Building a Hackintosh

thunderclap · Jul 13, 2009, 03:23 PM

Before I became a Mac user in 2000 I was a PC guy. I switched over because I wasn't playing games as much, and my software choice for my career was Final Cut Pro... it made sense at the time to make the switch to Mac.

Nine years later I am coming back to PC, but in a somewhat unorthodox way. I had a Mac Pro that I dual booted OS X and Vista, then I switched to an iMac. The Mac Pro was fast but used workstation CPU's, and when I got into a graphic intensive game it sounded like a jet engine. The iMac was slower (due to the Core 2 Duo) and when playing a game the system got VERY hot.

The more and more I thought about it I missed Windows and being able to just boot up a game when I wanted to. Plus my accounting software is on Windows so I was booting it daily anyway. I don't do as much video editing these days so sticking with Mac exclusively today doesn't make much sense.

But I don't want to give up OS X complete because I still do video editing and I still prefer Final Cut Pro over everything else out there. I've always been a little leery of Hackintosh's because it seemed a lot of hacks were needed, updating was a pain, and it was probably more trouble then it was worth. I talked to a friend about it and he pointed me to a piece of hardware that was the deciding factor for me: EFI-X. This dongle of sorts plugs onto your motherboards internal USB port allowing for EFI-based OS's (i.e. OS X) to book on BIOS standard motherboards. This little device greatly reduces the frustration and excess work of hacking a system to get OS X running.

So last week I decided to build myself a Hackintosh, using Windows as my primary OS. Because I am still using OS X I am limited in my hardware choices to ensure compatibility with both OS's. Here is the spec of my new system:

Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P (Core i7 board)
Intel Core i7 920 (2.66GHz)
6GB RAM DDR3
2 1TB Hard Drives (one for each OS)
nVidia 9800GT
LG Blu-Ray Burner
Vista Home Premium 64-bit (free upgrade to Windows 7)
Logitech Wave Wireless Keyboard & Mouse

Grand total for this system, including Vista, Leopard and the EFI-X dongle is $1800. I didn't get a monitor because I already have one, but I did spot a 24" monitor that seemed pretty decent priced at $250. So let's say $2200 for with a little excess buffer.

Compare this price with these specs to the iMac I bought:

24" iMac (Core 2 Duo 3.06GHz)
4GB RAM
1 1TB HD
nVidia 130GT
SuperDrive (DVD/CD Burner)
Wired Keyboard & Mouse
Windows Vista

This system cost me a tad more at: $2300. But it seems to me I get a lot more bang for my buck with the Hackintosh system.

If people are interested I plan on shooting a video of both system, with the same configurations, booting side-by-side to see how they compare, and can post it.

So what do you think of the comparison of the two systems? And, if you've ever built a Hackintosh or used the EFI-X what are your experiences with it?

Chaos · Jul 13, 2009, 03:46 PM

sounds interesting keep us updated

Falstaff · Jul 13, 2009, 05:30 PM

I saw a good article in Maximum PC about this very thing, and the author was humorous as well, just cant remember which issue.

thunderclap · Jul 13, 2009, 05:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falstaff

I saw a good article in Maximum PC about this very thing, and the author was humorous as well, just cant remember which issue.

Is this it? Maximum PC Hackintosh Article

That's the link my friend told me about.

Falstaff · Jul 13, 2009, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thunderclap

Is this it? Maximum PC Hackintosh Article

That's the link my friend told me about.

cool...
I had almost lost the link to Max PC.
its an interesting site and a good magazine, but two thirds of it is adverts for
products I will never use.
Sort of like Jeremy Clarkson talking about the Veron or a new Lambo, I will never use it, but some of it is good.
common sense stuff, etc , you might find in the front or end of the mag.

**temeteus82** · Jul 13, 2009, 09:29 PM

Do let us know how it goes

Mac Daddy · Jul 13, 2009, 11:44 PM

Interesting indeed keep us posted mate

Lowfat · Jul 14, 2009, 03:13 AM

Definitely let us know how it goes. I have tried to install OSX a good dozen times on my system, which is very similar to yours. But can never get the installation discs to boot.

Very interested in the EFI-X. Although it really isn't needed these days as EFI emulators/boot loaders are rather simple to use, from what I've heard anyways.

**dj_stick** · Jul 14, 2009, 03:20 AM

hmmm iirc the EFI-X unit has a really specific list of hardware compatibility, using an EFI emulator, while may take a little work, could possibly mean a higher compatibility with your system

I ran OS X 10.4.10 on my old P4 for a while, until I got my Mac Pro (but as for yours sounding like a Jet engine, never happened here)

strangely, using the same monitors, the Mac Pro's video signal was "Crisper" than my P4 box, both were using nVidia chipsets, I have a feeling it may have been the modified drivers though

thunderclap · Jul 17, 2009, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lowfat

Very interested in the EFI-X. Although it really isn't needed these days as EFI emulators/boot loaders are rather simple to use, from what I've heard anyways.

