8th or 7th Gen? Gigabyte or Asus?

[connman]

It's been quite some time since I've built a new machine but alack and alas, the time has now come.

A lot of things have changed since I've built my last machine. I have been perusing the forums and reading as much as possible and think I have a fair idea of the progress that has been made and the way that things have changed, but now it's come time to actually begin purchasing the parts and I find myself still a bit confused, so I could use some advice from those of you who have stayed much more current than I.

The main question comes to the processor. Since the Coffee Lake processors are the most current, it would seem wisest to include one of these latest and greatest with the new build, especially since there are more users reporting success on these processors. That said, I would appreciate opinions. They seem to be much faster and more robust, and 6 cores would be pretty nice as well.

Once the processor is determined, then the matter of the board begins. Gigabyte or Asus, and which model would provide the most transparent experience OOTB? I've only used Gigabyte boards, but as I mentioned I have not built a machine for a while so would again like the opinions of those more knowledgeable than myself.

Then there's the issue of the M.2 boot drive. SSD or NVMe?

I appreciate your help and suggestions as I begin to put together this next machine. This forum was invaluable when I was first learning and it looks as though it has only become better.

 

[alex740il]

It's been quite some time since I've built a new machine but alack and alas, the time has now come.

A lot of things have changed since I've built my last machine. I have been perusing the forums and reading as much as possible and think I have a fair idea of the progress that has been made and the way that things have changed, but now it's come time to actually begin purchasing the parts and I find myself still a bit confused, so I could use some advice from those of you who have stayed much more current than I.

The main question comes to the processor. Since the Coffee Lake processors are the most current, it would seem wisest to include one of these latest and greatest with the new build, especially since there are more users reporting success on these processors. That said, I would appreciate opinions. They seem to be much faster and more robust, and 6 cores would be pretty nice as well.

Once the processor is determined, then the matter of the board begins. Gigabyte or Asus, and which model would provide the most transparent experience OOTB? I've only used Gigabyte boards, but as I mentioned I have not built a machine for a while so would again like the opinions of those more knowledgeable than myself.

Then there's the issue of the M.2 boot drive. SSD or NVMe?

I appreciate your help and suggestions as I begin to put together this next machine. This forum was invaluable when I was first learning and it looks as though it has only become better.

HS has native Coffee Lake UHD support, so might as well go for the latest gen8 and also has native NVMe support. No reason not to go with NVMe, its faster than SSD.

 

[Jamesbond007]

It's been quite some time since I've built a new machine but alack and alas, the time has now come.

A lot of things have changed since I've built my last machine. I have been perusing the forums and reading as much as possible and think I have a fair idea of the progress that has been made and the way that things have changed, but now it's come time to actually begin purchasing the parts and I find myself still a bit confused, so I could use some advice from those of you who have stayed much more current than I.

The main question comes to the processor. Since the Coffee Lake processors are the most current, it would seem wisest to include one of these latest and greatest with the new build, especially since there are more users reporting success on these processors. That said, I would appreciate opinions. They seem to be much faster and more robust, and 6 cores would be pretty nice as well.

Once the processor is determined, then the matter of the board begins. Gigabyte or Asus, and which model would provide the most transparent experience OOTB? I've only used Gigabyte boards, but as I mentioned I have not built a machine for a while so would again like the opinions of those more knowledgeable than myself.

Then there's the issue of the M.2 boot drive. SSD or NVMe?

I appreciate your help and suggestions as I begin to put together this next machine. This forum was invaluable when I was first learning and it looks as though it has only become better.

In my opinion, being the latest and greatest is NOT the most important, especially when the latest and greatest may not be supported natively by the version of MacOS you want to use. When I decided to upgrade to a new system last year, I was already aware that Intel was going to release 6 core Coffee Lake CPUs to counter the rise of Ryzen. But I thought that these new hardware may not be natively supported by MacOS Sierra (the version I want to use), and as it turn out it is not. I don't want High Sierra as I thought the system would be buggy and will need time to mature. Therefore I opted for the Z270 and the 7700K, as I knew from the release of MacOS Sierra 10.12.6 and the new Macs that Kaby Lake hardware will be natively supported since Apple uses them in its Macs. I think my decision has been justified as the Sierra installation I have previously booted directly on the new system with no issues whatsoever (except the audio, but since I use a USB audio device that issue was brushed aside).

In your case the situation is different. High Sierra is now confirmed to recognize the Coffee Lake CPUs, so it is sort of "natively supported". The 8700K is also faster than the 7700K, but only because it has more cores, and then only in applications that support more than 4 cores. If the applications you use do not support that many cores then the performance difference may be negligible. I know the differences between 6 cores and 4 cores as I have two X99 systems using the 6800K and 5820K, both of which have 6 cores, running Windows 7 and 8.1.

Personally I will stick with Gigabyte boards as my experience with them are pretty good, both in Windows and MacOS. But recent Asus motherboards also seem to support running MacOS smoothly.

High Sierra is supposedly able to support NVMe SSDs. But from the forum it seems to me that not every NVMe SSD can work with it. If you want to use a NVMe SSD, you should choose one that is known to work with High Sierra. SATA SSDs on the other hand will have no such problems. They are slower than NVMe SSDs but they are also cheaper. Personally I am still using SATA SSDs on my systems as I don't think my usage scenario will benefit much from using (much?) more expensive NVMe SSDs.

