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

[internetzel]

Thank you very much for your support.

I'm going to take your advice and install High Sierra and follow the manual, I'll be back soon to let you know how it went!

Another possible question... Are these problems related only to MacOS? I mean, if I try an Ubuntu installation for example, the graphics should work?

EDIT: Linux does seem to recognise the graphics card and the 4GB of memory correctly

View attachment 1994867

All those strange facts make me think that it's because you might have installed Monterey with your original graphics card still in place and had applied the OCLP patches for graphics acceleration to work with your original card. You'd need to either remove the patches or reinstall Monterey in that case - and reapply patches after that, which then wouldn't include graphics acceleration patches anymore.

 

[fronk]

All those strange facts make me think that it's because you might have installed Monterey with your original graphics card still in place and had applied the OCLP patches for graphics acceleration to work with your original card. You'd need to either remove the patches or reinstall Monterey in that case - and reapply patches after that, which then wouldn't include graphics acceleration patches anymore.

You were right! By reverting and reapplying the patches, the graphics card is now recognised as AMD Radeon Polaris 4GB by the system. I almost have a working system, thank you very much!

There is only one point that doesn't work, and that is that the iMac doesn't detect the external monitor. Do you know why?

 

[Ausdauersportler]

You were right! By reverting and reapplying the patches, the graphics card is now recognised as AMD Radeon Polaris 4GB by the system. I almost have a working system, thank you very much!

There is only one point that doesn't work, and that is that the iMac doesn't detect the external monitor. Do you know why?

Rewrite OpenCore through OCLP!
(You should have done this after modding the hardware and you would need to do this after every new hardware modification. OCLP generated OpenCore configurations are hardware specific. OCLP patching is hardware specific.)

 

[fronk]

Rewrite OpenCore through OCLP!
(You should have done this after modding the hardware and you would need to do this after every new hardware modification. OCLP generated OpenCore configurations are hardware specific. OCLP patching is hardware specific.)

Done, but it does not solve the problem. I have a miniDP to HDMI cable that I can get it to work, but with the miniDP to DP (for higher resolution) for some reason it doesn't recognise the screen

 

[internetzel]

Done, but it does not solve the problem. I have a miniDP to HDMI cable that I can get it to work, but with the miniDP to DP (for higher resolution) for some reason it doesn't recognise the screen

Flashing the original VBIOS would be one way to verify whether it could work at all with the macOS drivers.
You could also check whether it works in Linux and/or Windows. In case it works there some OpenCore tuning (WhateverGreen options) might help.

 

[Tom.Tom]

- Can anyone point me to videos or post on applying the copperplate? Any recommendations on where to get it?
- I've read Opencore install is required for brightness control. If so, my understanding that this is a separate partition on the HD, so will mean a wipe and reinstall of the disk?

Thank you

Copperplate:

• find a copper sheet (i.e.: https://www.ebay.com/itm/293553356196) - I usually use 1mm thick one,
• use a saw to cut out the 10x10mm square (measure your GPU processor dimensions to confirm that - better to make it 1mm larger than smaller),
• remove the protective foil from your plate (if there is any - check it - it may be hard to see, but still there!),
• use a small file to workout the edges and corners to make the cutout piece smooth. Wash it with water or use a compressed air - you do not want any copper fillings on your GPU
• put small amount (like a rice grain is enough) of a good quality thermal paste (no metal ingredients) on the GPU processor, then put your copper plate on it, then another thermal paste rice grain portion on the plate,
• put dedicated thermal conductor (it's not the same as the one for the GPU chip) like pad or paste on the vRam chips and coils (look how it was done with the original GPU),
• remove old thermal paste from radiator,
• install the GPU on the radiator - be careful to avoid moving the GPU while it is positioned on the radiator.

Find the attached photos with the tools I usually use for the above operation.

OpenCore:

It is installed on the hidden EFI partition that is created, when you format your disk as GPT. The OCLP will mount the partition and put the OC there - no need to reformat the whole drive.

Happy modding!

Tom

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

Copper Shims:

In case you are not very enjoying the idea of making your own copper shims:

Copper Cooling Thermal Pad Laptop CPU GPU Heat Sink Shim Sheet 15*15mm | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Copper Cooling Thermal Pad Laptop CPU GPU Heat Sink Shim Sheet 15*15mm at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

I bought ten pieces of each type (1mm & 0.5mm; 20x20 & 25x25mm) and was happy with them.

