Wondering if its worth it

toptyler · Apr 23, 2013

Right now i do not have alot of money as i am still in high school. I want to quit console gaming and have posted my ps3 on craigslist wanting to trade for a okayish gaming computer. My ps3 has about 20 games and $200 mic, few controllers etc, so basically its a good bundle. Well I got a reply and want to know what you guys think. Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask this kind of question but i don't want to get ripped off.

So he said: "it's a core 2 duo processor. 3 or 4 gigs of ram upgradeable to 8. It has windows 7 ultimate. 2 hard drives for a total of 500 gigs but you can add more hard drives if you want. a dvd burner, has a wireless internet card inside,. also you can put a quad core processor if you wanted to it is upgradeable. It also has a 1 gig nvidia video card it's the nvidia 8400 gs. the powersupply is 600 watts. "

I Just want to know if theres anything else i should ask him about it and if its a good deal or not. Or if i should just keep my ps3 in general and wait till around the end of the year to get some money.

I also have a desktop right now that i would probably not be using once i get a new computer and maybe i can use parts from it? not sure, thats why i'm here

By the way the games i would be playing are diablo 3, path of exile, elder scrolls online, WoW, guild wars 2, and other games similar to these.

USAFRet · Apr 23, 2013

Buying a used homebuilt is always a crapshoot.

"3 or 4 gigs of ram upgradeable to 8"
He doesn't know how much RAM?

"windows 7 ultimate"
Legal or pirated?

"also you can put a quad core processor if you wanted to"
That depends on the mobo

"the powersupply is 600 watts"
Good PSU or some no-name POC?

How was it put together? Is it ready to die from lack of maintenance? Does he have receipts for all the stuff?

I'd pass if it were me.

smeezekitty · Apr 23, 2013

toptyler :

A core 2 duo is decent but several generations old. I am running a C2D E6700 and it runs pretty well. What is the model and/or clock speed. If it is less then 2.33GHz or so then pass.

W7 Ultimate is a good deal and worth quite a bit in itself. 500gb is reasonable. Video card is weak (but better then onboard) and will likely need an upgrade if you plan on playing any 3d games.

Wolfshadw · Apr 23, 2013

I agree with USAFRet. If the seller/trader doesn't list or provide specific components, s/he either does not know (bad situation) or doesn't want you to know (even worse situation).

-Wolf sends

JD88 · Apr 23, 2013

Don't get that. It won't play any of those games at all. Sell the PS3 and save up $200-300 more and build you a PC that can actually play games.

USAFRet · Apr 23, 2013

If it were $75 or less I'd consider it. Maybe.

toptyler · Apr 23, 2013

JD88 :

How much should I save up? I'm actually planning on getting a job within a month for something to do over the summer. Also i would much rather a laptop than a desktop, mainly so i can take it to my girlfriends and sisters etc., so yea.

JD88 · Apr 23, 2013

For a desktop, I really don't recommend spending less than $500-600 for gaming. As for laptop, you need around $750-800 to get anything decent.

This Lenovo is really nice:

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=457&Code=59371952&category_id=6716C35E262487E9B548B6298FE58D3B

So if you can get $200 out of your PS3, you just need another $300-350 for a desktop or $550 for a laptop.

toptyler · Apr 23, 2013

JD88 :

Well with everything i have for my ps3 i can get around 300-350, but if i build a desktop i will need os, shell etc.

JD88 · Apr 23, 2013

You could build a decent desktop for $600 including OS and case.

smeezekitty · Apr 23, 2013

toptyler · Apr 23, 2013

JD88 :

Another question. This desktop i am on has windows 7 right now, if i build my own pc can i just remove the windows 7 off of this pc and use it on the new one? Also would i be able to use any parts from this to make my new pc cheaper? like ram and such?

smeezekitty · Apr 23, 2013

toptyler :

Since microsoft cannot tell, I do not think the activation would allow that.

JD88 · Apr 24, 2013

toptyler :

Possibly. I would need to see all of the specs of your current PC to know for sure.

toptyler · Apr 24, 2013

JD88 :

toptyler :

Possibly. I would need to see all of the specs of your current PC to know for sure.

Well its a dell inspiron 560 desktop, i got it like a year or 2 ago. its 6 gb ram etc.. i think 1tb hard drive

smeezekitty · Apr 24, 2013

I see it has X4500 graphics which means it has a G41 chipset.
It might very well have DDR2 RAM which will not work in new DDR3 boards.
PSU is 300w and is too weak to be practical now.
1TB hard disk is nice and might be the only part that would be worth reusing.

Kisianik · Apr 24, 2013

JD88 :

Dell sourced Windows can not be installed on non Dell PC, it is equal pirated copy at least, but, and, it would not work.
There is high probability that if you upgrade Inspiron 560 it will play all your games for less than new build, would you consider it, if yes please provide processor model you have now, RAM as well. I have Inspiron 570 with DDR3 RAM, and you should too since 560 is the Intel brother of AMD 570.

