Level 1

10 points

iMac 2020 crashing

Hello!

I purchased a 2020 iMac back is August and upgraded the ram with compatible DDR4 2666.

It doesn't crash very daily or even weekly but it has crashed four or five times since I purchased it. When it crashes the fans flare up making the iMac hover a bit and then it shuts down and lands back on the desk.

I checked to ram and it reads at 2667 which is slightly different than the stock specs. I've switched ram slots as well. Unfortunately, it is hard to test it with the original ram because I need to extra ram in my daily use (also one of the ram sticks fell off a low shelf so I'm a little weary of putting it back in).

I also had a lot of data put onto the SSD when I received the computer as well.

Is anyone else experiencing these issues/have any idea what it could be?

iMac 27″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Oct 23, 2020 9:31 AM

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DeeperDiver

Level 4

1,063 points

Posted on Jan 12, 2021 5:16 PM

@TaraLeeOm - Just giving you a heads-up that I resolved the problem (and many others). Turns out there is a genuine problem with OWC RAM and the new 2020 iMacs. Removed all the OWC RAM and used 128GB of Apple OEM Micron RAM (from Crucial) and all the problems I've been having for three months disappeared literally minutes after the install. I great, unexpected bonus is that my new iMac runs about 45 degrees cooler, and the fans rarely go above idle. I mentioned my progress on another thread, and many other users have experienced the exact same problem with OWC RAM and resolved it the same way.

Here's the thread...

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251962728?answerId=254170742022

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70 replies

Jan 15, 2021 9:52 AM in response to Old Toad

Just putting it out there that Crucial is just a private-label for Micron. Micron is what Apple uses as OEM RAM. Micron is what one actually wants to look for.

rkaufmann87

Level 10

148,452 points

Nov 6, 2020 6:45 AM in response to TaraLeeOm

You had 14 days to return it for any reason, why didn't you? You would get 5 star service but you have to ask for it, considering you didn't all you are doing is whining.

I also have a 2020 27" iMac, actually 2 we bought 2 identical configurations at the same Tim and both work perfectly.

Jared576 Author

Level 1

10 points

Nov 6, 2020 7:58 AM in response to TaraLeeOm

I’ve pretty much narrowed it done to the cooling primarily cooling around the graphics card. Software exports work fine whereas graphics card exports crash. So, I’m bring my computer in soon and I will update everyone. But, I wouldn’t be surprised that a software update comes soon that helps manage cooling.

Old Toad

Level 10

215,310 points

Nov 6, 2020 1:58 PM in response to rkaufmann87

I had problems with an bare SSD drive from Amazon and it was under warranty with OWC. I contacted OWC and they took care of it and issued me a replacement after checking the drive out.

Bottom line: contact OWC and see if the warranty can be handled thru them. I believe they can check via the serial no. on the modules.

Nov 7, 2020 8:38 AM in response to TaraLeeOm

I spoke too soon. After having my new iMac back from Apple service (no faults found) and my troubleshooting what I thought was the RAM, my iMac once again is back to freezing, and shutting down after doing some hard video encoding.

So I will watch this thread closely. If your logic board is indeed an issue, I’d love to hear more about it and if it resolved your problem.

I’m going to try duplicating the crash more before I get back on the horn with Apple.

Nov 8, 2020 12:22 AM in response to Jared576

It appears that I diagnosed the problem I was having with my 2020 iMac (128GB RAM) crashing.

Using Memtest86, I was able to determine that two of my 32GB cards are faulty. They were spitting out errors. As I had four of those cards installed, I narrowed it down to the two cards by rotating the cards and using two cards at a time in the iMac to narrow down the faulty cards, and re-running Memtest86. The screenshot show many errors when testing individual memory addresses.

The cards were installed by the store I purchased it from before they delivered it to me. They used OWC RAM. As they have a lifetime warranty, I am now in the process of contacting the reseller, and OWC to get those two 32GB RAM cards exchanged.

I was able to duplicate the problem each time (using Final Cut Pro / Safari) that would result in the system freezing, crashing, and shutting down. With the two bad RAM cards removed, I am not using the other 32GB OWC cards, and re-inserted the original 8GB Apple RAM for a total of 72GB. My iMac is running fine now, and no longer crashing.

Your luck may very, but I highly suggest you run Memtest86 and if any errors are found. It has to be installed on a bootable USB stick, and your iMac being booting into that USB stick so it can run the diagnostics. It can take a while. In my case, the errors were displaying after about 10 minutes of diagnostics.

Dec 9, 2020 11:24 AM in response to DeeperDiver

I looked high and low for the receipt, but can't find it. There's always a mad dash to straighten up before Thanksgiving festivities. :)

Don't know if it'll help, but here's the contact info on the place that fixed it. (I don't think they'd mind me touting their services online.)

CONNECTING POINT COMPUTER CENTERS

321-254-5555

Dec 9, 2020 3:27 PM in response to TaraLeeOm

Thank you. I just got off the phone with Apple, and they scheduled me with a repair shop similar to what you went through. So far, it sounds like I'm following the same path as you. Dropping it off to them in an hour. I hope this is the last time too. :)

Mikefas

Level 1

21 points

Oct 27, 2020 6:27 AM in response to rkaufmann87

OWC from Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07QD13Y17/

Thanks for offering to help. As soon as I can, I plan to swap to original apple ram and test the issue. I'll reply here with results.

Dec 9, 2020 3:24 PM in response to DeeperDiver

Apple support handled it well for me, at the end of day. They made the appointment with the repair shop, they paid the bill.

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iMac 2020 crashing