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UtterDisbelief 17 - Z490i Aorus Ultra - i5-10600K - 32GB - GT710 & RX560

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UtterDisbelief

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Feb 13, 2012
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9,587
Motherboard
Gigabyte B760 Gaming X AX
CPU
i5-14600K
Graphics
RX 560
Mac
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  2. Mac mini
Classic Mac
  1. eMac
  2. iBook
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UtterDisbelief's Z490 ITX Comet Lake Build

case1.jpg case2.jpg

Components:

Gigabyte Z490i Aorus Ultra Motherboard Intel LGA1200

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B087DD82HT/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813145188

Intel Core i5-10600k 4.1GHz Comet Lake Processor
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0883NTLXM/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16819118124

MSI GT710 2GB GDDR3 Graphics Card
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AY78MLM/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16814127933

CORSAIR Vengeance LP 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3000 Memory
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07B2Y6H1M/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16820236346

Crucial MX500 250GB SATA SSD
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0764WCXCV/?tag=tonymacx86-21

CORSAIR CX500M 500W 80-PLUS BRONZE Semi Modular PSU
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16817139050

NZXT H210 Mini-ITX Gaming case
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07SDB15JS/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16811146310

UpHere CPU Fan Cooler 5 Direct Contact Heat Pipes 120mm PWM Fan
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08MX66LDQ/?tag=tonymacx86-21

Noctua NF-P12 redux 1300RPM PWM 120mm Fan 4-Pin
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07CG2PGVG/?tag=tonymacx86-21
https://www.newegg.com/p/1YF-000T-000K2

ARCTIC P12 PWM - 120 mm Case Fan with PWM
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07GB6SJHW/?tag=tonymacx86-21

1 Port SATA to eSATA Slot Plate Bracket - similar to:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000GX4C7I/?tag=tonymacx86-21


Already Owned

Apple Magic Mouse 1
- No longer available new but …
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B016MUCHTS/?tag=tonymacx86-21

Apple Wired USB Keyboard - No longer available new

Acer 24” HD Monitor - No longer available new

Hitachi 500GB SATA 2.5” Hard-Disk - No longer available. BYO.



Comments

This is a hybrid new build aiming to be more powerful, but also more compatible with macOS than my previous B560 i3 build, using this time a 400-series Intel motherboard and an i5 Comet Lake CPU.

Because there are still no AMD GPUs available at reasonable prices, we used a natively compatible NVidia card instead as we did before, this time from MSI.

As you can see from the parts-list above a few of the components were salvaged from the B560 PC.


Installation

Sections below are repeated from the previous build to save you swapping between, but added-to or changed to match the new components where necessary.

OpenCore 0.6.8 is the bootloader used for this build.

Partition and format a 16GB or 32GB USB memory stick with the GUID scheme and HFS+ file system:

du1.jpg


With the Big Sur installation package in your Applications folder run the following Terminal command to create a USB installer stick:

Code:
sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/USB /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app --nointeraction


Once done you need to mount the hidden EFI partition on the USB stick using EFI Mounter v3.1 from our Downloads section. To make sure you are mounting the correct partition, check with Disk Utility. In this example the disk has the identifier of disk3 so the EFI partition we want to mount is disk3s1 and you will see this in the EFI Mounter selection window:

du2.jpg


du3.jpg


The EFI partition will probably already contain an Apple folder, ignore it, and either copy the EFI I have attached to this post into it or add your own.

BIOS settings:

1. To access Setup, press and hold Delete on a USB Keyboard while the system boots. At the BIOS screen Press F2 to toggle Advanced mode. Then -
2. Settings / Internal Graphics = Auto
3. Settings / Above 4G Decoding = Enabled
4. Settings / USB Configuration / XHCI Hand-off = enabled
5. Tweaker / Advanced CPU Settings / VT-d = disabled
6. Boot / CSM Support = Disabled
7. Boot / Secure Boot Mode = Disabled
8. Save and exit.

Now on reboot, by pressing the BIOS boot selector key (F12) when the Aorus splash screen comes up, you can choose and boot the installer. Select your destination drive and let it run its course.

Post Installation

The work has already been done in the EFI I have uploaded but I’ll run through what’s there so you know a little more if you wish to create your own.

