Suggestions for upgrade : Gaming Rig

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Vlakmir786

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Sep 14, 2014
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Hi there,
I have been having problems in many newer games with stuttering and FPS dips - For example, the elder scrolls online will run at about 40 FPS, then go to 30 FPS, then drop to 20 FPS, then hover around 15, then back up to 40. In big battles, it is more like 15 FPS max, dropping to 5 FPS. What's most odd is that it seems to behave in this manner no matter the graphic settings, just in a different scale (For example, if on REALLY HORRIBLE low settings, the game will run at 60 fps, then dip to 40, then hang at 25 for a bit, then back to 40, etc...). I'm trying to identify what the source of this is.


CPU : AMD FX-8120, 3100 mhz, 15.5 multiplier, 200mhz bus, 2200 HT

GPU : Radeon HD 6850, 1gb vram,

Mainboard : Biostar a960d+

Ram : DDR 12gb. 4gb of PC 10700 (667mhz), G skill. I don't really understand the timing tables, but It goes something like "6-6-6-17-23" down CPU-Z, and gets progressively higher from JEDEC #1 to JEDEC #2, #3, and #4.

The other stick is 8gb of PC3-12800H (800mhz) - Crucial, Timings more like 10-10-10-27-44 down the cpu-z table, again progressively higher.



I'm trying to get more performance out of my PC (This is maybe, a 3 year old gaming rig with a CPU upgrade last year). I'm thinking my video card is the biggest culprit, as it is fairly old and only has 1gb of Vram.
However, does my ram look bad? I put two sticks of different models/sized/speeds in there and I have heard that can be bad, but I have also heard it doesn't matter.
Does the Paging file really make a big effect? I've changed the Virtual memory paging file settings multiple times and I've never really noticed a difference in games.
I didn't list my HDD - would that make a difference in gaming?

Anyway, I'm getting a bonus soon and wanted to treat myself to an upgrade so I can actually play newer games smoothly.

Please let me know your suggestions on upgrades for gaming :)

Thank you
 
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coozie7
Looks like almost all good news:
The PSU isn't top of the line but plenty strong enough, no need to swap it.
Again, not top of the line but still good the MB COULD support a slightly faster FX CPU but the gains would be small: http://www.biostar.com.tw/app/en/mb/introduction.php?S_ID=627#cpu If you plan on overclocking, though I'd look for a replacement with better power circuitry.
You can always add a second HDD for storage if the current one is getting full. If, like me, you've got quite a lot of downloaded software onboard migrating to a larger drive can take a loooong time!
Switching to 8 Gb (2x4) or 16 Gb (2x8Gb) will probably help with gaming but which way you choose to go is up to you: I'd go for a matched pair of 4Gb modules and...
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nostall

nostall

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It may or may not be the answer to your problems, but your RAM is mis-matched. ALWAYS match RAM identically when adding more, preferably from the same manufacture with Exactly the same specs (speed, timing, voltages). Good chance the two or three sticks are not playing-well-together, expecially mismatched in size.
Try pulling the 4GB stick and playing with just the 8 and/or vice versa.
Remember to shut down and unplug the PC and let it sit for a minute or two before installing or removing the RAM stick.
Let us know if that helps.
 
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Vlakmir786

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Nostall,

Thank you for letting me know. I really wondered this when I put it in years ago, but I thought I got better general performance moving around Vista at the time (wasn't gaming much at the time).

I will try that now and see how that goes.
 
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Vlakmir786

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It's hard to say - I ran around The Elder Scrolls online to see if anything changed. I think my FPS went up a little bit overall, but the lower-end drops were a bit lower too. The change was a bit too small to say that solved any problems with ESO - but the performance seemed smoother - The drops were less sudden and overall my computer is definitely running faster - So that definitely helped. I think for that game my GPU is probably bottlenecking me still.
 
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coozie7

coozie7

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Mismatched RAM was a problem years ago, not so much now, but as Nostall says, it's better to match size and timings and install in pairs, to use the motherboards dual channel feature.
Unless you're using the system for memory intensive tasks like photo or video editing 8Gb is plenty for a gaming system so I'll suggest you drop another 4Gb module in there and E-bay the 8Gb one or purchase a matched pair of 4 Gb parts and E-bay the 4 and 8 Gb modules currently installed. Unless you can find a cheap 8Gb module that is. ;)
Some games, like Skyrim, can be demanding of the video RAM as well, so moving up to a 2 or even 3Gb card should improve matters further although the HD6850 is a decent performer: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/gaming-graphics-card-review,review-32899-7.html like all AMD cards it does suffer if you apply anti-aliasing, if you are using this feature turning it off will give an instant frame rate boost.
Adding a stronger graphics card MAY require a better power supply, please provide details of it so we can guide you further.
Oh, and one more thing, how much can you spend on the TOTAL upgrades?
 
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Vlakmir786

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Sure thing,

I'm not sure on my total budget. I was thinking maybe $300-500. I'd really like to stream games at 60 fps on ultra but hey, who doesn't.

Here are links to my PSU/Video card/HDD, just to let you guys know. I purchased these in 2011. (Hooray for newegg order history XD)

Current video card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102908

Current HDD - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

Curren PSU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182188

I'm suprised I have a 1000W psu. I kinda thought maybe I skimped on it years ago, but remember hearing to definitely not do that....

I'm also slightly concerned these components are fairly old (Ordered 3 years ago).
The MOBO + The CPU are both relatively newer (I think I bought them in 2013)

Mobo http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138373
CPU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103961

 
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Vlakmir786

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Also

If I found an R290X 4gb for $375 on Craiglist - would anyone suggest avoiding it? I'm just wondering about buying used PC parts. I kind of assume it still has manufacturer warranty (says it does) and if it didn't work, I could break some legs or something? :p
 
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coozie7

coozie7

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Jun 2, 2007
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Looks like almost all good news:
The PSU isn't top of the line but plenty strong enough, no need to swap it.
Again, not top of the line but still good the MB COULD support a slightly faster FX CPU but the gains would be small: http://www.biostar.com.tw/app/en/mb/introduction.php?S_ID=627#cpu If you plan on overclocking, though I'd look for a replacement with better power circuitry.
You can always add a second HDD for storage if the current one is getting full. If, like me, you've got quite a lot of downloaded software onboard migrating to a larger drive can take a loooong time!
Switching to 8 Gb (2x4) or 16 Gb (2x8Gb) will probably help with gaming but which way you choose to go is up to you: I'd go for a matched pair of 4Gb modules and E- bay the existing 4 and 8 Gb parts.
Biggest holdup is the graphics card, as you've already worked out.
Again, it's up to you how much you want to spend and how you choose to spend it but a nice little upgrade would be 2x4Gb RAM (<>$74 for DDR 12800) and a GTX750Ti/R9 270 class of card, this will come in at about $270.
OR you can move up the graphics food chain to the R9 280/GTX760 class of card, again with 8Gb of memory you'll stay below a total cost of about $350.
Going further up will give rapidly diminishing returns, the more expensive R9 280X/GTX770 aren't THAT much faster than the R9 280/GTX760, faster but not hugely so.
The R9 290 has similar performance to the R9 290X and is cheaper: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007709%20600473877%20600473871&IsNodeId=1&srchInDesc=r9%20290x&ActiveSearchResult=True&Pagesize=20 so no need to break any legs, then. ;)

If it was my money I'd add grab 8Gb of 1.5 volt PC12800 RAM and a R9 280 as the upgrades, it's tempting to aim higher for the GPU but unless you're playing on dual 1080 screens it's going to be wasted.
 
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