Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
AMD Radeon R9 M295X Core Clock Throttling, Heat, and Performance
- Thread starter Fenn
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I played COD:AW for a few hours yesterday at 4k, med to max settings on everything. No shuddering, runs like butter and looks amazing! I do not care if it throttles or not. For all we know this could be AMD's PowerTune in play.
I was surprised that an iMac would be able to handle this game with these settings. I never expected it to. This thing can run Crysis 3 on High for christ's sake.
With Applecare you are guaranteed for 3 years if anything will ever happen to the iMac, If there will be an issue with the GPU failing, Apple will adjust to fix the issue.
Almost, it was actually 3840x2160, the max Windows 8.1 seems to support. Medium to High settings.
I could screenshot the settings I have on later. I'm probably half way through the game. There were a few missions (scenes) where I noticed frame rate dropped. It was very specific places in the game and happened only twice for a brief 10-30 seconds out of 4-5 hours (one of them was walking on ATLAS campus between two buildings). I believe might have more to do with the game then the video card as any other scenes with a lot more moving objects and open areas play buttery smooth.
This is interesting. My Mac Pro has a HD7950, I can OC it to 1075MHz which will perform close to the M295X.
I don't have COD:AW PC version (I play that on my XB1), but I did play TR on my 4K TV (3840x2160) few months ago, there is no way that I can have such high FPS with max setting.
May be COD:AW is a better written game, and the driver also perform better on Win8.1.
Anyway, for those who want to know more how the mobile GPU perform. Barefeats already done the test to compare the 780, 780M, R290X, and M295X.
I don't have COD:AW PC version (I play that on my XB1), but I did play TR on my 4K TV (3840x2160) few months ago, there is no way that I can have such high FPS with max setting.
May be COD:AW is a better written game, and the driver also perform better on Win8.1.
Anyway, for those who want to know more how the mobile GPU perform. Barefeats already done the test to compare the 780, 780M, R290X, and M295X.
Last edited:
I have no doubt that you are one of the lucky minority that for Apple have a very good thermal paste job. What's your idle temps for the cpu and gpu in 8.1? Macsfancotrol for bootcamp may support the 5k..
Sorry, I'm the 2013 780M owner who posted above with Skyrim temps (hence the lower numbers). Idle both i7 and 780M seem to sit around 30-40C, depending on ambient room temp.
I7/m295x heating issue concern
I have an i7/m295x. It's the first apple product I've ever bought. I actually love my iMac. I knew I would not be able to game seriously on my iMac but still thought/wanted the ability to play less demanding games on my iMac every now and then.
I have an app called temperature gauge. If I'm just surfing my gpu is about 40 degrees. When I'm streaming videos it's about 60 degrees. If I'm surfing and watch videos then the temperature is about 70 degrees. I'm ok with this but the issue is gaming.
Divinity Original sin at max detail 2k resolution the temperature is around 102 degrees Celsius. Even if I drop it to medium detail at 1080p the gpu temperature is 90 degrees. I'm very disappointed/worried by this. After spending £3000 on my new computer step up (2500 on the iMac itself) I want it to last at least 4-5 years but I don't think it will last that long if I game on this machine even occasionally.
My question (for which I would be grateful for a response) is for anyone with a iMac 5k m295x. Can you game without your gpu hitting these high temperatures? What I want to establish is whether I have a defective card or whether this issue is normal?
Please don't respond by saying you get excellent frame rates. IDC because so do I! What I'm concerned about is GPU temperatures and the long term longevity of my iMac. Also there is no need to tell me an iMac is not for gaming. I already know this, but having the option to play the occasional game that was NOT graphically intense is what I wanted. I'm in two minds as to whether or not I should return it
I have an i7/m295x. It's the first apple product I've ever bought. I actually love my iMac. I knew I would not be able to game seriously on my iMac but still thought/wanted the ability to play less demanding games on my iMac every now and then.
