[Success] Gigabyte H170N-WIFI, i5 6500, 16GB RAM, Streacom F1C EVO-WS Case, Sierra

[sisko612]

Sisko612's Hack Mini
Gigabyte H170N-WIFI, i5 6500, 16GB RAM, Streacom F1C EVO-WS Case, macOS Sierra​

Components

Intel Core i5 6500 3.20 GHz Quad Core Skylake Desktop Processor
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B010T6CWI2/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.jdoqocy.com/click-4902415-10446076?url=//www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117563

Noctua NH-L9i 95mm SSO2 CPU Cooler
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009VCAJ7W/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608029

GIGABYTE GA-H170N-WIFI LGA1151 Intel H170 Mini-ITX DDR4 Motherboard
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015CQ8D9Q/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128847

Ballistix Sport LT 16GB Kit (8GBx2) DDR4 2400 MT/s (PC4-19200) DIMM BLS2K8G4D240FSB
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UFF7Y4A/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148985

Samsung 850 EVO - 500GB - M.2 SATA III Internal SSD
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TGIW1XG/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147373

Streacom F1C EVO-WS Mini ITX HTPC Chassis
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00958D9LA/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
http://www.quietpcusa.com/Streacom-F1C-EVO-Mini-ITX-HTPC-Chassis.aspx

Streacom 160W nanoPSU and AC/DC adapter block
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009NSQD1A/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
http://www.quietpcusa.com/Streacom-160W-nanoPSU.aspx

Dell Wireless DW1560 WLAN WiFi 802.11 ac/a/b/g/n + Bluetooth 4.0 M.2 Card - 6XRYC
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00X6J4NBY/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
https://www.parts-people.com/index.php?action=item&id=20035

Dell S2715H 27" HD Monitor - Black
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M9B3S0W/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-27-hd-monitor-black/3112028.p?skuId=3112028


Comments

About This Build
My wife's 8-yr old iMac died so I talked her into letting me try to build a scaled down hack-mini for her. I used the SnazzyLabs Mini build as a starting point but it ended up costing a bit more than their total.

Building The System
This was my first mini-ITX build but it came together quickly and without any major difficulties. I followed ammulder's excellent guide which took a lot of the guesswork out of it. The replacement of the M.2 wifi card was easy, as was the installation of the M.2 SSD on the underside of the motherboard. I had originally ordered a picoPSU as recommended by the SnazzyLabs article but it wasn't compatible with the case (the connector for the power brick didn't fit in the hole in the case) so I returned it and got a nanoPSU (which is what the case manufacturer recommends anyway).

I upgraded the BIOS to the latest version (F20). To verify that the hardware was properly connected & working, I installed Windows 10 Home on the SSD first. Everything was good.

I encountered a few hiccups during the Sierra/UniBeast installation:

• "Prohibited" symbol - caused by the combination of a USB 3.0 stick and a USB 3.0 port. Fortunately the new Dell monitor has a 2.0 hub built into it, so I used that.
• Kernel panic/reboot loop - the KP occurred in the Intel graphics drivers. It turned out that the BIOS upgrade had reset the memory allocations for the internal graphics to 32MB(!!) which apparently wasn't enough for the installer to work with. I changed those settings to 1024/MAX.

With those two issues resolved, the Sierra installer loaded normally and the installation went smoothly.

Once at the desktop, I ran MultiBeast with ammulder's recommended settings as well as applying his Clover settings, kexts, etc. After rebooting I had no audio, no wifi, and the reported HD530 graphics glitches were present in the menu & title bars. All of these issues had the following resolutions, linked here: wifi audio graphics

Everything works except for Messages and iCloud.

UPDATE: After generating a new serial number with Clover Configurator, iCloud is functional, but I get an authentication error while trying to sign in with Messages.

UPDATE #2: I tried enabling the extreme memory profile in the BIOS but that turned out to be a really bad idea. The PC got stuck in a reboot loop, and I couldn't get back to the BIOS to undo the setting. I had to open the case and short the clear-cmos pins to reset everything.

 

[papr]

Hey, I have nearly the same build. Does your bluetooth work without problems? Sometimes, I have problems with BT mouse and keyboard. Also, does sleep work properly for you? My build always does a fresh start after putting it to sleep. iMessage and iCloud work however.

 

[sisko612]

Hey, I have nearly the same build. Does your bluetooth work without problems? Sometimes, I have problems with BT mouse and keyboard. Also, does sleep work properly for you? My build always does a fresh start after putting it to sleep. iMessage and iCloud work however.

Sleep doesn't work. I did get iCloud to work, though, by running Clover Configurator and using the "magic wand" feature to generate a new serial number. iMessage is still no-go - I get "error occurred during authentication" when I try to sign in.

The system recognizes the BT but I haven't tried to connect anything to it yet.

 

[papr]

I got iMessage to work without problems by using Ammulder's guide, maybe it works for you too:

1. Otherwise if you do want iCloud/iMessage/etc., then you must further customize config.plist. For more details on this process see How to Fix iMessage.
   1. Leave Clover Configurator on the SMBIOS screen. Open Terminal.app and run "uuidgen". Paste the output in the SmUUID field in Clover Configurator (next to the Serial Number).
   2. Copy the value in the Serial Number field
   3. Go to the RtVariables screen on the left
   4. Paste your serial number into the MLB field, and then:
      • For an Nvidia graphics / MacPro3,1 configuration, add 2 random characters or digits to the end, to make 13 characters total.
      • For an integrated graphics / iMac17,1 configuration, add 5 random characters or digits to the end, to make 17 characters total.
   5. Enter a value for the ROM field. If you will use an Ethernet port on the machine, you can select "UseMacAddr0" from the drop-down. Otherwise, enter 12 random hexadecimal digits.
   6. File/Save config.plist and Quit Clover Configurator.

 

[sisko612]

I got iMessage to work without problems by using Ammulder's guide, maybe it works for you too:

I tried that, and that's what left me without iCloud or Messages. It wasn't until after I generated a new serial number with Clover Configurator that I was able to get iCloud functional. It's OK, I don't use Messages anyway so it isn't a major issue.

 

[Macbooky]

How are your system temperatures? I struggled with them a lot in that Streacom case. Still haven't been able to fix it so I have gone to a rather large Coolor Master Elite 130 can now temps are perfect but the case is not ...

 

[sisko612]

How are your system temperatures? I struggled with them a lot in that Streacom case. Still haven't been able to fix it so I have gone to a rather large Coolor Master Elite 130 can now temps are perfect but the case is not ...

I can't get the CPU to go over 47C. So far, so good w/r/t temps.

 

[Macbooky]

I can't get the CPU to go over 47C. So far, so good w/r/t temps.

ok, I might give it another go then ..

edit 8/feb/2017:

I have reassembled my Mini in the Streacom case and have tested a bit and found that running of a 'normal' monitor (1650 or 1920) it will remain quite cool, at 36 degrees, a bit hotter than in the bigger case. However I build it for a 4K screen and that sees temperatures soaring to mid 40's and even 50's. Noting to worry about, but obviously a lot more work for the onboard GPU.

Thanks for the feedback, hope my testing will others.

I love the Streacom case btw!!

 

[Boblee0910]

Hello,

I have still exist the iMessage issue even though I used the Ammulder's guide. I have a doubt, if I used the Ethernet Port 1, May I select UseMacAddr1 to Enter ROM field?

Thanks!

 

[slim.jim]

For iMessage make sure you have a correct MLB and ROM entered in Clover Configurator. The MLB can be generated and the ROM should be the MAC address of the device at en0.