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iMac late 2014 27” internal storage upgrades?

quad121

quad121

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 25, 2007
139
9
I have a late 2014 iMac 27” which I’m looking to upgrade the internal hdd and ssd.

I have looked at the Samsung 870 Evo for the upgrade on the hdd side, but not 100% sure on the SSD?

there are second hand items for sale from MacBooks from the same date but not sure these will work (MZ-KPU1T0T/0A6). Or would it be best to go Sintech adapter and use maybe a wd black sn850? For eg.
what would be the best way of getting the best performance?

it seems that it uses a 12/16 pin arrangement on the card connection so in theory should work?

any advice would be most appreciated
 
Last edited:
My advice:
Probably not worth the trouble on a Mac that's now 9 years old.
Unless you can do it "on the cheap".

I doubt that an upgrade will increase "performance" in any noticeable way.
All you'll get is more "storage space".

If you're looking for a "performance boost"... well... maybe it's time to be looking at a new Mac, with an m-series CPU inside...
 
Fishrrman said:
My advice:
Probably not worth the trouble on a Mac that's now 9 years old.
Unless you can do it "on the cheap".

I doubt that an upgrade will increase "performance" in any noticeable way.
All you'll get is more "storage space".

If you're looking for a "performance boost"... well... maybe it's time to be looking at a new Mac, with an m-series CPU inside...
Click to expand...
Hi Fisherman
thanks for your reply. Surely there’s some performance improvement to be had by changing out the HDD to a SSD and maybe upping the ram? Even if you don’t bother with the ssd card !
im having to open up the iMac to repai/replace the fan anyway!
 
going pure SSD like the 870 evo would be a good idea and be a huge boost compared to the fusion drive. SATA SSD's are also the most simplest since some NVMe drives have TRIM and sleep issues that you have to watch out for (but you're probably aware of this based on your signature)

When you change your mac, you can re-use them elsewhere (enclosure, other computers, etc) so there's no money being wasted.
 
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So, probably the best idea would be to swap out just the HDD for a SSD and leave the standard SSD stick alone!?
 
quad121 said:
So, probably the best idea would be to swap out just the HDD for a SSD and leave the standard SSD stick alone!?
Click to expand...
It would be the easiest - in theory anyways. Just make sure you dont do the fusion setup as you won't need it. If you're feeling adventurous, this thread might be of help for nvme options.
 
I don’t mind the work, I just want the best out of the machine. if it means changing the SSD Stick to something better/bigger then there you are. If I where to go down the stick change I was looking at either using a stick from a MacBook?(MZ-KPU1T0T/0A6) don’t know if it would work ? Same pins(12/16) or using an adapter? Don’t know which would provide the best speed?
 
I have a late 2014 iMac 5k that upgraded the HDD portion of the Fusion Drive to a Crucial MX500 and left the 128GB SSD portion of the Fusion Drive in place. I did this last year and have been using it ever since with zero issues.

This upgrade certainly made the last year of use much more pleasant as the HDD was dog slow and really made the iMac show its age. With the Crucial SSD as my main boot drive, apps open much quicker, boot up time is significantly faster and overall the machine feels much more responsive.

So yes, it does make the iMac feel faster in day to day use and it can breathe new life into your still useful iMac (not so much for 4k video editing).

Having said that, I am retiring my iMac now and recently purchased a Apple Studio Display on sale at Costco for $1299 and it is being paired with a M2 Pro Mac Mini 10,16 core/16GB/2TB configuration.
 
Thank you icemantx it’s good to know that what I’m planning is going to have some reward!
what I was trying to find out was there any reason to keep the ‘fusion’ set up when I have replaced the HDD? ( if you replace both drives) can you run these drives as a ‘raid’
 
quad121 said:
Thank you icemantx it’s good to know that what I’m planning is going to have some reward!
what I was trying to find out was there any reason to keep the ‘fusion’ set up when I have replaced the HDD? ( if you replace both drives) can you run these drives as a ‘raid’
Click to expand...
Whichever route you go, I would probably stay under $150ish max on the investment since the last security updates for Big Sur will be this fall.
 
quad121 said:
There’s always Opencore
Click to expand...
Yes, for those who like to 1) Keep their equipment going as long as they can 2) Those who are more technically inclined 3) Those who just like a challenge/hobby.

I did update my late 2014 iMac to Ventura using Opencore, but had sporadic issues which resulted in me reverting back to Big Sur which was more stable for me.
 
I do know what you’re saying. I suppose I’m just looking for another project
not long ago 4ghz quad core i7 was the bees knees now its ‘pants’ and not long ago I was happy with my zx spectrum
 
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