# I9 10900k OpenCore/Catalina Hackintosh Build Journal



## Kent

Making this computer:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/BgjrZf(Note that not quite all the components are listed. Read the journal for more details!)

Build starts on this post: 






I9 10900k OpenCore/Catalina Hackintosh Build Journal


My obvious follow up question would be what if it’s the same mobo and all I do is change said settings? Will the disk image work? Cuz if it does then you’d have a nice biz going in this forum ;) Yes, as long as you have the exact same motherboard, CPU, and GPU, it’s basically plug’n’play in...




vi-control.net





Talking about the video monitor:






I9 10900k OpenCore/Catalina Hackintosh Build Journal


Following with great interest!




vi-control.net





Creating a Catalina installer USB:
https://vi-control.net/community/th...a-hackintosh-build-journal.96309/post-4611931

Building the thing:
https://vi-control.net/community/th...a-hackintosh-build-journal.96309/post-4676930---
If you are like me, a devoted Unix and/or Logic Pro fan, but find that Apple has left a big hole in the marketplace for DAW work—

a CPU with both fast & many cores
a more-than-adequate cooling solution
a modularity of build
a reasonable price
—in other words, a niche that a "Mac Mini Pro" or a modular, headless iMac/iMac Pro might have mostly filled... 

Then you might be interested in my planned & upcoming i9 10900k build.

This will be my first Hackintosh, but I'm pretty computer/music tech-literate (it was my main job in LA), so I don't anticipate _too_ many issues. (and if there are, it makes for good drama, right?)

Way back in the day (when I used to play...and own...real instruments) I used to frequent the https://www.tdpri.com (TDPRI) forum and one of my favorite sections was the old guys with nothing better to do but to create their own custom T-style guitars. I learned a lot about the construction of a guitar that way, though I never attempted anything approaching luthiery myself.

In this forum, however, we work with virtual instruments. SO

*Would watching a "professional amateur" put together something like this benefit you?*

And if so, is there anything (hardware, software, firmware, you name it) you'd like me to focus on as I do?

Cheers!


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## Kent

(Now moved to the correct forum—thanks mods!)


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## jcrosby

Definitely. People interested but too intimidated by the leg work need to see how the process works, (and how straightforward and well documented it is, more or less...) Since you'll be running a 10900k I'm assuming you'll be doing Catalina?
Cheers.


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## Kent

jcrosby said:


> Definitely. People interested but too intimidated by the leg work need to see how the process works, (and how straightforward and well documented it is, more or less...) Since you'll be running a 10900k I'm assuming you'll be doing Catalina?
> Cheers.


Yeah, (un)fortunately. I’d love to not have to upgrade, and thereby not also have to upgrade Sibelius, Pro Tools, Waves, et al., but I need a new computer and the allure of 20 virtual cores at 3.7, maybe up to 5.2 GHz each is too great a pull!


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## jcrosby

kmaster said:


> Yeah, (un)fortunately. I’d love to not have to upgrade, and thereby not also have to upgrade Sibelius, Pro Tools, Waves, et al., but I need a new computer and the allure of 20 virtual cores at 3.7, maybe up to 5.2 GHz each is too great a pull!


Totally understand... I asked because as far as I understand the 10900k only works in 10.15 and beyond... I'd hoped it would run Mojave but based on the threads I've read through it doesn't.


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## Kent

jcrosby said:


> Totally understand... I asked because as far as I understand the 10900k only works in 10.15 and beyond... I'd hoped it would run Mojave but based on the threads I've read through it doesn't.


Same. It’s one of the reasons I’m considering making this a public journey—there’s a lot of important details that are specific to music creators that aren’t really discussed in all the “usual areas” (and those “usual areas” themselves can be somewhat inscrutable to the average Mac user who got into Apple products at a time when they “just worked.” Too bad those days are kind of over, at least for now, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a robust and vibrant platform!)


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## Rory

As someone who has a long history of running Arch Linux, Mac OS and Windows, I think that Hackintosh was an interesting phenomenon that is now well past any usefulness that it had, and certainly past my willingness to pay attention.


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## Kent

Rory said:


> As someone who has a long history of running Arch Linux, Mac OS and Windows, I think that Hackintosh was an interesting phenomenon that is now well past any usefulness that it had, and certainly past my willingness to pay attention.


Interesting perspective. (btw u use Arch? 🤓) I think it’s only just _now_ getting useful (beyond interest or academic curiosity) thanks to the rise of OpenCore and i9s, though that usefulness might only last half a decade or so now.


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## Rory

kmaster said:


> Interesting perspective. (btw u use Arch? 🤓) I think it’s only just _now_ getting useful (beyond interest or academic curiosity)



I've run Arch Linux for a long time, for precisely the reasons that you mention. From time to time, I've also run other flavours of Linux, including both more difficult and easier versions like Ubuntu.

I wish you well on your Hackintosh build. You asked whether people are interested, and I gave you a response. At this point, I think that Hackintosh is a blast from the past, and a waste of time and money.


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## synthnut1

At this point, I think that Hackintosh is a blast from the past, and a waste of time and money.

Hi Rory,
I’ve considered building a Hackintosh for a while now....Could you please elaborate on your opinion ?....Thanks, Jim


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## jcrosby

I always find it interesting how polarizing people's responses are to hackintoshing...

The wording of your reply Rory infers you've never actually built a hackintosh. How do you judge something if you're not familiar with it, and how is Linux even relevant to a poll querying interest? In terms of value? That same hardware could be used to run another OS... 

For lack of better phrasing, as the adage goes - _People fear, _(or in this case judge)_ what they don't understand_. If you disagree with the concept of using macos on non-mac hardware that's fine. A lot of people do. If you disapprove of hackintoshing as a practice then start a thread about it where people can discuss if it's ethical. However if those same parts could be re-purposed for use with another OS I don't see how building a DIY machine is a waste of money.

In the meantime my hackintosh has been infinitely more stable than my current MBP and equally as lovable as my old chessegrater. Indeed, OpenCore is where hackintoshing actually starts to get interesting and the opposite of _from the past_...


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## Kent

jcrosby said:


> Indeed, OpenCore is where hackintoshing actually starts to get interesting and the opposite of _from the past_...



My thoughts exactly!


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## method1

I'd be interested, I'm running an i7 hack that's been super solid, and as you say, there is no equivalent apple workstation that doesn't cost a fortune. 

I think there's plenty of life left in the scene. I used my '09 cheese-grater for 11 years, no reason I couldn't get similar life out of a hackintosh.

I built mine just as i9 was happening and wasn't aware of OpenCore, so Im pretty interested in seeing whats up with the latest generation of stuff.


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## MarcHedenberg

Just to clarify my confusion, is a Hackintosh even possible on Ryzen?


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## jmauz

I've been running hackintoshes for almost 10 years and have been a huge proponent of them during that time. Now that Apple is moving back to proprietary hardware I'm jumping ship and moving entirely to Windows. Why? Because once Apple is in the thick of rolling out RISC-based hardware I can't imagine Mac OS remaining intel-compatible. And even if it remains so, it'll be a royal pain the ass to deal with hardware issues. 

Have fun, I'm out. Fuck you Apple. Steve Jobs is rolling in his grave. :D


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## Kent

MarcHedenberg said:


> Just to clarify my confusion, is a Hackintosh even possible on Ryzen?


It is, but it's not advisable for music-making. Too many Intel dependencies.


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## jcrosby

For anyone new watching this thread, Big Sur is already up and running on hackintosh. So far at least, it looks like hackintosh will remain viable until Apple kill x86 support entirely. Assuming Apple's terms of service are anything to go by, (which they typically are), that _should_ mean that Apple will release OS's supporting intel for 5 years beyond the release date of the last intel mac model.. In some cases it's 7 years. The 2013 Mac Pro for example still shows "Current *" as the _Maximum MacOS_, the 2012 Mac Pro shows 10.14, etc.

Ironically my 2009 Mac Pro's officially supported maximum OS was 10.11, but my machine had the CPUs upgraded and flashed as a _2012 _. Technically I was already dipping a toe in the grey waters of the hackintosh pool. 🤓 

Basically, based on the 2 year transition announcement that _should_ mean hackintoshable OS's will remain viable for another 7 years, possibly up to 9 years. Obviously time will tell, but Apple would be risking a ton of legal action if they violate or re-write their TOS. (I also think it would reflect strongly in their stock price, which lets face it, are Apple's one true god...)

To check any model's last supported OS check everymac... Scroll to the bottom of any model page and look for "Maximum MacOS" in the "Pre-installed MacOS Version" column.






Mac Specs, Prices, Answers and Comparison: EveryMac.com, Est. 1996


A complete guide of every Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad and Mac clone with technical and pricing info. Specs on every Mac, answer Mac questions, compare Macs and more.




everymac.com


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## gsilbers

I just threw the towel and gave up after a week of trying hackingtosh-ing...

Might be because I have a X99 chip or an asrock mobo but it just gave way too many errors. I was able to install sierrra but after restarted once and having issues, and troubleshooting I thought I was on the clear but next restart it got stuck again.

And it gets stuck for so many issues and troubleshooting is a hit or miss on what works. For what others worked didn’t work for me and vice versa. Tried every kext and flag and whatever thousand options there are to make it work. 

And then there is always something ...
On any system.
Missing a way to use iMessage, or usb 3 or Thunderbolt, or the Ethernet or the wireless...
There is always something and then something else. 

I was thinking of maybe getting a gigabyte board to see if that helped but doubt it. 
Have to give credit to Apple because even outside Hackintosh, even normal windows is just a hassle making things just work... like ASIO drivers... wtf is up w that?’
I feel like I need to be mr robot lol.


Anyways, what would be cool is just copy whatever hardware specs gets things running and get a disk image from someone who got it running. That way I just buy said hardware, download the image and load that image into an empty ssd and done. 
Not have to deal w kext or flags or code.
I know people like that’s stuff but others just want a working Apple computer w logic without spending Mac Pro money.

So if u thinking the disk image on specific hardware config will work.... then tell
Me how much and take my money


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## Kent

gsilbers said:


> I just threw the towel and gave up after a week of trying hackingtosh-ing...
> 
> Might be because I have a X99 chip or an asrock mobo but it just gave way too many errors. I was able to install sierrra but after restarted once and having issues, and troubleshooting I thought I was on the clear but next restart it got stuck again.
> 
> And it gets stuck for so many issues and troubleshooting is a hit or miss on what works. For what others worked didn’t work for me and vice versa. Tried every kext and flag and whatever thousand options there are to make it work.
> 
> And then there is always something ...
> On any system.
> Missing a way to use iMessage, or usb 3 or Thunderbolt, or the Ethernet or the wireless...
> There is always something and then something else.
> 
> I was thinking of maybe getting a gigabyte board to see if that helped but doubt it.
> Have to give credit to Apple because even outside Hackintosh, even normal windows is just a hassle making things just work... like ASIO drivers... wtf is up w that?’
> I feel like I need to be mr robot lol.
> 
> 
> Anyways, what would be cool is just copy whatever hardware specs gets things running and get a disk image from someone who got it running. That way I just buy said hardware, download the image and load that image into an empty ssd and done.
> Not have to deal w kext or flags or code.
> I know people like that’s stuff but others just want a working Apple computer w logic without spending Mac Pro money.
> 
> So if u thinking the disk image on specific hardware config will work.... then tell
> Me how much and take my money


OpenCore fixes most of this. No more fiddling about with obscure stuff and hoping that an update doesn’t break everything.
It’s not quite as simple as just using a working disk image, as the motherboard’s BIOS must reflect the correct settings as well. My hope in the guide would be to make it a dead-simple process for non-techy music people.


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## gsilbers

kmaster said:


> Op
> 
> OpenCore fixes most of this. No more fiddling about with obscure stuff and hoping that an update doesn’t break everything.
> It’s not quite as simple as just using a working disk image, as the motherboard’s BIOS must reflect the correct settings as well. My hope in the guide would be to make it a dead-simple process for non-techy music people.



My obvious follow up question would be what if it’s the same mobo and all I do is change said settings? Will the disk image work? Cuz if it does then you’d have a nice biz going in this forum


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## Kent

gsilbers said:


> My obvious follow up question would be what if it’s the same mobo and all I do is change said settings? Will the disk image work? Cuz if it does then you’d have a nice biz going in this forum


Yes, as long as you have the exact same motherboard, CPU, and GPU, it’s basically plug’n’play in that regard.

there are some edge cases; RAM should be OK as long as it’s compatible with your board. Most hard drives are fine, but some have been known to give issues (but I think that may have been an issue with older OSes, since I haven’t seen anything about it in a while with Catalina etc.). If you want to use WiFi, Bluetooth, or anything that uses those (Airdrop, for example), you’ll have to also get a compatible WAN card. But, all in all, still pnp!

(and you’ll have to have your own serial number and such, of course)


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## gsilbers

kmaster said:


> Yes, as long as you have the exact same motherboard, CPU, and GPU, it’s basically plug’n’play in that regard.
> 
> there are some edge cases; RAM should be OK as long as it’s compatible with your board. Most hard drives are fine, but some have been known to give issues (but I think that may have been an issue with older OSes, since I haven’t seen anything about it in a while with Catalina etc.). If you want to use WiFi, Bluetooth, or anything that uses those (Airdrop, for example), you’ll have to also get a compatible WAN card. But, all in all, still pnp!
> 
> (and you’ll have to have your own serial number and such, of course)




Cool. 
I mention exact same hardware in this forum because our needs are different than video guys or gamers as high end fancy video cards is not that appealing for music.
And more ram of course.

