’m a photographer and use it to edit.. thanks!
geomed83 - the 6970m is the best that game in the 2011 iMac that will work right out of the box. The hard part is finding one that has more life on it! EBay is my go to at the moment, but they can be spendy and are all used, you can get a 1gb or 2gb model. You also could try hitting your old card with a heat gun for ~2 minutes or so to see if that reflows the solder on it. The other gpu options are the 6770m and 6750m (will require heat sink mods, since it only came on the 21.5inch I believe).
I put my 6970 in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes and that fixed it perfectly!
Okay, so I think I need to step in here with some info I've gathered over the last year or so. It turns out that the 2009 - 2011 model imacs have similar issues affecting graphics cards, apple did flag up the AMD 6970 and 4850 cards as being prone to faults. This is true... however at least half the problem is due to the thermal design of these iMacs. Due to the cramped nature of the interior, air flow isn't great and it has a tendency to put excessive stress on both the GPU and HDs. This, coupled with the slightly less reliable cards makes these models prone to heat related faults.
Knowing this info however can help you to at least mitigate the heat problems. Having a good fan control app is a very good start as it can allow you to amp up the fans when your iMac is working hard thereby taking some of the pressure off the GPU and the HD if you have one. Talking of HDs, swapping them out for SSDs is a great way to boost your iMac's performance AND help to alleviate the heat problem. SSDs are far less sensitive to heat than HDs for example and they take up less space therefore increasing airflow within your iMac. This and the HUGE boost to read and write speeds will make you feel like you bought a brand new machine! Pair them up with max RAM (32GB) and you shouldn't have any problems running multiple apps without a performance hit.
Finally, depending on which CPU you have, you may be able to upgrade it too. I think the max CPU that will reliably work is the i7 3.4ghz 2600 "SandyBridge" CPU. This is one in my 2011 machine and other than a straight swap for a new one, I think I'm maxed out in that department. Hope all this helps you!
So... how can I buy that one off you?
Hi dear Curtis
I have iMac 27 2011 Model. It has AMD Radeon 6970M GPU. This GPU was repaired twice by service and also baked in microwave oven three times and still working.
I have two questions ;
1) Why did you replace AMD with NVidia GPU ? It will work in less warm and smoothly ?
2) What is the highest / best featured GPU to be replaced with current AMD Radeon 6970M GPU ? For AMD and also for NVidia.
Thanks a lot
so what was the performance boost with the graphics card? any benchmarks? i'm on the fence of moving my kids from their 2011 21" i5 and i7 imacs to some newer pc for gaming.. but really not looking to spend more than $300 per box.. i'm very happy with my 27" 2013 iMac with 32gb ram.. no plans to upgrade / replace this any time soon.. which itself has a 775m.. would keep them on high sierra and windows 10 for gaming.. but yea still some concern about the card not making as much a difference as perhaps getting new(er) pc boxes..
not worth it every GPU in 2011 machines dies...... waste of time
That’s why you replace it with an Nvidia gpu.
besides fitting it with a new gpu, do you also need to flash it with newer firmware like i saw i one of your other videos. my mid 11 imac's gpu has given up (probably just need a bake, but i have no owen that can keep the temp consistent), and also i like to tinker with computers. ive been doing my share of fine electronics work(like fixing my lenses for my canon camera, upgraded the imac to its max, building my own comps etc.) not sure what to do with it yet. any suggestions?
You lost/scared me at 3:52. lol This is definitely not for the meek and inexperienced! I hit a wall with my iMac since some of my music plugins now require Metal to be supported by the GPU and sadly mine doesn't. It's a great machine and I wish I had the guts and know how to do the SSD/GPU upgrade on this (My RAM is already maxed at 32).
i just bought a 2011 imac 27 with a black screen. i changed the gpu and I put the 780m in it following your instructions, also with a xeon 1270 and a new inverter board. I hear the chime at the boot but i am stuck on a black screen...
