How to Build a Hackintosh

For Video Editors

While the price and performance of this machine will benefit anyone, there’s a not-insignificant bonus for anyone who edits using Adobe Creative Suite products. This section is for video editors, so if you’re just interested in building the Hackintosh and don’t edit video, feel free to skip this page.

In February 2010 I wondered if editors were going to start switching to PCs in 2010, because of Adobe’s obvious performance advantage over Apple. What is this performance advantage? Well, Premiere Pro has a Mercury Playback Engine which puts its editing performance worlds ahead of Final Cut Pro 7. FCP 7 can’t edit DSLR footage natively; Adobe achieves this by using nVidia graphics cards to accelerate all manner of effects (in my testing, I’ve been able to get 5 streams of un-transcoded DSLR footage playing at once). Apple’s new NLE, Final Cut Pro X, utilizes any brand of GPU to accelerate DSLR (and other) editing functions, but many pro editors don’t feel FCP X is a viable solution.

If you’re an Adobe editor, then, I recommend a nVidia graphics card for this Hackintosh — which, I should note, is unavailable as an option on the Mac Pro. Your reward for spending $1,000 less on a Hackintosh is you’ll have a GPU that drastically accelerates Premiere Pro. In fact, for any operation that’s eligible for GPU acceleration, the GTX 285 is on average ten times faster than software-only. Other nVidia cards follow suit. Did I mention nVidia graphics cards are not available on a Mac Pro?

Here’s Adobe with a demo of the Mercury Playback Engine, if you’re not convinced; they’ve also set up a page for switchers.

Final Cut Pro to Premiere Pro

I’d previously switched to Premiere Pro from Final Cut, and it’s a painless process thanks to Adobe’s inclusion of Final Cut Pro keyboard shortcuts. As any editor knows, keyboard shortcuts are the key (ahem) to working efficiently, and switching NLEs can wreak havoc with your ability to edit quickly because your muscle memory tells you to reach for old keystrokes. To switch to the exact same keystrokes as Final Cut Pro 7, in Premiere Pro go to Edit -> Keyboard Customization… and select “Shortcuts for Final Cut Pro 7.0.”

Now FCP editors should feel right at home, with only minimal adjustments necessary.

Why not just switch to a PC?

According to Adobe, PCs get 3-5% better performance than Macs. So if Adobe is that much better than Final Cut Studio 2, why not just switch to a PC? Here’s why I think it’s worth it to stay on a Mac:

Small performance differences aside, most of us like OS X a lot more. In my case, I’m a lot more efficient with a Mac (I should note that I haven’t used Windows 7, but even the act of switching would come with a productivity hit).
Many of us are invested in a lot of Mac apps that don’t have Windows equivalents, or if they do, we’d have to buy new versions and learn them all over again.
Final Cut editors invariably have a lot of Mac-based projects – e.g. Final Cut timelines – that we will probably have to access/update/revisit at some point, and we can’t do that on a PC.
A lot of people hate the new Final Cut Pro X but still love Macs.

We’re building a high-powered PC that just happens to be perfect to use as a Mac. If you truly want the best of both worlds, you can dual boot and install Windows 7, too. Or if you fall out of love with Apple, you can just switch your Hackintosh into a Windows-only machine. It’s the best of both worlds.

Special considerations for video editors aside, let’s get started and build this machine.

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COMMENT POLICY

We’re all here for the same reason: to better ourselves as writers, directors, cinematographers, producers, photographers... whatever our creative pursuit. Criticism is valuable as long as it is constructive, but personal attacks are grounds for deletion; you don't have to agree with us to learn something. We’re all here to help each other, so thank you for adding to the conversation!

24 COMMENTS

Michael on 10.25.10 @ 9:35PM

Looks like a nice machine. Perhaps you might have been even better off for CS5 if you’d spent a few extra bucks on a GTX-480?

Reply
- Michael on 10.25.10 @ 9:43PM
  
  Whoops – should have read the whole article before I commented – I didn’t realize that the 480 doesn’t have drivers available for the Mac yet…
  
  Reply
August on 10.26.10 @ 12:07AM

I’d be curious to see the performance increase in Avid MC 5.0 too.

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Jeffro on 11.24.10 @ 12:47PM

I have been researching building a hackintosh just like this one. I am editing on Avid MC 5.0 and I have a system with almost identical specs [same mobo and proc] running on Win 7. On the PC side of things Avid is very particular and requires that you can only use a nVidia Quadro card. Have you tried to run Avid MC5 with this hackintosh build? Once I wrap a few projects and I have some time I am going to test it myself, but I was just wondering if you knew of anyone that did it.

Great article!

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Phil Hoyt on 11.30.10 @ 10:34AM

So Final Cut still works on these Hackintoshes right?

Reply
- Koo on 11.30.10 @ 12:23PM
  
  Of course — as far as any software is concerned, it’s just a Mac.
  