Anyways, just a thought... providing the disk image w all already setup (kexts/drivers etc), hardware list and some minor tweaks (like bios and serial) instructions then that would rock. And every music guy will flock to your YouTube channel for some nice ad revenue 
Heck, even sell ready made ssd disk images


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## Kent

gsilbers said:


> Cool.
> I mention exact same hardware in this forum because our needs are different than video guys or gamers as high end fancy video cards is not that appealing for music.
> And more ram of course.
> 
> Anyways, just a thought... providing the disk image w all already setup (kexts/drivers etc), hardware list and some minor tweaks (like bios and serial) instructions then that would rock. And every music guy will flock to your YouTube channel for some nice ad revenue
> Heck, even sell ready made ssd disk images


Hopefully it’ll be even easier than that!


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## Sarah Mancuso

I love my hackintosh. I'm on a 9900k build that I put together last year, and before then I was on a 4790k hackintosh since 2014. Few complaints with either of them!

I used this build guide, though I swapped in a more powerful CPU and a less powerful video card. (The motherboard is the most crucial thing to match, generally!) https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/t...macos-mojave-successguide-for-aorus-z390-pro/

I feel much better about sticking on this 9900k hack for a while than I would about trying to navigate the software/hardware compatibility bloodbath of the first few years of ARM Macs. This computer is super fast and I can rely on it, it has exactly the specs I wanted, I can upgrade it easily myself, and I paid around $1300 instead of $6000 for it.

If Intel Mac support starts dropping out sooner than expected in ways that affect my ability to work (i.e. third-party devs stop providing updates), I can consider putting Win10 on here when that day comes, but it'll almost certainly be quite a ways off before I have to think about that, since Apple is still selling Intel Macs right now.


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## jcrosby

gsilbers said:


> I just threw the towel and gave up after a week of trying hackingtosh-ing...
> 
> Might be because I have a X99 chip or an asrock mobo but it just gave way too many errors. I was able to install sierrra but after restarted once and having issues, and troubleshooting I thought I was on the clear but next restart it got stuck again.
> 
> And it gets stuck for so many issues and troubleshooting is a hit or miss on what works. For what others worked didn’t work for me and vice versa. Tried every kext and flag and whatever thousand options there are to make it work.
> 
> And then there is always something ...
> On any system.
> Missing a way to use iMessage, or usb 3 or Thunderbolt, or the Ethernet or the wireless...
> There is always something and then something else.
> 
> I was thinking of maybe getting a gigabyte board to see if that helped but doubt it.
> Have to give credit to Apple because even outside Hackintosh, even normal windows is just a hassle making things just work... like ASIO drivers... wtf is up w that?’
> I feel like I need to be mr robot lol.
> 
> 
> Anyways, what would be cool is just copy whatever hardware specs gets things running and get a disk image from someone who got it running. That way I just buy said hardware, download the image and load that image into an empty ssd and done.
> Not have to deal w kext or flags or code.
> I know people like that’s stuff but others just want a working Apple computer w logic without spending Mac Pro money.
> 
> So if u thinking the disk image on specific hardware config will work.... then tell
> Me how much and take my money


Sorry to hear. If by disk image you mean a drive clone that won't work. You have to have the EFI folder setup correctly. There's no getting around that. It doesn't matter if you use Clover or OpenCore, if the EFI folder isn't set correctly for your machine it just won't work.

Imessage/factime will work on any hackintosh as long you set up the SMBIOS section correctly. You need to make sure you check that the serial number isn't registered, (i.e. is an available serial number for the model mac you choose in SMBIOS.)

I'd suggest starting with Clover. OpenCore is definitely more robust, but Clover's more straightforward, and a good starting place if it's your first hackintosh. Getting a machine running on Clover will help you understand all the basics you need to to work with OpenCore later, (if you want to). In reality Clover's totally fine. Most hackintoshes still out there are Clover builds..

Also, the biggest 1st step is copying the bios settings to the tee. If you have a a guide you're following triple check your bios settings are correct and save them as a bios profile. Call it 'ihac'. 

And Sarah's right. Motherboard choice is the biggest way to wind up with a hackintosh that's difficult to maintain. Gigabyte and ASUS boards seem to require the least fiddling, and if you really want to do it with no headaches the 1st time around you really should copy an existing build part for part as far as the MOBO and GPU are concerned. OpenCore does make things more flexible, but if you just want something you can get running quickly and run stable you really should find a guide with the specs you want and stick to it. I'm pretty sure I run the same machine she does, 9900k, Gigabyte Z-390 Designare.

I personally think the most important hurdle to get over with a hackintosh is to get it running! It's easy to have it fail if you miss a couple steps. Then people typically get frustrated and give up... Many have, many will. But it isn't actually too difficult. I have NO programming background. Shit, my Logic skills aren't even great from a technical point of view. Even still I managed to get the thing running, and I really mean this... If I can build a stable hackintosh, anyone competent enough to run a DAW can.

It just takes a little patience, and most importantly you have to step back and take a breath when you hit a hurdle and it won't boot after you make an adjustment.... It will boot again as long as you don't throw in the towel, check everything twice, (measure twice cut once as they say...), and find an ask questions on the appropriate forums if/when you get stuck.

Check the YT link below. The guy prepared an EFI for X99. If you get it running you'll be motivated enough to trek onward.... I really think this is the biggest step to move past. People wouldn't just toss out knee jerk remarks like _it's a waste of time_ if they didn't get hung up and throw in the towel themselves...

Assuming you'll want to eventually move to High Sierra or Mojave you need to accept that you will almost certainly need to make some EFI adjustments when you do. The upside is that working with a pre-built EFI folder will teach the architecture of what makes hackintosh boot...

There are also ways to do updates without leaving you with an unbootable drive. What I did to make sure my machine was ready for Mojave was install 10.14 to a separate drive. I then copied the EFI to that drive and installed Mojave. I had to change 1, maybe two things and it was all set... For shits and giggles I decided to see if 10.13 would boot if I used the 10.14 EFI and it actually did... Ultimately I wound up running 10.13 for a few more months and was able to update in place to Mojave, not a singe EFI tweak was needed... If you can get your machine to occasionally boot, clone it to a spare drive now, and mount and copy the EFI to that drive before you do anything else...

Anyway here's the video.... If you check the video description he has a link to his X99 EFI folder. A heads up, it may very well not boot as is because his EFI is based on an ASUS, but you literally won't break anything and have nothing to lose by trying... If you do manage to get it to boot you'll probably be a lot more motivated to go back and follow the guide for your board. (Also remember, your bios will be different since this is an ASUS video..)


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## Sarah Mancuso

Yeahhh, I took one look at OpenCore (okay, _a few_ looks) and just went with Clover again for my new build last year. Clover has served me well over the years, I know my way around it reasonably well at this point, and there's tons of info out there to help with setting it up and troubleshooting issues because so many people use it.

I wouldn't be opposed to trying out OpenCore in the future if it becomes necessary for updating (I'm on Mojave right now), but I'm not in any hurry to get on a newer and more restricted version of macOS, anyway...


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## Kent

Sarah Mancuso said:


> but I'm not in any hurry to get on a newer and more restricted version of macOS, anyway...


I’m not either, but I don’t see how to do Mojave with a 10900k, so I’ll take the L there.


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## AT_WD-X

I’d be very interested in seeing an Open Core build.

I built an i9 9900k Machine running Mojave using the Clover guide from TonyMac last month. My intention is to rebuild it using Open Core but Clover seemed easier to begin with as it was my first build.

Following a guide made it relatively easy...relatively! 

Open Core does definitely seem like the obvious next step so I’d definitely like to see your build come together.


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## Kent

it's happening, y'all. 

hold on to your hats


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## chimuelo

Anxiously waiting.
Friends with ASRock Z97 Hackintoshes love it.
I want ESX24 and hope AMD Ryzens or i9’s work.


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## InLight-Tone

Sign me up as well. I have an i7 Hackintosh running smooth here, but I'd like to get more cores for the transition coming up THEN invest in ARM once we have some powerful machines available.


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## Kent

All righty kids,

The ingredients are starting to arrive, and will be over the next week or so.

Right now, let's go over the hardware I've ordered. Along with brief explanations of why each particular piece was chosen, I'll provide links, but computer components (especially newer stock and especially with a worldwide pandemic) will fluctuate in availability and cost, so they may or may not be useful to you.

But first, the old computer.

THE OLD COMPUTER​This is what I am replacing: Late 2015 27" iMac


PARTUNITNOTESCPUIntel i7 6700k 4.0 GHz4 cores, 8 virtualRAMCrucial 1867 MHz DDR34 x 16GB (64 GB total)Screen5k Retina 27"many iMacs of this vintage have image retention issues.GPUAMD Radeon R9 M395X4GBHD1 TB SSDOSmacOS Mojave10.14.6, not the latest security update though

Now, there are some issues with this computer. First is that it's getting long in the tooth—it's just about half a decade old, so it's not exactly cutting edge. There is also the image retention issue I mention, above. But, most critically, it used to live in LA, right by the 101...and inherited some oily dust that is impossible to clean out (iMacs are notoriously difficult to clean out anyways, but this dust is something else). Practically, this means that CPU temps jump to 99C almost immediately when doing heavy lifting (anything heavier than EXS24/Sampler, that is), and after about a minute the computer will brown itself out to preserve its CPU health. So, there's nothing wrong with the hardware per se, but it's also impossible to use the hardware to its fullest potential. As an orchestral VI composer, that's just not tenable, so it's time for a new computer.

Thus:
THE NEW COMPUTER​
The iMac is an all-in-one computer; the screen and the internals are one. It's also glued shut, and doing any sort of surgery on it is an expensive and full-day affair.

The new computer is going to be a lot more modular and "traditional," since it's easier to clean, upgrade/replace parts as needed, and generally perform maintenance on. 

_The most important thing when building a Hackintosh is making sure that macOS can run on it._ Duh. What this means in a practical sense is that the *CPU, GPU, and motherboard* are supported by macOS. The list of compatibles is pretty narrow, and my own requirements (Thunderbolt capability, able to access at least 128 GB RAM, able to run latest i9 generation CPU) narrows it down even further. So here's what I've got—again, with links which may or may not be helpful to you.


PARTUNITNOTESLINKCPUIntel i9 10900k 3.7 GHz10 cores, 20 virtual, can easily overclock (all cores!) to 5.0GHz or more. Currently hard to find at a reasonable price—lots of people bought them up to upcharge $300! Newegg has them at a reasonable price every now and then though.








Intel Core i9-10900K 3.7 GHz LGA 1200 BX8070110900K Desktop Processor - Newegg.com


Buy Intel Core i9-10900K 10-Core 3.7 GHz LGA 1200 125W BX8070110900K Desktop Processor Intel UHD Graphics 630 with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™




www.newegg.com




RAMG.Skill Ripjaws V series DDR4 3600128GB (4x32GB). I run VEP and Logic on a single machine, so I need to be able to load my whole template here. Most RAM is compatible with macOS as long as it runs on a motherboard that is compatible. I don't believe in flashing lights in my computer for the sake of it, so I didn't get a model (like the Trident Z) which is functionally the same but more expensive due to the RGB lighting. YMMV...








G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 128GB (4 x 32GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800) Intel XMP 2.0 Desktop Memory Model F4-3600C18Q-128GVK - Newegg.com


Buy G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 128GB (4 x 32GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800) Intel XMP 2.0 Desktop Memory Model F4-3600C18Q-128GVK with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™




www.newegg.com




ScreenHisense H8G 50" VA Android TVI think I'll have a whole post on this later, but for now: no image retention, great size, great color, great price!https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hisense-50-class-h8g-quantum-series-4k-uhd-tv-smart-led-with-hdr/6403989.p?skuId=6403989GPUSapphire Radeon RX5808GB. Sapphire is just one brand, but others should be fine. AMD are generally compatible with Apple. This is enough to drive my monitor, plus some, and is relatively low-end. You don't need anything crazy for DAW work. ALSO, Nvidia can be a lot more complicated—stay away from them.HDSamsung 970 PRO1TB. Perhaps the best general-purpose M.2 on the market right now?OSmacOS Catalinalatest, via OpenCore. I'd rather stay on Mojave, but as far as I can tell the i9 10900k requires a minimum of Catalina...so I'll also need to upgrade my notation softwares, some of my DAWs, and my Waves bundles if I want to use them. You know what you'll need to upgrade for Catalina for your own setup.WANMQUPIN Fenvi T919Apple uses Broadcom, so the on-board WiFi/Bluetooth will not work. You must get one of these if you want to use things like WiFi, Bluetooth, Airdrop, Handoff, etc.MotherboardGigabyte z490 Vision DCan handle Thunderbolt, 128 GB RAM, the latest i9 generation, and has 3 NVME slots.PSUEVGA 220 G3 750W GOLDA solid and efficient PSU, which gives me about 30-40% headroom over my estimated max wattage draw. Get at *least* Gold rating, whatever PSU you choose.CaseFractal Design Define R6I got the one with USB-C and a brushed black, but it comes in other colors and/or with a glass panel, if you wish. This is one of the best and quietest cases out there right now.








Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C Black Brushed Aluminum/Steel ATX Silent Modular Mid Tower Computer Case - Newegg.com


Buy Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C Black Brushed Aluminum/Steel ATX Silent Modular Mid Tower Computer Case with fast shipping and top-rated customer service.Once you know, you Newegg!




www.newegg.com




CoolingArctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 280Nearly the quietest and most efficient cooler out there these days. Again, no RGB, which is both cheaper and more aesthetically pleasing (to me). Great for overclocking! Gamers love this, so it can be hard to find...








ARCTIC COOLING Liquid Freezer II - 280 ACFRE00066A Multi Compatible All-In-One CPU Water Cooler - Newegg.com


Buy ARCTIC COOLING Liquid Freezer II - 280 ACFRE00066A Multi Compatible All-In-One CPU Water Cooler with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™




www.newegg.com







(CONT)


----------



## Kent

There are some auxiliary things I got, too:

I have 5 SATA SSDs (4 Samples,* 1 Windows 10 64-bit** for dual-booting). The motherboard can support up to 6, but only comes with 4 cables. So, I got some more:


This is great for doing any work with delicate electronics. Static is very dangerous!


The thermal paste to go between the cooler and the CPU:


Some adapters to connect my Thunderbolt 2 things to the Thunderbolt 3 ports:


Some power cable extensions for the cooler (apparently, otherwise, this model is a bit tight in some configurations):


---

Now, this is my first Hackintosh, and really my first PC build (restoring old 90s Thinkpads doesn't really count...), so it's possible that despite my research and answer-seeking some of these things are not compatible (mostly in terms of fit within the case)... so if you are hoping to copy this build, DO NOT BUY ANYTHING yet until I can confirm it! 

---

Finally, for this build I will be drawing heavily on the general information from Morgonaut*** and, more specifically, SchmockLord's 10900k build.***

---

* Once the budget is allowing, I will eventually consolidate these onto a single 4TB NVMe.
**...called *WIN10DO 64* because why not
*** Morgonaut Hackintosh builds are mostly Clover-based, but I'll be doing OpenCore like SchmockLord. Still, there's a lot of great info in those videos—check them out!


----------



## method1

Thanks!

I have a couple of questions:

My current z370 board disables SATA ports when using certain NVME slots and/or pcie slots, this was a bit of a headache to figure out because I was moving over 6xHDDs from my '09 cheese grater, and also wanted to use an NVME slot for system plus an alpine ridge thunderbolt card.
Any idea if the board you're going with has similar limitations?

EDIT: I checked it out, you can have 5 x sata and 1 x nvme concurrently.
The M2P PCIE SSD slot would also be available that that shares bandwidth with the PCIEX4 slot.


Thunderbolt, I have to do the boot into windows to enable thunderbolt thing, is this still the same with OpenCore?

And a comment, AFAIK Mojave upwards only supports AMD GPUs, last supported OS is 10.13.6.Not sure if anything has changed there.


----------



## Kent

method1 said:


> My current z370 board disables SATA ports when using certain NVME slots and/or pcie slots, this was a bit of a headache to figure out because I was moving over 6xHDDs from my '09 cheese grater, and also wanted to use an NVME slot for system plus an alpine ridge thunderbolt card.
> Any idea if the board you're going with has similar limitations?


Yes, it does. From the manual for the z490 Vision D:




That won't be an issue for me because I will (probably) use the M2A_CPU PCIe slot for my OS drive, leaving me 5 SATA SSD slots that are still useable. If/when I upgrade my samples to a 4TB, it'll go in another slot (or maybe perhaps even on a PCIe card adaptor—haven't decided, gotta see how much room I have), so even if more SATA slots are disabled I'll be down to 1 SATA drive anyways.



method1 said:


> Thunderbolt, I have to do the boot into windows to enable thunderbolt thing, is this still the same with OpenCore?


Don't think so. From this and from his video, it looks like it's natively supported. (I am hoping so, but this is why I am doing this as a public journal, so that only one person needs to go through this).



method1 said:


> And a comment, AFAIK Mojave upwards only supports AMD GPUs, last supported OS is 10.13.6.Not sure if anything has changed there.


Nvidia drivers are notoriously bad for audio anyways, so there's no reason to even want them  The real thing that some people might wait for is the iGPU [which if you (but probably not _you_, @method1 haha) are reading this, and don't know, is the integrated graphics on the motherboard such that you don't even need an additional video card.... which you really don't for 99.9% of DAW computer uses], which for now doesn't seem to work but is expected to become supported as Apple starts to release computers with this/similar chipset.


----------



## method1

Thanks, I'm kinda jealous of your specs there 

I ended up consolidating some of my smaller HDDs onto a 14TB to get around the SATA limitation, not such a big deal I guess. 

Being able to cold boot with TB working would be great!
Then I can get rid of that windows partition.
Also I don't have airdrop working, tried and failed, so it would be cool to have it working in my next build.

Never had any trouble with NVIDIA, I'm still on High Sierra with a GTX1060, but I've got an RX580 if I decide to go back to Mojave or try Catalina.


----------



## gh0stwrit3r

kmaster said:


> All righty kids,
> 
> The ingredients are starting to arrive, and will be over the next week or so.
> 
> Right now, let's go over the hardware I've ordered. Along with brief explanations of why each particular piece was chosen, I'll provide links, but computer components (especially newer stock and especially with a worldwide pandemic) will fluctuate in availability and cost, so they may or may not be useful to you.
> 
> But first, the old computer.
> 
> THE OLD COMPUTER​This is what I am replacing: Late 2015 27" iMac
> 
> 
> PARTUNITNOTESCPUIntel i7 6700k 4.0 GHz4 cores, 8 virtualRAMCrucial 1867 MHz DDR34 x 16GB (64 GB total)Screen5k Retina 27"many iMacs of this vintage have image retention issues.GPUAMD Radeon R9 M395X4GBHD1 TB SSDOSmacOS Mojave10.14.6, not the latest security update though
> 
> Now, there are some issues with this computer. First is that it's getting long in the tooth—it's just about half a decade old, so it's not exactly cutting edge. There is also the image retention issue I mention, above. But, most critically, it used to live in LA, right by the 101...and inherited some oily dust that is impossible to clean out (iMacs are notoriously difficult to clean out anyways, but this dust is something else). Practically, this means that CPU temps jump to 99C almost immediately when doing heavy lifting (anything heavier than EXS24/Sampler, that is), and after about a minute the computer will brown itself out to preserve its CPU health. So, there's nothing wrong with the hardware per se, but it's also impossible to use the hardware to its fullest potential. As an orchestral VI composer, that's just not tenable, so it's time for a new computer.
> 
> Thus:
> THE NEW COMPUTER​
> The iMac is an all-in-one computer; the screen and the internals are one. It's also glued shut, and doing any sort of surgery on it is an expensive and full-day affair.
> 
> The new computer is going to be a lot more modular and "traditional," since it's easier to clean, upgrade/replace parts as needed, and generally perform maintenance on.
> 
> _The most important thing when building a Hackintosh is making sure that macOS can run on it._ Duh. What this means in a practical sense is that the *CPU, GPU, and motherboard* are supported by macOS. The list of compatibles is pretty narrow, and my own requirements (Thunderbolt capability, able to access at least 128 GB RAM, able to run latest i9 generation CPU) narrows it down even further. So here's what I've got—again, with links which may or may not be helpful to you.
> 
> 
> PARTUNITNOTESLINKCPUIntel i9 10900k 3.7 GHz10 cores, 20 virtual, can easily overclock (all cores!) to 5.0GHz or more. Currently hard to find at a reasonable price—lots of people bought them up to upcharge $300! Newegg has them at a reasonable price every now and then though.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Intel Core i9-10900K 3.7 GHz LGA 1200 BX8070110900K Desktop Processor - Newegg.com
> 
> 
> Buy Intel Core i9-10900K 10-Core 3.7 GHz LGA 1200 125W BX8070110900K Desktop Processor Intel UHD Graphics 630 with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.newegg.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> RAMG.Skill Ripjaws V series DDR4 3600128GB (4x32GB). I run VEP and Logic on a single machine, so I need to be able to load my whole template here. Most RAM is compatible with macOS as long as it runs on a motherboard that is compatible. I don't believe in flashing lights in my computer for the sake of it, so I didn't get a model (like the Trident Z) which is functionally the same but more expensive due to the RGB lighting. YMMV...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 128GB (4 x 32GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800) Intel XMP 2.0 Desktop Memory Model F4-3600C18Q-128GVK - Newegg.com
> 
> 
> Buy G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 128GB (4 x 32GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800) Intel XMP 2.0 Desktop Memory Model F4-3600C18Q-128GVK with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.newegg.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ScreenHisense H8G 50" VA Android TVI think I'll have a whole post on this later, but for now: no image retention, great size, great color, great price!https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hisense-50-class-h8g-quantum-series-4k-uhd-tv-smart-led-with-hdr/6403989.p?skuId=6403989GPUSapphire Radeon RX5808GB. Sapphire is just one brand, but others should be fine. AMD are generally compatible with Apple. This is enough to drive my monitor, plus some, and is relatively low-end. You don't need anything crazy for DAW work. ALSO, Nvidia can be a lot more complicated—stay away from them.HDSamsung 970 PRO1TB. Perhaps the best general-purpose M.2 on the market right now?OSmacOS Catalinalatest, via OpenCore. I'd rather stay on Mojave, but as far as I can tell the i9 10900k requires a minimum of Catalina...so I'll also need to upgrade my notation softwares, some of my DAWs, and my Waves bundles if I want to use them. You know what you'll need to upgrade for Catalina for your own setup.WANMQUPIN Fenvi T919Apple uses Broadcom, so the on-board WiFi/Bluetooth will not work. You must get one of these if you want to use things like WiFi, Bluetooth, Airdrop, Handoff, etc.MotherboardGigabyte z490 Vision DCan handle Thunderbolt, 128 GB RAM, the latest i9 generation, and has 3 NVME slots.PSUEVGA 220 G3 750W GOLDA solid and efficient PSU, which gives me about 30-40% headroom over my estimated max wattage draw. Get at *least* Gold rating, whatever PSU you choose.CaseFractal Design Define R6I got the one with USB-C and a brushed black, but it comes in other colors and/or with a glass panel, if you wish. This is one of the best and quietest cases out there right now.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C Black Brushed Aluminum/Steel ATX Silent Modular Mid Tower Computer Case - Newegg.com
> 
> 
> Buy Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C Black Brushed Aluminum/Steel ATX Silent Modular Mid Tower Computer Case with fast shipping and top-rated customer service.Once you know, you Newegg!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.newegg.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> CoolingArctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 280Nearly the quietest and most efficient cooler out there these days. Again, no RGB, which is both cheaper and more aesthetically pleasing (to me). Great for overclocking! Gamers love this, so it can be hard to find...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ARCTIC COOLING Liquid Freezer II - 280 ACFRE00066A Multi Compatible All-In-One CPU Water Cooler - Newegg.com
> 
> 
> Buy ARCTIC COOLING Liquid Freezer II - 280 ACFRE00066A Multi Compatible All-In-One CPU Water Cooler with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Newegg shopping upgraded ™
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.newegg.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> (CONT)



Following with great interest!


----------



## Kent

method1 said:


> Thanks, I'm kinda jealous of your specs there


My dream is to be able to run a full virtual orchestra + other instruments + routing + basic FX (reverb, spatialization, light EQ) at a 128-or-less buffer on _one_ computer...so I'm hoping it's enough!
At the very least, _approaching_ that ability is why I'm willing to make the jump to Catalina, even though if I ever want to use Finale/Sibelius/Dorico/DP/Cubase/Pro Tools/Waves again, I'll have to pay (This might be a good time to simplify...for example, I haven't used Finale since undergrad, and I'm honestly not sure that preserving access to most of the music I wrote then is actually worth it ).


----------



## method1

Sounds doable, even my 8700k can handle pretty hefty sessions at 128. 
What audio interface will you be using?


----------



## Kent

method1 said:


> What audio interface will you be using?


RME Fireface UFX+ via Thunderbolt (hopefully, and currently)


----------



## Kent

gh0stwrit3r said:


> Following with great interest!


----------



## jcrosby

kmaster said:


> There are some auxiliary things I got, too:
> 
> I have 5 SATA SSDs (4 Samples,* 1 Windows 10 64-bit** for dual-booting). The motherboard can support up to 6, but only comes with 4 cables. So, I got some more:
> 
> 
> This is great for doing any work with delicate electronics. Static is very dangerous!
> 
> 
> The thermal paste to go between the cooler and the CPU:
> 
> 
> Some adapters to connect my Thunderbolt 2 things to the Thunderbolt 3 ports:
> 
> 
> Some power cable extensions for the cooler (apparently, otherwise, this model is a bit tight in some configurations):
> 
> 
> ---
> 
> Now, this is my first Hackintosh, and really my first PC build (restoring old 90s Thinkpads doesn't really count...), so it's possible that despite my research and answer-seeking some of these things are not compatible (mostly in terms of fit within the case)... so if you are hoping to copy this build, DO NOT BUY ANYTHING yet until I can confirm it!
> 
> ---
> 
> Finally, for this build I will be drawing heavily on the general information from Morgonaut*** and, more specifically, SchmockLord's 10900k build.***
> 
> ---
> 
> * Once the budget is allowing, I will eventually consolidate these onto a single 4TB NVMe.
> **...called *WIN10DO 64* because why not
> *** Morgonaut Hackintosh builds are mostly Clover-based, but I'll be doing OpenCore like SchmockLord. Still, there's a lot of great info in those videos—check them out!



