[SUCCESS] Gigabyte Designare Z390 (Thunderbolt 3) + i7-9700K + AMD RX 580

[phrfpeixoto]

I just updated to Catalina. It it safe to enable FileVault?

After the update to Catalina some apps are misbehaving. WhatsApp hangs and I had to reinstall Slack to get it working.
I also see my AppStore is not showing any images:

Anyone knows a fix for this?

 

[CaseySJ]

Oh really? That's strange. Couldn't really figure that out from the mini guide. I flashed bios (firmware) already, because that 5000+ bytes variable was 0x1... Do I need to change it back to the previous state?

Those are two different things, namely:

• Setting platform ID to headless mode.
• Unlocking MSR 0xE2 register

Item 1 is done automatically. But item 2 is optional and has to be done manually.

 

[phrfpeixoto]

After the update to Catalina some apps are misbehaving. WhatsApp hangs and I had to reinstall Slack to get it working.
I also see my AppStore is not showing any images:

<IMAGE>

Anyone knows a fix for this?

This solved my issue: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/8441124

 

[jackil182]

Please note:

• If you followed the Catalina Mini-Guide, then your system is already set up for Professional Apps. So nothing to do!
• See this spoiler in Post #1 for details on installing Windows and thus having a dual-boot system.

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View attachment 454330

I did check that section, however it doesn't really apply in my case, since I already have windows installed on SSD - I'm transferring in front another computer, and that spoiler is about fresh installation of windows.
Does it mean I can just insert the windows SSD into the nvme slot closest to the processor and it will work right away?
Another thing, I currently have Catalina SSD installed in that slot (closest to the processor). If I move it to a different slot, do I need to make any steps to get it to work as expected?

 

[CaseySJ]

I did check that section, however it doesn't really apply in my case, since I already have windows installed on SSD - I'm transferring in front another computer, and that spoiler is about fresh installation of windows.
Does it mean I can just insert the windows SSD into the nvme slot closest to the processor and it will work right away?
Another thing, I currently have Catalina SSD installed in that slot (closest to the processor). If I move it to a different slot, do I need to make any steps to get it to work as expected?

Just move the MacOS NVMe to M2P and install Windows NVMe into M2M. Then select boot order in BIOS — select macOS as first boot disk. You should be able to boot Windows from Clover Boot Menu if the Windows NVMe has an EFI partition with the Windows boot loader installed there.

 

[safehans]

Thanks again!

It indeed was USB-C devices blocked on Thunderbolt ports. I was able to test a USB 3 drive connected to Apple USB-C hub. The LG 4K USB-C monitor doesn't work with the cable it came with.

Will update more once I test a real thunderbolt device.

USB-C devices may not connect because most USB-C cables only support USB 2.0, which has been disabled intentionally. You can, however, connect USB-C devices with a Thunderbolt 3 cable. But best thing is, of course, to connect an actual Thunderbolt 3 device. Some USB-C monitors might not work.

 

[gazzmanzx6]

*** OpenCore 0.5.6 Experimental Setup for Designare Z390 ***
​

​

For anyone having trouble with the dreaded runtime allocation error I recommend updating OpenCore to 0.5.7.
I had a working system with 0.5.4 but 0.5.6 just gave constant boot errors.
The new version has added an extra Quirk that fixed the issue for me: ProtectUefiServices.

 

[CaseySJ]

For Digital Audio Pros and Semi-Pros:

YouTuber Jonathan Morrison released a video back on December 11 of the new 2019 Mac Pro being used in a professional recording studio. It was refreshing to see the computer in an actual work environment. A brilliant video.

Earlier this week Peter Paul Chato also released a video of an audio workstation, but of a more affordable but still powerful alternative to the Mac Pro. It's based on the Designare Z390 and parts of this build guide were used. It's again refreshing to see the Designare Z390 Hackintosh deployed in professional environments.

 

[trs96]

Earlier this week Peter Paul Chato also released a video of an audio workstation, but of a more affordable but still powerful alternative to the Mac Pro.

The TLDW for those making a Pro Audio build: The i9-9900K Designare system is still the best choice. A mega core AMD Ryzen system (16) isn't necessarily going to perform better for audio work.

 

[zipb]

** Thunderbolt Bus/Local Node Interim Update **​

@Elias64Fr has modified the native Thunderbolt firmware on the Designare Z390 -- similar to the DSM2 modified firmware for GC-Titan Ridge! Most of the core functionality is operational, but some final issues remain with XHC (USB) controller.

Preface:

• Initially we wanted to avoid flashing/modifying the Designare Z390 Thunderbolt firmware because:
  • The MXIC Flash ROM chip was proving very difficult / impossible to read and write reliably.
  • The procedure is more invasive and risky than simply installing a SSDT.
• However, after many weeks of effort, it seems that modifying the firmware may be the best option for the near term.
• There is just not enough publicly available information about Titan Ridge control registers (at this time) to create a fully operational SSDT.
• @Elias64Fr found a reliable way to read and write to the Designare Z390 SPI Flash ROM.

Good work, Elias64Fr and CaseySJ.
Flashing is involved. That's bad news. For flashing you need extra tools, it is a lot of work, it's risky and harder to undo.

I understand Apple does some TB stuff fundamentally different from Windows, and they will certainly not tell you how they do it. So that's what makes it difficult to make a proper SSDT? Intel and Gigabyte have information available, but that's not enough?

Copying parts of Apple ROM to a GA TB subsystem and see if it works sounds rather hit and miss. Can't this cause unforeseen and unwanted side-effects?

I'm not complaining or anything, I am admiring your perseverance, I'm just curious what info is freely available and what not.

If we really need to flash, I would rather get an extra TB card and flash that. If that is possible.