The iMac Pro has a TDP of 140 W. The i9-13900K has a TDP of 125 W (although it goes higher on turbo boost). Could I upgrade the iMac Pro to have the 13900k? Is the TDP the only factor that matters when upgrading CPUs?
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Install 13900K in iMac Pro?
- Thread starter OrenLindsey
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You prob could but in terms of support and patches, does Apple support that CPU and it might be a case you will run into problems in the future.
How much is that CPU to buy?
How much is that CPU to buy?
It's around $500 to buy. The 14900k also has the same TDP but there's not really a big difference between the two.
As for the software, I can always use Open-core Legacy Patcher if apple stops supporting the iMac Pro, or just use bootcamp and run windows or linux on it.
As for the software, I can always use Open-core Legacy Patcher if apple stops supporting the iMac Pro, or just use bootcamp and run windows or linux on it.
If I had enough $$, I would actually do this. A 13900K iMac sounds pretty nice. But the price would come to like over $1500 in total.
In short, no. A 13900K isn't going to fit in any Intel Mac model. The 2017 iMac Pro had a Xeon-W with a LGA 2066 socket, and even the last Intel iMac (the 2020 with 10-series chips) had a LGA 1200 socket. The 13900K and 14900K are on LGA 1700.
Aside from the sockets, the chipsets also wouldn't be compatible. Intel typically swaps sockets/chipsets (in terms of compatibility) about every two "real" generations. The 14-series is really a refresh of 13-series (both use Z790 chipsets), and both are compatible with the same LGA 1700 socket with 12-series CPUs and the older Z690 chipset (needs a BIOS update).
Aside from the sockets, the chipsets also wouldn't be compatible. Intel typically swaps sockets/chipsets (in terms of compatibility) about every two "real" generations. The 14-series is really a refresh of 13-series (both use Z790 chipsets), and both are compatible with the same LGA 1700 socket with 12-series CPUs and the older Z690 chipset (needs a BIOS update).
Can't you get socket adapters though? I thought I saw those somewhere...
And again, I'm sure you could do some hackintosh-y stuff to make it work.
Edit: looks like you're right. Rip. Anyways, at least you can install faster Xeon chips.
No (those existed a long time ago, but not anytime recently), and the BIOS wouldn't know what to do with it even if it somehow electrically connected (also unlikely because these recent generations use a huge amount of power and need many of those pins for power delivery).
The hackintosh approach would just be building a PC and using software to get macOS to (mostly) run. These days, it's kind of pointless, other than as a hobby project. Apple Silicon is just really good, and my M2 Max Mac Studio feels faster than my 13700K PC in most real work, especially anything that uses a lot of RAM (AS Macs hold up really well under a lot of memory pressure, and PCs noticeably degrade). But, if you're gaming, a separate PC is the way to go. I made it from my 20s to 40s thinking that Macs would be good for gaming any time now. 🤣