crazy diy mac project

[khushy]

so . . . with time on my hands, I have been thinking about a new project.

Am not really a computer techie - but have, for the last 20 years, always built my own PC's from scratch for my business etc etc

I have an old Marantz CD player that is about to call it quits after 31 years of faultless service and with TIDAL, its almost redundant anyway. I would like to utilise the mint/unmarked and as new case and build a MAC inside it as a bit of a feature for our living room.

Any hints/tips/recommendations/ideas would be much appreciated. Detailed Spec, must haves, avoids etc

Am pretty handy with any DIY/mechanical stuff

[thebraketester]

Gut the insides and put a mac mini in it?

[plasticpig]

As above. Apple only licence Mac OS on Apple hardware. So unless you want break Apple's licencing that's the best bet.

[NoTreadLeft]

Search for "hackintosh" if you really want to learn about DIYing a Mac, but I'd strongly recommend against unless you want to learn a lot about MacOS internals. My experience (which I admit may be well out of date) was that they work well as long as you NEVER update the OS. Upgrades are really pretty scary and I'd never entrust remotely important data to a hackintosh.

As above, I'd go down the mac mini route if I were you.

[deggles]

There are 'hackintosh' options (Mac OS on non-Apple hardware):
https://hackintosher.com/guides/guide-to-fresh-ins...

...but I'm not sure why you'd bother. Internals from a Mac Mini or a Macbook would probably be easier.

edit: beaten to it

[plasticpig]

NoTreadLeft said:

Search for "hackintosh" if you really want to learn about DIYing a Mac, but I'd strongly recommend against unless you want to learn a lot about MacOS internals. My experience (which I admit may be well out of date) was that they work well as long as you NEVER update the OS. Upgrades are really pretty scary and I'd never entrust remotely important data to a hackintosh.

As above, I'd go down the mac mini route if I were you.

The other alternative is to run the Mac as a virtual machine which can work quite well.

[AJB88]

Gut it, put a Mac Mini it, happy days.

[khushy]

good advice

So - using a mac mini - what would be the best way to extend the USB C inputs etc so that I could add sockets onto the chassis of the hifi unit?

thanks

[thebraketester]

Cut a hole in the back of the CD player case and mount the Mac mini in such a way that all rear ports are accessible

[mmm-five]

khushy said:

good advice

So - using a mac mini - what would be the best way to extend the USB C inputs etc so that I could add sockets onto the chassis of the hifi unit?

thanks

I assume you know there's no DVD/CD drive in the latest Mac Mini (well, not since 2011-ish).

All the sockets (and power button) are at the back of the Mini, so either mount it right at the back of your case and cut a slot for them so you can simply plug in & out as required (and turn it on) - or use one of the USB3 hubs and an extension cable to a an external USB hub to make less visible (and so that you can paint/disguise the hub to blend into the panel on the back of the Marantz case.

Having them at the back means the whole unit will be hidden from front/side views - and your wireless mouse/keyboard should still work fine. WiFi signal may be a bit worse as you've got it inside another 2nd metal case.

[khushy]

cheers guys/gals I will start looking for a suitable MAC mini - its really only going to be used for streaming and internet browsing etc so nothing too complicated.

[Troubleatmill]

khushy said:

cheers guys/gals I will start looking for a suitable MAC mini - its really only going to be used for streaming and internet browsing etc so nothing too complicated.

If it is not Sky Go streaming - ( it isn't beefy enough It is 2009 or 2010 IIRC - no USB C ports) I have a unit you can have for postage and a charitable donation.
( Re-Education for Remainers, Bibles for Belgiums etc )

I just need to wipe the drive.
( I need to dig it out of a cupboard first )

Edited by Troubleatmill on Monday 13th April 18:19

[anonymous-user]

Check out VNC viewer, you can view and control your desktop with a smart phone, which would negate the need for a screen, keyboard or mouse. I've been using it for the last week or so and its been flawless. Its free with no adverts if you aren't using it for business purposes