Requesting Gaming Computer Advice

[FR4NOx]

Hey everyone,

I've been wanting to fix my old desktop since I fried the motherboard (never OC ECS motherboards....) but since it's a motherboard repair, I'm wondering if I should just buy an aged gaming computer off of craigslist.

Also, I wanted better performance than my old computer provided I couldn't record LFS without a massive frameloss, and my current laptop can't even run AA in LFS without starting up in a black screen. I don't need the latest and greatest hardware, since I run older/less demanding games like SimCity 4, Sims 3, LFS and Minecraft.
Whatever I do, this computer will strictly be a gaming computer, my laptop is powerful enough to run everything else.

So, I came up with a few options and I found a few local listings.

Option #1 (Click to View)

Repair the old PC, don't upgrade.

Specs (Click to View)

Intel Pentium Dual-Core E5300 2.6GHz Socket 775, cooled with OEM Coolermaster cooler (works VERY well)
750GB 5400rpm hard drive (It's a Seagate 7200 series...I think the manufacturer was sneaky with the motherboard BIOS and slowed the drive down to reduce sound)
XFX GT 240 1GB DDR5
Thermaltake TR2 600W PSU (too much power, I know)
And some shitty ECS motherboard.

*Note* I'm not sure if the processor was also damaged

I would spend about USD$150 ($100 Windows, $50 motherboard, and a few bucks on thermal paste) on parts and repair it myself, along with formatting the hard drive and finding a home for some very, very precious files on the drive. The performance would bug me, since even my laptop can record just fine.

Just saw: While looking for the other items I was looking at, I found a listing for a Q6600 for $100...even further across the state...that I could use.

Option #2 (Click to View)

Sell whatever I can to get $500 for this:

"I am selling my Core 2 Quad computer. I built it my self. It has the following:

Antec Case
Gigabyte mother board
Core 2 Quad Q6600 CPU
Coresair Power Supply
6 gigs of ram
500gb HDD (with windows 7 installed)
DVD drive/ burner
Media Drives
Nvidia Geforce GTX 260

I am located in Merrimack, NH. Local pickup, but I am willing to drive a few min out if needed."

I would also have to factor in the hour-long road trip across New Hampshire to get it.

Option #3 (Click to View)

Here's a Core 2 Duo E6850 with an 8800GTX for $400, right where I live. It also comes with a monitor, mouse, and keyboard, which i nice because my emachines monitor flickers when I use it with my laptop, makes me wonder if it's going to last.

"Selling a PC I don't use anymore. This PC comes with a 20.1" widescreen monitor, keyboard and mouse, and is ready to plug in and go.

I'm asking $400 or best offer for this whole rig, OBO. No trades, cash only. I would prefer local pick-up.

Specs:

Lian-Li PC-65B Case (w/ side window)
Abit IP35 Pro Motherboard
Antec TPII-550 550W Power Supply
Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 (3GHz) CPU
Corsair Dominator DDR2 8GB (2x4GB) RAM
Geforce 8800GTX Video Card
WD Caviar Blue 250GB Hard Drive
Plextor PX-716A DVD Burner
Dell 2005FPW widescreen 20.1" Monitor
Keyboard
Logitech Laser Mouse

I have also installed some software, including:

Windows 7 x64
Microsoft Security Essentials (antivirus)
Adobe Reader X
CDBurnerXP (free DVD/CD burning software)
And whatever other free software you might want me to install"

I'm not sure about the older 8800GTX, I think by now my GT 240 is nearly as good as it, and cooler!

Option #4 (Click to View)

This is more expensive, but features a GTX 295 and a Phenom II 940. The seller is just south of my "city".

"Hey there,

I am selling my gaming PC

Asking 685.00 or best offer.
Sorry no trades.

Specs:

Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe/HDMI AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA nForce 780a SLI HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Deneb 3.20GHz Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor
BFG Tech. Nvidia GeForce GTX 295(dual-card) 1792MB DDR3 GPU
Mushkin Enhanced Blackline 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit
Antec CP-1000 1000W Continuous ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
Western Digital BLK 500GB HDD

I also have two 22" monitors, if you want one or two. Make me an offer.

If you have any questions at all please just ask. TXTs are welcome, 603-XXX-XXXX

Thanks for looking!

Rob"

I did find a GTX 295 without a box or any software for $150, so putting that into the $500 would make that rig cheaper than this one.

---

I also found some random parts that could be of use that I may have mentioned earlier:

-C2D 2.13GHz - $30
-C2Q 2.4GHz - $100
-GTX 295 - $150
- 2 GTX 480s - $350
- 9800GT 1GB "Eco" - around $40 i think

---

As I previously mentioned, I wanted to use this system purely for playing games and recording them. I'm on a tight budget, but I can sell/save for whatever is worth it.

So, can you help me out?


Thanks in advance


-Kenwood

[Zipppy]

I'd say if you want gaming, IMO, try going for the fastest CPU, and get a new mobo that supports SLI, (use the two GTX480s). The 600W PSU should run those nicely at stock speed. Quad cores are getting popular now.


I can't really decide on what would be the best choice for you.

I'm in progress of upgrading my PC, buying parts 1 by 1, next on the list is the RAM and motherboard for me.

[FR4NOx]

Well, I don't mean I need a "uber future proofed gaming murderer" like sandy bridge-e/Ivy lol.

The catch with my Tr2 PSU is that it doesn't support SLI/Crossfire. Soooo yeah. I want to stay on the cheaper side too.

I was planning on upgrading my system piece-by-piece in the past but I honestly need a total PC upgrade lol. Pentium's not powerful enough!

For the sake of money, I'll probably go with the GTX 295 if I upgrade my machine, I don't mind having older hardware and for $150 it seems like a really good deal. (GTX 295 is a dual processor GPU, was probably over $500 new a few years ago)

I'm not going to go with Option #4 because it's pretty outdated (DDR2? AM2+? dafuq?) and is way overpriced, even if I negotiated the price down a LOT.

No matter what, I'm probably going to get the 295 because I really think it's worth the money.

Any other suggestions?

---

By the way, Zipppy, you have a tri-core right? How well does it perform?

I know my i5-2430m is all the power I need, since hyperthreading handles fraps pretty well.

[Zipppy]

Mine works okay, but it's most likely being bottlenecked a bit by my mobo, and it's quite hard to overclock, probably due to my low-end mobo as well. Strange enough, it struggles badly in Fraps now, and it's strangely running hotter than usual over the past week. I have an AMD Athlon II X3 445.

[FR4NOx]

(2012-05-08 21:27)Zipppy Wrote:  Strange enough, it struggles badly in Fraps now, and it's strangely running hotter than usual over the past week.

That's probably because of your issue in your thread.

[Zipppy]

Yes, most likely.

[FR4NOx]

OK, so I figured if I sold my laptop I would be able to get a better computer, and simplify it by having all of my files on one computer, and i can take the power with me.

I'm looking at these two Sager laptops, one's a 11.6" and one's a 15.6". The major difference between the two is the graphics card, and mobility.

http://sagernotebook.com/index.php?page=...ame=NP6110

http://sagernotebook.com/index.php?page=...ame=NP6165

Or I could upgrade to this one, with a better graphics card and I believe the ability to ugrade the GPU at a later time:
http://sagernotebook.com/index.php?page=...ame=NP9130

All of these are going to have the base 3rd gen i7.

I'd like to keep it around $1000, cheaper is better. I can pay more, but I just want to get what's reccomended.

I don't have time post much, I'll add more later.