ACPI:
SSDT-AWAC.aml - needed to boot reliably
SSDT-EC-USBX.aml - dummy embedded controller with power
SSDT-PLUG.aml - CPU power management

Kexts:
IntelMausi.kext - LAN Ethernet support
itlwm.kext - Intel Wireless support **
Lilu.kext - Vital plug-in manager
Whatevergreen.kext - Graphics plug-in for Lilu.
SMCProcessor.kext
SMCSuperIO.kext
USBPorts.kext - USB port configuration file
VirtualSMC.kext
AppleALC.kext - Audio chipset activation
FakePCIID/FakePCIID_Intel_i225-V kexts - To enable the onboard Ethernet 2.5GbE ***
IntelBluetoothFirmware/Injector kexts - To enable the AX201 Bluetooth

** To make the itlwm.kext work with your wireless network you need to manually add in the SSID name and password you wish to log on to. Highlight the kext, right-click on it and “Show Package Contents”. Edit the Info.plist with a plain text editor. Search for “WiFi_1” and overwrite the placeholders with your password and SSID. Save and exit the kext. There is an app available from the developer called Heliport which handles the connection if you would rather use that.

*** For Big Sur 11.4+ there is apparently now limited support for the Intel i225-V, but this depends on which "revision" it is 02 or 03. Revision 03 seems to be native now so you would not need the two kexts or the Device Properties I've included in the config.plist. This is new information and I haven't double-checked it yet.

A Few notes about USB

The Z490 has 14x USB ports of which 10x can be USB3. The included USBPorts.kext configures them down to 15.

There are two Type-C USB ports, one via a the new-style front-panel header, the other on the back panel. If you use the same case you won't need an adapter cable for the header because one is included in the case. These ports are “switchable” ones.

The LED RGB connector takes up USB port HS13.

The Bluetooth wireless uses port HS14.

Here is the result of the USBPorts.kext included in the EFI folder:

XHCI1.jpg


What Works:
Audio - Line out
Ethernet(Catalina onwards).
WiFi & BT
Sleep/Wake

What Doesn’t Work:
Continuity and Handoff

BS1.jpg


The serial-numbers in the attached EFI folder are dummies. Please generate and use your own unique ones.


Edit: 22nd June 2021 - to add Intel i225-V updates at *** above.

Edit: 17th Aug 2021 - New EFI folder added for Big Sur 11.5.2 - see post #7.

:)
 

Attachments

  • EFI-Z490-BS.zip
    50 MB · Views: 430
  • EFI-BS1152.zip
    50.2 MB · Views: 365
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I like the NZXT case. I bought a similar mATX case painted white and it's a nice change from all the blackout cases we see nowadays. I know that the ATX versions of the NZXT case are always in the Amazon top 3 best sellers. One question I have is why choose the 2017 iMac SMBIOS when it's tenth gen hardware ? Also how well does the cpu cooler do when not using the Noctua heatsink with a Noctua fan ?

If your username was Halley you could have called UD #17 "Halley's Comet Lake Build."
 
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I like the NZXT case. I bought a similar mATX case painted white and it's a nice change from all the blackout cases we see nowadays. I know that the ATX versions of the NZXT case are always in the Amazon top 3 best sellers. One question I have is why choose the 2017 iMac SMBIOS when it's tenth gen hardware ? Also how well does the cpu cooler do when not using the Noctua heatsink with a Noctua fan ?

If your username was Halley you could have called UD #17 Halley's Comet Lake Build.

Thanks. I agree. The white makes a positive change over all the dark cases. Because of where I have to have my desk these days a lighter case is more inconspicuous than a large, black box. The NZXT was a surprise for me as I hadn't expected it to be such good quality. And the accessories too. I prefer it to the previous silver Metallic Gear case as well.

I use iMac18,3 because it's a bit like iMac14,2 was for reliability and compatibility, but also has Big Sur support. I have SSDs with High Sierra, Mojave and Catalina running too and it supports them all. When suggesting a build I want people to have as little stress as possible. If they want to venture up to iMac19,1 or iMac20,2 I'll leave them to experiment!

The UpHere CPU cooler was a gamble but I wanted the 5x heatpipe array, and it was at a reasonable cost. I've never used the included UpHere fan and have only used the Noctua, for reasons we've talked about before. The quiet, reliable quality Noctua brings. The straight-through airflow makes for a very cool PC.

Ha! Indeed. I like the astronomical link! Hopefully the build isn't a portent of doom as Halley's Comet seems to have been.

:lol:
 
I like the astronomical link! Hopefully the build isn't a portent of doom as Halley's Comet seems to have been.
Well, I remember 1986 like it was yesterday. The Space shuttle blew up in mid flight, Chernobyl had a major meltdown. It was the height of the AIDS pandemic. Not too many years later the Soviet Union fell. Could all be Halley's related if you believe in stuff like that. The next pass by Earth is at least 40 years off. We should be safe for a while.
 
