[Guide] Dell XPS 13 9360 on MacOS Sierra 10.12.x - LTS (Long-Term Support) Guide

[jkbuha]

Hey, had someone success with 8550u 16gb qhd+ for big sur installation?

Right on cue. Here's the optimised configuration for 8550U 16GB QHD+ with NVMe drives.

For additional optimisation, change these UEFI parameters - but note that you will need to fine-tune these to suit your own specific CPU variant, as well as your current cooling strategy.

Optimised Configuration for i7-8550u

DTS SMM Enabled 0x64C -> 0x01
TCC Activation offset 0x51D -> 0x10
Disable prochot output 0x519-> 0x01
Disable VR thermal alert 0x51a-> 0x01
Critical Trip Point 0x2b2 -> 0x77
Active Trip Point 0 (87C) 0x2AE -> 0x57
Active Trip Point 1 (71C) 0x2AD -> 0x47
Passive Trip Point (103) 0x2B1 -> 0x67

Package power limit unlock 0x4CB -> 0x00
Long Term Power Limit Override 0x4B6 -> 0x01
Long Term Power Limit - 0x4B2/3/4/5  -> 0xFF
Long Term Time Window 0x4B7 -> 0x80
VR Current value lock 0x5f9/B/D/F  -> 0xFF
Config TDP lock 0x4E0 -> 0x01
CTDP Bios Conrol 0x4E1 -> 0x01
Turbo Performance Boot 0x4AE -> 0x02
Configurable TDP Level : TDP UP 0x4df -> 0x02

Please report back with performance scores.

Enjoy

 

[sps999]

Thank you I never used oc before. Now I copied it to my efi folder and got this errors

 

[jkbuha]

Ok, so you should have probably read the most recent 2-3 pages on this topic

1) I've switched from CLOVER to OC as it's easier to manage
2) To do that you need to delete any CLOVER kexts in S/L/E and L/E and then choose Reset NVRAM option in boot menu
3) You might also need to change the configuration slightly (kexts, ACPI) to suit your own setup

 

[sps999]

i already saw the postings couple days ago

to 2) i never used kexts for Clover in S/L/E or L/E i just put my kexts only in clover/kexts/other. i have no access to the boot menu to do a nvram reset, i instantly get the error message if i choose your oc efi.

3) our config should be pretty similar i think, but i will look again.

 

[Zarkstar]

Hi @jkbuha as I see you have way more experience on hackintoshing than me, maybe you know how to address my issue. I'm trying to install Big Sur from scratch on my XPS13 (although mine is the kebylake model with an i7 7560U). I've followed the guide on dortania and I'm now able to get to the Welcome screen where you can select the region, but after a few seconds everything freezes and I have to force shutdown the laptop. Weird thing is that in the first 30 seconds or so everything works just fine. DummyPowerManagement under Kernel->Emulate, CpuTscSync.kext and TSCAdjustReset.kext didn't do the trick unfortunately. Any idea what the problem could be or where the KP log may be saved?
Thanks for the help

 

[jkbuha]

Hi @jkbuha as I see you have way more experience on hackintoshing than me, maybe you know how to address my issue. I'm trying to install Big Sur from scratch on my XPS13 (although mine is the kebylake model with an i7 7560U). I've followed the guide on dortania and I'm now able to get to the Welcome screen where you can select the region, but after a few seconds everything freezes and I have to force shutdown the laptop. Weird thing is that in the first 30 seconds or so everything works just fine. DummyPowerManagement under Kernel->Emulate, CpuTscSync.kext and TSCAdjustReset.kext didn't do the trick unfortunately. Any idea what the problem could be or where the KP log may be saved?
Thanks for the help

Never seen this on Big Sur. Boot to recovery, see if you get the same freeze. If you're good, try and repair the disk.

If symptoms still persist, you've probably got the wrong CPUFriend setup. Remove it (or try using my setup a few posts back without cpufriend) and see if you get any different results.

 

[egore]

Right on cue. Here's the optimised configuration for 8550U 16GB QHD+ with NVMe drives.

For additional optimisation, change these UEFI parameters - but note that you will need to fine-tune these to suit your own specific CPU variant, as well as your current cooling strategy.

Optimised Configuration for i7-8550u

DTS SMM Enabled 0x64C -> 0x01
TCC Activation offset 0x51D -> 0x10
Disable prochot output 0x519-> 0x01
Disable VR thermal alert 0x51a-> 0x01
Critical Trip Point 0x2b2 -> 0x77
Active Trip Point 0 (87C) 0x2AE -> 0x57
Active Trip Point 1 (71C) 0x2AD -> 0x47
Passive Trip Point (103) 0x2B1 -> 0x67

Package power limit unlock 0x4CB -> 0x00
Long Term Power Limit Override 0x4B6 -> 0x01
Long Term Power Limit - 0x4B2/3/4/5  -> 0xFF
Long Term Time Window 0x4B7 -> 0x80
VR Current value lock 0x5f9/B/D/F  -> 0xFF
Config TDP lock 0x4E0 -> 0x01
CTDP Bios Conrol 0x4E1 -> 0x01
Turbo Performance Boot 0x4AE -> 0x02
Configurable TDP Level : TDP UP 0x4df -> 0x02

Please report back with performance scores.

Enjoy

This all looks amazing! Only thing I immediately see is via IPG, Core Min frequency does not reach 0.7 as it did before:

 

[egore]

...and GB Scores:

My original config:

 

[jkbuha]

This all looks amazing! Only thing I immediately see is via IPG, Core Min does not reach 0.7 as it did before:

View attachment 497731

Yes, that's an intended design. I configured the min clock speed to be to 1200 instead of 700. Slightly higher battery consumption but better performance.

If you prefer a lower CPU floor, you can easily re-configure it using one-key-cpufriend.

Also sidenote, I've been experimenting with MBP16,3 but have had issues with patching the GPU framebuffer (as the card is an Iris 645). Hopefully will find a working combination soon and post an update...

 

[egore]

...then with your config: