Project: iCon, Ivy Bridge i5 based Hack with custom Apple case

Project iCon: GA-Z77X-UD5H - Core i5-3570K - GTX 670​

Components

Mac OS X: Apple OS X version 10.8.2 Mountain Lion
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/os-x...id537386512?mt

Motherboard: Gigabyte Intel Z77 LGA 1155 AMD CrossFireX/NVIDIA SLI Dual LAN Dual UEFI BIOS ATX Motherboard GA-Z77X-UD5H
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007SZ0EHE/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Quad-Core Processor 3.4 GHz 4 Core LGA 1155 - BX80637I53570K
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007SZ0E1K/

Memory: G.SKILL Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory
http://www.amazon.com/G-SKILL-Series-240-Pin-Desktop-F3-1866C10D-16GAB/dp/B007GWMR6U/

SSDs (x2): SanDisk Extreme SSD 120 GB SATA 6.0 Gb-s2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SDSSDX-120G-G25
http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B006EKJCWM/

Hard Drive: Western Digital VelociRaptor 500 GB Workstation Hard Drive: 3.5 Inch, 10000 RPM, SATA III, 64 MB Cache
http://www.amazon.com/VelociRaptor-500-Workstation-Hard-Drive/dp/B007VPGK42/

Graphics Card: GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 Windforce OC 2048MB GDDR5 256-bit PCI Express 3.0 x16
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0080I06WQ/


Already Owned

Display: ACHIEVA Shimian QH270-Lite 27" LED PC Monitor (ebay)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/320907269594?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649[/U]

CPU Cooler: Zalman CNPS12X Pure Copper/Aluminum CPU Cooler
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0092VX6SG/

Power Supply: Kingwin Lazer 850 Watts Power Supply, Modular 80 Plus Bronze ATX LZ-850
http://www.amazon.com/Kingwin-Universal-Modular-Connectors-LZ-850/dp/B002P8JVAK/

Keyboard: Azio Large Print Tri-Color Backlit Keyboard (KB505U)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008CXTX7S/

Mouse: Logitech Optical Gaming Mouse G400 with High-Precision 3600 DPI Optical Engine (910-002277)
http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Optical-Gaming-High-Precision-910-002277/dp/B0055QZ216/

Speakers: Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 THX Certified Computer Speaker System
http://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-ProMedia-Certified-Computer-Speaker/dp/B000062VUO/

Headset: Turtle Beach Call of Duty: MW3 Ear Force Bravo Limited Edition Programmable Wireless Universal Gaming Headset
http://www.amazon.com/Turtle-Beach-Call-Duty-Programmable-aMac/dp/B005EEMXYI/


Comments

First I would like to give thanks to tonymacx86.com and the community here, I sincerely appreciate all your help and support.

This is my official first Hackintosh build and simply love it for its overall cost effectiveness and sheer performance. I pretty much stuck to the CustoMac 2013 recommendations. Currently getting Geekbench scores in 13k areas.

Since using the System Definition iMac 2.2, I do have occasion audio pops, nothing too off-putting and performance seems to be a just fine.

I currently have the Achieva Shimian 27" monitor connected to the DVI-D port. Also use a HP OfficeJet 8600 e-All-in-One Wireless Color Printer. When installing printer drivers I could not get it to print any pages, could connect and print default test pages only. I resolved by manually setting up printers IP address directly in printer settings.

The iCon Case
It took about a week to build the case by hand and install all components to a metallic painted wood base, aluminum sides and front Plexiglas window with optional 16-feet of LED lights illuminating the inside and back of case. I originally was planning on taking my initial drafts to a professional metal fabricator for the case build but needed to save money and decided to build it all myself from available materials at my local Home Depot for roughly $45.

Uses
-- Web Development
-- Image processing/editing
-- Audio Processing
-- Video Editing
-- Gaming (MMOs to FPSs) getting around 120FPS in Warcraft with high settings.


The Build Process

BIOS Settings
BIOS was already at F14, did not have to flash/upgrade. Motherboard versions is 1.1
F7 (Function key F7 that is) - Optimized
CPU Overclocked to 4.2GHz
SATA - AHCI
Init Display First - PEG

OS Install from UniBeast - Mountain Lion 1.7.0 USB Flash Drive
Had adjust the BIOS to disable HD4000 graphics and set the discrete card to PEG. Formatted SSD drive with Disk Utility. Performed installation as normal.
Booted from USB Flash drive to Chameleon, selected drive on which I installed Mac OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.2.
Ran MultiBeast - Mountain Lion 5.2.1.

MultiBeast - Mountain Lion 5.2.1 Configuration
Selected following items:
Drivers: Audio: Realtek ALC8xx: Without DSDT: ALC898
Drivers: Disk: 3rd Party SATA
Drivers: Miscellaneous: FakeSMC
Drivers: Miscellaneous: FakeSMC Plugins
Drivers: Network: Realtek - hank's AppleIntelE1000e Ethernet and maolj's AtherosL1cEthjernet

Initial issues
-- Boot 0 Errors: Solved by using terminal commands based on others recommendations and this guide: http://www.tonymacx86.com/lion-desktop-guides/53295-boot0-error-official-guide.html
-- Boot Kernel Panics: Solved by disabling/trashing the "HWMonitor Application."
-- Reboot on Shutdown: Disabled some power management settings in BIOS.
-- Intel Ethernet port not working: used second Ethernet port on mobo which works perfectly.

Working
Audio: Have audio using green port.
Network: Using second ethernet port, 85Mbps Down and 35Mbps Up, Verizon FiOS, (FiOS is simply amazing compared to Charter cable).
USB Ports: All working.
Sleep: Working (Occasionally I will have slow/jerky cursor response for the first 30-sec-ish. after initial wake).



Update 3/14/13
Updated from ML 10.8.2 on a Gigabyte UD5H mobo, lost audio on reboot after installing the 10.8.3 via App store, ran MutiBeast again for the Realtek ALC898 sound driver. After that audio was up and running again, so far so good.

Very nice build. Please keep all discussion in this thread to Reactor-Core's system components and OS X installation. If there is enough interest in his case build, Reactor-Core will open a thread in The Workshop > Case Mods > Other forum section. TIA.

Thanks for the kind comments, I could not have done this build without everyone's help here, you guys rock!

BTW, does tonymacx86 icon have a twin brother perhaps...?