I can confirm, the Sapphire will work OOTB. As long as you set your bios, slots, etc correctly macos will recognize it. I use the same in mine.. If not doing video editing IMO it's a no brainer, totally compatible and well priced...


----------



## jcrosby

method1 said:


> Also I don't have airdrop working, tried and failed, so it would be cool to have it working in my next build.


The Fenvi card he listed solves this issue. 









Fenvi FV-T919 wifi and bluetooth out of the box - airdrop and calls works 


Hi there i wanted to share my experience with the fenvi fv-t919 order it from ali exprees got it after 2 weeks installed it in 10 minutes and turn on the mac and everything works connected my magic mouse, matias wireless keyboard and airpods togheter and everything works perfect. and the most ama...



www.insanelymac.com


----------



## Manaberry

I'm wondering if I can build a Hackintosh with my 10980XE. It's tempting but, dangerous.


----------



## colony nofi

You guys might also want to check out Morganauts builds. She runs a tight setup - and has built some damn powerful hackintoshes which are incredibly simple to setup compared to builds of old.

But that is just an aside - I'm following this closely as well!


----------



## MGdepp

Definitely get the FENVI card. It solved all my issues with Bluetooth, WiFi and related topics like handoff. The only complaint would be that you are loosing one pci slot, but I have not seen anyone on forum who solved the problems without FENVI card on a z390 build.


----------



## Kent

colony nofi said:


> You guys might also want to check out Morganauts builds. She runs a tight setup - and has built some damn powerful hackintoshes which are incredibly simple to setup compared to builds of old.
> 
> But that is just an aside - I'm following this closely as well!



Yep! Which is why I said



kmaster said:


> Finally, for this build I will be drawing heavily on the general information from Morgonaut*** and, more specifically, SchmockLord's 10900k build.***
> 
> ---
> 
> *** Morgonaut Hackintosh builds are mostly Clover-based, but I'll be doing OpenCore like SchmockLord. Still, there's a lot of great info in those videos—check them out!


----------



## Kent

MGdepp said:


> Definitely get the FENVI card. It solved all my issues with Bluetooth, WiFi and related topics like handoff. The only complaint would be that you are loosing one pci slot, but I have not seen anyone on forum who solved the problems without FENVI card on a z390 build.


Yeah, but it’s a 1x PCIe which I can use in the 1x slot on the Vision D board. I don’t have anything else to use in that slot, so it’s not a loss


----------



## Kent

THE MONITOR​
I feel like this deserves its own post, as mentioned before, so this was my thought process behind it all:

I'm coming from a 27" Retina 5k screen. Granted, it does now have some image retention issues, especially around the edges, but overall it's a great screen, and it's really raised the bar in what I find an acceptable viewing experience for my work day.

The Retina 27" screen is natively 5120 x 2880 pixels, and I run it at the OS default of 2560 x 1440—in other words, at "half-resolution," which is a nice compromise between being spacious and being legible. It's ~29 inches from my face, which is just under the visual acuity distance (the distance at which individual pixels become indistinguishable to the human eye) for a nominal 2560 x 1440 27" screen, but since it's actually a halved resolution (that is, the quanta of the "pixel" are twice as small as the nominal resolution says they are), it's very sharp. I mean, this is the screen that all other consumer monitors are measured against...or it used to be until Apple released their $6000 set 

But, this is media scoring...so screen real estate really matters. To that end, I've mounted a Dell U2415 directly above (to keep symmetry) and very slightly angled in, so I can throw VEP or a video window up there when needed.

Now, this presents some issues.

First, I used to use the Output PLATFORM desk. Here's a picture of my setup from LA:






And since moving back to Georgia and "sheltering in place," I've been making do with my old Studio Trends 46" I got from Guitar Center way back in 2014:






The issue, notwithstanding the desk space (or lack thereof), is that both of these desks were designed to provide a couple U of rack space and support audio monitors...but were not designed with proper ergonomics in mind!






My iMac is mildly uncomfortable, being directly in front of my eyes instead of largely below them. The Dell is worse, and though it's a secondary monitor, I use it enough on some days that I feel it in my neck.

Not good.

SO, since replacing an iMac with a non-integrated-screen computer means that a new screen must be used, I wanted to take the opportunity to increase my screen real estate and hopefully provide, or at least plan for, the ability to not have to use such a setup.

At first I looked at computer monitors in the 27" - 34" classes. I'm not doing color grading, or PC gaming, or anything like that, but I do want to take care of my eyesight and my neck, so I needed a certain minimum level of quality. But all of the monitors that really drew my eye were pretty pricy (over $500), or had certain issues that, thinking ahead to my next studio space, I would not appreciate (like lack of VESA mount capability). There were a few monitors that are pretty decent and within a budget-oriented price range, to be fair, but nothing really spoke to me.

Then I remembered that certain 43" 4K TVs as monitors were all the rage in LA amongst a certain cache of composer a few years ago, so I decided to research the TV-as-monitor market.

It's gotten pretty good, y'all.

There are numerous threads on this very forum detailing people's experiences with this model or that model.

For me, I wanted to have something I could put on this desk for now (unfortunately elevated as it is), but once we move into our new space and I have a new room to design for, and a flat desk (!!!), I could mount on the front wall or on a floor-stand.

I also wanted to avoid image retention at all costs. IPS screens (and ESPECIALLY the new fad, OLED) are susceptible to this, but VA are not.

So I knew I wanted a 43" or larger, but still relatively affordable, VA 4K smart TV that worked well as a monitor. I also did not want PWM dimming, or at least at a perceivable rate, due to reasons you can research. (Thanks @Pictus !)

Enter the https://www.amazon.com/Hisense-50-Inch-Quantum-Android-50H8G/dp/B086BG213X/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Hisense+H8G+50%22&qid=1596195148&sr=8-1 (Hisense H8G 50&quot;).






I discovered this TV on a thread in here in which @proxima linked to a review site called rtings, which seems very thorough, and sure enough I discovered their recommendations for TVs to use as monitors. Their budget VA recommendation is the Hisense 55H8G, which is by all accounts nearly identical, but just a bit bigger, than the 50H8G. As the 50" is cheaper, I went with the 50". The two "cons" cited there (narrow viewing angles and limited HDR abilities) do not matter at all for my intended use. The pros do!

In my current setup, I'll have to set the monitor up on the riser portion of the desk, where it will fill my field of vision but not exceed it. When I move to a flat desk, and a larger room, I'll be able to mount it on a floor-stand...at the correct ergonomic angle/height, to boot. So it's at worst, hopefully, roughly equivalent to what I have now (but more real estate!), but at best also future-proofed.

(Yes, I did also have to get floor stands for my SC205s, since there will be absolutely no room on the desk for them...but that will help my listening triangle anyways, so no harm there!)

Anyways, for those of you considering new screen-monitors, I suggest you consider using a modern smart TV. In many ways they're equivalent to a specifically-PC monitor; as long as it can handle 4K at 60 FPS, with minimal lag, and without PWM dimming, you should be good to go. I will update with my experiences once I hook everything up, of course. 

Hope this helps someone!


----------



## Arthur Lewis

Thanks for sharing all of this! I wonder if you’d consider sharing total cost and total build time at the end of the process. That’s been one of the major questions for me - whether the savings end up being worth the time I’d have to put in to make it work.


----------



## Kent

Arthur Lewis said:


> Thanks for sharing all of this! I wonder if you’d consider sharing total cost and total build time at the end of the process. That’s been one of the major questions for me - whether the savings end up being worth the time I’d have to put in to make it work.


Yeah, total cost is a bit difficult as computer components fluctuate in cost and you might have to/choose to pay more in shipping. Not counting the software upgrades to make your workflow Catalina-compliant. For me, total cost of hardware alone was in the $3000 USD range. An equivalent iMac (which there isn’t, modularity aside, but a current i9 3.6 GHz 8-core 27” with 64 GB RAM, Radeon Pro 580x, 1 TB SSD) is $3999 pre-tax. I’m getting more screen, more CPU speed/cores, more RAM, better cooling, more ports, and modularity/serviceability/upgradeability for 75% of that cost.

::edit:: @Arthur Lewis new iMacs dropped today. https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/...rocessor-with-turbo-boost-up-to-5.0ghz-512gb# This one with a (very slightly worse?) CPU, 128 GB RAM, the minimum GPU, and again no modularity, is $5599....the RAM alone is + $2600 (in addition to some unknown "base cost"), whereas I spent less than $500 for mine.


----------



## Kent

Time is also difficult as I have spent many many hours poring over all the information, especially for a build specifically like this, which is well-documented from one guy but not really anywhere else. So I have had to make some assumptions. And he’s not even a VI music guy to boot.
Hopefully this journal helps people here know that they can get XYZ components, download ABC items, make IJK settings changes, and assemble everything 123, and it powers on and works as expected, no fiddling around from then on!


----------



## Kent

And if I run into snags along the way, at least you will know where those snags are so that you can avoid them yourself!


----------



## Kent

The plot thickens!


----------



## Arthur Lewis

Thanks Kent. Even the info you just provided is very helpful!


----------



## gsilbers

one request:

can you intall random apps so we can see the process. like plugins or logic etc. 
simple stuff once its up and runing.


----------



## Kent

gsilbers said:


> one request:
> 
> can you intall random apps so we can see the process. like plugins or logic etc.
> simple stuff once its up and runing.


Sure thing, definitely part of the plan!


----------



## Kent

This isn't part of the build per se, so I won't include too many details on it, but I just set up my new https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Support-Professional-Non-marring-Decoupling/dp/B005QM6UE2/ (45&quot; Ultimate Support MS-90s) with play sand (a whole 50 pounds is less than $5 at Home Depot, and I used maybe a third of it tops for the two together). 

Looks like the remaining pieces of the build, the PSU and the cooler, should be delivered sometime today. (FedEx is delivering the latter, though, and is a little opaque on its information...hopefully that doesn't mean that they're actually delivering tomorrow, but we'll see!) Once I get those, I can start this back up again


----------



## Kent

I guess I could take this time to introduce the software side of things.

Like I've mentioned before, I will be basing my build on SchmockLord's 10900k build, which is pretty similar to mine. His instructions are very clear, but as I am using some slightly different hardware than he did, and have a different end goal use-case, I do plan to show where deviations occur.

I also plan to elaborate on the few areas where I think his instructions would be difficult for a "non-computer person." I fully believe that anybody who can write music on a DAW (in other words: all of you) can also figure out how to build a computer—even a Hackintosh!—given clear instructions, which is why I'm doing this journal in the first place.


----------



## Kent

Software: Step 1
Creating a macOS Catalina Installer USB
a la SchmockLord
edits and annotations mine​What you will need:
- blank 16GB USB2 stick
- Mac (with access to App Store)

Go into the App Store and search for 'Catalina'; download it. (It should download to your Mac's Applications folder, Macintosh HD/Applications.)




Note: when 'Install macOS Catalina' is fully downloaded, it will probably automatically open and attempt to begin the installation:




Simply go to the top-right menu and select _Quit Install macOS_, or use the key command *⌘Q*.




Plug in the USB stick of at least 16GB in size. Let's assume your stick is called "Untitled."
Open the Terminal application (Macintosh HD/Applications/Utilities/Terminal) and copy-paste this command to create the installer:

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Untitled

(Note that if your stick is called something else, you will need to make sure that the last word in that command reflects that change. Also note this is case-sensitive: _Untitled_, _UNTITLED_, and _untitled_ are three different drives, as far as your Mac is concerned.)

You might need to enter your Mac's user password to authorize and continue.


Now there should be a progress bar in the terminal showing the creation process in %. Wait until it is complete. (This process can take, like, half an hour, so be patient!)


At the end your USB stick should be named "Install macOS Catalina."


Very easy!


----------



## gh0stwrit3r

> G.Skill Ripjaws V series DDR4 3600


I've noticed you picked DDR4-3600 memory sticks while the I9 doesn't support that. I guess it does work, but it doesn't operate on full potential. Or am I wrong?


----------



## method1

I think XMP takes care of that?


----------



## Kent

gh0stwrit3r said:


> I've noticed you picked DDR4-3600 memory sticks while the I9 doesn't support that. I guess it does work, but it doesn't operate on full potential. Or am I wrong?


I'm not a RAM-head, so I admittedly don't know all the intricacies of everything, but I had the same understanding as @method1. Also, the build I am basing mine off of uses basically the same RAM, albeit the Trident Z instead of the Ripjaws V (so basically, he's using the same RAM I am, but with some RGB lighting attached) and 64 GB instead of 128 GB. But otherwise they're identical, so I do not anticipate any issues....but that's the point of the journal: to prove that it does! (Or doesn't...)


