Recertified Asus on Newegg

[nikolov]

Hello everyone. My outdated PC recently took a dump and I'm looking to buy a new one. I've been looking around online at sites such as Cyberpower, Ibuypower, Newegg, and etc. trying to find out if I want to buy a PC or build one. During my searching I stumbled upon this and it caught my eye:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16883220058

It seems like a really good deal to me and I'm considering buying it and upgrading the obviously weak 300 watt PSU. I was wondering what everyone else thinks? Should I be worried about it being "recertified" or should I buy it ASAP before they are out of stock? Thanks for any input!

 

[Puppies04]

I'm pretty sure you could build this yourself for around the same budget, copy and paste the sticky from the top of this forum to give us a clue about what you expect the machine to do/price range etc and im sure someone can point you in the right direction

 

[nikolov]

Yeah I was doing that and the parts ended up being more than this thing is.

edit: I'm wanting to be able to have most new games at least be playable, even if it is on medium to low settings. I also want the capability to upgrade parts if I need to.

 

[Puppies04]

As i said, there is a sticky thread at the top of this forum copy/paste it into this thread and answer the questions and you will get some answers.

 

[nikolov]

Okay... Not to sound like a smartass or anything but I already asked the questions I need answered; is that a good value and is "recertified" anything to be worried about? I'm not sure how answering my preference as to whether I'm an Nvidia or ATI fanboi helps with that.

 

[titan131]

The 1035T @ 2.6GHz isn't the best gaming processor since games rarely benefit from anything more then a quadcore and 2.6GHz is a relatively low clock speed. The other thing is of course it only comes with a 90 day warranty so if something does go wrong after that you'll have to fix it yourself and pay for the parts or get someone else to do it and pay them.

Having said that, the price is less than the total sum of the parts... so it's not a bad deal as long as nothing goes wrong. It's up to you whether you want to take the risk. If you saved up and built a low budget i3 sandybridge system it would have a lot more longevity than a 2.6GHz hexcore.

 

[mfenn]

Okay... Not to sound like a smartass or anything but I already asked the questions I need answered; is that a good value and is "recertified" anything to be worried about? I'm not sure how answering my preference as to whether I'm an Nvidia or ATI fanboi helps with that.

Because this is General Hardware, we know a thing or two about what is good for gaming. Post your overall needs and we can put probably put something together that it more closely aligned with them for the same cost.

 

[lehtv]

^ This.

is that a good value

Not really, see below.

"recertified" anything to be worried about?

It definitely is. A whopping 3 month warranty is offered on parts and labor. Woohoo! (This could explain why it's discounted.)

I could probably build you a faster PC with 2-3 year warranty on the parts, for the same money. But I still need all those questions answered.

 

[nikolov]

Word, well in that case here you go fellas:

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

Gaming, multi-tasking, movies, streaming videos, etc.. Pretty much the usual.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

Ideally around ~850 but I can go higher if need be.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

United States

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

No preference at all.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

None.

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.

Not much to be completely honest because my initial intention was only to get advice on the link I posted.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

I did not plan on it but I have read here that is definitely recommended and not too difficult so there is a possibility.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.

1920x1080 on a 24 inch monitor.

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?

ASAP.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Actually it seems like a good price to me. However, I cant believe that a hex core AMD processor and a HD5750 can be run safely on a 300 watt power supply. I am running a dual core conroe processor and a 5670 on a 300 watt power supply and feel like I am pushing the safe limit of the power supply.

That would be my biggest reservation, along with the short warranty.

 

[Rainey]

Your budget is 850? You can build a pretty good computer for that...I just saw this post but me and my buddies are on it!

 

[nikolov]

Yeah I would definitely be upgrading the PSU if I were to buy that desktop. Also there is a 2 year extended warranty offered for $75. But I guess if you count the warranty and PSU price then it really isn't much of a deal anymore.

@Rainey- Yep that's around what I'm looking to spend. Thanks for any help you may be able to provide!

 

[Rainey]

MoBo: Asus P8Z68 V-LE 129.99 (Asus P8Z68 V-Pro 199.99 if you want SLI Support)
CPU: i5 2500k...$219 Newegg + CoolerMaster Hyper 212+ $30
Memory: I would go with G.Skill Value Series 1333mhz for 41.99 or you can go 1600 mhz for 51.99
HDD: Samsung F3 1tb $59.99 Newegg
Case: Fractal R3 109.99 or the 400R 99.99
GPU: EVGA 560 Ti DS Superclocked 259.99 OR Gigabyte 560 Ti 234.99
Comes out around $930 - $40 M.I.R. so about 890 for this build but you can always get a cheaper case or a different GPU...

 

[lehtv]

^ No need to pay $200 for SLI support. Asrock Extreme3 does the job for just $125.

Most other choices look good but a bit overbudget, just to recap (priced from newegg, after rebates):

Mobo Asus P8Z68-V LE $130
CPU i5-2400 $190 ($150 in-store microcenter)
GPU Galaxy 560 Ti $200 OR XFX 6950 2GB dual-fan $250
RAM G.Skill Value 1333 2x4GB $42
HDD F3 1TB $60
SSD Crucial M4 64GB $90
ODD DVDRW $20 <-- u sure you don't have one SATA compatible from your crapped out PC?
Sound Asus Xonar DG $30 (microcenter; for headphones)
PSU XFX 650W $60
Case CM 912 $60 OR CM690 II Adv $80 OR Corsair 400R $100 OR Fractal R3 $100

~$800 or ~$900 with SSD

Could add $60 or so to upgrade the CPU to 2500K and a CM 212 Evo cooler.

