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.
DIY 5k Monitor - success :-)
- Thread starter fiatlux
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Thanks! And an external VESA holder for an iMac 2017 does not exist? Or then only from Apple (I didn't find that either) and very expensive?
@Aiwi Can you still remember how you fit the webcam into the original Facetime holder? I have the same 4k Webcam.
I saw it in the post #1,145 , but can't really follow.
So I first file left and right so that only the wall left and right remains? And then I file the height so far away that only the circle remains and the cam fits?
I had also printed the holder https://www.printables.com/de/model/310981-imac-27-2014-internal-usb-camera-mount but so the camera is mounted straight ahead. As far as I can see, the camera in the original holder is slightly bent down (looks down), isn't it? Is that the case with you too?
It's good if it's slightly bent down, right?
@Aiwi Can you still remember how you fit the webcam into the original Facetime holder? I have the same 4k Webcam.
I saw it in the post #1,145 , but can't really follow.
So I first file left and right so that only the wall left and right remains? And then I file the height so far away that only the circle remains and the cam fits?
I had also printed the holder https://www.printables.com/de/model/310981-imac-27-2014-internal-usb-camera-mount but so the camera is mounted straight ahead. As far as I can see, the camera in the original holder is slightly bent down (looks down), isn't it? Is that the case with you too?
It's good if it's slightly bent down, right?
Attachments
Last edited:
Yeah I was so eager I forgot to take photos of this.
Yes, correct. Basically:
- Cut off the tabs on the sides, so that the module can fit (marked in red).
- Grind down the flat surface, until the module can fit (marked in green). The module should rest on its metal surface. The black plastic middle part of the camera module should not touch the holder, as it might impact the auto focus functionality.
Thank you very much. I'll give it a try. I had printed the 3D print and the camera fits perfectly there (see picture), nothing wobbles. And it also fits perfectly in the iMac. I'm not sure, because the camera is exactly 90° to the display. In the original Facetime holder, the camera is slightly downwards I guess, right? Can you confirm that? Or does the camera also go 90° to the glass? Do you know that?
Most of the time, the monitor is slightly tilted backwards, the camera would probably show something over the head with the 3D print. I don't know.
Most of the time, the monitor is slightly tilted backwards, the camera would probably show something over the head with the 3D print. I don't know.
Last edited:
Yes, it should tilt down slightly, like it does on the original holder.
@Aiwi tell me, did you change anything on the iMac case?
I've ground so far, I can't do much more. Nevertheless, the camera at the back still looks relatively far out. And when I screw on the original Facetime holder, it's pretty much under pressure.
How did you go there? It seems to be the same camera.
I've ground so far, I can't do much more. Nevertheless, the camera at the back still looks relatively far out. And when I screw on the original Facetime holder, it's pretty much under pressure.
How did you go there? It seems to be the same camera.
Unfortunately no luck. The power supply hums loudly again. Isn't there a way to do something about humming? So at least it makes noise. I would have to see when the iMac is locked, how much you hear that. That should dampen a bit, right?
So as soon as I unplug the R1811 from the power supply, it no longer hums. If I plug it back in, it starts humming. As soon as the iMac display is on, the humming is almost gone. in standby it hums.
I don't want to spend €100 on a power supply...
Otherwise, I'll buy a closed power supply again. Do you have a recommendation, what also fits in the iMac case? But then I would also have to be able to connect the 5V converter. Hmm 😮💨
And is the external adapter only available directly from Apple or are there also third-party providers?
I can't find him. Do you have a link please?
Last edited:
Impossible for me to say if it is exactly the same. It looks like it is the same.
Just keep in grinding and it'll eventually fit
Hi @T-Bone90, see my post #512. Mine also hummed/squealed so I ended up putting in a latching switch, which was much cheaper than changing the PSU.
A question for the masses on here. Does anyone ground their PCB to the chassis? Is there any benefit to this?
Good question.
