PowerPC Quicksilver Mod AMD Hackintosh

[Explelsius]

I've decided to mdd an old Quicksilver into a AMD Hackintosh
Hopefully people will follow my progress!

So i started by removing all the powerpc components, removing standoffs and plastic covers, all those are now sanded and started to spray the front panel rear and apple logos in black matt.
Front IO board is done (Power, Reset and LED)
Waiting for the motherboard tray template and my father in law in having the I/O panel printed.

Will update more as progress continues.

Build:
AMD Ryzen 3900X
32GM DDR4 3200MHz Ram
1TB Nvme PCI4.0
RX 5500 XT 8GB Graphics

Running macOS Big Sur 11.3

 

[Macbookprodude]

That is genocide of a good running PowerPC Mac - you just did genocide against a PPC MAC.. not good besides, M1 will end hackintosh which I am glad.

 

[Explelsius]

Yeah this is true, i have 4 Quicksilvers and the one i stripped was beyond repair, as my working ppc is an mdd Dual 1.25GHz with Radeon 9800

 

[Macbookprodude]

do you use Mac OS 9 also with your MDD ? I always liked the MDD, but too many Macs I have.

 

[velocityg4]

Pretty neat. It's tough work. I did a G4 Frankenmac conversion around 12 years ago. Here's some highlights. It was a dead Gig E model I picked up for the case. I've still got it. It's just been collecting dust for years now. With most of the parts stripped out. Get it wired right and you may use the power and restart buttons. Plus you can power the LED.

My second and last attempt was a G5 conversion. It turned out better. I haven't done so again since the 3570K keeps on chugging. I'll do another G5 eventually. I plan on finding aluminum with the right hole pattern to cover up the DVD drive. Then solder it in place and finish the drill holes. Then replace the front panel with USB-C and a aftermarket power button. But that's just a someday sort of plan. As I have no needs for a new desktop yet. But that's a lot of work and I may just go with a really nice prefab case next time.

 

[Explelsius]

do you use Mac OS 9 also with your MDD ? I always liked the MDD, but too many Macs I have.

i run leopard so no macOS 9 but i used too when on tiger.

 

[Macbookprodude]

i run leopard so no macOS 9 but i used too when on tiger.

I might try to learn how to write TLS and certificates to get OS 9 to run modern websites.. I like OS 9.. and on this Titanium G4 1 GHZ it runs really nice.

 

[Project Alice]

besides, M1 will end hackintosh which I am glad.

🤦‍♂️
That is not a good thing man

 

[Macbookprodude]

🤦‍♂️
That is not a good thing man

Explain to me why ? Hackintosh has done nothing to help anything. Look at Psystar ? Remember how that went ?

 

[TheShortTimer]

🤦‍♂️
That is not a good thing man

Why will M1 bring an end to the Hackintosh scene?

 

[Macbookprodude]

Why will M1 bring an end to the Hackintosh scene?

M1 is a RISC processor, the cousin to the PowerPC.. how will bootcamp run on an M1 Mac, thats like saying Bootcamp will run on a PowerPC Mac ?? M1 will bring the end of the Hackintosh.

 

[TheShortTimer]

To avoid derailing someone else's thread and receiving yet another warning, I shall respond to you as politely as possible.

M1 is a RISC processor, the cousin to the PowerPC.. how will bootcamp run on an M1 Mac, thats like saying Bootcamp will run on a PowerPC Mac ?? M1 will bring the end of the Hackintosh.

It really would've been far more helpful and productive if instead of reacting in this manner, you had simply answered the question without this attitude. Which is exactly why I asked @Project Alice instead of you.

Be well.

 

[Project Alice]

Why will M1 bring an end to the Hackintosh scene?

When Intel Macs are inevitably dropped (prematurely) like PPC Macs were, macOS will not longer run on any x86 hardware. Hackintosh's have the same the life as Intel Macs.

 

[TheShortTimer]

When Intel Macs are inevitably dropped (prematurely) like PPC Macs were, macOS will not longer run on any x86 hardware. Hackintosh's have the same the life as Intel Macs.

Understood. Thank you.

In time, is it not conceivable that a new generation of Hackintosh machines based around the M1 CPU could arrive? Please excuse my ignorance in this area.

EDIT: I wonder if the prospect of cutting the legs off the Hackintosh scene had influenced their decision to switch to the ARM platform.

 

[repairedCheese]

When Intel Macs are inevitably dropped (prematurely) like PPC Macs were, macOS will not longer run on any x86 hardware. Hackintosh's have the same the life as Intel Macs.

