Best used desktop to run Sims 3?

@MAWriterGirl  This is a pretty decent time to find a good used computer considering how much powerful new hardware has hit the market recently, so hopefully you'll be able to find something within your budget.  If you have a friend who plays and is considering upgrading, they might sell you their old computer, or most of it, for cheap, leaving you to only buy one or two components that they're putting into a new build.  If you buy from somewhere like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, I'd suggest getting some basic diagnostics or running them yourself before handing over the money.  Let me know if you'd like some suggestions for what to run.

For the hardware itself, the most critical component is the graphics card.  Any Nvidia GPU 10-series or newer that ends in 50 or higher (1050, 1070, 1650, 2060, etc) will be able to run the game on ultra graphics settings, as would an AMD RX 570 or 580 or anything in the 5000-series.  For older cards, I'd look for something one level higher, e.g. GTX 960 or RX 380.  The second-to-last digit is the indicator of the relative strength within the generation; each generation is of course somewhat faster than the previous one.  And especially with older cards, you'll want to find out whether the unit is overheating, for example a fan might be broken or the thermal paste dried out.

For the processor, any Intel i5 or i7 6th-gen or later (i5-6400, i7-7700K, etc), or an i3 10th-gen or later (e.g. i3-10100), would definitely be good enough, as would a Ryzen 5 or 7 2000-series (R5 2600, R7 3700X) or later or an R3 5000-series.  Here again, it's worth testing for overheating, but it's also an easy fix to remove the CPU cooler, apply new thermal paste ($10 or less per tube), and remount the cooler.

RAM is easy: get at least 8 GB.  16 is nice but not necessary, and it's a corner you can cut if this is just about Sims 3—the game can only use ~3.7 GB itself, Windows uses about 2, and you can avoid heavy multitasking while you play.

For storage, an SSD is a significant quality of life upgrade, but it's not absolutely critical.  Load times will be much longer with an HDD, but the game will run the same once it's loaded.  So you could get a system with an HDD now and upgrade it later.  If you do absolutely want an SSD, keep in mind that it'll need to be at least 256 GB to fit Windows, Sims 3, and your user content, and even then, you'll need to keep an eye on free space.  500 GB would be better, but that could also drive the price up; older systems often don't have an SSD, or have a 128 GB drive just for Windows, because they were quite expensive until a few years ago.

The version of Windows doesn't matter to Sims 3, but Microsoft is only supporting 10 and 11.  If you don't care about that, for example maybe the computer will mostly stay offline, a Windows 7 computer would be fine.

If you have questions about a particular system or component, just list it and I'll have a look.

@puzzlezaddict   Thank you so much for your fast response! I had honestly expected it to take several days. As to me, it's taken me somewhat longer to sift through the myriads of choices available online, and after some dedicated searching, I've narrowed it down to these two.

https://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1479125&CatId=2627&csid=_86 I found this one on Tiger Direct; this site was recommended to me by a friend's husband who said he gets all his computers from this site and has never had any problems with them. The one snag to this is that the site has announced it's closing down at the end of March 2023, so if I go this route, it's now or never.

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-7020-Performance-Desktop-Computer/dp/B08BS123FW/ref=sr_1_10?crid=23MS8FOP4V24W&keywords=desktop+computer+with+nvidia+graphics+card&qid=1678369891&refinements=p_36%3A2421880011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A23630637011&rnid=23630635011&s=pc&sprefix=desktop+computer+with+nvidia+graphics+%2Caps%2C97&sr=1-10https://www.amazon.com/Dell-7020-Performance-Desktop-Computer/dp/B08BS123FW/ref=sr_1_10?crid=23MS8FOP4V24W&keywords=desktop+computer+with+nvidia+graphics+card&qid=1678369891&refinements=p_36%3A2421880011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A23630637011&rnid=23630635011&s=pc&sprefix=desktop+computer+with+nvidia+graphics+%2Caps%2C97&sr=1-10 This one seems to be the best fit for my parameters. The price is right and all the specs look good, but I would much appreciate an expert double-checking it before I spend the money.

