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Used vs New In Box PC Parts

Budget builds with used parts is a great idea... for some. All of my parts that I got used or refurbished I had to RMA within the first 6 months... So I'm a little wary about going used again.

Guilty of building a PC that is more powerful than necessary... No ragrets.

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An approximate breakdown of the costs of my current system in my sig...

 

 

i3-4130 £60 (including postage (eBay)) I think I might have actually bought it from someone who posts to this forum (virtually the same eBay username location) lol

 

Asus Z97-C  £55 (B-Grade)

 

RAM 4x2GB (CT25664BA160B) £50 (B-Grade & eBay)

 

(The other parts I already had) so total outlay: £165

 

 

Total I got for the parts of my previous gaming system (including the 1200w PSU and H110, and the Xonar Essence, but not including GTX 770 (not yet sold)) before deducting eBay fees: £557 (payed back to my credit card) :0/

 

 

I still have an Akasa Medusa to strip out of my secondary build, to sell and I've got a ton of high performance fans I need to run some sound tests with before probably selling.

 

Over the years I've bought almost all of my graphics cards on eBay and they've all seemed to be fine (I bought a cheap motherboard, processor and RAM combo to help troubleshoot my last P.C. and the motherboard was put into use in a family member's machine but has since failed.).

 

The two occasions I've bought B-grade graphics cards from online stores they've both been faulty. One from Dabs and one from OCUK. One was doa and with a missing power connector and missing back-plate. (Edit: Turns out that wasn't the case, I'd just misidentified the card (it wasn't supposed to have a backplate))The other exhibited really unusual artifacting when I tested it in Valley. Both were basically a waste of time but if they'd turned out to work they would have been great deals. (Edit: Turns out that wasn't the case, I'd just misidentified the card (it wasn't supposed to have a backplate))

 

Both gave me refunds, OCUK very promptly and with a minimum of messing around (had to photo my post office receipt to get the return postage refunded and still waiting on the refund for the original shipping cost, which I was promised because the thing was late in the first place and which I'm hoping the're not going to quibble over, since it would mean I'd be down £10 in addition to having wasted a half a day dealing with a broken item. As I say, if it had worked it would have been worth the risk but if I don't get a full shipping refund that would be pretty crappy (especially since if you looked at two of these things side by side the one I'd received basically looked like it had been stripped for parts and they still shipped it out to me.)

 

 

 

Before that I should probably overclock my machine a bit though. I bought an Intel K processor and haven't even overclocked it after owning it for two and a half years  :(  I guess I'm just afraid of wearing it out faster without a huge boost in performance. 

 

 

There aren't that many games that benefit from a CPU overclock. I don't overclock mine even if they're overclockable. I figure I'll need the extra power towards the end of its life and so as a rule I only overclock my CPU at the end of it's lifecycle, basically when I need the extra performance. That way it should theoretically last longer also (but having said that these days I just tend not to buy overclockable CPUs since they just seem to cost a lot more and I can save the money and just upgrade to something more powerful sooner while the older one's still worth something on eBay.

"I try to put good out into the world...that way I can believe it's out there." --CKN                  “How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.” --Wayne Dyer            

[Needs Updating] My PC: i5-10600K @TBD / 32GB DDR4 @4000MHz / Z490 AORUS Elite AC / Titan RTX / Samsung 1TB 960 Evo / EVGA SuperNova 850 T2

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I would use used parts, if I wouldn't use the PC longer than 3 years. But I would buy a completely new PC if I would use it longer than 4 years, and upgrade it often...  :rolleyes:

CPU i7 4790 - GPU Gigabyte GTX 970 Windforce 3x OC - RAM 2x 8GB Kingston HyperX Fury - MOBO Asus B85M-E - Case CM Silencio 550 Storage 2x 1TB WD Red - OS Windows 8.1 OEM - Phone OnePlus One 64GB Sandstone Black

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Buying a motherboard new for a realistic price is kinda hard if you're buying an old cpu used, and as used cpus are cheap, that should probably be done. Probably want new storage and a new PSU for the reasons in the video. Getting a case used is entirely based on risk tolerance, as shipping costs when used could make the case cost as much as a cheap yet crappy new one, but pick it up locally and you can avoid that (or bolt it to a 2x4... your preference). I've had RAM sticks fail on me. Granted they were cheap OEM RAM sticks from Cyberpower, but they still failed and caused many blue screens and corrupted data before I figured out what the problem was. Regardless, getting them used should be fine. I'd say to go used for the video card. The price/performance can be cut in HALF by going used, and Ebay's seller review system seems to work, diminishing the risk. 

So... everything used except hard drive and PSU should be acceptable.

