Greetings, I am surprised there are not more Hackintosh builds, so I will kick off my early 2012 build.

Background: My right hand cannot tolerate using a mice for too long, so I have always used a old school Tablet with a Wacom pen for Poker as to alleviate the pain. But there is only so much volume you can put in with a Tablet Laptop. So it was time to research a new Desktop system...

Requirements: I have mainly used Linux Desktops for the past decade (even my Tablets ran Linux), so I try to avoid M$ Windoze at all costs, but wanted the option just in case for Games and native Poker clients and native Poker third-party client support. Then, I got tired of Linux Desktops and wanted to try to get my feet wet with Mac OS, since Mac OS is built on BSD Unix, it was a easy transition. I also wanted to use a Razer Nostromo gamepad for my left-hand for Poker clients. And if possible, some mouse I can use for my left-hand.

Researching the Build: Choosing the parts to be compatible with both Mac OS and Windows was not that difficult. I did all my research @ tonymacx86.com. Very helpful peoplez over therez. In the end, I only had to worry about the built-in network card and built-in sound card on the motherboard. No dealbreakers. Let's go.

Out of Scope:

Apple Store
Apple Hardware and Software
Legalities of Hackintosh
Ivy Bridge (Will have to research yourself @ tonymacx86.com)
http://www.tonymacx86.com/user-builds/
http://www.tonymacx86.com/golden-builds/
<< Please bear in mind that I researched and purchased at the beginning of 2012, so anything after that I have no idea. >>
Overclock
<< no need to overclock as I do no play much video games >>
Dual/Tri/Quad Booting

What software/hardware does work:
Merge clients (Hero Poker), but I use Parallels Desktop (M$ Windoze)
Ongame clients (Betfair), but I use Parallels Desktop (M$ Windoze)
Pokerstars (Native Support)
Pkr (Native Support), but I use Parallels Desktop (M$ Windoze)
PokerTracker 3 (Native Support)
Razer Nostromo (Native Support)
Razer Mamba (Native Support)
Apple Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard (Native Support)
Apple Magic Bluetooth Trackpad (Native Support)
<< I will write up Pokerstars Hotkeys (Beta) and Razer Nostromo next week >>

What does not work for my specific system:
SpeedStep
Power Management
USB 3.0

<< Non-LGA 2011 SB-E may work perfect with these items. These were not a dealbreaker for me. There is almost even Thuderbolt support on newer hardware >>
<< No need to worry, not many people buy SB-E LGA 2011, I am just using it as an example for future builds you might want to consider. >>

Hacks:
Network Card (Simple, just use Multibeast)
Sound Card (More difficult, but just had to download a hack. Usually Multibeast solves this problem)
<< Will upgrade for near 100% native support in future. NO hacks. >>

Summary: I love this system. It runs great, stable. I purchased this system at the beginning of 2012 and did not do a write up till I could wholly recommend a Hackintosh build. I run a Windows 2008 R2 Server on Parallels to run an additonal 8 Poker Windoze clients. Any Windows OS will work the same. The Virtual machine works seamlessly. I run in Coherence mode in Parallels which runs the Windows GUI Desktop in the background, so you never see the Windows desktop unless there is a special need. All Windows applications are enabled by a Windows folder in the Mac taskbar, so you just select your Windows apps from the Mac taskbar to enable your Windoze apps without ever seeing Windoze icons or the Desktop GUI. Brilliant! I even tried PKR Windows which enables in full screen with x4 anti-alias and it runs and exits perfectly. I have not tried third-party software (HEM, etc.) [Out of Scope]. But I see no reason for it not to work perfectly well. I can test if needed.

The Razer Nostromo switching from Mac to Windows runs perfectly. So you can use Mac Pokerstars and Mac Razer Nostromo, then switch over to Windoze and use Windows Razer Nostromo and Windoze Poker Clients. But of course the Razer Nostromo cannot be used on both operating systems at one time. I also run an Ubuntu Desktop on Virtualbox. Enabling File Sharing via Virtualbox allows transfer of files seamlessly to Mac. For example, if you have files on FAT/NTFS/ext3/ext4, just setup the file sharing and move files back and forth between the Mac and Virtualbox box client with no worries. On a side note, the Razer Mamba runs great and smooth like butta. The scroll wheel and overall movement is just so smooth. Love it.

