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DIY 5k Monitor - success :-)

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The first post of this thread is a WikiPost and can be edited by anyone with the appropiate permissions. Your edits will be public.
PaulD-UK said:
@razmanugget "Do most of you feel it is worth it to do this conversion?"

I don't think there would be 588K views and 2K+ replies to this topic without it having real value. :)

"I found a deal on a broken video card 2015 5k iMac for €160. I can't confirm the screen is working..."

That is a bit of a risk as you haven't seen if the screen works, and if there are any visible signs of aging, which the 2015 Mac screens are known to suffer from.

However using a 2015 iMac DIY monitor is certainly worthwhile if everything is working as it should, though later screens can give even better results...

"Usually, I enjoy projects like this, but I'm guessing it's 40 hours of work and research in order to save €600."

That's for you to decide. Most probably the saving is even more, and the quality and viewing experience of the iMac screen is SO much better than cheap/mid-price 4K screens...

Most of the research has already been done by the previous 2K contributors here. 😃

My personal view is:
Later 2017 onwards screens are better, and less old, so probably have a longer future life.
Consequently, if you wish to build the best 5K monitor you can, start with a later screen.

So, for an older screen, choose a cheaper video driver card to fit in it.
Like a R9A18, or a JRY-W9RQUHD-FA1.
If you need USB-C PD power for a laptop, then a JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 has a USB-C input port.

For anyone with a late-2014 screen, then it would be quite reasonable to choose the most basic video board, the JRY-W9CUHD-AA1.

@mmyk "I, however, have very little experience with electrical projects so I see this is like a nice opportunity to learn something new."

👍 That is indeed the basis of undertaking this type of project.
And buying the tools needed if the conversion needs them, if you don't already have them.

Edit:
€160 is a fair price for a 10 year old iMac screen in good condition, without pink edges etc...
If you trust the vendor then there is no real problem.
But a broken 2015 iMac is not exactly a valuable commodity.
Who else will buy it?
Only someone who is prepared to take the risk. ;)
Click to expand...
Love this advice. Thank you!

Maybe I'll wait and go for a 2017 screen instead
 
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BTW, the first post is now a WikiPost. Who wants to make the first edit? It should keep the info of the first post, maybe reorganize it if necessary, and summarize new and interesting info from the rest of the thread.
 
My JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 board arrived today. Has anybody knowledge about the polarity of the power input?
I assume the inner pin is +, but i dont like to try it before i have a confirm about it.
 
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razmanugget said:
Do most of you feel it is worth it to do this conversion? I found a deal on a broken video card 2015 5k iMac for €160. I can't confirm the screen is working, but I'm a little tempted to try.

Usually, I enjoy projects like this, but I'm guessing it's 40 hours of work and research in order to save €600.

What are your thoughts?
Click to expand...
Definitely worth the total of approx. $500 I paid for the late 2015 iMac and assorted parts (after reselling the iMac logic board on ebay). Even on sale you're looking at $1200 for an ASD - which has a fan in it which some people say they can hear. My build is fanless and totally quiet to go along with my fanless M2 MacBook Air.
 
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My SA1 board arrived, and I've been very busy designing 3d parts (so far, a board base and the PSU holder, got some ideas for the ports).

Tried the board and is working great, so 'd like to work on the remaining electrical connections, specifically, I'd like to use a small 5d rocker to replace (or use instead of) the small control board with the push buttons (will install it in the network port):

- has anybody tried to use a small 5-way joystick with an SA1 board?
- does anybody have an electrical diagram of the SA1 control board/push buttons?
- for the folks that have already done something similar, did you replace the control board (plugging directly to the main board, or did you solder over the pin connectors in the control board?
- lastly, any picture will be appreciated

I'm planning to use the following Five Direction Navigation Button Module for Arduino

IMG_6221.jpeg
 
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Forgive the intrusion folks but this thread seems to be /only/ place on the entire web where some people have said they've converted a mid-2017 21.5" 4K iMac (the other thread Google returns has 1 reply, with the OP being told to 'look' here for answers).

I recently bought a 14" MacBook Pro and as it's ~10x the speed of my iMac, I want to use it at my desk with a monitor. All of the 32", 27" and 24" 4K monitors I've looked at are… sub-par to the iMac display. They're not as sharp, bright, or glossy as it. If I can repurpose my iMac as a monitor that would be sweet since, y'know, I already have the iMac and a £60 display board conversion is cheaper than plumping for a dim, blurry 4K external.

