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ultrazone's Slave Audio Build: Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD5-B3 - Core i7-2600k - 16GB RAM - Gigabyte GT 640

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Jun 10, 2011
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Motherboard
Gigabyte Z370 Aorus Ultra Gaming 2.0
CPU
i7-8700K
Graphics
RX 580
Mac
  1. MacBook Air
Mobile Phone
  1. iOS
ultrazone's Slave Audio Build: Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD5-B3 - Core i7-2600k - 16GB RAM - Gigabyte GT 640


FrontTop.jpg


Components


Intel Core i7-2600K Quad-Core Processor 3.4 Ghz 8 MB Cache LGA 1155
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004FA8NOQ/

Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD5-B3 Motherboard
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0050HZ6AC/

Gigabyte GeForce GT 640 GV N640OC-2GI - GF GT 640
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008J1O968/

4 x Kingston ValueRAM 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 Non-ECC CL9 DIMM Desktop Memory
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002K23V1Q/

Kingston SSDNow V+200 60GB SATA III 6Gb/s 2.5" Solid State Drive
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006YLVEVI/

Seagate ST2000DM001 Barracuda 7200RPM 2 TB SATA 6 GB/s NCQ 64 MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005T3GRN2/

LG Electronics GH22NS70B 22X SATA Super Multi DVD+/-RW Internal Drive (Black)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004U65QQ8/

Sonnet Presto GE1000LA-E Gigabit Ethernet Pro PCIe Card
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017K6BR8/

Thermaltake Black V4 Mid Tower Case with 450W Power Supply
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004PG2X4G/

Apple Mac OS X 10.8.2 Mountain Lion
Apple OS X Mountain Lion @ Mac App Store


Already Owned


Viewsonic VX2253MH-LED 22-Inch Widescreen LED Monitor (Black)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004KCPH8Y/

Logitech Keyboard K120
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ELVLKU/

Logitech Trackman Marble Mouse
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001F42MKG/

M-Audio ProFire 610 High-Definition 6-in/10-out FireWire Audio Interface with Octane Preamp Technology
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005L0XMZO/


Comments:


This was my first hackintosh system. Firstly I used it as my main computer for professional work with Pro Tools 10 and Vienna Ensemble Pro, but I bought a new one (http://www.tonymacx86.com/user-builds/77030-success-ultrazones-build-gigabyte-ga-z77x-ud5h-core-i7-3770k-32gb-ram-gigabyte-gtx-650-gigabyte-gt-640-a.html), so this one now acts as a slave with Vienna Ensemble Pro.

Regarding my choice in main system components (CPU, motherboard and graphic card), I followed the buyer's guide 2011 (Buyer's Guide 2011).

I added the Sonnet Presto Gigabit PCIe card since my work with Vienna Ensemble Pro requires a dedicated network connection that's fast and reliable. This card works OOB without any installation or kexts' editing.


BIOS settings:


I just loaded the optimized defaults for this mobo (using BIOS version F10) and made sure AHCI and HPET 64bit were enabled. Nothing special here.


Installation:


I've followed the official guide for Mountain Lion installation available at http://www.tonymacx86.com/61-unibeast-1-5-install-os-x-mountain-lion-any-supported-intel-based-pc.html. I also took into account these tips from tonymacx86 (Thanks !).

Here is the whole process:

- First I followed the guide to create a 10.8 USB stick using UniBeast (UniBeast: Install OS X Mountain Lion on Any Supported Intel-based PC). UniBeast version was 1.5.3 for Mountain Lion (http://www.tonymacx86.com/downloads).

- Then I applied the BIOS settings described above.

- Booted the stick (F12 key while booting BIOS) and used as boot arguments "GraphicsEnabler=No", since that is the recommendation for 6XX graphic cards according to tonymacx86 on his installation tips for Mountain Lion. The installation went smoothly.

