iM 4,1-14,4 2011 iMac Graphics Card Upgrade

[highvoltage12v]

great to hear that Target Display mode will work again using this methode.
can you perhaps tell of display mode signals also work this way, or still only true thunderbolt signals using target display mode on the 2011 iMac's.. ?

09/10 iMac's where able to use display mode signals, instead of thunderbolt signals over the target display mode..
I hope this can be made possible someday also on the 2011 iMac's...

Target Display Mode works on the port that does not Display video. Because of this we can come to the conclusion that TDM works over Thunderbolt/PCIe.
I don't own a 2010 iMac capable of DisplayPort input as my 2010 is a 21.5" (Apple never included this on thenews21.5) but in theory it should work again as the iMac knows it's display is internal again.

Also High Sierra is the last Mac OS for us that TDM works properly. If anyone know what frameworks or Kexts I can swap over from HS that would be great.

 

[FlorisVN]

Target Display Mode works on the port that does not Display video. Because of this we can come to the conclusion that TDM works over Thunderbolt/PCIe.
I don't own a 2010 iMac capable of DisplayPort input as my 2010 is a 21.5" (Apple never included this on thenews21.5) but in theory it should work again as the iMac knows it's display is internal again.

Also High Sierra is the last Mac OS for us that TDM works properly. If anyone know what frameworks or Kexts I can swap over from HS that would be great.

ok thx for your response.
how and what do you exactly mean with : Also High Sierra is the last Mac OS for us that TDM works properly ??

Does this perhaps mean that Mojave/Catalina dont support TDM or dont work well. ?
And do you perhaps know if it still works on a patched MacOS install for example.. ?

 

[highvoltage12v]

ok thx for your response.
how and what do you exactly mean with : Also High Sierra is the last Mac OS for us that TDM works properly ??

Does this perhaps mean that Mojave/Catalina dont support TDM or dont work well. ?
And do you perhaps know if it still works on a patched MacOS install for example.. ?

I've seen instances where when leaving TDM on Mojave/Catalina the screen will stay black untill the power button is tapped many times, where it then wakes up to the login screen. I've also seen instances where it will leave TDM fine, then kernel panics after 10-20 minutes. It doesn't have these issues in High Sierra, it will leave TDM just fine.

There must be a private framework for TDM I did hours of searching but don't know what it's called. I tried logging TDM through console.app but never got anywhere.

 

[markfoody]

I notice @highvoltage12v said that you hadn't had experience with the HP versions of the K2100M...
- can anybody confirm if they work, and what (if any) issues I'll have?

This is for a 27" 2011 iMac, I don't need high performance graphics, but I would like it to work with Catalina.

Thanks,

 

[nikey22]

I have both a DELL K2100M and a HP K2100M for both my 21.5" machines.
I can confirm they BOTH work equally well as long as the Quadro_Beta 1.2 ROM is flashed to them. There should be no difference, component-wise appear similar.

 

[Terros]

Anyone know if the dying light module is still for sale? their website ebay link seems not...

And a guide on how to do this?

 

[CelsoLeaes]

Hello everybody, first time around here.
So, let me explain my issues.

My wife has an Imac 27" mid 2011 and it worked fine until today. She uses it to photo and movie edition, but now it won't boot up. Something with the HD.
Ok, as I will need to open it, so why not upgrade it?

I'm thinking about a GPU upgrade, CPU Upgrade and move to a SSD. Here is my problem... I'm living in Brazil, so the only GPU similar that can work on an Imac is an Asus G750XJ GTX770m (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...cking_id=c12cdeac-dd4b-4612-89a8-7ad5b9a2448a).

Has anyone successfully installed this GPU on an Imac already?

Another question is about changing the thermal paste, is it worth to only change it in case I do not find a correct GPU?

Now, talking about the CPU:

I7 2600 or I7 2600s?

I7 2600 (https://www.mercadolivre.com.br/pro...cking_id=a74e1e2f-056a-4e95-b74b-4ce12c5f15d6) or I7 2600S (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...ing_id=6f111770-2683-44ea-ad03-a9c2b2896966)?

Sorry about my english, I'm Brazilian and I'm really trying my best to learn your language.

