Hi, I'm a first time Hackintosh owner and a long time Mac user. Almost 4 weeks ago I pulled together my savings (the main reason I went for a Hackintosh is that I can't afford a Mac Pro and my last iMac wasn't powerful enough after the first year to game/run multiple Adobe Creative Suite apps) and bought the parts to make the MacMini Deluxe.
I rarely deviated from the parts recommended as I was hoping for out of the box success, but had to buy a different power supply due to something of a PSU shortage at UMart (in Australia the parts suggested were all available - other than the PSU - and the total spend for me was $1000AUD).
Some things that I have learned, that other users may benefit from knowing in advance:
1. Can't stress enough that you should ignore the USB 3.0 ports. Just don't use them, use the USB ports sticking out of the motherboard at the back.
2. The BitFenix Prodigy cannot comfortably take a 16cm deep PSU. I bought one and had 2 people press down while I screwed it into place. Get something shorter. (Also I found conflicting stats on the Corsair PSU recommended here so I'm not sure if that one is 15cm deep or 16cm, but my replacement PSU was 16cm, fully modular)
4. Getting UniBeast to boot up the Mountain Lion install was extremely difficult and caused me actual tears of frustration. I tried all the -v -y etc etc commands (and I still don't understand them). Eventually I could get through on Safe Mode but not with working ethernet which was problematic and meant I couldn't run migration from my old iMac over the network - I've regret this every day for the last 4 weeks because I still don't feel my comp is "done".
3. MultiBeast* isn't something you want to dabble with. Use the settings as you can see them from the screencapture. Write them down on old school writing paper for when you system crashes in the future. Store them safely.
4. You have to choose between getting Bluetooth (comes supplied and pre-installed on the motherboard) or having WiFi (you have to buy a replacement mini card to stick into your motherboard, taking out the Bluetooth one) if you're getting a graphics card. If you're getting a WiFi replacement card, order that first from eBay - weeks later and I'm still waiting - and don't start the build without it!
Some outstanding issues that I could use some help with post installation:
1. Ethernet connection is unreliable.
Sometimes when I start up my computer it works. Sometimes it doesn't.
Mountain Lion thinks I should have 1x Ethernet Port (the default Network device in System Preferences > Network reads "Ethernet" and to get it working the first time I added 2 new + devices to end up with "Ethernet en0" and "Ethernet en1" which match up to the 2 ports on the motherboard.
So now I have three. My internet works when either "Ethernet en0" or "Ethernet en1" is connected and correctly shows the address of my Router and DNS Server. When it's not working one of the devices will be lit up green (implying that it's working), one will be orange but the green one won't find the Router and DNS Server.
I usually have to move the cable to a different port and restart a few times to get it to work as re-plugging it in and waiting doesn't seem to make a difference.
Do I need to disable one of the ports in the BIOS? Should I remove the ML default "Ethernet" device from my System Preferences > Network dialogue box?
2. Is there a way to hide (a) the Motherboard splash screen during boot up and (b) the TonyMac splash screen that counts down before launching the OS?
Sorry! But hate seeing double delays when I just want to load up OS!
3. USB Mouse doesn't register for at least 5-10 seconds after start up
I find that sometimes my mouse doesn't register at all (nor the keyboard) but if I wait for about 10 seconds after OS has loaded completely it kicks in. Suggestions? Is this normal behaviour?
* Gentle suggestion regarding MultiBeast: The UI is designed in such a way that you already need to know what setting will fix a potential problem (remember, most people will run it for the first time before using their system), when it would be much more user friendly if they just checked off their component parts (ie, this model motherboard, this graphics card etc) and only displayed relevant hacks to apply. I have only 4 enabled (from memory), but there's way too many options for me to choose from - options that aren't relevant - it's overwhelming.