 

[alex740il]

High Sierra is supposedly able to support NVMe SSDs. But from the forum it seems to me that not every NVMe SSD can work with it. If you want to use a NVMe SSD, you should choose one that is known to work with High Sierra. SATA SSDs on the other hand will have no such problems. They are slower than NVMe SSDs but they are also cheaper. Personally I am still using SATA SSDs on my systems as I don't think my usage scenario will benefit much from using (much?) more expensive NVMe SSDs.

All are supported, issue is with having to format it using command line before starting the installer...

 

[Jamesbond007]

All are supported, issue is with having to format it using command line before starting the installer...

Even if this is true, it is still an issue that SATA SSDs do not have. I expect I should be able to directly use Disk Utility to format it and not having to use the command line. Besides NVMe SSDs are more expensive and I don't think their price premium is worth it to me. And I don't want to use APFS which is one of the main reasons I don't want to use High Sierra at present. (Yes, I know there is a way to avoid APFS conversion but it is another issue I don't want to face now.) Your mileage may vary.

 

[alex740il]

Even if this is true, it is still an issue that SATA SSDs do not have. I expect I should be able to directly use Disk Utility to format it and not having to use the command line. Besides NVMe SSDs are more expensive and I don't think their price premium is worth it to me. And I don't want to use APFS which is one of the main reasons I don't want to use High Sierra at present. (Yes, I know there is a way to avoid APFS conversion but it is another issue I don't want to face now.) Your mileage may vary.

Everything is an "issue" because its a hackintosh.. Just like sound, video, etc... In this case though, its fully supported, no additional kext or hacks need to be included. Just a simple command to format the drive because its brand new. To run a simple command before clicking install is not that big of a deal compared to the performance benefit you gain. But, everyone has their own opinion on things.

 

[connman]

Thanks for everyone's replies. Let me clarify my use scenario and that might help a bit more.

Along with traditional office-type workload (word processing, keynote, web research, etc.) I provide some coursework online so I use Adobe Photoshop and Premiere a bit. Not in a full time production environment, but more than casually. Using my current machine rendering and exporting a decent-sized file in Premiere takes for. ev. er. I know why. I'm using old hardware that was never designed for this kind of workload and resolutions. I've delayed as long as possible and been setting aside money for the upgrade and am now ready to begin purchasing components and starting the build.

I'm torn between which processor to get along with which generation and which motherboard. Whatever I upgrade to is going to be a very (very) significant upgrade to my current system, but if spending a few more dollars now will provide a longer period of time with acceptable speed, it would be a wise choice for me but if spending those extra dollars won't really do much noticeable then I'd like to use those dollars for other purchases.

In any case, thanks for the help and I look forward to further advice and recommendations.

 

[joshua12]

Thanks for everyone's replies. Let me clarify my use scenario and that might help a bit more.

Along with traditional office-type workload (word processing, keynote, web research, etc.) I provide some coursework online so I use Adobe Photoshop and Premiere a bit. Not in a full time production environment, but more than casually. Using my current machine rendering and exporting a decent-sized file in Premiere takes for. ev. er. I know why. I'm using old hardware that was never designed for this kind of workload and resolutions. I've delayed as long as possible and been setting aside money for the upgrade and am now ready to begin purchasing components and starting the build.

I'm torn between which processor to get along with which generation and which motherboard. Whatever I upgrade to is going to be a very (very) significant upgrade to my current system, but if spending a few more dollars now will provide a longer period of time with acceptable speed, it would be a wise choice for me but if spending those extra dollars won't really do much noticeable then I'd like to use those dollars for other purchases.

In any case, thanks for the help and I look forward to further advice and recommendations.

Hi Connman, I just finished my own Z370 Coffee Lake Build and it really kicks ass. I am a Final Cut Pro video editor and I use Lightroom and Photoshop almost constantly. The biggest thing that you will find helpful with jumping to a Coffee Lake processor is 6 cores, that will help your Premiere tasks a lot. In my opinion, if you have the beer tokens for a Coffee Lake system then go for it. Just be aware that in todays market you will pay a premium for the CPUs and Ram.

With your workflow, I would recommend a i5-8600k this gives you 6 Core with close to i7 performance at an i5 price. Throw it on a Asus ROG Strix motherboard and you will have a real kick ass system. That being said Jamesbond007 has a point, these CPUs are not supported by Apple, the only main issue I have been having is with the IGPU but that issue is not limited to the Coffee Lake CPUs. You can by all means pick up a i7-7700k and a ROG Strix Z270 system for a lower price now that the 8700k is out but now the i7-7700k won't perform as well as a i5-8600k due to the number of cores and even now the i5-8600k is still less expensive then a i7-7700k.

Whatever you decide to go with, you will have a significant upgrade over your current system. Good Luck!

 

[connman]

I've decided upon a build, now I'm just gathering the parts and pieces.

Here's what I've decided upon:

CPU=i7 8700k
Cooler=Noctua NH-D15
MB=ASUS ROG STRIX Z370-E
Case=Fractal Design Define R5
PSU=SeaSonic SSR-750GD Prime

I'm leaning toward the EVGA 1050i graphics card. I think it would provide all the power I need and since I won't be doing any gaming or mining think this should be more than adequate.

Thanks everyone for your input. Any further suggestions would be very welcome!

 

[Connie Mac]

I built my first hackintosh in 2010. Last night I assembled my 6th hackintosh using the Coffee Lake 8700 and ASRock Z370M-ITX/ac with on-board graphics, and High Sierra 10.13.2. It was the easiest install I've ever done. Geekbench showed it is faster than my 12-core Mac Pro. Truly amazing. I wanted a small footprint desktop and followed this thread.