Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Rhobes

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 28, 2004
353
6
Bigfork, MT
Hi-

I'm building a new 2019 iMac high end model. I know the unit comes with 8GB stock (2- 4GB cards). There are 4 slots total to accept ram cards, so only 2 left in this scenario. I'm thinking to take the 32GB ram option with the possibility of future upgrade to the max 64GB of ram. Anyone know what size card and how many slots will be filled if I get the 32GB option?

If I get the 32GB as my build option will I simply be able to add to remaining slots (certified Apple ram cards) to reach the 64GB without loosing any of the cards that make-up the stock 32GB that I have? For example, if they put in two 16GB card there will be two open slots I could put in two more 16GB cards?

Or, would I be better off going with the stock 8GB and upgrade to the full 64GB (doing this myself) when I receive it? If that's the case any suggestions on where to buy comparable or better then Apple ram would be appreciated.

Hope this comes across clear to someone out there-

Thanks
 
Last edited:

ThunderSkunk

macrumors 601
Dec 31, 2007
4,066
4,533
Milwaukee Area
We always order ours w/ 8gb, which come as two 4GB sticks, then toss an additional 32GB in (a pair of 16GBs from OWC) in the other two slots. This gives you a total of 40GB, which is great for most work.

BUT THEN, when we decide to use a machine for video work, & we’ll remove those two 4GB sticks, and put a pair of 32GBs from OWC in their place (and send them the 8GB sticks in exchange), totaling 96GB, because it turns out the 2019 iMac actually supports up to 128GB of memory, and 96 is close enough to 128 that the difference isn’t worth as much as being able to defer costly upgrades until they’re really going to be useful.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rhobes

Rhobes

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 28, 2004
353
6
Bigfork, MT
Thanks for that info ThunderSkunk! I will do just that, think I'll go with the 96 GB kit right off. The kit is listed under Buying Options(2666MHz DDR4 PC4-21300 -- Maximum 128GB supported). Looking at the OWC website, I'm under 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display (2019) (not iMac Pro). Is this the correct memory?

On my build I'm going with the 9th gen chip, 3.6GHz 8 core i9. I don't see these memory sticks having any requirement for the i9 (nor the i5 or i7) models. Yet, when you click on the "Memory trade-in Rebate" they specifically state the rebate for the 2019 models: core i3, i5, & i7 ONLY, no mention of i9 core. This is what makes me wonder if this 96 GB OWC Kit is compatible with my 9th generation chip? Either way, if this OWC kit is compatible, I could live without the rebate-
 

ThunderSkunk

macrumors 601
Dec 31, 2007
4,066
4,533
Milwaukee Area
Yep, that’s the good stuff. They just need to update that part of the description yet I see. Ours are all i9s maxed out too. That’s a mean machine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rhobes
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.