trs96
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- Joined
- Jul 30, 2012
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- Motherboard
- Gigabyte B460M Aorus Pro
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- i5-10500
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9-11-17 Newegg.com has a great deal on the 8300 Elite with a Core I5-3470 4GB of ram 500 GB HDD. $139.99 Shipped ! Sale is good through Sunday 9-17-17 - Remember that you will need a Sierra compatible graphics card too. See the guide below.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883287401&cm_re=8300_Intel_Core_i5_3.2-_-83-287-401-_-Product
6-14-17 Newly completed macOS Sierra Desktop Guide
As of 7-15-17 Current best price on the Elite 8300/3470/8GB SFF PC is $208 Win 10 Pro pre-installed.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883286536&cm_re=HP_Elite_8300_i5-3470-_-83-286-536-_-Product
Best Price on Amazon is $203
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CV9G1BO/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
The Mini-Tower version (CMT) is selling for $249 on Amazon.com If you want to game on this, get the Mini-Tower. It has a 320W power supply and can accomodate full height graphics cards that don't need 6 pin supplemental power. i.e. GTX 1050 Ti
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HSG2Q7I/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
Full 1 year hardware warranty. Add a GT 710, GTX 1050 or 1050 Ti and you've got a capable CustoMac for under $350.
The 6300 Pro Mini-Tower model has a GPU length limit of less than 7 inches. Otherwise there is heatsink interference. The EVGA 1050 Ti single fan models will fit with no problems.
The 8300 CMT is 17.6 inches tall and weighs 24 pounds. Has a 320W ATX PSU.
The 6300 Pro is 14.9 inches tall and weighs 20 pounds. Has a 320W ATX PSU.
They're both made of thick, high quality steel. No flex in the side panels, very sturdy. Tool free design as well.
The 8300 SFF (2nd from the right) is the ideal size if you have limited space. Weighs about 16 pounds. 240W PSU.
Here's the Elite 8300 Small Form Factor Desktop with an Ivy Bridge I5-3470 CPU.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA5965059422&ignorebbr=1
These cost $1270 new: http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/964211/HP-Business-Desktop-Elite-8300-Desktop/
Refrubished start at about $220 for the SFF versions. Have a 1 year hardware warranty and are professionally refurbished.
These ship with 8GB DDR3 ram and a 500GB HDD which has Windows Ten home installed.
5 reasons why you should purchase this specific model, the Elite 8300 (also applies to the HP 6300 Pro)
1. Ease of Installation
These make it very easy to install macOS Sierra for UEFI booting. Similar models like the Elite 8200 can't do this.
If you look back at the 13,2 iMac model from Late 2012-2013 it used the exact same CPU and a discrete GPU from Nvidia.
The AMI UEFI of this 8300 PC is the most macOS friendly one that you'll find. So when you add a compatible Nvidia card to this system it's nearly as easy as installing macOS Sierra on a "real" Mac.
2. Multiple Graphics Options
If you add a compatible graphics card, preferably Nvidia, you can have a dual boot system that can game in Windows and edit music and video in macOS. It's like getting two systems for half the price of one. These I5-3470 versions will require a low profile discrete graphics card to work with macOS. They have HD2500 graphics on chip. If you swap out the CPU for an I3-3245 or I7-3770(s) you could use HD4000 via the DisplayPort output on the rear panel.
3. Updates
Updating to a new version of macOS via the Mac App Store work flawlessly. Again, it works nearly as easily as updating a real Mac.
4. Parts
If you ever need any OEM replacement parts they can be found and purchased for a small amount of money on Ebay. Many millions of these are now off-lease so the supply of parts will never dry up in the next 5-7 years.
5. Working HDMI and Analog Audio
HDMI audio works after the install of a single VoodooHDA kext and the HDA disabler kext, when you have a compatible graphics card
See: https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/...ff-i7-3770-gt-630.199712/page-43#post-1525171
To see what an install of Sierra on this hardware would entail read the full 6300/8300 install guide:
https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/...cos-sierra-i5-3470-gt640.224812/#post-1526635
For a mid tower gaming rig that can accommodate a better full height graphics card. HP 6300 MT ($215 mini-tower)
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAAJ24D78504&cm_re=HP_Pro_6300_MT_PC-_-9SIAAJ24D78504-_-Product The PSU is 320W and can be replaced with an ATX PSU if you use a special mobo power adapter. Most GTX 950s should be able to work with the included PSU.
If you were to primarily use Windows, the GTX 1050 Ti would also be a great choice for Windows gaming. (GTX 1050 Ti is now also supported by macOS with Nvidia drivers)
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487290&cm_re=1050_Ti-_-14-487-290-_-Product
Has HDMI 2.0b for hook up to a 4K Televison. Primary use: viewing video, not gaming in 4K. 1080p gaming would work great with this card. Average 60 FPS in most new games. 4GB of Vram. Low power usage. Quiet.
