Mid-2011 iMac CPU upgrade question

[BradM73]

Hello All,

I've got a Mid-2011 27" iMac that has begun to run slowly (at least in comparison to my i7 5960X running Windows) and I'm looking to upgrade to an SSD and a faster processor.

I currently have the 2.7Ghz Intel Core i5. It is my understanding that I can upgrade the system to an i7, but I can't find anything out about which socket it is, or what i7 CPU's are compatible. I'd just like to be about to put the fastest i7 possible that will fit into that PC and need some help finding the correct processor. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

I'm also wanting to upgrade to a Samsung 850 1TB SSD, and am also wondering if I should expect to have any problems installing the new drive as primary. I currently have the 1TB drive, and will probably just clone the drive and install the SDD.

Thanks!

 

[iEd]

Based on what I was able to find. Some folks have done this. One case I read about was in 2012. As far as getting the processor I don't know if it can still be had. The case I read about the guy mentioned Tiger Direct but that was 3 years ago.

Cracking a 2011 iMac seems like a stressful task. Based on the ifixit tear downs I've seen.

May I ask what type of work are you using the iMac for that's causing it to be slow in your opinion?
Are you editing video? Or audio?





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[BradM73]

May I ask what type of work are you using the iMac for that's causing it to be slow in your opinion?
Are you editing video? Or audio?

Mainly simple video work for my YouTube channel. Adobe Premier is pretty much unusable at this point, though I tend to use iMovie more anyway. I probably need to consolidate more files to my external drive because my 1TB HDD only has about 80GB left, but even if I can get it up to about 150GB free, the system still runs slow. I'd definitely consider maxing out this mac before buying a new one.

 

[iEd]

I see. Audio is my thing. I'm not hip on the intensity of Adobe Premier.
I was curious about the situation and only found one or two post about people doing a processor upgrade on a 2011 iMac.
If you find the parts I would suggest following the guides at ifixit for the tear down. Also I've seen picture guides of the processor replacement.
There is a specific tool they used on ifixit for cracking the "glued" iMac and there are warnings that damage can be done if you go too deep in separating the case.
Possibly you may want to look for software solutions like a clean install of everything and more ram if possible.
Also will there be a significant benefit in upgrading the processor vs all the work involved.
The last time I updated a Mac processor was a in 2000 and it was a Power Mac 9600 that I put a G3 processor in. It was like putting toast in a toaster.
These newer Macs. Cracking them is just too intense. If the the internal HD went down I would boot from a external.


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[BradM73]

Also will there be a significant benefit in upgrading the processor vs all the work involved.

Well, I was reading somewhere that there was basically no difference between the motherboards between all the versions, so I could go from a dual core i5 to a quad core i7. This should dramatically increase the processing power and decrease the amount of time it takes for me to render out videos.

I've also heard horror stories about the tape, but I've also heard that there is no tape in the mid-2011 iMacs. I think there was just an article on 9 to 5 Mac that explained upgrading the hard drive. Worse case, there is a local PC shop that does work on iMacs, so they might be able to do it for me if it gets out of my league, but I think I can definitely handle the upgrade.