Thank you all in advance, I already learn a lot reading this forum.

 

[passatgt]

Hello everybody, first time around here.
So, let me explain my issues.

My wife has an Imac 27" mid 2011 and it worked fine until today. She uses it to photo and movie edition, but now it won't boot up. Something with the HD.
Ok, as I will need to open it, so why not upgrade it?

I'm thinking about a GPU upgrade, CPU Upgrade and move to a SSD. Here is my problem... I'm living in Brazil, so the only GPU similar that can work on an Imac is an Asus G750XJ GTX770m (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...cking_id=c12cdeac-dd4b-4612-89a8-7ad5b9a2448a).

Has anyone successfully installed this GPU on an Imac already?

Another question is about changing the thermal paste, is it worth to only change it in case I do not find a correct GPU?

Now, talking about the CPU:

I7 2600 or I7 2600s?

I7 2600 (https://www.mercadolivre.com.br/pro...cking_id=a74e1e2f-056a-4e95-b74b-4ce12c5f15d6) or I7 2600S (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...ing_id=6f111770-2683-44ea-ad03-a9c2b2896966)?

Sorry about my english, I'm Brazilian and I'm really trying my best to learn your language.

Thank you all in advance, I already learn a lot reading this forum.

I don't think its worth upgrading the CPU. The i5 is perfectly fine for everyday use, you won't get much benefit of the upgrade. SSD is what will make the biggest difference, also upgrading the ram(to 8 or 16gb(you can also do 32gb, but thats also overkill)). As for the GPU, the one you linked is not going to work, its too wide to fit. You need this one for example: https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...cking_id=e7e3e674-a43d-446f-9735-03ce3ee9c699

 

[CelsoLeaes]

Thank you very much @passatgt . I don't know how i didn't find the link you sent before. Thanks a lot for the info!

I don't think its worth upgrading the CPU. The i5 is perfectly fine for everyday use, you won't get much benefit of the upgrade. SSD is what will make the biggest difference, also upgrading the ram(to 8 or 16gb(you can also do 32gb, but thats also overkill)). As for the GPU, the one you linked is not going to work, its too wide to fit. You need this one for example: https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...cking_id=e7e3e674-a43d-446f-9735-03ce3ee9c699

 

[Kaapo Tupas]

Oh boy..
I was already having problems with my ole GPU. Managed to install high Sierra. (But of course then the old gpu died.) well .
I bought a new one. Dell Alienware, 780M mxm 3.0 https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/233216595126

now I have replaced the card. I started to test it before putting display on. Only 2 green lights on mother board. And then fans start full.

I have done alt cmd p r , did not help.
What to do? Please. I put too much into this one 😅

I did grind metal etc. card should be right one. Isit then only choice to cook old card at 150 Celsius about 10 minutes in oven? Or what. Did I spend 200e down the drain? Hope not.

 

[highvoltage12v]

Hello everybody, first time around here.
So, let me explain my issues.

My wife has an Imac 27" mid 2011 and it worked fine until today. She uses it to photo and movie edition, but now it won't boot up. Something with the HD.
Ok, as I will need to open it, so why not upgrade it?

I'm thinking about a GPU upgrade, CPU Upgrade and move to a SSD. Here is my problem... I'm living in Brazil, so the only GPU similar that can work on an Imac is an Asus G750XJ GTX770m (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...cking_id=c12cdeac-dd4b-4612-89a8-7ad5b9a2448a).

Has anyone successfully installed this GPU on an Imac already?

Another question is about changing the thermal paste, is it worth to only change it in case I do not find a correct GPU?

Now, talking about the CPU:

I7 2600 or I7 2600s?

I7 2600 (https://www.mercadolivre.com.br/pro...cking_id=a74e1e2f-056a-4e95-b74b-4ce12c5f15d6) or I7 2600S (https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br...ing_id=6f111770-2683-44ea-ad03-a9c2b2896966)?

Sorry about my english, I'm Brazilian and I'm really trying my best to learn your language.

Thank you all in advance, I already learn a lot reading this forum.