Ive done this and just got black screens of death. Ive read you sometimes have to flash the card in Windows bootcamp first external because you loose dual boot with this. Or you have to swap the harddrive out again , no partitions
Hey Curtis enjoyed the video its became a new hobby but I know what you mean i used opencore with my mac i7 but then when i used my bluetooth i lost my internal speaks so put it back to High Sierra but it was fun the SSD 1T and the 32gb ram and removing the CD ram made the machine amazing and run cooler
Or....just put Windows 10 on it.
hey mr mcconaughey what is that paste? 4:30? that you're using? or glue?
Gracias buscaba algo más de información acerca de si mejoraba mucho el rendimiento del equipo si cambiaba la gpu, desafortunadamente mi gpu se daño e iba cambiarla por una Nvidia Quadro pero opte por conseguir el mismo gpu que viene de fábrica ya que es mas economico.
Por cierto le añadí un ssd y deje el lector de DVD con el disco duro original (mechanic) y trabaja genial hasta que ya no cargo macOS y se quedo con unas lineas.
Thanks, I was looking for some more information about whether the performance of the computer would improve a lot if I changed the gpu, unfortunately my gpu was damaged and I was going to change it for an Nvidia Quadro but I chose to get the same gpu that comes from the factory since it is cheaper _🤑_
Slightly off topic but still related... It'd been common knowledge for a few years that the 2011 Imacs cant go beyond the 3.4ghz i7 2600 "Sandybridge" CPU. Even though Sandybridge and its successor "Ivybridge" share the same 1155 socket, everytime somebody tried it, it didn't work. Well that might be about to change. One of the developers over at Macrumours has worked out a way in theory to create a hack for the iMac's firmware that would allow the 3770 CPU to work in the 2011 machines. The one piece of info that had been missing till now was the piece of microcode specific to the 3770 CPU... and thats just been found. Hopefully, if all goes well, we should get an update in the next few days...
Nice!!! Let me know if there is an update, I will snag an Ivy chip and do some before/after with power usage as well as performance.
@@messing-with-computers honestly couldn't believe it when I read the posts last night on the GPU thread but the guy posted a screenshot of the microcode in his followup post. Believe its near the bottom of page 268...
Unfortunately I should have held off on my earlier post as it seems that the microcode hack is another dead end...
I've been chatting with the developer who was working on this and his first language isn't English so it makes it a bit tricky to get all the details. Based on a thread I saw on the iFixit forum, I think there may be a chip on the motherboard that might be causing a conflict with the 3770 CPU.
I'm no expert of course - I'm just gathering bits of info and passing them on in the hope it helps someone who really does know what their doing!
@@Rendell001 - not a problem, maybe one day we can hack an updated CPU in there, but overall these older machines are held back more by their graphics.
Nice job , i wasnt as lucky
I don’t...but you’ve inspired me to hop up one of my machines! I am a small engine mechanic and this intrigues me. I own a couple mid 2011 iMac’s I buy them off face book and I’d say all my macs (2011 iMac x2 , 2017 15” MacBook Pro, 2015 Mac book air) all combined haven’t cost what a new iMac does....I don’t game, I’m not using them for much of anything accept basic video editing, surfing, some things that require a desktop...high Sierra is fine, for me...so I may play with one...I love buying them cheap and my kitchen table looks awesome full of Mac screens,,,,hahaha,,,,,,thanks for the video!
Whats the safest and best gpu upgrade for a 2010 imac 27” with ATI Radeon 5670 512mb without any risk of overheating or other problems?
Surgicalsensei - best as in fastest with most compatibility? Likely the k2100m if you can get a good deal.
100% NOT worth it.
Upgradable to 32 gigs of ram!
Anyway to get MacOS Catalina working on these 27 inch mid-2011 iMacs?
The Mind of Rey Rey - yes. I was able to get Catalina working with a combo of the dos dude patcher for Catalina along with the video card replacement.
Curtis Gross can I send you my specs to see if you recommend editing upgrading?
