[Guide] HP 6300 Pro / HP 8300 Elite - A 100 percent Working and Easily Affordable CustoMac

[taskrov]

Updated HP 8300 Elite SFF with Nvidia Gt 1030 from 10.13.3 to 10.13.4 using Combo pkg. I first installed the latest Clover UEFI. The update went normally. Nvidia driver update prompt came up after the reboot as expected. Everything seems back to normal. The SSD was not converted to APFS, as I thought it might.

 

[Lonelytanker]

Yup, after doing a bit of research on this, I came to the same conclusion. Thanks.

The good news is that I have a Mid-2010 Mac Pro (5,1), which I also just upgraded to High Sierra. I popped in that cheap RX 560 that I bought for my CustomMac (HP 8300 SFF) and it too worked like a charm under High Sierra with the Mac Pro 5,1. So if anyone has a Mac Pro 5,1 that's a bit long in the tooth, and they want 4k, that card is cheap and works great.

Yes, with that card I have the same issue on my Mac Pro with there only being one DisplayPort output and thus, the second monitor is HDMI @ 30hz only and has non-accurate color, but the main monitor is 4k @ 60Hz with my Mid-2010 Mac Pro 5,1. It really feels like a new computer.

I plan on getting a Sapphire Pulse RX580 for my ground up hackintosh, and while decide on which parts to get, I can order the RX580 card first and place it into my Mid-2010 Mac Pro 5,1 for dual DisplayPort glory. Just ordered a Mac Pro Dual 6 pin to 8 pin power cable as well as this will be needed, and that will buy me some time to keep this Mac Pro going with the dual 4k displays while I create my replacement hackintosh. All great info, and I really would not have known all of this stuff without first dipping my toe into the hackintosh world with your HP 8300 guide, @trs96 so thanks again.

I bought an MSI Nvidia GTX 950 with 3 DP outputs back in 2016.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127904
That exact card probably isn't what you'd want to buy now, but I can confirm that if you have multiple DP outputs that you should be able to drive multiple 4K displays.

 

[Trunyce]

Putting a Sandy Bridge CPU in a motherboard designed for Ivy Bridge should not be a problem at all. The only difference is that the PCI-e 3.0 slot will operate in PCI-e 2.0 mode because Sandy Bridge CPUs do not support PCI-e 3.0. This might tricky though, considering it's an HP.

For wifi, I use a TP Link Archer T4U. It requires a driver install, but is really fast and works great.

Thanks for your input and I guess I'll have to cough out $60 for a i5 3475 chip instead.

 

[Trunyce]

Hidy-ho. Sleep problem with my 8300 CMT/HD4000/High Sierra rig.
Running Bios 3.06 and a recently 2018-001 Security updated High Sierra.
I have been seeing three behaviors:
1) If I manually put to sleep and wake in a couple of minutes - no problem
2) If I let it go to sleep and then wake in 4 hours, I get the slashed-circle "ghostbusters" sign in the middle of the screen, which I believe comes from Clover. The system needs to be power cycled to reboot.
3) If I let it go to sleep and try to wake it after 8+ hours, the system is completely powered-off and reboots fine.

Anyone have any troubleshooting advice?

Maybe it's just me but before on some of my hacks running sierra 10.12.6 I always hide those security updates because I realize they always break something. I just don't boher with them anymore.

 

[trs96]

Barebones HP 6300 Pro SFF Case
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If you have bought a low cost refurb 6300/8300 by HP and the case was in poor condition, chips, dents and scratches, you can still move your system into a chassis in much better condition. There is an Ebay seller called Micomp who will ship one to you for $20. The case is exactly the same as the 8300 Elite SFF. So you can move your 6300 or 8300 system into one of these and everything will fit and connect up. It's worth considering this upgrade if you like the HP SFF form factor and plan to keep it longer term.

HP 6300 Pro SFF case at Ebay

Here's an example of how you could build your own i7 Customac. Buy the Barebones 6300 SFF case, mobo and PSU. (You can also buy a refurb HP 8300 SFF motherboard) Then install your i7-3770 that you can get used for around $110 on Ebay. Don't forget the HP heatsink and front case fan and shroud. If you already have your own DDR3 1600 MHz ram kit and an SSD you've got a very nice system for around $200 USD.

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You will need to be in the lower 48 US states to get one of these from this seller. They will include the motherboard and/or PSU for more money if you want to build a system from parts. The seller rates these as in Excellent condition.

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[BenTheJeepGuy]

I need some help on my 8300. It randomly stopped booting today. I was using it fine and then I noticed as I typed that the my inputs to type were lagging behind. I restarted the computer hoping that would clear it up. It did not. I set the machine to fast boot in the beginning so it got to the light gray screen with the dark gray logo and just sat there most of the day. I tried shutting it off and turning it back on again and then it went into a boot loop where it would get to that same screen and then restart. I tried plugging in my bootable drive to get to clover to check the verbose and things seemed normal. I have attached a picture of the verbose and the screen when it is first booting. I tried reloading from a time machine back up and still no luck. I also tried starting in safe mode and I get the circle with the slash in it. Can this be solved without reloading the OS?

 

[mrkk]

I was able to buy hp 8300 sff from ebay, buy a 3 tb hdd for WD and install high sierra

Not worked on wifi or audio or gpu - I ll buy the usb adapter, they seem to be cheap

Will GT 720 work the same as 710?

 

[trs96]

I was able to buy hp 8300 sff from ebay, buy a 3 tb hdd for WD and install high sierra

Not worked on wifi or audio or gpu - I ll buy the usb adapter, they seem to be cheap

Will GT 720 work the same as 710?

HD4000 graphics work if you follow the guide. Use Displayport output. If your monitor only has HDMI use a DP to HDMI adapter. Audio will work if you use VoodooHDA kext 2.9.0 as per the guide. Wifi requires a USB dongle or an adpater card in the PCI-e x1 slot. The 710 is OOB the 720 isn't. Try installing the web drivers if you have a 720. HD4000 is the easiest option to get working.

 

[phrozenpenguin]

Has anyone been able to successfully test the card reader usb hub (header? am I using the right word?) on the 8300 usdt motherboard for use as a connection for one of the wifi adapters on ebay that has the Bluetooth connection?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-PCI-E-...113143&hash=item3a9e133e52:g:m4EAAOSwj0NUkUdJ

OR: What's the best way / current recommendation to get native wifi/Bluetooth / continuity/handoff on 8300 usdt specifically?

Yes I have a USDT and that adaptor and the USB works fine for bluetooth.

 

[jzheng]

Yes I have a USDT and that adaptor and the USB works fine for bluetooth.

Any suggestion on where to find the tiny screws to fasten the card to the motherboard?