Yes, Hard Drive Seek was measured in the 2014 model and the results provided in the tech spec indicating a mechanical drive. Tech specs for 2017 and 2020 don’t have this test, implying that both were configured with a SSD drives, so in this case that was’t a contributing factor to 2020 being quieter.
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i7 (125w TDP) vs i9 (95w TDP) in iMacs 2020 - fan noise at idle
- Thread starter edib
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Yes, Hard Drive Seek was measured in the 2014 model and the results provided in the tech spec indicating a mechanical drive. Tech specs for 2017 and 2020 don’t have this test, implying that both were configured with a SSD drives, so in this case that was’t a contributing factor to 2020 being quieter.
I have had the 2020 i7 model for a few days now, and at idle it is not possible to hear the fan at all, in a dead silent room. I've barely been able to get the fans to kick up to a noticeable level unless compiling a large project in Xcode while doing other tasks.
You are not the first one who can’t hear the fan at idle in the 2020 i7 model. I wonder if the fans are not built to the same exact specification or even if there are a few variations (different manufacturers, etc) as some people can clearly hear them at idle and are already returning their iMacs because of that.
Too bad that we don’t have an option to spec an i5 with RX 5700 XT. If the i7 model will be too loud for me (I have had almost every 27” iMac model since 2009) this will be the end of this journey. I will find out in 4 days.
I just setup my new store stock 2020 27 inch i7 and I can definitely hear mine and it's louder and courser sounding vs my 2017 27 inch BTO with the i5 3.8GHz and 1 TB SSD.
BUT when I place my had to feel the airflow from the back vents, I did notice that my 2020 appears to be moving more air to the touch. Yes, it could be that my 2017 is plugged up with dust but that quality of the sound is different.
I don't know if it is a bad fan bearing. Or could it be that Apple is using a slightly larger fan to keep temps lower. From what I am reading on this forum, it seems like many people say their 2017s, including mine, were pretty quiet. And some have complained about 2019s being louder. And it wouldn't surprise me if Apple are using similar noisier fans in the 2020s as even the outer box the iMac comes in is the same design as the 2019s!
Did you get your new iMac yet? I'd love to hear your experience. The reports about fan noise are holding me back from buying the new 2020 iMac. I have a 2013 iMac with i7 and it is acceptable at 1200 rpm but very loud at higher fan speeds.
I got an iMac 2020 i5 and I can hear the fan in my (admittedly extremely quiet) room at idle.
It also ramps up 2700 rpm during full load which is noisy but doesn't bother me much since I never run it at full blast.
It's hard for me to say if it's worse or better than the 2019 or 2017 27" models. But let's just say that I was able to hear all of them idling, even the famous iMac Pro. The only dead silent Apple machines I've owned were the iMac 2017 21.5" (!) and the MacBook Pro 13" 2019.
That being said that fan noise at idle might be bothersome to some people, actually including me. But since there is no alternative I'm going to keep the iMac. Overall it's still a great machine.
It also ramps up 2700 rpm during full load which is noisy but doesn't bother me much since I never run it at full blast.
It's hard for me to say if it's worse or better than the 2019 or 2017 27" models. But let's just say that I was able to hear all of them idling, even the famous iMac Pro. The only dead silent Apple machines I've owned were the iMac 2017 21.5" (!) and the MacBook Pro 13" 2019.
That being said that fan noise at idle might be bothersome to some people, actually including me. But since there is no alternative I'm going to keep the iMac. Overall it's still a great machine.
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Yes, I have been using it for over a week. I have provided my feedback in the following thread:
Cooling in the new 2020 27" iMac?
Ok, just connected the new iMac. The true tone display is absolutely gorgeous ! The ambient room temperature is about 19C, the case was cold when I got it out of the box (9C) outside. CPU cores about 26C, fan at 1200rpm, quiet room 29dB or so. Not sure what they have changed as compared with...
forums.macrumors.com
Look at my video:
Cooling in the new 2020 27" iMac?
Hmm. I’m not alone. I have base model of 2020 iMac 27’ (i5 / 5300) and the fan is making rattling noise at idle (1200 RPM). Video recorded by iPhone 8 Plus near vents:
forums.macrumors.com
Similar noise as yours ?
