EDIT: !IMPORTANT! This is NOT an ad. I am NOT selling this PC right now, as I don't have any of these components (save motherboard). I want to stress that I am asking for advice about the components I chose, and the descriptions on why I chose them. I wrote this out as something that I intend to provide on some marketplace when I eventually do sell it. That's why it is reasonable to mistake this as an ad. But it isn't an ad.
I am asking this ultimately to make sure that I give people all the information they can need to make an informed decision. I'm basically trying to not make the mistakes others have made when selling a PC. And I'm curious what mistakes you consider that I've made if you were to read this.
I'm very open to advice to reword everything so there is no confusion on that. Sorry for that confusion. Actual ads on forums are very annoying, and I realize how this wasn't made clear, or walks that line in an annoying way.
------
So I've been researching a hopefully optimal, middle-range-ish gaming PC. I enjoy working on PC's as a hobby, and since I can't afford to keep building and keeping PCs, I thought I'd sell the next one that I build. I am not a fan of the flare and pomp that a lot of PC ads on Craigslist or Ebay have. They throw things like "amazing", "incredible", "overpowered" and many other buzzwords into a description, trying to oversell their computers. A lot of the times the completely omit what is actually in the PC. For example, saying "i5 Intel CPU" and not saying what model it is. It makes it impossible to validate the actual build price and compare to what they are charging.
Anyway, I've written out an extended explanation of each part and why I chose it. Whether it's why I chose it in general, or why it is the right choice given other parts I chose for the system. I intend to add a few additional details on each part, maybe above the "Why I Chose It?" part. For example, "3.8ghz base, 4.4 ghz OC" for the Ryzen 3600x, with an explanation giving other useful details like "4.4 ghz is not possible on all chips. There's a silicon lottery involved... etc etc." For now, I have this, and I am curious if other people think the descriptions are reasonable, the parts are reasonable, etc. I am very likely to forego the Ryzen 3070 because of limited availability during the timeframe that I want to build this and sell it (early November).
Thanks for taking a look:
Component List
List (Descriptions and Explanations Below List)
CPU: Ryzen 3600X {New} [$220]
MOBO: Gigabyte Auros Master x570 {Used}[New: $350 – My Used Value: $100]
RAM: G-SKILL Trident Z RGB 3600mhz 2x8 GB {New} (F4-3600C18D-16GTZRX) [$100]
GPU: RTX 3070 {New} [$500]
SSD (Boot Drive): SK Hynix Gold P31 1TB PCIe NVMe {New} [$130]
HDD (Secondary Drive): Seagate BarraCuda 2TB Internal HD [$55]
PSU: be quiet! Straight Power 11 650W [$120]:
COOLER: Scythe Fuma 2 Air Cooler [$55]
COOLER #2: Wraith Spire (Comes with CPU. Not used. Will be provided with box.) [$0]
CASE: be quiet! Pure Base 500DX Black, ATX Computer Case: [$100]
OS: Windows 10 Pro OEM: [$10]
EXTRAS: I purchase additional PSU cords that extend the length of the cables which allows for better cable management in some situations. They also have a different style than stock PSU cables, and provide better asthetics. This is not included in the base price.
Base Price Before Taxes: $1,390 USD
After Taxes: (Will be calculated with invoices when done)
Shipping Fees: Depends on Purchaser
Building Fee + Setup and Overclocking Charge: 12% of Base Total or $166.80
Total Price: To do
Ryzen 3600X
Why I chose this?
This CPU, along with its non-”X” variant, are widely considered to be the best value AMD Ryzen chip for a gaming PC on the market. Normally, the 3600x is approximately 50 dollars more than the 3600. And at that price increase, you do not get enough of a boost (200mhz more base & boost) to warrant going with that chip. However, I found a deal where I could get a brand new 3600x for only $5 more than the 3600. At that price, it was very worth the upgrade.
The newest Ryzen 3XXX series processors have finally met or exceeded the power and value of Intel CPUs when they were released last year. While some very powerful Intel chips on the high end of the spectrum
are still a great choice in the gaming PC market, the power of these new Ryzen chips at their very competitive price point makes them excellent choices at every end of the gaming PC pricing spectrum.