----------



## Kent

GPU is here, but looks like the cooler is coming tomorrow after all...so I expect a busy day! (Hopefully not _too _busy!)


----------



## Kent

Update:

Build is happening, and going pretty well (!), but of course there are a dozen urgent “life” things that popped up at literally the same time.

I am documenting as I can and will post the build journal retrospectively


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

kmaster said:


> Fenvi FV T-919



Hey, since you mentioned it (actually you didn't, I inserted it in a quote attributed to you, but it's on your list  )....

That card comes with an unusual cable to connect to a USB port on the motherboard.

I've been considering adding one of those cards to my Mac Pro 5,1 (for AirDrop, Handoff, etc.), but there are no motherboard USB ports and it would need an adapter to connect to an external USB port.

Do you or anyone else know what kind of adapter I'd need? I've been asking around, and nobody seems to know the answer.

TIA


----------



## Kent

Nick Batzdorf said:


> Hey, since you mentioned it (actually you didn't, I inserted it in a quote attributed to you, but it's on your list  )....
> 
> That card comes with an unusual cable to connect to a USB port on the motherboard.
> 
> I've been considering adding one of those cards to my Mac Pro 5,1 (for AirDrop, Handoff, etc.), but there are no motherboard USB ports and it would need an adapter to connect to an external USB port.
> 
> Do you or anyone else know what kind of adapter I'd need? I've been asking around, and nobody seems to know the answer.
> 
> TIA


It’s not unusual AFAIK—it connects to a typical 9-pin USB motherboard header


----------



## method1

Nick Batzdorf said:


> Hey, since you mentioned it (actually you didn't, I inserted it in a quote attributed to you, but it's on your list  )....
> 
> That card comes with an unusual cable to connect to a USB port on the motherboard.
> 
> I've been considering adding one of those cards to my Mac Pro 5,1 (for AirDrop, Handoff, etc.), but there are no motherboard USB ports and it would need an adapter to connect to an external USB port.
> 
> Do you or anyone else know what kind of adapter I'd need? I've been asking around, and nobody seems to know the answer.
> 
> TIA



Something like this should work to connect the fenvi cable to a regular USB port.





FRONTX - USB Cable 1.1/2.0 - USB type A male to header male connector (pin/pinout)


USB cable - USB male to header male.



www.frontx.com


----------



## Kent

In general, Catalina feels really good as an OS. Snappy, efficient, logical, intuitive.

I do not miss iTunes.

Haven't tested (because haven't upgraded because $$$) Pro Tools, Sibelius, Cubase, DP, Dorico, Finale. I'll update this thread if/when I do...even if it's months from now.

(The rest of the build journal will happen sooner than that though!)

Upgraded Waves from 9 to 11. I like the new skins!

I currently have two _minor_ unresolved issues of note:

1. My idle temp is a bit higher than I'd like. It's not bad—50-60 ℃—but it's not as cool as others are able to run. Might be an airflow thing, might be a BIOS thing...this is something to tweak, and I will if/when I get a chance to think about overclocking, but it's not urgent.
2. This build should have hot-plugging Thunderbolt 3. I have one Thunderbolt 2 (which, with an adapter, should be completely compatible) device I am trying to use, my RME Fireface UFX+. For some reason I can't get it to work at all with the latest BIOS update (F5, as of this writing). Commented on GitHub and there is a discussion currently going on, so we'll see if that can be resolved any time soon. Not a big deal, though, because it also works as a USB3 device, and it's rock-solid that way.

Can't wait to share the whole process with you all! There are definitely some things to watch out for in a build, but I stand by my earlier statement that if you can figure out how to use virtual instruments in a DAW, you can build a fantastic Hackintosh PC.

Obligatory before/after:









Excuse the slightly messy bundle of cables there... I'm still set up for "debug" mode


----------



## method1

Nice! RE: Thunderbolt, does it work in windows?


----------



## Kent

method1 said:


> Nice! RE: Thunderbolt, does it work in windows?


Haven't checked it yet—just cloned my Windows install from the USB3 external it was on to an internal SSD _this morning_, but I did install the TB drivers from the motherboard driver disc. I'll try it out when I have more time...


----------



## Kent

Another point:

I don't know how I ever worked on a smaller screen. This size (/distance/relative resolution) is PERFECT.


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

method1 said:


> Something like this should work to connect the fenvi cable to a regular USB port.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> FRONTX - USB Cable 1.1/2.0 - USB type A male to header male connector (pin/pinout)
> 
> 
> USB cable - USB male to header male.
> 
> 
> 
> www.frontx.com



Thanks!



kmaster said:


> It’s not unusual AFAIK—it connects to a typical 9-pin USB motherboard header



You people running Hackintoshes have it so easy. Instead of hacking around with connectors to run USB outside the machine, you just plug it into the damn motherboard.


----------



## method1

Nick Batzdorf said:


> Thanks!
> 
> 
> You people running Hackintoshes have it so easy. Instead of hacking around with connectors to run USB outside the machine, you just plug it into the damn motherboard.



If it makes you feel any better, my cpu water cooler also had a similar connector that wasn't shipped with the product, so I had to do exactly the same thing, run a cable outside of the chassis into a USB port so I could set the fan speed  Luckily it's not a permanent arrangement!


----------



## Kent

gh0stwrit3r said:


> I've noticed you picked DDR4-3600 memory sticks while the I9 doesn't support that. I guess it does work, but it doesn't operate on full potential. Or am I wrong?


Confirmed to work exceedingly well—just set it to work at the nominal speed in BIOS via the XMP profile, and you're good to go!


----------



## Kent

Anecdotally, running my UFX+ at 256 in Logic over USB3 on this computer feels tighter than running my UFX+ at 256 in Logic over TB2 in my previous computer—even though the reported latencies are ever-so-slightly higher with USB! I wonder if I'm imagining it, or the _un_reported latencies are much lower in this much-more-capable machine.

Have any of you experienced something similar?


----------



## PJMorgan

I've been watching this with great interest. After just coming back to music production/composition & vi-control from about 1.5 years out after selling my imac & building a pc to run linux & the linux version of Reaper (was still producing some music but nowhere near as much as when I was on mac/logic). I just don't like windows but love linux with macos being a close second, I have to reluctantly use windows at my main job.

If you're only making electronic music or even rock, linux is definitely a great option with Reaper, waveform, Bitwig & Ardour your all set. But there is nothing like kontakt or the excellent quality sample libraries available to it. There are ways of running kontakt & other windows plugins on linux but it's not always plain sailing & there is a performance hit.

I made sure when I built this PC it would be compatible with macos & here I am back in mac land dual booting linux/Manjaro thanks to Opencore. If anyone is ever going to try a hackintosh I can definitely highly recommend opencore, there's a lot of reading but because the instructions are so detailed if you follow it precisely & use the recommended pc components you should be good. I also highly recommended cloning your drive before updating just in case. I've been pretty lucky so far & have been able to update twice without issue, but if it's a major update you will probably have to update to a newer version of opencore along with your kexts.

I have to say I have missed macos & vi-control, didn't know how much I did until I started using Logic again. There are a lot more security hoops to jump through with Catalina but I don't find that too bothersome coming from Linux which is pretty security driven too. The hackintosh is just a temporary thing for me, as I do intend to save for a new imac in the near future.

@kanster you say your idle temps are 50 - 60 °C, that is a bit high. Just curious what case are you using?


----------



## Kent

PJMorgan said:


> I've been watching this with great interest. After just coming back to music production/composition & vi-control from about 1.5 years out after selling my imac & building a pc to run linux & the linux version of Reaper (was still producing some music but nowhere near as much as when I was on mac/logic). I just don't like windows but love linux with macos being a close second, I have to reluctantly use windows at my main job.
> 
> If you're only making electronic music or even rock, linux is definitely a great option with Reaper, waveform, Bitwig & Ardour your all set. But there is nothing like kontakt or the excellent quality sample libraries available to it. There are ways of running kontakt & other windows plugins on linux but it's not always plain sailing & there is a performance hit.
> 
> I made sure when I built this PC it would be compatible with macos & here I am back in mac land dual booting linux/Manjaro thanks to Opencore. If anyone is ever going to try a hackintosh I can definitely highly recommend opencore, there's a lot of reading but because the instructions are so detailed if you follow it precisely & use the recommended pc components you should be good. I also highly recommended cloning your drive before updating just in case. I've been pretty lucky so far & have been able to update twice without issue, but if it's a major update you will probably have to update to a newer version of opencore along with your kexts.
> 
> I have to say I have missed macos & vi-control, didn't know how much I did until I started using Logic again. There are a lot more security hoops to jump through with Catalina but I don't find that too bothersome coming from Linux which is pretty security driven too. The hackintosh is just a temporary thing for me, as I do intend to save for a new imac in the near future.
> 
> @kyou say your idle temps are 50 - 60 °C, that is a bit high. Just curious what case are you using?


I list my build parts here:






I9 10900k OpenCore/Catalina Hackintosh Build Journal


My obvious follow up question would be what if it’s the same mobo and all I do is change said settings? Will the disk image work? Cuz if it does then you’d have a nice biz going in this forum ;) Yes, as long as you have the exact same motherboard, CPU, and GPU, it’s basically plug’n’play in...




vi-control.net





I agree, so I’ve ordered a cpu cleaning kit and some more paste, and hopefully a better job will yield better results. I’ll also take that time to make sure my airflow through the case is optimal. Should get here Monday or so.


----------



## Ashermusic

Hackintoshes are fine until you have to update. Then they can be problematic in my experience with clients who used them.


----------



## Kent

Ashermusic said:


> Hackintoshes are fine until you have to update. Then they can be problematic in my experience with clients who used them.


That’s not the case on OpenCore


----------



## Ashermusic

kmaster said:


> That’s not the case on OpenCore



Really? Interesting!


----------



## hdsmile

I've been using OpenCore + Catalina for about a year with my hack everything just work great


----------



## Sarah Mancuso

Even on Clover, which isn't as robust as OpenCore, in my experience it's pretty much a matter of downloading the latest Clover, downloading the latest versions of any kexts you're using, and then running the update.

I do keep regular backups for catastrophes but I've yet to need them after an OS update. (I do update fairly infrequently though.)


----------



## PJMorgan

kmaster said:


> I agree, so I’ve ordered a cpu cleaning kit and some more paste, and hopefully a better job will yield better results. I’ll also take that time to make sure my airflow through the case is optimal. Should get here Monday or so.



Yeah the fractal R6 is a pretty good case, the next thing I was going to mention was the fans, airflow & checking the paste/cooler mounting on the cpu but you beat me to it. My overclocked 8700k usually stays around 35°C at idle with a be quiet pure rock cooler which is why I mentioned your cpu idle temps. Can I ask why you didn't go for something like a noctua NH D15 cooler?


----------



## Kent

PJMorgan said:


> Yeah the fractal R6 is a pretty good case, the next thing I was going to mention was the fans, airflow & checking the paste/cooler mounting on the cpu but you beat me to it. My overclocked 8700k usually stays around 35°C at idle with a be quiet pure rock cooler which is why I mentioned your cpu idle temps. Can I ask why you didn't go for something like a noctua NH D15 cooler?


In my research the cooler I got was very good. Not against the D15 though. Do you find it good?


----------



## JPQ

kmaster said:


> In general, Catalina feels really good as an OS. Snappy, efficient, logical, intuitive.
> 
> I do not miss iTunes.
> 
> Haven't tested (because haven't upgraded because $$$) Pro Tools, Sibelius, Cubase, DP, Dorico, Finale. I'll update this thread if/when I do...even if it's months from now.
> 
> (The rest of the build journal will happen sooner than that though!)
> 
> Upgraded Waves from 9 to 11. I like the new skins!
> 
> I currently have two _minor_ unresolved issues of note:
> 
> 1. My idle temp is a bit higher than I'd like. It's not bad—50-60 ℃—but it's not as cool as others are able to run. Might be an airflow thing, might be a BIOS thing...this is something to tweak, and I will if/when I get a chance to think about overclocking, but it's not urgent.
> 2. This build should have hot-plugging Thunderbolt 3. I have one Thunderbolt 2 (which, with an adapter, should be completely compatible) device I am trying to use, my RME Fireface UFX+. For some reason I can't get it to work at all with the latest BIOS update (F5, as of this writing). Commented on GitHub and there is a discussion currently going on, so we'll see if that can be resolved any time soon. Not a big deal, though, because it also works as a USB3 device, and it's rock-solid that way.
> 
> Can't wait to share the whole process with you all! There are definitely some things to watch out for in a build, but I stand by my earlier statement that if you can figure out how to use virtual instruments in a DAW, you can build a fantastic Hackintosh PC.
> 
> Obligatory before/after:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Excuse the slightly messy bundle of cables there... I'm still set up for "debug" mode


What this big display resolution? native and what you use with it.


----------



## Kent

JPQ said:


> What this big display resolution? native and what you use with it.


Native: 3840 x 2160 (aka "4k") @ 60Hz
Scaled: 3200 x 1800


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

method1 said:


> Something like this should work to connect the fenvi cable to a regular USB port.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> FRONTX - USB Cable 1.1/2.0 - USB type A male to header male connector (pin/pinout)
> 
> 
> USB cable - USB male to header male.
> 
> 
> 
> www.frontx.com




It looks even easier than that, now that I found a close-up of the cable - I just need to strip one end off a USB cable and connect + and - for power. (The white end is what connects to the Fenvi card.)