If you wanted to pay the same as for that recertified Asus:

Mobo Asus P8H61-M LE/CSM $70 (edit: or this Asrock which supports sata 6gb/s for a future ssd upgrade)
CPU i3-2100 $130 ($100 in-store microcenter)
GPU XFX 6770 $95 OR XFX 6790 +dirt3 $115
RAM G.Skill Value 1333 2x4GB $42
HDD F3 1TB $60
ODD DVDRW $20
PSU Corsair CX430 V2 $35
Case NZXT Source 210 $40

~$500

So you don't even have keyboard and mouse, or? Windows?

 

[Rainey]

I got pwnd by Lehtv once again lol

 

[mfenn]

^ No need to pay $200 for SLI support. Asrock Extreme3 does the job for just $125.

Most other choices look good but a bit overbudget, just to recap (priced from newegg, after rebates):

Mobo Asus P8Z68-V LE $130
CPU i5-2400 $190 ($150 in-store microcenter)
GPU Galaxy 560 Ti $200 OR XFX 6950 2GB dual-fan $250
RAM G.Skill Value 1333 2x4GB $42
HDD F3 1TB $60
SSD Crucial M4 64GB $90
ODD DVDRW $20 <-- u sure you don't have one SATA compatible from your crapped out PC?
Sound Asus Xonar DG $30 (microcenter; for headphones)
PSU XFX 650W $60
Case CM 912 $60 OR CM690 II Adv $80 OR Corsair 400R $100 OR Fractal R3 $100

~$800 or ~$900 with SSD

Could add $60 or so to upgrade the CPU to 2500K and a CM 212 Evo cooler.

If you wanted to pay the same as for that recertified Asus:

Mobo Asus P8H61-M LE/CSM $70 (edit: or this Asrock which supports sata 6gb/s for a future ssd upgrade)
CPU i3-2100 $130 ($100 in-store microcenter)
GPU XFX 6770 $95 OR XFX 6790 +dirt3 $115
RAM G.Skill Value 1333 2x4GB $42
HDD F3 1TB $60
ODD DVDRW $20
PSU Corsair CX430 V2 $35
Case NZXT Source 210 $40

~$500

So you don't even have keyboard and mouse, or? Windows?

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: Very nice!

 

[nikolov]

Thank you both for your input!

 

[nikolov]

I do have a keyboard and mouse and I can buy windows for like $7 from my campus bookstore.

On a side note, in your personal opinion, is SSD worth it?

 

[lehtv]

Well... It's a lot more pleasing to use a PC that has an SSD. Everything is snappier, things get done when you give the order . But they're still pretty expensive - $100 for a 64GB drive is a lot to ask. On a sub-$1000 build it's certainly an option to just use that cash on something else, like a better video card, or just pocket it and wait for the SSD prices to drop to the $1/GB level or below

 

[nikolov]

One more question for ya, I liked the EVGA 560 TI DS that Rainey linked and I found a 570 for $260 with rebate. I was wonder what you guys think of this.

EVGA DS Superclocked 560ti 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130657 ($250 with rebate)

vs

HIS IceQ X Turbo 6950 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161372 ($270)

vs

XFX 6950 2GB Dual Fans
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150549 ($250 with rebate)

vs

Galaxy GTX 570 1280MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814162070 ($260 with rebate)

Also I'd rather have the new Batman game over the Dirt 3

 

[lehtv]

Heh I'm sure the Galaxy 570 would be fine. But with just one fan I wouldn't be surprised if it made noticeably more noise than a dual-fan 6950 that produces less waste heat to begin with. It's a trade-off, IMO - more fps at the cost of more fan noise. (I would recommend the dual-fan XFX 6950 over that HIS card.)

Also the EVGA card you linked is 1GB. The 2GB single-fan EVGA 560 ti costs $270, not worth it (it's probably meant for multi-monitor SLI setups). http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130683

 

[mfenn]

I've already got both those games, so I would go for the 6950 2GB. If Arkham is worth $10 to you, I see no reason not to go with the GTX 570.

 

[nikolov]

Go figure the 570 is now out of stock haha

 

[nikolov]

Here's what I decided to go with if anyone is interested:

Shell shocker deal ($90 for both): COOLER MASTER Inferno SGM-4000-KLLN1-GP Wired 4000 dpi MMO RPG Gaming Mouse ($60 originally)
+
COOLER MASTER Storm Enforcer SGC-1000-KWN1 Black SECC / ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case ATX PS2 / EPS 12V ($90 originally)

Mobo: ASRock Z68 PRO3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard ($105)

HDD: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive ($50 with -$10 promotional code)

CPU: Still need to buy from microcenter. Either Intel Core i5 2500K LGA 1155 Boxed Processor ($180) or Intel Core i5 2400 LGA 1155 Boxed Processor ($150) or Intel Core i5 650 3.2GHz Socket 1156 Boxed Processor ($140)

CPU Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R1 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler ($35)

GPU: MSI R6950 Twin Frozr II Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity ($255 after rebate)

RAM: G.SKILL Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT ($42)

PSU: XFX Core Edition PRO650W (P1-650S-NLB9) 650W ATX12V 2.2 & ESP12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply ($60 after rebate)

CD/DVD Drive: Using my old one ($0)

Total w/o CPU: $637 with rebates before PSU (Either an extra $140, $150, $180)

Total with CPU: $777, $787, or $817. Probably going with the 2500K which will still put me $33 below budget.

Thanks again to Rainey and lehtv!

 

[lehtv]

Nice deal on the CM mouse+case :thumbsup:

or Intel Core i5 650 3.2GHz Socket 1156 Boxed Processor ($140)

That one won't fit... Definitely the 2500K, it's a steal