While it might make sense in a very high-end gaming PC to have a beefier, higher core-count chip, there is no need to exceed this Ryzen 3600x's 6 Cores and 12 Threads to game on the highest settings. Arguably, going beyond this premium moves into luxury territory where the dollar-per-power-increase yields diminishing returns. The majority of modern day video games still do not take advantage of a ton of cores. While some games are certainly are developed to utilize multiple cores and multiple threads, the majority of games do the lionshare of work on a primary core and its thread(s).
While your benchmark scores on something like Cinebench or 3D Mark (Cpu intensive benchmarks) will be notably lower than a Ryzen 3900x (12 cores / 24 threads), this same difference will not be noticed in real use cases, like the overwhelming majority of games and other applications that you would use. 3D modeling, animation, and video editing applications would be examples of exceptions to this.
Another thing that is important to note when picking a CPU, or upgrading a machine, is whether or not your CPU will throttle the performance of your graphics card. Luckily, the 3600x is at a great place in the processing power and price spectrum that will not throttle your components, and not likely throttle any components that you could upgrade to for years to come.
Gigabyte Auros Master x570 (This is lightly used!)
[New: ~$350 – Used Ebay: ~$125-250 – Value Applied By Me To Total Base PC Part Price: $100]
Why I chose this?
Of the dozens of available x570 motherboard variants, this model is nearly always ranked as the first or second best price for value. I recommend checking Youtube reviews to confirm this (as with everything I or any other PC seller says about their build. It is wise to be as informed as possible about your purchase.). It generally wins in every category except for overclocking. It normally comes in 2nd place to the MSI Godlike x570 (which is over $650 dollars).
I wanted to originally spec this machine out with a brand new motherboard so that everything was brand new, which gives the build its own, likely greater appeal. However, to keep the build at my target price, I would be relagated to a a board that is far less powerful and has less overclocking capabilities. This option could have been an x470 board, for example. The problem with that is that their prices have not reduced in any major and appreciable way after the release of the x570. The major difference between x470 and x570 is the explicit support for PCIe 4.0. It is possible to setup an older board to use it, but the boards were not designed for it, and it is not enabled under normal circumstances. This is not hugely relevant in 2020 because there is that nothing currently on the market besides the RTX 3090, or possibly RTX 3080, that would exceed PCIe 3.0 speeds and be throttled in performance.
Still, future upgrades could greatly benefit from the x570 chipset. Additionally, Ryzen 4XXX series processors will also be supported on this chipset (as well as the upcoming x670's), which further offers potential for if/when you decide to upgrade. Additionally, I chose this over B550 options as they are budget boards and not quite as efficient for overclocking, with less effective heatsinks, no NVMe lane covers/heatsinks, fewer PCI lanes, etc.
While I found several solid options that fell into the price range that worked in this build, I had an extra x570 motherboard lying around that might never otherwise get used again (Used for 6 months total). The new options were going to be a B550 model, so this is a very solid upgrade to the final rig. Additionally, because it is used, I could easily rationalize a fair value for it that fell into the $100-$150 range that I was looking at when settling on a motherboard. Note: the warranty is all yours, and hasn't been registered yet.
MEMORY (RAM): G-SKILL Trident Z RGB 3600mhz 2x8 GB
Why I chose this?
It is important to try to find memory from your motherboard's Qualified Vendor List (QVL). This ensures that the listed speeds are fully compatible at the advertised speeds. This was chosen as it is listed on the x570 Auros Master's QVL for the Ryzen “Matisse” (3XXX) series CPUs. It was also chosen due to its reasonable price compared to alternative options on the list.
Finally, 3600mhz was chosen as it is arguably the pinnacle of overclocking on Ryzen processors at this point in their evolution. Ryzen CPU's provide something called “fabric clock” which is used by Ryzen CPUs to link and coordinate functionality on the die, along with the memory. It works most efficiently in a 1 to 1 ratio with the memory clock. However, it only goes up to 3600mhz. Overclocking memory beyond that point may actually result in worse overall performance; at least until over 4000-4400mhz is achieved. Various videos on the internet can explain this, but it is generally considered that a 3600mhz Mem Clock to 3600mhz Fabric clock is the sweet spot for current generation AMD CPUs.
GRAPHICS CARD (GPU): TBD RTX 3070
* To do after specs come out. Based on limited availability, I may just want to find a good older card that hopefully is dramatically reduced in price in response to the new cards coming out? Fingers crossed that that even happens.*
STORAGE #1 (SSD): SK Hynix Gold P31 1TB PCIe NVMe
Why I chose this?