 

[Retromac2008]

can you install a 4570m/4850m (taken from imac 27 2009) on imac 27 2011 ?
it had 6970m, can i replace it with a older card with zero software changes ?

 

[Ausdauersportler]

can you install a 4570m/4850m on imac 27 2011 ?
it had 6970m, can i replace it with a older card with zero software changes ?

This is slightly off topic and will not work in all cases.

Replacements cards need to come from 27 iMac10,1 or iMac11,x systems. Cards from other iMac systems needs to be vBIOS flashed. A waste of time and effort.

 

[Retromac2008]

This is slightly off topic and will not work in all cases.

Replacements cards need to come from 27 iMac10,1 or iMac11,x systems. Cards from other iMac systems needs to be vBIOS flashed. A waste of time and effort.

cards are taken from imac 27 2009 (4570m from imac 27 10.1 ) ( 4850m from imac 27 11.1)
if i just install the card is it going to work ?
thank you !

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

cards are taken from imac 27 2009 (4570m from imac 27 10.1 ) ( 4850m from imac 27 11.1)
if i just install the card is it going to work ?
thank you !

There are successful examples. But it's called GPU downgrading, not upgrading. Therefore no people are interested...

 

[Retromac2008]

There are successful examples. But it's called GPU downgrading, not upgrading. Therefore no people are interested...

View attachment 1995214

thank you !
the hard question is : are both dp outputs ports going to work ? (they re tb1 ports, but they can work as dp outputs)


edit :
atm i m not installing a better card because i don t have a dremmel to modify gpu heatsink of my 6970m for a gtx 680m/780m/880m and i really really care to have 2 dp outputs (the main reason i m using this imac)

 

[Rick Cruser]

Experimental AMD M6000 2GB support (AMD Radeon R9 M370X 2GB)

Type	ident	BIOS version	device-id	working
Blue AMD PCB	109-C42251-00B	M6000	6825	yes

This GPU will be identified by the macOS as AMD FirePro M6000 and by MetalBench and GeekBench5 as AMD Radeon R9 M370X. The current vBIOS supports Hynix video memory.

Warning:
This card is easy to install but complex to manage during the initial software installation.
You need to install OpenCore in advance and add the changes posted before booting into macOS.

The card will not boot into macOS without the adjusted CAIL values in the config.plist.

Test:
iMac10,1- iMac11,1 - iMac11,3 sleep and wake fully functional with OCLP 0.3.2+
iMac12,2, sleep/wake issue

...

Because the Dell AMD M6100 did not work well (pram/nvram corruption) in the 2011 27" iMac 12,2 I purchased 2 other cards, an AMD FirePro M6000 2GB card and Dell FirePro M5100 2GB card. The M6000 arrived today, it is the same adapter specified here with the Hynix RAM and I had a 3-pipe heatsink, the card fit the heatsink just fine.

I followed the flashing/installation instructions and the adapter works perfectly running Big Sur with OCLP. So thank you to everyone for your work supporting these adapters. I expect the M5100 to arrive soon, I'll follow-up with any issues I encounter installing that adapter.

 

[gregazclark]

Copperplate:

• find a copper sheet (i.e.: https://www.ebay.com/itm/293553356196) - I usually use 1mm thick one,
• use a saw to cut out the 10x10mm square (measure your GPU processor dimensions to confirm that - better to make it 1mm larger than smaller),
• remove the protective foil from your plate (if there is any - check it - it may be hard to see, but still there!),
• use a small file to workout the edges and corners to make the cutout piece smooth. Wash it with water or use a compressed air - you do not want any copper fillings on your GPU
• put small amount (like a rice grain is enough) of a good quality thermal paste (no metal ingredients) on the GPU processor, then put your copper plate on it, then another thermal paste rice grain portion on the plate,
• put dedicated thermal conductor (it's not the same as the one for the GPU chip) like pad or paste on the vRam chips and coils (look how it was done with the original GPU),
• remove old thermal paste from radiator,
• install the GPU on the radiator - be careful to avoid moving the GPU while it is positioned on the radiator.

Find the attached photos with the tools I usually use for the above operation.

OpenCore:

It is installed on the hidden EFI partition that is created, when you format your disk as GPT. The OCLP will mount the partition and put the OC there - no need to reformat the whole drive.

Happy modding!

Tom

Thanks for all the help and tips from everyone - appreciated!!

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

edit :
atm i m not installing a better card because i don t have a dremmel to modify gpu heatsink of my 6970m for a gtx 680m/780m/880m and i really really care to have 2 dp outputs (the main reason i m using this imac)

You would need another 6970m for this reason.

