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Question

Need help deciding on a used computer ... help!

Mar 6, 2018 8:45PM PST

I could not figure out where to post this ... hope I have the right spot.

So, my 10 year old computer died ... not surprising.

I need a new computer but just don't have the money for a new one (my wife is disabled and there is just little extra money).

I am not a gamer. I use it for business ... some autocad ... some multi-media.

I have a new 1 TB drive and a GT 630 2GB card for my dual monitors ( got them at a junk shop for $5 each) ... wish I could run 3 monitors (would like to use the HDMI for tv at the same time but my card only supports two monitors).

I have a budget of a about $300

I did a bunch of checking ... I think I can squeak into a i7 4770 (4th gen) 16 gig machine. I will put windows 10 64 on it.

From my search on ebay it looks like I can choose from a 1) HP Z230 2) Lenovo M93P 3) Dell Optiplex 9020

All are mini towers (need this for my full size video card). All have some usb 3.0 ports.

I was leaning toward the Lenovo just because it had more usb 3.0 ports (4 in back, 2 in front ... the others had 2 in back and 2 in front).

Two questions:

1) Is any one of these better than any other?

2) The video card I have says 350W min. I read one review of the Lenovo that said this was a problem with gaming video cards. The Lenovo has 280W ... the Optiplex 290W .... the HP 400W

Will the size of the power supply be a problem if I add my video card or ????

Thanks so very much!!!!!!

Mike

Discussion is locked

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Clarification Request
what died on the old one?
Mar 6, 2018 9:26PM PST

Old PSU still working?

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PSU is probably dead ...
Mar 6, 2018 9:36PM PST

It may have been the PSU that died ... honestly don't know. I found a date of 2008 inside the computer on an assembly tag. It ran for a few months ... died .. nothing, not even a blink of a light. Left it for a few weeks (borrowed a computer) ... worked for a few days ... died ... nothing. I do't trust any of the old parts in a 10 year old unit. I will just reuse the 1 TB drive (only about a month old) and the video card (bought it used last year).

Mike

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what's the stats on the old computer?
Mar 7, 2018 1:22PM PST

If it has a dual core or better processor and 4Gb of RAM, it's still probably viable for most things other than action games. If so, then replacing the PSU with one about 500w might be the better move. I use this in both of my 10 year old computers. It's 450w "continual power" which is better than 500w "max power" rating used on many others. Antec is an excellent quality manufacturer of PSU. It's $38 with FREE SHIPPING.

This testing site below is a good and honest one.

"The Antec VP450 passed our tests with flying colors.

Efficiency was between 80.3% and 85.5% during our tests, which is outstanding for a budget power supply. The only reason this unit can’t get the 80 Plus certification is that only power supplies with a PFC circuit can be certified, as the 80 Plus certification requires a power factor of at least 0.900 at full load.
Voltage regulation was outstanding, with all voltages closer to their nominal values than required (three percent regulation), except for the -12 V output, which was still inside the allowed range. The ATX12V specification states that positive voltages must be within 5% of their nominal values, and negative voltages must be within 10% of their nominal values.
Let’s discuss the ripple and noise levels on the next page.
Voltages at the power supply outputs must be as “clean” as possible, with no noise or oscillation (also known as “ripple&rdquoWink. The maximum ripple and noise levels allowed are 120 mV for +12 V and -12 V outputs, and 50 mV for +5 V, +3.3 V and +5VSB outputs. All values are peak-to-peak figures. We consider a power supply as being top-notch if it can produce half or less of the maximum allowed ripple and noise levels.
The Antec VP450 provided ripple and noise levels within specs, as you can see in the table below.

We were extremely impressed by the Antec VP450 power supply, which proved to be an above average budget power supply.

Power supplies without a PFC circuit usually provide, at least at some point, efficiency below 80 percent. However, this simply didn’t happen with the VP450, which presented efficiency between 80.3% and 85.5 percent. This unit, though, can’t qualify for the 80 Plus certification, as a PFC circuit is required to obtain it.

In addition, most budget power supplies have a fake label that says the unit has two +12 V virtual rails, while in reality the power supply doesn’t have an over current protection circuit, which is necessary for the power supply to have more than one +12 V rail. This doesn’t happen with the VP450, which really has two +12 V over current protection channels.

With so many bad power supplies sold for USD 40 or less (several of which can really damage your PC due to voltages outside the proper range), the Antec VP450 is a terrific find. If you are building an entry-level PC that doesn’t require a lot of power, you and your wallet will be very happy with the VP450.
"


Max Load is over 550w.

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Answer
Thoughts
Mar 6, 2018 11:25PM PST

You don't have a gaming video card.
The ref model specs at 25w.

W10.
If the machine you buy has never had w10 installed on it you might be looking at buying a new license.

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Sorry ... not a computer guy ... what do you mean?
Mar 7, 2018 7:20AM PST

Sorry ... I am guessing the 25 W is 25 watts?

What is the W10 reference to?

Mike

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W10 is short for Windows 10.
Mar 7, 2018 8:03AM PST

Saves typing long versions of stuff.

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Round numbers
Mar 7, 2018 12:19PM PST

Cpu......85w
Gpu.....25w
mobo,hdd,optical.....70w

Rounding it up let's say 200w total.
If the psu can output their rated amount then all pc's should be ok.

Usb 3 ports.
Only you know how many you need.
Keep in mind the keyboard and mouse can use an usb 2 port.

Keep that w10 license in mind as that's a $100 item.

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Answer
The problem I see here is
Mar 7, 2018 8:08AM PST

Used, anything over 5 years old is accepted as old and may not run for much longer. But the good news is that video card is only 25W (Watts.)

You might have to select on looks here. If the unit looks to be in rough shape, the owner may have mistreated it. As only you know the full machine details you have a better chance of picking the best out of the three units. The models you shared came in various configurations so that alone doesn't nail down what it is.

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Thanks ... really biggest difference it power supply size.
Mar 7, 2018 10:37AM PST

Thanks ....

I tried to make out a chart to see what the differences are in these three machines. They are all from resellers on the web (none privately owned) so must off lease or trade in units.

Save warranty ... none except to be not DOA.

All are 3.4 GHz ...I7 ...4770 .... 16 GB ...

Some have more USB 3.0 then others but all have some.

All have about the same number of open slots (some 4 some 6).

All have one PCIe x16 and a PCIe x4 wired as a x16

I was going to choose the one with more 3.0 USB connectors (4 in the back) but it has the smallest power supply at 280 Watts

The other two have only two 3.0's in the back but have 290 Watt and 400 Watt supplies.

I know these are very old but unfortunately at $300, they are all I can afford .... and remember, I am use to using windows 10 on a 10 year old computer!

Thanks so much again ..... Mike

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Our oldest W10 machine was from 2006.
Mar 7, 2018 11:05AM PST

Some Dell Inspiron e1505 with dual core, 1GB RAM, 120GB SSD. Must have been too nice as it was stolen from my mom. She used it for the run of the mill stuff. Replaced it with a steal of a machine off groupon. Now W10 again but on some 130 dollar HP Probook, i3, 4GB RAM and 320GB HDD.

Lots of great deals out there.