I need an upgrade, but don't know what. (Graphic Quality Lagging)

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

Hi everyone

I've recently built a rig, and was wondering what I should go for in regard to an upgrade. Typically, I run most games like Skyrim, Rust, Dark Souls, Civilization, and Battlefield 3 on occasion. I run most of these games with 30-40 FPS, but sometimes the performance drops unexpectedly and it always seems to be when I'm in a good part of the game (just kidding, it happens randomly.) I wish to run higher-end games like Battlefield 4 and Titanfall eventually.

My rig -

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
ASROCK z77 pro3 motherboard
i5-3470 CPU 3.1ghz
gtx 660 GPU
8gb of 2x4gb DDR3 RAM (Corsair Vengeance)
Samsung 840 Pro SSD
1TB WD Black 7200 RPM HDD

This is all ran through an HDMI cable to a 34" LCD TV at 1080p. The question is,

What should I upgrade?

I'm not sure if my CPU is bottlenecking my 660, if I should upgrade my RAM, or if getting a smaller monitor will help. (I'd prefer to keep the TV as the monitor.) I was considering going SLI with the 660 as well. If I did that, would a 3.4ghz quad-core intel cpu be able to handle that, or should I go with something bigger? I keep it clear of malware and all that good stuff too.

Any help is appreciated, thank you in advance!

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

are your softwares updated and patched?
what model power supply are you using?
what cpu cooler are you using?
what model gfx card?

barto · Mar 20, 2014

To add to Roy's concerns and to answer your's, no your CPU is not bottlenecking anything but in order to SLI more info is needed.

What is your budget? Budget and PSU pending, I would almost consider upgrading to a more powerful single GPU solution.

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

de5_Roy :

Yes, softwares are up-to-date.
PSU - Raidmax Hybrid 530w
CPU cooler - just the basic heatsink that came with the cpu
GPU - Asus Gtx 660 (not the Ti version)

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

Also, would overclocking the CPU be doable? I just read that it OC's to 3.6ghz. I know that'd be a hell of a lot better than what it is now.

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

try running the pc with a different psu. a good quality one. like seasonic, antec or corsair. raidmax is well known for cheating and implementing low quality components in their psus.
from a bit of searching, your psu seems to be over 5 yrs old, yes? seems you recycled the psu from an old build or something.

barto · Mar 20, 2014

So there are a couple things to straighten out. First, the 3470 has a base frequency of 3.1 GHz with a Turbo Clock frequency of 3.6 GHz. The 3470 will automatically clock to the higher frequency if needed. Overclocking is a term typically used for Intel's 'k' series CPUs. The 'k' signifies an Intel CPU that has an unlocked multiplier, thus the ability to overclock. The 3470 has a locked multiplier but technically can be overclocked an old fashioned way by increasing the Front Side Bus (FSB). The downside is you won't be able to get to high clocks as an unlocked CPU. By messing with the FSB, you may be able to get the 3.6 or 3.7 without using Turbo Clock, but I don't think it's necessary to do that. I doubt there would be any performance increase by messing with the FSB.

Furthermore, in order to overclock, a Z77 chipset is needed. You have one which is good. H77 and B75 motherboards don't support overclocking via adjusting a CPU's multiplier, possibly not even FSB depending on the board.

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

dhurda471 :

yes... in limited amount. the cpu should be oc'able up to 400mhz over base clockrate. check your motherboard bios settings. overclocking results in higher power use and higher heat dissipation, as a result, the cpu will need better cooling and it needs to be fed from a good source.

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

de5_Roy :

No, I bought it new from newegg. I didn't realize it was so old?

Link to:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817152028

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

barto :

Ohhhh, that makes sense now. I knew of the "K" versions of processors, and I understand overclocking, I just didn't know about this. So, the cpu turbos on its own? I see.

What do you guys think I should consider upgrading? Budget is around $200.

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

dhurda471 :

oh... i could track that model back as far as 2008~.

as for upgrades, a 3rd party cpu cooler like cm hyper 212 series and a new psu like seasonic s12g or s12m or s12ii series (if available).

logainofhades · Mar 20, 2014

Power supply with some headroom for upgrades. You don't need more than a coolermaster Hyper TX3 evo for your particular CPU.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/404598/SuperNOVA_NEX750B_Bronze_750_Watt_ATX_12V_Power_Supply

barto · Mar 20, 2014

[strike]For the budget of $200, that's going to be tough to do SLI when a new PSU is needed. I say you go for it! Get a new PSU and then add a second 660. [/strike]

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

barto :

it's gonna be "tough" to sli either way since z77 pro3 doesn't allow for sli. it has all of cpu's pcie lanes routed to the primary x16 slot. the second one runs at x4 and borrows from the z77 chipset (pch).

barto · Mar 20, 2014

de5_Roy :

You're right. I forgot to even look at the board. I'm pretty sure this board has bit me twice in relation to SLI conversations.

And so I retract my previous statement. Buy a new more powerful GPU.

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

So you're saying that although it has the slots to do so, it won't support two 660's?

logainofhades · Mar 20, 2014

No it will not support two 660's. I would definitely back off on the settings a bit for now. Once that may really help is backing view distance down a notch or two. I would get a proper power supply to start, then save up for a good single GPU.

de5_Roy · Mar 20, 2014

dhurda471 :

pro3 has two pcie x16 slots, the primary one running at x16 speed, gets all of the cpus lanes (integrated pcie controller). nvidia requires two pcie x16 slots running at x8 speed for dual card in sli.

dhurda471 · Mar 20, 2014

Oh I see. Thanks for the help guys!

I need an upgrade, but don't know what. (Graphic Quality Lagging)

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