Hey everyone, I have a 2015 iMac running Monterey 12.7.5. It has a 4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7, 32GB of 1867 MHz DDR3 RAM, and an AMD Radeon R9 M395X 4GB graphics card. I’m using it for Adobe Lightroom Classic, Photoshop, and Topaz programs, but it feels super slow—way slower than I thought it would be. What kind of performance should I expect with this setup? Is there anything I can do to make it faster, or do I need to think about a new iMac? Thanks!
Update: I decided to get an external SSD instead of changing the internal one. It’s made a huge difference! Lightroom, Photoshop, and Topaz are all running much better now. I’ll be moving files over from the old drive soon. Thanks to everyone who shared their advice!
@RadiantRider
Your Fusion Drive is likely on its way out! I’d recommend swapping it for a real SSD before you risk losing any data. You can get the tools and guides from here:
@RadiantRider
Sounds like your drive is causing the issue. Fusion Drives are not the best. It’s a better setup to run a 256GB internal SSD and use external drives for your files. Your current drive is probably close to failing.
@Tanner
Is there a way to disable the SSD part of the drive and just use it like a regular hard drive? The SSD part is only 128GB and probably the one wearing out the fastest.
RadiantRider said: @Tanner
Is there a way to disable the SSD part of the drive and just use it like a regular hard drive? The SSD part is only 128GB and probably the one wearing out the fastest.
I wouldn’t recommend messing with it. Fusion Drives tend to fail eventually. You could buy a $50 kit and a $100 SSD, or use an external USB 3.0 SSD as your boot drive. USB 3.0 is fast enough to work like an internal drive.
If you’re comfortable with a bit of tech work, I’d suggest swapping the internal drive, but it’s a little tricky.
@Tanner
I’ve watched some videos about drive swapping. Taking off the screen looks like the hardest part, but I think I could manage it. I’d also like to avoid using up a USB port if possible.
RadiantRider said: @Tanner
Is there a way to disable the SSD part of the drive and just use it like a regular hard drive? The SSD part is only 128GB and probably the one wearing out the fastest.
Actually, the SSD part of the Fusion Drive isn’t the real problem, even if it’s at 40% health. The hard drive (HDD) is the issue. It’s extremely slow, and you don’t want to keep using it.
I’d recommend getting an external USB 3.0 SSD from Amazon or Macsales and installing macOS on it. Boot from that and ignore the Fusion Drive—it’s the best way forward for a 2015 iMac.
RadiantRider said: @Ellis
I’m convinced on booting from an SSD now. Is there a reason you’d suggest using an external one?
External is easier. You can just plug it in and set it as your startup drive in 30 seconds. USB 3.0 is fast, and you can get an external SSD cheaply online.
If you want to go through the trouble of opening up the iMac to remove the Fusion Drive, that’ll cost more and might not be worth it for a 2015 model.
Koa said:
What storage do you have? Hard drive, Fusion Drive, or SSD?
Have you checked your CPU usage in Activity Monitor?
If it’s a hard drive or Fusion Drive, you should look into getting an external SSD.
It’s a Fusion Drive—HDD spins at 7200 RPM. CPU usage looks fine most of the time, even when the computer slows down to a crawl. Thanks for the suggestion!
@RadiantRider
Try downloading DriveDX to check the health of your drive. If there are errors, you’ll want to move to an external SSD. I did this with my 2015 iMac and it works great running from an external SSD.
Did you buy this iMac recently, or have you had it for a while?
@Koa
DriveDX didn’t find any issues, but it shows the SSD at 40% wear. I’ve had the iMac since it was new. Does running from an external SSD make it noticeably faster?
The problem is definitely your Fusion Drive. I had a 2017 iMac and swapped the hard drive and SSD for a 1TB SSD, and it made a huge difference. I still use it every day, even though I have a newer MacBook and Mini. The 5K display keeps me coming back. Replace your drives, and it’ll feel like a new computer.