This is a very new SSD released by Hynix to challenge the most powerful SSDs on the market, such as the Samsung EVO 970 Plus. It is just as fast, but 73% cheaper. It is, in many situations, $100 less than a competing NVMe SSD that has the same read speeds, but slower write speeds. This was one of the easiest choices to make in this build.
STORAGE #2 (HDD): Seagate BarraCuda 2TB Internal HD
Why I chose this?
When building a gaming PC, it is wise to get an NVMe SSD as a boot drive for fast boot times and fast game load times. HDD's are still very useful as a backup storage device for anything that does not require performance loading. Storing all of your documents, music, and videos on an HDD is a wise decision; especially because they are cheaper and have more storage capacity. This, coupled with the fact that modern games take up a ton of space (often 50GB a game), having a secondary storage device for other beefy files like videos is a very nice (and cheap!) luxury option.
POWER SUPPLY (PSU): be quiet! Straight Power 11 650W
Why I chose this?
A power supply is often the biggest mistake a first time PC builder makes when constructing their rig. It is easy to think “electricity is electricity, so why not buy the cheapest option?” There is a critical reason to buy an established brand with a solid reputation, and not skimping on the expense: A power supply that fails can destroy multiple components in your system. A cheaper power supply will potentially be more likely to fail. And when it does, it will be more likely to destroy your motherboard and possibly other components. A higher quality PSU has fail safe measures that stop a power surge into the rest of the PC, confining damage from a surge to the PSU alone.
This “be quiet!” brand PSU is highly reliable, highly rated, modular, and more than sufficient for the power draw of the components in this rig. Modularity makes it a bit easier to cable manage, resulting in a cleaner looking PC. Additionally, having a little extra headroom in wattage will allow for you to upgrade your components in the future without needing to upgrade your PSU. Some components, like the RTX 3070 graphics card, can have highly variable power draw, which gives extra headroom that guarantees you will never have a PC shut down due to insufficient power.
CPU COOLER: Scythe Fuma 2 CPU Air Cooler
Why I chose this?
This is one of the highest rated heat sink air coolers on the market. It competes with the best Noctua fans available. This will allow for more than adequate thermals after the overclocking that I (or you) perfom on the pc.
STOCK CPU COOLER (NOT USED; PROVIDED IN BOX) Wraith Spire
Why this?
This is the free stock fan that comes with the Ryzen 3600x. It is completely inadequate for an overclocked CPU. It is barely adequate stock with no overclocking. Since this PC will be shipped to you overclocked, it is critical that a better heatsink is installed, which is why this is replaced by the Scythe Fuma 2. I will provide this fan in the box it comes in. IMPORTANT You should keep it in storage. Read the important notes below as this fan still plays a role in your Ryzen 3600x's warranty process. You may even be required to ship it with the CPU if you RMA the chip.
CASE: be quiet! Pure Base 500DX Black, ATX Computer Case
Why this?
This case has excellent thermal capabilities, solid cable management options, RGB, and is all for just $100 dollars. I chose this because it accomplishes all of that while being one of the highest ranked affordable mid-tower ATX form factor computer cases.
OS: Windows 10 Pro
This is just an OEM. It does not cost hundreds of dollars for Windows, like you might see in some advertisements. I have a USB stick with Windows 10 on it. I will install it, and purchase a 10 dollar OEM key which is a valid Windows key.
IMPORTANT NOTES!
- If you ever need to RMA your Ryzen 3600x, DO NOT tell them that you have used a Scythe Fuma 2 cooler on the CPU. The Wraith Spire that ships with the CPU will be supplied to you separately as it is free, or technically part of the purchase price of the part. In the fine print of the warranty stipulations on AMD's website, they say that using any cooler other than the one that came with the Ryzen 3600x will void the warranty. This is arguably absurd, but it is how they handle this warranty. To be fair, AMD has rapidly been making their stipulations more customer friendly. This may no longer apply when you run into the need to invoke your warranty. But it is still smart to keep this in mind.They may also tell you to return the Wraith Spire in the box along with the Ryzen 3600x if you RMA it, so keeping this fan may be wise.