Here's hoping ARM Hackintoshes are able to happen!

I can dream, can't I?

 

[Project Alice]

Understood. Thank you.

In time, is it not conceivable that a new generation of Hackintosh machines based around the M1 CPU could arrive? Please excuse my ignorance in this area.

EDIT: I wonder if the prospect of cutting the legs off the Hackintosh scene had influenced their decision to switch to the ARM platform.

Here's hoping ARM Hackintoshes are able to happen!

I can dream, can't I?

As much as I would love this to happen, I doubt it. The M1 may be ARM based at the core, but it's so much different too. The neural engine, integrated memory and all that stuff that is built in, I am honestly surprised that Big Sur is able to run both that and x86. No other ARM CPU is built like Apple's own. They might as well have made their own Arch.

The PS3's CPU can be an analogy here. It is PowerPC based, but it's so much different than any other PPC to exist. It only runs a special version of YDL aside from it's own OS.

Edit: I would like to get an M1 (or future version) ARM Mac and see what else it will actually be capable of running other than macOS.

 

[repairedCheese]

As much as I would love this to happen, I doubt it. The M1 may be ARM based at the core, but it's so much different too. The neural engine, integrated memory and all that stuff that is built in, I am honestly surprised that Big Sur is able to run both that and x86. No other ARM CPU is built like Apple's own. They might as well have made their own Arch.

The PS3's CPU can be an analogy here. It is PowerPC based, but it's so much different than any other PPC to exist. It only runs a special version of YDL aside from it's own OS.

I know, I know, which is why it's a dream, and nothing else. ARM SOCs are pretty wildly different from each other, from what I understand, so even if someone was somehow able to make a loader that could get it to boot, OS 11 would be incredibly broken, what with the lack of drivers.

That said, a dead PPC Mac is a good choice for a hackintosh case, and I fully support going Team Red with that, I've been on their side most of my life.

 

[Project Alice]

That said, a dead PPC Mac is a good choice for a hackintosh case, and I fully support going Team Red with that, I've been on their side most of my life.

I agree. I would love to use a dead one for that. Just not a working one. I have a dead MDD I wouldn't mind using but I'm pretty sure it's the PSU. These damn G4s are so reliable. I might try to acquire an already hollowed out QS case or something when I finally have the money for new parts...Or I'll just rebuild my Dell Dimension 3000 again instead.

 

[DearthnVader]

Quicksilver kit - The Laser Hive

Quicksilver kit

www.thelaserhive.com

I have two QS cases for donation and the costs of shipping, I've done these case conversion kits for the Laser Hive before, my son has one, they are top notch, if a little pricey.

 

[lowendlinux]

I have a feeling the smart people will get it going on off the shelf ARM but the integrated T-whatever is going to cause the most problems but given they'll have 2 to 4 years they might actually be able to make it work .

 

[velocityg4]

I have a feeling the smart people will get it going on off the shelf ARM but the integrated T-whatever is going to cause the most problems but given they'll have 2 to 4 years they might actually be able to make it work .

I think the biggest problem is drivers. Mainly GPU drivers. If there are no drivers. The parts won't work. At best you'll have a horrible experience. If the display works at all. It works now because you may use AMD drivers.

There can still be drivers if AMD support ever happens for ARM Macs. That's not just AMD making the drivers. Apple has to approve them. Otherwise we'd have nVidia support past High Sierra in the Mac Pro.

Architecturally, I couldn't say if Apple's implementation is too far away from other ARM CPU to work.

 

[uller6]

Understood. Thank you.

In time, is it not conceivable that a new generation of Hackintosh machines based around the M1 CPU could arrive? Please excuse my ignorance in this area.

EDIT: I wonder if the prospect of cutting the legs off the Hackintosh scene had influenced their decision to switch to the ARM platform.

Most people who have Hackintoshes are big Apple fans anyway, so I don't really think the Hackintosh scene motivated the architecture switch. Apple may have gone after Psystar (who tried to profit off Hackintoshes), but they haven't bothered to stop the hobbyists from playing around. I think the #1 reason to go the M# chips is how hot & bothered the Intel chips have been for the past 3-4 years. From the fan noise of recent Apple laptops I think the Intel chips must run on jet fuel. Of course, the old MDDs were affectionately called wind tunnels for a reason, and the G5s weren't what I would call quiet either.

My M1 air has no fan 🥰

 

[Explelsius]

Side panels nearly done!

 

[Explelsius]

 

[Explelsius]

Project is coming together