Z390 ITX boards + WiFi + TB?

[knittycatkitty]

Hi, I just wanted to create a thread. I am trying to gather as much information as possible as I am going to build my first ITX rig with 9th gen CPUs

I have noticed the information for the latest Z390 is very scarce and all over the place, relying on comments made from one post to another.

I just wanted to ask if possible to consolidate the information on here and if anyone has hands-on experience

The goal here for me is to get native Broadcom WiFi card modules working, the one I have is the BCM94360CD which is quite popular, although I am seeing a variety of other models ending in CS2 and such which are quite popular as well as a Dell WiFi module with the Broadcom chip in it (which requires kext patching from what I'm reading)

This is specifically for ITX boards only with the assumption that the PCIe x16 slot is already used.

This set up makes or breaks an ITX system's hackintosh-ability completeness since its main goal is to be 1. light 2. powerful 3. portable and that includes the ability to take it anywhere and be able to connect to a WiFi / BT set up along with any USB-C / TB peripherals that are becoming commonplace nowadays.

From what I'm reading I am gathering the following information

• There is a new CNVI / non-CNVI issue we must deal with, something Gigabyte has opted to go for on there new (er?) motherboards. How far back, I'm not sure, Z370 affected? Z390 only?
• For Gigabyte ITX motherboards specifically and any boards that have to deal with CNVi, you must use M.2 adapter
• M.2 adapters are finicky? BT sometimes doesn't work? Reports coming left and right that BT works without using USB 2.0 header and some require it. Unsure
• Is there a CNVI / non CNVI slot adapter? or what is the slot called? I don't have my hands on any of these ITX boards yet, have always gone mid or full ATX, there doesn't seem to be a standard on the built-in WiFi chips slots other than the fact that they all seem to always be Intel
• All or most Z390s have Thunderbolt built in that is not hot-pluggable in any way, but most will work as long as TB device is plugged in before startup (due to the way TB is wired on PCs, it is turned on on-call unlike Macs, which are on at all times)
• Some motherboards have issues with deep sleep, some like ASUS ROG STRIX seem to have it working but with only few reports

Would appreciate any input and help!

My planned setup

• i7-9700K / i9-9900K
• H100i RGB or Noctua NH-L9i
• Proper Z390 ITX motherboard
• RX VEGA 56 / 64 + RTX 2070 (gonna switch between both physically)
• 512GB Samsung M.2 or NVMe SSD
• 512GB Samsung SATA SSD
• 2TB mobile HDD or 1TB cheap SSD
• Case options
  • Louqe Ghost S1 with expanded top for H100i
  • Dan A4
  • GEEEK A60 so it can fit the H100i
  • GEEEK A50 with tight thermals (NH-L9i compatibility only)

 

[YoshiyukiAsakura]

I can sure you asrock z370m-itx and asus z370-i both work perfectly.
in my knowledge, cnvi port has something less so there is no adapter for this.
RTX 2070 is obviously not surported by Mojave now.
aviod using Samsung 970 evo plus or PM981, both cant install macOS.

 

[questor422]

I installed a BCM94360CD into my old Hackintosh, using a PCIe adapter board. The adapter board is powered through it's mini USB connector. The WiFi worked great, while the Bluetooth never worked for me. Was it the module, the adapter board, or the OS, that caused the Bluetooth not to work? I don't know. I resorted to using a CSR USB Bluetooth dongle.

I was having major Bluetooth trouble and minor WiFi trouble on my mid 2012 Retina MacBook Pro, which has a BCM94331CSAX module.

I bought 3 used BCM94360CSAX modules from eBay vendor "angiesonki". What came were 3 BCM94360CS modules. My research suggests they are the same. One module was clearly dirty, so clearly used.

I installed one in my rMBP. The WiFi and Bluetooth and AirDrop are working great, and I've got 802.1ac now. Haven't tried Handoff yet.

For my Hack, I got the BCM94360CSAX PCIe adapter also from ebay seller "angiesonki", it's a quality piece of kit, and is powered from the motherboard's USB2 header via the supplied cable. It came with a metal RF shield. The supplied antenna's are bigger than my old ones, maybe a little too big.

The WiFi and Bluetooth are working great on my old Hackintosh with 10.14.2, and I've got 802.1ac now. I still have to try Airdrop and handoff etc, but right now I'm very happy.

I'd advise skipping BCM94360CD, and going for BCM94360CSAX (BCM94360CS) with 802.1ac

 

[toleda]

I can sure you asrock z370m-itx and asus z370-i both work perfectly.
in my knowledge, cnvi port has something less so there is no adapter for this.