  Reply
  - Phil Hoyt on 12.1.10 @ 11:05AM
    
    Alright thanks. Someone was trying to convince me that it was impossible to get FCP to work on a Hackintosh but I’ll take your word over that.
    
    Reply
    - Ian McKenzie on 10.10.12 @ 10:49PM
      
      Im running the latest Final cut x 10.0.5 on my Hackintosh,with no problem at all ,i love it!
      
      Reply
Huster on 11.30.10 @ 8:36PM

Hey any chance of a duel boot option and how..Bootcamp maybe or…????

Reply
Draganche on 12.3.10 @ 3:54AM

Hi all
I finnaly made it,everything works perpect….
x58a udr3
i7 950
12gb kingston hiperx
palit gtx 460

except one thing
Mercury Playback Engine dont work in premiere pro
when I try to add my card in cuda_supported_cards.txt
got this error:

[ Error writing /Applications/Adobe Master Collection/Adobe Prem$…..
nvidia driver and cuda are latest…

i fallow the instruction on http://www.studio1productions.com/Articles/PremiereCS5.htm
but no succes,
anybody solw this?

Reply
alain on 12.6.10 @ 2:59AM

Hello,
Will a Hackpro work with Matrox MXO2 mini PCI card ?
I hope so.

http://www.matrox.com/video/en/products/mac/mxo2_family/mxo2_mini/

Reply
andreas on 03.18.11 @ 9:06AM

hey,
i wondered if there is a guide for installing windows on such a system?
i mean, i don’t think that bootcamp will work here anymore:-)

Reply
Shawn on 05.18.11 @ 8:41PM

Hi,
So I have the entire system up and running but I can’t watch any video in my web browsers. I have the tonymac nvidia drivers installed and the CUDA drivers. Any idea what it may be? Thank You in advance!

Reply
Luka on 06.13.11 @ 6:37PM

And if some one do not want to edit with CS5 Premiere pro and want to stick to final cut pro? is this Hacked machine working well wit Final Cut Pro?

Reply
Blake on 03.9.12 @ 4:45PM

The motherboard you listed here (Gigabyte Z68XP-UD5 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard GA-Z68XP-UD5) is no longer sold by Amazon. However, Amazon is selling a very similar motherboard (Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard GA-Z68X-UD7-B3). If you buy the Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard GA-Z68X-UD7-B3 over the one you listed, would it make a difference in terms of running Mac or its affect on the other components.

Please reply…

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Brett on 04.10.12 @ 11:01PM

WOW! I’m a film editor and am in hell with my early 2008 mac pro. It’s VERY MUCH time to upgrade and I was looking into $3000 mac pros and stumbled upon hackintosh. Amazing tutorial.

I have a question. I’m looking into all the parts. Does this Hack Pro zip along with FCPX? I’m using this computer for major film editing / music production/ graphics/ etc. – Just want to be sure the current configuration is best for me.

Thank you!!!!!!

Reply
alvinn on 05.11.12 @ 4:50AM

hi there, i am very keen to do ythe hackintosh, currently just build up a pc motherboard ausu p9x79 , processor is intel i7 3820 3.6 10mb, graphic card nvidia gtx 560 ti 2gb gddr5. currently running windows 7 pro on 1tb hard drive.
my question is is it possible to add in a hdd that will boot up in mac lion x or leapord? and have my system running on 2 os simillar to the parallel or boot system from ma?

if the answer is yes, could you highlight what other software and hardware that i will be needing for the built?

is it possible that i take out the hard drive of the window softward and re connect a hdd for mac os and later install the paraller program to run window os?

is there a hard ware that i could add to run both hard disc on paraller basis?

thanks and looking forward to your comment…

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Db on 06.15.12 @ 2:29PM

Is geekbench accurate in it’s scores where it shows that the new MacBook pro (2.3ghz) with retina display clocks in at 10894? And building a hackintosh tower clocks in at anywhere from 10000-12000? Is this accurate, because t might be worth the extra cash for me to just use amacbook pro for everything. Where would the hackintosh be superior? Thanks a lot

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kusanagi on 10.3.12 @ 11:35AM

Why not just switch to a PC?
( ProRes) ;) “the most important thing for me”

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kusanagi on 10.3.12 @ 11:37AM

I forgot !merci ! ^^

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Zeus on 10.18.12 @ 10:35AM

Well good job everyone who built there own. Most mac owners never realize what apple is doing to their rear end. Anyhow, you mentioned an os switch such as why not go to pc. Well as mentioned you have all your stuff in apple. Well switch ubuntu linux os. Linux can get amazing results and you can use any software on it. Just look up ubuntu. Its very pleasing to the eye and will impress all your friends that you not only made a computer but know how to use linux. Have fun film mac people.

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DTBDFilms on 12.12.12 @ 1:33AM

Have you tried out the Thunderbolt port with an input/output device like an AJA T-Tap, Blackmagic Design Intensity Extreme, etc? Am extremely curious as would be nice to only have to buy one of these i/o devices if you have a laptop or 2nd hackintosh.

Reply