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

[passatgt]

Hi everybody,
my first post here, although I've read (almost) all 372 pages in this thread.
I have a 21.5 iMac 11,2 (mid 2010) with a faulty GPU, so I decided to replace it along with other upgrades.
Basically I replaced:
the CPU fom i3 540 to i5 680
the RAM with 2x 8GB DDR3 10600
the GPU from HD4670 to Nvidia Quadro K1100
the HDD with an SSD (not done yet, wanted to have it up and running before a fresh install).
I took a lot of photos and could set up a wiki if needed.

Problem is: it seems I cannot install *any* operating system.
I tried with High Sierra (latest officially supported OS), Sierra and El Capitan, but to no avail.
got to the utility page, I select to install on the freshly cleaned HDD (, install start and interrupts with 3 to 4 minutes left.
restarts and does the same again and again.
I made the bootable USB in various ways (downloaded DMG file and used TransMac, used dosdude utility from a running imac and terminal instructions, etc.) but ended up with the same output.
on the installer log the critical error is: "The Quartz framework's library couldn't be loaded".
could anybody please point me to the right direction? booting into recovery partiton seems to work ok, screen is visible and internet connection is running flawlessly

could the issue be related to the K1100 GPU? which OS should be easier to install at first?

thanks in advance

A few things to try:

1. Maybe the HDD is faulty? Try to create a bootable ubuntu usb, boot into live mode and use Disk Utility to see if theres any issues with it. Or just put in the SSD and try to install on that one.
2. Try removing/disconnecting everything and then do the install that way: Screen, ODD, WiFi, Bluetooth, leave only 1 ram in(the 2010 version will only boot with a single ram stick in DIMM0, but i'm not sure which one is that exactly, so it might need a few tries to get in in the correct slot). Use an external screen and a wired keyboard/mouse to do the install.
3. If it previously run an outdated system, might be an issue with the firmware, because for example High Sierra install will update the firmware on the machine. So maybe try with an old?
4. Faulty CPU? When it get hot due to the install, maybe it will crash? Try with the old CPU, or just re-seat the cpu and make sure its tight with good amount of thermal paste. Also an ubuntu live usb might help you check the temps and see if that might be an issue or not.

 

[ZenSurfeur]

thank you for the help
I bought it off ebay and the seller specified the VBIOS has been flashed with the ios compatible one (Nick [D]vB)s.
Anyway the display shows the startup apple, the progress bar and all the menus without any issue.
I tried via internet but the globe kept on turning for a few hours without any sign of changes.
for the GPU chip I used thermal grizzly cryonaut plus the proper white thick paste for the memory chips (only half of them, as the memory chips are also on the back of the card on the K1100).

can you try an install with the original CPU?

 

[elise_s1]

thanks again.
as to replace CPU and GPU isn't the quickest thing to do, I'd rather try with ubuntu:
at least I can check whether it's a HW or SW problem.

 

[Ed Hartouni]

The screws that connect the X-bracket to the heat sink appear to be 1/4" 4-40, pan-head for flat X-brackets or countersunk head (if the X-bracket is countersunk as it is with the Apple X-bracket).

You can probably get these in a variety of head types, e.g. phillips, hex, T-?, etc...

 

[Ausdauersportler]

The screws that connect the X-bracket to the heat sink appear to be 1/4" 4-40, pan-head for flat X-brackets or countersunk head (if the X-bracket is countersunk as it is with the Apple X-bracket).

You can probably get these in a variety of head types, e.g. phillips, hex, T-?, etc...

In Europe it is M 2.5 mm and length 8 mm. Unfortunately you cannot get the T10 version, only Imbus.

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

Hi boys and girls, i'm joining the club.
Got myself a 2011 iMac 27" for about 100 EURO'S with a malfunctioning AMD GPU.
From aliexpress I ordered a PCI-Express to MXM converter and a NVIDIA K1100M. So in about 5 weeks i'm converting this ****** iMac to something useable. Wish me luck.

I will keep you posted.

On Aliexpress I saw many sellers claim to sell K610M for iMac. I assumed they already flashed and test those cards before selling.

 

[JohannusNL]

On Aliexpress I saw many sellers claim to sell K610M for iMac. I assumed they already flashed and test those cards before selling.

Hi, I saw those cards too. But they ask an awful lot of money for that. I bought the card for about €50,- a pre-flashes card would have cost me about €130,-. I asked one of the sellers if it’s a genuine Apple part of custom flashed, its flashed by the seller.
it also cost me a part of the fun.

 

[searge]

Hi!

I cannot repeat it more often:

If you start reading on page #1 of this thread you will find just after a few lines the link to Nick's latest accouncement regarding the OpenCore boot loader, finding in exactly the very same post the latest 4150_GOP vBIOS you may use for the WX4170, too. I did exactly this.