- Warranty information for each component will be provided. I can ship all of the boxes of all of the components (will cost extra), or I can cut the serial number info off of each box, and ship that information with PC, or if close enough, the PC and all boxes can be handed off directly to the purchaser.
I am asking this ultimately to make sure that I give people all the information they can need to make an informed decision. I'm basically trying to not make the mistakes others have made when selling a PC. And I'm curious what mistakes you consider that I've made if you were to read this.
I'm very open to advice to reword everything so there is no confusion on that. Sorry for that confusion. Actual ads on forums are very annoying, and I realize how this wasn't made clear, or walks that line in an annoying way.
------
So I've been researching a hopefully optimal, middle-range-ish gaming PC. I enjoy working on PC's as a hobby, and since I can't afford to keep building and keeping PCs, I thought I'd sell the next one that I build. I am not a fan of the flare and pomp that a lot of PC ads on Craigslist or Ebay have. They throw things like "amazing", "incredible", "overpowered" and many other buzzwords into a description, trying to oversell their computers. A lot of the times the completely omit what is actually in the PC. For example, saying "i5 Intel CPU" and not saying what model it is. It makes it impossible to validate the actual build price and compare to what they are charging.
Anyway, I've written out an extended explanation of each part and why I chose it. Whether it's why I chose it in general, or why it is the right choice given other parts I chose for the system. I intend to add a few additional details on each part, maybe above the "Why I Chose It?" part. For example, "3.8ghz base, 4.4 ghz OC" for the Ryzen 3600x, with an explanation giving other useful details like "4.4 ghz is not possible on all chips. There's a silicon lottery involved... etc etc." For now, I have this, and I am curious if other people think the descriptions are reasonable, the parts are reasonable, etc. I am very likely to forego the Ryzen 3070 because of limited availability during the timeframe that I want to build this and sell it (early November).
Thanks for taking a look:
Component List
List (Descriptions and Explanations Below List)
CPU: Ryzen 3600X {New} [$220]
MOBO: Gigabyte Auros Master x570 {Used}[New: $350 – My Used Value: $100]
RAM: G-SKILL Trident Z RGB 3600mhz 2x8 GB {New} (F4-3600C18D-16GTZRX) [$100]
GPU: RTX 3070 {New} [$500]
SSD (Boot Drive): SK Hynix Gold P31 1TB PCIe NVMe {New} [$130]
HDD (Secondary Drive): Seagate BarraCuda 2TB Internal HD [$55]
PSU: be quiet! Straight Power 11 650W [$120]:
COOLER: Scythe Fuma 2 Air Cooler [$55]
COOLER #2: Wraith Spire (Comes with CPU. Not used. Will be provided with box.) [$0]
CASE: be quiet! Pure Base 500DX Black, ATX Computer Case: [$100]
OS: Windows 10 Pro OEM: [$10]
EXTRAS: I purchase additional PSU cords that extend the length of the cables which allows for better cable management in some situations. They also have a different style than stock PSU cables, and provide better asthetics. This is not included in the base price.
Base Price Before Taxes: $1,390 USD
After Taxes: (Will be calculated with invoices when done)
Shipping Fees: Depends on Purchaser
Building Fee + Setup and Overclocking Charge: 12% of Base Total or $166.80
Total Price: To do
Ryzen 3600X
Why I chose this?
This CPU, along with its non-”X” variant, are widely considered to be the best value AMD Ryzen chip for a gaming PC on the market. Normally, the 3600x is approximately 50 dollars more than the 3600. And at that price increase, you do not get enough of a boost (200mhz more base & boost) to warrant going with that chip. However, I found a deal where I could get a brand new 3600x for only $5 more than the 3600. At that price, it was very worth the upgrade.
The newest Ryzen 3XXX series processors have finally met or exceeded the power and value of Intel CPUs when they were released last year. While some very powerful Intel chips on the high end of the spectrum
are still a great choice in the gaming PC market, the power of these new Ryzen chips at their very competitive price point makes them excellent choices at every end of the gaming PC pricing spectrum.
While it might make sense in a very high-end gaming PC to have a beefier, higher core-count chip, there is no need to exceed this Ryzen 3600x's 6 Cores and 12 Threads to game on the highest settings. Arguably, going beyond this premium moves into luxury territory where the dollar-per-power-increase yields diminishing returns. The majority of modern day video games still do not take advantage of a ton of cores. While some games are certainly are developed to utilize multiple cores and multiple threads, the majority of games do the lionshare of work on a primary core and its thread(s).
