The short answer – it simply blows them all out of the water. However, as Max Yuryev points out in the comprehensive video below, building a Hackintosh isn’t for everybody. So, if you’re a professional filmmaker who doesn’t have the extra time to spend on building such a system, maybe it would be better for you to save all the hustle and bustle, shell out the extra money and get a genuine Apple product.
On all other occasions, building a custom Hackintosh seems to be a worthwhile investment on every level that will certainly provide exceptional performance for three, even four times less money than the amount you need to spend for let’s say a top-of-the-line Mac Pro. Of course, the final decision is always yours, but if you need some real-world benchmark tests to convince yourself, you can find plenty of those in the following video.
As we can see from the side by side comparison tests, this Skylake Hackintosh system is not only faster, but also stays cooler over time when maxed out. With the two GPUs, it also delivers blazing fast editing performance and excellent render times due to the latest optimizations of Final Cut Pro X. But even if you opt for a single GPU and choose Premiere Pro CC as your primary NLE, you can still expect similar performance.
As a rule, the three main components that you will need to be able to install the latest MacOS flawlessly are the Motherboard, CPU, and GPU you choose. That’s why Max highly recommends the Gigabyte motherboard below along with the i7 Skylake Quad Core processor and the XFX Radeon GPU. By the way, you can find those components in the latest Mac Pro 2013 as well. The rest of the hardware parts are expandable, so you have more room for experimentation in that regard. Having that said, here’s the full list of the components you will need to build this particular 2016 Skylake Hack system.
- Corsair Carbide Series 330R Blackout Edition Ultra-Silent Mid-Tower Case (B&H, Amazon)
- Gigabyte LGA1151 Intel Z170 ATX DDR4 Motherboard GA-Z170X (B&H, Amazon)
- Intel Core i7 6700K 4.00 GHz Unlocked Quad Core Skylake Desktop Processor (B&H, Amazon)
- Corsair Hydro Series H55 Quiet Edition Liquid CPU Cooler (B&H, Amazon)
- XFX RADEON Double D R9 280X GPU ( Amazon)
- Crucial 16GB Kit (8GBx2) DDR4 2133 (B&H, Amazon) or Crucial 16GBx2 32GB Kit (B&H, Amazon)
- Samsung 850 EVO – 250GB – M.2 SATA III Internal SSD (B&H, Amazon)
- EVGA 700 B1, 80+ Bronze 700W, Power Supply (B&H, Amazon)
- Kinivo BTD-300 Bluetooth 3.0 Low Energy USB Adapter (B&H, Amazon)
- FiiO E10K USB DAC and Headphone Amplifier (B&H, Amazon)
- Dell P2715Q 27″ Ultra HD 4K Monitor (B&H, Amazon)
- Apple Keyboard & Mouse (Amazon)
Meanwhile, Max and his team have put together an insightful step-by-step guide on building this system from scratch. So, if you are not sure whether you’ll be able to pull this assembly off entirely on your own, you can use all the tricks and tips their Patreon video provides. Here’s a quick preview of the more than an hour-long Hackintosh build and installation guide.
So, there you have it! For roughly $1,000 you can build a powerful machine that can handle a wide variety of system-intensive tasks while still taking advantage of the supremacy and flexibility the latest MacOS provides. And the best part is that it won’t cost you an arm and a leg, which makes it an extremely appealing solution for every filmmaker working on a shoestring budget who doesn’t want to make any compromise on efficiency and performance at the same time.
[source: Max Yuryev]
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The gtx1080 made macs completely obsolete for me. I have 2 macs and 3 iPads and love the aesthetics, but for 2K built an amazing machine that runs everything but final cut.
Why not final cut?
Because I use Windows 10 now
Because it’s not 2009 anymore
Thats right, but FCP seems positioned for the long term whereas PP seems strangled by its own architecture… just my unofficial and not so technical opinion….
Hate anything windows… so much configuring , tweeking, mucking around, pain in the….
Cool, although I don’t quite get hackintoshes. Isn’t the main point of macs ease of use for most people?
This is great for Mac users. They love to pay for info that is readily available for free …as well as having to be held by the hand to build a computer. I noticed there wasn’t a philips screw driver on that Amazon list.
Did you seriously link used videocard and still not hit your target price?
No it does not!
1. The only mac it beats is the trash can 3year old Mac Pro (the iMac is faster for editing with FCPX, a fact that max himself established)
2. Premiere pro runs faster on his hackintosh than FCPX what’s the point for Mac OS if the software optimised for it is slower (and we all know how slow premiere already is)
3. iMac is clearly better the hackintosh on export speeds
4. His Mac book pro test results are heavily flawed please check his 2014 vs 2015 Mac book pro test results with similar tests those Mac book pros are faster.
What does this tell u ?
forgot to mention that Imacs have a built in jet-speed wind tunnel.
so OS is exactly the same look and operation as MAC system?
Why are two video cards stuck in YouTube video? Please tell me.