Advice on Which Computer to Buy

Hey everyone,

I have a choice of two computers to buy here. My ultimate goal is to play Crysis and other sorts of games on the computer. Both computers are used, so I'll link you to them below.




SPECS of Computer 1:

windows vista 32 bit home premium
4 GB RAM
900 GB HD
Intel Core 2 quad core Q6600 @2.39 GHz
LG DVD Optical Drive
ATI Radeon HD 3400 GPU
22" HD acer 720p Monitor


I have been able to haggle this guy down to $450 (from his original asking price of $500) for this computer. I don't think he's willing to go lower than $450.

SPECS of Computer 2:

19" Widesceen Dell LCD Monitor
3gb DDR2 800 RAM
500 GB Hard Drive
Athlon II X2 215 Dual Core CPU 2.7Ghz
DVD-RW Optical Drive
Geforce 9400GT 1GB Graphics Card
Windows Vista Legit Copy


As for this computer, the guy is willing to accept $300 for it, and I MAY be able to haggle him down to $250, though I don't see it going lower than that, or maybe $275 (His original price was $350).


So basically, I realize I'll have to upgrade the graphics card on either computer if I wish to run crysis on high settings or above, BUT, as far as bang for my buck goes with these computers, which one is better given the prices I've told you?

I want to buy soon, so please post all your comments as soon as possible!

Also, a nice recommendation on which best bang for buck GPU to upgrade to would also be appreciated, is a Radeon 4870 ideal...? That's one of the options I've been advised about.

Much obliged!

The first computer will be good if you can spend $150 or so on a new video card.

A core 2 quad with 4gb of ram, hard drive and 22" monitor for $450 is a pretty good deal. Processor is worth about $100, ram about $100, 900gb hard drive ( ) about $120, monitor $150-$200, optical drive, $20, windows vista (brand new) $100, no clue about the HD 3400 though.

If you have at least $150-$200, pick up a ATI 5770 and you should be able to game around medium to high settings at 1280x720 I would think.

quote hiigaran

both rigs are crap. considering that you essentially have about 600 bucks to spend (450 + 140, which is about the cost of a 4870, then rounded up by 10 bucks), why not build your own computer instead?

Appreciate the feedback guys.

However, I was under the impression that the first rig was DEFINITELY better...not crap by any means. Obviously the GPU needs major upgrading, yeah. But, as far as bang for my buck goes.....? Is it legit to pay him $450 for it? And also, as far as building my own rig for $600 goes....I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to build anything for 600 which performs as well as this one would. I did the tally on newegg and tigerdirect, a comparable machine would cost me at LEAST $1000 to build, including the monitor of the same size. So......

Any last comments? I think I'm going to go with the first machine. Is that the BEST card you can recommend for the lowest price range I'm gunning for here? The ATI 5770? Otherwise, keep throwing me your ideas! Again, thanks dudes.

Oh, TOTALLY forgot to mention to you guys: I have a copy of WINDOWS 7 which I'll be installing on EITHER computer once I buy whichever I end up buying (probably 64 bit.....). So, that will utilize all the RAM, which is why I was obviously gunning for the 4GB in the first place. I'm no absolute noob to computers in general, but I wanted to seek your advice for what will REALLY get me the best deal between these here.

And to be honest the guy doesn't know much about the power supply, he admitted that on his advertisement page. Sorry.

quote hiigaran

well, yeah its better than the second one, but still pretty meh. i guess you can get it, but you are going to waste a good deal of money on the memory. like i said, 32 bit operating systems will only recognise about 3.5 gigs of total memory. now getting a video card will make that worse (remember, i said TOTAL memory, meaning any physical memory the computer has) because the card will have either half a gig or a full gig of memory on it, meaning some of that memory will not be seen. thats why im kind of reluctant in suggesting it, but i guess it is the lesser of two evils.

as for video cards, either get the 4870 which is cheaper than the 5770 and about the same performance, if not a little faster, or get the 5770 which scales better in crossfire (that is, IF the motherboard supports crossfire).

...aaaaand now i just thought of something else...where is the PSU information? you cannot get a video card without knowing about the PSU.

quote

Oh, TOTALLY forgot to mention to you guys: I have a copy of WINDOWS 7 which I'll be installing on EITHER computer once I buy whichever I end up buying (probably 64 bit.....). So, that will utilize all the RAM, which is why I was obviously gunning for the 4GB in the first place. I'm no absolute noob to computers in general, but I wanted to seek your advice for what will REALLY get me the best deal between these here.

ahh, no problem then.

quote

And to be honest the guy doesn't know much about the power supply, he admitted that on his advertisement page. Sorry.

ahhh, thats going to be a problem. if the PSU is insufficient, then youll be upgrading that too, which will run you another 50 or 60 bucks. hell even if the computer has been used for a few years you might want to consider it.

quote

There is nothing crappy about a Core 2 Quad q6600

its not one part - its everything. the RAM issue is not a problem now though, assuming its a 64 bit copy of win7. for gaming though, the CPU aint gonna make much of a difference...unless its GTA.


building your own computer is starting to sound more and more tempting. you have your own copy of windows, youre willing to spend 450 bucks, plus 140 on a video card, and possibly an extra 50 or 60 bucks on a new psu...it just looks like that computer is proving be like an investment with diminishing returns.

If you're looking for a very cheap monitor, Best Buy sells a Dynex tv for 79$ last time i checked. It's not the greatest quality at all (720p) but it has a vga port and hdmi, so it doubles as a monitor. If you're strapped on cash it could get the job done.

well hold on a sec, you can get a decent monitor for about a hundred bucks, last i checked, so if your budget is 800, then you got 700 to spend on the computer. as for suggestions, you can look at this, and replace the video card with this to keep it under budget, along with this monitor.

quote JohnRocks

Both pc's have different configurations and working of both is also different.
I personally would like to suggest you for first one.
It's a little bit expensive but much more better than second.

I ended up buying build 1, and I actually managed to haggle him down to $400 for it, so I saved even abit more money!

Now I have to buy a video card, the one in there right now is pretty meh, yeah. But otherwise after I buy a new GPU the thing should just sing.

Everyone recommend their favourite bang for your buck card!! I'm lookin to spend under $150 here after rebates and shipping and all that. Also, before I forget, the power supply in my PC is 550W.

Thanks.