Is my new CPU bottlenecking my GPU?

Chimmferno · Oct 27, 2016

I just recently upgraded my pc and it runs everything great but I don't think my gpu is running at the fps it should be. I was wondering if someone could help me figure out how to determine the bottleneck in my rig (if there is one).

My specs:
GPU: GTX 1070 Zotac AMP! Edition
CPU: i5 6500 @ 3.2GHz (stock cooler)
RAM: 8GB DDR4 2133
MOBO: AsRock H170A-x1
PSU: Corsair CX500

I did research before grabbing my cpu to pair it with my gpu and a lot of the threads I read said that the i5 6500 shouldn't bottleneck the 1070 at 1080p so I'm wondering if it's something else in the rig that's causing the bottleneck. I'm running my games at maximum settings at 1080p. I have the latest drivers for my gpu installed. Why isn't my gpu ever close to 100%?

I recorded a couple of videos to monitor my hardware:
Battlefield 1
[video="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aTr5O2G6BU&feature=youtu.be"][/video]
Warframe
[video="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cpZFsGVmtY&feature=youtu.be"][/video]

I've heard that warframe is a bit more cpu intensive so I don't know if that's why my gpu load is lower when playing it. I would appreciate any help, thank you.

Added a third video:
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
[video="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ngt033-5e7c&feature=youtu.be"][/video]

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

Your GPU isn't close to 100% because your CPU is the limiting factor, but you're above 60fps so I'm not sure why you're concerned, unless you have a 120 or 144hz monitor. You could increase your GPU's utilization by turning up settings like anti-aliasing and have zero hit to your framerate.

Many people who don't own i5's like to chime in that they won't bottleneck... which is an oversimplification. Either CPU or GPU will always bottleneck the other, or your framerates will be infinitely high. The important point is to buy a CPU that's fast enough to deliver the framerate you want, and a GPU fast enough to deliver the graphical settings you want at that framerate. If you want a higher framerate, you'll want either an overclocked 6600K, or an i7 6700.

synphul · Oct 27, 2016

There's no one perfect cpu/gpu combo 'for gaming' since games vary. Battlefield 1 is fairly cpu intensive and some i5's are being maxed out while even a 1060 isn't reaching more than about 60% or so use at 1080p. If the 1060 isn't maxed out then a 1070 surely wouldn't be. In cpu intensive games (which doesn't reflect all games) cpu speed matters so locked core cpu's like the i5 6500 may hold things back a bit.

As Ecky points out people will often times over generalize with things like "i5 won't bottleneck". Which game are we talking, witcher 3? Arma, battlefield 1? Or are we talking a game like doom where even a dual core pushes over 100fps? Since games vary so much from one to another depending which title it could mean anything from solitaire to crysis with varying hardware needs. Some are better optimized than others, some are poorly optimized upon first release and need several updates before performance improves.

Outside of going overboard by getting the most expensive cpu and gpu like an i7 6700k overclocked with a gtx 1080 or two, there's no single 'gaming' pc. A gtx 1060 suits a 1080p gaming build just fine while a 1070/1080 would be more suited to 1440p/4k.

Rogue Leader · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

This right here is the answer. It doesn't matter of the CPU is running at 100% as long as the game plays well at the max graphical settings you want you have no problems. Like he said turn it up a bit if you want.

elbert · Oct 27, 2016

I would suggest A high speed RAM kit with 16GB's of RAM. Your RAM only meets the min requirements and is about the slowest RAM. This is a high speed kit of 16GB's which is the recommended amount.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($97.12 @ Amazon)
Total: $97.12
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-10-27 10:25 EDT-0400

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

elbert :

Without a Z170 chipset, you can only run RAM at 2133mhz, unless something has changed since I last assembled a Skylake system.

elbert · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

The motherboard states it "Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) 2.0." The H series mobos also support XMP, not just the Z series and X series.

Rogue Leader · Oct 27, 2016

elbert :

While it does, it doesn't do anything other than change some timings (which may or may not have a small affect):

* Due to Intel® chipset limitation, DDR4 2133 MHz and higher memory modules on XMP mode will run at the maximum transfer rate of DDR4 2133 Mhz.

theonerm2 · Oct 27, 2016

I did my own tests on this and found that in Battlefield 1 you need a Core i7 to reach those really high framerates that are 100+. Also I found that the bottleneck goes away at higher resolutions. You are being CPU bottlenecked in Battlefield 1 but this game is a rare one to bottleneck a Core i5 CPU. There aren't that many games out there that are that CPU intensive. In Warframe you aren't being CPU bottlenecked. In either case the game is running fine so I wouldn't worry too much.