From what I understand the benefit of EFI-X is that unlike the traditional hack if you upgrade OS X it doesn't break the boot loader. Upon further research this is because EFI-X is not an EFI emulator, it acually is an EFI unit that plugs into the internal USB port of your motherboard. This was a big selling point for me.

I put the computer together last night. It took about an hour to assemble the computer, but once that was done I installed Vista 64-bit SP1 (took 15 min.) and booted up. Vista comes up fine as did OS X! I haven't bumped into any incompatibility as of yet. The only thing I've noticed is that the internet on the OS X side seemed slow. This might be due to a driver issue with my motherboard, or maybe because the BIOS firmware is out of date. But it's great to see OS X working smoothly on a home built system.

I hope to get time this weekend to videotape a side-by-side comparison of the Hackintosh and my iMac. As soon as I get that uploaded I'll post the link.

Jul 13, 2009, 03:23 PM	#1
thunderclap HardwareHeaven Addict Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 348 Rep Power: 34	Building a Hackintosh Before I became a Mac user in 2000 I was a PC guy. I switched over because I wasn't playing games as much, and my software choice for my career was Final Cut Pro... it made sense at the time to make the switch to Mac. Nine years later I am coming back to PC, but in a somewhat unorthodox way. I had a Mac Pro that I dual booted OS X and Vista, then I switched to an iMac. The Mac Pro was fast but used workstation CPU's, and when I got into a graphic intensive game it sounded like a jet engine. The iMac was slower (due to the Core 2 Duo) and when playing a game the system got VERY hot. The more and more I thought about it I missed Windows and being able to just boot up a game when I wanted to. Plus my accounting software is on Windows so I was booting it daily anyway. I don't do as much video editing these days so sticking with Mac exclusively today doesn't make much sense. But I don't want to give up OS X complete because I still do video editing and I still prefer Final Cut Pro over everything else out there. I've always been a little leery of Hackintosh's because it seemed a lot of hacks were needed, updating was a pain, and it was probably more trouble then it was worth. I talked to a friend about it and he pointed me to a piece of hardware that was the deciding factor for me: EFI-X. This dongle of sorts plugs onto your motherboards internal USB port allowing for EFI-based OS's (i.e. OS X) to book on BIOS standard motherboards. This little device greatly reduces the frustration and excess work of hacking a system to get OS X running. So last week I decided to build myself a Hackintosh, using Windows as my primary OS. Because I am still using OS X I am limited in my hardware choices to ensure compatibility with both OS's. Here is the spec of my new system: Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P (Core i7 board) Intel Core i7 920 (2.66GHz) 6GB RAM DDR3 2 1TB Hard Drives (one for each OS) nVidia 9800GT LG Blu-Ray Burner Vista Home Premium 64-bit (free upgrade to Windows 7) Logitech Wave Wireless Keyboard & Mouse Grand total for this system, including Vista, Leopard and the EFI-X dongle is $1800. I didn't get a monitor because I already have one, but I did spot a 24" monitor that seemed pretty decent priced at $250. So let's say $2200 for with a little excess buffer. Compare this price with these specs to the iMac I bought: 24" iMac (Core 2 Duo 3.06GHz) 4GB RAM 1 1TB HD nVidia 130GT SuperDrive (DVD/CD Burner) Wired Keyboard & Mouse Windows Vista This system cost me a tad more at: $2300. But it seems to me I get a lot more bang for my buck with the Hackintosh system. If people are interested I plan on shooting a video of both system, with the same configurations, booting side-by-side to see how they compare, and can post it. So what do you think of the comparison of the two systems? And, if you've ever built a Hackintosh or used the EFI-X what are your experiences with it? __________________ Marc B. Genrefinity.net - Your source for all things in the horror, science fiction and fantasy genres

Jul 13, 2009, 03:46 PM	#2
Chaos Number Nine Join Date: May 2002 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 5,268 Rep Power: 167 System Specs	Re: Building a Hackintosh sounds interesting keep us updated __________________

Jul 13, 2009, 05:30 PM	#3
Falstaff Old Codger Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: USAFA Posts: 19,048 Rep Power: 207	Re: Building a Hackintosh I saw a good article in Maximum PC about this very thing, and the author was humorous as well, just cant remember which issue. __________________ "Inspiration is always a surprising visitor."

Jul 13, 2009, 11:44 PM	#7
Mac Daddy DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 7,950 Rep Power: 79 System Specs	Re: Building a Hackintosh Interesting indeed keep us posted mate __________________ "My mom said the only reason men are alive is for lawn care and vehicle maintenance." - Tim Allen

Jul 14, 2009, 03:13 AM	#8
Lowfat Xtreme Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Grande Prairie, AB, Can Posts: 4,254 Rep Power: 101	Re: Building a Hackintosh Definitely let us know how it goes. I have tried to install OSX a good dozen times on my system, which is very similar to yours. But can never get the installation discs to boot. Very interested in the EFI-X. Although it really isn't needed these days as EFI emulators/boot loaders are rather simple to use, from what I've heard anyways. __________________