Deadhold, the reincarnation of Myth (Gaming)

by narcogen , Andover, Massachusetts, Friday, March 27, 2015, 03:36 (3529 days ago) @ Cody Miller

If you want a gaming Mac, buy an old mac pro off of craigslist.

If you want a gaming Mac, build it.

http://www.tonymacx86.com/building-customac-buyers-guide-march-2015.html#CustoMac_Pro

Do you still need to run a modified version of OS X on those? Everybody I know with hackintoshes has tons of problems.

No, you just need a bootloader. If you choose your components for compatibilty (and the list is broader than what Apple actually puts into its machines) you can, and should, install from a retail disc. There are helpful installers to put on a USB stick so you can boot the machine and install the OS (unibeast) and helpful installers to add any drivers you might need (multibeast). But the days of having to add in multiple kernel extensions are largely over; there are only a couple that are actually required and the installers handle those as part of the installation process, but the OS itself is not patched the way it was in the very early days (kalyway, etc).

Also that seems wicked expensive. I clicked a link, and you're out 1,700 bucks for ONE Xeon 2.8 ghz. Most mac pros (Towers) have two. That's 3400 bucks right there, for just the processors.

That's the Socket 2011 build, not the "Custom Mac Pro" I linked to. Hardly anybody needs a Xeon. Myself I have an i7. I spent about $1800 total on the build including all new parts (Gigabyte UD5h mobo, 700W PSU, CPU i7 3770, Nvidia 660TI, Samsung SSD, 16GB RAM, 14TB of storage (some were drives I already had) and a Blackmagic Intensity shuttle for HDMI capture. Some of this stuff was more expensive because I either had to ship it halfway across the world because it wasn't available here, or because in the local market it was more expensive (markup can range from 20% to 100% depending on the item).

Legit Apple hardware over here also has a lot of markup, and generally the inventory is old, sometimes an entire cycle or more behind.

For instance, here's a Mac Mini for sale in the local market:

http://www.alser.kz/product/kompyuter_apple_mac_mini_a1347_intel_core_i5/197/1822

They are selling a machine that is three years old-- it shipped with Mountain Lion-- for $981. It comes with 4Gb RAM and 500Gb HD, and a 2.5Ghz i5.

The US Apple store currently sells a 2.8Ghz i5 with twice the RAM, twice the storage, Iris graphics and Yosemite for only $19 more.

Of course, if you're in the US, Canada, or even continental europe, the markups are not quite as steep and the inventory not as old, but you get the idea.

On the absoutely top end of the scale, you can probably get more raw power more economically by buying one of the new Pros, if that configuration suits you.

It's the broad midrange between "I need more expansion than you can get in a Mini or an iMac" (which is none) and "I want something less expensive than a new Mac Pro" where you can build a tower in the $600 - $1700 range. I've done it twice now and will probably do it again sometime in the next 5 years.