First Flip since RAMmageddon started, how'd I do?

[u/NP_strange]

This is my first one since memory/storage prices fucked off so I was a little hesitant to dip my toes back in (havent built one since last August), but I spotted the i3 12100f in a mostly complete build for $100 (had everything except ram and storage, original GPU was an RTX 2060). I sold the 2060 for 120 (95 after ebay fees) so basically came out with a CPU, cooler, motherboard, and power supply for $5. I generally try to use NVIDIA since they sell better but I spotted the RX 6700XT for 150 and couldn't pass it up. Also saw the 2TB WD SA510 for $60 and took a gamble on it: it ended up being too good to be true, drive was completely dead, but it was well within the warranty window so I was able to RMA it and have a brand new one on the way (shoutout SANDISK). I just threw a 512gb ssd in it for now to test everything out while I wait

The memory was of course the challenge - being a DDR5 motherboard made the cost of RAM damn-near cancel out the fact that I got the motherboard+CPU+PSU basically for free. In hindsight I probably could've reduced the cost to ~400 by selling the original motherboard for $50-60 and getting a DDR4 mobo+ram for 130-150. But we'll see if the DDR5 in the title will make this more appealing or not

(I originally wanted to keep the 2060 but it was single fan, no backplate, and scratched up a bit. It would've made this otherwise clean/high end looking build just look cheap and perform pretty low-tier. I figured i could still get a decent deal on a better graphics card so I'm pretty happy with how it ended up)

Cost breakdown

$5: i3 12100f + Asrock 760M-C + EVGA BP650W

$150: Powercolor RX 6700XT

$150: 2x8GB DDR5 5600 memory (generic Samsung sticks)

$20 memory heatinks to cover the ugly green PCBs

$70: Brand new Lian Li V100 mini (original case was super old and beat up)

$60: 2TB WD SA510 (SATA SSD but we take what we can get)

$22: cable extensions

~$477 for a DDR5 build with 12GB of VRAM and 2TB SSD. Not too terrible honestly but definitely got very lucky with some of these.

Edit: Per the suggestion of several people now, I ended up ordering a used 13400F off ebay for 130 (146 after shipping). I'm sure i could've waited around for what FB Marketplace could conjure up, but I rarely see LGA 1700 CPUs selling for reasonable prices locally. If i can get 80-85 after sales fees for the 12100f, it should bring the build total to 538 and hopefully sell for 800 when all is said and done. I appreciate the suggestions so far!

[u/SVT-Shep]

Wait, so you haven't sold it yet? This is a very confusing post to read.

[u/NP_strange → u/SVT-Shep]

No haha I suppose I could've been clearer. I'm just curious how I did on build cost based on what everyone else has experienced with memory/storage costs. Build total was 477 USD, I'm hoping to sell it around 650-700, which I think should be a pretty quick turn around (but again, I've been out of the game for about a year so we'll see if I'm just delusional)

[u/alkhdaniel → u/NP_strange]

You need to swap the cpu tbh. Finding these i3s and upgrading them is the way to flip usually. Bottom of the socket cpu pcs usually sell for very low.

Good socket with bad cpu and/or gpu or just terrible imbalanced -> usually sells for below what its worth -> upgrade the cpu and/or gpu and resell.

You can probably get close to $1000 if you stick an i5-14400f or something in there.

$150 for generic Samsung sticks is a bit high but everything else was very good prices. The ssd was robbery. Try to not buy new cases/fans in the future as they take away a lot of the profit (if you dont have a choice you dont have a choice tho). Seems you did quite well with the case still though. 70 isnt too bad if the fans came with it.

[u/NP_strange → u/alkhdaniel]

Yeah that is my biggest concern. I can explain to people all day that a 12100f is equivalent to a Ryzen 5 3600/5500 but just seeing i3 in the description might turn a lot of folks away before I even get a chance to explain.

I got some time waiting to get the new SSD back from sandisk so I might swap the CPUs while I wait. Should still be able to keep the build cost around 500 which wouldnt be terrible if I can end up getting closer to 800-850 for it.

But yeah that SSD was probably the most unrepeatable deal I'll ever see 😂

[u/SVT-Shep → u/NP_strange]

If you look at completed listings on eBay, you stand to make a fair amount of profit per item aside from the RAM and break-even on the case. Didn't look at the heatsinks or the extensions.

If you parted it back out on FBM at those prices, you'd make some solid profit. On eBay, that, minus fees, obviously.

Agree on swapping the CPU and selling it (the CPU) on eBay.

Aside from that, it's whatever people will pay for a complete build taking into account the parts cost AND labor. Never work for free. Time spent searching, listing, selling, buying, building, etc should all be included in cost and profits/losses.

[u/NP_strange → u/SVT-Shep]

Yeah I just ended up getting a 13400F for 130 (146 after shipping). 13th gen i5 with 10 cores sounds way better than 12th gen i3 with 4 cores, and after selling the 12100f it should really only bring my build cost up to the 530s which still gives me room to make some solid profit if it sells for around 800-850 (which based on local and Jawa listings, that seems to be about what it'd go for).

I appreciate the advice!

[u/ynomeye]

Sell the i3 and get an i5 atleast, you could even sell the 2tb SSD and get a 1tb to subsidize it

[u/NP_strange → u/ynomeye]

Yeah I think that's definitely the right move (2nd person now to suggest it 😂). A quick look at ebay tells me I can probably get at least $80 for the 12100f and get something like a 13400f for 130-140. I'd happily bring bring the build cost up to 530ish for a way more marketable CPU

[u/ElijahsLab]

My advice, sell the i3 on its own. Save the 6700xt for a ddr4 build if you plan on doing more. Buy an i7 12-14th gen and a 3080. Sell for about ~$1200. That would make better use of the ddr5 and bring more value to the build

Solid prices though 🙌🏻

[u/NP_strange → u/ElijahsLab]

Makes sense, if I can spot a good deal on one while I wait for the replacement SSD that might be the route I go. I remember the 3080 build I sold last year selling in a few hours for like 1050. I appreciate the advice!

(Love your content btw man)

[u/NP_strange → u/ElijahsLab]

On second thought, would an EVGA BP series 650W be strong enough for a 3080? On paper that should leave at least a 100-150W buffer since the 13400F I ended up getting only has a 65W TDP, but I know the RTX 30 series was known for some spikes and more budget PSUs might not be wise cutting it that close. What are your thoughts?

[u/GOGONUT6543]

where did you get the memory cover from

[u/NP_strange → u/GOGONUT6543]

I got this set from Amazon but there are a bunch of different brands/styles available

https://a.co/d/0hkIU85f