radiusproject Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 Hello to all here at Insanely Mac, I have searched for 40 minutes or so in this forum and have found many highly informative threads and posts, but not found what it was I am particularly looking for. As I'm sure you've guessed, I'm looking to build a Hackintosh desktop system; whether its large or small I couldn't really care, but its stability is essential. What I'm looking for from the hack is probably not possible, but I'll lay out the challenge to the Mac-Geniuses in simple terms: I need a dual boot system, capable of running both Windows and Snow Leopard reliably. The mac side would be for audio recording and mixing large multitrack sessions in Pro Tools (30 audio tracks or more), whilst the PC side would be used for my hobby, which is gaming. Each OS would preferably be on a separate HDD, with a potential third HDD used exclusively for audio file storage. No SSD is necessary and ill be using an external firewire or USB audio card, so onboard audio is also may not be necessary. What would be essential is stability and compatibility. As a relatively experienced PC user and relatively novice Mac user, I want to be able to build, install and then forget that it is not an original Mac. Priorities consist of a fast processor, large and fast RAM potential and compatibility with a powerful GPU. I imagine any external audio interfaces will be compatible once suitable mac and pc drivers have been installed. The budget is 720 dollars, or 450 GBP. I am based in the uk, and wont need links to specific stores, just accurate parts lists and any relevant advice. I have never built my own PC, but have often upgraded HHD, GPU and RAM- in other words I am comfortable with computer innards and suchlike. It would be starting from scratch, but budget would need to cover: Case PSU Processor Motherboard Optical Drive RAM GPU I realise this may not be an entirely easy to achieve goal, but I thank you for your time and look forward to hearing your expertise. Rob Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusik Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 I have GA-P35-DS4 with Q9550 (E6600 prior that), 8GB RAM PC2-8500, 8600GT, dual boot on 2 HDs, 3d HD w/TM, 10.6.5 by Tseug. The whole setup is stable as hell and everything on the MB works under SL. I don't use Wireless card with this machine. It's not new hardware of course, but sure it's cheaper now and I don't really care about all this i3-i7-etc stuff. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/#findComment-1662338 Share on other sites More sharing options...
radiusproject Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 This sounds great, almost exactly what I need. I'm not too bothered getting a i5 or i7 anyway, as I usually run just one program at a time - either Pro Tools or gaming. One question though which shows a hole in my knowledge - what is 3d HD w/TM? Also, what case did you opt for? Thank you by the way for the info, it's really helped! Rob Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/#findComment-1663165 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusik Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Hard drive #3 for Time Machine backup. the case was al chipo for $35 including power supply. the power supply died in a year, so i had to put a new one, OCZ 600W. Ram btw is also OCZ Platinum. IMHO, Gigabyte P35 is the best board for Core2(4) Duo Hakintoshes. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/#findComment-1663318 Share on other sites More sharing options...
radiusproject Posted April 2, 2011 Author Share Posted April 2, 2011 sounds perfect! thanks for being precise with all this, its almost exactly what im looking for in terms of a build. my only issue (and again this may be my own fault) is when I Google "buy ga-p35-ds4" i only get results for RAM chips for this board, not the borad itself. any clues? can i still buy this board? also, if i wanted to get a slightly more beefy GPU, i cant imagine EVGA GTS450 having too many problems. thoughts? Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/#findComment-1664961 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusik Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 try Ebay, i saw some there you don't need exactly p35-ds4, any p35 is a good boar. i chose ds4 because it did not seem having any compatibility issues with osx86 at all, everything just works including 5.1 optical sound output. check wiki on this site and see what people say about hardware compatibility. there are plenty of good boards around with know issues. http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/HCL_10.6.7 i don't know much about video cards and i don't play games on this machine so 8600gt is good enough for me. sounds perfect! thanks for being precise with all this, its almost exactly what im looking for in terms of a build. my only issue (and again this may be my own fault) is when I Google "buy ga-p35-ds4" i only get results for RAM chips for this board, not the borad itself. any clues? can i still buy this board? also, if i wanted to get a slightly more beefy GPU, i cant imagine EVGA GTS450 having too many problems. thoughts? Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/253489-advice-for-dual-boot-audiogaming-hack-for-under-720%C2%A3450/#findComment-1665082 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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