Second hand CPU & mobo for $200

[Eddles]

Hi all,

Have decided to get back into gaming casually and am looking to build a PC. I've got all parts apart from the CPU and motherboard - is it worth getting high end CPUs second hand or lower end CPUs new? For example, I found a I7 3820 for $75 used, is this a good start, or should I go higher used, or forget it?

For example, the Passmark for the used I7 3820 is 8993 and for the new G4560 is 5038.

The computer will only be used for gaming.

Many thanks!

 

[Trafalgar747]

Don''t bother with a used i7. A G4560 is comparable to a 2nd Gen i5, but I would probably still go for the G4560. It will be a safer bet in terms of reliability, it will be more efficient, and you will have a much better upgrade choices regarding a newer i5/i7 and newer technology like optane etc.

May I ask what the rest of the components are?

 

[Eddles]

Thanks for your response!

I had a spare workstation computer (HP xw6600 with two Xeon E5440 cpus) that I thought I'd repurpose as a low end gaming rig, but it lacked the 6pin power plugs, so got an used GTX950 - waiting for it to arrive. Unfortunately I've recently found my server I set up is faulty and unreliable so have decided to use the xw6600 as the server, and build a new gaming rig using the faulty server as a base. I'm now annoyed that I got the GTX 950 as the faulty server's PSU has 6 pin power plugs. I've already got a 256gb Samsung SSD which will go in the gaming computer.

 

[Trafalgar747]

Check and see what power supply your PC has. There is a high possibility that it wont handle dedicated graphics cards.

 

[Eddles]

The GTX950 is the fastest graphics card without needing an external power supply so it'll work just fine. Hopefully. It's this one I'm getting - https://techreport.com/news/29807/asus-geforce-gtx-950-2g-can-run-without-a-6-pin-power-plug

I've done a bit more research and have expanded my budget a bit and my list now contains (all new)

i5-7400 CPU
Gigabyte Z270P-D3 motherboard
Ballistix 4GB DDR-2400 RAM (single stick)
Antec VP-450P PSU (just checked, and unfortunately my existing PSU doesn't have the 12v 4x4 plug)

Is this a good starting point?

Many thanks again!

 

[Trafalgar747]

An i7 2400 with a GTX 950? Now way. Have you already bought the GTX 950 or can you return it etc?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($59.48 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Crucial - Ballistix Sport LT 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX 580 4GB Gaming 4G Video Card ($188.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $408.34
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-05-06 19:57 EDT-0400

 

[Eddles]

Ah OK so I should focus on the graphics card rather than the CPU. Unfortunately the RX 580 is rather pricey in my country (UK) - coming in at $246. I've had a quick look around and spotted an Asus GTX 1060 3GB for $218 - looking at passmark, the GTX 1060 should be faster than the RX 580 - is this the case?

The cheapest prices for the following I could find:
CPU - G4560 - $68.70
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-B250M-D2V - $80.10 (cheapest B250 motherboard I could find)
Memory - Corsair Vengeance LPX Red 4GB (1x4GB) - pair - $80.46
PSU - Corsair VS Series 450 Watt Power Supply - $44.10

Total - $491.36 - busting my budget by quite a lot! Is this list a good start?

Thank you so very much, you've been awesomely helpful!

 

[Trafalgar747]

The VS series of corsair is poor quality. The RX 580 is better than a 1060 3GB.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Pentium G4560 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor (£51.99 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME B250M-K Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£59.39 @ Aria PC)
Memory: Crucial - Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (£49.25 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: Gigabyte - Radeon RX 580 4GB Gaming 4G Video Card (£189.95 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£48.95 @ Ebuyer)
Total: £399.53
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-05-07 22:06 BST+0100

 

[Eddles]

Wow, there's an UK version of PC Part Picker - excellent - thank you very much! How can I thank you for all your time?

 

[Trafalgar747]

This is what I enjoy doing, your welcome. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask in the future.

 

[Eddles]

Thanks!

Quick question - is the 8GB version of the RX 580 worth the £30/$39 cost over the 4GB version?

Cheers again!

 

[Trafalgar747]

Well, yes. It offers slightly more power, and will last for longer in more VRAM demanding games, and some games require a min of 6GB for a particular GPU preset. It depends if you have the extra cash to spare.