I can tell you now, that card is completely in the wrong shape and won't fit properly. You need yo find a card in the MXM-A (original 6770m) or MXM-B card (6970m) form factor. Sorry that it is difficult to find the correct card where you live. I would go for the i7 2600, they perform so much better than the 2500. It feels like a more modern machine with Hyper Threading.
[automerge]1580768966[/automerge]

Oh boy..
I was already having problems with my ole GPU. Managed to install high Sierra. (But of course then the old gpu died.) well .
I bought a new one. Dell Alienware, 780M mxm 3.0 https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/233216595126

now I have replaced the card. I started to test it before putting display on. Only 2 green lights on mother board. And then fans start full.

I have done alt cmd p r , did not help.
What to do? Please. I put too much into this one 😅

I did grind metal etc. card should be right one. Isit then only choice to cook old card at 150 Celsius about 10 minutes in oven? Or what. Did I spend 200e down the drain? Hope not.

I hope the ROM chip on that card doesn't look like how it does in the listing. Those revision of cards are more difficult to flash because the EEPROM doesn't have legs.

If you get a startup sound at all, you're probably fine. The fans will run on full speed when the LCD is off the iMac, LCD thermal sensor is missing.

See if you can get your iMac to boot windows 10 by having an external monitor plugged into the Thunderbolt port closest to the Firewire 800 port. It can take up to 30 minutes for the display to show up in Windows. But with the caps lock key you can see if your iMac is booted into an OS.

 

[Kaapo Tupas]

I can tell you now, that card is completely in the wrong shape and won't fit properly. You need yo find a card in the MXM-A (original 6770m) or MXM-B card (6970m) form factor. Sorry that it is difficult to find the correct card where you live. I would go for the i7 2600, they perform so much better than the 2500. It feels like a more modern machine with Hyper Threading.
[automerge]1580768966[/automerge]

I hope the ROM chip on that card doesn't look like how it does in the listing. Those revision of cards are more difficult to flash because the EEPROM doesn't have legs.

If you get a startup sound at all, you're probably fine. The fans will run on full speed when the LCD is off the iMac, LCD thermal sensor is missing.

See if you can get your iMac to boot windows 10 by having an external monitor plugged into the Thunderbolt port closest to the Firewire 800 port. It can take up to 30 minutes for the display to show up in Windows. But with the caps lock key you can see if your iMac is booted into an OS.

I do get chimes. so. I need to geta Windows 10 USB stick? Ok. I will get into that.

but yes the screen is still not connected , but I recalled that I should get 3 leds before I should even go further.

from Windows what should I do? Is there any way to get this card working. I thought I did my studying this time. Well. I will try further if you guys can give some Hints.

 

[Terros]

I do get chimes. so. I need to geta Windows 10 USB stick? Ok. I will get into that.

but yes the screen is still not connected , but I recalled that I should get 3 leds before I should even go further.

from Windows what should I do? Is there any way to get this card working. I thought I did my studying this time. Well. I will try further if you guys can give some Hints.

There's only 2 lights on the motherboard as the system isn't detecting a UEFI card if I recall, my 780M did the same until I flashed it.

You need to Flash it under Windows remotely via TeamViewer or Remote Desktop with NVFLash software and the rom provided on page 1.

You will likley need a display working if you haven't installed or setup TeamViewer or Remote Desktop (make sure your network is connected. I'd say TeamViewer is the easiest to install and setup) and then flash remotely

 

[nikey22]

Interesting, when I compare Nick's vbios mod to the standard K2100M ROM, you can see that the UEFI version and information is missing. Could this be why we don't have a gray boot-up screen and initial apple logo?

 

[Kaapo Tupas]

There's only 2 lights on the motherboard as the system isn't detecting a UEFI card if I recall, my 780M did the same until I flashed it.

You need to Flash it under Windows remotely via TeamViewer or Remote Desktop with NVFLash software and the rom provided on page 1.

You will likley need a display working if you haven't installed or setup TeamViewer or Remote Desktop (make sure your network is connected. I'd say TeamViewer is the easiest to install and setup) and then flash remotely

saved my year Thanks. I will get the Windows and then go on with this. I just thought that this card was plug n play. Im from Finland. Iguess I need to rehersh my English I hope Ican still work with Windows.