Update 1

Finally, I let the update to Big Sur 11.4 happen. Been holding off and checking reported problems by others before committing.

However, no problems at all. Importantly there are no issues with USB and all looks as it should in System Report.

Ethernet LAN i225-V is now native to 11.4 (at least version 2 of the chip is. Reports elsewhere are that version 3 is not). The motherboard LAN is identified and working as it should. Ethernet at "en0", BlueTooth at "en1" & Wireless at "en2".

Upgraded the GPU to an AMD RX 560 Dell OEM card. The only RX card I could find at an affordable price. Support for the GT710 seems to be being dropped by Apple. Although it works fine in most situations, there are problems with the Preview and Photos apps with artefacts in rendered images. No crashes or other problems. The RX 560 is perfect.


BS-114-J.jpg


RX560.jpg

:)
 
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Update 2

Big Sur 11.5 point upgrade.

BS-115.jpg

The upgrade itself went smoothly. As usual keep an eye open for reboots and ensure you choose the correct drive from the OpenCore menu. If you are using my included OpenCanopy setup then for the first couple you will see 2x of your main drives in the menu. Always choose the left-most one until it disappears. Once completed remember to ResetNVRAM from the OpenCanopy menu. (Press the SpaceBar and move cursor to far right).

I decided to double-check DRM video playback with the new GPU in place as the Whatevergreen online Manual states some older DRM schemes are being deprecated. Indeed a Terminal command was required to restore it:

Code:
defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA gvaForceAMDKE -boolean yes

Unrelated to this upgrade, finding my old, purchased music-videos in the new Music app turned-out to be very difficult as they don't show in my Purchase history any more. Luckily I have a local back-up of them. If anyone knows where they might have gone I'd be pleased to learn. Have they moved to AppleTV+ by any chance?

Finally, there continue to be no USB issues with this build. I still firmly recommend @headkaze 's Hackintool and USBPorts.kext method for configuration. It hasn't failed yet.

BS115-USB.png

Note: This build still uses OpenCore 0.6.8 and a system-definition of iMac18,3. I understand many will want to race to the bleeding-edge and update everything, but at present there is no need unless you really want to.


P.S - I was slow with update Big Sur 11.5 so hot on its heels came Big Sur 11.5.1 too and the process was identical with the same results. No issues:

BS1151.jpg


:)
 
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Update 3

Point upgrade to Big Sur 11.5.2. Took a little longer than previously with four reboots in total.

Remember to always select the left-most Macintosh HD icon in the OpenCore menu (or whatever your boot drive is called, which should be the default anyway) until the update is complete and you have only the one icon.

One issue with this particular build as follows:

1) No Audio except through HDMI.

Fix:

1)
Update the core kexts to -
Lilu 1.5.5
Whatevergreen 1.5.2
AppleALC 1.6.3
VirtualSMC 1.2.6

ResetNVRAM and Reboot.

A new EFI Zip has been added to post #1 for this update.


Bug Sur update issues NOT specific to this build in particular -

2) Keyboard mapping defaults to English US.
3) QuickTime Screen-Recording bug introduced with the DRM fix in post #6 above.


Fix:

2)
Go to your System Preferences - Languages & Region settings. You might only see "English (US)" as an option. Select the "+" bottom-left of window to add your specific keyboard type, for me that's the UK which I've already chosen removing it from the list:


Keys1a.jpg


Then check your list again and drag-n-drop your Preferred Language to the top of the list. It will show as "Primary" there:


Keys2a.jpg


Finally go to System Preferences - Keyboard - Input Sources and select your preferred language:


Keys3a.jpg

(Of course, you can remove the second language choice if you wish).

Job done.


3) If you need to use the Terminal command in post #6 to restore Apple DRM playback you might find that you are unable to Save any Screen-Recordings you make with QuickTime. This is not just an issue with this particular build but is affecting most other Big Sur builds reported so far. Work is ongoing to find a work-around for this issue and I'll update the thread if a solution is discovered.



BS1152.jpg


:)
 
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Update 4 - High Sierra:

A lot of members seem to need to use an older macOS version and High Sierra remains popular. The reasons are mainly because either they have a Nvidia Pascal GPU they would like to continue using, or they are a Pro or Semi-Pro and need to use certain software which hasn't yet been updated for a later version.

