Refurb HP TG01-0023w Pavilion Gaming Ryzen 5 3500 3.59GHz NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER 4GB $459 shipped

[blckgrffn]

Did you get a 3500 or 3600 CPU? Some over at SD said they got a 3600.

Definitely a 3500.

Ryzen Master installed and verified everything. 2666 ram, which is fine by me.

 

[Lanyap]

Fedex delivered mine this past Monday as expected. Didn't get a chance to open and set it up until yesterday. Here are my thoughts so far. I still need to contact vipoutlet to get my 10% discount that they took off during checkout.

System was packed with heavy duty bubble wrap in a heavy duty brown shipping box.
No scratches, dents or scuffs on case.
400W 80+ Platinum PSU is made by Lite-on - HP branded
SSD stick is made by SKhynix - HP branded
RAM is Samsung (made in Vietnam) 2666 - HP branded
Video card is OEM made by foxconn Model TPC-F003G - HP branded
CPU is 3500


I have so many old and new games I need to load.

 

[Lanyap]

Called vipoutlet customer service this morning about my 10% discount not being applied to my order at checkout. Rep said they would process the refund within 24hrs and apply it back to my cc. No hassle experience as long as they do what they say.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Robot or human?

Sold by Walmart for $599, if anyone still wanted one at list price, which is still not bad, all things considered.

 

[Lanyap]

I received my 10% discount refund so all is good now with vipoutlet.

I've been slow getting this system setup. I had to pick my new Medicare supplemental coverage and schedule my vaccine shot this past week. I was ready to load up a game DVD disc and realized it doesn't have a DVD drive - DOH. I know I can load many of the games through Steam, etc, but I want to go old school. Anyway, there is an empty drive bracket in the case where you can add a 3.5 HD or 2.5 SSD/HD and a DVD drive. I had some spare laptop DVD drives so I tried to install one but it didn't fit. Turns out all of my spare laptop DVD drives were slim (12.7mm high) and I need an ultra slim (9.5mm high) for this system. The only problem left is the front bezel does not have a slot for a DVD drive so I'll have to keep the bezel off until I figure something out.

 

[Macgyversite]

I received my 10% discount refund so all is good now with vipoutlet.

I've been slow getting this system setup. I had to pick my new Medicare supplemental coverage and schedule my vaccine shot this past week. I was ready to load up a game DVD disc and realized it doesn't have a DVD drive - DOH. I know I can load many of the games through Steam, etc, but I want to go old school. Anyway, there is an empty drive bracket in the case where you can add a 3.5 HD or 2.5 SSD/HD and a DVD drive. I had some spare laptop DVD drives so I tried to install one but it didn't fit. Turns out all of my spare laptop DVD drives were slim (12.7mm high) and I need an ultra slim (9.5mm high) for this system. The only problem left is the front bezel does not have a slot for a DVD drive so I'll have to keep the bezel off until I figure something out.

Buy a USB DVD ROM Drive

 

[blckgrffn]

Buy a USB DVD ROM Drive

I have seen them as low as $20 shipped. Great in a pinch.

 

[Lanyap]

Buy a USB DVD ROM Drive

I have one so I guess I'll use it for now. I wasn't sure if I would see a performance decrease if the game has to access the disc over USB vs internal sata.

The system comes with a power cable with two empty standard sata connectors but if I install an ultra slim DVD drive I'll have to get an adapter to switch from a standard sata connector to a slimline sata connector like this.

 

[balloonshark]

These look to be in stock again

Now OOS

 

[jiffer]

It appears to be back in stock at the time of this post for $482 plus tax, free shipping. If you used the 10% off "first time" coupon before, you can't use it again. There is a coupon for $50 off a $500 purchase if you want to add something else to your purchase.

For what it's worth, I bought one of these back in March and I'm on the fence about whether I want to buy another one. The power supply has a barely audible coil whine. It's a used computer, so there are some tiny scratches on the case. It also smelled like cigarette smoke. I cleaned it, treated it for odor, and replaced the fans. Then I did some part swapping. I built a separate gaming PC for my nephew with the processor and video card. I added a Ryzen 3 3200G (it's one of four processors on the supported list) and another 8GB stick of memory, reinstalled Windows 10 using an OEM copy (the license key was detected automatically), unplugged the bright front green LED, and gave it to my mother. It's a nice little PC. It's pretty quiet. My mother is losing her hearing so she can't hear the coil whine, but it would probably get on my nerves.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I ended up getting one to mess around with. It is like new with zero odors or cosmetic issues. No coil whine either. Unbeatable deal at the moment and good budget gamer. They are $600+tax at Walmart, if you can find one in store.