 

[xanderon]

or you use a linux live cd with the patcher and bios files already on it and ssh to the iMac blindly. much easier and faster than using windows

see my post

2011 iMac Graphics Card Upgrade

so guys, I have a little gift for you to give back after such an incredible thread :D hope you like it, the headaches to get it running were immens for me as a newb. I couldn't stand it to use fckin windows to flash the cards and so I prepared this ~350mb drive I created a Linux Live USB...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[snam11]

hi guys, my beloved 2011 27"imac has stopped working due to 5750hd fail... and baking the vga didn't fix at all the issue:i still have huge vertical lines on the screen, and no way to boot at all the mac. So i'm thinking about getting a vga replacement. should i go for a k1100m or a gtx to have better performances? at the moment which card can have boot selection and native or hacked (kexted/dsdt) backlight control?i don't want to spend much money on it, it will be just a backup machine (for the kids), so el cap-high sierra is the target os, with basic usage: web, photoshop, some windows soft using bootcamp.

or should i look for an used ati from an imac (5750 or more recent)?

 

[highvoltage12v]

hi guys, my beloved 2011 27"imac has stopped working due to 5750hd fail... and baking the vga didn't fix at all the issue:i still have huge vertical lines on the screen, and no way to boot at all the mac. So i'm thinking about getting a vga replacement. should i go for a k1100m or a gtx to have better performances? at the moment which card can have boot selection and native or hacked (kexted/dsdt) backlight control?i don't want to spend much money on it, it will be just a backup machine (for the kids), so el cap-high sierra is the target os, with basic usage: web, photoshop, some windows soft using bootcamp.

or should i look for an used ati from an imac (5750 or more recent)?

Since the 5750 (BTW that's a 2010 iMac if your model is correct) is a MXM-B card you should probably go the route of 765m/770m/780m. These are all MXM-B cards that are the correct length for the heatsink.

 

[passatgt]

Since the 5750 (BTW that's a 2010 iMac if your model is correct) is a MXM-B card you should probably go the route of 765m/770m/780m. These are all MXM-B cards that are the correct length for the heatsink.

But also a k1100m is easier to install(no heatsink mod) and it is possible to have backlight control

 

[snam11]

But also a k1100m is easier to install(no heatsink mod) and it is possible to have backlight control

how to do so?
using the software or with kext mod/dsdt?
i guess i'll go for the k1100m, i've found one super cheap for like 50$ on aliexpress.

 

[Kouiderdream]

Hi
Just a question for imac 2011 27 ‘’
Isaw that the gtx 860 ca. Run but ther is 2 options with 2gb and with 4 gb
Is the 4gb accepted too
Thanks

 

[Kaapo Tupas]

or you use a linux live cd with the patcher and bios files already on it and ssh to the iMac blindly. much easier and faster than using windows

see my post

2011 iMac Graphics Card Upgrade

so guys, I have a little gift for you to give back after such an incredible thread :D hope you like it, the headaches to get it running were immens for me as a newb. I couldn't stand it to use fckin windows to flash the cards and so I prepared this ~350mb drive I created a Linux Live USB...

forums.macrumors.com

I tested now external display. It works. I can see new 780m in specs. Do I still need to flash? Or just install the screen. Or is it just main boards gpu. Cine bench is rendering slow.
Can I just install windows to my Mac with this setup from high Sierra? With this second display?

 

[passatgt]

how to do so?
using the software or with kext mod/dsdt?
i guess i'll go for the k1100m, i've found one super cheap for like 50$ on aliexpress.

Thats still work in progress i believe. But you will need to boot from an USB drive(OpenCore) and that way it will work, as the screen shows up as internal, not external. Basically its a hackintosh on an imac

 

[snam11]

Thats still work in progress i believe. But you will need to boot from an USB drive(OpenCore) and that way it will work, as the screen shows up as internal, not external. Basically its a hackintosh on an imac

k, so we need to wait for the opencore config with dsdt patches.
thanx

 

[Kaapo Tupas]

I tested now external display. It works. I can see new 780m in specs. Do I still need to flash? Or just install the screen. Or is it just main boards gpu. Cine bench is rendering slow.
Can I just install windows to my Mac with this setup from high Sierra? With this second display?