I decided to give the build a retro make-over by installing High Sierra on it and seeing what the issues might be. There's already a Z490 / High Sierra build thread by @Middleman and I'd recommend you read that for more tips and a different viewpoint, as well.

The attached EFI folder has been updated for High Sierra on the Gigabyte Z490i Aorus Ultra motherboard in this build.

Notes:

1) I used High Sierra build 17G14042 which is the one with the last Security Update 2020-006 installed.

2) High Sierra will not recognise the Intel i225-V ethernet LAN chipset and no amount of spoofing will fool it into doing so. You can approach this problem in two ways - a) disable the onboard LAN and use a USB Ethernet adapter based on the Realtek chipset instead - b) just disable the onboard Intel chip completely and do without ethernet. See below ...

3) I use the Intel wireless and bluetooth combo card that comes with the motherboard. As long as the Ethernet port the wireless chipset uses - because the system sees it as this - is set to BSD Device Name "en0" the App Store and iTunes will work properly - and there's no need for a real ethernet LAN.

4) I installed a new Nvidia GT1030 GPU. The correct web-drivers to use with this are here.

5) You won't be able to perform a full USB port mapping exercise within High Sierra on this motherboard because none of the port-limit removal patches or quirks or even the venerable USBInjectAll.kext will enable all the USB3 ports of the Z490 chipset under High Sierra. You only get the 14x USB2 HS** ports with maybe an odd USB3 port if you are lucky. Even reducing the number of HS ports to open up the array for more SS ports will not work. You'll see them in the stack for sure, but they won't work.

This is a limitation of High Sierra, not the actual process itself. So I've built a mixed 15-port map for the build using a later macOS version, to save you the stress, and it works fine here.

6) The CPU name is shown in About this Mac without any detail, as "Unknown". There are ways to edit your processor name within a text string in a system file, but this is only cosmetic and so far I haven't done this. High Sierra has no idea what a 10th gen Intel CPU is and neither does iMac18,3 system-definition.

7) Finally. This build continues to use OpenCore 0.6.8 and a System-Definition of iMac18,3. Why? Because it all works reliably and updating just for the sake of being at the bleeding edge is not something a Professional would do. It's not something I recommend the rest of us amateurs do either, unless you have a particular need or reason.

I'll leave the reader to decide if they would like to update anything.

8) What's in the EFI Kext folder?

IntelBluetoothFirmware.kext v2.0.0 & IntelBluetoothInjector.kext v2.0.0 - latest version at this time needed for reliable operation of bluetooth radio.

itlwm.kext v1.30 - latest version needed for reliable wireless connectivity. Remember to add your own SSID and Password to the info.plist (or use the Heliport app).

USBPorts.kext - working USB port map.

IntelMausi.kext - not strictly needed if you choose to have have no Intel Ethernet/LAN.

VoodooHDA.kext - audio. AppleALC will not work for this macOS version/hardware combo.

Lilu.kext / Whatevergreen.kext - install the latest versions when you commit to build.

Good luck!

:thumbup:
 

Attachments

  • EFI-HS-Final.zip
    22.9 MB · Views: 153
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This build continues to use OpenCore 0.6.8 and a System-Definition of iMac18,3. Why? Because it all works reliably and updating just for the sake of being at the bleeding edge is not something a Professional would do. It's not something I recommend the rest of us amateurs do either, unless you have a particular need or reason.
I'm not keen on updating OC the minute every new point update comes out either. If it's not fixing some problem that the older version has, what's the purpose of that ? You're doing a great service to those that need to stay with HS short term while investing in a new board that can run the newer macOS versions years down the road. The learning curve for beginners to do this with a Z490 system is quite steep, most would probably not even attempt this approach and go with Z170/270 builds for built in compatibility.
 
itlwm.kext v1.30 - latest version needed for reliable wireless connectivity. Remember to add your own SSID and Password to the info.plist (or use the Heliport app).
I've had a lot of luck with AirportItlwm, at least on my AC-9560 in my X1 Extreme. Uses macOS' IO80211Family controller, so it integrates well with macOS. 2.0.0 also added 80211ac support (1.3 just has 80211n).
I myself don't like putting the SSID/Password in plain text, so I'd strongly suggest using HeliPort. It at least puts it into the macOS keychain, same with IO80211Family/AirportItlwm.

If you do add it to the EFI, you probably do want to limit it to just High Sierra (set min kernel to 17.0.0 and max kernel 17.99.9). I realize that this might not be the easiest thing to make generic, but maybe a pointer about it would help.
 
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