First time building a Hackintosh - gaming (WoW)

[iamgizzard]

After an 8-year hiatus, my friends convinced me to start playing World of Warcraft again. So what better reason to experiment with a Hackintosh than now? I've read through several guides and build threads on this site and I'd love the community's help with hardware recommendations because I've never built a PC (*gasp*). A few of my requirements:

• 60 fps+ @ 2560x1440, highest detail settings
• Relatively quiet: When I run WoW on my 2014 MacBook Pro, the fans immediately spin up to full speed - BAD!
• Relatively small form factor: mini or micro ATX, minimal expandability to another SSD later
• All the standard macOS amenities: Ethernet, Bluetooth, WiFi, AirDrop, iMessage, Handoff, Continuity, etc.
• Ease of setup and maintenance, so let's go with proven components
• Budget: approx. $1000

CPU: i7-6700K
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60
Graphics: MSI GAMING X GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
Motherboard: GA-Z170N-Gaming 5
WiFi/BT: Broadcom BCM94352Z M.2 card
Memory: 16 GB Patriot Viper Elite PVE416G320C6KRD (2 x 8 GB)
Storage: SanDisk 240 GB SSD
Case: Silverstone SG13
Power Supply: Silverstone 500W
Monitor: TBD

I appreciate your help!

 

[iamgizzard]

Update: I did some digging and found the GA-Z170N-Gaming 5 will probably work for my needs. It has an M.2 card slot which accepts a Broadcom WiFi/BT card I can get from eBay. That leaves the PCIe slot free for the graphics card.

What's the difference between rev. 1.0 and 1.1?

 

[iamgizzard]

Update #2: The research continues! It seems SeaSonic has a good reputation for quiet PSUs and the Noctua NH-L9x65 is a quiet HSF for mini-ATX build. How will it do with an i7 6700/6700K? Or should I stick with an i5 6600 to be safe?

 

[chedda7]

Your build looks great, I see no glaring issues with it.

revision 1.0 or 1.1 What's the difference?

Great question. I compared the two on their website and only difference I seen was the LAN chip being upgraded to Killer E2400 chip (from Killer E2201 chip). in the rev 1.1 release.

 

[iamgizzard]

Thanks chedda!

Update #3: After going back on forth between the i7-6700K and 6600, I decided to go with the 6600. It draws less power and won't need a huge, honking HSF to keep it cool. macOS is multi-threaded so i7 > i5 in this case.

I've been reading about the Bitfenix Phenom case that's recommended in the Buyer's Guide and the space provided for the PSU is limited. The Seasonic 550W may not fit so I'm trying to confirm what will fit. According to Seasonic's calculator, my setup's power draw will be around 300W.

 

[chedda7]

I've been reading about the Bitfenix Phenom case that's recommended in the Buyer's Guide and the space provided for the PSU is limited. The Seasonic 550W may not fit so I'm trying to confirm what will fit.

Are you trying to go as small as possible?

 

[iamgizzard]

I entertained micro-ATX briefly but it might limit my selection of components. But if you have a suggestion how I could fit everything in a micro-ATX form-factor, I'm all ears! Eventually, this Hackintosh will serve as a HTPC for Plex, connected to a NAS so a smallish form factor would be great. Thanks.

 

[chedda7]

The MoBo you posted is actually a mini-ITX size board. This is even smaller than a mATX, and I think it will still support everything you need. A nice budget mini-ITX case is the Silverstone SG13, but there are many many options.

Here is a spreadsheet with many of those options.

 

[iamgizzard]

Thanks for the suggestion. I did a bit of reading and you're right - it'll fit everything above and it's more compact than the Bitfenix Phenom case. Conveniently, Silverstone also sells PSUs that fit in the case…

 

[iamgizzard]

I just found out I can get a sweet deal on the 6700K. Is there a cooler that will fit inside the SG13 (less than 61mm)?