- Booted the stick again after installation and choose my new installation, again with "GraphicsEnabler=No". The initial configuration went fine and then I used MultiBeast 5.1.1 for Mountain Lion (http://www.tonymacx86.com/downloads). I put my mobo's DSDT.aml in the desktop (download from http://www.tonymacx86.com/11-dsdt-database.html and finally MultiBeast. These were my settings:


MultiBeast.png


After rebooting, the system was ready to be used and fully functional. And now the benchmark screens:

CPU tests:

GeekBench 64bit:

geekbench.jpg

iBench:

iBench.png

NovaBench:

NovaBench.png

xBench:

xBench.png

Graphic tests:

CineBench:

CineBench.png

LuxMark:

LuxMark 2.jpg

Unigine:

Unigine.png

Disk performance tests:

BlackMagic Disc Test - SSD drive:

DiskSpeedTest.jpg


This machine performs pretty well. When I use it along the master computer it is able to render more than 36 stereo tracks in realtime without a hiccup (love this Vienna Ensemble Pro thing). None of the cores in the activity monitor has reached 50% yet, so I am sure it will be able to process more tracks when needed.

Regarding graphics performance, it is what is expected from a GT640: the desktop and everything related works very well, and since I don't do any gaming or video work, I'm happy with it. What's more, the GT640 is a very silent VGA card and doesn't require the PCI-E connector from the power supply.

Regarding boot times, 20 to 30 seconds from Chimera screen to desktop. From power button to desktop it takes more time since this BIOS is somewhat "slow" when booting.

Sleep works perfect, USB drives work after wake and I didn't feel a performance dropout after waking the machine. So in conclusion, everything works ! :headbang:

I am waiting for your suggestions. questions, comments, possible improvements and all that stuff.

I have to say thank you to all this wonderful community for your help and support. Without you it wouldn't have been possible. And special thanks to Tonymacx86 and MacMan... these guys rock !

Cheers from Spain !
 
I wonder if you can get a little more out of that SSD. Are you plugged into the 6gb/s port?

I'm wondering the same... I checked and the drives are connected to the 6gb/s port. Then I decided trying with the "3rd party SATA driver", but the speeds were the same. Later I installed "3rd party eSATA driver" but same results.

Any ideas ? Maybe TRIM support (which is actually on through Trim Enabler app) ?

Thanks in advance !
 
Hi just wondering about your Multi Beast settings...

No bootloader selected?

Did you try all settings for the SATA 3 SSD?

Also was it able to work without Graphics Enabler = 0

No system definitions?

Also it seems you didn't select for network...

If I was to get just the onboard gigabyte LAN to work what would I need to select in multi beast?

Thanks a lot... Im trying for an audio build with this board too just want to cover all angles...

Are you running HDMI on the monitor? or using DVI?

thanks :)
 
yaren,

For GA motherboards, we recommend you check the "UserDSDT or DSDT-Free Installation" option. It loads most of the necessary items. See page 3 in the MultiBeast Features document which comes with the MultiBeast zip file or http://www.MulitBeast.com for the default items including the system definition and bootloader.
 
No bootloader selected?

By selecting EasyBeast or User-DSDT (my choice) Chimera gets installed.

Did you try all settings for the SATA 3 SSD?

Just TRIM support and IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.

Also was it able to work without Graphics Enabler = 0

Most Nvidia 6XX work with GraphicsEnabler=No in Mountain Lion+Gigabyte mobos.

No system definitions?

The default MacPro3.1, which is installed along with User-DSDT.

Also it seems you didn't select for network...

I'm using a network adapter (see Components) which works out of the box.

If I was to get just the onboard gigabyte LAN to work what would I need to select in multi beast?

I'm not completely sure but I believe the integrated network adapter is Realtek. You could first try with that...

Are you running HDMI on the monitor? or using DVI?

I'm running DVI but HDMI should also work. In fact the VGA port (which is known to be problematic in OSX) also works.

Good luck !
 
We recommend you use Lnx2Mac's Realtek Ethernet driver.

For HD4000 Intel Integrated Graphics, you will need to set several parameters in the BIOS. See my Thunderball build description for that info (link in my signature block).
 
thanks heaps Stork for your speedy reply and ultrazone for the responses to all...

I will be in touch with how things went...

I am using gtx650 actually if you needed to know... (not sure if I said already)...

big thanks again!
 
Cool build! I wonder if you can get a little more out of that SSD. Are you plugged into the 6gb/s port?

it's funny you say that man... I find similar results from tests/bench however hdrive specs state way faster and ive hit those speeds when using programs...

it's very good though i think often why this happen... I mean can anyone show a proof test of an ssd using 80k IOPS... that and speeds into 500mbs im yet to see...
 
Hi Ultazone! Did you check usb3? The back ones and those two that come with the front panel bracket?
Thanks for sharing!
 
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