System:

OS: OS X Lion (10.7) USB thumb drive
<< Not sure if available at Apple stores anymore since Mountain Lion (10.8) debut. May have to wait. >>
<< You can also download Lion or Mountain Lion at the Apple Store and make a DVD and install from there. Similar steps.>>

Case: Cooler Master HAF X Full Tower w/ SuperSpeed USB 3.0 w/ Window w/ Black Interior ATX Case (RC-942-KKN1)
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...keywords=haf+x

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K Hexa-Core Processor 3.2 Ghz 12 MB Cache LGA 2011 - BX80619I73930K
http://www.amazon.com/Intel-i7-3930K...keywords=3930k

Motherboard: ASUS P9X79 PRO - LGA2011 - X79 - 8x DIMM - PCIe 3.0 Motherboards
http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-P9X79-PRO...rds=asus+p7x79

Memory: 2x 4GB Corsair Vengeance DD3 1600
<< Just bought plain memory knowing Quad-channel 2133Mhz would be available for future upgrade since my motherboard supports Quad-channel. placeholder for now.>>

Video Card: MSI ATI Radeon HD6870 1 GB DDR5 2DVI/HDMI/2x Mini DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card R6870 HAWK
http://www.amazon.com/MSI-DisplayPor...words=msi+6870
<< Just bought best native support for OS X 10.7.1 until Nvidia was natively supported. Sort of a placeholder, but actually pretty good. Nvidia GTX680 is now natively supported in 10.8 Mountain Lion, but no hurry to upgrade video card, it does well >>

Power Supply: Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold (SPG) 800 Watts Modular Power Supply
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...nt+gold+800%27

DVD/CD: Asus DVD Drive
<< Any DVD Drive should work. Hope to upgrade to a Sony Optiarc drive if Power Management is available in the future >>

Heatsink: Corsair Hydro Series H80 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler (CWCH80)
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Perfor...ds=CORSAIR+H80
<< Corsair H100 would have been a more troublesome install by placing fan in different location >>

HDD:# 3X Western Digital Caviar Black 2 TB SATA III 7200 RPM 64 MB Cache Bulk/OEM Internal Desktop Hard Drive - WD2002FAEX
http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digita...s=wd+2tb+black

SSD: Crucial 128 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT128M4SSD2
http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-In...ucial+m4+128gb

Possible Future Upgrades:

Memory: Corsair Vengeance Red 16 GB (4x4 GB) 2133MHz CL9 DDR3 Quad Memory Kit (CMZ16GX3M4A2133C9R)
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengea...Vengeance+2133

Video Card: Nvidia GTX680 2GB (OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion Native Support)

Monitor: Dell U3011

Network Card: Sonnet Technologies GE1000LA2XA-E 10/100/1000 GBE CTLR SVR CARD 2PORTNETWORK CONNECTION
http://www.amazon.com/Sonnet-Technol...=sonnet+presto
<< fault tolerant nic that is natively supported, no need for hack. has 2 ethernet failover ports, so if you lose connection, it will try to use your backup ISP. need 2 isps network connections for fault tolerance.. >>

Sound Card: Will use a USB/DAC/AMP and disable sound card or find a native Mac support card.
<< No urgency >>

SSD:OWC 120GB Mercury Accelsior™ PCI Express Solid State Drive (700+MB/s Read/Write)
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/SSDPHW2R120/
<< native support blazing fast SSD boot drive >>

DVD: Sony Optiarc (Better Sleep Support)

Installation: Simple. Just download Unibeast from tonymacx86. Make Unibeast USB drive. Boot with USB drive. Unplug, Insert Mac OS X USB thumb drive. Install. Do not reboot. Install Multibeast to tailor to your system. Reboot. Done.

Conclusion: I have the best of both worlds. My system outperforms current Mac Desktops with a much lower price and flexibility. I have the option to upgrade for even better performance. No need to dual boot to Windows. Everything I need runs on Mac OS X or via the Virtual Machines. The Magic Trackpad works great using my Left Hand. Just flick here, flick there. Saves a lot of wear and tear on my right-hand. Razer Nostromo is great for poker. I have a Logitech G13 also, but Razer is more comfortable and smooth for I. Happy Customer. Overall, can justify the price if it saves my right-hand from falling off.

