Should I buy this used PC?

[Stefan.K]

So this are the components.
I'm asking here because I am limited financially and probably will use this PC for years(if it works, ofc. ).

MSI (Big Bang) Z77 M Power
i5 3570K Total Cores 4
Max Turbo Frequency 3.80 GHz
AMD Radeon RX 480 8GB
Stream Processors: 2304 Base Clock: 1120 MHz Boost Clock: 1266 MHz
Interface: GDDR5 Interface Width: 256-bit Bandwidth: 224 GB/s
RAM 8GB DDR3
SSD 120 Kingstone

My question would be will this be able to run some new games or Reforged on highest settings?
If someone wants to compare you can see my current pc in this thread: Monitor entering power save model while starting a PC

 

[Ravager16829]

I really like asking about the Gaming Rig with low system specifications and you might want to ask about "But Can It Run Crysis?".
Everyone will always use that phrases when they want AAA games such as Grand Theft Auto V or so on.

The current Warcraft III system requirements can be checked in the link below:

Warcraft III System Requirements (Reforged and Classic) - Blizzard Support

Based on that thread above, your system can play Reforged because everything is met. You are using the Quad Core CPU (i5) as opposed to Dual Core (i3), 8 GB of RAM, and Direct3D 11 graphics card with at least 1 or 2 GB of VRAM. However, IIRC, your system is too old for playing some recent games on the Full HD resolution and with Highest settings. Your CPU, which is i5 3570K, was discontinued in 2015. To be clear, recent Core i3 CPUs are now considered as the Quad Core CPU (4C/8T) rather than the Dual Core CPU (2C/4T).
If you have a limited financially, I would rather suggest building a new Rig that consisted of new Quad Core CPU. I think, Ryzen 3 with "G" suffixes might be a good choice since they have an integrated graphics (APU). Also, try increasing your memory to 16 GB because latest Reforged patches tend to crash more often due to the higher consumption.
Your GPU should be more than enough, but in my opinion, RX 480 is too overwhelming because of higher VRAM and power consumption. A GTX 1650 Super with 4 GB of GDDR6 should be fine as it has less power consumption than RX 480.
SSD should not be a major question. This is a must, but you might need to use a HDD for installing Reforged. 2 TB is a minimum for current Rig.
Last, but not least, the OS. Once again, don't question it. Windows 10 and 11 are the only good choice as most games didn't work on older OS (Windows 7 and Windows 8.1) due to the new core DLLs.

 

[Idaero Ace]

To see benchmark in various games, youtube is your best friend. This still able to play on high settings o.o

that video use i3-12100. Thats an i3 but it’s actually bit better than old i5. i5 3570k only has 4 cores 4 threads, while new i3 is 4 cores 8 threads. The speed is mostly same, but more threads mean it will run better at multitasking (chrome tabs o.o) . Most games doesn’t require strong CPU, so you will be fine.

This is certainly big upgrade from your previous rig. The only you need is ram upgrade to 16 gb and some hdd. That 120gb SSD only enough for your OS o.o

It’s a good rig, but maybe depends on its conditions too. Buying used pc is always really tricky.

 

[Stefan.K]

To see benchmark in various games, youtube is your best friend. This still able to play on high settings o.o

that video use i3-12100. Thats an i3 but it’s actually bit better than old i5. i5 3570k only has 4 cores 4 threads, while new i3 is 4 cores 8 threads. The speed is mostly same, but more threads mean it will run better at multitasking (chrome tabs o.o) . Most games doesn’t require strong CPU, so you will be fine.

This is certainly big upgrade from your previous rig. The only you need is ram upgrade to 16 gb and some hdd. That 120gb SSD only enough for your OS o.o

It’s a good rig, but maybe depends on its conditions too. Buying used pc is always really tricky.

Thanks for the tips.
I would probably upgrade the ram and cpu but what bothers me the most is the GPU. The guy that was selling it is from the place where people used a lot of gpu's for the mining and that worries me the most, because the gpu could be in bad condition...

 

[Ravager16829]

To see benchmark in various games, youtube is your best friend. This still able to play on high settings o.o

that video use i3-12100. Thats an i3 but it’s actually bit better than old i5. i5 3570k only has 4 cores 4 threads, while new i3 is 4 cores 8 threads. The speed is mostly same, but more threads mean it will run better at multitasking (chrome tabs o.o) . Most games doesn’t require strong CPU, so you will be fine.

This is certainly big upgrade from your previous rig. The only you need is ram upgrade to 16 gb and some hdd. That 120gb SSD only enough for your OS o.o

It’s a good rig, but maybe depends on its conditions too. Buying used pc is always really tricky.

To be clear, my system is from 2019 with i5-8400 (Coffee Lake), which has 6 cores and 6 threads. Nowadays, the newer i3 has the same performance as older i7 due to the same specifications (4 cores 8 threads). However, I managed to play new games (GTA V, Valorant, PES 2021, etc) without issues due to the fact those games didn't rely on higher system requirements.
I also have 8 GB of RAM, but still prove insufficient since gamers decided to use 16 GB of RAM, as most recent games now require higher RAM consumption.
For storage, the 2 TB of regular HDD is a must. 1 TB is not good enough because most recent games are now bigger (RDR 2 is 100GB-ish game).
The only problem is the OS itself. Not all systems are capable on running Windows 11. A UEFI-based BIOS system with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0. is required to install Windows 11. As such, if you attempt to install Windows 11 on a system that doesn't have either Secure Boot or TPM 2.0. or both of them, you are bound to come across some issues. Most notably, you can't even play games that require anti-cheat protection such as Valorant and FIFA 23.

 

[Idaero Ace]

Thanks for the tips.
I would probably upgrade the ram and cpu but what bothers me the most is the GPU. The guy that was selling it is from the place where people used a lot of gpu's for the mining and that worries me the most, because the gpu could be in bad condition...

The only good thing from that rig is the GPU. But yeah, RX480 is known used for mining a lot o.o There is no way to actually check the GPU without testing it. If you want something really safe, better just grab Ryzen as Ravager16829 said. It's only able to play low/medium on newer title, but I personally think it's enough since graphic is not changed much recent years (but getting heavier because lazy optimization). And you can safely upgrade it with proper GPU later.

For storage, the 2 TB of regular HDD is a must. 1 TB is not good enough because most recent games are now bigger (RDR 2 is 100GB-ish game).
The only problem is the OS itself. Not all systems are capable on running Windows 11. A UEFI-based BIOS system with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0. is required to install Windows 11. As such, if you attempt to install Windows 11 on a system that doesn't have either Secure Boot or TPM 2.0. or both of them, you are bound to come across some issues. Most notably, you can't even play games that require anti-cheat protection such as Valorant and FIFA 23.

I usually only install couple games that I actually play, so 1TB is ok for me. And getting more space is pretty easy with external hdd. I didn't know anything about those requirements. Thanks

 

[Dr Super Good]

My question would be will this be able to run some new games or Reforged on highest settings?

No it will not run some modern games at highest settings. Slow CPU, too little memory, weak GPU. It should "run" most modern games but certainly not on high settings or with high frame rates.

It should run Reforged on high settings reasonably well though. Asset spam custom maps or high resoltions might still make it struggle... Reforged is not that graphically demanding compared to many modern games.

probably will use this PC for years(if it works, ofc. )

If you intend to use something for years, it might be a good idea to get something that has not already been used for years. The i5 3570 was released over 10 years ago so the computer has already been used for 10 years. GPU is more modern though, being only over 6 years old. Many of those parts are approaching the end of their useful life, even if they can be kept functioning for some more years.

 

[Stefan.K]

No it will not run some modern games at highest settings. Slow CPU, too little memory, weak GPU. It should "run" most modern games but certainly not on high settings or with high frame rates.

It should run Reforged on high settings reasonably well though. Asset spam custom maps or high resoltions might still make it struggle... Reforged is not that graphically demanding compared to many modern games.


If you intend to use something for years, it might be a good idea to get something that has not already been used for years. The i5 3570 was released over 10 years ago so the computer has already been used for 10 years. GPU is more modern though, being only over 6 years old. Many of those parts are approaching the end of their useful life, even if they can be kept functioning for some more years.

I was worried about that. I would get something new if my finances get better in the future, but for now I am not in a position to buy new PC or some used one but with newer components.
I did find another a lot better one(images attached) but it is a lot more expensive - 650€.

 

[Ravager16829]

I was worried about that. I would get something new if my finances get better in the future, but for now I am not in a position to buy new PC or some used one but with newer components.
I did find another a lot better one(images attached) but it is a lot more expensive - 650€.

Yeah, that system is too expensive and also overkilling, especially the graphics card one (RTX 3060 12GB) and the storage (512GB NVMe SSD), if you combine with 6C/6T processors and 16GB of RAM.
A latest generation of i3, 16GB of RAM, and the GTX 1650 Super should be enough for saving a lot of money. RTX 3050 was also good, but as with other RTX graphics card, it relies on higher power consumption.
Windows 11 requires a Secure Boot and TPM 2.0-compatible UEFI BIOS, as well as higher system requirements (64-bit CPU). Most recent motherboards come with those features, so you don't need to worry about installation.

 

[Dr Super Good]

If that entire system costs 650€ and a RTX 3060 is ~300€ new by itself then the question becomes if the rest of the system is worth ~350€. It does seem quite well rounded for that price, but also seems to have a weaker CPU and only 1 memory DIMM installed which might further impact performance.

 

[Stefan.K]

If that entire system costs 650€ and a RTX 3060 is ~300€ new by itself then the question becomes if the rest of the system is worth ~350€. It does seem quite well rounded for that price, but also seems to have a weaker CPU and only 1 memory DIMM installed which might further impact performance.

Yes. It is 630€ at the moment.
For the area where I live that price is really low. I have compared to other builds with the same cpu, gpu...and they cost above 800-900€. Some even cost 1200€.
That's why it seems a bit risky.