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Advice for new build based off CustoMac

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creaturenex

creaturenex

Joined
Jun 18, 2012
Messages
8
Motherboard
OSX 10.7.4 Lion
CPU
Intel i3
Graphics
Gigabyte 6850HD
Mac
  1. Mac mini
Classic Mac
  1. 0
Mobile Phone
  1. 0
Hello All,

I am interested in building a mini hackintosh that is powerful, small, quiet and runs cool. I currently have a white iMac (iSight) that wont keep cool even when I use smc fan control. It is loud, hot and I still get pixelation or freezes when I use it surfing the web.

Use
watch movies streamed and downloaded
play game like WOW/Starcraft
dual monitor if possible with hdmi (LG 32LD350 32-Inch 720p 60 Hz LCD HDTV)

Builds I have looked at
http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/2010/12/ ... -mini.html
http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/2011/09/ ... tomac.html
viewtopic.php?f=264&t=39721
viewtopic.php?f=264&t=4802
viewtopic.php?f=54&t=11156
viewtopic.php?f=54&t=37751

Which components work best together?
MB
GA-H55N-USB3
GA-H61N-USB3 - currently in stock @amazon
GA-H67N-USB3
CPU
i3-530
i3-540
i5-2405S
i52500k
RAM
recommendation? 4 GB or 8GB?
HD
recommendations? would like a SSD
Video Card
would the on board GPU work well (HD3000) or would another more powerful & quite card be better?
Case and Power Supply
Recommendations? I would like to eventually build a custom wooden case in the future
Optical drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827118051

Anything else I could be forgetting? Heat sink or cooling fan? possibly add an IR receiver

I just want to build a powerful machine that is small, quiet and runs cool for playing games and watching movies. I really appreciate everyone's help.
 
I would recommend
The H67N-USB3 board
i3 2100 as their is not much benefit for games past 2 cores hyper threaded and the other i3's you specified do not have hd3000
The ram would be better if you got 8gb as that gives more memory for integrated graphics especially if you want two monitors
HD 3000 would be fine for light gaming (720p) and streamed videos (1080p)
As for a case i would say Silverstone SG05BB with SFX 450 Watt in case you want to add more hard drives or a discrete graphics card later
as for a ssd i would say a intel one cos they have really good reliability go for one of the older intel models if your on a budget
And that drive should work
 
 
I ended up going with the

GA-H61N-USB3

and an

Intel 330 series ssd 120gb
 
I wanted to give an update on my build and ask for advice.

So I ended up putting together the whole build with the parts mentioned above. When I turn on the system all led light turn, fan spins for a few seconds and then shuts down, they turn back on a few seconds later and continues in an on/off loop. I was told I might have a bad PSU so I emailed Silverstone and they sent me a replacement PSU and I still get the same problem. I am at a lost on what to do can anyone offer any advice? Thank you in advance
 
That could be any number of issues. It's not even POSTing, though, so it's definitely not related to Mac OS X. The RAM or processor could be defective or improperly seated. This is less likely with your processor, but try pulling out your RAM and putting it back in. And make sure you start inserting it from the first slot. In most cases I've seen, this is the outside slot, but check your motherboard docs to be sure.

Also, some motherboards are pickier than others about having a hard drive plugged in at the time of start-up. I recently had this problem with a new motherboard with UEFI. I don't know why they would care, but apparently some do. Also, I wouldn't expect a bad hard drive to cause your problem, but you might want to check the cables on it and make sure they're seated, too.

Also, to help identify the problem, unplug anything that you don't intend to immediately use (internally and externally). This includes not only additional devices, but also anything that might be connecting to the case like if the case has any built-in audio or USB ports.
 
Make sure all your PSU cables are plugged in in the correct places on the motherboard. Clear CMOS battery and try again.


CPU cooler fan plugged in?

Did you ground yourself while installing all the parts?
 
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