iMac 2010 SSD Fan control

[Fcis]

I have an iMac 2010 27" and I am planning to replace my hard disk with a new SSD drive which just arrived today. My question is, does SSD fan control apps such as https://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl/
or https://crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control work well or I need to pay around 50EUR for the OWC thermal sensor? I am not sure if it's worth it or not so I appreciate any advice.

 

[r6mile]

I've always used the OWC thermal sensor in my 2010-11 iMac SSD upgrades so as not to bother with controlling fans. Lots of people used Mac Fan Control and it works for them, so depends on whether you want to be controlling it manually or would rather not think about it.

 

[Berenod]

Macfancontrol works just fine in the free version, in my opinion the OWC sensor is noth worth the money, especially since SSD's generate not nearly as much heat as hard drives.

Practically the only thing different then is that during boot the fans go in "take off" mode for a short while, until the OS and Macfancontrols is running and then spools them all down to sensible levels.

Gives your iMac a good dust cleaning blow every time you boot 😁


As an added bonus you have the freedom to adjust the settings to allow for better cooling or quiter operation, depending how warm you want to run your machine.

I actually have the ODD fan (which also cools your GPU) linked to the GPU diode and set to keep it at a lower temp as the iMac itself would do, those AMD's are fragile enough as it is, better to keep them a tad on the cool side!

The HDD fan I have set at a very low fixed level, the SSD doesn't heat up anyways, and the CPU fan I have linked to the hottest running core.

 

[Fcis]

Will this work with my iMac 2010 27” ?

OWC OWCDIDIM27SSD11 - Kit for iMac 2011 27 SSD

 

[r6mile]

Will this work with my iMac 2010 27” ?

OWC OWCDIDIM27SSD11 - Kit for iMac 2011 27 SSD

You need the 2009-10 specific one I believe - https://www.amazon.co.uk/OWC-OWCDID...owc+2010+thermal+sensor&qid=1593032799&sr=8-1

 

[TwoH]

The OWC ones for 2009-2010 are practically a scam.. They have zero reason to be that much in price, hell even the 2011+ ones are too.
You could easily buy a second-hand sensor for £5-10, or alternatively just short the circuit out for the sensor - you won't have any reading for it, but you will not have fan ramp (or use software -- mac fan control).

 

[Fcis]

The OWC ones for 2009-2010 are practically a scam.. They have zero reason to be that much in price, hell even the 2011+ ones are too.
You could easily buy a second-hand sensor for £5-10, or alternatively just short the circuit out for the sensor - you won't have any reading for it, but you will not have fan ramp (or use software -- mac fan control).

According to what many people experienced online is that the mac fan control will work for sometime but then they experience issue with it, so I don't know what to do.

 

[komatsu]

According to what many people experienced online is that the mac fan control will work for sometime but then they experience issue with it, so I don't know what to do.

I've installed mac fan control on hundreds of iMacs. I'm also of sceptic of third-party software which tries to control Apple hardware (3rd party software forcing Apple hardware do something is not always wise...). But, in this case, it works great and is also very reliable.

 

[Fcis]

I've installed mac fan control on hundreds of iMacs. I'm also of sceptic of third-party software which tries to control Apple hardware (3rd party software forcing Apple hardware do something is not always wise...). But, in this case, it works great and is also very reliable.

So does this app is automatic? like do I set this app once and forget about it?

 

[Fcis]

I've installed mac fan control on hundreds of iMacs. I'm also of sceptic of third-party software which tries to control Apple hardware (3rd party software forcing Apple hardware do something is not always wise...). But, in this case, it works great and is also very reliable.

Do I need to get the free version or buy Pro version of Mac Fan Control? and does it need a special setup or Automatic?

 

[Berenod]

Do I need to get the free version or buy Pro version of Mac Fan Control? and does it need a special setup or Automatic?

Free version should be fine.

The main advantage of the paid version is that you can store several different profiles, for example a setting for high level of cooling (together with more fan noise), another setting for low noise (but higher operating temperatures), one in between and so on.

The free version just always remembers the last setting.

You have to set it once, and afterwards it will automatically start and run with the last setting (so you do not need to set it up every time you boot).

The set up itself is rather easy, there are three fans (cpu, HDD and ODD), you can connect each fan to any temperature sensor you want, and then you can set the low and high temperatur for that specific sensor.

So CPU fan you couple to one of the cpu cores, the low temperature is until when the fan runs at minimum speed, the high emperature is when the fan wil turn at max speed. For CPU I have the low one at 50° Celsius and the high one at 70°.

