Poor gaming performance - AMD CPU to blame?

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

I have an AMD FX 8150 CPU, and my graphics card is a Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 OC edition 2 GB.

The frame rates that I get in games are pretty bad. In Battlefield 4 the system struggles to reach 60 FPS even on medium settings (using DirectX). I've never been able to play Planetside 2 (20 FPS in big battles). I tried Insurgency and I got 30-50 FPS, even on low graphics settings. Out of my shooter games, Titanfall works best, but even that gets chunky when there's a lot going on.

I'm so tired and disappointed that I'm thinking of switching to an Intel CPU setup. Something like a Core i5 4670K and an MSI Z97 Gaming 3 mobo. But before I go and spend more than 300 euros on those, I'd like to know whether the CPU is at fault here.

Right now I'm blaming my processor because lowering the graphics settings in games brings only a modest FPS boost. Performance is at its worst when there is a lot of action on screen, or when I'm looking at big buildings. This is especially evident in Planetside 2. A benchmark test for the GPU produced a normal result and safe temperatures.

I've tried so many things to fix this issue: new GPU drivers, BIOS update, new case for better ventilation, reinstalled Windows, installed Razer Gamebooster, unparked cores, virus/malware scan...

Is throwing out my AMD CPU the way to go here?

The rest of my specs:

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3
Memory: 16 GB Kingston 99U5471, 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM
PSU: Corsair 600W 80 Plus Bronze
Standard serial ATA hard drive

Running Windows 8.1
Using AMD Catalyst 14.6 Beta

LucoTF · Jul 3, 2014

Have you monitored CPU / GPU usage while gaming at all?

coolcole01 · Jul 3, 2014

Bf4 should be no problem for the fx 8150 what are all your settings and ps2 is crap. Plays like craphole on my 4770k too.

coolcole01 · Jul 3, 2014

Whoa your ram really needs to be boosted up to at least 1600

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

CPU and GPU usage in game are usually somewhere between 50 and 70 %.

In BF4 I usually have medium settings. I've tried to tweak individual settings according to guides that I found on the internet. But even low settings on BF4 (with DirectX) don't get me that much more FPS. Performance with Mantle is way better, but unfortunately I get terrible CPU spikes with it, so I can't really use it.

I've thought about the memory speed, but doesn't the speed difference only translate into 1 or 2 FPS?

coolcole01 · Jul 3, 2014

No 1333 vs 1600 is one of the real meaningful changes go for 1866 it will surely make a nice difference.

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

LucoTF :

CPU and GPU usage in game are usually somewhere between 50 and 70 %.

LucoTF · Jul 3, 2014

empirebeige :

Is that all cores? An average?

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

coolcole01 :

Thanks for the suggestion. I still don't know about the memory speed, though. My budget mobo might not be able to push beyond 1333. I was thinking of getting a new CPU and mobo and just keep the memory I have, because I didn't think the crappy performance could be attributed to the RAM sticks (2 X 8 GB).

There's a barely noticeable difference even between 1333 and 1600, at least in the benchmarks in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWgzA2C61z4

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

LucoTF :

All eight cores are working. Just tried BF4 (using DirectX), medium settings, and the average for CPU usage was around 70 %. Average for GPU was 54 %. Frame rate fluctuated between 45 and 90, spending a lot of time on the 50s. I played on Caspian Border. On these relatively open maps I get much better FPS than in maps with lots of buildings. Siege of Shanghai is usually almost playable on the lowest of settings.

Should I be getting higher readings for the processor usage?

LucoTF · Jul 3, 2014

empirebeige :

It all points to a CPU bottleneck. You could try overclocking the CPU a bit but to answer your initial question yeah, I believe the CPU is at fault here.

oxiide · Jul 3, 2014

Watch your CPU and GPU clock speed with a monitoring utility in games, make sure that its not throttling or something.

You could also give this a try: http://www.overclock.net/t/1439672/want-to-increase-bf4-frames-unpark-your-cores

I'd also try a BIOS reset (not update), in case there's any errant settings in there messing with your performance.

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

LucoTF :

Thanks. I'll look around for a good deal on a new Intel CPU. Unfortunately my mobo is not at all suited for overclocking (I tried it once).

Just played a round of Titanfall, enjoying FPSs in the 30s and 40s, even with less than max settings. How wonderful.

Quantim0 · Jul 3, 2014

This is what was happening to me with GTX760 SLI and an OC FX-8320. Huge fps drops whenever I was in a high action area, also gpu usage was about where yours was. Upgraded to a 4790k and at stock speed doubled my FPS. The average FPS went from 60 to over 120 and the drops would go to 35-40 and now I never drop below 100.

empirebeige · Jul 3, 2014

Quantim0 :

Sweet.

Boy, do I regret jumping on the AMD wagon.

LucoTF · Jul 3, 2014

empirebeige :

Hey, at least you have the budget to get off! I'm stuck till xmas lol

coolcole01 · Jul 3, 2014

I just went to friends who has an fx 8350 and crossfired 7870ghz and we turned one off and on ultra 2xmsaa with mantle he was getting a solid 50fps which is pretty great. In multiplayer.

coolcole01 · Jul 3, 2014

Try bumping up that ram to 1600 and running it see if it makes a difference

empirebeige · Jul 24, 2014

Here's an update in case someone checks this thread out later on.

I made the switch, and I've been running a new CPU/mobo combination (Core i5 4670K & Asus Z97 Pro) for a few days now. I kept my graphics card, memory sticks and all other components.

There's a significant performance increase in games. Titanfall is very smooth and Battlefield 4 is playable now. Planetside 2 is still too heavy, but at least now it indicates that the GPU is mostly the limiting factor. It used to always be the CPU.

I'll probably be staying away from AMD CPUs from now on.

LucoTF · Jul 24, 2014

empirebeige :

That's great to hear, glad it worked out for you

I think it's a common mistake for people to see their CPU at 70% usage and think 'well it's not at 100% so it can't be the bottleneck' - as you have seen, this is not the case

Poor gaming performance - AMD CPU to blame?

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