- Joined
- Apr 4, 2017
- Messages
- 38
- Motherboard
- GA-Z170X-Gaming 7
- CPU
- i7 6700k
- Graphics
- EVGA GTX 1080 FTW
I'm planning to create the ultimate hackintosh for music recording and performance. My audio setup is absurdly CPU intensive, and instead of reducing the awesomeness of my setup I've decided to just create an equally absurd computer.
But it's more complicated than that. I'm immobilized by conflicting requirements:
1) silent or near-silent operation (for when I'm recording tracks)
2) small/portable so I can gig with it (mini-ITX)
3) extreme CPU and RAM capacity because Ableton sucks
4) visually pleasing case design so I can have it on stage with me
The things that don't matter to me:
1) GPU (If I can fit a GTX 960 that'd be nice, but it may not even be worth the heat and noise)
2) Cost (I'm planning to invest some $$ to solve this problem since it's impacting my career)
So, here are my questions as of now:
a) What's the absolute fastest CPU I can use? Can I use a 6 core Xeon or i7 processor or are those not mac-ready?
b) What mini-ITX motherboard could I use to run one of those processors?
c) Is it possible to run one of these processors in a fanless case?
I'm obsessed with Streacom cases. Their aesthetic is awesome. Super apple. Very stage-friendly. Very silent. So they meet my 1st, 2nd and 4th requirements. But the Streacom FC9 case (for example) is rated for a maximum TDP of 95W (and they only recommend 65W). I'm pretty sure the i7 6700k is rated for ~90 TDP (if I don't overclock at all...) so I'm scared.
If fanless cases are out of the question with 6-core processors (that's my fear, but I'm hoping you'll tell me it's possible), then I guess I'll have to either sacrifice on processing power and build a Streacom rig with a 6700k CPU (which is sad... so really that's not a good option) or sacrifice the requirement for absolute silence and go with the quietest liquid cooler I can find. Maybe I could still put that liquid-cooled Xeon inside of a Streacom case somehow? Then I could still meet my 2nd and 4th requirements and get as close as possible to that 1st requirement.
So, d) what's the absolute quietest liquid cooler I can fit in a tiny case?
I am grateful in advance for your sage advice!
But it's more complicated than that. I'm immobilized by conflicting requirements:
1) silent or near-silent operation (for when I'm recording tracks)
2) small/portable so I can gig with it (mini-ITX)
3) extreme CPU and RAM capacity because Ableton sucks
4) visually pleasing case design so I can have it on stage with me
The things that don't matter to me:
1) GPU (If I can fit a GTX 960 that'd be nice, but it may not even be worth the heat and noise)
2) Cost (I'm planning to invest some $$ to solve this problem since it's impacting my career)
So, here are my questions as of now:
a) What's the absolute fastest CPU I can use? Can I use a 6 core Xeon or i7 processor or are those not mac-ready?
b) What mini-ITX motherboard could I use to run one of those processors?
c) Is it possible to run one of these processors in a fanless case?
I'm obsessed with Streacom cases. Their aesthetic is awesome. Super apple. Very stage-friendly. Very silent. So they meet my 1st, 2nd and 4th requirements. But the Streacom FC9 case (for example) is rated for a maximum TDP of 95W (and they only recommend 65W). I'm pretty sure the i7 6700k is rated for ~90 TDP (if I don't overclock at all...) so I'm scared.
If fanless cases are out of the question with 6-core processors (that's my fear, but I'm hoping you'll tell me it's possible), then I guess I'll have to either sacrifice on processing power and build a Streacom rig with a 6700k CPU (which is sad... so really that's not a good option) or sacrifice the requirement for absolute silence and go with the quietest liquid cooler I can find. Maybe I could still put that liquid-cooled Xeon inside of a Streacom case somehow? Then I could still meet my 2nd and 4th requirements and get as close as possible to that 1st requirement.
So, d) what's the absolute quietest liquid cooler I can fit in a tiny case?
I am grateful in advance for your sage advice!
Last edited: