Hallo everybody!

I am looking for help putting together all the components needed to set up a hackintosh. I've been a mac user for quite a while now which means I don't really know anything about pc hardware. Why don't I just buy a Mac Pro? Because I believe that 2.500 Euros is insanely expensive and just because I am a Mac user doesn't mean that I am stupid.

So I desided to give hackintosh a try and searched the internet for the best hardware components but all the articles I found were out-dated. Therefore I really hope someone here will be able to help me!

My question is:
I know that I'll need a case, a mainbord, a cpu, ram, a sound card, a graphic card and a dvd-drive. But which ones are the best for a hackintosh? I am not looking for the cheapest solution, I am looking for a really good one AND: is there a way to build a silent-hackintosh (like a silent pc)?

Every little advice will be highly appreciated!

My question is:
I know that I'll need a case, a mainbord, a cpu, ram, a sound card, a graphic card and a dvd-drive.

Well first off I'm no hackintosh expert (and maybe someone more experienced with hackintosh could give more advice for what hardware to pick) but i know a thing or two about pc's... Second, i don't think you'll need a sound card unless your an audiophile. But others maybe argue... Most mainboards have built in sound cards.

AND: is there a way to build a silent-hackintosh (like a silent pc)?

Yeah, the exact same way you would build a silent pc. Fan-less heatsinks, would make it completely silent. Although i just have a regular setup (with fans) and its under my desk and i don't find it that loud.

Are you looking to build your own computer? or are you looking to buy a desktop, ie. from dell?

Originally Posted by smitty5569

Are you looking to build your own computer? or are you looking to buy a desktop, ie. from dell?

To be honest I don't know yet. The plan was to find out what I need for a hackintosh first. Only if I know what I need I can decide if it's better to build it myself (with help from a friend) or if it's better to buy it as one piece.

Originally Posted by lileau

To be honest I don't know yet. The plan was to find out what I need for a hackintosh first. Only if I know what I need I can decide if it's better to build it myself (with help from a friend) or if it's better to buy it as one piece.

Well, like i said I'm no expert when it comes to hackintosh. I've built a number of normal PCs. But, You'll probably need someone more experienced with hackintosh to help you. I'm new to the community and I'm looking to build my first hackintosh too. All i can say is, building your own computer would be cheaper. I'm sure someone more experienced will help you out with picking the right hardware.

Originally Posted by smitty5569

Well, like i said I'm no expert when it comes to hackintosh. I've built a number of normal PCs. But, You'll probably need someone more experienced with hackintosh to help you. I'm new to the community and I'm looking to build my first hackintosh too. All i can say is, building your own computer would be cheaper. I'm sure someone more experienced will help you out with picking the right hardware.

I'm new to this all too, I just built a Hackintosh.
It's not to hard but be prepared to spend a lot of time doing some trial and error.
This site has been indispensable as with this one. http://uphuck.ggrn.de/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3068
&
http://uphuck.ggrn.de/forum/viewtopi...st=0&sk=t&sd=a

I hope the links are allowed cause it is very helpful.

As for hardware it's a pretty "big pond". Start here
http://www.hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=62421
Icchansan has some proven packages listed.

Check this site it gives you lots of info on hardware.

http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

Here some combos fully supported:

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3
Processor: Core 2 Quad Q9550
Video: nVidia 8800GT 512 mb
Memory: 4GB RAM DDR2
Hard Drive: 500GB 7200 rpm + 300 GB 10000 rpm
Power Supply 750/1000w
DVDRW Serial ATA

Mother Board:Intel DG31PR
Processor:Intel® Xeon® CPU X3220 @ 2.40GHz
Bus frequency:1.06 GHz
Memory: 4GB RAM DDR2
Video:Nvidia 8800GT 512 Mb
Hard Drive: WD 500 GB 7200rpm + 500 GB 7200rpm
Power Supply 1000w
DVDRW Serial ATA

And super cheap one

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-G31M-S2
Processor: Core 2 Duo E2200
Video: Nvidia 7300 GS
Memory: 2GB RAM DDR2
Hard Drive: 1x300GB 7200 rpm
Power Supply 350/450w
DVDRW Serial ATA

New one

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 or MSI x58 Platinum or ASUS P6T Deluxe
Processor: Intel Core i7 920
Video: 9800 GT
Hard Drive: 500GB 7200 rpm + 5000 GB 7200 rpm
Memory: 4GB RAM DDR3
Power Supply 750/1000w
DVDRW Serial ATA

You can change everything but the motherboard, if wanna change the Video Card or anything else, check the HCL and good luck

Thanks for all your answers!

I am certainly going to have a look at the websites you recommended Akitakoi.

And icchansan: You seem to know your stuff. Which one of the combos do you recommend for high performance? I work with Adobe Photoshop, Final Cut and DVD Studio Pro a lot. Are the combos you suggested all good enough for that?

And what does everybody think about this combo (I have it from a different forum):
GA-EP45-DS3R
E5200 or E7300
Geforce 9500gt or 8600GT

Looks great, you can get any processor you want, E7300 have to powerful then 5200, about the video they both works, about 8xxx series 8400 to 8800 will run without problems

Originally Posted by icchansan

Memory: 4GB RAM DDR2

when you say ddr2 ram, do you mean:
ddr2 240pin,
fb-dimm ddr2 240pin,
so-dimm ddr2 200pin,
mini-dimm ddr2 244pin or
micro-dimm ddr2 214pin?

and what about ddr3 ram.. are they newer/better or just different? and will they work as well?