First OSx86 Need some thoughts!

fischer · March 20, 2009

Hey guys, first time building an OSx86... and id just like to say this is a pretty cool community of a lot of helpful people. awesome stuff.

I was searching around and found a suggestion by "broken" and i thought this fit my needs pretty well, so thanks for posting! a lot of help to base off of for a beginner!

So this is what I've got down so far:

GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

$134.99 known to work on 10.5.2

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail

$274.99 known to work on 10.5.6

PNY VCG95512GXEB GeForce 9500 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

$59.99 known to work 10.5.6

OCZ 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

$43.99 set speed to 1066 manually?

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

$64.99

SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD Burner - OEM

$23.99

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

$54.95

CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail

$69.99

coming to about... 750-800 all off newegg

Does anyone have any other suggestions? Price is not as much a factor as the performance i want... I could go as high as 900-1000 if its kick ass!

If anyone has any suggestions for a better... processor? and even graphics card that would be awesome! (im a graphics major and do A LOT of heavy illustrator, photoshop, dreamweaver, after effects, flash stuff)

any suggestions for a bluetooth card?

thanks guys really appreciate it!

Nick14 · March 20, 2009

Heres a I7 setup

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $199.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128375

everything works in Leopard and it overclocks an 920 to 4GHZ easy

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail

$289.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819115202

It overclocks like a dream 4ghz with an aftermarket cooler

CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

$149.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820145220

these are the best memorys for overclocking I7 atleast for me

9800GTX+ video card -$139.99 after $30.00 Mail-In

Rebate - Works great with OS X after installing the Nvidia 9xxx series video drivers and adding the EFI strings for it. Both CI and QE work perfectly.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814143166

500 GB Western Digital SATA Hard drive - $64.99 - Plenty of space and pretty cheap too. SATA interface so there won't be any OS X issues.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822136073

Samsung 22x DVDRW drive - $24.99 - Works perfectly and has a SATA interface.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16827151171

Antec NSK4480B ATX case with 380 watt PSU - $74.99 - Plenty of room and includes a great power supply. Should run quiet and cool.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16811129032

= $962 give or take + shipping

fischer · March 20, 2009

thats awesome man! thanks!

but my only concern is that going to greatly decrease the life of the processor and motherboard? id like this to last 2 years or so...

so i would just lookup how to overclock an Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz on a GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 board?

possible suggestions on an aftermarket cooler? dont want the machine to melt :/

also!

would the case you suggested be best including that power supply or just stick with the "CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply" supply more power to the overclocked machine? i mean i dont know anything about this... i just saw core i7 :/ hah

thanks again

EDIT:

i was looking up everything on new egg... btw... A LOT of it is a lot less expensive... aweesommmeee

i had a question about the graphics card... you had linked "BFG Tech BFGE98512GTXPBE GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail "

but i didnt see it on the HCL from my quick browsing... i saw the EVGA GeForce 9800GTX 512MB (G92) and the LEADTEK in the listing... does this matter? would these be less hassle?

found the EVGA... its not the GTX+ though... "EVGA 512-P3-N871-AR GeForce 9800 GTX(G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

$144.99 - $134.99 -rebate"

thanks again!

Bit Shoveler · March 21, 2009

I like your original setup. The EP45-UD3P is a great mobo with lots of overclocking options, and the Q9550 is a potent quad core. The only weak link there is the 9500GT and the power supply - they're fine as a pair, but if you want a beefier video card, you might want a bigger power supply. I have the Antec 300 and it's a great value case with lots of airflow.

If you want Core i7, I'd wait a couple weeks for the 10.5.7 patch that will run natively on it.

For a CPU cooler, I'd suggest Xigmatek HDT-S1283 (works great for me), Scythe Mugen 2, or Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme (a.k.a. TRUE). They should handle most any quad core you can come up with. The cooler is only as good as the airflow through the case, so be sure you get a case that flows a lot of air.

Nick14 · March 21, 2009

The pc Should last 4 year if not even more as Top modern You can change the grafic card to ATI HD4850 For better preformace and less money but less any 9xxx series card will work for you perfectly