From what I've gleaned from the occasional older post about it in this thread, the process of converting a 4K is significantly simpler than doing a 5K (oh that I could </3).

Single display board, cables/controls that come off it, and a specific type of 12v DC power adapter. No heatsinks, breakouts, or separate backlight controllers, and speakers work without crossovers (not that I use the internal speakers). Since the 21.5 doesn't have a RAM hatch I'd need to remove the power socket port and thread things out of that (Untidy, but what I can't see won't matter). And I should need use DP not HDMI for best colour/res.

I want to go head and buy the board so I can start enjoying my M4, but the panel model version support bit is confusing me a little, and I don't want to get it wrong.

So, most AE listings for the CY.R9513 boards (which seem to either be V4 or V5 now, if that matters) state they work with LM215UH1-SDA1, SDB1, SPA1 and SPA2 panels, i.e., one board works with all of those. However, a couple of other (cheaper) listings ask me to select which panel I have prior to ordering, suggesting that that matters.

Do I need to open the iMac and check my board? I last opened it in 2021 to upgrade the RAM and tbh the adhesive side was a total chore. As I still use my iMac daily for work, and the display board wouldn't arrive for about 2 weeks at best, I'd ideally like to only have to open it once.

If anyone has knowledge or experience in converting a 21.5" 4K iMac to an external monitor, or any pointers on the process in general from having done it or heard people who have, that would be SUPER appreciated 🙏.
 
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PaulD-UK said:
@ItsAShaunParty "What's the deal with these other boards? For example, this one at Aliexpress or this one?"

They are both the same, the JRY-W9CUHD-AA1, which is a lower spec board with a earlier video controller chip.
1. Only 5K/60 8 bit over DP.
2. Only 5K/30 8 bit over HDMI.
3. No DDC keyboard control of brightness or audio level from the Mac (with additional software).
You have to use the button strip.

One further caution is that some of the cheap AA1 boards being sold are 'second hand', having been removed from the m Chinese brand monitors they were originally in.
These ones seem new, and are cheaper because its mostly the more recent better-specced boards that are being ordered in US/EU/UK.
Click to expand...
I read your last comment. I have a 2017 iMac. Does that mean I should get the pricey board?

As you can tell, I've been thinking about this a lot.

What am I losing if I buy a simple board for under $100? For example: this.
 
pnwkayaker said:
My SA1 board arrived, and I've been very busy designing 3d parts (so far, a board base and the PSU holder, got some ideas for the ports).

Tried the board and is working great, so 'd like to work on the remaining electrical connections, specifically, I'd like to use a small 5d rocker to replace (or use instead of) the small control board with the push buttons (will install it in the network port):

- has anybody tried to use a small 5-way joystick with an SA1 board?
- does anybody have an electrical diagram of the SA1 control board/push buttons?
- for the folks that have already done something similar, did you replace the control board (plugging directly to the main board, or did you solder over the pin connectors in the control board?
- lastly, any picture will be appreciated

I'm planning to use the following Five Direction Navigation Button Module for Arduino

View attachment 2483739
Click to expand...
I notice you're keeping the speakers. What's your plan for the LCD board/speakers?
 
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@ItsAShaunParty "I have a 2017 iMac. Does that mean I should get the pricey board?
What am I losing if I buy a simple board for under $100?"

The only <$100 is the JRY-W9CUHD-AA1.
1. It is only capable of 16.7 million 8 bit colour. Other boards do 1.07 billion colours (10 bit).
2. It is only capable of 5K30Hz using the HDMI port. Other boards can do 5K60 using HDMI.

The first is not a problem if you are only going to browse the web, or view YT. The web is mostly compressed to 8 bits. ;)
If you use Photoshop or do picture editing, then 8 bit colour means only 256 steps in a single colour gradient, which is quite noticeable, especially on a 27" screen.

Your 2017 screen has a full colour P3 color space panel, this is Apple introduction to its capabilities in 2017:

developer.apple.com

Get Started with Display P3 - WWDC17 - Videos - Apple Developer

Wide color displays allow your app to display richer, more vibrant and lifelike colors than ever before. Get a primer on color...
developer.apple.com developer.apple.com

So a better 10 bit board can give much better results.