This computer will be used for nothing except playing Sims 3; I'm keeping my current PC for writing my stories and letters, surfing the web, checking Facebook, etc. So I'm wondering if that will affect the amount of storage I'll need, or if the requirements are still the same. Also, can I pick up a used monitor for these, instead of having to buy a new one?

All this having been said … I've been curious for ages about something. My current PC seems to have a love-hate relationship with the game. Here are the problems I've run into:

1. I can't download the final patch for Sims 3. I tried but my PC refused to do it. The latest patch I have is 1.47.

2. I can't download anything from the Sims 3 Store. I attempted to do this when I created my account and registered my game and EPs; but nothing happened, although the items I tried to download registered on the site as having been downloaded. No matter what it is, no matter how small, it won't download. So I have 1000 SimPoints on the site that I can't use.

3. I am able to download CC from two websites only, and even then, only smaller CC. I can download, but not install, lots from the Sims Resource; the only site I've been able to download and install lots from is MySimRealty, and even there, not all of them. Usually these lots contain things that require the final patch to run; but I've wondered if file size might also be an issue.

4. As mentioned, I can run only two EPs at a time; if I want to try another EP I have to uninstall one. Since my original message I've added the Outdoor Living Stuff pack; my game still runs OK. I figure stuff packs work the same way as CC in that they just add objects to the game, so I don't have trouble with those so far. I currently own only the two SPs but I may get more. I have all but two EPs, and I'd like to be able to play with all of them simultaneously.

So I'm curious as to whether my DxDiag as attached in the first message would reveal the reason for all this. It's really just to satisfy my curiosity; I hope that the new PC will allow me to do all those things I can't do on the current one. Once again, many thanks and much appreciation for your time and effort.

I'm going to jump in here, because I don't agree with some of the advice that was given above, as the OP stated that they were on a budget. 

The Sims 3 can run on any computer that has a quad-core CPU, 4GB RAM and a budget to midrange card, using an ordinary, run of the mill hard drive. I say that as someone who's run the game fine on multiple setups, starting with a rinky-dinky single core AMD Athlon CPU, 2GB RAM and ancient Nvidia 9800GT. This game ran fine with the Nvidia 710GT and the 1030GT, which I have on my other machine. 

The only reason why anyone would need a super-duper computer is if they planned on also live streaming or recording The Sims for Twitch or some other platform. This is why some Sims 3 players have monster rigs, because many of them are streamers and recorders. People who just want to play the game don't need monster rigs, unless they're really impatient and want their game to load in the blink of an eye. A quadcore with 4GB RAM and a large hard drive will do fine. Anything over that is overkill.

I had to speak up because it's very frustrating to me when an image is being depicted of The Sims as being like the latest triple AAA title needing all the works, which in turn induces a lot of anxiety in players when shopping for a new system. Again, if you're someone who is just playing the game, a budget system is fine. It's the ones who are hoping to livestream and run other programs while playing The Sims for whatever reason that need high end machines.

@MAWriterGirl I don't know much about Intel, I just know AMD. A quadcore AMD CPU with 4GB RAM and at minimum an Nvidia 710 GT card will be fine, but the 1030 GT is ideal. (I have that running on my other machine.) I looked at your choices, and I would be more worried about the reviews for each product than whether they will run The Sims. The reviews for the Dell suggests there's something sketchy going on there.

I don't know much about Intel, I just know AMD. A quadcore AMD CPU with 4GB RAM and at minimum an Nvidia 710 GT card will be fine, but the 1030 GT is ideal. (I have that running on my other machine.)

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@thesims1depot  Thank you for your input, that's helpful to know.  I have a few questions if that's OK by you, mainly regarding graphics. When I play the game and skim my camera through town (without going into Map mode) it looks as if the town is perpetually shrouded in fog, so that I can see only a certain distance ahead and as I approach things, they appear from the fog.  Is this normal, or would a better graphics card show me the whole town from the perspective of a bird flying at around treetop level or so?  Would I get sunlight reflecting off water and shadows cast by buildings and other objects, and be able to see to the limits of the world I'm playing?  I've seen so many screenshots that have these qualities and would love to get that in my game.  I have my current graphics on the lowest setting (default, I think), so mirrors in my Sims' homes don't work right.  Mostly I don't mind, but I'd like to have that option too.  I'm afraid that if I try to raise the settings on my current PC, the game will crash or something a lot worse will happen.

