2019 iMac Pro-Should I upgrade the RAM?

[kcrossley]

The display on my trusty 2019 iMac Pro has the infamous dirt under the display problem that's been noted on this website. As a result, the screen will be replaced under the AppleCare warranty. My authorized Apple service provider only charges $119 to upgrade the RAM since they need to tear apart the system anyway. To me, that sounds like a pretty good deal. OWC is currently charging $369.99 for 128GB of RAM.

I use this computer for graphic design, website development, and light Final Cut Pro video production. Will upgrading the memory get me a few more years out of it? Lately, it seems a little sluggish. I'm unsure if that's due to the latest Apple OS and the fact that this machine only has 32GB of RAM. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[wilberforce]

There is no 2019 iMac Pro, unless it was a minor update to the 2017 iMac Pro.
Assuming you mean iMac Pro, not the regular 2019 iMac, then $119 is a good deal if that includes the parts cost of the RAM.

If it is the regular 2019 iMac, then upgrade the RAM yourself

 

[kcrossley]

There is no 2019 iMac Pro, unless it was a minor update to the 2017 iMac Pro.
Assuming you mean iMac Pro, not the regular 2019 iMac, then $119 is a good deal if that includes the parts cost of the RAM.

If it is the regular 2019 iMac, then upgrade the RAM yourself

My bad. It's a 2017 iMac Pro model, I purchased it new in 2019. $119 is just for the RAM installation. The 128GB of memory is an additional $369.99.

 

[wilberforce]

My bad. It's a 2017 iMac Pro model, I purchased it new in 2019. $119 is just for the RAM installation. The 128GB of memory is an additional $369.99.

I personally would just get an additional 32GB, assuming some slots are open and all DIMMs are the same. This would give a total of 64GB which is substantial. Going to 128GB would likely give little improvement, unless you are doing very memory-intensive work, Check your memory pressure in Activity Monitor. If it is green, I expect 64GB will be fine.

 

[macguru9999]

The 2019 iMac has a RAM door ... sure upgrade it all you want good idea. The 2017 imac pro has no ram door and you have to pull out the frigging motherboard to add ram. Just on principal I would sell it and get something else, even though I could do the upgrade.

 

[Regulus67]

I personally would just get an additional 32GB, assuming some slots are open and all DIMMs are the same. This would give a total of 64GB which is substantial.

Fairly certain this is bad advice. The iMac Pro has 4 RAM slots. 32 GB = 4x 8GB.

Is it the version with Vega 64X ?
Vega 64X

edit: You can upgrade the CPU, RAM and SSD. But not the graphic card.
Not a bad idea, when the screen is replaced anyway. In my opinion.

 

[Regulus67]

To check the memory modules.
About this Mac -> Overview -> System Report...

 

[chrfr]

My bad. It's a 2017 iMac Pro model, I purchased it new in 2019. $119 is just for the RAM installation. The 128GB of memory is an additional $369.99.

If you're not using up all the RAM that's already in the computer, you won't see any performance improvement by upgrading the RAM. I'd probably just put that $489 aside and use it toward a newer faster computer in the future.

 

[kcrossley]

The 2019 iMac has a RAM door ... sure upgrade it all you want good idea. The 2017 imac pro has no ram door and you have to pull out the frigging motherboard to add ram. Just on principal I would sell it and get something else, even though I could do the upgrade.

Unfortunately, my principal is on a tight budget these days, but I totally agree with your sentiments.

 

[kcrossley]

I personally would just get an additional 32GB, assuming some slots are open and all DIMMs are the same. This would give a total of 64GB which is substantial. Going to 128GB would likely give little improvement, unless you are doing very memory-intensive work, Check your memory pressure in Activity Monitor. If it is green, I expect 64GB will be fine.

That's a pretty good idea. Plus, it would save me $220, which is always a good thing. Thanks!

 

[kcrossley]

Fairly certain this is bad advice. The iMac Pro has 4 RAM slots. 32 GB = 4x 8GB.

Is it the version with Vega 64X ?
Vega 64X

View attachment 2350256

edit: You can upgrade the CPU, RAM and SSD. But not the graphic card.
Not a bad idea, when the screen is replaced anyway. In my opinion.

It has a Radeon Pro Vega 56 with 8 GB of RAM. As far as system RAM, you are correct. All (4) slots are occupied. 4 x 8GB = 32GB.

I didn't know you could upgrade the CPU and SSD in this model. Do you have any more information on these upgrades, like where I can purchase a CPU or SSD to fit? Thanks!

 

[kcrossley]

To check the memory modules.
About this Mac -> Overview -> System Report...

