Is the (raw performance) of Core2 Duo/Quad still viable?

[Denithor]

And then there's my attempts at budget gaming rigs, with overclocked G3258 CPUs and Skylake G3900 CPUs.
And GTX950 2GB video cards. Cheapest with Windows 10, is around $450. (Those machines would make a damn fine Facebook boxes, too.)

Ouch.

Just buy a Dell with an i5, 4GB, 250-1000GB off eBay for like $100-120. Drop in a refurbished Intel 320 160GB SSD (also eBay, ~$35), install W10 (still free on Dell OEMs). Add a 1050 ($120) or 1050Ti ($140?) and you're done. Probably not even needing a new PSU due to low power requirement of those cards. Total is like $275-300 and will destroy your gaming builds.

Like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Optipl...d-Core-4GB-DDR3-250GB-HDD-No-OS-/262723160230

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Ouch.

Just buy a Dell with an i5, 4GB, 250-1000GB off eBay for like $100-120. Drop in a refurbished Intel 320 160GB SSD (also eBay, ~$35), install W10 (still free on Dell OEMs). Add a 1050 ($120) or 1050Ti ($140?) and you're done. Probably not even needing a new PSU due to low power requirement of those cards. Total is like $275-300 and will destroy your gaming builds.

Like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Optipl...d-Core-4GB-DDR3-250GB-HDD-No-OS-/262723160230

Quad Big Core Master Race!!

 

[RichUK]

My old Q6600 wasn't good enough to run BF1, so upgraded to an i3 6100. I was running the Q6600 with 3GB of RAM though, so that may have had something to do with it.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Ouch.

Just buy a Dell with an i5, 4GB, 250-1000GB off eBay for like $100-120. Drop in a refurbished Intel 320 160GB SSD (also eBay, ~$35), install W10 (still free on Dell OEMs). Add a 1050 ($120) or 1050Ti ($140?) and you're done. Probably not even needing a new PSU due to low power requirement of those cards. Total is like $275-300 and will destroy your gaming builds.

Like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Optipl...d-Core-4GB-DDR3-250GB-HDD-No-OS-/262723160230

Who woulda thought, that you can get used gear cheaper than new... I mean, why not just go all the way, and buy a used gaming rig, say, 1366 socket or 1155, complete off of Craigslist.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Who woulda thought, that you can get used gear cheaper than new... I mean, why not just go all the way, and buy a used gaming rig, say, 1366 socket or 1155, complete off of Craigslist.

That would save you a lot of time and your customers a lot of money.

I'd also point out that if you build a C2D box, using the components you've been posting threads about (your 500GB HDDs, 16 and 32GB SSDs, etc.) the only NEW component is the case and maybe the motherboard. So... not really.

 

[VirtualLarry]

That would save you a lot of time and your customers a lot of money.

Yeah, and that would just make me a "used PC junk dealer", instead of a "purveyor of fine custom-build new budget PCs".

I mean, a local baker could probably make more money, and save their customers money, by buying day-old doughnuts from the local supermarkets and reselling them, maybe adding some frosting, instead of baking his own.

Doesn't mean that's a good idea.

I'd also point out that if you build a C2D box, using the components you've been posting threads about (your 500GB HDDs, 16 and 32GB SSDs, etc.) the only NEW component is the case and maybe the motherboard. So... not really.

How so? The case was new, the PSU was new, the DVD drive was new, the mobo, CPU, heatsink was new, the RAM was new, the 500GB HDDs are new. The only used / refurb thing in those boxes, was the 16GB SSD, and that was replaced with a NEW 30GB SSD. The PCs I've been building for donation are ALL-NEW parts.

And we were talking about my G3258 and G3900 PCs, remember? Not me building new Core2 rigs. That was just a thought exercise, to compare prices with my FM1 rigs I'm building.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I was almost a purveyor of "fine custom builds" for the sig 2600K. A friend wanted the whole enchilada, with the OC profiles, custom ducts, the cooler, fans PSU and case. I looked at the price of parts on EBay and Amazon, took the least price and dropped $40 off the CPU. Knocked the used graphics card down $50 = 20% of a used price $250. 850 W Seasonic free, all but one fan free, fair-used price for the cooler, half price for the case plus $20 for the custom caster wheels. Then he flip-flopped, but before he expressed interest, I'd already planned to use it for replacement of my Moms's system when I might get around to it or Moms' failed. I could rebuild her system any time, and he was eager to get the 2600K system. His wife complained he had too many computers and she was tired of all his junk.

I was asking $540; he would pay shipping. I would provide foam insulation in cardboard and other safety packaging.

Today, me Moms system went south -- a Gigabyte GA-73VM-S2 mATX with Wolfdale E6700 and 4GB DDR2. Some of the symptoms could have suggested the graphics card for which I have a replacement; other symptoms made the motherboard suspect. But only the Power LED and the fans would come on at the end of my attempts, and the drive light wouldn't flash.

So I'll just throw the Wolfie and RAM in a padded envelope to my friend in Virginia, and the rest goes to the recycler. The Seasonic 650 was about five or six years old, and I haven't room to store it or time to test it. I still have another computer to replace, and the replacement is sitting in the corner awaiting the OS installation.

The best part: I can retrieve the essential data files from the WHS'11 box and simply add them to my cleaned, purged and revitalized Win 7 on the Sandy. I think Win 10 is too much for Moms, and she doesn't want to do it. But it's all there in dual boot, configured to default to Win 7.

It's all just as well.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Today, me Moms system went south -- a Gigabyte GA-73VM-S2 mATX with Wolfdale E6700 and 4GB DDR2.

Hmm, given this thread, what are the odds... Sorry to hear about your recent PC failure. But think on the bright side, now it's time for a "new" one, even better than the last.

Btw, what chipset is on that board? It almost sounds like an NV system chipset.

The best part: I can retrieve the essential data files from the WHS'11 box and simply add them to my cleaned, purged and revitalized Win 7 on the Sandy. I think Win 10 is too much for Moms, and she doesn't want to do it. But it's all there in dual boot, configured to default to Win 7.

That sounds pretty convenient, having WHS with backups.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Hmm, given this thread, what are the odds... Sorry to hear about your recent PC failure. But think on the bright side, now it's time for a "new" one, even better than the last.

Btw, what chipset is on that board? It almost sounds like an NV system chipset.


That sounds pretty convenient, having WHS with backups.

That thing has saved my ass or provided convenience for storage upgrades about six times now. Last month, there was a problem with KIS 2016 on both of the Sandy Z68's, and I panicked with the first discovery of it and restored my 2700K OS disk to seven days prior or just before the October Win Updates. It would not have needed it if I'd patiently tweaked KIS, but it was a sure thing. Kaspersky is still trying to sort out the problem, and I have to send them a dump file for further diagnosis. Both machines work fine without KIS firewall and app control.

The replacement for the server is an i5-3470 and a spare Z68/gen3 motherboard fitted with 16GB of Corsair XMS I picked up two years ago for a fraction of the $160 Egg price. I'll install a 2012 R2 Essentials, add Stablebit and then migrate the disks from the WHS. No hurry.

Oh -- the chipset. NV 610i, with the onboard nForce and graphics. I need to get rid of all the NV motherboards. They've served more than their purpose. That's a pun, actually.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Yeah, and that would just make me a "used PC junk dealer", instead of a "purveyor of fine custom-build new budget PCs".

Haha. No.

First of all, putting the cheapest parts you can find in a box doesn't make it a "fine" pic, even if you do it with love. Secondly, "used PC junk dealers" prefer the term "refurbisher."

http://compren.com For instance.

Buy a pallet of off lease business pcs, dust them, clean the stickers off, sacrifice one or two as parts PCs for the rest, reimage them, and sell them for a 100% markup. It's quite the business model.

Toss in an additional warranty for bonus $$$.

How so? The case was new, the PSU was new, the DVD drive was new, the mobo, CPU, heatsink was new, the RAM was new, the 500GB HDDs are new. The only used / refurb thing in those boxes, was the 16GB SSD, and that was replaced with a NEW 30GB SSD. The PCs I've been building for donation are ALL-NEW parts.