The data sheet (pdf download link) for the R1811 (the only board with any sort of documentation) does mention grounding:
"Pay Attention that 24V or 12V power adapter nominal output current is greater than
the The sum of current consumption between board and panel. If the power supply
shortage will cause the product does not work properly. Note: Some adapters poor
grounding interference may cause interference, you can solve the problem by
properly grounded."
I think this is referring to the grounding of the PSU (the 12v refers to the R9A18 board I guess).
The term 'Ground' is also used for the –ve lines on the eDP and V-by-One video output connectors.
It is also used for the –ve lines on the remote Control Strip.
And the top surface of the R1811's PCB has mounting holes that have metal rings.
So that seems like grounding is expected?
Certainly lots of pictures of people's built DIY monitors show metal bolts being used to mount the PCBs to the iMac case, so it seems to do no harm.
I took care to make sure my PSU has a proper ground connection to the mains input ground wire.
The data sheet (pdf download link) for the R1811 (the only board with any sort of documentation) does mention grounding:
"Pay Attention that 24V or 12V power adapter nominal output current is greater than
the The sum of current consumption between board and panel. If the power supply
shortage will cause the product does not work properly. Note: Some adapters poor
grounding interference may cause interference, you can solve the problem by
properly grounded."
I think this is referring to the grounding of the PSU (the 12v refers to the R9A18 board I guess).
The term 'Ground' is also used for the –ve lines on the eDP and V-by-One video output connectors.
It is also used for the –ve lines on the remote Control Strip.
And the top surface of the R1811's PCB has mounting holes that have metal rings.
So that seems like grounding is expected?
Certainly lots of pictures of people's built DIY monitors show metal bolts being used to mount the PCBs to the iMac case, so it seems to do no harm.
I took care to make sure my PSU has a proper ground connection to the mains input ground wire.
Last edited:
Thank you! But I don't want to install an extra switch.
There must be a way to get a power supply that doesn't hum and fits into the iMac case.
I have now read through some other posts but have not really read recommendations for other power supplies.
Not that the project fails because of it. 😖
///edit: Whether I can also take LED power supplies?
For example, I found this: https://www.voelkner.de/products/18...V-DC-PFC-Schaltkreis-Outdoor-einstellbar.html
Probably fits in from the height and has PFC. Designed for LEDs, it should also be able to control the screen, right?
Last edited:
@T-Bone90 That PSU may or may not work.
It's an LED constant-current driver, which means the output voltage may vary.
It is designed to be used with LEDs that need a constant 4A.
If 4A is not drawn by the LEDs, the output voltage varies between 16.8 ~ 24V.
And the specifications list Ausgangsstrom (min.): 2A (Output current minimum 2A).
So the PSU at 2A is maybe only going to supply 16.8V to the R1811, and if the current drawn is less than 2A, that suggests the PSU will 'Hiccup' - become unstable...
The R1811 can draw less than 2A if the screen brightness is at normal viewing settings.
But the data sheet, does seem to suggest that below this current, the PSU will provide constant 24V voltage.
@baggiero is using what looks like an LED driver PSU with his T19...
So maybe these PSUs can work?
Its probably worth a try?
MeanWell's diagram of the failure point:
It's an LED constant-current driver, which means the output voltage may vary.
It is designed to be used with LEDs that need a constant 4A.
If 4A is not drawn by the LEDs, the output voltage varies between 16.8 ~ 24V.
And the specifications list Ausgangsstrom (min.): 2A (Output current minimum 2A).
So the PSU at 2A is maybe only going to supply 16.8V to the R1811, and if the current drawn is less than 2A, that suggests the PSU will 'Hiccup' - become unstable...
The R1811 can draw less than 2A if the screen brightness is at normal viewing settings.
But the data sheet, does seem to suggest that below this current, the PSU will provide constant 24V voltage.
@baggiero is using what looks like an LED driver PSU with his T19...
So maybe these PSUs can work?