I have an app called temperature gauge. If I'm just surfing my gpu is about 40 degrees. When I'm streaming videos it's about 60 degrees. If I'm surfing and watch videos then the temperature is about 70 degrees. I'm ok with this but the issue is gaming.
Divinity Original sin at max detail 2k resolution the temperature is around 102 degrees Celsius. Even if I drop it to medium detail at 1080p the gpu temperature is 90 degrees. I'm very disappointed/worried by this. After spending £3000 on my new computer step up (2500 on the iMac itself) I want it to last at least 4-5 years but I don't think it will last that long if I game on this machine even occasionally.
My question (for which I would be grateful for a response) is for anyone with a iMac 5k m295x. Can you game without your gpu hitting these high temperatures? What I want to establish is whether I have a defective card or whether this issue is normal?
Please don't respond by saying you get excellent frame rates. IDC because so do I! What I'm concerned about is GPU temperatures and the long term longevity of my iMac. Also there is no need to tell me an iMac is not for gaming. I already know this, but having the option to play the occasional game that was NOT graphically intense is what I wanted. I'm in two minds as to whether or not I should return it
y-Rex, I share your concern.
currently, there is no official statement by apple nor any rumors about an update to the situation. I'm not even sure, there is a solution/firmware fix.
my strategy is to observe for couple of days/weeks longer and if apple doesn't fix/comment on it, I'll return mine.
meanwhile I found that play wow on bootcamp limits my fps to half but also there is no heating/fan noise.
so choose nice gaming with totally annoying fan noise and long term heat damage or crappy game experience without noise.
my guess is that apple was aware of the issue but decided to proceed, since gaming community is small on imacs. any long term effect is currently unnknown also by apple so take apple care, game as hard as you can and hope in 3 years it'll crash and you'll get a new one for free.
either way, let's face it: people are complaining and it's an issue. tim cook let us down.
currently, there is no official statement by apple nor any rumors about an update to the situation. I'm not even sure, there is a solution/firmware fix.
my strategy is to observe for couple of days/weeks longer and if apple doesn't fix/comment on it, I'll return mine.
meanwhile I found that play wow on bootcamp limits my fps to half but also there is no heating/fan noise.
so choose nice gaming with totally annoying fan noise and long term heat damage or crappy game experience without noise.
my guess is that apple was aware of the issue but decided to proceed, since gaming community is small on imacs. any long term effect is currently unnknown also by apple so take apple care, game as hard as you can and hope in 3 years it'll crash and you'll get a new one for free.
either way, let's face it: people are complaining and it's an issue. tim cook let us down.
Last edited:
Thank's for your reply. It's particularly annoying since people with last gen iMac are able to game with only 70 degree celsius temperature (according to some posts here). So that proves it's possible to game with this form factor but they have chosen a graphic card that makes it impossible to do so!
How long can one wait to return his iMac for a full refund? Unfortunately my old PC is pretty messed up so I don't have a lot of options if I return this machine. Nothing really matches the elegance and class of an iMac.
14 days from the Apple Store.
You have the option to go for the 290x which runs much cooler. You should be able to do some casual gaming on that one too.
And there is of course the 2013 model, but I doubt you'll be happy with the screen after having a taste of the retina.
Even with my 780M under bootcamp i had 100C...but under OSX it's less
So try, if you can to try under Yosemite, even if Yosemite it's worse than Mavericks
I guess you haven't followed Apple for the last 6-7 years...
2008 MBP 15 Nvidia 8600GT gpu failures - lawsuits then recall
2010 MacBook pro 15 igpu failures
2011 iMac AMD Gpu Heat failures
2011 mbp 15 AMD GPU Heat failures
All of those either required a lawsuit or the filing of one before Apple took care of customers who didn't have AppleCare or it expired
Looking at the list above shows me that if Apple could get away from discrete gpus entirely they would at a moments notice, but it's going to be another 5 years or so before igpus can power a 5k screen well.
14 days from the Apple Store.
