Asus ProArt z790 - BIOS updates!

[suren6791]

Thunderbolt - Works
Sleep - Works but need to use power button to wake
Front USB-C port - Works

SMBIOS: iMacPro1,1
OC: 0.9.6
OS: Ventura 13.6 and Sonoma 14.1
RAM: Kingston Fury Beast 2 x 32G - XMP1 enabled
Bios : 1203

 

[suren6791]

My EFI is here if anyone wants to check it out.

i9 13900K & Z790-E Gaming WIFI D5 & RX 6600XT

Hello, I'm building a new Hackintosh with this configuration : CPU : i9 13900K Motherboard : Asus ROG STRIX Z790-E Gaming WIFI D5 RAM : 32Go GPU : Asus ROG STRIX AMD RX 6600XT HardDrive : 1) WD_BLACK 1TB SN850X NVMe 2) SAMSUNG 980 PRO SSD 2TB PCIe NVMe Gen 4 Gaming M.2 Up to my last...

www.tonymacx86.com

 

[Anklebiter]

What are the advantages/disadvantage of upgrading to the Asus ProArt Z790-Creator WiFi board? Would this be a straight swap for the Z690 using the same EFI, or would I need to re configure OpenCore? Does the Z790 handle RAM better then the previous board as I'd like to use the full 128GB. Is Thunderbolt 4 support still broken?

 

[Sabzz]

Perfect i'll report on my progress, thanks.

 

[Sabzz]

What are the advantages/disadvantage of upgrading to the Asus ProArt Z790-Creator WiFi board? Would this be a straight swap for the Z690 using the same EFI, or would I need to re configure OpenCore? Does the Z790 handle RAM better then the previous board as I'd like to use the full 128GB. Is Thunderbolt 4 support still broken?

I can't say as I've never run the z690. However, comparably, I feel they're very much the same board. Most of us ran @CaseySJ z690 EFI as a base and went from there.

I'd say you'd have to make some slight adjustments in OC depending on the OS you plan on running but nothing too complex.

Regarding RAM:
I'm on an earlier BIOS version compared to the rest of the guys here, and it runs my G.Skill 64gb 6400 Ram (2-sticks) with XMP on, without an issue. Previously, I ran 4 sticks of Corsair Vengeance 16GB (64GB total) 5600 with XMP on, and it also ran fine. However, I noticed a slower boot time. Hence, why I opted in for the G.Skill 64GB (2-sticks). The slower boot time could've been due to the older BIOS version I'm on, but it did run never the less.

In saying that, @gabevf is running 192GB of RAM on his machine, perhaps wait for him to respond to get his thoughts.

Thunderbolt 4:
Elaborate on this? I'm running a UAD Apollo X interface (TB3/TB4) and my Thunderbolt is running fine?

Note: Thunderbolt 2 devices don't work with these boards though. After extensive testing trying to get my previous audio interface working (UAD Apollo Twin MkII - TB2 device), it just wouldn't connect.. So I had to upgrade to the TB3 version.

 

[Anklebiter]

Regarding RAM:
I'm on an earlier BIOS version compared to the rest of the guys here and it runs my G.Skill 64gb 6400 Ram (2-sticks) with XMP on, without an issue. Previously, I ran 4 sticks of Corsair Vengeance 16gb (64gb total) 5600 with XMP on and it also ran fine, however i noticed a slower boot time, hence why i opted in for the G.Skill 64gb (2-sticks). The slower boot time could've been due to the older BIOS version i'm on, but it did run never the less.

In saying that, @gabevf is running 192gb of ram on his machine, perhaps wait for him to respond to get his thoughts.

Thunderbolt 4:
Elaborate on this? I'm running a UAD Apollo X interface (TB3/TB4) and my Thunderbolt is running fine?

Note: Thunderbolt 2 devices don't work with these boards though. After extensive testing trying to get my previous audio interface working (UAD Apollo Twin MkII - TB2 device), it just wouldn't connect.. So i had to upgrade to the TB3 version.

I'd be interested to hear about using more RAM. Regarding Thunderbolt, I'd like to use a Razor Core X Thunderbolt 3 eGPU enclosure. Mac OS will be 14 (Sonoma), and the GPU is an AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT 16 GB.

 

[Sabzz]

Are you currently running the enclosure now on your z690 board? If so, what OS are you running?

I may be mistaken, but I think the Thunderbolt controller needs to be present in order to use the eGPU, and, as far as I'm aware, the only OS it shows up in natively, is Big Sur?
Even though my Thunderbolt is working as intended with the help of the Maple-Ridge kext, in System Report, the TB/USB4 controller is not "present", but that doesn't affect me in my case.

Someone else may need to chime in here to help with more information.

 

[SmackAttack]

Are you currently running the enclosure now on your z690 board? If so, what OS are you running?

I may be mistaken, but I think the Thunderbolt controller needs to be present in order to use the eGPU, and, as far as I'm aware, the only OS it shows up in natively, is Big Sur?
Even though my Thunderbolt is working as intended with the help of the Maple-Ridge kext, in System Report, the TB/USB4 controller is not "present", but that doesn't affect me in my case.

Someone else may need to chime in here to help with more information.

I do believe, yes, a Maple Ridge controller can’t be flashed to enable the bus so that Mac OS can use the eGPU (unless you run Big Sur). I used a non-flashed Titan-ridge controller on previous builds for eGPUs, however, for DaVinci Resolve, and it utilized the extra GPU just fine… but that’s Resolve.

 

[Anklebiter]

Are you currently running the enclosure now on your z690 board? If so, what OS are you running?

I'm not currently using the eGPU. I'm running Mac OS 14.1.

I was hoping the Thunderbolt hardware in the Z790 board had been updated to something that Mac OS recognises. It sounds like it's just the same as the Z690 board and limited to Big Sur.

 

[SmackAttack]

I'm not currently using the eGPU. I'm running Mac OS 14.1.

I was hoping the Thunderbolt hardware in the Z790 board had been updated to something that Mac OS recognises. It sounds like it's just the same as the Z690 board and limited to Big Sur.

Correct, it’s the same z690. Like I said, if you’re using it for Resolve it could very well work, but if not, you’re better off with one high-end GPU internally, or getting a giant PSU and trying to have two internally.