I added 2x8GB 3000MHz EDIT: the ram is Geil Super Luce single rank Samsung I had sitting around. After clearing CMOS it does run its XMP profile.

For buyers: The bios is practically non existent. If you cannot get your ram to run XMP, Ryzen Master works.

 

[jiffer]

I ended up getting one to mess around with. It is like new with zero odors or cosmetic issues. No coil whine either.

Refurbs tend to be hit-or-miss. They are what they are. I don't consider it to be a strike against VIP Outlet.

One time when I was buying something completely different, I had a choice between a brand new one or a refurb. The salesman told me the refurbs were in perfect working condition, but if cosmetics were important, get the new one. It's good advice since you never know what you're going to get.

I added 2x8GB 3000MHz Geil Potenza single rank Samsung I had sitting around. After clearing CMOS it does run its XMP profile.

For buyers: The bios is practically non existent. If you cannot get your ram to run XMP, Ryzen Master works.

What speed did you end up getting? I was under the impression I'd have to use Ryzen Master to bump it up past its default speed of 2400MHz. I'd like to put some 3200MHz memory in there, especially with integrated graphics.

One thing I've always hated about HP computers is there's no fan speed control in the BIOS. The CPU fan stays at idle until the CPU gets really hot. You have to rely on software to increase fan speeds properly. Make sure you install the chipset driver component called AMD Ryzen Power Plans. Ryzens are rated to run at 95 degrees C and the HP system doesn't mind letting it run at 80 C, which is too high in my opinion.

 

[blckgrffn]

Mine likewise was super clean and ran fine. I basically looted it - I need a 3200G to resell it now.

At $440 shipped it got me the Ryzen 3rd gen and 1650 Super I needed for family builds for basically the GPU cost right now. At some point I'll get a APU and recoup a large amount of my cost so long as I can not overspend on it.

I will say - thank you for the heads up. I would definitely considered a second one.

FWIW, it would not post with a 14nm Ryzen 1600 at all. I bought it for $100 locally vs a local 3200G for the same price when I was troubleshooting and I went with the 1600 for what I thought would be "better" compatibility. Ooops. I was hoping to put an older RX460 and that 1600 in it and sell it for ~$400+ locally.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

About the ram: I tried 4 different kits, 2 gave the 3 beep failure message on power up. 1 gave a BSOD before making it to windows. Only the GEIL Super Luce single rank Samsung works properly. It initially was at 2133, but after resetting the bios it detected at the XMP and now runs at 1500MHz/3000MHz.

The CPU list is only the 3 APUs and 2 CPUs HP sold this 8643 Erica B450/B550A board with. Fortunately it will take the 3200g/3400g or the 3700x. Need a better cooler for the 3700X.

 

[blckgrffn]

@DAPUNISHER excellent info. Good to know. I had been going to juice it to 16GB for family use, good to know that might be pretty frustrating to pursue.

Still just need to find a 3200G cheap. Wishing I had scooped that 3400G you sold. I was so close

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Here is the pertinent HWinfo

 

[jiffer]

The motherboard is called "Erica". Here are the specs:

HP Desktop PCs - motherboard specifications, Erica | HP® Customer Support

Specifications for the Erica motherboard.

support.hp.com

Supported processors:

AMD Ryzen 5 3400G
AMD Ryzen 3 3200G
AMD Athlon 300UGE (I'm not sure what this actually is)
AMD Ryzen 5 3500
AMD Ryzen 7 3700X

 

[DAPUNISHER]

300UGE looks like OEM version of 3000G. https://askgeek.io/en/cpus/AMD/Athlon-300GE But if the board will boot the 3000g? They locked this thing down hard, so would not surprise me if it fails. On the upside for this little box, the 400W has plenty of juice if someone wanted to use an adapter and put a better GPU in it later. My Ventus 2070 Super fits, and with a SATA to PCIE adapter, powering it is no issue either. I would improve the case cooling situation if I was doing that though, which I am not. But something for those looking to avoid scalping right now, and still upgrade it later.

 

[BenJeremy]

About the ram: I tried 4 different kits, 2 gave the 3 beep failure message on power up. 1 gave a BSOD before making it to windows. Only the GEIL Super Luce single rank Samsung works properly. It initially was at 2133, but after resetting the bios it detected at the XMP and now runs at 1500MHz/3000MHz.

