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First Time Build: Audio Recording Hackintosh

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Joined
Jul 11, 2011
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47
Motherboard
GA-Z77-DS3H
CPU
i5-3570K
Graphics
EVGA GT 640
Mobile Phone
  1. Android
Looking to get the parts ordered and get to work. I need a workstation that will be able to run Protools/Logic/Reason/etc. and be used for recording audio/music. I'm going to go with Mountain Lion as the OS and will be using a recording interface that is Firewire based. I don't think I will be doing much gaming on this system, but you never know. Just looking for a nice middle of the road build. Let me know what you think!

Case: LIAN LI PC-A55
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112375

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504

MB: GIGABYTE GA-Z77-DS3H
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128547

Graphics Card: ASUS HD6670-2GD3 Radeon HD 6670
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121645

RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233280

SSD: Crucial M4 128 GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148442

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 RPM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

PSU: COUGAR DX600 600W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817553014

Fireware Card: SYBA PCI Express firewire card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815124107

Wireless Card: TP-LINK TL-WDN4800
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704133

CPU Cooler: ZALMAN CNPS5X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118128



With the build I have two main questions. Is the HD 6670 going to work with Mountain Lion, or is there a better choice in that price category? And does the 600W PSU listed have enough juice to power the system?

Thanks for help!
 
Welcome!

Your GPU will work but you might have to do somethings to get it fully functional. Here is an example of some things you might have to go through:
http://www.tonymacx86.com/mountain-...mountain-lion-6xxx-gpu-issues-fix-inside.html
http://www.tonymacx86.com/graphics/76778-asus-ati-6670-detection-support.html

If I were you, I would go with the nVidia GT 640. It has more native support.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130796

As far as power goes, use this:
http://images10.newegg.com/BizIntell/tool/psucalc/index.html?name=Power-Supply-Wattage-Calculator

Using the link just above I get around 300W for your system.
I would go with a Corsair CX430 and call it good.

Any more questions?
 
Thanks MechSoup!

I'm going to drop the 6670 for the GT640 then. Trying to get the most OOB experience I can get since I am new to the game.

And I will look into getting a lower wattage on my PSU.


Thanks for the input!
 
Was reading up on some stuff and saw an item about the GA-Z77-DS3H. I guess there is a new version of this same motherboard that causes problems with sound and onboard ethernet? Does anyone have some input on this topic? I know the old version of the motherboard works but it seems like a shot in the dark to buy one of these, because who knows what version you will get? Or is this just a moot point? Because I could theoretically solve the network issue by using the wireless card I have listed above?

Thoughts?
 
Was reading up on some stuff and saw an item about the GA-Z77-DS3H. I guess there is a new version of this same motherboard that causes problems with sound and onboard ethernet? Does anyone have some input on this topic? I know the old version of the motherboard works but it seems like a shot in the dark to buy one of these, because who knows what version you will get? Or is this just a moot point? Because I could theoretically have solve the network issue by using the wireless card I have listed about?

Thoughts?

For some reason, Gigabyte, in its infinite wisdom (ha!) changed the NIC in the rev 1.1 board to one that is unsupported in OS X. OTOH, if you are using WiFi instead of wired network, then you have no problem with the DS3H.
 
For some reason, Gigabyte, in its infinite wisdom (ha!) changed the NIC in the rev 1.1 board to one that is unsupported in OS X. OTOH, if you are using WiFi instead of wired network, then you have no problem with the DS3H.

Well that's good. Too bad that changed the NIC!

What about on-board sound? Will I be able to get it working with the old or new version of this motherboard?
 
Well that's good. Too bad that changed the NIC!

What about on-board sound? Will I be able to get it working with the old or new version of this motherboard?

Audio is still ALC887 - that did not change.
 
Looks like this build is a go then! Thanks for the help Going Bald and MechSoup
 
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