----------



## PJMorgan

kmaster said:


> In my research the cooler I got was very good. Not against the D15 though. Do you find it good?



I have a be quiet pure rock cooler, I was considering getting a D15 but the pure rock seems to be doing a pretty good job so far.


----------



## Kent

PJMorgan said:


> I have a be quiet pure rock cooler, I was considering getting a D15 but the pure rock seems to be doing a pretty good job so far.


I _think_ I know why the temps are so high: the pump might be D.O.A.! It just seems the most likely explanation.

I’m going to go to Micro Center tomorrow and get a Noctua NH-D15s, which is a one-fan asymmetrical variant of the D-15. Slightly lesser performance, but guaranteed to fit my Mobo and allow my x16 slot to remain used. The D15s can also take a second fan, which can make it identical in performance to the D15, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.
Onward...


----------



## Kent

Yep! That was definitely the problem.

Now idling around 29-31C, and a heavy VEP/Logic session is about 45C.

YAYAYAYAYAYA


----------



## jcrosby

kmaster said:


> Yep! That was definitely the problem.
> 
> Now idling around 29-31C, and a heavy VEP/Logic session is about 45C.
> 
> YAYAYAYAYAYA


Nice and Congrats! 

Does that mean you get Opencore fully setup? Like most I'm still running clover and curious how you found the whole process for OC, how long it took, etc.


----------



## PJMorgan

kmaster said:


> Yep! That was definitely the problem.
> 
> Now idling around 29-31C, and a heavy VEP/Logic session is about 45C.
> 
> YAYAYAYAYAYA



GREAT! Glad you got it sorted, you really cant go wrong with a noctua cooler.


----------



## jcrosby

Ashermusic said:


> Really? Interesting!


Yup. Opencore assigns all of the correct hardware IDs as if all of the parts are actually Apple parts. One of its main goals is to make updating your OS safe without breaking the system... It's still technically a beta so it's only going to become more solid as time goes on... That's why I've been watching this thread with interest... Curious to see what the process was like for kmaster since it's a pretty big departure from the previous method most of us use. (Clover bootloader.)


----------



## Kent

@jcrosby

It was mostly painless (I promise I'll post the rest of the process as soon as I can!).

The temperature issue was a fluke—most people will have working coolers right off the bat, and it was just bad luck that I did not. That is certainly a thing that can happen, but it's nothing to worry about as it's so rare.

I haven't spent too much time trying to get Thunderbolt to work, as I am pretty busy currently and can do what I need to do (i.e. connect to my UFX+) with a USB3 cable, so while I'll eventually get around to poking into this (including on the Windows side of things), right now it's just not a priority.

There is also another very minor issue in that my eLicenser now seems to be not seen by the system the first time I try to start up VEP after a boot. It brings up this error message:




But clicking "Retry," or "Cancel" and then trying from the app icon, both succeed.

I've tried the eLicenser in a case USB port, a motherboard USB port, and a USB hub connected to the motherboard, and it's the same story every time. I can't even say if it's a computer thing; it might just be that my eLicenser itself is on the decline. (After all, half the plastic loop just broke off this very week!) But, regardless, it adds about .5 seconds to my day, so it's not a major issue by any means.

Granted, I have not yet bought upgrades for Finale, Sibelius, Dorico, Cubase, Digital Performer, and/or Pro Tools. But everything else I use—Logic, VEP, all third-party plugins and instruments, all other DAWs and audio editors (Reaper, Audacity, etc.), all other audio softwares (Auracle [the iConnectivity MIDI routing app, not the streamers from the C64/DOS that JW still uses]), all the other non-music/audio software I enjoy using, and all the things I have on my eclectic but spartan W10 Pro installation seem to work flawlessly. Indeed, I actually really like Catalina, coming from Mojave—it's much more smooth and intuitive than I was led to believe otherwise!

I'm sure I will discover things to complain about eventually, but after ~1 week of music, audio, and coding, it seems stable and solid to me...especially now that I've got my heat issue cleared up, which—again—was a fluke and not in any way related to the installation itself.


----------



## jcrosby

kmaster said:


> @jcrosby
> 
> It was mostly painless (I promise I'll post the rest of the process as soon as I can!).
> 
> The temperature issue was a fluke—most people will have working coolers right off the bat, and it was just bad luck that I did not. That is certainly a thing that can happen, but it's nothing to worry about as it's so rare.
> 
> I haven't spent too much time trying to get Thunderbolt to work, as I am pretty busy currently and can do what I need to do (i.e. connect to my UFX+) with a USB3 cable, so while I'll eventually get around to poking into this (including on the Windows side of things), right now it's just not a priority.
> 
> There is also another very minor issue in that my eLicenser now seems to be not seen by the system the first time I try to start up VEP after a boot. It brings up this error message:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> But clicking "Retry," or "Cancel" and then trying from the app icon, both succeed.
> 
> I've tried the eLicenser in a case USB port, a motherboard USB port, and a USB hub connected to the motherboard, and it's the same story every time. I can't even say if it's a computer thing; it might just be that my eLicenser itself is on the decline. (After all, half the plastic loop just broke off this very week!) But, regardless, it adds about .5 seconds to my day, so it's not a major issue by any means.
> 
> Granted, I have not yet bought upgrades for Finale, Sibelius, Dorico, Cubase, Digital Performer, and/or Pro Tools. But everything else I use—Logic, VEP, all third-party plugins and instruments, all other DAWs and audio editors (Reaper, Audacity, etc.), all other audio softwares (Auracle [the iConnectivity MIDI routing app, not the streamers from the C64/DOS that JW still uses]), all the other non-music/audio software I enjoy using, and all the things I have on my eclectic but spartan W10 Pro installation seem to work flawlessly. Indeed, I actually really like Catalina, coming from Mojave—it's much more smooth and intuitive than I was led to believe otherwise!
> 
> I'm sure I will discover things to complain about eventually, but after ~1 week of music, audio, and coding, it seems stable and solid to me...especially now that I've got my heat issue cleared up, which—again—was a fluke and not in any way related to the installation itself.


Thanks! Do you know about the macos USB port limit? Macos maxes out at 15 USB ports. But normally Each USB 3 port counts as two ports, and on top of that the Fenvi is plugged into a USB header as well. (Not to mention that macos has had a quirky relationship with USB/BT for years. Plenty of legit macs have USB conflicts when a BT device gets involved. Imagine you've run across this yourself..)

Although my elicenser works I had a similar issue where when I plugged in my external backup it'd kick my MIDI keyboard off. That said, my old Mac Pro did the same thing (but with other devices) when I had a USB 3 card in it... Macos and USB 3 seem to have more or less been at odds with one another forever...

Have you tried a different port or removing a device to see if it stays recognized when you reboot? I'm guessing you've run across all of this in your research, but if not see if the video below explains or helps...


----------



## synthnut1

All this just to get USB ports working ?...kinda discouraging for something that seems so simple....I thought that hackintosh builds got easier.... ?????


----------



## Kent

synthnut1 said:


> All this just to get USB ports working ?...kinda discouraging for something that seems so simple....I thought that hackintosh builds got easier.... ?????





jcrosby said:


> Thanks! Do you know about the macos USB port limit? Macos maxes out at 15 USB ports. But normally Each USB 3 port counts as two ports, and on top of that the Fenvi is plugged into a USB header as well. (Not to mention that macos has had a quirky relationship with USB/BT for years. Plenty of legit macs have USB conflicts when a BT device gets involved. Imagine you've run across this yourself..)
> 
> Although my elicenser works I had a similar issue where when I plugged in my external backup it'd kick my MIDI keyboard off. That said, my old Mac Pro did the same thing (but with other devices) when I had a USB 3 card in it... Macos and USB 3 seem to have more or less been at odds with one another forever...
> 
> Have you tried a different port or removing a device to see if it stays recognized when you reboot? I'm guessing you've run across all of this in your research, but if not see if the video below explains or helps...



That used to be the case, but somebody working on OC came up with a new patch, which my build uses, so the only USB thing I've had to disable is the header that runs the motherboard WiFi/Bluetooth (since that's incompatible with Mac). In other words, there are no limits now:





Now, I haven't had time to try with the standard 15-port-only options, but my USB has been plug'n'play, besides the minor oddness of eLicenser (which I can't definitively say is caused by my computer, anyways).


----------



## synthnut1

Keep us posted on this eLicenser situation.....I’m running Cubase...Thanks....Jim


----------



## jcrosby

kmaster said:


> That used to be the case, but somebody working on OC came up with a new patch, which my build uses, so the only USB thing I've had to disable is the header that runs the motherboard WiFi/Bluetooth (since that's incompatible with Mac). In other words, there are no limits now:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now, I haven't had time to try with the standard 15-port-only options, but my USB has been plug'n'play, besides the minor oddness of eLicenser (which I can't definitively say is caused by my computer, anyways).


Good to know about OC handling this by default now. I'm guessing it's the actual elicneser, could even be a Catalina quirk in the latest version maybe?


----------



## jcrosby

synthnut1 said:


> Keep us posted on this eLicenser situation.....I’m running Cubase...Thanks....Jim


Granted I'm not using OC yet, but there's no reason why it should be responsible for an edge case like this. Overall elicneser works fine under hackintosh, in fact I haven't had issues with a single 3rd party app or licensing system whatsoever. It's the actual OS stuff where the hangups typically exist...

Could be a Catalina issue, could even be a VEP or elicenser app issue. I see a lot of people reporting problems with Cubase, VEP, etc on mac in recent months so I wouldn't assume the machine/hackintosh side of it is the core of the behavior.


----------



## synthnut1

Add anything into the equation, there’s apt to be issues......A perfect example why I stay clear of any program that uses iLok.....Speaking of the devil, how does iLok work with a Hackintosh ?

May be time to learn Logic ?


----------



## jcrosby

synthnut1 said:


> Add anything into the equation, there’s apt to be issues......A perfect example why I stay clear of any program that uses iLok.....Speaking of the devil, how does iLok work with a Hackintosh ?
> 
> May be time to learn Logic ?


No issues at all. It works just like it does on any mac... It's been super stable for me... My only gripe with ilok are when developers limit you to one license. Most people have a portable or second machine these days. AFAIC selling pricy software then limiting the user to a single license is just being cheap in this day and age. Speaking of which UVI are awesome like that... They're ilok, but give you 3 licenses. I have a license on both keys, and have my laptop machine-authorized as well..

Speaking of Logic I believe you can install it on up to 5 machines at the same time as long as they're all registered to the same app store account. They also make deauthorization surprisingly easy, (unlike many things Apple ) You can even deauthorize after the fact. I.e. if you sold or retired an old machine all you'd have to do is remove it from your app store account and you're good... Logic definitely has its quirks, but it's still my main DAW.


----------



## PJMorgan

synthnut1 said:


> Add anything into the equation, there’s apt to be issues......A perfect example why I stay clear of any program that uses iLok.....Speaking of the devil, how does iLok work with a Hackintosh ?
> 
> May be time to learn Logic ?



My opencore HackMac is running both ilok & the elicenser just fine, I took advantage of the recent Pro for cubase artist sale (I'm a bit of a DAW junkie) & it all seems to be working well. I started with cubase many years ago before moving to Reaper & then Logic when I moved to a mac. Cubase is kind of my backup for if I ever very reluctantly decide to go back to using windows.

As for opencore & updates I've had 2 so far 10.5.4 to 5.5 & 5.6 without any problems or having to update kexts or opencore. I strongly advice having a cloned backup drive before updates just in case.


----------



## Kent

Update: I've half-solved the TB issue, I think. Still can't hot plug, but I've got it working.

I realized there might have been a deeper issue (BIOS-level? Firmware?) when I checked in Windows 10 and Thunderbolt still wasn't working. It seems like there is a security feature that disallows Thunderbolt devices from working properly. It might also be a Gigabyte (the maker of the motherboard) thing.

Finally found a solution there that allowed me to "always allow" my device to work on one of my two both ports—I'll post that solution as part of the writeup.

Now, even when booting from "completely off" straight into macOS, my Thunderbolt connection works!


----------



## Kent

Therefore my issues are now:
1. eLicenser needs an extra click to be recognized the first time it is used per boot
2. Can’t hot plug TB

...neither of which materially affect me. 

Everything else, as far as I know, seems to be working as well if not better than on a “real” Mac.


----------



## Kent

Update:

The eLicenser issue turned out to be something on the eLicenser end. @Paul Kopf kindly let me know that there had been an update of the eLicenser Control Center since I had first encountered and troubleshooted (troubleshot?) this behavior. Since installing that new update, I have been unable to reproduce the error.

Thunderbolt—still can't hot plug, but that _might_ be something on the RME side of things. It knows it's plugged in (the "Host" LED is lit), and my system knows it's plugged in (I can see it as an available interface option), but there doesn't seem to be the appropriate handshake that actually allows the RME Thunderbolt Settings to have the correct effect on the UFX+. Turning the UFX+ off and on again is equivalent to unplugging and replugging at the Thunderbolt port. I'll do more testing on this. It turns out, also, that having enabled the RME on the one Thunderbolt port (in the Windows side) actually made it work in either port, so that's nice! I'll edit the post above to reflect this.