@@Themindofreyrey - Sure! Also let me know what you are doing with it and I can help guide.
Curtis Gross sweet man! Cool video.
I received a faulty Nvidia card, took it apart a few times to verify it was the card and not something else (you have to seat the MXM very ‘straight’) but then the display cable broke.
Took a while to get working parts but I received them today and it’s working!
How do I go about updating the os? I have high Sierra and everything is working fine but would like to update.
You can also upgrade the BT and WiFi module to get continuity to work!
@@UrZNL - check out my newer video where I got brightness controls / boot menu all working. Additional steps that walk through using DosDude patcher to update to catalina!
Great video. I have a 765M and flashed the vbios to get the Bootswitcher. Do you know if there is any way to enable brightness control?
MacintoshMen haven’t found any brightness controls yet. Just the cards covered in my latest 2011 upgrade video, k610m, k1100m, k2100m.
This why my main systems will always be PC, bad as it is, Windows 10 will run fine on a 2006 Core 2 Duo System with at least 4GB of ram and a SSD.
By the way I just scored a iMac 27" i7 2600 HD6790 2GB. Already bumped it to 32GB and will do the SSD upgrade very soon.
Nice! I am about to embark on upgrading a 2011 21.5. I am going to install a k1100m with a custom vbios to get to Catalina - will make a video on the Process! You can sell the 6970 for quite a bit, which is what I would recommend ;)
Hi,
Good video and comments… I would like to do it right away but….. I have an Apple iMac 27-Inch with Intel i5, Late 2012. The original nVidia GeForce GTX 675MX is toast… ☹
Now, can I install any other similar setup card (from notebooks like), as I read that Apple has its own firmware on each card so different will not work. But the price is to high to buy an Apple compatible one… (£375 for an Apple card vs £69.99 pulled out from a Dell alienware notebook, for example).
The Intel CPU embedded graphic can be activated to be used without the nVidia card, skipping the performance issues?
Eduard - the 2012 iMac does not have an upgradable / swappable GPU, it is actually soldered onto the motherboard. You have 2 options. 1 is a new motherboard, 2 is use the internal GPU like you were thinking. I would probably go with activating the intel CPU 'igpu' as the cheap option!
How easy is it replacing the cpu also
It's the same steps, only thing you should take into consideration is the cpu to replace, it must be compatible with your iMac
This is exactly what I needed to hear i just got a mid 2011 imac 20.5inch.
Its the 1st apple product I ever had and I'm impressed but disappointed that I can't download (Iwork) the main reason I got the mac was to update my 20 year old CV and help find a new job. Is there any office software I can downloadand use with high sierra? Preferably free!
Or would I be better off selling this mac and getting a 2013 that would run Catalina?
Openoffice is a great alternative. There should be a version that will run on high Sierra
Modify vbios?
Hi Curtis,
I just got a similar iMac and I am intrigued by what you tried here. I study international journalism and would love to be able to use adobe software on this beast. The only thing is, I have a 21,5 inch version of the iMac, is there also an option to do it with this one? I’m looking forward hearing from you. Kind regards!
Kobe - good news - check out my most recent iMac upgrade video that I highlighted on my main page.
Hej Curtis , why do you insulate the VRM modules? They seem to have had heat transfer goop on the old AMD MXM card I am replacing so they are cooled?
If you have spare thermal 'goop' then use it or re-use the goop that was already on there! That is the best path.
Hi Curtis,
I baked my original card and that gave some life to my imac for a couple of months. After a couple of months it failed so yesterday I followed along and installed a 765m.Im pretty solid with hardware, but not really good with the software side of things. I running High Sierra, but now app store says theres an update. Can I update it since I lost the bios at startup or am i stuck at this version ?
You can update your high Sierra version no problem. If you want to move to Mojave or Catalina be sure to use the dos dude patcher to assist.