If those 500GB HDD were actually new, I'll eat a floppy disk.

Also, fwiw, cases aren't' really a wear item. If you were using used cases, I wouldn't fault you for it.

Same with the DVDs. They fail so frequently and are so cheap that "it works for now" is all you can really hope for.

But in recent weeks, I've seen you posting about used ssds, eBay hdds, and probably-used ddr2 ram.* Stable storage and memory is the absolutely most important part of building a stable system.

*first rule of eBay. It's used, even if the seller says it's not. Unless it's counterfeit.

The motherboards you mentioned have been new, but are bottom of the barrel at best. (Cheap junk, and nobody did it any favors plopping it in a warehouse for ten years.)

And we were talking about my G3258 and G3900 PCs, remember? Not me building new Core2 rigs.

I am talking about building Core 2 rigs in a thread about Core 2 rigs.

 

[whm1974]

Why would anyone mess with such ancient hardware when there are much better options available at the same or a little bit more cost?

 

[ninaholic37]

I have Core2Duo laptop (SP9600). The battery is a bit big and sticks out the back, and lasts about 3 hours. Performance is still amazing though for browsing and watching videos, don't think I will ever need to upgrade to a newer model until it actually falls apart. I'm using the Core2Duo laptop a bit more now because the hinge on my Pentium M laptop broke so you need to put something behind it for it to stay up, right now just using a small basket of mittens for this.

 

[cbn]

Yeah, and that would just make me a "used PC junk dealer", instead of a "purveyor of fine custom-build new budget PCs".

"used PC junk dealers" prefer the term "refurbisher."

I think refurbished is not a bad idea.....assuming a good back up plan is in place.

In fact, going higher end refurbished might be a better overall way to boost someone's productivity than building low end from new parts.

 

[cbn]

Just buy a Dell with an i5, 4GB, 250-1000GB off eBay for like $100-120. Drop in a refurbished Intel 320 160GB SSD (also eBay, ~$35), install W10 (still free on Dell OEMs). Add a 1050 ($120) or 1050Ti ($140?) and you're done. Probably not even needing a new PSU due to low power requirement of those cards. Total is like $275-300 and will destroy your gaming builds.

Like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Optipl...d-Core-4GB-DDR3-250GB-HDD-No-OS-/262723160230

Glad to see that desktop will accept an aftermarket PSU if neccessary:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lc5CVHAnpQ0

 

[cbn]

And then there's my attempts at budget gaming rigs, with overclocked G3258 CPUs and Skylake G3900 CPUs.
And GTX950 2GB video cards. Cheapest with Windows 10, is around $450. (Those machines would make a damn fine Facebook boxes, too.)

Ouch.

Just buy a Dell with an i5, 4GB, 250-1000GB off eBay for like $100-120. Drop in a refurbished Intel 320 160GB SSD (also eBay, ~$35), install W10 (still free on Dell OEMs). Add a 1050 ($120) or 1050Ti ($140?) and you're done. Probably not even needing a new PSU due to low power requirement of those cards. Total is like $275-300 and will destroy your gaming builds.

Like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Optipl...d-Core-4GB-DDR3-250GB-HDD-No-OS-/262723160230

Yeah, and that would just make me a "used PC junk dealer", instead of a "purveyor of fine custom-build new budget PCs".

Virtual Larry, if you want to build new budget computers perhaps one thing you could do is make a nice gamer ready barebones? (Nice mATX budget case, Nice budget 600W PSU, nice motherboard with all the cables and wires already connected up. All your customers do is add the CPU, RAM, dGPU, storage, etc......which is the easiest work to do.)

One reason I bring this up is because it seems for the most part all people care about (in this forum) is the i7 6700K (and soon the i7-7700K). The question is whether or not you use a Z-board or not? (Z-board allows overclocking which most probably wont care about....but then it does allow faster RAM which they may care about.)

 

[cbn]

AMD Zen, of course, is something else to think about.