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I was given a old GPU (way out of its warranty) and a case for my build. The funny thing was the RAM that i brought new and cost me $100 (silly NZD) needed to be returned :o

 

I did buy a second hand case to replace the case that i got given because it was cheap ($20 for a case with 3 working fans and its windowed) and even though i think the USB slots at the top have failed im glad i made that purchase.

PC: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Gigabyte X570 UD Corsair Vengence 32gb 3200MHZ Gigabyte RTX 2070 Intel 512gb boot / Seagate 2tb spinner Windows 10 Corsair 4000D black

 

Fyi i am Autistic (Aspergers) so sorry for any social mistakes (im mostly okay) If you want to learn more, Just ask! 

 

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My general rule of buying used parts is if I don't physically touch it daily, used is fine. My GTX 980 was £365 used saving around £100. The 3930K was bought used for £311 back in 2013 and the Rampage IV Formula was also bought used for £160. I don't mind spending less for stuff that I can't tell if its used or not anyway.

§ ragedev.net §

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Woo i'm in the video, that AMD rig on twitter is mine lol, the asus crosshair v formula z has INTEL nic onboard so it counts.

Spoiler

AMD R7 1800X, H100i GTX, AMD Radeon RED DEVIL 5700XT, ASUS STRIX B350-F GAMING, 16gb DDR4 3000, 1Tb, 2 X SEAGATE 1Tb, Coolermaster V1200 Platinum, NZXT H440 red/black, STEEL SERIES AEROX 3, DUCKY X POWER COLOR RED DEVIL KEYBOARD, Microsoft xbox 360 wired controller, LG ULTRAWIDE.

 

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I have to disagree about buying the case new.

That is the one component I would suggest buying used over all others.

Even if the case has scratches or dents it can still hold the components in place and should have no effect on the longevity or performance of the computer vs buying new.

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I buy new because I love opening the boxes and the smell of new hardware.  You don't get that buying used but you do save money, though perhaps at the cost of some peace of mind.

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Another thing to consider is buying refurbished items. I recently got a refurb 7950 for $129.99 US it also came with a 2 year warranty. If anyone is interested the website is gpushack.com I'm not affiliated with the site just passing along some good deals.

 

I would second this.

 

I got a Corsair h100i for less than $70, and a Kraken x60 for about $80.  It can be a great way to save a lot of money and they were both packaged like new.  A lot of refurbished products are stuff people opened and returned without even using.

 

 

Realistically speaking, the 290 was such a crazy deal that this is kind of an unfair contest.  But I guess that just speaks to how used has the potential to be cheap as hell for what you get.

 

 

I have to disagree about buying the case new.

That is the one component I would suggest buying used over all others.

Even if the case has scratches or dents it can still hold the components in place and should have no effect on the longevity or performance of the computer vs buying new.

 

And if you're missing standoffs, screws, tool less clips etc etc?  

 

The thing about a case is you can buy one and use it forever if you take care of it.

 

 

4K // R5 3600 // RTX2080Ti

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A wise man said once, that in the world of used computer hardware there's only one rule - don't buy used components that mainly work using mechanically moving parts. I.e. don't buy used hard drives, dvd-roms and used coolers.

For electronic components there's actually a benefit in buying used. Most of the defective electronics are bound to break within the first couple of months (days even) if they have some factory defects (this period is sometimes referred to as a burn-in), and if they didn't, overall chance of something going wrong is not worse than for a new part.

http://users.ece.cmu.edu/~koopman/des_s99/electronic_electrical/

 

I follow this rule for the last couple of years with regards to two types of components. First are graphics cards - I don't need a cutting edge one, so it makes sense to buy a top of the line card from last gen off of someone, who desperately needs to upgrade it to the top of the line of this gen. This way I got a 7970 last spring for 150€, and then sold my 7870 for 130€.

The second type of components that I always buy used are the things that aren't performance-related. For example, webcams, audio systems, and input devices are all things I buy refurbished/used. I got a Logitech c910 HD webcam, nostromo n52te keypad, Razer Onza (one more example where it makes more sense to buy refurbished compared to new one, since there are fewer chances of defects), Creative X-fi Fatal1ty with I/O Panel, and a couple of speakers and headphones.

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There is no problems buying used.Personally I prefer to buy & sell through forums such as OCAU & Atomicmpc here in Oz, as you will find it is inhabited by fellow tech junkies. All of the equipment I have bought over the years is still working fine.

 

heres a quick list

  • 2x Seasonic PSUs
  • 4x Seagate constellation ES 1TB hard drives (had these delivered to me by the seller) These all had very low power on time and I had bought from him before.
  • AMD 6870 this card had been in the floods in QLD, picked it up for $20 damn thing still works, at that stage 6870 were still selling 2nd hand for around $130 ish.
  • 3 cases CM stacker 830 + 2x Silverstone LC-17
  • 3x CPU's Xeon 1260L, AMD Phenom X6 1055T 95w, Q8400
  • motherboards, MSI 790fx-gd70, gigabyte 990FXA UD3, Intel DX48BT2
  • 2x Dual HD TV tuner cards

As long as your careful you wont have any issues.