So I'm thinking of getting a pro to install for me - but the main reason is that I want to get Catlina or Big Sur to be able to run a version of Logic that is compatible with the version one of my collaborators is using (being able to export transparent vids for Keynote would be good too).
Am I being silly? Is the patching going to sabotage everything else?
I know you posted this a year ago but if it's for work or something you do a ton of, it's prob a better idea to get something like an M1 or M2 Mac mini, as those can be had pretty cheap if looking at refurbished options.
Hi Curtis,
great video I bought my 2011 Imac when it came out and I loved it. It bricked right after the Graphics Card recall date had passed. So I have been intermittently baking the card in the oven over the years and lowering the fan temperature. I refuse to pay an extortionate amount for a old card and I’m suspect of the chip repair swap-out. I have been looking for a permanent solution for ages and I am gonna go with your solution. Thankyou so much for the vid as it’ll help me out loads. I actually took out the CD Rom Drive to allow more air to flow through. But I might put the SSD drive drive where the CD Rom goes and put the 1TD drive back in the sort the fan problem. Cheers Dan
Glad to hear the video helped! I am trying to pick up a 21.5 to mess with it as well, but the prices are going up on these now!!
@@messing-with-computers on a related note, I get the impression that some of the GPU cards (the ones that are known to be compatible with the 2009-2011 iMacs) are going up in price too. Could be that the words gone out that Mac users are looking for these cards and sellers are hiking prices as a result...
@@Rendell001 Absolutely the case. I just picked up a k1100m and it was ~75$ These used to be $25.
@@messing-with-computers Your video do that!!!
A "Thermal Sensor" from OWC Website will solve the fan issues 👌 .. quick question bros - will brightness control still be unavailable if operating on Snow Lepord 10.6.8 ? Also is there anything specific that needs to be done to the system? (other then the installation of GPU itself) .. operating from snow lepord 10.6.8 ... would appreciate a response 🙏
Would this also work with the GTX 780m?
Thank you, glad I found your vids.
Really interesting. Thank you for that
Very well done and interesting final thoughts. I completely agree: buy one and keep High Sierra and you get a cheap, great machine and software! Thank you for this interesting video! Good job
Does brightness control work with High Sierra with the new patch in the his latest video? Thanks
I am using High Sierra in my iMac 2011!!!
is normal... is the last Mac Os supported....by iMac 2011
My iMac monitor suddenly become black. I can hear the chime but it is died :( any suggestion? I already changed the backlight board but no changes. I`m going to try with a new monitor but have no idea
Keigo Moriyama - I had a monitor go out on my 27 iMac. I have also had the power supply go “weak” which also caused issues. If you shine a light on the screen can you see anything?
@@messing-with-computers unfortunately no. is fully black
Dang. Likely the monitor then - I managed to get one (27”) for $50 a while back. You can probably connect an external monitor in the meantime?
Curtis Gross waiting for the adapter to connect. But I also tested and only led 1 and 2 light up so I’m worried is gpu issue too
I've got the 21.5 inch iMac from 2011. Once I upgrade my GPU to NVIDIA 765M will I be able to use my iMac as a triple monitor setup (connecting two additional monitors)?
You will only have one working thunderbolt port :/
@@messing-with-computers If I use a thunderbolt to dual hdmi adapter, will that work?
PetTech maybe? Haven’t tried it!
Hi, congrats for the video is great!
I have a 27" mid 2011 iMac with i5 3,1ghz, 8gb RAM, Samsung SSD and all of it make os sierra run perfectly.
The damned AMD Radeon 1gb died and, according to you, may I upgrade it with nvidea 765m 2gb (considers that the PC had native GPU from 1gb)?
Thanks in advance! :)
You can! But I was recently made aware of better options that retain even more functionality. The k1100m is the cheap option I am going to be testing in a 2011 21.5 as well! I’ll make a video detailing it.
