[Upgrade Advice] GA-Z77N- Wifi Mini ITX i5-3570k existing build

[Milesree]

Dear Tonymacx forums

My hackintosh has lasted over 4 years now and is every bit I've hoped it to be. I am now looking for some advice over my planned upgrade to my existing build. I based my initial build off of Bittermelon's chip build using the same mobo and bitfenix case http://www.tonymacx86.com/golden-bu...ip-build-ga-z77n-wifi-i5-3570k-hd-6870-a.html.

The full build is:
Bitfenix Prodigy case
GA-Z77N-Wifi Mini ITX mobo
CPU i5-3570k @ 3.4Ghz
GPU GeForce GTX 670
RAM 8Gb (2 x 4 Gb)
Mac OS 10.8 (Mountain Lion) with dual boot to Windows 7 on separate HDD.

I am looking for hardware upgrade advice which I am intending to do alongside an OS upgrade to El Capitan.

I know you can interchange RAM without much problem, but can I upgrade my CPU to i7 and my GeForce card to a faster model without too much trouble on my existing mini-itx motherboard?

I believe the GA-Z77N supports i7 but I am not sure (whilst reading on the forums) if replacing CPU and GPU requires a re-install of the hackintosh software or you can just smack 'em on no problems

Please let me know your thoughts, much appreciated!

 

[nobodynose]

Dear Tonymacx forums

My hackintosh has lasted over 4 years now and is every bit I've hoped it to be. I am now looking for some advice over my planned upgrade to my existing build. I based my initial build off of Bittermelon's chip build using the same mobo and bitfenix case http://www.tonymacx86.com/golden-bu...ip-build-ga-z77n-wifi-i5-3570k-hd-6870-a.html.

The full build is:
Bitfenix Prodigy case
GA-Z77N-Wifi Mini ITX mobo
CPU i5-3570k @ 3.4Ghz
GPU GeForce GTX 670
RAM 8Gb (2 x 4 Gb)
Mac OS 10.8 (Mountain Lion) with dual boot to Windows 7 on separate HDD.

I am looking for hardware upgrade advice which I am intending to do alongside an OS upgrade to El Capitan.

I know you can interchange RAM without much problem, but can I upgrade my CPU to i7 and my GeForce card to a faster model without too much trouble on my existing mini-itx motherboard?

I believe the GA-Z77N supports i7 but I am not sure (whilst reading on the forums) if replacing CPU and GPU requires a re-install of the hackintosh software or you can just smack 'em on no problems

Please let me know your thoughts, much appreciated!

I switched a couple years ago from an i3 to an i5 without much problem in my old GA-Z68MA-D2H-USB system, so I don't expect going from an i5 to an i7 to be much of an issue either. Upgrading your GeForce card to a newer model may require you to install the Nvidia drivers, depending on what you choose. That's a little bit more of a hassle, but fairly straightforward.

The only other major upgrade I can think of is to switch to an SSD if you're running off an HDD, but I suspect you've done that already.

 

[Milesree]

I switched a couple years ago from an i3 to an i5 without much problem in my old GA-Z68MA-D2H-USB system, so I don't expect going from an i5 to an i7 to be much of an issue either. Upgrading your GeForce card to a newer model may require you to install the Nvidia drivers, depending on what you choose. That's a little bit more of a hassle, but fairly straightforward.

The only other major upgrade I can think of is to switch to an SSD if you're running off an HDD, but I suspect you've done that already.

Hi nobodynose

Thanks for your reply. That's certainly comforting that you were able to jump from i3 to i5 on the same mobo without a hitch. I think I might just have to take the plunge and find out! I realise that with newer cards you may need to install Nvidia drivers from the web which I think is correct?

I haven't yet made the switch from HDD to SSD actually. Any advice on a potential move like that? I'd imagine it would involve a fresh install.

 

[nobodynose]

Hi nobodynose

Thanks for your reply. That's certainly comforting that you were able to jump from i3 to i5 on the same mobo without a hitch. I think I might just have to take the plunge and find out! I realise that with newer cards you may need to install Nvidia drivers from the web which I think is correct?

Yes, that's correct - to get any of the Maxwell-based cards to work you must install the Nvidia web drivers. It kinda sucks because you have to wait for them to be updated before doing any OS updates, but that usually happens within a day or two.

I haven't yet made the switch from HDD to SSD actually. Any advice on a potential move like that? I'd imagine it would involve a fresh install.

Not necessarily - it depends on your current setup and what you intend to do. If you have Mac OS X and Windows on separate drives, that makes it quite a bit more straightforward. There's lots and lots of advice on setting up dual-boot systems here on the forums. If you decide to upgrade from HDD to SSD, do yourself a favor and pick up a license for CCC (Carbon Copy Cloner) - it's well worth the $40 ($30 educational discount pricing if you have a .edu email address). Not trying to sound like a commercial, I just think it's a great product, and it has saved my bacon more than once!

 

[Milesree]

Not necessarily - it depends on your current setup and what you intend to do. If you have Mac OS X and Windows on separate drives, that makes it quite a bit more straightforward. There's lots and lots of advice on setting up dual-boot systems here on the forums. If you decide to upgrade from HDD to SSD, do yourself a favor and pick up a license for CCC (Carbon Copy Cloner) - it's well worth the $40 ($30 educational discount pricing if you have a .edu email address). Not trying to sound like a commercial, I just think it's a great product, and it has saved my bacon more than once!

Thanks! Good advice I will have to consider when I am looking for the upgrades but it may be that it's time to attempt a second build with a fresher install sometime in the near future