Apple BCM94360CD BCM4360CD WiFi BT card causing system freeze

[stevenbwheeler]

Update 9/27/2015:
Seems like going into the BIOS and changing M.I.T.>Advanced Memory Settings>Memory Enhancement Settings from Normal to Enhanced Stability has ended the system freezing error when using the BCM94360 wifi/bt card in my system.

Will follow up if the issue returns. *fingers crossed that this fixed it*




Hi all,

Before I get into my problems with trying to use the recommended method for achieving seamless, mac-like wifi & BT capabilities via the Broadcom card & mini PCI-e adapter, here is my build:
Gigabyte GA-Z97N-WIFI (rev. 1.0) w/ F7 BIOS
Intel Core i5-4460 LGA 1150
Asus GTX970-DCMOC-4GD5
Samsung 28" 4K UHD Display U28D590D
Corsair CS450M PSU
Crucial Ballistix Tactical 16GB (8GBx2)
Qualcomm Atheros AR5BHB92 AR9280 802.11a/b/g/n wifi card
Samsung 850 EVO SATA III SSD
Bitfenix Phenom mITX case
Wired Apple full-size keyboard, Logitech MX1100 wireless mouse
I set everything up using Multibeast and following Stork's "Hector" builds to get this machine up & running (both the integrated & the discreet graphics card were very helpful manuals, as this is my first Hackintosh build). System config is set up as an iMac (14,2), BIOS has been updated to the latest version that came out this month & am using the optimized defaults, etc.

So, having been using the Atheros wifi card (replaced the Intel one included w/ the mobo) & living w/o bluetooth temporarily until the mini PCI-e adapter & Broadcom BCM94360CD BCM4360CD card arrived from China, I've been happy with the new machine and excited for the day when I could get all the wireless features working. Sadly, the use of the Broadcom card causes a total system freeze between 10-15 minutes after boot (stuck cursor, no response to any keystrokes, fans on, etc.) and am forced to do a hard reset via the button on the computer case.

When the Broadcom card was installed, I was blown away by the throughput speeds & the seamless Airdrop functionality, but a machine that needed a restart several times an hour was driving me nuts. I ended up just unhooking the extra antennae I'd installed and taped them out of the way and plugged the Atheros wifi card back in. Absolutely zero freezes since then, but pretty sad that I'm only getting 200Mbps speeds via 802.11n w/ no bluetooth, airdrop, handoff, etc.

If anyone knows of a fix, or has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them! I have searched all over the forum and can't find anyone describing the problems I'm having with freezing as being related to this wifi card/adapter combo; everyone seems to have nothing but amazing things to say.

Here are links to the Broadcom card, the adapter, and my current stopgap Atheros wifi card:

Broadcom BCM94360CD BCM4360CD card: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L35XSMS/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

Mini PCI-e adapter for Broadcom card: http://www.ebay.com/itm/251893928639?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


Qualcomm Atheros AR5BHB92 AR9280 card (the one I'm currently using): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JESLUWQ/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

 

[lovan6]

We are on the same boat Yosemite 10.10.5 will just freeze for no reason also we have similar Motherboard and Bios. But I read from Storks H97 Hector Setup on Multibeast Boot Options on series 9 Motherboard to "Uncheck CPU States" with hasswell refresh to prevent freeze. You are using hasswell but its worth the try. I dont think Apple BCM94360CD is the culprit coz I also have one. Mine will freeze including all USB ports. Last is I would also disable Intel Integrated Graphics 4600 cause system freeze.


Mini PCI adapter is what I use:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/221882966252?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

[stevenbwheeler]

Hey Lovan, thanks for the reply.

The reason I think the Broadcom card is the culprit is because I had no crashes, no freezes once the machine was up & running using the Atheros card. Once I put in the new Broadcom card and hooked up all the antennas, the machine would lock up after 10-15 minutes, and I noticed its freezes correlating with web browsing activity and/or clicking around in the wifi or bluetooth settings. Once I switched back to the Atheros card, the freezing stopped. I've now been w/o a system freeze for over 48 hours using the Atheros.

I don't have the Generate CPU States button checked as per Stork's warning in that particular build.

The freezes on my system don't appear to have anything to do w/ USB ports; plugging in or removing my printer, thumbdrives, or my iPhone don't occur simultaneously with freezes.

For the last part about the disabling of the Intel Graphics 4600, you're referring to the BIOS option, right? That has been disabled since I switched it over to the GTX970. I have left the IGPEnabler=Yes in the chameleon.Boot.plst since Stork's builds didn't seem to mention it.