Its probably worth a try?
MeanWell's diagram of the failure point:
Last edited:
Thank you for the explanation! I really don't know anything about it.
Meanwell has a lot of power supplies on offer, no one really looks through them.
I also found some other MeanWell. All has PFC.
Maybe one of this is good?
Meanwell has a lot of power supplies on offer, no one really looks through them.
I also found some other MeanWell. All has PFC.
Maybe one of this is good?
Last edited:
Number 1 and 2 look possible.
3 and 4 are 38mm deep, so much more difficult to fit in the iMac case.
As they are all open PSUs with no noise encapsulation, any of them could turn out to be noisy at low loads - they don't seem to be able to handle no-load conditions silently...
But as they have PFC circuitry, which the LRS series doesn't have, that may make them more quiet?
(I don't know).
The 3rd one, PSP-100-24 has an on/off switch connection, so like @kevinherring has done, it could be connected to a latching switch to turn the PSU off when you go into standby mode.
3 and 4 are 38mm deep, so much more difficult to fit in the iMac case.
As they are all open PSUs with no noise encapsulation, any of them could turn out to be noisy at low loads - they don't seem to be able to handle no-load conditions silently...
But as they have PFC circuitry, which the LRS series doesn't have, that may make them more quiet?
(I don't know).
The 3rd one, PSP-100-24 has an on/off switch connection, so like @kevinherring has done, it could be connected to a latching switch to turn the PSU off when you go into standby mode.
Last edited:
Heh. Just today, I shaved down the sides of this one, using a rotary tool, so that it fits in my 2017 iMac case.
Hi @PaulD-UK I have bought the same Youmile fan controller that you linked to. Did you also add a 24vdc-12vdc buck converter? Or does the R1811 have a 12v connection somewhere that you tapped into? Thanks, Kevin@T-Bone90
6. Only using the R1811 fan will work.
Most builder haven't fitted another fan, and their monitor has worked fine.
I built mine with a fan because I was worried about heat, but the R1811 generates a lot less heat than I expected.
To control an iMac fan's speed you have to use a 4 wire PWM controller.
I used this one, but the Noctua NA-FC1 is easier to fit, soldering the wires and not using all the Noctua plugs/sockets.
I bought a converter which I reduced 24v to 10v for both fan controllers I fitted, centre pic 7, controllers either side.
Search for '5A 75W DC DC Adjustable Step-down Power Supply Module with Voltmeter Display':
But there are two 12v points on the R1811 - Whether the power switches off when the board goes into StandBy I don't know, presumably the fan one does, probably the other.
In the pic of the R1811 v3 you can see the fan taking its power from pins 3 (+) and 4 (–) of the Reserve Screen Voltage (JST PH 2mm 5 pin) connector.
Also from pins 1 or 2 (+) and pin 3 (–) of the DC Jack (JST XH 2.54mm 10 pin) connecter.
@webhdx used pins 1 and 3 to run the main fan in his build.
Both sockets counting from the left,
I've shown an underneath view to make it clear, PVCC is the screen driver voltage, which for an iMac screen is 12v+.
The pic of the fan connection shows the wires connected the other way, so bear in mind that the markings below need to be checked for accuracy, which I haven't done.
But this comes from the Datasheet as well as on my board.
Search for '5A 75W DC DC Adjustable Step-down Power Supply Module with Voltmeter Display':
But there are two 12v points on the R1811 - Whether the power switches off when the board goes into StandBy I don't know, presumably the fan one does, probably the other.
In the pic of the R1811 v3 you can see the fan taking its power from pins 3 (+) and 4 (–) of the Reserve Screen Voltage (JST PH 2mm 5 pin) connector.
Also from pins 1 or 2 (+) and pin 3 (–) of the DC Jack (JST XH 2.54mm 10 pin) connecter.
@webhdx used pins 1 and 3 to run the main fan in his build.