In Conclusion: Please, when researching your build, consider a possible Hackintosh in the future, so when you select your parts, they are also natively supported in Mac OS X. That way, you can enjoy your Windows now and if you get the itch to install Mac OS X, that option is available.

Optional: If needed, I can just buy another SSD for Windows Gaming. Choose between the Mac SSD and Windows SSD via Bios, then on to PC Gaming. Simple, easier than playing AA on the button.

This is great. What's the total cost?

Thinking of doing this myself also.

Me too. I have a friend who builds them, but he wants me to hire him to build me one rather then give me ideas on how to do it so I can at least understand the process. I'd still have him build it though.

Thanks. The cost was a good amount, not extreme, maybe more professional, but the build was on the higher-end side. So a little over 2 dimes, 2 grand, but it is still work in progress as I would like to add a few more higher quality performance components.

It is a justifiable cost considering the RSI injuries and my laptop's video card giving out (now a server) and I needed something in order to be productive. The value alone is probably 1/3 of the expense of a Mac Pro.

There are some fantastic builds on that site.

http://www.tonymacx86.com/user-build...-28-000-a.html

A single CPU here cost 1700 and he/she has two.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=4902415&SID=

Maybe in a few years, I can justify that; but happy with my current setup for now. I consider that extreme.

For normal computer builds. Cost can be low as 320. I hope to build very low cost HTPC one day. I will wait for the new CustoMac Buyer's Guide 2012.

http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/search/label/CustoMac

http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/2011/...-customac.html

A normal build will run about 1000 +- 200

Hackintosh is getting pretty mainstream.

Here is a link to Tekzilla so you get a better idea of what is involved:

http://revision3.com/tekzilla/rogers-hackintosh

Just replace the word iBoot with Unibeast.

(1) Make sure your components are natively supported or if you want to take a chance on hacks that can make your components supported.

(2) Buy a Mac OS X 10.6/10.7/10.8 USB Thumb drive at your local Apple Store or download and make a DVD.

(3) Download software from tonymacx86.com and go through the install process.

That is basically it. Once you do your homework on the parts, the rest is straightforward. As Roger says in the video, "A pretty painless process".

I don't think this flies under current CTF moderation, unfortunately. But fwiw the TonyMac site is legit.

it's not a coincidence I have a gigabyte board in my setup

I have considered a hackintosh build in the past, but it seems like there are too many little problems with installation and/or updating the OS for me to really want to deal. I mean I already do enough of that with Linux/Windows builds. I think if I was going to go with Apple, I would probably approach it with an Apple-ish philosophy, with the software and hardware being designed around use with one another. If I want my freedom, I will just waltz over to one of my Windows and/or Linux machines.

Let's keep the conversation to what to do with the OS once you get it, since I'm pretty sure getting the OS to put on a hackintosh is a no-no.

Yep, legit. You know what's up.

Respekt

I understand your concerns. I too thought along the same lines as you a few years ago, but things change. I decided not to fight it any longer, and give it a try. The installation is so simple now, none of those hacks from a few years ago which were difficult and troublesome.

Of course, having just to support a few selected proprietary hardware will be easier to design and support. But these days, the Mac OS is so robust, it supports a good deal of hardware. Why use outdated hardware on a Mac Pro when you can get cheaper and more powerful with native Mac OS support? There is no difference CPU-wise, it is still an Intel instruction set.

Take a read @ Lifehacker:
http://lifehacker.com/5841604/the-al...g-a-hackintosh

I have not read the updated yet, but have read previous.

I would not write out a detailed report of my experience if I could not recommend it. I just want peeps that are on the fence to know it can be done, can be stable and pretty much headache-free. Just another viable option. I am just a 6-month Mac newbie, but it is a whole new world. I went through the installation 1 time and got it right. After that, I had to figure out the sound card hack, and that was it. From there, updates have been smooth. Although I wait till reports from tonymacx86.com are stable to upgrade. Of course, try to clone your system with dd if of or any clone software if mission critical. I have been through 3 incremental updates. I started at 10.7.1. 10.7.2, 10.7.3 smooth. 10.7.4 had many reports of problems, but I waited till stable. Downloaded the software instead of updating online from http://support.apple.com/downloads/ - it went smooth. Each update is about 700MB.

The only problem I had was when I unplug the power from the computer, the Bluetooth module turns off. I just boot up with a Ubuntu Live CD, and turn on bluetooth running Linux off the CD. Reboot, and things are normal. But this happens with Windows machines also.