Hey Curtis, Great video. I am not a tech type person in any way but was looking for info on upgrading my Mid 2011 27 inch 3.4 GHz i7 with 16GB to 32GB and a 2TB SSD. I just want to know if it is possible to do this before taking it down to the local tech shop to have the work done. Probably just stick with the 6970M 1G GPU as I really love this machine and do not want to risk any mods to it that require power tools! Just a couple questions, when replacing the HD with a SSD does the OS and all data/apps get moved over to the new SSD or do I need to re-install everything? Would an External SSD be a better option? And, have you learned anything further on the 32GB memory compatibility? External GPU so pricey but seem to be the answer. Thanks again for this video. Subscribed.
Few answers. It sounds like 32gb memory will work. For the ssd, you can buy a cable and install an ssd along with your existing hard drive and use software like “SuperDuper!” Which is my favorite to make a new disk bootable with all the old software in place. As for the gpu - is just stick with the 6970m for now if you are not having any issues. Most other gpus will take a modification with a saw or at least extensive tear down. Last - I would not recommend an external gpu. I have tried it and ... it’s just a huge pain. The software support is poor. Crashes, issues, etc.
@@messing-with-computers Thank you for your opinion. Saves me some headaches.
Hi, can i ask something! I have this 2011 imac and i run Windows on it because i work with graphic programs. I paid a-lot to upgrade it to i core 7 3,4 GHz 24GB memory , video card 2048MB but I still get the same massage when I try to use some programs or some functions that the ram space it low. When i open the settings on parallels i see the graphic card 2gb, I live new here and i don’t speak the language of the country where I currently living i know only one person who upgraded my computer but he is not understanding me when i ask to upgrade the graphic card he keeps buying higher video card and every time i pay like 150€ pleas can you help me and send me a link of what should I buy and then i will just ask hem to install it. Working on my computer is how i get living but i cant any more with this low graphic card . Thanks alot
Hi Lubna - parallels is a virtual machine right? Might be that the vm is not being given enough memory - try adjusting parallels. But beyond that - I am not a windows expert enough to know what to do :)
Curtis Gross thanks a lot. I appreciate it🙌🏼
Awesome video. I did this mod to my 2011 27” iMac and works great.
However I’ve seen that you could put a gtx 980m for 8GB 😱🤯. I would love to watch the making of that (no a single video about it yet). Do you think it’s worth it or not? Because I’m thinking that maybe it could bottleneck with the old i7 cpu? I really hope you can reply 🙌🏼
I wouldn’t try the 980, if anything I would go for a wx7100m (amd chipset) which is about the same performance but way better support. Watch my other video on how to flash the bios on a k610m which would be almost the same for the wx 7100m!
My friend has a 2011 27" that I think the GPU is officially dead. I was going to get a K1100m on ebay (they're currently around $50). Are you familiar if the heatsink will need modification similar to how it did with the 765m you were using?
Yes
@@BavarianM I did it without modification and it's working. I checked clearance and never saw anything get in the way and ran hours of stress tests and it's working fine these several months now.
I got a late 2011 iMac on the way from eBay, 10gbs ram, 3.1ghz cpu, but the GPU is lacking. Would you recommend any that are not amazing but decent?
Which GPU to you have now? the 6770m? You could stay at high sierra and get a thunderbolt external GPU and keep things moderately 'simple' with some eGPU hacks. The other crazy option is what I do. I kept my 6750m in my 2011 imac and use a windows machine for gpu intensive tasks via 'parsec gaming' as a screen sharing app.
gtx 780m and vbios mod by Nick d vb forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/
its max upgrade
Hi Curtis, do you think I could put a 765m in my 21.5inch iMac 2011? It has 2.5ghz i5 16gb ram and 2tb fusion drive
You can! I have before. Check out my newer 2011 21.5 upgrade video for a few other options that have brightness control too.
@@messing-with-computers wow thanks so much, I was thinking which card is the highest performance that I can put in it
Also I can't find any other videos from you, would you mind dropping g a link?
Edison Chow here you go th-cam.com/video/0b_YzIjOvOE/w-d-xo.html