Both sockets counting from the left,
I've shown an underneath view to make it clear, PVCC is the screen driver voltage, which for an iMac screen is 12v+.
The pic of the fan connection shows the wires connected the other way, so bear in mind that the markings below need to be checked for accuracy, which I haven't done.
But this comes from the Datasheet as well as on my board.
Last edited:
I was trying to put my display back together and the R1811 touched the back of my iMac 5k display panel and there was a spark, now it's no longer working. I was wondering if this means a fuse is just blown on the board or my board/display is completely ruined now. I was wondering if anyone could help me with this, or could help me with the next steps now. Really upset by this, as its my first one of these projects
Sorry. Everyone's worst nightmare
Can you see where the spark came from on the R1811 board?
The fact that you noticed a spark makes it likely it was the backlight voltage circuit that was damaged - that's the part of the pcb above the 24v connector.
If it was the 24v input circuit that was shorted, that would mean everything will fail.
There are no fuses to protect the board, so the likelihood is that a component has been damaged.
Someone else in this thread had similar short-circuit damage, and he got a repair technician to find, and repair the fault. Not a DIY job, I'm afraid.
If it is the backlight circuitry that has failed, there is a very slight chance that fitting the DZ-LP0818 Backlight Constant Current board might make the board usable again, but really a technician would have to diagnose that the rest of the board is working still...
As a general rule, connecting the power while you are moving things around is not a good thing......
Can you see where the spark came from on the R1811 board?
The fact that you noticed a spark makes it likely it was the backlight voltage circuit that was damaged - that's the part of the pcb above the 24v connector.
If it was the 24v input circuit that was shorted, that would mean everything will fail.
There are no fuses to protect the board, so the likelihood is that a component has been damaged.
Someone else in this thread had similar short-circuit damage, and he got a repair technician to find, and repair the fault. Not a DIY job, I'm afraid.
If it is the backlight circuitry that has failed, there is a very slight chance that fitting the DZ-LP0818 Backlight Constant Current board might make the board usable again, but really a technician would have to diagnose that the rest of the board is working still...
As a general rule, connecting the power while you are moving things around is not a good thing......
Yeah I thought it was unplugged and was rushing to get it finishedSorry. Everyone's worst nightmare
Can you see where the spark came from on the R1811 board?
The fact that you noticed a spark makes it likely it was the backlight voltage circuit that was damaged - that's the part of the pcb above the 24v connector.
If it was the 24v input circuit that was shorted, that would mean everything will fail.
There are no fuses to protect the board, so the likelihood is that a component has been damaged.
Someone else in this thread had similar short-circuit damage, and he got a repair technician to find, and repair the fault. Not a DIY job, I'm afraid.
If it is the backlight circuitry that has failed, there is a very slight chance that fitting the DZ-LP0818 Backlight Constant Current board might make the board usable again, but really a technician would have to diagnose that the rest of the board is working still...
As a general rule, connecting the power while you are moving things around is not a good thing......
. I did have the DZ-LP0818 plugged in while it sparked, so is there a chance that only that board is broken and potentially the rest will be fine? I really just wondered if the process the repair technician took to identify the fault is something I would be able to do myself, the idea that the R1811 board is just scrap now is my worst nightmare, even worse if there is a possibility the panel was damaged by it. I almost don't know what action to take next and want to identify the point of faultOK, quick update from my side. Thank you @PaulD-UK for your recent help.
1. My first conversion 16 months ago with a R1811 (£219) + 2017 panel + Meanwell LRS-150-24 is still going strong described in post #512. Literally no complaints on that one. Some slight pinking around the edges but nothing significant, and this gets used for 8-10 hours most days with my MBP M2 Pro.