It isn't necessarily a lot more expensive, the JRY-W9RQUHD-FA1 is capable of 10 bit performance, or the slightly more expensive JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 if you need USB-C.

What the R1811 gives you is better firmware, so you get an OSD which gives more information, and more control.
And it uses an IR remote control.

"What's your plan for the... speakers?"

This thread has gone into audio in some detail in previous posts. 🫨
The R1811/R9A18 have a 10 watt amplifier, and running the speakers through suitable crossover units, can give OK to very good results.
The JRY boards use a 2 or 3 watt amplifier which can give the sort of sound you get in the average $300 monitor.
I don't have personal experience of anything else than my R1811.
 
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PaulD-UK said:
@d0od
There are a few people here like @tcapanema who have done a 4K conversion.
And:
If you read on down the page there is more:

Also @sec89 :

Also @6-Colors says he has done it, but not posted details.
Click to expand...

Thanks,

I had read @tcapanema's posts but I hadn't come across @sec89's when searching.

Hopefully someone who's bought and used the CY.R9513 can confirm if one board does support all 4 possible panel models used in the 2017 4k (as some listings seem to indicate but as it's machine English from Chinese nuance and specificity can be sus') or if a specific board is needed for a specific model as some other listings seem to suggest.

I don't like the sound of losing 10-bit colour given I edit video, but given most 27" 4k externals are 8-bit anyway, it's by-the-by (and I can colour audit on the MacBook's XDR display).

It's great to *see* it can be done/does work though.
 
d0od said:
Thanks,

I had read @tcapanema's posts but I hadn't come across @sec89's when searching.

Hopefully someone who's bought and used the CY.R9513 can confirm if one board does support all 4 possible panel models used in the 2017 4k (as some listings seem to indicate but as it's machine English from Chinese nuance and specificity can be sus') or if a specific board is needed for a specific model as some other listings seem to suggest.

I don't like the sound of losing 10-bit colour given I edit video, but given most 27" 4k externals are 8-bit anyway, it's by-the-by (and I can colour audit on the MacBook's XDR display).

It's great to *see* it can be done/does work though.
Click to expand...
I have the CY.R9513 V5 (try to get this one as it's got the remote and is the latest revision of the board).

I sent the seller the image below before purchasing from Taobao, to which he replied with "OK".

I think they might change the firmware depending on the revision of the panel, for instance mine was the (SD)(B1).
1740014577134.png


By the way, the black levels were completely off. For the most accurate colour with the R9513 V5, this is what I set in the monitor settings:
PictureBrightness64
ColorGammaOff
TemperatureUserR: 115
G: 114
B: 120
PCMNative

Additionally you can save your iMac 4k's colour profile from /Library/ColorSync/Profiles/Displays to a USB or Google Drive, and reuse it after the conversion for the most accurate colour.
 
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Just an update of my conversion. I placed my board JRY-W9RQUHD-SA1 at the place of the HD, i had an ssd only late 2015 imac. Unfortunately i had to remove the ventilator to get the powersupply connected, that makes the imac unusable at the moment. I drilled a hole at the back of the imac to get the power and usb cable into the imac.
At the top i removed a little aluminum to move out the controlerstrip.
The powersupply remained outside the mac and the macmini is connected via usb, works well.
Unfortunately a tiny crack of the screen increased in size that it now crossed the whole screen. But the screen is working and i can not see the crack when i look normal from the front, the crack can be seen when looking from the side.
At the moment the screen is held by tape from the outside to be able to remove the screen more easy. In future i will try to reattach the ventilator of the imac that the imac can be used with an external monitor. I am aware that i have to handle the throtteling of the imac. I gave up the idear to move out the connectors of the screen that i can switch between imac and monitor use just by replug theconnectors without opening the imac. Tha connectors are too fragile for me.
 
Hi,
Has anyone tried to remove the AC socket (the whole thing with EM filter)? I have removed several screws but it is still held in place by something else.
iMac AC socket.jpg
 
@mmyk It's held in place with glue.
If you use a hairdryer for a while on the outside of the case to get it warm then you can lever the socket off with a thin metal prying tool - I used an old narrow wood chisel, carefully!
 
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