RAM

[Papa Goose]

Hi all,

I already have an iMac, and I have been donated a late 2013 27" 4K iMac that the guy couldn't get on with, so stuck it in the attic. After checking it out I think I have discivered why, the hard is shot, so that would be a visit to the repair shop. It's also running with 8gb (2x 4gb of 1RX8) ram, and I'd want to upgrade that to at least 16, butI'm struggling to find 1RX8, but can find kits with 2x 2RX8, is 2RX8 compatible with this model of iMac.

I'm thinking of this as a trying to work out if it's viable to invest in this machine as a 2nd iMac for my wife to use.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[throAU]

Hi all,

I already have an iMac, and I have been donated a late 2013 27" 4K iMac that the guy couldn't get on with, so stuck it in the attic. After checking it out I think I have discivered why, the hard is shot, so that would be a visit to the repair shop. It's also running with 8gb (2x 4gb of 1RX8) ram, and I'd want to upgrade that to at least 16, butI'm struggling to find 1RX8, but can find kits with 2x 2RX8, is 2RX8 compatible with this model of iMac.

I'm thinking of this as a trying to work out if it's viable to invest in this machine as a 2nd iMac for my wife to use.

Thanks for any advice.

If you're going to need to get the thing repaired (labour), plus replacement harddrive/ssd and RAM costs it may be cheaper to source a more recent used Mac at this point.

e.g. in australia i can pick up a 21.5" 4k iMac from 2019 with 16 GB of RAM for 550 AUD (or around 300 USD). Which is likely cheaper than the cost of the RAM and storage without labour costs on your 2013 model.

yes, its only 21.5 - you can probably pick up a 27 for not much more.

random example:

iMac Retina 5K 27” 2017 [VESA Mount] (4.2GHz Core i7, 64GB RAM, 1TB Storage) | eBay Australia

It's been a great graphics and very capable video editing machine. Very fast - for a 2017 iMac it was loaded: 4.2GHz processor, 64GB RAM with 1TB internal storage. Gorgeous 27" 5K screen. (the support/stand visible in photo not included).

www.ebay.com.au

64 GB

 

[ignatius345]

You can DIY the internal drive repair but it’s fairly labor-intensive. I did it some years back with my old 27” iMac 5K using a tool/parts kit from iFixit and about 2-3 hours of my time. If you’re handy and willing to follow a lot of instructions it’s doable, but not easy. Even DIYing the repair, it’s still going to set you back some money sourcing the RAM and whatever replacement drive you get, plus buying the parts (replacement adhesive strips, other stuff) and tools you need to do it.

But also a 2013 iMac is going to feel very slow, even for basic use IMO. I’d pick up a more recent used Mac of some kind instead.

 

[benholt]

2Rx8 sticks are fine in the late-2013 27". The rank designation just means the module has DRAMs organized in two ranks internally, and that memory controller handles single- and dual-rank identically. What actually matters for compatibility is PC3-12800 (DDR3-1600), unbuffered, non-ECC, 204-pin SO-DIMM. 16GB modules from that era are almost always 2Rx8, so if you go 2x8GB or 2x16GB you're good.

Practical tip: leave the original 2x4GB in the top pair of slots (visible through the memory door on the back) and drop your new kit into the bottom pair, then boot and check About This Mac to confirm all four are seen. That gets you 24 or 40GB without throwing anything away.

On the drive: if you're paying a shop, ask whether they can install an SSD in the SATA bay rather than swapping the spinning drive like-for-like. That machine flies once the mechanical drive is out of the picture, and the cost difference isn't much.

 

[benwiggy]

I'm thinking of this as a trying to work out if it's viable to invest in this machine as a 2nd iMac for my wife to use.

The latest OS you can run is Catalina, which is 7 versions behind the upcoming OS27, which will be released in a few months.

It's going to be an effort finding old versions of apps that will run on that OS.

Also, it's a 4-core Haswell CPU, which is not particularly powerful, to put it mildly.


Macs are built well, but hardware problems with age are pretty common, particularly with third-party GPUs.

I wouldn't spend much money on this, and I would look on it as a short-term option, or hobbyist project, rather than a useful tool to do work.

 

[Papa Goose]

If you're going to need to get the thing repaired (labour), plus replacement harddrive/ssd and RAM costs it may be cheaper to source a more recent used Mac at this point.

e.g. in australia i can pick up a 21.5" 4k iMac from 2019 with 16 GB of RAM for 550 AUD (or around 300 USD). Which is likely cheaper than the cost of the RAM and storage without labour costs on your 2013 model.

yes, its only 21.5 - you can probably pick up a 27 for not much more.

random example:

iMac Retina 5K 27” 2017 [VESA Mount] (4.2GHz Core i7, 64GB RAM, 1TB Storage) | eBay Australia

It's been a great graphics and very capable video editing machine. Very fast - for a 2017 iMac it was loaded: 4.2GHz processor, 64GB RAM with 1TB internal storage. Gorgeous 27" 5K screen. (the support/stand visible in photo not included).

www.ebay.com.au

64 GB

Thanks for the reply, and that's what I'm trying to establish. I'm in France so they aren't that cheap unfortunatly, a machine like that woulkd be around 550€ (900 AUD)

The latest OS you can run is Catalina, which is 7 versions behind the upcoming OS27, which will be released in a few months.

It's going to be an effort finding old versions of apps that will run on that OS.

Also, it's a 4-core Haswell CPU, which is not particularly powerful, to put it mildly.


Macs are built well, but hardware problems with age are pretty common, particularly with third-party GPUs.

I wouldn't spend much money on this, and I would look on it as a short-term option, or hobbyist project, rather than a useful tool to do work.

Catalina via Apple, but using OCLP would you can get it running Sequoia according to the website. I used OCLP on my late 2015 and it running Sequoia with zero issues, the machine is fast, smooth, and all apps update no problem. I don't want to spend much TBH, and I hear you re maintaining older machines

 

[Papa Goose]

2Rx8 sticks are fine in the late-2013 27". The rank designation just means the module has DRAMs organized in two ranks internally, and that memory controller handles single- and dual-rank identically. What actually matters for compatibility is PC3-12800 (DDR3-1600), unbuffered, non-ECC, 204-pin SO-DIMM. 16GB modules from that era are almost always 2Rx8, so if you go 2x8GB or 2x16GB you're good.

Practical tip: leave the original 2x4GB in the top pair of slots (visible through the memory door on the back) and drop your new kit into the bottom pair, then boot and check About This Mac to confirm all four are seen. That gets you 24 or 40GB without throwing anything away.

On the drive: if you're paying a shop, ask whether they can install an SSD in the SATA bay rather than swapping the spinning drive like-for-like. That machine flies once the mechanical drive is out of the picture, and the cost difference isn't much.

Great on the ram thank you for that info. I had the Sata swapped out for an SSD on my 2015 iMac, it made quite a difference, so it's on the cards after pay day.

 

[Gloomy]

This is the RAM needed for the Late 2013. If you just want to double the memory you already have then this is a cheap upgrade. 4GB x 2 for €20!
https://www.amazon.fr/-/en/Rasalas-PC3-12800S-DDR3L-1600MHz-PC3L-12800S-204-Pin/dp/B08B5SBXHN/

Amazon also sell a Timetec 8GB x 2 kit for €39.99, so would be roughly €80 Euros to upgrade to 32GB. (I used this exact RAM in my previous iMac for 6 years without issue, same 27” model. 😀

 

[Barnclos]

If you want to avoid labour costs, try run your iMac from an external SSD. Just plug it into a USB port and install macOS onto it (Google/YouTube can explain what to do).