Not sure what you mean by freedom, but to me:

> freedom: Linux, BSD, Windows, Mac OS
< freedom: Linux & Windows

And more great news. Bodog / Bovada has a new Mac client:

http://poker.bodog.co.uk/how-to-play...poker-mac.html
http://poker.bovada.lv/ or
http://10.cdn.bit2host.eu/poker/poke...ovadaPoker.pkg

Supposedly, there is more software being written now for Mac OS than Windows. But don't quote me on it, forget where I heard it from.

Whoops. Replied last. I will try to follow these guidelines from now on.

It is getting mainstream, but I guess not there yet. I understand it will take a while to be accepted.

Os is legitimately purchased @ Apple Store and I in know way encourage otherwise. All articles linked are from respected sources and if there is or ever will be an issue, they would or will warn the public. But I totally understand the taboo.

I stopped bothering after Snow Leopard. I liked the OS a lot, but as it turns out I'm a bit vested in some Windows-only programs. Plus I didn't really want to switch back and forth between OS's when W7 was perfectly okay.

As far as right now it's probably pretty pointless to take any issue with Hackintoshes. They're basically Mac Pro desktop replacements, and last I looked Apple hasn't had a meaningful update on that line for a couple of years. [And if they do it will probably be with newer Xeons in a server board, which looks nothing like what people are building.]

I wish I had read this before I ordered my new rig.

Is a Z77 LGA115 mobo supported?

Also, if I had 2 SSD's, and had OSX installed on one and windows on the other, could I choose at startup which OS I want to use? I've seen this done before with Linux/windows.

Understand. I feel more productive on a Mac. I need the CLI or I will go crazy. I feel so much more enthusiastic trying to be productive and get more work done. My productivity has probably increased 300% since getting OS X. I guess that is what matters in the end. Which OS makes you more productive. It is unfortunate, but understandable that Mac poker third-party software is years away from anything worthy. Hopefully, Stars hotkeys improves to somewhere close to TN one day. That is probably the dealbreaker for most.

W7 is pretty solid. I just cannot get back into the Windows world, unless I have to be vested in it. For 95% of the world, that is the case. 99% of the poker world.

That is why building a Hackintosh is great. You never know when and if any updated Mac Pros will appear again. Current models are outdated. If there are any new Mac Pros, for sure they will be way overpriced. Luckily, you can build Hackintosh's with basic desktop components and not server components. That is what makes the Mac Pro's so expensive.

I look forward to building a 16-core Xeon beast one day. For now, happy with hexacore and Stars hotkeys beta.

Since you are a computer architect aficionado, tonymacx86 has just release the CustoMac: Buyer's Guide 2012. Basic stuff for you, but it never hurts to look at other people's build and their thought process in going into that build.

http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/search/label/CustoMac

Just no-nonsense builds with recommended parts.

It's not too late. Most modern parts are supported. And if you have a Z77, that is as modern as it gets nowadays.

Z77 LGA115 is a specification. Do you have the brand name and model number of your motherboard?

Have a look at the new CustoMac: Buyer's Guide 2012:

http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/search/label/CustoMac

Maybe, your motherboard is one of those listed?

Theoretically, that dual boot process is possible. I have not tried dual booting yet, but it should work. The bios boot method is OS independent, thus with 2 SSDs, should be fine.

What has to be done is install one OS on 1 SSD, unplug that 1 SSD, install OS on 2nd SSD. Confirm they both work by having one plugged and the other unplugged. Once they work, plug them both in. When BIOS boots up, hit your boot hotkey (eg. F12), then select your SSD drive.

The linux/windows way probably used a GRUB software bootloader with partitioned drives allocated to each OS on a single SSD. The BIOS boot method / 2 SSDs is cleaner. It should work.

Unfortunately, the process is more difficult now if you just want to go into an Brick and Mortar Apple Store and purchase a USB thumb drive with the latest 10.8 Mountain Lion OS. It seems like they suspended that for now and you can only purchase the latest OS from the Online Apple Store. I cannot confirm if they stopped selling the older Lion 10.7 OS USB Thumb Drive from the Brick and Mortar Apple Store, but the newer 10.8 is not yet available.

Oh, BTW, Ivy Bridge is natively supported in 10.8. 10.7 is not recommended.