The Benchmarks
In Part 1 I explained my thinking behind building a Hackintosh and listed the parts. Part 2 covered the build. Now lets look at how this machine performs compared to other known systems.
First lets compare some Geekbench scores. It’s a good comparison as Geekbench tests the system but it’s not really a great test for real world operations like running DaVinci Resolve. It also does not take into account what GPU you have installed.
You can find scores for standard Mac systems here: browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks
Lets look at the 2 systems I now have.
MacBook Pro (Late 2011 17″ model)
Intel Core i7 2.5GHz
8GB 1333 MHz DDR3 RAM
AMD Radeon HD 6770M 1GB Graphics Card
SSD System Drive
This machine manages a Geekbench Score of 10457 (32bit mode) – That is pretty close to the standard system listed.
Hackintosh
Intel Core i7 3.5GHz
Asus P8Z77-V Premium Motherboard
16GB RAM
2 x EVGA Geforce GTX 670 4GB FTW
SSD System Drive
Stock set-up running at 3.5GHz with RAM running a 1333MHz it manages a Geekbench score of 13153 (64bit mode)
That’s about the same as the current 27″ iMac.
Over-clocked at a stable 4.2GHz with RAM running at 1600MHz it manages a Geekbench score of 15687 (64bit mode)
That’s closer to a Mac Pro (Mid 2010) with 6 core Intel Xeon processor
I’m happy with that.
Now lets look at some real world tests by running the Standard Candle Test in Resolve 9.1.4.
MacBook Pro
No corrections = 24 FPS
4 blur nodes = 7 FPS
8 blur nodes = 4 FPS
16 blur nodes = 2 FPS
32 blur nodes = 1 FPS
64 blur nodes = 0.5 FPS
NR is not supported on ATI cards
Hackintosh
No corrections = 24 FPS
4 blur nodes = 24 FPS
8 blur nodes = 24 FPS
16 blur nodes = 24 FPS
32 blur nodes = 14 FPS
64 blur nodes = 7 FPS
1 NR node = 20 FPS
3 NR nodes = 7 FPS
6 NR nodes = 4 FPS
With this set-up I’m running DaVinci Resolve and colour grading RAW CinemaDNG footage from the Blackmagic Cinema Camera. Resolve is able to playback in realtime with 6 or 7 nodes, including noise reduction without a hitch.
Is this a system I’d install in a high end post production facility? No, not at all. For mission critical commercial work you would want a dedicated high end Mac Pro with a Cubix Expansion Chassis for your GPUs or you would be running a Linux based system. These systems come at a huge cost tho. Not a problem if you clients can afford to fund them.
In my case this system is used for my own personal projects and for work where clients can’t afford having their post production done in a high end facility. It’s stable and it earns it’s keep. It’s better than and iMac and while we wait for the New Mac Pros to start shipping I’m able to comfortably work with RAW CinemaDNG footage at 2.5k. Can’t ask more than that for the £2350 price tag.
That price could easily be lowered if you already own a display and you don’t need Thunderbolt.
By using a motherboard without Thunderbolt and only installing a single GTX670 2GB card (using a cheaper graphics card like the GT640 for the GUI) you would bring the cost down to the £1k mark. View my amazon store for the parts list on a budget build.
If you are interested in building your own Hackintosh I’ve listed all the parts I used on my Amazon UK Store and my Amazon US Store.
For help with your build and advice on other components check out the forums on www.tonymacx86.com