Should i buy?

D

Dan Hunter

Active Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2012
Messages
348
Hey guys i am looking for a good desktop computer that can play even the toughest games on the highest quality settings, more specifically arma 3 on max settings no problem.

So i was browsing craigslist and found this:
"This is a custom built gaming PC, all components are less than one year old and has a fresh install of Windows 7 Home. The computer is overclocked to 4.5Ghz, runs stable and very cool with the aftermarket cooler, the case has excellent airflow and good cable management. The PC has no issues running most games (i.e. Crysis 2) on max settings. This is the computer tower only, but comes with original box for the case and mobo. Asking $800, but I will consider any reasonable offer.

MOTHERBOARD: ASUS P8Z68 V-Pro LGA
PROCESSOR: Intel i5 2500K (unlocked core) Sandy Bridge, 3.3 Ghz (3.7Ghz Turbo)
GRAPHICS: EVGA Super Clocked GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5
MEMORY: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9
MAIN HDD: Seagate Barracuda ST3320620AS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" (Perpendicular Recording Technology)
SSD CACHE: OCZ Synapse SSD Cache 64GB (this drive allows the PC to store the most commonly use data on the SSD for faster access) not used for storage.
CASE: RAIDMAX Skyline ATX-948WS Black / Silver ATX Mid Tower
PSU: Cooler master 650W, SLI ready
DISC DRIVE: SAMSUNG 20X DVD?R DVD Burner CD-ROM Black SATA Model SH-S203B
COOLING: CPU cooler is a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO, case has 4 x 120mm Fans
SOUND CARD: Dedicated Rocketfish X-fi 7.1 sound card"


This is 800$ is it a good buy? or should i do something else? What can you reccomend.

Original link: http://pensacola.craigslist.org/sys/3749352285.html
 
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No, not a good deal. I would just build my own for that price. You can get better equipment, new, for approximately the same amount. With discounts, I have a newegg build with a 3570k, gtx 660, 1tb caviar black, 8gb ram, better case, 80 plus gold psu (miles ahead likely of the one that comes with that build) at $850. If you can get the operating system for cheap from school for example, then you are coming out quite nice for only like $100 more than the asking price. Now I am sure you could talk him down a bit, but you have no idea how far he has tried overclocking, if there are any noticeable bugs that you might be hard pressed to detect, and the lack of warranties.
 
Challenge accepted! Will post an update on here after I do a quick price evaluation!

MOTHERBOARD: ASUS P8Z68 V-Pro LGA (Discontinued) Orig price; $210; current Amazon price $269.00

PROCESSOR: Intel i5 2500K (unlocked core) Sandy Bridge, 3.3 Ghz (3.7Ghz Turbo) Newegg $220

GRAPHICS: EVGA Super Clocked GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 (Newegg out of stock, Orig Price $255); close comparable cards priced at $190

MEMORY: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9
This memory is a LIE! Memory model is for a 16GB set, and the description is for an 8GB model. 16GB version is $125; 8GB is $65.

MAIN HDD: Seagate Barracuda ST3320620AS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" (Perpendicular Recording Technology) (Out of stock; Orig Newegg price $70) Comparable HDD price; $60

SSD CACHE: OCZ Synapse SSD Cache 64GB (this drive allows the PC to store the most commonly use data on the SSD for faster access) not used for storage.
Newegg refurbished model price: $55 (Now out of stock). Comparable models (new) price: $80

CASE: RAIDMAX Skyline ATX-948WS Black / Silver ATX Mid Tower
(Out of stock; Orig Newegg price: $37) Walmart price: $62.70

PSU: Cooler master 650W, SLI ready
Closest match: Coolermaster GX Series RS650-ACAAD3-US. $90 (the included model is most likely an older 650w)

DISC DRIVE: SAMSUNG 20X DVD?R DVD Burner CD-ROM Black SATA Model SH-S203B
Average Samsung Price: $20

COOLING: CPU cooler is a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO, case has 4 x 120mm Fans
Newegg price: $35

SOUND CARD: Dedicated Rocketfish X-fi 7.1 sound card"
(Out of stock) Est. Price: $15

Total original price estimate (when brand new): $1022
Selling price: $800
Estimated savings: $222

Is this a good deal?
NO.

Reason: Except for the 2500k, all other parts in this build are older and/or discontinued models. In fact, there are comparable parts that are now CHEAPER to buy, driving the price for building a similar system to be equal to his asking price, or more likely, lower. Add in the lack of warranty support (non-transferrable from original owner to secondary owner), and the value of this buy is even worse.

My estimated price for build: $550-600. Seller will balk, but there are primary issues to point out.
1) Non-transferrable warranty. So the primary benefit of buying EVGA cards are now null and void.
2) Listed RAM model does not match written description. This is an interesting problem because this is not a stupid, simple mistake (even though it sounds like one). How would a gamer, who built his own PC, forget how much RAM he installed? Pair that up with the complicated model that denotes a 16GB model, and not the 8GB he wrote, we got an issue to question how legitimate and honest he is.
3) Weak, and outdated hard drives. You can get almost 3x the space for the same ORIGINAL price with a regular HDD, including the SSD (which will require replacing now as well as its one of the first SSDs on the market)
4) Crappy case. No, really. It's a crap case. That's what I call any case for under $40, even $50 And no, the higher price from Wal-Mart gives it any legitimacy. It just points out that there are suckers who will pay too much for a crap product.

