Hackintosh Questions

[isaacallen]

Hey guys.

I'm going to build my first hackintosh soon. I plan on installing both windows and osx. The windows will be used for some light-ish gaming (Battlefield 4, TF2, etc.). The mac partition will be used for video editing (FCPX) and all of my other basic stuff. I plan on overclocking it as much as possible.

So far, the parts i have picked out can be found here.

My questions are:
Are all of these parts compatible with each other and OSX?
Will the integrated Intel HD 4600 graphics be sufficient for what I want to do? Or will it at least be fine to get me started until i can drop the money on a better one (if i need a new one)?
Can I overclock the CPU/GPU that i have chosen?
Is there anything else that i really should spend a few extra bucks on? Or that i could potentially save a few on?

Cheers,
Isaac

 

[simsaladimbamba]

Have you tried the following Hackintosh specific fora and websites yet?

• tonymacx86 Blog - very good guides and quite good message board
• InsanelyMac Forum
• InsanelyMac Hardware Database
• Hackintosh.com
• OSx86 Project

As with Windows and Mac OS X, in all the guides I read touching the dual booting, it was always recommended to not use Boot Camp and install Windows on a separate HDD or SSD and not just another partition.

 

[mad3inch1na]

Hey guys.

I'm going to build my first hackintosh soon. I plan on installing both windows and osx. The windows will be used for some light-ish gaming (Battlefield 4, TF2, etc.). The mac partition will be used for video editing (FCPX) and all of my other basic stuff. I plan on overclocking it as much as possible.

So far, the parts i have picked out can be found here.

My questions are:
Are all of these parts compatible with each other and OSX?
Will the integrated Intel HD 4600 graphics be sufficient for what I want to do? Or will it at least be fine to get me started until i can drop the money on a better one (if i need a new one)?
Can I overclock the CPU/GPU that i have chosen?
Is there anything else that i really should spend a few extra bucks on? Or that i could potentially save a few on?

Cheers,
Isaac

Check out http://www.tonymacx86.com/ to make sure your parts are all compatible.

The PSU you are looking to buy is pretty sketchy looking. It will be worth your money to get a nicer one. I do not believe the CPU you are looking at is overclockable. The k series are overclockable, if you really want one. For the build you have, extra case fans and CPU fan are kind of pointless. Your case and CPU will come with fans. You will also need a DVD drive, a bluetooth adapter, and potentially a wifi card.

If you are sticking with that build, you might as well buy a used 2012 Mac Mini. It will be a lot quieter, cost about the same amount, be smaller, and be way more reliable.

Not to say you shouldn't build a hackintosh, as they can be really fun, but the main benefit of getting a hackintosh is for a discrete graphics card. You currently have an awkward, unbalanced, unreliable build for what you want. If that is honestly the build you want, then get a Mac Mini. You will be a lot happier with that. If you want to try another build out, I would be happy to provide recommendations.

Matt

----------

Have you tried the following Hackintosh specific fora and websites yet?

• tonymacx86 Blog - very good guides and quite good message board
• InsanelyMac Forum
• InsanelyMac Hardware Database
• Hackintosh.com
• OSx86 Project

As with Windows and Mac OS X, in all the guides I read touching the dual booting, it was always recommended to not use Boot Camp and install Windows on a separate HDD or SSD and not just another partition.

Oh yeah, excellent point! It is easy to just buy two hard drives and store one OS on each, but it is an added cost. On the Mac Mini, dual booting is much easier.

 

[velocityg4]

Check out http://www.tonymacx86.com/ to make sure your parts are all compatible.

The PSU you are looking to buy is pretty sketchy looking. It will be worth your money to get a nicer one. I do not believe the CPU you are looking at is overclockable. The k series are overclockable, if you really want one. For the build you have, extra case fans and CPU fan are kind of pointless. Your case and CPU will come with fans. You will also need a DVD drive, a bluetooth adapter, and potentially a wifi card.

I'd also add that you should use a motherboard with an Intel Z87 or Z97 chipset for overclocking. As I recall it is pretty much mandatory.

As for the PSU if you want something cheap get a Roswell 80+ certified PSU. For something that is cheap, reliable and will deliver enough power on the 12v rail.

As for which parts to buy. Unless you really know OS X and how to troubleshoot booting issues due to drivers. Do not get any CPU, Motherboard or Video card that is not listed in Tonymacx86 Customac buyer's guide. Don't vary the model numbers or anything.

If you want to play any somewhat modern AAA 3D title at anything above 800x600 at minimum settings. Then at least get the nVidia GT 640 2GB ~$90. If you can't afford it start saving or drop the CPU to an i3. The integrated graphics is fine for older games, flash games and 2D titles.

 

[isaacallen]

Check out http://www.tonymacx86.com/ to make sure your parts are all compatible.

The PSU you are looking to buy is pretty sketchy looking. It will be worth your money to get a nicer one. I do not believe the CPU you are looking at is overclockable. The k series are overclockable, if you really want one. For the build you have, extra case fans and CPU fan are kind of pointless. Your case and CPU will come with fans. You will also need a DVD drive, a bluetooth adapter, and potentially a wifi card.

If you are sticking with that build, you might as well buy a used 2012 Mac Mini. It will be a lot quieter, cost about the same amount, be smaller, and be way more reliable.

Not to say you shouldn't build a hackintosh, as they can be really fun, but the main benefit of getting a hackintosh is for a discrete graphics card. You currently have an awkward, unbalanced, unreliable build for what you want. If that is honestly the build you want, then get a Mac Mini. You will be a lot happier with that. If you want to try another build out, I would be happy to provide recommendations.

Matt

----------



Oh yeah, excellent point! It is easy to just buy two hard drives and store one OS on each, but it is an added cost. On the Mac Mini, dual booting is much easier.

Thanks for your reply. What I'll most likely do is wait a bit longer and drop a a bit more money on an overclockable cpu, seprate graphics, and maybe a nicer motherboard.
I already have a wifi card and optical drive and i wasnt planning on getting a bluetooth card.
I guess I overlooked the fact that the processor came with a fan haha. The case only comes with one so i was thinking that it might be worth adding two more since they are quite cheap.

Thanks for the advice,
Isaac

 

[mad3inch1na]

Thanks for your reply. What I'll most likely do is wait a bit longer and drop a a bit more money on an overclockable cpu, seprate graphics, and maybe a nicer motherboard.
I already have a wifi card and optical drive and i wasnt planning on getting a bluetooth card.
I guess I overlooked the fact that the processor came with a fan haha. The case only comes with one so i was thinking that it might be worth adding two more since they are quite cheap.

Thanks for the advice,
Isaac

Oh ok,

Yeah, the main concern I have with adding extra fans is that it will add a lot of unnecessary noise. The PSU has a fan. If you get a discrete graphics card, that will come with 1-3 fans. I have a gtx 770/i5-4770k/8GB RAM/1TB HDD/128GB SSD Hackintosh with the single case fan. It runs at 60-70 degrees at most. The only heavy load I put it under is for gaming, but even after a few hours of Borderlands 2/Tomb Raider on Ultra settings it still runs cool. You may be putting your system under heavier loads, so maybe get some fans, but I would recommend buying good, power efficient parts first.

Matt