Advise to get bluetooth on Monterey & Gigabyte Z390

[Edhawk]

The Z390 Aorus Pro WiFi board uses the Intel 9560 802.11ac WiFi/BT card, which is supported by OpenIntelWireless (Itlwm & Airportitlwm)

itlwm | OpenIntelWireless

Documentation for OpenIntelWireless

openintelwireless.github.io

Both the WiFi and Bluetooth from this ac card can be activated.

The WiFi in Monterey or Ventura requires these kexts:

• Airportitlwm.kext or Itlwm.kext (never both)
• There is a different version of Airportitlwm.kext for each recent version of macOS, so you need to be using the correct kext for the version of macOS you are booting.

Release v2.1.0 stable · OpenIntelWireless/itlwm

Added 2 boot-args -novht: Disables 802.11AC support -noht40: Disables 40MHz when using 2.4GHz (Use this option if the network with this config causes instabilities. BRCM cards disable 2.4GHz HT40 ...

github.com

This FAQ page explains a number of specific aspects in why you would use one kext over another.

Frequently Asked Questions | OpenIntelWireless

Documentation for OpenIntelWireless

openintelwireless.github.io

The Bluetooth module on the Intel card is also supported, but using different kexts/injectors.

GitHub - OpenIntelWireless/IntelBluetoothFirmware: Intel Bluetooth Kernel Extensions for macOS

Intel Bluetooth Kernel Extensions for macOS. Contribute to OpenIntelWireless/IntelBluetoothFirmware development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

The link below to the Intel Bluetooth FAQ is really important if you are booting Monterey or newer.

FAQ | OpenIntelWireless

Documentation for OpenIntelWireless

openintelwireless.github.io

Yes, it does say to use BlueToolFixup.kext from the Acidanthera BrcmPatchRam repository, and not to use the IntelBluetoothInjector.kext in the latest versions of macOS.

One thing that is really important is that the USB port connected to the CNVI connector on the motherboard (contains the Intel WiFi/BT card) must be activated in your USBPorts.kext or SSDT, with an 'Internal' (255) connector type. Otherwise it won't work as expected.

If you already have 15 ports active in your USBPorts.kext you will need to deactivate one and add/activate the Intel BT USB port.

The Intel BT USB module is usually connected via HS14 but make sure you check this is correct on your board.

 

[MHSchaap]

++++++++++EDIT++++++++
EDIT 1:
I am soooo incredibly stupid. I focused on BT, so I forgot that WiFi was disabled in the Bios settings... This also affects BT obviously, as it is the same module! It seems to work now!!!

EDIT2: (for other readers):
If you have BT working, WiFi is a piece of cake: only use itlwm.kext and Heliport (it only works with Heliport, not the native WiFi settings on Mac). For me not that interesting, as I use Ethernet anyway.

Perhaps the steps below are valuable for others. And don't forget to activate WiFi in Bios... ;-)
+++++++++++++++++++++

Sorry for the late reply @Edhawk! Your reply is very extensive and complete; much appreciated! I never bothered with the internal module, but it seems now that it might be better than the Broadcom-BT stick I used with Catalina, due to known issues with MacOs>12.

I have thus far only focussed on getting BT up and running. My board is Aorus Pro WiFi Z390 Mini-Itx, OS version is Ventura 13.0.1.

What I did:

• made a new USBMap.kext using USBMap from github
  • HS14 is correct indeed. USBMap names the HSxx differently, but it is indeed port 0x0E, which is now due to the new USBMap visible in Hackintool (see screenshot). It is also set to device 255 (Internal)
  • given the limited amount of ports, I have disabled HS07/08 and SS07/08 at the back panel
• Added BlueToolFixup, IntelBluetoothFirmware and IntelBTPatcher to EFI/OC/Kexts
  • I have added these to config.plist in this order

It works for me if I had not forgotten to enable WiFi in the Bios settings.... (afterwards, I did)

 

[Superbogey]

It was stupid-easy to get both itwlm.kext and the 2 Intel BT kexts to work with the AX210 WiFi 6E card in my Kaby Lake system under Ventura (not to mention on my Win 11 drive when booted in there). My only disappointment is that the 6GHz band is disabled under Ventura by default in the current release (2.1.0). I don't want to try the Airportitwlm.kext as that involves a LOT more work to enable (since each kext approaches the problem from different directions, itwlm.kext merely spoofs the WiFi 6 as an ethernet port and not an actually WiFi port). Airdrop as well as Handoff don't appear to work yet, either. Most likely due to the way itwlm isn't really WiFi.

