Buying Hardware

Here is the list of components I used to build my Mac.   Feel free to make substitutions, but be aware that many of the methods and files I’ll post are specific to this configuration.  That said, I encourage you to experiment. If you have questions about using different hardware, try searching for it at the Insanely Mac forums.

Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R Motherboard – $120

Intel E8400 3GHz Core 2 Duo CPU – $160

ASUS GeForce 8400GS Silent Video Card -$33

G.Skill 4GB DDR2 800 RAM -$46

500GB SATA Hard Drive – $55

Lite-On DVD Burner – $26

Coolermaster Case – $50

Total: $490

The Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R is a great motherboard to build your mac around.  After some software tweaks it is fully compatible with Mac OS X.  I highly recommend it. For the CPU, any Intel Core 2 Duo or Quad will work, just make sure it is compatible with the motherboard. Pick whatever suits you for the RAM, hard drive, and optical drive (but stick with SATA for the drives).

The video card is another important choice.  I found that the 8400 is great for my needs, but I don’t play graphics-intense games.  If you play a lot of games, you might want a card upgrade.  I recommend you stick with Nvidia.

You will also need a OS X Leopard retail install disk.  It need to be a retail disk, not a restore disk that came with a Mac.

When you get your hardware, put it all together. There are many resources out there if you need help assembling your computer; I won’t go into all the details.  One important tip if you are using the Gigabyte motherboard:  use the yellow SATA connectors for the SATA drives, not the purple ones. Everything else should be pretty standard.  If you’d like, try a test install of Windows or Linux to make sure everything is working.

Introduction

Over the next few weeks I’ll be preparing step-by-step instructions on how to build your own computer that will run Mac OS X.  Apple makes some great software, and some great hardware, but they do not make a reasonably priced, expandable, desktop computer that many users desire. The solution? Build your own!

Building a computer is a fun project, but installing OS X makes it much more of a challenging (and rewarding) pursuit. Since Apple began using Intel processors in their computers, the Mac operating system has been theoretically capable of running on most PCs, however Apple includes software checks that prevent it from being installed on third-party machines. Mac enthusiasts have spent countless hours figuring out the best ways to “hack” OS X to run on many Intel-based hardware configurations. With the tools that they have developed it is possible to install an unmodified copy of Leopard on most third-party computer hardware.

I have been using my homemade Mac for months now, and I have been impressed with its performance and stability. Here are some basic specs of my machine:

3 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor
4GB Ram
NVidia 8400GS Graphics Card

The Xbench software gives my mac a performace score of 213.23. For comparison, my first generation MacBook Pro got a score of 34.52, and the average submitted benchmark score for the Mac Pro is 161.47. It is a very fast computer, and it cost only $500 to build.

I learned most of what I know from Insanely Mac. The forums contain a wealth of Hackintosh knowledge, the only challenge can be finding the basic info and resources needed to get started. My goal with these posts is to provide as much into as possible all in one accessible location. Check back soon for the first post.

Disclaimer: There’s no guarantee that these instructions will work 100% for you. Building a Hackintosh is fun and rewarding, but can also be challenging. Look at it as a project that will take some time and effort.