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Issues after PCIe SSD upgrade

I dismantled my iMac 19,1 (2019, 27") and replaced the 32GB PCIe SSD with a 512GB one from another iMac model. I reassembled the iMac and used duct tape to hold the screen in place whilst I tested the Mac to make sure it all worked correctly. I also fitted a new video cable.

In a nutshell, everything works except the display (black, nothing on screen when using flashlight, etc). Using an external Thunderbolt Display I used Terminal to reset the Fusion Drive, and installed MacOS Sequoia. After running Apple Diagnostics I received a message that there were issues with both the SMC and Display.

At this point I can use the machine with an external display. I am waiting for the in-line thermal sensor to arrive, which I assume will resolve the noisy fan (although I have temporarily used Macs Fan Control for that).

I suppose my main question now is whilst I wait for the in-line thermal sensor, does the lack of it on a third-party HDD affect the SMC in some way, and subsequently the power to display? If not, where should I start looking for display faults? So far I have checked the capacitors and fuses on the Logic Board and tested the video cable - all looks fine. Also, diagnostic LEDs 1 - 3 and 5 are all green, 4 is off.

Edit: As additional info, I also noted that in Activity Monitor the CPU load is significatly hugher than it used to be, average reads System: high 60s to low 70s (where it previously read around 10$ when idle.

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Did you follow the guide iMac Intel 27" Retina 5K Display 2019 Display Replacement using the special pizza cutter tool? Most of the time people damage the display just in the opening process. Often I encounter cut LCD cables where the tool used damaged them.

The act of replacing a drive in its self won’t affect the display only during the opening. SMC is dependent on access to the original HHD’s built-in thermal sensor, which is why one needs to install an external sensor as the third party SATA HDD or SSD don’t offer the needed output. Which is one possibility why the fan is racing and reviewing Activity Monitor kernal_task is running heavy, as SMC is creating unused threads to prevent the system from overheating which is part of CPU Safe Mode.

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crwdns2944067:04crwdne2944067:0:

Hi Dan

Yes, I followed the instructions with all the recommended tools. I know some people use things like guitar picks to cut the display seal, but I used the mini pizza cutter because I know it has the right depth to prevent damage to anything beyond the seal. Everything on the actual display looks fine, no damage at all.

Probably best for me to wait until the OWC thermal sensor arrives, fit it, and then re-evaluate.

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@stuartoh - Why did you try a second display cable? Did you bounce the display when taking it off? Basically, the cable got pulled yanking the logic board socket.

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I tried an external display first to make sure everything was working before I re-attached the display (my next step was to use duct tape to temporarily hold the display in place whilst I made sure that worked too).

As it happens, I tested the 5K display from the 2019 iMac on another iMac that I had opened, and it definitely still works. However, you brought up an important point...whilst I was extremely careful removing the display and cables initially, my eyesight is awful and when I re-attached the video cable it looks as if I damaged the logic board socket for it.

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@stuartoh - Let’s see how it looks, take some nice tight in focus pictures (use a lot of light). Looking at an angle from the front, side and downward

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