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Buying new for this series really defeats the concept of scrapyard wars... Key word being SCRAPYARD. You don't buy new stuff from scrapyards... 

 

Still fun to see a comparison and I think that this is really more intended to open people up to the concept of buying used parts. Would you trust their 300 dollar rig to be your daily use machine and store all of your vital stuff on the used HD? Probably not, this is more just for fun. It's a decent skill to have though. You might come across a time when you need to throw a computer together with whatever parts you can find for the absolute smallest amount of money possible. 

 

Had to build a crappy little computer to run a small CNC machine. We tossed one together with about 40 dollars. Does exactly what we needed it to do and it is even reliable. Partly because it is so simple. 

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Great series

 

I just bought:

 

- Dell Optiplex 790 SFF (Intel Q65 Express, support expired on December 11 2014!)

- Core i3 2130 3.4Ghz

- 4+2GB DDR3 1333Mhz

- 750GB Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm

- Windows 7 Pro OEM Sticker Key (that means free upgrade to Windows 10)

 

Price: 120 Euro = 130 USD

How about that for a deal??

 

My problem of course is the GPU selection (low profile, low power consumption) : (

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Another dimension to consider for some of us leaving abroad: New vs Used vs Importing. Since parts are fairly expensive here in Mexico (33% import tax plus additional mark up from vendors usually) and more often that not hard to come by, the used parts become more important because many people use ebay-like sites to sell used parts and imports. However importing even with the mark up its sometimes a good idea if you can go to a border city and pick up parts or use a service that imports for you since not only you get parts at similar prices but you get a lot more variety: I basically limit my case choices for example to Corsair, Coolermaster and some thermaltake cases. Not because I like em that much but because there's just no way for me to buy Fractal, Silverstone, etc. Anywhere here new or used and importing is out of the questions due to the much more expensive delivery costs attached to heavy products like cases.

-------

Current Rig

-------

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Great series

 

I just bought:

 

- Dell Optiplex 790 SFF (Intel Q65 Express, support expired on December 11 2014!)

- Core i3 2130 3.4Ghz

- 4+2GB DDR3 1333Mhz

- 750GB Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm

- Windows 7 Pro OEM Sticker Key (that means free upgrade to Windows 10)

 

Price: 120 Euro = 130 USD

How about that for a deal??

 

My problem of course is the GPU selection (low profile, low power consumption) : (

is cool  :)
 
 
some gpus that i like for AAA games friend  :rolleyes:
 
"any" gpu with 3GB or more, of any company (AW use 2.7GB this days on my own tests on medium lol)
 
and that leaves...
 
 
R9 280 and 7950 (they are really cool cards man), or better models of cards
 
GTX 780 (this line work really good for the green team), or better models of cards
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  • 4 weeks later...

My Brothers Birthday Pc Build

( hopefully all parts work pending them to come in.. )

Craigslist:

Sentey cs1-1420 - (missing bay covers and thumbscrews) - 15 USD

FX-6300 with stock cooler - 60 USD

(Bought them off same person for 75)

eBay:

Micron 128gb ssd realssd c300 - 43.98 USD

Hitachi Deskstar 7K2000 2tb 7200rpm hd - 46.09 USD

MSI 760-GM P34 - 20 USD

Sentey XPlus 725W - 32.25 USD

XFX R9 280X DD Black Edition - 155 USD

New Egg:

16gb ddr3 PNY XLR8 1600mhz - 109.99 USD

Grand total - 482.31USD

The goal was to remain under 500 USD - I will let you guys know the results!

Thoughts ?

Just picked up a cooler am3+ cooler master cooler .. For 17 dollars.

Bringing the grand total to 499.31 ... Whew.. Lol .. Waiting for the last piece to come in .. Hope to have this baby running this weekend..

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This pc is running beautifully.. And at low temps.. can't really oc it .. But it is running cool idle 10 to 19c full load 35 to 45c.. It runs any game at 1080p maxed out ... Very pleased with this 500 dollar build

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A wise man said once, that in the world of used computer hardware there's only one rule - don't buy used components that mainly work using mechanically moving parts. I.e. don't buy used hard drives, dvd-roms and used coolers.

 

Those (along with Monitors) being exactly the parts I would buy used. They also tend to be $20-30 vs the $100+ for a used GPU. To me the rule is, "how much are you willing to lose if it don't work?"

 

There is some benefit to getting something that's been field tested, but I think it tends to be outweighed by the simple fact that you don't know why someone's selling. It could be because they broke it.

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