 

[kcrossley]

If you're not using up all the RAM that's already in the computer, you won't see any performance improvement by upgrading the RAM. I'd probably just put that $489 aside and use it toward a newer faster computer in the future.

That's the problem. With the new MacOS upgrades and all the apps I'm running, I am maxing out the 32GB of stock memory.

 

[wilberforce]

You haven't gone deep enough in the System Report to show what DIMMs are in which slots

 

[Regulus67]

kcrossley, you have the same model as I do 👍. But I still run Monterey

CPU upgrade options
10-core Xeon W-2150B (apple) or W-2155
14-core Xeon W-2170B
18-core W-2191B

The 10-core is said to be the fastest all-round.
ebay 10-core

Memory upgrade
64GB ECC RAM from ebay, or 64GB OWC

You can even upgrade the storage
Apple 2TB SSD
The original SSDs for the iMac has the metal cover, for cooling I suppose.
But I believe the SSDs for the Mac Pro 7.1 will also work.
The iMac Pro can be upgraded to 4TB, and perhaps even 8TB storage.

But be aware that if you consider upgrading the storage, the new Apple SSD kits for the Apple Silicon Mac Pro 8.1 does not work.

 

[Regulus67]

A side note
The iMac Pro with 18-core is said to be as fast as the Mac Pro 7.1 with 16-cores.
But it can not upgrade the graphic card.
I have the Mac Pro 7.1 with 16-cores. 192GB memory and Vega II. So I stopped considering upgrading the iMac Pro for now.
But if for some reason I will have to open it, I would upgrade to the 10-core for sure. I already purchased the kit from iFixIt to remove the screen.

edit:
There is one reason why you might not want to upgrade the iMac Pro.
If you wish to use Sonoma, and future MacOS versions. It will most likely be better to go with an Apple Silicon Mac, and leave the Intel Macs
Even if you will no longer have the great 27" iMac Screen

 

[chrfr]

There is one reason why you might not want to upgrade the iMac Pro.
If you wish to use Sonoma, and future MacOS versions. It will most likely be better to go with an Apple Silicon Mac, and leave the Intel Macs
Even if you will no longer have the great 27" iMac Screen

The iMac Pro works totally fine on Sonoma. If the OP wants to use Final Cut Pro and stay up to date with features they need to keep updating the operating system.

 

[kcrossley]

You haven't gone deep enough in the System Report to show what DIMMs are in which slots

 

[kcrossley]

kcrossley, you have the same model as I do 👍. But I still run Monterey

CPU upgrade options
10-core Xeon W-2150B (apple) or W-2155
14-core Xeon W-2170B
18-core W-2191B

The 10-core is said to be the fastest all-round.
ebay 10-core

Memory upgrade
64GB ECC RAM from ebay, or 64GB OWC

You can even upgrade the storage
Apple 2TB SSD
The original SSDs for the iMac has the metal cover, for cooling I suppose.
But I believe the SSDs for the Mac Pro 7.1 will also work.
The iMac Pro can be upgraded to 4TB, and perhaps even 8TB storage.

But be aware that if you consider upgrading the storage, the new Apple SSD kits for the Apple Silicon Mac Pro 8.1 does not work.

I really like the idea of upgrading the CPU, especially since I was going to ask the Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP) to repaste the CPU as well. Where can I purchase a new CPU? The only reason I ask is if I purchase a used one it may void my AppleCare agreement, which I'm assuming would still be valid since these modifications are being done by an AASP. Thanks!

 

[chrfr]

I really like the idea of upgrading the CPU, especially since I was going to ask the Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP) to repaste the CPU as well. Where can I purchase a new CPU? The only reason I ask is if I purchase a used one it may void my AppleCare agreement, which I'm assuming would still be valid since these modifications are being done by an AASP. Thanks!

Yeah if you still have AppleCare and don't want to lose that coverage, upgrading the CPU is out of the question.

 

[wilberforce]

OK, all slots are full, which reduces your options. I think on this machine all slots must have same DIMMs

 

[macguru9999]

I still think you may be ahead selling it and getting an M2/3 mac. A 16g m2 mac mini would outperform it.

 

[kcrossley]

I still think you may be ahead selling it and getting an M2/3 mac. A 16g m2 mac mini would outperform it.

I was really hoping that Apple would introduce another iMac Pro. Perhaps even a 32" model, but it doesn't seem like that's going to happen. I'll probably hang on to my iMac Pro for another two years and then upgrade to a Mac mini or Mac Studio. In any event, I'll likely keep the iMac Pro as a home computer.