New mac mini ultimate upgrade - Quad core CPU, 7200 rpm HD, max RAM

[TechViking]

well here's the end to this thread, another user just reported that he opened up his newly purchased mini and the processor is not socketed and therefore cannot be removed/upgraded

Well that has not been 100 % confirmed yet! I still have hope...

And there are other things than just replacing the CPU.

Is someone else considering replacing the HD with a SSD?

Tips for which SSD model that would work, be fastest, cheapest etcetera?

I am looking for minimum 80Gb up to 128 Gb.

 

[TechViking]

My Configuration - 2.26, 4Gb, X25-M 80Gb SSD

So this is what my ordered mini will be like:

2.26 Ghz CPU
4gb RAM (Crucial 4Gb kit)
Intel X25-M 80GB SSD

I will connect it to a 30 inch cinema display via the miniDP dual link dvi adapter, and also (if it works) simultaneously to a 23 inch cinema via the mini dvi port and dvi adapter.

This will be such a nice device... Only thing missing I think is if it somehow could be possible to replace the CPU with a quad core socket P model. That will be the next project.

Cant wait for it to arrive!

 

[Patriks7]

What options exist to replace the HD with a SSD?

I would want a 128 Gb sized one and would boot both OS X and XP from it.

Is there something special one must consider for it to work on OS X, or does just about any brand/model work? How does SLC or MLC versions make a difference (if at all)?


I think I can get a Macbook Air with the 128 Gb SSD for a good price. I am thinking of taking out that SSD and put it in a new mini, and put the 120 Gb HD from the mini in the mba and sell it with that. Would that work?

No, it won't work. The Mini has 2.5" HDDs and the Air has 1.8". Maybe putting the SSD in will if you find one of those things that will hold it there, but not sure if they have those things.

 

[Superman07]

Well, looks like iFixit already put in a second hard drive.

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Mac-mini-A1283-Terabyte-Drive/660/8

 

[MH01]

Ok so I am pretty underwhelmed by the specs/price ratio of the new mini. I am thinking of getting the cheapest base model, and upgrade it myself to make it beefier.

- 4gb RAM. ( Any chance at all that more RAM would be possible?)
- 320 GB 7200 rpm HD. ( Does a larger HD with 7200 rpm exist?)
- Quad core CPU.

Ideas for what HD I should get?

- Would it be possible to use a Quad core CPU?
A) Will any quad core cpu fit in the socket? If so which ones?
B) Will it work with the OS?

Anyone else thinking of doing the same?

The CPU is not socketed. It cannot be upgraded. The rest if fine.

 

[inVaUSA]

7200RPM drive too much heat?

Is there any concern that putting a WD 500GB 7200RPM drive in the mac mini will create too much heat? Did Apple choose 5400RPM drives for an engineering reason, or just price/marketing?

 

[DHart]

Is there any concern that putting a WD 500GB 7200RPM drive in the mac mini will create too much heat? Did Apple choose 5400RPM drives for an engineering reason, or just price/marketing?

My vote: they choose 5400RPM to keep costs down. But they use good drives - Hitachi. (having bad drives in a whole line of computers is a costly nightmare for a manufacturer.)

The new Minis are supplied with Hitachi 5K120 and 5K320 HDDs. The dissipation specs (seek max, read-write, and idle) and power requirements for the Hitachi 7K320 and the 5K320 are virtually identical, so I think putting a 7K320 Hitachi in a Mini in place of the stock HDD should be no problem heat-wise. In fact, I'm betting money it won't be an issue. I just ordered a Hitachi 7K320 for $67 from OtherWorldComputing ($20 Rebate on them going on right now!). When my Mini arrives from SHENZHEN CN, I'm going to pull out the 5K120 and drop in the 7K320. I've been using a Hitachi 7L320 in an OWC Mercury OnTheGo pocket-sized portable enclosure for a few months now and have been very pleased with it's performance. Quick, quiet, and reliable.

 

[Wild-Bill]

So this is what my ordered mini will be like:
Only thing missing I think is if it somehow could be possible to replace the CPU with a quad core socket P model. That will be the next project.

Never gonna happen. Apple made it HARDER for people to buy a Mini on the cheap and upgrade it. They want to fleece you completely.

 

[bozz2006]

Never gonna happen. Apple made it HARDER for people to buy a Mini on the cheap and upgrade it. They want to fleece you completely.

Those folks at Apple are such bastards!

 

[vertigomhs]

I was thinking about this earlier.

I presume (but have zero evidence) that the Mini has one slot for a DDR3
SO-DIMM, which theoretically maxes out at 16GB.

I don't think any 16GB DDR3 SO-DIMMs exist yet but, presuming they did, it
would be curious to see how much would the OS recognize? Apple mentions
4GB as the RAM ceiling, but that's standard practice and usually (but not
always) larger memory modules work fine.

[edit: Current mini has two slots. I knew that—not sure what I was thinking.
So, what will the OS see if we put 32GB in there?]

there are no sticks of ram bigger than 4gb, and there hasnt ever been for any type of ram so thats out of the question, max i would guess on the 9400m is 8gb, since the 9400 (desktop chipset) is maxed out at 16gb of ram, and being limited to two slots here comes to 8gb.

haha, i understand that, the 2 is for the second iteration of the core duo, however, the duo refers to the cores = 2, which benefits from 2 ram chips of equal size for use by the processors

thanks though i'm sure that was meant in the best possible educational spirit

EDIT: oh, i see that i said that's why there are 2 ram slots, my mistake, i mistyped, i didn't mean this to correlate with the # 2 in the core 2 duo

that is still not why there are two slots, the reason there are two slots is for dual channel mode, so that all cores in the cpu can exchange between all the ram, and for expandability of course. also size doesnt matter, as long as the ram is similar in terms of speed, timings, voltage and usually brand.

two slots doesnt correlate to number of cores.

 

[bajee]

sorry wrong thread to post

 

[bobbba]

No, it won't work. The Mini has 2.5" HDDs and the Air has 1.8". Maybe putting the SSD in will if you find one of those things that will hold it there, but not sure if they have those things.

The Macbook Air's SSD is PATA not SATA so it won't work full stop.

 

[shokunin]

The Macbook Air's SSD is PATA not SATA so it won't work full stop.

Rev. A of MBA was PATA, Rev. B Macbook Air is SATA. Since he mentioned the 128gb ssd, which comes with Rev. B, it's an SATA drive. However, neither use "standard connectors". Rev. A uses a PATA ZIF and Rev. B uses an SATA LIF connector.

 

[marbles]

Yeah the white macbook is really horrible when it comes to noise.

Are you saying the mac pro is as silent as the mini?

Wow , that surprises me that any would say the white macbook is noisy .. I had one and it was very quiet, almost silent tbh except the HD got clunky and I sent it back

 

[The Hammer]

Is there any concern that putting a WD 500GB 7200RPM drive in the mac mini will create too much heat? Did Apple choose 5400RPM drives for an engineering reason, or just price/marketing?

What about a noise difference between the two?

 

[MrDraven]

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[MrDraven]

I am running a 250 jiggabyte 7200 rpm Momentus hd in my Mini (Core Duo 1.83, 2 jiggs of RAM). Works flawlessly. No heat issues at all. Im almost positive my stock 5400 rpm drive was louder, too... Definately worth the upgrade....