Yes, it has boot screen and native brightness control and even the hardware backlight tutorial could by found starting at page #1, or by using the forum internal search function limited to "This thread".

Buy this WX4170 as long as is has a BIOS chip on board (take a look at my picture).

Without a chip these cards are of no use in an iMac currently. The system will not even power on using a card w/o BIOS chip installed. Nick already wrote that soldering the chip onto the card needs a resistor network, too. So it is not a job done by a casual solder iron user like me.

Well, I am interested in trying this mod on my imac 27'' 12,2. I can get a wx4170 as shown above and I have some experience in modding hardware. I've read Post #1. But there are still 2 questions left:

• Do I need to flash vBIOS before to get wx4170 working (using flashing tool and windows pc)?
• Currently I'am running HS with win 10 (Parallels Desktop). If flashing vBIOS afterwards is possible, does win 10 on PD work for using NVFlash?

Thanx in advance,
searge

 

[Nino Fedele]

Ciao, vorrei ringraziare tutte le ottime menti di questo forum, che con il loro ingegno hanno dato nuova vita ai nostri Mac. Ho installato nel mio iMac 2011 i5 (2400) 3,1 mhz 16 gb ssd 480 gb, una scheda Nvidia Quadro K2100M utilizzando Vbios di Nick [D] vB e OC che ha funzionato immediatamente e funziona ancora, ma ho un grosso problema, la temperatura del mac aumenta lentamente fino a diventare troppo caldo e con FCPX che rende un film la GPU supera gli 80 gradi, inoltre nelle info la scheda video mi da solo 1024 MB. Qualcuno ha avuto lo stesso problema?
Attualmente mitigo la temperatura con un grande ventilatore.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

Ciao, vorrei ringraziare tutte le ottime menti di questo forum, che con il loro ingegno hanno dato nuova vita ai nostri Mac. Ho installato nel mio iMac 2011 i5 (2400) 3,1 mhz 16 gb ssd 480 gb, una scheda Nvidia Quadro K2100M utilizzando Vbios di Nick [D] vB e OC che ha funzionato immediatamente e funziona ancora, ma ho un grosso problema, la temperatura del mac aumenta lentamente fino a diventare troppo caldo e con FCPX che rende un film la GPU supera gli 80 gradi, inoltre nelle info la scheda video mi da solo 1024 MB. Qualcuno ha avuto lo stesso problema?
Attualmente mitigo la temperatura con un grande ventilatore.View attachment 951459

Please read the post #1, read the OpenCore/Catalina Loader Guide and install Macs Fan Control to control the ODD fans.

copied from first post:

7. GPU Temperature Monitoring is available on cards marked with a + or ++when using both custom VBIOS and OpenCore. A modified version of FakeSMC and GPUSensors is included with the OpenCore bundle to allow monitoring of GPU temps. But you still have to use some third party tool to control the fans. The GPU die temperature is not available and (probably for that reason) the Apple SMC still not running properly.

 

[Nino Fedele]

thanks for the quick reply, I want to assure you that I have read and reread the post n.1 many times and followed to the letter all the indications and good advice of this forum, currently the mac I start it with OpenCore and the video card with modified VBios, as you can see from the attached photo a Gb of video ram is missing and the upper left part of the Mac (power supply and video sync) is hot. Maybe the video ram has a problem?

 

[Ausdauersportler]

thanks for the quick reply, I want to assure you that I have read and reread the post n.1 many times and followed to the letter all the indications and good advice of this forum, currently the mac I start it with OpenCore and the video card with modified VBios, as you can see from the attached photo a Gb of video ram is missing and the upper left part of the Mac (power supply and video sync) is hot. Maybe the video ram has a problem?View attachment 951468

Normally the card has 2GB, the only way to find out the installed memory is to take look at a real photo of the card. You may have simply a 1GB card. You need Macs Fan Control. Apple SMC does not work reliable! We have mentioned this on post #1 and more than a dozen times in posts here. It is one of the seven problems.

 

[Nino Fedele]

puoi dare un'occhiata a questa schermata? se mi dici che è normale allora metto in pace la mia anima, grazie

 

[Ausdauersportler]

puoi dare un'occhiata a questa schermata? se mi dici che è normale allora metto in pace la mia anima, grazieView attachment 951473

I would adjust the CPU fan, too. Nearly 80C and a silent fan looks ridiculous to me.
Let the SSD temp control the HDD fan! Please take a look and the Catalina Loader guide I wrote - I get mad repeating things I have documented so often.

BTW: The AMD cards are by far better with Final Cut Pro...

 

[Nino Fedele]

grazie per i consigli e il tempo dedicato, non avevo intenzione di farti arrabbiare, purtroppo a chi non è bravo e neofita come me a chi deve giurare di farsi aiutare se non da esperti come te, ciao

 

[herrdude]

I would adjust the CPU fan, too. Nearly 80C and a silent fan looks ridiculous to me.
Let the SSD temp control the HDD fan! Please take a look and the Catalina Loader guide I wrote - I get mad repeating things I have documented so often.