While your benchmark scores on something like Cinebench or 3D Mark (Cpu intensive benchmarks) will be notably lower than a Ryzen 3900x (12 cores / 24 threads), this same difference will not be noticed in real use cases, like the overwhelming majority of games and other applications that you would use. 3D modeling, animation, and video editing applications would be examples of exceptions to this.
Another thing that is important to note when picking a CPU, or upgrading a machine, is whether or not your CPU will throttle the performance of your graphics card. Luckily, the 3600x is at a great place in the processing power and price spectrum that will not throttle your components, and not likely throttle any components that you could upgrade to for years to come.
Gigabyte Auros Master x570 (This is lightly used!)
[New: ~$350 – Used Ebay: ~$125-250 – Value Applied By Me To Total Base PC Part Price: $100]
Why I chose this?
Of the dozens of available x570 motherboard variants, this model is nearly always ranked as the first or second best price for value. I recommend checking Youtube reviews to confirm this (as with everything I or any other PC seller says about their build. It is wise to be as informed as possible about your purchase.). It generally wins in every category except for overclocking. It normally comes in 2nd place to the MSI Godlike x570 (which is over $650 dollars).
I wanted to originally spec this machine out with a brand new motherboard so that everything was brand new, which gives the build its own, likely greater appeal. However, to keep the build at my target price, I would be relagated to a a board that is far less powerful and has less overclocking capabilities. This option could have been an x470 board, for example. The problem with that is that their prices have not reduced in any major and appreciable way after the release of the x570. The major difference between x470 and x570 is the explicit support for PCIe 4.0. It is possible to setup an older board to use it, but the boards were not designed for it, and it is not enabled under normal circumstances. This is not hugely relevant in 2020 because there is that nothing currently on the market besides the RTX 3090, or possibly RTX 3080, that would exceed PCIe 3.0 speeds and be throttled in performance.
Still, future upgrades could greatly benefit from the x570 chipset. Additionally, Ryzen 4XXX series processors will also be supported on this chipset (as well as the upcoming x670's), which further offers potential for if/when you decide to upgrade. Additionally, I chose this over B550 options as they are budget boards and not quite as efficient for overclocking, with less effective heatsinks, no NVMe lane covers/heatsinks, fewer PCI lanes, etc.
While I found several solid options that fell into the price range that worked in this build, I had an extra x570 motherboard lying around that might never otherwise get used again (Used for 6 months total). The new options were going to be a B550 model, so this is a very solid upgrade to the final rig. Additionally, because it is used, I could easily rationalize a fair value for it that fell into the $100-$150 range that I was looking at when settling on a motherboard. Note: the warranty is all yours, and hasn't been registered yet.
MEMORY (RAM): G-SKILL Trident Z RGB 3600mhz 2x8 GB
Why I chose this?
It is important to try to find memory from your motherboard's Qualified Vendor List (QVL). This ensures that the listed speeds are fully compatible at the advertised speeds. This was chosen as it is listed on the x570 Auros Master's QVL for the Ryzen “Matisse” (3XXX) series CPUs. It was also chosen due to its reasonable price compared to alternative options on the list.
Finally, 3600mhz was chosen as it is arguably the pinnacle of overclocking on Ryzen processors at this point in their evolution. Ryzen CPU's provide something called “fabric clock” which is used by Ryzen CPUs to link and coordinate functionality on the die, along with the memory. It works most efficiently in a 1 to 1 ratio with the memory clock. However, it only goes up to 3600mhz. Overclocking memory beyond that point may actually result in worse overall performance; at least until over 4000-4400mhz is achieved. Various videos on the internet can explain this, but it is generally considered that a 3600mhz Mem Clock to 3600mhz Fabric clock is the sweet spot for current generation AMD CPUs.
GRAPHICS CARD (GPU): TBD RTX 3070
* To do after specs come out. Based on limited availability, I may just want to find a good older card that hopefully is dramatically reduced in price in response to the new cards coming out? Fingers crossed that that even happens.*
STORAGE #1 (SSD): SK Hynix Gold P31 1TB PCIe NVMe
Why I chose this?