Neither motherboard mentioned includes TB3
Currently available mini-ITX motherboards with TB3 are 1. ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac and 2. ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac; note: TB3 is implemented as x2 rather than x4
Z370 Series (Kaby Lake) motherboards do not have a cnvi port, they have a M.2 Wifi connector. The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac requires a BIOS update for 9 Series CPU support
Z390 Series (Coffee Lake) motherboards have a M.2/cnvi port, Broadcom WiFi is supported on the M.2/cnvi port with ASRock and Asus motherboards only, no adapter required. Gigabyte does not support Broadcom WiFi on the cnvi port

Mechanical modifications are required when replacing Intel Wifi with macOS supported Broadcom WiFi.
Search the site for build info on both of the noted -ITX/ac motherboards

 

[YoshiyukiAsakura]

Neither motherboard mentioned includes TB3
Currently available mini-ITX motherboards with TB3 are 1. ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac and 2. ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac; note: TB3 is implemented as x2 rather than x4
Z370 Series (Kaby Lake) motherboards do not have a cnvi port, they have a M.2 Wifi connector. The ASRock Z370 Gaming-ITX/ac requires a BIOS update for 9 Series CPU support
Z390 Series (Coffee Lake) motherboards have a M.2/cnvi port, Broadcom WiFi is supported on the M.2/cnvi port with ASRock and Asus motherboards only, no adapter required. Gigabyte does not support Broadcom WiFi on the cnvi port

Mechanical modifications are required when replacing Intel Wifi with macOS supported Broadcom WiFi.
Search the site for build info on both of the noted -ITX/ac motherboards

i believe z370 is for CoffeeLake and z390 is for CoffeeLake Refresh,long live Intel 14nm+++++++++

 

[toleda]

i believe z370 is for CoffeeLake and z390 is for CoffeeLake Refresh

Intel marketing nonsense.
Fact, z370 uses Kaby Lake chipset. Kaby Lake chipset supports Coffee Lake processors (9 series) with a BIOS update.

 

[rj510]

Hi, I just wanted to create a thread. I am trying to gather as much information as possible as I am going to build my first ITX rig with 9th gen CPUs

I have noticed the information for the latest Z390 is very scarce and all over the place, relying on comments made from one post to another.

I just wanted to ask if possible to consolidate the information on here and if anyone has hands-on experience

The goal here for me is to get native Broadcom WiFi card modules working, the one I have is the BCM94360CD which is quite popular, although I am seeing a variety of other models ending in CS2 and such which are quite popular as well as a Dell WiFi module with the Broadcom chip in it (which requires kext patching from what I'm reading)

This is specifically for ITX boards only with the assumption that the PCIe x16 slot is already used.

This set up makes or breaks an ITX system's hackintosh-ability completeness since its main goal is to be 1. light 2. powerful 3. portable and that includes the ability to take it anywhere and be able to connect to a WiFi / BT set up along with any USB-C / TB peripherals that are becoming commonplace nowadays.

From what I'm reading I am gathering the following information

• There is a new CNVI / non-CNVI issue we must deal with, something Gigabyte has opted to go for on there new (er?) motherboards. How far back, I'm not sure, Z370 affected? Z390 only?
• For Gigabyte ITX motherboards specifically and any boards that have to deal with CNVi, you must use M.2 adapter
• M.2 adapters are finicky? BT sometimes doesn't work? Reports coming left and right that BT works without using USB 2.0 header and some require it. Unsure
• Is there a CNVI / non CNVI slot adapter? or what is the slot called? I don't have my hands on any of these ITX boards yet, have always gone mid or full ATX, there doesn't seem to be a standard on the built-in WiFi chips slots other than the fact that they all seem to always be Intel
• All or most Z390s have Thunderbolt built in that is not hot-pluggable in any way, but most will work as long as TB device is plugged in before startup (due to the way TB is wired on PCs, it is turned on on-call unlike Macs, which are on at all times)
• Some motherboards have issues with deep sleep, some like ASUS ROG STRIX seem to have it working but with only few reports

Would appreciate any input and help!

My planned setup

• i7-9700K / i9-9900K
• H100i RGB or Noctua NH-L9i
• Proper Z390 ITX motherboard
• RX VEGA 56 / 64 + RTX 2070 (gonna switch between both physically)
• 512GB Samsung M.2 or NVMe SSD
• 512GB Samsung SATA SSD
• 2TB mobile HDD or 1TB cheap SSD
• Case options
  • Louqe Ghost S1 with expanded top for H100i
  • Dan A4
  • GEEEK A60 so it can fit the H100i
  • GEEEK A50 with tight thermals (NH-L9i compatibility only)

I've written about the ASRock Z390 ITX here.

 

[pkdesign]

I'm thinking about a new build using a Gigabyte board. Most likely the AORUS PRO. Now I know this is not about an ITX board, but...

Does it make sense to buy any board with onboard Wifi/Bluetooth? Since it doesn't work well with a hack. That is why I am thinking about buying the PRO and not PRO WIFI edition of the board.

And if I buy a non Wifi/Bluetooth board, since apparently I can not use the CNVI port on a Gigabyte board, I have to buy the above card and adapoter to install one? And the MacBook variants of these will work inside a case?

Thanks.

 

[dmdacc]

I'm using Asus Z390i itx with DW1560 card, every thing works fine.