2. My second conversion 11 months ago was with R9A18 + 2015 panel + supplied PSU. This one had a few issues with getting an active picture when it was plugged in and was generally a bit unreliable. I found an interesting issue where grounding the panel (or removing the ground) to the chassis caused it to lose picture for a few seconds. I think I have solved this by adding a permanent ground wire between the two. However, bigger issues with this one as the panel fell off the chassis one night. D'oh! The display board survived, albeit with a bent eDP port, but the cable is damaged so shows a stretched image. Awaiting a new cable for this one. Also significant pinking on this. No issues on the lack of fan.
3. Just completed my third conversion with a JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 + 2015 panel + Meanwell LRS-150-24. (Bought from "LCD Driver wholesale Store" for ￡175.93) No fan, but much bigger heatsink than the R9A18. Slightly faster charging than the R1811 and cheaper. This one was marked as over $200 for customs so Royal Mail said I would have to pay customs/VAT however they haven't followed up on this. Don't forget to ask your sellers to mark it under $175! This supports HDR but looks no different. Again, significant pinking on this 2015 panel.
My thoughts:
1. My first conversion 16 months ago with a R1811 (£219) + 2017 panel + Meanwell LRS-150-24 is still going strong described in post #512. Literally no complaints on that one. Some slight pinking around the edges but nothing significant, and this gets used for 8-10 hours most days with my MBP M2 Pro.
2. My second conversion 11 months ago was with R9A18 + 2015 panel + supplied PSU. This one had a few issues with getting an active picture when it was plugged in and was generally a bit unreliable. I found an interesting issue where grounding the panel (or removing the ground) to the chassis caused it to lose picture for a few seconds. I think I have solved this by adding a permanent ground wire between the two. However, bigger issues with this one as the panel fell off the chassis one night. D'oh! The display board survived, albeit with a bent eDP port, but the cable is damaged so shows a stretched image. Awaiting a new cable for this one. Also significant pinking on this. No issues on the lack of fan.
3. Just completed my third conversion with a JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 + 2015 panel + Meanwell LRS-150-24. (Bought from "LCD Driver wholesale Store" for ￡175.93) No fan, but much bigger heatsink than the R9A18. Slightly faster charging than the R1811 and cheaper. This one was marked as over $200 for customs so Royal Mail said I would have to pay customs/VAT however they haven't followed up on this. Don't forget to ask your sellers to mark it under $175! This supports HDR but looks no different. Again, significant pinking on this 2015 panel.
My thoughts:
- The Meanwell PSUs are nice but they are noisy when idling. A latching button (as per post #512) is required if you want to kill the squeal.
- The speaker crossovers make very little difference - give them a miss.
- I was going to use the "Youmile Four-Wire Thermostat 12 V PWM Fan Speed Controller" but the plug on the apple fan is different and I didn't have a 12v supply, so I skipped it and hope there are no overheating problems.
- I order my latest lot of frame adhesive kit from Replace The Base on ebay and they seem better quality than the last lot - hoping this one doesn't have an overnight suicide tendencies!
- My preferred method of adding cables is to drill a hole through the Ram cover and use a blind grommet to make it neater. Now I just get a 1.5m 40Gbps USB cable plugged straight into the board as it's cheaper than using a short extension.
Quote: @kevinherring "The speaker crossovers make very little difference - give them a miss."
That's OK to connect the bass speaker direct (the Crossover unit with jumpers A and B connected is exactly that).
But including a 5-10 microfarad audio bipolar capacitor in line with each tweeter will increase the bass you hear.
So the better setting for the crossovers is to only connect jumpers B and C and D.
The correct order of the wires to the iMac's fans is to reverse the first two (from the L) power wires to go:
+ – Speed PWM.
PC fans go – + S P.
That's OK to connect the bass speaker direct (the Crossover unit with jumpers A and B connected is exactly that).
But including a 5-10 microfarad audio bipolar capacitor in line with each tweeter will increase the bass you hear.
So the better setting for the crossovers is to only connect jumpers B and C and D.
The correct order of the wires to the iMac's fans is to reverse the first two (from the L) power wires to go:
+ – Speed PWM.
PC fans go – + S P.
Last edited: