Highest compatible OS version?

[kthxbainao]

Hi everyone!

Would anyone know what the highest compatible OS would be for my setup?

Currently running an older hackintosh (but it still works perfectly) on High Sierra 10.13.4.
Unfortunately a lot of newer software is not compatible anymore, even Chrome is telling me to update my OS.

System specs:
Intel Core i7-5930K
GA-X99-UD5
GTX 980
64 GB RAM

Tried to search for a similar question but could't find any current answers.
Thanks!

 

[Feartech]

Hi everyone!

Would anyone know what the highest compatible OS would be for my setup?

Currently running an older hackintosh (but it still works perfectly) on High Sierra 10.13.4.
Unfortunately a lot of newer software is not compatible anymore, even Chrome is telling me to update my OS.

System specs:
Intel Core i7-5930K
GA-X99-UD5
GTX 980
64 GB RAM

Tried to search for a similar question but could't find any current answers.
Thanks!

High Sierra due to your Nvidia card

 

[trs96]

Would anyone know what the highest compatible OS would be for my setup?

Spend a mere $40 on a new RX 560 and all macOS versions from Mojave to Sonoma are an option.

NEW HP AMD Radeon RX 560 2GB GPU VRAM Graphics Card PC Gaming | eBay

HP AMD RX 560 2GB Graphics Card. AMD RX 560. Always online!

www.ebay.com

You can also run dual monitors off of it if need be. DP and HDMI outputs.

 

[kthxbainao]

High Sierra due to your Nvidia card

Ah, that seems to be the case then. Thanks for your reply!

Spend a mere $40 on a new RX 560 and all macOS versions from Mojave to Sonoma are an option.

NEW HP AMD Radeon RX 560 2GB GPU VRAM Graphics Card PC Gaming | eBay

HP AMD RX 560 2GB Graphics Card. AMD RX 560. Always online!

www.ebay.com

You can also run dual monitors off of it if need be. DP and HDMI outputs.

View attachment 574506

Oh that sounds great! Would you know if there's anything a little beefier that would outperform the GTX 980 and would fit the rest of the build? I'd be willing to spend about $200ish.

 

[trs96]

Would you know is there's something a little beefier that would outperform the GTX 980 and would fit the rest of the build? I'd be willing to spend about $150-200ish.

Read my AMD GPU guide and pick from that list. Some newer cards like the RX 6600 require Monterey or newer macOS versions.

Buying a Dedicated GPU for your Monterey, Ventura or Sonoma Hackintosh

AMD Graphics For Your Hackintosh If your Intel CPU's iGPU is not supported by the macOS version you want to install or you just need stronger graphics, an AMD GPU is the way to go. All 11th, 12th and 13th Gen Intel based hackintosh builds need a dedicated GPU. AMD Ryzen CPU based builds will...

www.tonymacx86.com

 

[kthxbainao]

Read my AMD GPU guide and pick from that list. Some newer cards like the RX 6600 require Monterey or newer macOS versions.

Buying a Dedicated GPU for your Monterey, Ventura or Sonoma Hackintosh

AMD Graphics For Your Hackintosh If your Intel CPU's iGPU is not supported by the macOS version you want to install or you just need stronger graphics, an AMD GPU is the way to go. All 11th, 12th and 13th Gen Intel based hackintosh builds need a dedicated GPU. AMD Ryzen CPU based builds will...

www.tonymacx86.com

Thank you for the detailed reply, really very helpful! Thank you.
I found a pretty good deal locally on a Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600.

It's been a while since I built this machine, I have no idea how to update it with a new GPU.
Would I be able to pop it in and use it?
Or should I use OpenCore to create a USB installer on a different Mac and just overwrite the EFI on the current drive?
Apologies for the uninformed questions, it's been like 7-8 years since I built this machine.

 

[trs96]

Or should I use OpenCore to create a USB installer on a different Mac

This would be the best way to proceed. The RX6600 has native support so you just need the required agdpmod boot-arg and it should work.

 

[Edhawk]

Caveate to @trs96 post above.

The RX 6600 has native support in macOS Monterey 12.1 and newer. So you would need to install macOS 12.1 or newer before the RX 6600 would run with full acceleration.

Using a RX 5700 XT is supported in macOS Catalina.
Using a Vega 56 or Vega 64 would be supported in High Sierra.
Using a RX 580 is supported in macOS Sierra.

Your Nvidia GTX 980's relative performance would be as follows:
2% better than a RX 580,
37% less than a Vega 56,
50% less than a Vega 64,
65% less than a RX 6600 and
72% less than the RX 5700 XT.

See this TechPowerUp spec page for your GTX 980. These comparisons are visible in the Relative Performance box.

https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/geforce-gtx-980.c2621

This means you could install a RX 580 8GB dGPU, that you purchased secondhand, and not really notice the difference from your GTX 980. Anything newer would be significantly better than your GTX 980.

You will currently be using the Nvidia Web Drivers (NWDs) with your GTX 980 in High Sierra. The NWDs don't work in Mojave or newer. Hence the lack of support for your Nvidia dGPU in anything newer than High Sierra. When swapping your Nvidia dGPU for an AMD dGPU you would need to uninstall the NWDs and remove any Nvidia specific Boot Arguments from your setup.

Kext wise all you will need is a recent version of Lilu.kext and WhateverGreen.kext for these AMD dGPU's to work.

The Polaris (RX 580) and Vega 10 (Vega 56/64) cards don't require any additional kexts, patches or boot arguments to work in macOS.

The Navi I (RX 5700 XT) and Navi II (RX 6600) require the agdpmod=pikera boot argument to run macOS.