I've also encountered an issue wherein the UVI Falcon Standalone refuses to see any audio interface—built-in audio, line-out, digital line-out, the RME, my Hisense monitor via HDMI...but the AU and VST plug-in versions work just fine. This doesn't really affect me, since I pretty much only use it as a plug-in, but it does sort of bother me on a personal level , so currently troubleshooting with UVI now.

There is also an issue with Play that I just learned about, and it is this: my computer is _too powerful_. Apparently there is a known issue that causes some weird behavior in certain computers when there are more than 64GB available in RAM:



Spoiler: email from EW tech support



However, this particular issue is due to a technical limitation in the current version of the Play engine that is currently being addressed by our developers. This notable downside pertains to a "RAM cap"/load limit being reached at 64GB on some systems. Most commonly these issues, involve perceived overloads in the Play engine when approaching that 64 GB of RAM limitation, or templates exceeding 64 GB of RAM (showing up in systems with memory capabilities greater than 64 GB, e.g. 128GB); which could result in errors showing up that the libraries can't be found or crashing. We're aware of that problem and our developers are working on fixing it, but we don't have an estimated timeframe on the fix yet, I'm afraid.



From the company that released the Hollywood Orchestra, that sounds crazy, right? So I can't use Hollywood Strings until they do something on their end.



---

Thanks for your patience as I navigate this busy month. As you have probably seen I have various 2-3 minute intervals where I can comment on stuff, but I won't have any time to sit down and organize all the details of this build into anything coherent until September.

In short, I'm happy to continue to report that issues are minimal and (besides the Thunderbolt activation) likely have little-to-no relation to the fact I built this Mac myself. There are enough hoops to jump through getting "safely" to Catalina that you'd probably experience some of these yourself anyways! I've been using this computer for some pretty heavy tasks the past few weeks, and it hasn't even broken a sweat.


----------



## D'rgo

kmaster said:


> Thunderbolt—still can't hot plug, but that _might_ be something on the RME side of things. It knows it's plugged in (the "Host" LED is lit), and my system knows it's plugged in (I can see it as an available interface option), but there doesn't seem to be the appropriate handshake that actually allows the RME Thunderbolt Settings to have the correct effect on the UFX+. Turning the UFX+ off and on again is equivalent to unplugging and replugging at the Thunderbolt port. I'll do more testing on this. It turns out, also, that having enabled the RME on the one Thunderbolt port (in the Windows side) actually made it work in either port, so that's nice! I'll edit the post above to reflect this.


Did you ever get the Thunderbolt hot plug working? I'm about to pull the trigger on this one. But my current setup kinda needs hot plug ability. It seems like SchmockLord got his working. So maybe it's a combination of hackintosh and audio interface brand/model. My luck will be that I have one of the "bad" combos.


----------



## Kent

D'rgo said:


> Did you ever get the Thunderbolt hot plug working? I'm about to pull the trigger on this one. But my current setup kinda needs hot plug ability. It seems like SchmockLord got his working. So maybe it's a combination of hackintosh and audio interface brand/model. My luck will be that I have one of the "bad" combos.


No, not yet, but I don't need it in my own setup and have been super busy so I haven't had time to troubleshoot anything else yet.


----------



## D'rgo

Well... I jumped in. I'm just waiting on everything to arrive. I'm a more technical than musical guy. So I'm sure I'll figure it out more easily than trying to write a song in Phrygian Dominant that doesn't sound cliche´.


----------



## brunodegazio

@kmaster , how do you find the performance of your new build compared to your previous 6700k based Mac?


----------



## Kent

brunodegazio said:


> @kmaster , how do you find the performance of your new build compared to your previous 6700k based Mac?


Night and day!! Particularly noticeable when I'm running something really heavy like RX 7.


----------



## D'rgo

D'rgo said:


> Well... I jumped in. I'm just waiting on everything to arrive. I'm a more technical than musical guy. So I'm sure I'll figure it out more easily than trying to write a song in Phrygian Dominant that doesn't sound cliche´.



I finished it... well, as much as you can ever finish a DIY project.  Took a bit to cram everything into the case I had chosen. Had a few difficulties getting started due to combinations of cable format conversions (HDMI->DP->DVI). Once I got around that and changed the BIOS settings, I had a Mac. I used SchmockLords EFI folder without change (except to choose iMac20,2). I played around with fan curves and found a compromise that gives me complete silence during low activity. The tradeoff was that you can hear the case fans vary during moderate activity. Still quiet, but you can hear the speed variations. Also, this compromise increased 3 degrees C on the CPU (30 -> 33) during idle.

Now for the bad news:

Catalina is 64 bit only! Normally, this is a good thing. But it means all those 32 bit plugins and apps that I used frequently for years no longer work. You don't realize how many you have until they ALL stop working at once. With the apps, the OS helps you find them by putting a circle-bar icon over the original. However, the plugins were a NIGHTMARE! You have to check each one of them individually. Since I don't do this for a living, I'm not on any subscription services that keep them up to date. Cost me a bundle, but I spent about as much time getting them up to date as I did building the whole Hackintosh. The only one I wasn't able to replace or update was Izotope Alloy 2. When I get the money, maybe I'll replace it with Neutron. But I will still have to change any old projects that I go back to.

Sleep doesn't work. It just eventually shuts down the computer. When it boots up again, I get an error report that it wants to send to Apple. This is a real puzzler. I'm probably not going to look into it since this machine boots in about 10 seconds. So, I'll just leave it up or shut it down.

Thunderbolt. I have the exact opposite problem with hot plugging that others have, i.e. I _MUST_ unplug and re-plug after each reboot for Thunderbolt to be recognized. This doesn't make much sense to me and I can't find out why this is the case. Since I am using the same motherboard as Schmocklord, it is probably some difference with the HW outside the box that I connect it to. I only have two TB items, and they are both TB2: A CalDigit TS2 dock and my trusty Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56. The Focusrite interface is actually Firewire with a TB2 to Firewire adapter. If I isolate and use just one device at a time, they both still need to be hot plugged to work. So I don't think the adapter with adapter situation is the issue. Maybe it is time for a new audio interface and dock. That will have to wait for later since I had to spend so much money replacing plugins and apps.

I know I wrote a lot of bad things, but it still seems to be worth it to me. This does show that a hackintosh is a bit of a crap shoot. I used all the same hardware as a known good build and still got a slightly different result. You need to be prepared for the possibility that something could go wrong. Depending on how technically oriented you are should be factored into the decision.

In summary: Totally worth it. This thing is a beast. When I crank up my most difficult Pro Tools session, it doesn't even break a sweat. Love it!

Thanks,
Ed

---
No .sig yet... I'm just now coming out of lurk mode.


----------



## jcrosby

Sorry to hear. This is exactly why people have been warning about Catalina. Bare minimum people should build a bootable clone and test all critical plugins before updating. (I did this before pulling the trigger on a 16 inch macbook.) I knew this was the case, and assumed a few plugins would be EOL'd. It wasn't too bad for me but I aggressively keep up on upgrading any non-paid plugins since 10.14. I made sure I downloaded all available updates for every critical plugin I use before building the clone I used for testing. In all I lost about 8-10 plugin, none of which were critical for me... Some older wave editors don't work but I tend to stay up to date with programs like that since 10.14 was a big enough shift for me to realize that this is just the way it's going to be with macos from here out.

I'm assuming you've downloaded the last installer Izotope made available for Alloy 2? Probably won't make a difference but there's no harm in trying if not... Another thing I did was immediately disable gatekeeper (via terminal) while installing all plugins. (Which can be re-enabled after plugins are installed. Once installed it runs fine if it installs and runs with it off) I've seen some people say they avoided a lot of headaches doing this, did seem to make the transition less painful than I expected, and a surprising amount of older plugins I assumed were DOA do work. Again, may not accomplish anything, but the only thing you have to lose is 5 minutes to see if it allows you to install something that it might otherwise block.

Sleep has always been one of the common quirks that hackintoshes can suffer from. Often times little quirks like this get improved over time though as some of the core extensions get updated. Basically hang in there and stay on top of the forums. It could simply be that the chipset is so new that the developers are still catching up to patching things that will most likely eventually get updated....


----------



## Kent

Yeah, I did all the legwork on 32-bit stuff months before I switched in anticipation of it all.

Of course, I still have yet to upgrade my Finale, Sibelius, DP, Cubase, Dorico, Pro Tools to a minimum-for-Catalina version...but thankfully don't need any of them right now. Got more exciting stuff to work on


----------



## D'rgo

jcrosby said:


> I'm assuming you've downloaded the last installer Izotope made available for Alloy 2? Probably won't make a difference but there's no harm in trying if not...



Sadly no. The date code on it was 2014. 



> Sleep has always been one of the common quirks that hackintoshes can suffer from. Often times little quirks like this get improved over time though as some of the core extensions get updated. Basically hang in there and stay on top of the forums. It could simply be that the chipset is so new that the developers are still catching up to patching things that will most likely eventually get updated....



I hope an update will fix it. But I have found zero instances similar to mine. Don't know what it could be.

The good news is that I think I have proven that thunderbolt is only a problem for my legacy devices. I put a USB stick on a USB to TB3 adapter and it worked fine in all variations of rebooting and hot plugging.

Now I'm off to decide if I should buy Oceania 2 or conserve my cash to replace the plugins I lost in this adventure. 


Thanks,
Ed


----------



## jcrosby

D'rgo said:


> Sadly no. The date code on it was 2014.
> 
> 
> 
> I hope an update will fix it. But I have found zero instances similar to mine. Don't know what it could be.
> 
> The good news is that I think I have proven that thunderbolt is only a problem for my legacy devices. I put a USB stick on a USB to TB3 adapter and it worked fine in all variations of rebooting and hot plugging.
> 
> Now I'm off to decide if I should buy Oceania 2 or conserve my cash to replace the plugins I lost in this adventure.
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> Ed


The last version of Alloy 2 was released in 2016. You should log into your Izotope account, download it and see if you can get it to install. Legacy product downloads linked below.









Legacy Products


Download iZotope legacy products.




www.izotope.com


----------



## jcrosby

D'rgo said:


> Sadly no. The date code on it was 2014.
> 
> 
> 
> I hope an update will fix it. But I have found zero instances similar to mine. Don't know what it could be.
> 
> The good news is that I think I have proven that thunderbolt is only a problem for my legacy devices. I put a USB stick on a USB to TB3 adapter and it worked fine in all variations of rebooting and hot plugging.
> 
> Now I'm off to decide if I should buy Oceania 2 or conserve my cash to replace the plugins I lost in this adventure.
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> Ed


Download it! It works, and seems to be running great!!  
See the screenshot I just took on my MBP...

Gatekeeper will typically try and reject you from installing it since the installer certificate is old. (That's why I disabled gatekeeper when installing all plugins. Almost everything I've installed so far works.)

The way to get around this is to right click on the installer icon and choose *Open* once you mount the DMG. It will tell you the certificate's expired, just choose continue and you're good.

One thing I found with one other _non-officially_ supported Izotope plugin was that their update notifier kept causing Logic to throw up errors about a crashed UI. The workaround I found was to got to Alloy's options menu and set _Check for Updates_ to *Never*. (See below.) Seems to be running just like anything else so far...


----------



## D'rgo

Wow!!! You're awesome! It works great. Thanks so much. Now... do you think you can solve my hackintosh sleep problem.  Seriously though, this helped a lot. I'll try to return the favor someday. If you ever need someone to design a military grade communication system, I'm your man.

Ed


----------



## jcrosby

You bet, glad it worked!



D'rgo said:


> If you ever need someone to design a military grade communication system, I'm your man.



Hmmm well you know.... Have you seen the guy occupying 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?


----------



## D'rgo




----------



## D'rgo

BTW, I also installed Windows 10 to make my setup a dual boot system. Even with all the grief I had over incompatible plugins... Windows is MUCH worse! Not so much for the plugins, but my trusty Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56 is a paperweight in Windows. I found some discussion on the net discussing a seance and human sacrifices to get it working again.  Seriously though, I just use Windows for gaming and apps that just aren't available on MacOS. So it's not worth going to ANY trouble getting it working in that OS. It works great in MacOS.


----------



## Kent

Coming back to this after a busy busy time. Apologies for the delay.

The Build

All the parts came pretty quickly from Newegg and Amazon. I ended up having an issue with my CPU cooler (it was Dead On Arrival) so I changed to an air cooler: a https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NH-D15S-Premium-Dual-Tower-Cooler/dp/B00XUVGLEU/ref=sr_1_5?crid=2FC2W7ODC3MTG&dchild=1&keywords=noctua+nh-d15&qid=1604860216&sprefix=noctua+nh-d15s%2Caps%2C162&sr=8-5 (Noctua NH-D15s) (the single-fan, slightly-offset version of the Noctua NH-D15) with an additional https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-A12x25-PWM-Premium-Quality-Quiet/dp/B07C5VG64V/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3GKNKWAL30VPM&dchild=1&keywords=noctua+12x25&qid=1604860299&sprefix=noctua+12x%2Caps%2C142&sr=8-2 (Noctua NF-A12x25). Together they give the same basic performance as a stock NH-D15, but since there is a slight asymmetry in the cooling blades, it fits in my case better.





...But we haven't gotten there yet.

First I unpacked everything and assembled according to the case and motherboard instructions. This was my first PC to build, but it was very easy for the most part. The only 'difficult' choices were which way to orient the included case fans, but after replacing the cooler with a functional one the choice was clear: in at the front, out at the back and top. 

Again, getting a bit ahead of myself. To show how simple this was, here's how I installed the PSU:






















Super straight-forward. All cables clearly labelled and with unique shapes, all screws easy to unscrew and rescrew. What more could you want?


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING THE CPU

This was perhaps the 'scariest' part for me, as this was my first build. The CPU—especially this, an Intel i9 10900k—is a serious piece of work, and rather expensive. I did not want to damage it at all. Turns out it's incredibly simple to install, though:

1. Pop the cover off the CPU mount area









2. Place the CPU (it can only go one way)





3. Re-set the cover






The CPU cooler goes on top of the CPU, but for now to protect it we keep the cover on. When you're ready to install, then you take the cover off... but that's literally it.


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING THE RAM

Again, incredibly simple:

1. Line up the notch in the slot with the notch in the stick:





(note how it does not fit the other way...they really do make this simple)





2. Insert firmly but not forcefully:






3. Repeat for the other sticks:






There should be little clasps at either end of the slots that lock in place once the RAM is seated correctly. Ensure that they are.


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING THE MAIN DRIVE

I have SSDs for my samples and PC partition, and HDDs for my archives, but the main OS drive is an NVMe M.2. I specifically got this motherboard to eventually accommodate more such drives so I can move my samples there, but for now it's just the one.

1. Locate the heat sinks/covers:






2. Remove the cover from one of the slots. (The particular slot I chose, per the motherboard manual, is the one that does not eat into my SATA SSD lanes.)






3. Place the drive in the slot.





4. Replace the cover and you're done!


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING THE CPU COOLER

Again, just follow the directions. It will usually go something like this...

1. Attach the mounting rings:





2. (After removing the sticker!) Put a pea-sized dab of thermal paste on the CPU cover:






3. Mount the CPU Cooler:


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING THE GPU

Very simple again. Just line up the slot and insert firmly without forcing:






Use a tie or two to manage the power supply cabling—not only does it look better, but it improves airflow.


----------



## PJMorgan

kmaster said:


> 3. Re-set the cover
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The CPU cooler goes on top of this cover, so the sticker does come off eventually, but that's literally it.



Did you really keep that cover on? Your supposed to remove the cover after installing the cpu & keep the cover safe for protection if you ever remove the cpu to sell the motherboard or return it.


----------



## Kent

PJMorgan said:


> Did you really keep that cover on? Your supposed to remove the cover after installing the cpu & keep the cover safe for protection if you ever remove the cpu to sell the motherboard or return it.


No, I forgot to mention the plastic cover comes off too. I'll update


----------



## Kent

SETTING THINGS UP

This is where the fun begins. After verifying that all hardware pieces are accounted for and installed correctly, fire it up.








First thing to do is to make sure the BIOS (*Basic Input/Output System*, the mini operating system that is in charge of your hardware and passing it off to your main OS when you boot up) is correct. (I had a BIOS that was a few months out of date and it initially caused me issues until I updated it—used my old computer to download the new BIOS from the manufacturer onto a USB stick and install it into the new computer. This can be a little nerve-wracking, since if you do this step wrong it could potentially brick your motherboard, but as long as you follow instructions you should be golden.)







As you can see here is the old BIOS, which was telling me that my CPU cooler wasn't working as expected. But this is basically what they look like.

After upgrading to the current BIOS, it looked like this:


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING macOS

Using the Install stick, boot into the installer.






It's literally the same as installing on a Mac.


----------



## Kent

INSTALLING macOS cont.







And once that's done, reinstall everything. I found that a fresh-reinstall was better than migrating everything from a month-old Mojave installation, though I did try both ways.





After that is confirmed to work, then make sure the settings are what you want in the BIOS.


----------



## Kent

...and that's basically it!

I had to enable my Thunderbolt ports on the PC side via the Intel Thunderbolt Controller application (or, to be more specific, I had to authorize each piece of hardware I wanted to use, like my UFX+), but once that was done, it's worked flawlessly since.

PC side itself was literally a plug-n-play of my external Windows 10 Pro Bootcamp drive. I've since moved it into an internal SSD slot in the case.

I do have an issue wherein Wi-Fi, or something related to it, causes occasional audio glitches. So I have that disabled. BUT, A, I think this is my fault—I did not have the problem until I was poking around one day in my User files and I think I accidentally deleted something important (oops!). And B, I have great Ethernet, so I don't have a need for Wi-Fi...nor, to be honest, the time to do much troubleshooting...so for now, that's a non-issue.

Thanks to OpenCore (currently on 0.6.1), I was able to update this from macOS 10.15.6 to 10.15.7 without a single issue.


---

Since doing this install and setup, I've been doing nonstop audio and coding work on this computer, and it's performed amazingly. RX 7 and 8, in particular, loves my 10 cores, which I'm currently overclocking to 4.8 GHz or so (it's just a few related settings in the BIOS, and is a very personal thing since it depends on the literal physical qualities of your CPU and setup, so there's really no sense in sharing what I have there. Happy to point in the right direction though if anybody wants to know more!) I am also able to run a ~100 GB template in VEP natively alongside my Logic projects...while having internet, Discord, email, etc. open, all without a hiccup.

In short, using this computer is an absolute joy. Thanks for your patience in following this build!

I'm sure I skipped over some things since this last bit is somewhat of a dump, so again, I'm happy to answer any questions or provide any clarifications. This is not the easiest way to get a working computer, but it's really not a difficult one: 99% is following directions and 1% is asking for help online, as with most things.


----------



## Manaberry

Not sure if my GPU is compatible but I was thinking to try Hackintosh. But I should first finish all my work :D

Great job on yours! Thanks for sharing.


----------



## cqd

D'rgo said:


> BTW, I also installed Windows 10 to make my setup a dual boot system. Even with all the grief I had over incompatible plugins... Windows is MUCH worse! Not so much for the plugins, but my trusty Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56 is a paperweight in Windows. I found some discussion on the net discussing a seance and human sacrifices to get it working again.  Seriously though, I just use Windows for gaming and apps that just aren't available on MacOS. So it's not worth going to ANY trouble getting it working in that OS. It works great in MacOS.




Hey..just saw this, but if you install the legacy firewire driver in windows 10 it will probably work..









Install the Firewire 1394 Legacy Driver in Windows 10


How do I install the Firewire 1394 Legacy Driver in Windows 10?




www.startech.com


----------



## D'rgo

cqd said:


> Hey..just saw this, but if you install the legacy firewire driver in windows 10 it will probably work..
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Install the Firewire 1394 Legacy Driver in Windows 10
> 
> 
> How do I install the Firewire 1394 Legacy Driver in Windows 10?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.startech.com



Awesome! So does this mean that Windows 10 simply doesn't include Firewire drivers at all anymore? It feels a bit premature to drop it completely. But then again... I'm not Bill Gates (or whoever it is running Microsoft now). 

I'll try this install this weekend and see how it goes. Thanks for the pointer.


----------



## cqd

D'rgo said:


> Awesome! So does this mean that Windows 10 simply doesn't include Firewire drivers at all anymore? It feels a bit premature to drop it completely. But then again... I'm not Bill Gates (or whoever it is running Microsoft now).
> 
> I'll try this install this weekend and see how it goes. Thanks for the pointer.



Yeah, I dont know why they changed it..I dont think the new one works at all..this one is funny to get going, but it's perfect once installed..just install your interface driver afterwards and should work as you'd like..

Yeah, it would be more in Bill Gates' line to keep up firewaire support rather than poison us all with feckin' vaccines..


----------



## MarcelM

just a question. you mentioned something about a bad cpu cooler. did you install a new one after you took the pictures of the bios? temps are way too high on both pictures, and there is for sure something wrong there.


----------



## Kent

MarcelM said:


> just a question. you mentioned something about a bad cpu cooler. did you install a new one after you took the pictures of the bios? temps are way too high on both pictures, and there is for sure something wrong there.


Yes, it's all over this thread


----------



## Raphioli

Manaberry said:


> Not sure if my GPU is compatible but I was thinking to try Hackintosh. But I should first finish all my work :D
> 
> Great job on yours! Thanks for sharing.


I remember that you use a Kraken as your CPU cooler.
I don't think Mac OS has the ability to control the pump and NZXT's CAM app isn't compatible with OSX.
You're fans on the radiator should work as long as they're directly plugged in to the motherboard though.

There seems to be something called liquidctl for that though that said to work on OSX.
But I'm not familiar with it. (in other words, you should of course try it at your own risk)


----------



## D'rgo

Hi Kmaster,

Did you do anything special to get sleep to work on your hackintosh (assuming you use sleep)? Every time I choose sleep from the apple menu, it goes through the sleep steps. But it ultimately appears to turn off too much of the power supply completely. When I wake it, it goes through a boot process as if I yanked the power cord and complains about it. I am learning to live without it. But I would really like to have it. 

Thanks,
Ed


----------



## Manaberry

Raphioli said:


> I remember that you use a Kraken as your CPU cooler.
> I don't think Mac OS has the ability to control the pump and NZXT's CAM app isn't compatible with OSX.
> You're fans on the radiator should work as long as they're directly plugged in to the motherboard though.
> 
> There seems to be something called liquidctl for that though that said to work on OSX.
> But I'm not familiar with it. (in other words, you should of course try it at your own risk)


Indeed, I was thinking about that damn AIO cooling system. For now, I'm very far from doing the Hackintosh manoeuver, all that tiny details make the whole operation very risky as you mentioned.


----------



## Kent

D'rgo said:


> Hi Kmaster,
> 
> Did you do anything special to get sleep to work on your hackintosh (assuming you use sleep)? Every time I choose sleep from the apple menu, it goes through the sleep steps. But it ultimately appears to turn off too much of the power supply completely. When I wake it, it goes through a boot process as if I yanked the power cord and complains about it. I am learning to live without it. But I would really like to have it.
> 
> Thanks,
> Ed


I don't use sleep—sorry!


----------



## Kent

Update on TB3 hot-plugging:

The guide I followed (here) has a new section on securing this functionality in this Hackintosh build. It takes a bit of extra work and equipment, but I do plan to do it at some point in the first quarter of this year and will report back.


----------



## Manaberry

Manaberry said:


> Not sure if my GPU is compatible but I was thinking to try Hackintosh. But I should first finish all my work :D
> 
> Great job on yours! Thanks for sharing.



And voila! 8 months later (and after a few days of struggles), I've made the move. I've built a fresh machine with macOS. I'm using the amazing Liquidctl script to handle the CPU AIO Watercooling. A beast of silence and efficiency.


----------



## Kent

Manaberry said:


> And voila! 8 months later (and after a few days of struggles), I've made the move. I've built a fresh machine with macOS. I'm using the amazing Liquidctl script to handle the CPU AIO Watercooling. A beast of silence and efficiency.


enjoy!


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## Kent

kmaster said:


> Update on TB3 hot-plugging:
> 
> The guide I followed (here) has a new section on securing this functionality in this Hackintosh build. It takes a bit of extra work and equipment, but I do plan to do it at some point in the first quarter of this year and will report back.


...and following up on this, like I forgot to... I just haven't had a chance to get around to it. Too busy! I guess it hasn't impacted me yet though, so does it even matter?


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## Manaberry

kmaster said:


> ...and following up on this, like I forgot to... I just haven't had a chance to get around to it. Too busy! I guess it hasn't impacted me yet though, so does it even matter?


I'm getting my TB3 card today. So, if you have any tips, feel free to share! It's not too late haha


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## Kent

Manaberry said:


> I'm getting my TB3 card today. So, if you have any tips, feel free to share! It's not too late haha


No tips on hot-plugging! There may even be a _newer_ procedure that I don't know about.


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## Manaberry

I failed to flash the Thunderboltex3-TR card : <


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## Kent

Manaberry said:


> I failed to flash the Thunderboltex3-TR card : <


Oh no! What are the consequences?


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## Manaberry

Impossible to write on the chip. No matter what.
I'm trying with an Alpine-Ridge. The card is not even detected in the PCI slot. 
I'm getting mad at some point.


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## Kent

Manaberry said:


> Impossible to write on the chip. No matter what.
> I'm trying with an Alpine-Ridge. The card is not even detected in the PCI slot.
> I'm getting mad at some point.


ah, sounds frustrating. I didn't want to deal with a third-party thunderbolt card, which is why I limited my motherboard search to those which included it natively. Wish I had something more constructive to say!


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## Manaberry

I completely understand the third-party fear. I'm like you on that point.

After hours of research, and ended up getting some balls to do something about the situation. I withdrew the Alpine-Ridge of my PC to replace it with a Thunderboltex 3 I got two years ago (just one TB port). 

I successfully flashed the chip on the Alpine-Ridge (jeez I was so scared to fail another card.) and I did the pin 3-5 thing.

I now have my Apollo x6 working along with the satellite on the mac. The PC sound (for other purposes) is sent to the Apollo through SPDIF. 

What a relief haha.


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