 

[markoskz]

hi @MHSchaap what good news that bt works!!!, but how enable WiFi in the Bios settings? I have version F1 actually, in mojave I updated it to F5 but then I made mistake in some shares back to F1 (that's the default one) and I didn't have any problems again

now, I'm with venture 13.0.1 a few weeks ago and it's going well, but without bluetooh and the sound something broken ( the sound by hdmi or dpi is heard very slow, but it solves by disconnecting and re-connecting the hdmi )

i'm very interested in activating bluettooh again, it's possible that WIFI option at BIOS is in a > F1 version?
by the way, my Build configured it as IMac19.2


thanks, Mark

 

[MHSchaap]

Hi @markoskz. I have Bios version F8; Please note (to other readers as well) I have the Z390-I (mini-itx), like you. The bios versions differ from the ATX version. Please pay attention to downloading the correct bios file from Gigabyte because you can easily take the ATX BIOS file, and that won't work.

I have attached screenshots. I am on iMac19,1. Just so you know, I do not have Handoff, etc., working. I didn't even consider that. I don't use sound via HDMI or DPI, just jack output. I have a monitor with speakers, but this is "digital," and I can't control the volume in macOS. So I use some old-fashioned speakers instead.

This may not fully answer your question. Please let me know If you want to know more.

Edit: do you know if you have activated the correct USB port containing the Bluetooth/WiFi chip? This can quickly go wrong. (USBmap.kext, etc.). Port 0x0E, configured as "internal"

 

[MHSchaap]

i'm very interested in activating bluettooh again, it's possible that WIFI option at BIOS is in a > F1 version?
by the way, my Build configured it as IMac19.2

Hello Mark,
Did you make any progress? You previously had BT working, as I understand. Therefore, BIOS settings do not directly come to mind. Could you let me know if you checked the USB port mapping? Do you know if the BT/WiFi chip USB port is mapped? (0x0E). Please ignore the HS/SS numbering, as these numbers can be changed, and mine do not match the defaults. You can check your USB ports with Hackintool (it should be green; mine is blue now, as I selected this line).

Regards,
Menno

 

[markoskz]

Hello Mark,
Did you make any progress? You previously had BT working, as I understand. Therefore, BIOS settings do not directly come to mind. Could you let me know if you checked the USB port mapping? Do you know if the BT/WiFi chip USB port is mapped? (0x0E). Please ignore the HS/SS numbering, as these numbers can be changed, and mine do not match the defaults. You can check your USB ports with Hackintool (it should be green; mine is blue now, as I selected this line).

Regards,
Menno

View attachment 560103

Hi, @MHSchaap you're right, when I made the port mapping, I disable the bluetooh wifi module, i use a mouse logitech that already comes with a receiver, so the bluetooh i would use it to use airdrop basically

my idea of deactivating it was to try with a dongle usb bluetooh as iogear usb (but I haven't bought it yet )

The wifi option doesn't come out in the bios, but I'm pretty sure it's because I don't have updated the BIOS, I still have the F1 version, you think I can update it and I don't break the system?

by the way, did you update ventura 13.1 from the mac system configuration, or did you make a installation from scratch again?

thanks mark

 

[MHSchaap]

Hi Mark,
Thanks for the update! Yes, it must be the port mapping. My USB/BT stick IOGear GBU521 that I used previously with Catalina became a pain with Ventura, so I switched to the internal Bluetooth. This works well most of the time. Rarely it crashes, and then I get a "volume hash mismatch," a problem currently found on real Macs as well; if you are curious, google it ;-). This only happens when my Powerbeats Pro switches back and forth between the Mac and the iPhone. Disabling the "auto-connect" option of the Powerbeats on the Mac prevents this issue from happening.

I updated to 13.1 via the standard Mac System configuration without issues.

Enjoy the coming Holidays!
Menno

 

[pixelinfected]

Hi guys,
i did the homework
i add kext, i map usb, wifi appair and work fine, connection to my router work fine, but i prefer ethernet. BT seems to work, be enable, it's recognized from system infos, but see nothing, i tried to search bt keyboard, bt box, bt soundbar, but it seee nothing.
i tried with Usbmap.kext from MHSchaap, but nothing
Monterey 12.6.3 on Asus ROG STRIX Z390-E GAMING WiFi board uses the Intel 9560 802.11ac WiFi/BT card
Any ideas?

 

[Edhawk]

The USBMap.kext from @MHSchaap won't work with your Asus Z390 system, you need to create a custom USBMap.kext for your Asus ROG STRIX Z390-E Gaming board.

The Asus user manual usually contains the majority of the USB port id's. Have you tried creating a custom USBMap.kext or USBPorts.kext for your system?

Here are a number of Screenshots from the ASUS User manual for your motherboard. These images contain USB port and header ID's.



Using these images will help you with the USB port discovery.