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

OP is seeing ~35% GPU utilization in Warframe, which looks very much like a CPU bottleneck to me. However, it's also running at >120fps for the most part, meaning the GPU could be delivering probably in excess of 300fps in that game at the graphical settings OP is running when paired with a hypothetical infinitely fast CPU.

elbert · Oct 27, 2016

Rogue Leader :

Actually its ASRock that doesn't always play by the rules. His motherboard H170A-X1 is stated to OC the RAM.

Non-Z motherboards that support DDR4 Non-Z OC (More coming):

http://www.asrock.com/news/index.asp?id=3043

Chimmferno · Oct 27, 2016

Thanks for the quick replies everyone, I really appreciate it.

Ecky :

Sorry, I should have mentioned that a 144hz monitor is something that I'm aiming for at some point down the line which is one reason why the fps was concerning me. Another reason why I was concerned about the gpu usage was because I was watching gameplay videos on youtube with specs similar to mine and they were getting a higher gpu usage than I was and also higher frames at the same settings (1080p, maxed out).

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

Are you sure they're not running much higher anti-aliasing settings? There are always settings you can crank up more that will tax your GPU more.

If you're shooting for 144fps, an i5, even overclocked, is just not going to cut it. Even an overclocked 6700K or 6800K will not deliver a steady 144fps in some titles. A locked i5 is only adequate for 60fps in the vast majority of titles.

theonerm2 · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

I overlooked that. I only looked at the CPU usage and it wasn't maxing out. In fact it's not even that close to maxing out most of the time. In Battlefield 1 the CPU is always close to maxing out but this game only comes close and actually does max out only a few times. Also In Battlefield 1 the CPU usage is much higher than in Warframe and yet the GPU usage is much higher in BF1. In this case I honestly do not know if it's a CPU bottleneck because the CPU isn't maxing out along with the low GPU usage. I think it's just all in how the game was programmed most likely.

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

In Warframe, it's likely just not well-threaded. A CPU pegged at 25% can still be the limiting factor if only one of the four cores is used.

Chimmferno · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

I've looked at the videos and compared it to my own settings, they're pretty much identical and I'm getting lower frames and lower usage. Could there be a problem with my cpu or gpu?

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

There will be some variability from system to system. Things running in the background, exact settings in the graphics control panel, slight differences in clockspeed between cards, RAM configuration, and most importantly, what's going on in the game. Remember that people posting these videos are probably showing off a best-case scenario.

Chimmferno · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

I suppose you're right. I added a new video just to show more of the cpu and gpu usage. Does everything look ok?

Ecky · Oct 27, 2016

Yeah, looks about right. You could force higher anti-aliasing in your graphics control panel and probably have no impact on framerates in any of these games.

Rogue Leader · Oct 27, 2016

elbert :

I checked around about this, with that article being a year old that feature may well have been removed at this point (just like BCLK overclocking). Of all the mods none have been able to ever get anything to work over 2133mhz, and one mod who has a DDR4 Non-Z OC board said the feature straight up doesn't work.

I would not go recommending this because everything indicates it doesn't work at all.

jghaverty · Oct 27, 2016

Ecky :

elbert :

Without a Z170 chipset, you can only run RAM at 2133mhz, unless something has changed since I last assembled a Skylake system.

Ram speed will do absolutely nothing for gaming fps...

elbert · Oct 27, 2016

Rogue Leader :

elbert :

I checked around about this, with that article being a year old that feature may well have been removed at this point (just like BCLK overclocking). Of all the mods none have been able to ever get anything to work over 2133mhz, and one mod who has a DDR4 Non-Z OC board said the feature straight up doesn't work.

I would not go recommending this because everything indicates it doesn't work at all.

Thanks Rouge Leader for clarifying the issue. If anyone want to test it ASRock makes the old bios versions available..
http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/H170A-X1/?cat=Download&os=BIOS

Chimmferno · Oct 27, 2016

Thanks for all the answers guys, I really appreciated the help. I won't change anything in my system for the time being, I was just concerned as to whether or not I was getting the "right" performance with my specific rig.

jghaverty · Oct 27, 2016

Chimmferno :

Everything looks fine here. Performance looks as it should, and youre crushing it with all the games anyway. With the 1070, it might be time to consider stepping up to a 1440p (or higher) monitor to fully utilize that beast

Is my new CPU bottlenecking my GPU?

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