JD88 · Apr 24, 2013

I doubt you could salvage the processor, motherboard, or RAM. It looks like it has an older Pentium which just isn't going to cut it for gaming. Can probably use the hard drive, case, and optical drive though.

Kisianik · Apr 24, 2013

JD88 :

Well.
Inspiron 560 MT/560s tested by Dell processor list - Official Dell response.

Processor Number<>Processor Type<>cache<>Clock Speed<>Front Side Bus<>Package Type<>Thermal Design Power

Q8300 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor<>4 MB<>2.50 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>95W
Q8400 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor<>4 MB<>2.66 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>95W
Q9400 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor<>6 MB<>2.66 GHz<>1033 MHz<>LGA775<>95W
E3200 (560/560s)<>Intel® Celeron® Processor <>1 MB<>2.40 GHz<>800 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E3300 (560/560s)<>Intel® Celeron® Processor <>1 MB<>2.50 GHz<>800 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E5300 (560/560s)<>Intel® Pentium® Processor <>2 MB<>2.60 GHz<>800 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E5400 (560/560s)<>Intel® Pentium® Processor <>2 MB<>2.70 GHz<>800 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E6300 (560/560s)<>Intel® Pentium® Processor <>2 MB<>2.8 GHz <>1066 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E7500 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor <>3 MB<>2.93GHz<>1066 MHz <>LGA775<>65W
E6500 (560/560s)<>Intel® Pentium® Processor <>2 MB<>2.93 GHz<>1066 MHz<>LGA775<>65W
E8400 (560/560s)<>ntel® Core™2 Duo Processor <>6 MB<>3.0 GHz <>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>65W
E7600 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor <>3 MB<>3.06 GHz<>1066 MHz<>LGA775<>65W
E8500 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor <>6 MB<>3.16 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>65W
E8600 (560/560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor <>6 MB<>3.33 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>65W
450 (560/560s) <>Intel® Celeron® Processor <>512 KB<>2.20 GHz<>800 MHz<>LGA775<>35W
Q8200 (560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor <>4 MB <>2.33 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>95W
Q8400S (560s)<>Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor <>4 MB <>2.66 GHz<>1333 MHz<>LGA775<>65W

I put in BOLD the maximum validated processor, and it is not enough for games?
Q9400 eBay http://www.ebay.com/sch/Computer-Components-Parts-/175673/i.html?_sop=15&_from=R40&_nkw=Q9400
Also, RAM officially supported is 8GB, possibly can go to 16 GB 1333.

How about it? It is not just Pentium.

JD88 · Apr 24, 2013

Kisianik :

That is the list of all processors that were available as upgrade options through Dell custom ordering and/or the list of compatible CPUs for that motherboard. I highly doubt any of the brick and mortar retailers sold units equipped with a Q9400.

Having said that, I have no way of knowing if the OP did custom order it, but my suspicion is no.

If it were equipped with a Q8300 or better, he could probably just add a low end graphics card for sure. Would it be great? No. Would it be able to play most of the games he listed on medium to lower settings? Sure.

I certainly wouldn't suggest buying a Q9400 off eBay though and sticking it in that motherboard. I just don't think that would make practical sense in terms of value and longevity.

I'll be interested to find out which CPU it is for sure.

Kisianik · Apr 24, 2013

What is I have shown is the list of possibilities.
Yes, I seen many successful users purchasing CPU at eBay, otherwise it is very expensive.
So far not a single complain about bad CPU yet. I would not recommend PSU or GPU from eBay for sure, but CPU is OK.

toptyler · Apr 24, 2013

JD88 :

Kisianik :

That is the list of all processors that were available as upgrade options through Dell custom ordering and/or the list of compatible CPUs for that motherboard. I highly doubt any of the brick and mortar retailers sold units equipped with a Q9400.

Having said that, I have no way of knowing if the OP did custom order it, but my suspicion is no.

If it were equipped with a Q8300 or better, he could probably just add a low end graphics card for sure. Would it be great? No. Would it be able to play most of the games he listed on medium to lower settings? Sure.

I certainly wouldn't suggest buying a Q9400 off eBay though and sticking it in that motherboard. I just don't think that would make practical sense in terms of value and longevity.

I'll be interested to find out which CPU it is for sure.

When I get home ill will let u know specs

toptyler · Apr 24, 2013

Well it says
Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU E6700 @ 3.20GHz.
I'm also sure its 300w
So would it run any games if i were to put a graphic card in it?

smeezekitty · Apr 24, 2013

According to cpubenchmark.net that pentium isn't too bad with around 1800 points on passmark.
With an upgraded video card it will play many games reasonably well.

JD88 · Apr 24, 2013

toptyler :

That's what I thought....

Yeah, you could play D3, POE, and WoW on lower settings with something like a 7750. I would still recommend a PSU upgrade no matter what though. GW2 and ESO might be pushing it though.

Wondering if its worth it

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