For the GPU (ODD fan) I have it at 50°Celsius low and 60° high, a bit noisy, but I like to keep the AMD standard GPU cool, they tend to fail fats.
In another machine with a Nvidia 780m I have it at 50° and 75°

The HDD fan I have at a fixed speed of 180rpm, very quiet, and the SSD doesnt generate much heat anyway, if wanted you could link it to the SSD temperature.

After you have found the ideal settings for yourself, you can forget about the program, it'll boot automatically and will do its thing every time again...

 

[mbosse]

I have an iMac 2010 27" and I am planning to replace my hard disk with a new SSD drive which just arrived today. My question is, does SSD fan control apps such as https://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl/
or https://crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control work well or I need to pay around 50EUR for the OWC thermal sensor? I am not sure if it's worth it or not so I appreciate any advice.

As @TwoH already said, the very cheap temperature sensors for the DVD drive do the trick for a lot less money than the OWC cable:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/using-2009-imac-today.2242303/post-28620878

Best,
Magnus

 

[Fcis]

As @TwoH already said, the very cheap temperature sensors for the DVD drive do the trick for a lot less money than the OWC cable:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/using-2009-imac-today.2242303/post-28620878

Best,
Magnus

So once I get this temperature sensor for the DVD drive, what are the both ends of the cable? and where they will be placed in my iMac 2010 27"?

 

[mbosse]

So once I get this temperature sensor for the DVD drive, what are the both ends of the cable? and where they will be placed in my iMac 2010 27"?

You stick the temperature sensor part on the SSD, exactly like the sensor is sticked to the DVD drive. And then you plug the plug into the respective socket on the logic board (the one which ex factory accepts the HDD temperature cable.

 

[Fcis]

You stick the temperature sensor part on the SSD, exactly like the sensor is sticked to the DVD drive. And then you plug the plug into the respective socket on the logic board (the one which ex factory accepts the HDD temperature cable.

And this means I remove(throw away) the old sensor cable plugged in the logic board, right?

 

[mbosse]

And this means I remove(throw away) the old sensor cable plugged in the logic board, right?

Yes, you don’t need it anymore. Plug the new sensor cable eher the old was. But try your new installation first before you do that ;-)

 

[Fcis]

Yes, you don’t need it anymore. Plug the new sensor cable eher the old was. But try your new installation first before you do that ;-)

What do you mean by "try your new installation first before you do that" ? : )

 

[mbosse]

What do you mean by "try your new installation first before you do that" ? : )

Before you throw away the old cable.

I generally try to test any modification I make to iMacs thoroughly before I finally re-install the display. Screwing it back in is kind of a pain due to the strong magnets close to the screw holes, or due to the sticker tape you need with the late-2012 and younger machines, respectively.

Magnus

 

[Fcis]

Before you throw away the old cable.

I generally try to test any modification I make to iMacs thoroughly before I finally re-install the display. Screwing it back in is kind of a pain due to the strong magnets close to the screw holes, or due to the sticker tape you need with the late-2012 and younger machines, respectively.

Magnus

And how I will test it without the screen being reinstalled?

 

[mbosse]

And how I will test it without the screen being reinstalled?

Note my sentence (and note emphasis):

"before I finally re-install the display"

I connect and set back the display and fix it tightly with tape. Then I do a test-installation and play with it for some time. If everything is ok, I screw it back in or fix it with the Apple adhesive stripes, depending on the model.

Magnus

 

[r6mile]

Put everything back together, except the screws that keep the LCD panel in place (they are a bloody pain due to the magnets) and the glass panel. Test it like that. Once you are happy that everything works, put the screws back (trust me, this is the longest part of the process) and the glass panel.

 

[mbosse]

Put everything back together, except the screws that keep the LCD panel in place (they are a bloody panel due to the magnets) and the glass panel. Test it like that. Once you are happy that everything works, put the screws back (trust me, this is the longest part of the process) and the glass panel.

Another real pain is to remove any dust between the glass panel and the display itself...

 

[Fcis]

Okay, just to confirm as I will buy it now. This 593-0493 temperature sensor for the DVD drive should work find without any problems like the OWC thermal sensor right? I can get the 593-0493 for around GBP 9 while the OWC sensor is around GBP 30

 

[mbosse]

Okay, just to confirm as I will buy it now. This 593-0493 temperature sensor for the DVD drive should work find without any problems like the OWC thermal sensor right? I can get the 593-0493 for around GBP 9 while the OWC sensor is around GBP 30

Yep, that should work flawlessly with the 2009 and 2010 27" iMacs. The 2011 are different and indeed need the OWC cable.

Magnus

 

[Fcis]

Yep, that should work flawlessly with the 2009 and 2010 27" iMacs. The 2011 are different and indeed need the OWC cable.

Magnus

Perfect, thank you so much.