This is a very new SSD released by Hynix to challenge the most powerful SSDs on the market, such as the Samsung EVO 970 Plus. It is just as fast, but 73% cheaper. It is, in many situations, $100 less than a competing NVMe SSD that has the same read speeds, but slower write speeds. This was one of the easiest choices to make in this build.
STORAGE #2 (HDD): Seagate BarraCuda 2TB Internal HD
Why I chose this?
When building a gaming PC, it is wise to get an NVMe SSD as a boot drive for fast boot times and fast game load times. HDD's are still very useful as a backup storage device for anything that does not require performance loading. Storing all of your documents, music, and videos on an HDD is a wise decision; especially because they are cheaper and have more storage capacity. This, coupled with the fact that modern games take up a ton of space (often 50GB a game), having a secondary storage device for other beefy files like videos is a very nice (and cheap!) luxury option.
POWER SUPPLY (PSU): be quiet! Straight Power 11 650W
Why I chose this?
A power supply is often the biggest mistake a first time PC builder makes when constructing their rig. It is easy to think “electricity is electricity, so why not buy the cheapest option?” There is a critical reason to buy an established brand with a solid reputation, and not skimping on the expense: A power supply that fails can destroy multiple components in your system. A cheaper power supply will potentially be more likely to fail. And when it does, it will be more likely to destroy your motherboard and possibly other components. A higher quality PSU has fail safe measures that stop a power surge into the rest of the PC, confining damage from a surge to the PSU alone.
This “be quiet!” brand PSU is highly reliable, highly rated, modular, and more than sufficient for the power draw of the components in this rig. Modularity makes it a bit easier to cable manage, resulting in a cleaner looking PC. Additionally, having a little extra headroom in wattage will allow for you to upgrade your components in the future without needing to upgrade your PSU. Some components, like the RTX 3070 graphics card, can have highly variable power draw, which gives extra headroom that guarantees you will never have a PC shut down due to insufficient power.
CPU COOLER: Scythe Fuma 2 CPU Air Cooler
Why I chose this?
This is one of the highest rated heat sink air coolers on the market. It competes with the best Noctua fans available. This will allow for more than adequate thermals after the overclocking that I (or you) perfom on the pc.
STOCK CPU COOLER (NOT USED; PROVIDED IN BOX) Wraith Spire
Why this?
This is the free stock fan that comes with the Ryzen 3600x. It is completely inadequate for an overclocked CPU. It is barely adequate stock with no overclocking. Since this PC will be shipped to you overclocked, it is critical that a better heatsink is installed, which is why this is replaced by the Scythe Fuma 2. I will provide this fan in the box it comes in. IMPORTANT You should keep it in storage. Read the important notes below as this fan still plays a role in your Ryzen 3600x's warranty process. You may even be required to ship it with the CPU if you RMA the chip.
CASE: be quiet! Pure Base 500DX Black, ATX Computer Case
Why this?
This case has excellent thermal capabilities, solid cable management options, RGB, and is all for just $100 dollars. I chose this because it accomplishes all of that while being one of the highest ranked affordable mid-tower ATX form factor computer cases.
OS: Windows 10 Pro
This is just an OEM. It does not cost hundreds of dollars for Windows, like you might see in some advertisements. I have a USB stick with Windows 10 on it. I will install it, and purchase a 10 dollar OEM key which is a valid Windows key.
IMPORTANT NOTES!
- If you ever need to RMA your Ryzen 3600x, DO NOT tell them that you have used a Scythe Fuma 2 cooler on the CPU. The Wraith Spire that ships with the CPU will be supplied to you separately as it is free, or technically part of the purchase price of the part. In the fine print of the warranty stipulations on AMD's website, they say that using any cooler other than the one that came with the Ryzen 3600x will void the warranty. This is arguably absurd, but it is how they handle this warranty. To be fair, AMD has rapidly been making their stipulations more customer friendly. This may no longer apply when you run into the need to invoke your warranty. But it is still smart to keep this in mind.They may also tell you to return the Wraith Spire in the box along with the Ryzen 3600x if you RMA it, so keeping this fan may be wise.
- Warranty information for each component will be provided. I can ship all of the boxes of all of the components (will cost extra), or I can cut the serial number info off of each box, and ship that information with PC, or if close enough, the PC and all boxes can be handed off directly to the purchaser.
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