Best USB drivers/patches currently for Sierra and z170

[SlentThndr]

I'm having lots of issues with USB devices (MIDI instruments and audio interfaces). Some devices work in my 2.0 ports but not the 3.0 ports. Others don't work at all. Others work sporadically... but I can't rely on this machine at all as it is. At first I thought it was just an issue with USB hubs (because those don't seem to work) but it's bigger than that. I've searched for wisdom regarding which drivers/patches are optimal for my setup (or even just in general) and I can't find much.

What are we (hackintosh newbies) supposed to do to set up USB and make it as reliable as possible? Is there anything in the BIOS I should check? Any special patches or drivers? The only USB related drivers/patches I've installed were the "3rd Party USB 3.0" and "Increase Max Port Limit 100 Series" options inside of Multibeast. That's all I could figure out based on the installation guide and my googling. If there's a resource out there I'm missing, I'd really appreciate a link. Otherwise, I'd just appreciate some input regarding my setup - is there anything else I can do to make my USB connections more reliable?

Motherboard: Asus z170i Pro Gaming
CPU: i7 6700k
I'm running sierra 10.12.4 currently, though I'm contemplating an upgrade to 10.12.5

----
FYI Mods: I posted previously about USB hubs, but that was too narrow a topic and not really my issue anymore either so I made this new, broader thread. My apologies if this is messy - feel free to delete that other thread b/c this one will be more useful to the community in the long run (if the issue is resolved, that is).

 

[RehabMan]

I'm having lots of issues with USB devices (MIDI instruments and audio interfaces). Some devices work in my 2.0 ports but not the 3.0 ports. Others don't work at all. Others work sporadically... but I can't rely on this machine at all as it is. At first I thought it was just an issue with USB hubs (because those don't seem to work) but it's bigger than that. I've searched for wisdom regarding which drivers/patches are optimal for my setup (or even just in general) and I can't find much.

What are we (hackintosh newbies) supposed to do to set up USB and make it as reliable as possible? Is there anything in the BIOS I should check? Any special patches or drivers? The only USB related drivers/patches I've installed were the "3rd Party USB 3.0" and "Increase Max Port Limit 100 Series" options inside of Multibeast. That's all I could figure out based on the installation guide and my googling. If there's a resource out there I'm missing, I'd really appreciate a link. Otherwise, I'd just appreciate some input regarding my setup - is there anything else I can do to make my USB connections more reliable?

Motherboard: Asus z170i Pro Gaming
CPU: i7 6700k
I'm running sierra 10.12.4 currently, though I'm contemplating an upgrade to 10.12.5

----
FYI Mods: I posted previously about USB hubs, but that was too narrow a topic and not really my issue anymore either so I made this new, broader thread. My apologies if this is messy - feel free to delete that other thread b/c this one will be more useful to the community in the long run (if the issue is resolved, that is).

https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/guide-creating-a-custom-ssdt-for-usbinjectall-kext.211311/

 

[SlentThndr]

Wow - thanks. That looks like an intense project for a newbie, though. Are you sure there aren't premade patches for common hackintosh motherboards like mine? Or maybe someone with an ASUS z170i Pro Gaming can point out a shortcut? If all else fails I can follow this guide but it's a bit of a stretch for me. I want to believe that there are simpler solutions by now. =\

 

[SlentThndr]

Failing at that, I'm also considering a downgrade to Yosemite. Based on what I've read in your guide, RehabMan, I'm predicting that my USB reliability and speed problems may go away if I downgrade. My primary issue is with the speed of my USB Audio Interface (my audio is cracking and popping when it shouldn't be) and I've read that other audio engineer hackintosh users fixed that problem by downgrading. I'm guessing they avoided this whole ACPI issue without realizing it.

Does that make sense to you or am I just avoiding the inevitable?

 

[RehabMan]

Wow - thanks. That looks like an intense project for a newbie, though. Are you sure there aren't premade patches for common hackintosh motherboards like mine? Or maybe someone with an ASUS z170i Pro Gaming can point out a shortcut? If all else fails I can follow this guide but it's a bit of a stretch for me. I want to believe that there are simpler solutions by now. =\

It is not as difficult as it seems. Work through it. Go carefully...

You might search for SSDTs already made for your board.
But because your uses for internal headers may be different, it may not apply to your scenario...

 

[SlentThndr]

I appreciate your help and encouragement!
I found this guy who has a SSDT already made for my motherboard (see the appendix at the end of post 1): https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/10-11-0-10-11-3-skylake-starter-guide.179221/#post1153870

So, according to his post it seems that I just need to set up an APIC patch, then make sure I have the USBInjectAll kext in place (which multibeast did for me), then install this premade SSDT. The SSDT wouldn't vary from one Asus z170 Pro Gaming to the next, would it?

From your guide, it seems the port limit increase patch causes problems... do I need to uninstall that patch before I move forward with this? And if so, how do I uninstall patches? I'm sorry if I should already know this stuff, but there's a bit of a learning curve here and it's really hard to know which threads pertain and which don't when I don't speak the language. =/

 

[GhostHitWall]

@SlentThndr
You only need the port limit increase patch to learn the mapping of your USB ports to create a SSDT.
If you already have one, you don't need this patch, as long as the SSDT is working correctly.
Although very likely the SSDT will give you more than 15 ports, you should use boot args to disable some until you only have 15.

 

[RehabMan]

I appreciate your help and encouragement!
I found this guy who has a SSDT already made for my motherboard (see the appendix at the end of post 1): https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/10-11-0-10-11-3-skylake-starter-guide.179221/#post1153870

So, according to his post it seems that I just need to set up an APIC patch, then make sure I have the USBInjectAll kext in place (which multibeast did for me), then install this premade SSDT. The SSDT wouldn't vary from one Asus z170 Pro Gaming to the next, would it?

From your guide, it seems the port limit increase patch causes problems... do I need to uninstall that patch before I move forward with this? And if so, how do I uninstall patches? I'm sorry if I should already know this stuff, but there's a bit of a learning curve here and it's really hard to know which threads pertain and which don't when I don't speak the language. =/

AppleAPIC patch does not apply to current macOS/OS X.
The SSDT can vary depending on specific use of internal headers, and which tradeoffs made to get within 15 ports.
The port limit patch is only for the port discovery process. After creating your SSDT, you should be within the 15-port limit (that is the goal), therefore no need for the patch.

 

[SlentThndr]

AppleAPIC patch does not apply to current macOS/OS X.
The SSDT can vary depending on specific use of internal headers, and which tradeoffs made to get within 15 ports.
The port limit patch is only for the port discovery process. After creating your SSDT, you should be within the 15-port limit (that is the goal), therefore no need for the patch.

I actually can't figure out how to remove the port limit patch. Could you hook me up with some information on how that process works?

The internal headers are for extra USB ports on the case and whatnot, right? I'm not using any of those.

 

[RehabMan]

I actually can't figure out how to remove the port limit patch. Could you hook me up with some information on how that process works?

The port limit patch is a KextsToPatch entry in your config.plist.

The internal headers are for extra USB ports on the case and whatnot, right? I'm not using any of those.

Yes... then they can be excluded from the SSDT.