The CPU list is only the 3 APUs and 2 CPUs HP sold this 8643 Erica B450/B550A board with. Fortunately it will take the 3200g/3400g or the 3700x. Need a better cooler for the 3700X.

Ryzen CPUs might be "pickier" when it comes to memory. I built a new "main" system, with a 5900X, and the fancy ARGB Mushkin memory, supposedly DDR4-3600, refused to run at anything but stock (2666) - but I picked up the "approved" G.Skill DDR4-3600 RAM, and it worked with the DOCP profile without a hitch.

I wish I had picked this up when it first popped up. My oldest is getting a nice upgrade, for sure, with a 3700X system I picked up (to steal the RTX 3070 out of ), but he's stuck with his old RX 580 until this GPU crisis is over with. He plays on 1080p and Quest 2 via Link, so I'm not feeling too bad for him, but this 1650 Super would have been a decent upgrade for him, even if short term. Considering he was thinking about paying scalper prices for a 3080 or a 6800XT, I'll let him do that this summer when the prices have come down.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

It would have been a largely pointless card swap as the RX 580 trades blows with a 1650 Super. Depends on the game, which is faster. If he has the 8GB 580, it would be a downgrade. The Super's real advantage is only needing one 6 pin. But that is obviously not a concern, with the power gulping cards he is considering.

I also would not plan around prices dropping this summer. Heck, they may not even have truly peaked yet. Most indications are that it will be late this year to next before we see a significant reduction. Even that may be optimistic.

And yes, AM4 is picky about memory, particularly 1st gen stuff, but this is more an HP thing. Those other ram kits I tried will work at XMP on any other Ryzen system I have tried them. That's how OEM is, so no worries.

EDIT: This deal keeps coming back in stock. I was checking every morning, to get one, once I decided to buy. It was OOS again immediately after checking out.

 

[jiffer]

I ordered another one and I'm much happier with the second unit. It is "like new" except that one of the punch outs for the first PCIe x1 expansion slot was replaced with a slot cover, so maybe something was installed there. The mouse still has the protective film on it and the keyboard appears to be unused. According to the HP website, the original warranty went into effect in January and expires next January, which suggests the original buyer did not have it for very long. I doubt HP would honor the warranty since I'm not the original owner. They would probably ask me to provide a record of ownership (Dell calls it "provenance"). In any case, swapping out parts probably voids the warranty. I'm happy with the 90 day warranty from VIP Outlet. That should give me plenty of time to see whether these machines will give me any problems.

The first one was equipped with an 8GB stick of DDR4-2666 memory (HP Part Number 933276-001). It was running at 2400MHz (1200 times 2) by default. The second unit is equipped with an 8GB stick of DDR4-3200 memory (HP Part Number L47721-001). It was running at 3200MHz when I turned it on (1600 times 2). I'm upgrading them to 16GB with 8GB sticks
by Crucial (part number CT8G4DFRA32A) which are officially compatible. It's not the least expensive solution, but HP is picky about hardware and I want something that I can just plug in and not have to worry about it. I've already spent too much time on these machines.

 

[blckgrffn]

Back in stock too. Nice. Sign up for another account to get another 10% off??? Ha, maybe I should sell the one I have first!

Wal-Mart is in stock, new based on Larry's link @ $750. I think $300 is worth the gamble to get it refurbed in this case.

 

[HappyFace]

Robot or human?

Another option from Walmart. Snagged one @ $399 Free S/H. Currently, OOS but has been back in stock several times over the last couple of days. You have to act quickly as they sell out fast.

 

[HappyFace]

The first one was equipped with an 8GB stick of DDR4-2666 memory (HP Part Number 933276-001). It was running at 2400MHz (1200 times 2) by default. The second unit is equipped with an 8GB stick of DDR4-3200 memory (HP Part Number L47721-001). It was running at 3200MHz when I turned it on (1600 times 2). I'm upgrading them to 16GB with 8GB sticks
by Crucial (part number CT8G4DFRA32A) which are officially compatible. It's not the least expensive solution, but HP is picky about hardware and I want something that I can just plug in and not have to worry about it. I've already spent too much time on these machines.

Thanks, good info. I don't want to have to deal with compatibility issues. Am I right in assuming I should buy 8GB x 2 rather than snapping in an additional 8GB stick with the one included?

 

[DAPUNISHER]

It is a bit of a dice roll when mixing sticks in dual channel, so 2x8GB matching kit is recommended. You would have no trouble selling the shipped 8GB stick here in fs/ft to help recoup some of the cost. If you want to go that route.