Also note the ram choices in these HP desktops. If you buy an 8 or 16 GB kit make sure it is HP compatible. The Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3 1600 modules work well. Some have also used Kingston HyperX ram with success. Many other brands of standard un-buffered 1600 MHz DDR3 ram will work.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883287401&cm_re=8300_Intel_Core_i5_3.2-_-83-287-401-_-Product
6-14-17 Newly completed macOS Sierra Desktop Guide
As of 7-15-17 Current best price on the Elite 8300/3470/8GB SFF PC is $208 Win 10 Pro pre-installed.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883286536&cm_re=HP_Elite_8300_i5-3470-_-83-286-536-_-Product
Best Price on Amazon is $203
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CV9G1BO/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
The Mini-Tower version (CMT) is selling for $249 on Amazon.com If you want to game on this, get the Mini-Tower. It has a 320W power supply and can accomodate full height graphics cards that don't need 6 pin supplemental power. i.e. GTX 1050 Ti
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HSG2Q7I/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
Full 1 year hardware warranty. Add a GT 710, GTX 1050 or 1050 Ti and you've got a capable CustoMac for under $350.
The 6300 Pro Mini-Tower model has a GPU length limit of less than 7 inches. Otherwise there is heatsink interference. The EVGA 1050 Ti single fan models will fit with no problems.
Here's the the HP 8300 CMT on the far left (ATX size) the HP 6300 Pro is on the far right.The 8300 CMT is 17.6 inches tall and weighs 24 pounds. Has a 320W ATX PSU.
The 6300 Pro is 14.9 inches tall and weighs 20 pounds. Has a 320W ATX PSU.
They're both made of thick, high quality steel. No flex in the side panels, very sturdy. Tool free design as well.
The 8300 SFF (2nd from the right) is the ideal size if you have limited space. Weighs about 16 pounds. 240W PSU.
Here's the Elite 8300 Small Form Factor Desktop with an Ivy Bridge I5-3470 CPU.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA5965059422&ignorebbr=1
These cost $1270 new: http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/964211/HP-Business-Desktop-Elite-8300-Desktop/
Refrubished start at about $220 for the SFF versions. Have a 1 year hardware warranty and are professionally refurbished.
These ship with 8GB DDR3 ram and a 500GB HDD which has Windows Ten home installed.
5 reasons why you should purchase this specific model, the Elite 8300 (also applies to the HP 6300 Pro)
1. Ease of Installation
These make it very easy to install macOS Sierra for UEFI booting. Similar models like the Elite 8200 can't do this.
If you look back at the 13,2 iMac model from Late 2012-2013 it used the exact same CPU and a discrete GPU from Nvidia.
The AMI UEFI of this 8300 PC is the most macOS friendly one that you'll find. So when you add a compatible Nvidia card to this system it's nearly as easy as installing macOS Sierra on a "real" Mac.
2. Multiple Graphics Options
If you add a compatible graphics card, preferably Nvidia, you can have a dual boot system that can game in Windows and edit music and video in macOS. It's like getting two systems for half the price of one. These I5-3470 versions will require a low profile discrete graphics card to work with macOS. They have HD2500 graphics on chip. If you swap out the CPU for an I3-3245 or I7-3770(s) you could use HD4000 via the DisplayPort output on the rear panel.
3. Updates
Updating to a new version of macOS via the Mac App Store work flawlessly. Again, it works nearly as easily as updating a real Mac.
4. Parts
If you ever need any OEM replacement parts they can be found and purchased for a small amount of money on Ebay. Many millions of these are now off-lease so the supply of parts will never dry up in the next 5-7 years.
5. Working HDMI and Analog Audio
HDMI audio works after the install of a single VoodooHDA kext and the HDA disabler kext, when you have a compatible graphics card
See: https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/...ff-i7-3770-gt-630.199712/page-43#post-1525171
To see what an install of Sierra on this hardware would entail read the full 6300/8300 install guide:
https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/...cos-sierra-i5-3470-gt640.224812/#post-1526635
For a mid tower gaming rig that can accommodate a better full height graphics card. HP 6300 MT ($215 mini-tower)
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAAJ24D78504&cm_re=HP_Pro_6300_MT_PC-_-9SIAAJ24D78504-_-Product The PSU is 320W and can be replaced with an ATX PSU if you use a special mobo power adapter. Most GTX 950s should be able to work with the included PSU.
If you were to primarily use Windows, the GTX 1050 Ti would also be a great choice for Windows gaming. (GTX 1050 Ti is now also supported by macOS with Nvidia drivers)
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487290&cm_re=1050_Ti-_-14-487-290-_-Product
Has HDMI 2.0b for hook up to a 4K Televison. Primary use: viewing video, not gaming in 4K. 1080p gaming would work great with this card. Average 60 FPS in most new games. 4GB of Vram. Low power usage. Quiet.
Also note the ram choices in these HP desktops. If you buy an 8 or 16 GB kit make sure it is HP compatible. The Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3 1600 modules work well. Some have also used Kingston HyperX ram with success. Many other brands of standard un-buffered 1600 MHz DDR3 ram will work.
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