You have the option to go for the 290x which runs much cooler. You should be able to do some casual gaming on that one too.
And there is of course the 2013 model, but I doubt you'll be happy with the screen after having a taste of the retina.
Thanks for the advice but something about downgrading doesn't sit right with me. I have a PS4 anyway so I guess I'll use that exclusively for gaming. My 14 days are up tomorrow I don't have much time to decide. I guess I'll keep the iMac since it's good for everything but gaming. Just annoying knowing you spent £2000+ on a machine that can't even play a game like divinity on medium setting without burning up! I'll have to think twice before buying Apple again...
----------
But I am using Yosemite? That's what the new iMac came with.
So I decided to test my temps on GW2. I started noticing fan noise (while not wearing earphones/music) around 98 degrees, then it dropped down, at one point, I got to 100 degrees, fans kicked it more aggressively, but then dropped down and the temps dropped down as well. GW2 varies though because more people = more intense GPU activity. Normally, I wear an earbud and don't hear fan noise over the game sounds which I have at a pretty low setting. But the temp sat around 90/92 degrees the entire time except for the few bursts.
Sorry it's not about the 5k screen at all. The GPU heats up to an insane 90+ degree celsius when playing games on 1080p.
The current GPU can power the 5k screen just fine. The CPU/GPU run my iMac flawlessly with everything apart from gaming. You don't have to wait 5 years at all unless you want to game at 5k that is.
RiMac GPU gets hot but runs great (Retina iMac 5k)
Video showing the GPU temps and fan speed sound. iMac 5k with i7 and M295X.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-C--WGBELg
It does get hot (105 C/ 221 F) but has never slowed down or given me any problems. I have been using the Retina iMac 5k for a few weeks and it hasn't given me any problems. And only the GPU gets hot not anything else.
I have also loaded Windows 10 on it and ran some benchmarks, it actually performed a little better than in OS X but I mostly use it in Yosemite OS X.
Windows 10 on Retina iMac 5k Benchmarks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3HVVx9z5sw
Maybe Apple and AMD added some black magic to keep it from burning up!
Video showing the GPU temps and fan speed sound. iMac 5k with i7 and M295X.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-C--WGBELg
It does get hot (105 C/ 221 F) but has never slowed down or given me any problems. I have been using the Retina iMac 5k for a few weeks and it hasn't given me any problems. And only the GPU gets hot not anything else.
I have also loaded Windows 10 on it and ran some benchmarks, it actually performed a little better than in OS X but I mostly use it in Yosemite OS X.
Windows 10 on Retina iMac 5k Benchmarks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3HVVx9z5sw
Maybe Apple and AMD added some black magic to keep it from burning up!
I don't think you understood what I meant. I know both AMD gpus can power the 5k adequately other than gaming, what igpu means is integrated gpu like iris in Haswell. So my last statement is that it's going to be another 5 years before an integrated (gpu only like the 2014 Mac mini , not a cpu/gpu combo like 2014 rimac) igpu like iris not a discrete or dgpu like the m290x
that's it, just hit return to apple button before my 14 days return phase.
my reason is simple: I've been buying apple since 1991 and as a computer engineer i know why: to get hard and software so tuned to each other that I can fully focus on my work and play.
the new imac 5k doesn't let me focus on that but disturbs me and shatters my belief in apple to build an elegant, silent and yet powerful computer I can use without care and be amazed at.
i'll wait now for months to see if I'm buying a new one or wait until the next generation. this is sad! I've owned several 10k$ of apple shares.
my reason is simple: I've been buying apple since 1991 and as a computer engineer i know why: to get hard and software so tuned to each other that I can fully focus on my work and play.
the new imac 5k doesn't let me focus on that but disturbs me and shatters my belief in apple to build an elegant, silent and yet powerful computer I can use without care and be amazed at.
i'll wait now for months to see if I'm buying a new one or wait until the next generation. this is sad! I've owned several 10k$ of apple shares.