BTW: The AMD cards are by far better with Final Cut Pro...

Your Italian is impressive!

 

[JohannusNL]

Hi boys and girls, i'm joining the club.
Got myself a 2011 iMac 27" for about 100 EURO'S with a malfunctioning AMD GPU.
From aliexpress I ordered a PCI-Express to MXM converter and a NVIDIA K1100M. So in about 5 weeks i'm converting this ****** iMac to something useable. Wish me luck.

I will keep you posted.

I hate waiting. So as I do daily, searching online marketplaces, I found a K1000m GB brand new for €60,- which I can pickup this evening. I will try the USB flash/SSH method.
Also ordered a Xeon 1275 cpu, which I need to wait for about 10 days. So I got stuff to do.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

I hate waiting. So as I do daily, searching online marketplaces, I found a K1000m GB brand new for €60,- which I can pickup this evening. I will try the USB flash/SSH method.
Also ordered a Xeon 1275 cpu, which I need to wait for about 10 days. So I got stuff to do.

Forget this Xeon CPU, you will loose sleep. Forget the K1000M, you will not get brightness control. Both is vital in my opinion. The 27" without a working brightness control can be used as a heater. The K1000M and K2000M were part of the first breakthrough on this thread. But the latest developments driven mostly by @nikey22 made these cards a 2nd choice.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

Short update on Big Sur on iMac 2011 with metal GPU:​

The latest developer beta 6 is identical to the public beta 3 and it is still working fine on the 2011 iMacs which a metal GPU. I guess one could use the same patch set on the 2009 and 2010 since it contains only the HD3000 extension which will not be used on this machine. To get Airdrop/HandOff/Continuity you need a hardware wifi mode, at least a BCM94360CD card. I used my external SSD containing the Big Sur to boot a iMac 2010 - worked fine..

Take a look at the Big Sur thread in case you want to follow the development closely...

To install it on an iMac using an AMD Polaris card I still have to use an asr based replicating method.

 

[RRPC]

just want to share this small SD apter form aliexpress
it's not sticking out as far as a full SD adapter. i think its nice as the SD card is now part of the imac for the AMD cards that do need Open-core to side load the Kext. and have a boot-picker.

0.93US $ |1 PC Micro/TF Naar Converter Adapter naar Mini Drive Card Reader Writer Adapter Voor Air Voor Mac Pro #05|Card Readers| - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

nl.aliexpress.com

 

[JohannusNL]

Forget this Xeon CPU, you will loose sleep. Forget the K1000M, you will not get brightness control. Both is vital in my opinion. The 27" without a working brightness control can be used as a heater. The K1000M and K2000M were part of the first breakthrough on this thread. But the latest developments driven mostly by @nikey22 made these cards a 2nd choice.

Thanks for your sharp review. Right on the k1000m, no brightness control. I thought it was but overlooked it.

the Xeon I mentioned has the buildin GPU, so no issues sleeping and hibernate.

 

[Wania]

I know that this is not a topic about hardware problems, but maybe someone knows: imac 2011 21.5 "4 LEDs are on and the LCD is black. where to look for the reason, power supply? backlight module?

 

[Ausdauersportler]

Thanks for your sharp review. Right on the k1000m, no brightness control. I thought it was but overlooked it.

the Xeon I mentioned has the buildin GPU, so no issues sleeping and hibernate.

Where do you exactly got this information from? Happy to see a link and a successful installation of such a CPU without lacking a feature...

I know that this is not a topic about hardware problems, but maybe someone knows: imac 2011 21.5 "4 LEDs are on and the LCD is black. where to look for the reason, power supply? backlight module?

You may check the technician guides on the hardware post I made recently and you will find linked from post #1 and read the particular one covering you hardware. Or you go just back to post #1 and search for a black screen scenario - you see me out of options, again!

 

[JohannusNL]

Thanks for your sharp review. Right on the k1000m, no brightness control. I thought it was but overlooked it.

the Xeon I mentioned has the buildin GPU, so no issues sleeping and hibernate.

I just ordered a GTX880M 8GB, this will put the iMac to the max.

 

[JohannusNL]

Where do you exactly got this information from? Happy to see a link and a successful installation of such a CPU without lacking a feature...

You may check the technician guides on the hardware post I made recently and you will find linked from post #1 and read the particular one covering you hardware. Or you go just back to post #1 and search for a black screen scenario - you see me out of options, again!

about the CPU:https://ark.intel.com/content/www/u...xeon-processor-e3-1275-8m-cache-3-40-ghz.html

There was also an article here that the issue with sleep mode was due to the missing build-in GPU capabilities of the Xeon. Curtis Gross mentioned it also in his YouTube Vlog.https://youtu.be/lb-Gg2JY3ug. So I took it.