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tintin220 · Dec 17, 2006, 01:05 PM

Alright, so after gutting a G4 iBook and failing miserably at trying to stick an intel in there, I've decided to try something new and well, less difficult.

I have here an eMac. It works okay, minus the screenburned CRT and since it is a flatscreen, the shape of the computer should fit an LCD perfectly.

So as you can guess, this is what I have planned. I'm gonna rip out the innards completely and replace them with ne wmodern parts, but for under $500.

- Abit nf-m2 nView mATX mobo (I figure this will fit for sure)
- Seagate barracuda 7200.9 (working on the mounting)
- 2x512 corsair value (since im trying to be cheap)
- LG 16X DVD±R Super-Multi DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM (seeing how this will fit the cd/dvd slot)
- ASUS GeForce 7300GT (should work fine... i hope)
- and last, but certainly not least, AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+(65W) (low power consumption to keep the heat down).

Less importantly, I wanted to maybe add a second HD and possibly a sweet sound card in there with pretty lights.

Now the thing is, I tried to pick parts that seemed like they wouldnt generate too much heat since I don't know what I will do for cooling. I'm looking at water cooling, but again, I wanna keep the budget down. As for the power supply, I got a new 400W one ripped from a defective rosewill case.

Any comments and recommendations, especially in regards to cooling, how I should mounth these parts, and port expansions would be awesome.

gooser · Dec 17, 2006, 01:18 PM

as long as it has pretty lights i'm sure it will be fine.

imitchellg5 · Dec 17, 2006, 03:07 PM

No AMD. OS X has never, ever, ran on AMD. Go Intel.

shifuimam · Dec 20, 2006, 09:27 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

No AMD. OS X has never, ever, ran on AMD. Go Intel.

Not true - it *technically* has run on AMD x86 processors.

But we can't post links to how-tos and we can't talk about this here. Installing OS X on any hardware that is not Apple-original hardware is a violation of the OS X EULA.

gooser · Dec 22, 2006, 12:04 AM

Originally Posted by shifuimam

Not true - it *technically* has run on AMD x86 processors.

But we can't post links to how-tos and we can't talk about this here. Installing OS X on any hardware that is not Apple-original hardware is a violation of the OS X EULA.

not looking for an argument here, but are you trying to say it's illegal to install osx on an emac? just because some of its innards are not original? could't the same be said of replacement memory, hard drives, etc? maybe a clamshell with a non-apple lcd and cables. (by the way i still wish you guys the best of luck with your project). now i can understand it being illegal on a dell, but deep down his project will still be an emac. (with pretty lights)

praterkeith · Dec 22, 2006, 01:26 AM

THAT'S a good point!

Waragainstsleep · Dec 22, 2006, 03:41 AM

Unsupported hardware is a pretty vague term. But an eMac with PC guts is not supported hardware. Supported hardware means a factory standard Mac, though you may add RAM, HD(s), and whatever displays and peripherals you like.

Gossamer · Dec 22, 2006, 10:29 AM

Originally Posted by praterkeith

THAT'S a good point!

No it's not.

Apple specifies that OS X cannot be installed on non-Apple hardware. What's the heart of Apple hardware? The motherboard with its EFI (and previously? ROM).
So even if you're going to try and sidestep that law by installing it in an Apple enclouse (laughable), you still cannot acquire the copy of OS X without either downloading it or reverse engineering the software (both illegal).
Oh, and if it's so wonderful and great and supported, do one thing for me. Open up Software Update, click "10.4.8 Combo Updater" and install it, then tell me how wonderful and supported it is.

imitchellg5 · Dec 28, 2006, 03:41 PM

Generally, Apple says to be supported, everything but the HD, RAM, and video card ( on Power Macs and Mac Pros) must be stock.

Gossamer · Dec 28, 2006, 04:22 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

Generally, Apple says to be supported, everything but the HD, RAM, and video card ( on Power Macs and Mac Pros) must be stock.

What about optical drives? Cases? Monitors? Keyboards and mice? Processors? I think anything but the motherboard can be swapped out.

imitchellg5 · Dec 28, 2006, 05:56 PM

Optical drives depend on Mac model and the optical drive manufacturer. Generally Apple will support Pioneer optical drives, since that is what almost every Mac ships with. However, Apple discourages putting new optical drives in notebooks. If you go in for an under warranty repair with a different optical drive installed in your notebook ( or sometimes desktop) Apple can choose not to repair it because you could have created the issue while replacing the drive. Apple cares nothing about keyboards and mice, or screen if it's not built in. Processor upgrades aren't even officially supported by OS X. Case modifications are not encouraged by Apple especially to notebooks and iMac and Mac minis because "any modifications may prohibit proper cooling." I've asked an Apple representative about that one personally when I wanted to modify my iMac G5s case. I would agree with him on that part, especially with iMacs. It's not really illegal to do this, it's just that if you ever want tech support or software support from Apple or any Apple Specialist, they will probably leave you in the dust.

shifuimam · Dec 29, 2006, 09:26 PM

Originally Posted by Gossamer

What about optical drives? Cases? Monitors? Keyboards and mice? Processors? I think anything but the motherboard can be swapped out.

Well, considering that AMD and Intel use completely different sockets, it would be impossible to switch out the processor without switching out the stock motherboard.

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

However, Apple discourages putting new optical drives in notebooks.

And sometimes doing so can render your notebook unable to boot from CD. I upgraded mine to Matsushita combo drive from a Compaq laptop, and I can't boot off an Ubuntu PowerPC Linux LiveCD anymore - I can only boot off a retail version of OS X 10.3, and even that only started working recently (I'm assuming due to a software update, although I don't know why that would affect the drive's ability to boot off a CD).

At any rate, the thing that will stop you is the TPM chip. The new EFI system on motherboards in Intel-based Macs have a chip on them that identifies them to the OS X installation disc. If you try to run that disc on hardware that doesn't have that chip, it won't even boot. Tampering with either the chip or with the installation disc in any way to bypass that anti-piracy checkpoint is a violation of the OS X EULA.

Gossamer · Jan 2, 2007, 03:21 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

If you go in for an under warranty repair with a different optical drive installed in your notebook ( or sometimes desktop) Apple can choose not to repair it because you could have created the issue while replacing the drive.

Is that because a non-Apple branded drive now resides where it once did not, or because the end user physically cracked the notebook's case open and performed the service?

Waragainstsleep · Jan 2, 2007, 04:48 PM

If the new optical drive is installed by an AASP, you might get away with it. But I doubt it.

Gossamer · Jan 3, 2007, 03:53 PM

At any rate shifuimam hit the nail on the head with the TPM chip.