You're correct in that my primary, probably only, interest is in playing.  I've been a Simmer for only about a year and don't have a lot of confidence in my ability to transfer short videos or even screenshots to social media, even if my current PC would allow it.  I might do this occasionally just to share with a friend or two, but it definitely won't be a regular thing.  Would you be able to recommend a specific PC that has the specs I quoted above?  Thanks again!

@MAWriterGirl  The second computer is much better than the first.  Its processor is four years newer, which is helpful both for the CPU itself and for the motherboard.  But much more importantly, it has a dedicated graphics card.  While a 1030 will likely struggle a bit with the most demanding packs (Pets, then Seasons), you should be able to get smooth play by tweaking the settings a bit.  (If you want help with this process, just ask, but only when you have the computer in front of you.)  The 1030 at least ten times faster in gaming than the integrated chip in the 13-year-old i5-650; to say it's not even a competition would be an understatement.

It's always a risk buying used, whether from Amazon or elsewhere, but this second one at least has a 90-day guarantee.  So you'd have time to run benchmarks and stress tests and send the computer back if it failed.  I can help with those too; the software you'd want to use is free and simple enough to set up.

Both these computers have more than enough storage.  For the monitor, yes, you can buy a used one, it's not a problem.  For the first one, you'd want a monitor that uses a VGA connection; for the second, the 1030 should have an HDMI and a DVI port.  (You'd want to plug the monitor into the GPU, not the motherboard.)

For your other questions:

1.  I've heard a couple people say they can't download the Super Patch, but I've had no trouble on a few different computers.  It may be that the link uses http instead of https, but that doesn't mean the link itself won't work.  If one browser doesn't cooperate, try another.  Here's the direct download link, which points to EA servers:

http://akamai.cdn.ea.com/eadownloads/u/f/sims/sims3/patches/TS3_1.67.2.0240xx_update.exe

2.  I would look into this again on the new computer, and try using Firefox.  The store doesn't seem to get along with most other browsers.

3.  This sounds more and more like a browser or security settings issue, and again, I'd look into it once you have the new computer set up.

4.  Yes, stuff packs add only a small amount of overhead to the game, and you should be able to play with all of them at the same time.  Whether you can play with most or all expansions depends on the computer you get.  Like I said, you might need to make some compromises with the 1030, especially if it's the slower of the two designs Nvidia released for the card.  But at worst, you might need to disable certain pets and wild horses and perhaps avoid snow; you wouldn't need to disable half your expansions.

There's nothing in your dxdiag that explains the problems you've listed other than the fact that the computer is old and has weak hardware.  The dxdiag doesn't even list the processor, which could be a random glitch or a sign of a serious system issue, but I can see enough to be completely unsurprised that Sims 3 would run poorly on it.  As for the downloading issues, I still suspect browser settings or perhaps an antivirus, but that's a question best left for when you're setting up a new computer anyway.

@thesims1depot  I'm sorry, but I have to completely disagree with your claim that Sims 3 can run on any quad-core with 4 GB RAM.  In fact, I think it's highly irresponsible to post that given how verifiably untrue it is.  Windows 10 will use 2 GB RAM by itself even without any bloatware, and I can show you Sims 3 saves that use more than 2 GB just on loading.  Your saves may use less, but you can't know someone else's playstyle or how long they'd like their saves to last.  And Sims 3 responds very badly to having its data paged out, so it's not merely a question of letting the OS manage memory effectively.

Additionally, not all quad-core CPUs are created equal, and there are plenty of dual-cores that are more powerful than older quad-cores.  As for the graphics card or chip, I have enough hwifno logs to see what happens when the GPU can't keep up with the demands of Sims 3.  It's actually worse on newer systems than on old ones, which may be why you haven't seen it, but I have.  One example I remember is someone who's game crashed every single time it rained or snowed—the iGPU was running at 98% capacity at the time and just couldn't meet the demands put on it, and then the game would crash.  This happened even on low settings.  This computer was made perhaps three or four years ago, and its iGPU was significantly better than a GT 710, although slower than a 1030.

No one is depicting Sims 3 as a AAA game needing an overpowered gaming PC.  Computers with a GTX 1050 can be very cheap on Ebay or bought from friends, and a 1050 itself can be had for about $30 on Ebay.

Finally, the worst advice you can give someone on a tight budget is to buy a low-end computer that doesn't actually meet their needs.  Then they've spent all of their money and don't have anything to show for it, and they may not be able to return the product either.

@MAWriterGirl :

If you're seeing fog, chances are that has to do with the graphics settings in-game. When you lower the draw distance to the lowest level, you'll have this issue. If you have other issues with the game graphically, it could be a case of needing to update your graphics drivers or even, in some odd cases, rolling them back, which is what I had to do with my graphics card. I had to roll the driver back, because there was an issue with a recent update that caused rain to clip. 

In terms of recommending a computer, I would pick a build similar to the Dell you found on Amazon, but with better reviews. Another site I would recommend, in case you decide against Amazon or run out of time at Tiger Direct (can't believe it's closing; bought my first electronics components there, like 20 years ago!), is Newegg: http://www.newegg.com. You can also try Best Buy and B & H Photo.

Go to "Desktops" sections on any of these sites, filter results by "low to high-price" to find budget builds. To help drill things down, read reviews because some of buyers will actually be specific as in, "It runs older games like GTA V great or Assassin's Creed fine." If a desktop can run an older triple A title like GTA V or any other released around the time TS3 wound down (GTA V was released in 2013), it can run TS3. 

BTW, I'm just going to reiterate what I said earlier, and explain my remarks:

1. There aren't desktops with a quadcore in consumer builds (aka store-bought) that cannot run older titles like The Sims. Desktops like that have always been aimed at casual users/casual gamers who want budget builds that can play older titles like GTA V, Assassin's Creed, etc. That's why I said that an AMD quadcore is fine without getting into specifics about it. 
   
   
2. The Sims 3 is not a triple A title, so it doesn't make sense to say that a casual user would need at least 8GB, or even invoke SSDs or anything of the sort. A person can certainly start with 4GB and then upgrade if they want, but not need it for The Sims 3 if all they want to do is play the game. 
   
   
3. Speaking of which, the conventional wisdom of needing a monster rig started when it turned out that TS3 was poorly optimized. So, people assumed that when their computers started sputtering, they needed to drop gobs of money on souped up components. But then, as it turned out, some of them wound up needing mods and hacks anyway to get the game running smoothly in spite of all the money they had spent: Help With Setting Up/optimizing The Sims 3 On New/high end systems. — The Sims Forums
   
   So, I guess that's why everyone wants to recommend SSDs, expensive cards, etc.. I suppose dropping $700-$1000 on a rig to play TS3 will cancel out some of the lag that comes with the game because of poor optimization, but I think it would be much cheaper to get a midrange computer and just use NRAAS and other mods like everyone winds up doing anyway, no matter how budget or high end the system. 🤣

Good luck on your search, and Happy Simming!

@puzzlezaddictOkay, so I received the new computer, then spent several hours setting it up, installing the game along with the EPs and SPs I'm currently playing.  I double-click on the icon for the game, get the launcher, try to run it -- and it goes to a black screen, then shows me a weird white top and left-side border for a few seconds before the screen goes back to black and then returns to the desktop image.  The game won't run on the computer and I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong.  I bought the Amazon machine, and it's working fine otherwise; I'm posing this question with the new computer.  Is there any way to find out what went wrong?  Thanks ...

@MAWriterGirl  Try forcing the game to launch in windowed mode.  Go into Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, open options.ini, ctrl-F to search for fullscreen , and set it to 0 (zero).  If this works, you can switch back to fullscreen at the Main Menu, but at the same time, also switch to your monitor's native resolution.

If that doesn't help, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

Please also let me know whether you've installed any mods or custom content so far.