 

[searge]

Update 12.3 failed on iMac 27‘‘ with k3100m (oclp 0.4) … System hangs on reboot .… Forgotten to make post install patch before reboot. Is there a simple solution to get the system patched with post install patch afterwards? Any help appreciated.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

Update 12.3 failed on iMac 27‘‘ with k3100m (oclp 0.4) … System hangs on reboot .… Forgotten to make post install patch before reboot. Is there a simple solution to get the system patched with post install patch afterwards? Any help appreciated.

Serious question?

The procedure is called post install patching on purpose.

You may consult the OCLP online documentation.

P.S. Monterey depends on OpenCore. (Usually ) Monterey latest needs OCLP latest. So always upgrade OCLP before updrading Monterey…0.4.3 is the latest one…

 

[madmac388]

anyone here got experience with GTX 970M 6GB ram?

 

[searge]

@Ausdauersportler: Sorry, I can‘t find “post install patching on purpose“ at OCLP online documentation. Can you offer me a link?
I already get an usb bootstick with latest Monterey and OCLP 0.4.3 prepared… guess I will need this.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

anyone here got experience with GTX 970M 6GB ram?

Wrong thread, the 970 is a Maxwell card lacking driver support with more recent macOS versions.

 

[PsychoSync]

@Ausdauersportler: Sorry, I can‘t find “post install patching on purpose“ at OCLP online documentation. Can you offer me a link?
I already get an usb bootstick with latest Monterey and OCLP 0.4.3 prepared… guess I will need this.

Once you've installed OCLP on your USB bootstick install and installed MacOS on your iMac do not reboot. Re-run OCLP on your newly installed OS but now instead of selecting the EFI partition of your bootstick, select the EFI partition of the new installed OS. Make sure to select your iMac model identifier in OCLP.

 

[Retromac2008]

You would need another 6970m for this reason.

ati6770m too right?
theoretically it should work 100%, I have no practical tests though

ihave 2 6970m but they re just not reliable:

I thought they only break when using the computer, but I think they break even if I don't turn on the PC for months. both with professional reballing and with oven-trick, they break even if I turn on the pc once a month

 

[Ausdauersportler]

There has never been such a thing like professional reballing with these cards. Baking has never been a lasting solution, it was all the time a big, big fraud.

A dying card remains a dying card and the on chip defects caused by an implementation mistake at ATI 10 years back was never fixed in a new generation - and surely not by baking.

 

[Retromac2008]

There has never been such a thing like professional reballing with these cards. Baking has never been a lasting solution, it was all the time a big, big fraud.

A dying card remains a dying card and the on chip defects caused by an implementation mistake at ATI 10 years back was never fixed in a new generation - and surely not by baking.

that's what I say too, that's why I exclude the 6970m, at most I could buy a 6770m

but I already have a 4850m and a 4570m from other imacs and I was wondering: if I mount them, are both MDP outputs going to work?

 

[quarkysg]

Need help from the expert in this thread.

I have an iMac 11,3 (27" mid-2010) that's upgraded to a Nvidia GTX765M (original GPU fried), flashed with NickD[v]B BIOS, and it is running macOS Mojave 10.14.6 that's patched with DosDude1's patcher. Needless to say my iMac screen is at full brightness.

I read the first post in this thread with the recommendation to go with OCLP instead, which I've tried.

I've tried Big Sur and Monterey installer, downloaded and USB installer created via OCLP. I'm using OCLP v0.4.3 GUI and also TUI version. Unfortunately both installer didn't work. When I boot into OCLP and then into the macOS Installer, it will load and then hangs for Big Sur. It never got into the installer GUI.

For Monterey, it got all the way into the Installer, but there's noBluetooth or Wi-Fi support, and when I proceed to install it anyway, the install never complete. It just hangs.

I've also tried with Mojave as well (configuring the manual settings as posted in Post 1), trying to install fresh. The situation is the same as Big Sur, in that it hangs while trying to load the Installer. Never got into the Install screens.

The only macOS install that I can successfully complete is for macOS High Sierra, and it can only be done via native boot, not thru OCLP. If I boot the High Sierra Installer thru OCLP, it just hangs without reaching the Install GUIs.

My objective is to get brightness control back for my iMac.

Has anyone with and iMac 11,3 with GTX765M successfully get OCLP working with any version of macOS and get native screen brightness control?