Compliments? The case is relatively clean. That's it.

Final decision: Do Not BUY!
 
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Snipeye great job! i will post his response here if he has one. I would like to thank you guys for the heads up! I work at burgerking, so i cant just buy stuff all willy nilly.
 
Here is a comparable build that is newer and better. Lacks an ssd, but a cache drive isn't that much or really worth it imo. A smallish full on 128gb ssd would be a wiser investment, though that could easily be a future upgrade to improve longevity of the build as well as lower immediate cost of the build.

2dqptv9.jpg


Now pricing relies on current sales and combos at the moment, so depending on when you buy, actual models may vary slightly but the general specs should be roughly the same. And again, you would still need the OS. Also, depending on your currently computer, you can hopefully reuse your dvd drive and possibly hdd if you want to save even more.

Additionally, here is a useful resource for arma iii performance:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?p=34723635

Looking at a gtx 660 vs a 560 Ti, 660 is about 50% faster. However, even with these cards at 1080p, you will likely only be able to tolerate very high quality as opposed to ultra. The game is just a resource hog. But the 2gb memory of the 660 will prove helpful as well for newer games compared to the 560 Ti's single gig.
 
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I'm your huckleberry said:
Here is a comparable build that is newer and better. Lacks an ssd, but a cache drive isn't that much or really worth it imo. A smallish full on 128gb ssd would be a wiser investment, though that could easily be a future upgrade to improve longevity of the build as well as lower immediate cost of the build.

2dqptv9.jpg


Now pricing relies on current sales and combos at the moment, so depending on when you buy, actual models may vary slightly but the general specs should be roughly the same. And again, you would still need the OS. Also, depending on your currently computer, you can hopefully reuse your dvd drive and possibly hdd if you want to save even more.

Additionally, here is a useful resource for arma iii performance:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?p=34723635

Looking at a gtx 660 vs a 560 Ti, 660 is about 50% faster. However, even with these cards at 1080p, you will likely only be able to tolerate very high quality as opposed to ultra. The game is just a resource hog. But the 2gb memory of the 660 will prove helpful as well for newer games compared to the 560 Ti's single gig.
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You could always save 50 dollars or so and go with a cheaper case that looks just fine. I have the HAF 912 and only paid 40 instead of the 90$ case that you chose.
 
fixitquick79 said:
What resolution are you playing at? You can play BF3 on ultra at 1080p on a 1GB 560Ti?
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Yes. I can play BF3 on 1080p with my Asus GTX560Ti twin frozr. The card has been discontinued from what I can find but it runs amazingly well. Ive already played arma 3 on max settings with no issues. And planetside 2 is not a demanding game - graphics wise.
 
Cloakedsphere said:
Yes. I can play BF3 on 1080p with my Asus GTX560Ti twin frozr. The card has been discontinued from what I can find but it runs amazingly well. Ive already played arma 3 on max settings with no issues. And planetside 2 is not a demanding game - graphics wise.
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Agreed on PS2 But I am surprised you can keep BF3 on ultra consistently above 40fps at 1080.
 
fixitquick79 said:
Agreed on PS2 But I am surprised you can keep BF3 on ultra consistently above 40fps at 1080.
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My 660 ti overclocked has trouble keeping a steady 60 fps on 1920x1080 in BF3 on ultra. On High it can do it easily. I see no difference between high and ultra tho, other than ultra has 2x AA and high does not.
 
fixitquick79 said:
Agreed on PS2 But I am surprised you can keep BF3 on ultra consistently above 40fps at 1080.
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I keep steady at around 50 FPS in the most intense parts of the game. (Massive explosions and bullets and everything all over the place on the screen all at once.) So yeah. I did alot of research on the card before getting it. I had it overclocked for awhile and it actually ran 5-10 FPS faster than previous clocks but I just reset it back to stock clocks because I was in a warmer climate at the time and wasnt able to cool my GPU good enough for my liking.
 
Cloakedsphere said:
I keep steady at around 50 FPS in the most intense parts of the game. (Massive explosions and bullets and everything all over the place on the screen all at once.) So yeah. I did alot of research on the card before getting it. I had it overclocked for awhile and it actually ran 5-10 FPS faster than previous clocks but I just reset it back to stock clocks because I was in a warmer climate at the time and wasnt able to cool my GPU good enough for my liking.
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Cool.
 
Cloakedsphere said:
Yes. I can play BF3 on 1080p with my Asus GTX560Ti twin frozr. The card has been discontinued from what I can find but it runs amazingly well. Ive already played arma 3 on max settings with no issues. And planetside 2 is not a demanding game - graphics wise.
Click to expand...

Question, do you mean Asus GTX 560 ti DirectCU II OC? Twin Frozr is for MSI, not Asus.
 
Also, note that GTX 660 and higher is on sale right now, with Metro: Last Light included for free. GTX 660 for 200 dollars vs 260 originally, and 660 ti for 275 vs 310. I got two 660 ti's in two way SLI now :)
 
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