CPU and GPU Bottleneck

polis_putrus · Jul 19, 2018

Will a Core 2 Quad Q6700 bottleneck a GT 1030 GDDR5 2GB?

toshibitsu · Jul 19, 2018

http://thebottlenecker.com/

polis_putrus · Jul 19, 2018

12% bottleneck

Dunlop0078 · Jul 19, 2018

The bottlenecker site is absolutely useless in my opinion. It depends on the game, but yes I would imagine a core 2 quad would bottleneck a 1030 in most modern somewhat CPU heavy games. How much will again depend on the game.

polis_putrus · Jul 19, 2018

Yeah I did think about the game, and I know the CPU is pretty old but its the best my PC can handle

quilciri · Jul 19, 2018

Nah. The 1030 is fairly balanced with a Q6700. The card is roughly equivalent to a GTX 460, which was a mid range card at the time the Q6700 was new.

TJ Hooker · Jul 19, 2018

The thing is you can turn down graphics settings/resolution to the point where pretty much any game is playable on a GT 1030. But that CPU is 11 years old, and if it can't handle a game there's nothing you can really do about it. So overall I'd say yes, that CPU may bottleneck a GT 1030.

E.g. a GT 1030 can get 50-60 fps in BF1 at 720p medium settings. An overclocked core 2 quad can only get 30-40 (with dips down to 20), and that won't change much no matter what settings you choose.

https://www.techspot.com/article/1313-intel-q6600-ten-years-later/
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gt-1030-2gb,5110-4.html

quilciri · Jul 19, 2018

It's fine....Crysis 3 is a good CPU workout and the Q6700 handles it well:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2yHv1m0yew

here's one from Overwatch, which is pretty CPU bound
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWdBr4tFx6k

bystander · Jul 19, 2018

Of course settings used would determine which would be the bottleneck. The CPU is going to limit your max FPS to a point where you probably wouldn't enjoy gaming on it, even with the graphical settings set to low.

quilciri · Jul 19, 2018

At whatever settings were used in those video's, it was pulling 30-50 fps in Crysis3, and 45-60 fps in overwatch. Those are decent frame rates.

TJ Hooker · Jul 19, 2018

If you look at the techspot article I linked, although an OC'd C2Q might get good average fps in overwatch, you're going to get dips down below 30.

Sure, that's still playable. And given that the OP is clearly on a pretty tight budget, a Q6700 might be the best option for him. But given that a GT 1030 can maintain minimum fps of 50+ at moderate settings in overwatch, you're clearly limited by your CPU in that case. Which is the definition of a bottleneck, which is what the OP was asking.

quilciri · Jul 19, 2018

Dropping all graphics settings to minimum is designed to emphasize CPU differences. It's literally how CPU benchmarks are done in games. Dropping the settings to lowest in one game that's already CPU intensive is no basis to claim that it bottlenecks the GPU.

I'm pretty sure the OP wants to know whether or not he can game at a decent framerate with that setup and doesn't care about technicalities.

bystander · Jul 19, 2018

quilciri :

In all honesty, 30 - 40 FPS is horrible to play at, though everyone has their own tolerances. For me, that sends me to bed with an upset stomach. So for myself, I'd keep turning the settings down until I can get at least 50 FPS, though 70+ FPS is the point where I no longer have nausea issues.

When dealing with low FPS, you certainly are going to keep turning the settings down until you reach a point where you're CPU bound, or your GPU still can't reach the FPS you want. The OP's setup is near the range of both parts being very borderline.

quilciri · Jul 20, 2018

bystander :

Console shooters and other fast paced AAA titles are, by and large, set to 30 fps. Most people think 30+ fps is decent.

If you pair the 1030 with a CPU such that the card is always pushing the maximum frames it can, that means the *card* is now the bottleneck. You want a system that, on average of most games played, uses the CPU and GPU equally. That's what a balanced system is, and that's pretty much what he has between the Q6700 and 1030.

bystander · Jul 20, 2018

quilciri :

Console gamers are ok with 30+ FPS for a few reasons. PC gaming requires more FPS to feel as comfortable. I really don't think most people are ok with 30 FPS on a PC. At least not in action games. You see the topic of why 30 FPS is ok on consoles and not on PC's show up quite a lot.

quilciri · Jul 20, 2018

Most PC gaming review sites regard 30 fps as a decent as well, including Tom's.

bystander · Jul 20, 2018

quilciri :

Ultimately, the choice is with the gamer. Not us. If the OP is ok with 30 FPS (and dips below), then he'd be happy enough with the CPU, if not, he won't be. When it comes to bottlenecks, your target FPS is a large part of the equation.

quilciri · Jul 20, 2018

bystander :

Of course his opinion is what matters; our best guess is what the majority opinion is. You've been basing your recommendation on what you thought was the majority opinion, but what you thought it was is not the case.

polis_putrus · Jul 20, 2018

Guys Im sorry, I can only pick one answer, if I could pick more, there would be solutions all over this thread, but I cant, I did read everything though and thanks for all the help, I cant choose a CPU better than the Q6700, its the best my computer can handle, Optiplex 745 Small For Factor. Also Im going for 40fps or more. Just to give you an idea what I think, these are the games I will be playing and the fps Im expecting, some of these games, such as both left 4 deads and counter strike source, currently go 40-60fps high settings, with my current Core 2 Duo E6400 and R5 240 1GB, so I will be expecting much more especially with the Q6700. My expectations after the upgrade: GTA SA Multi Theft Auto (expecting 60-90fps high settings), GTA V (expecting 30-40fps low settings), GTA IV (expecting 40-50 low settings), Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 (expecting 50-60 high settings), Counter Strike Source (expecting 60-90fps high settings), Fortnite (expecting 40-60fps low settings). I will be checking on this thread from time to time. Thanks to all.

bystander · Jul 20, 2018

quilciri :

I did not recommend anything. Read back. I only mentioned his target FPS will be the determining factor. You are the one who seems to want to get specific and say 30 FPS is enough. As it turns out, 40+ FPS is his target.

polis_putrus · Jul 20, 2018

Hey quilciri, I dont care what the majority of people regard as decent, some games that run at 30fps are slower than others that run at 30fps, some are faster its different, like when I used minecraft to test, I set the framelimiter to 30fps, it was very laggy and when I play GTA IV it currently runs at average 30fps when it does, it was much more smooth than minecraft 30fps limit, so I want 40 rather than 30, its just too low.

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