Motherboard CPU Combo

First off, I don't know what CPU you think you have, but unless you've overclocked it, there is no 3.6 GHz AM3 quad core. I assume you mean you have X4 965 (or 955). Second, you cannot have a two year old AM3 CPU or motherboard. The sockets only been out since February 2009, so it's at most 9 months.

But that's really besides the point. The real point is that if you have what you say you have (on overclocked AM3 X4 at 3.6 GHz), there should be no bottleneck. That would be on par with the fastest CPUs out there. Besides, no current CPU (i.e. AM3, LGA1156, LGA1366, late LGA775 multi-core units) would be the bottleneck for gaming. I'm betting that (again, if you have what you think you have), there's something else causing it.

Possible issues would be that you actually have an AM2/AM2+ CPU that's an older model, which could cause a bottleneck. Or you could be running on very little RAM or very slow RAM. To really tell what could be causing the slow-down, we need to know all your components. What EXACT motherboard and CPU? What make and model RAM? What HDD and PSU? What OS are you using?

EDIT: Sorry if that comes off with me sounding like an a$$, but frankly exaggerations and guessing don't help get you answers. To provide the best help, we need to know exactly what we're dealing with.

Yes, I should have been more accurate. I was trying to remember everything while at work. Clearly I did not get it quite right. Here is the actual specs of the system:

CPU-Z TXT Report
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CPU-Z version 1.54



Processors
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Name AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition
Codename Agena
Specification AMD Phenom(tm) 9950 Quad-Core Processor
Package Socket AM2+ (940)
Core Speed 2729.9 MHz
Multiplier x FSB 13.0 x 210.0 MHz
HT Link speed 1050.0 MHz

Chipset
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Northbridge NVIDIA SPP190 (C51XE) rev. A2
Southbridge NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI rev. A2
Graphic Interface PCI-Express
PCI-E Link Width x16
PCI-E Max Link Width x16
Memory Type DDR2
Memory Size 4096 MBytes
Channels Dual, (Unganged)
Memory Frequency 420.0 MHz (1:2)
CAS# latency (CL) 5.0
RAS# to CAS# delay (tRCD) 5
RAS# Precharge (tRP) 5
Cycle Time (tRAS) 15
Bank Cycle Time (tRC) 25
Command Rate (CR) 2T
Uncore Frequency 2099.9 MHz


Memory SPD
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SMBus address 0x50
Memory type DDR2
Module format Regular UDIMM
Manufacturer (ID) OCZ (7F7F7F7FB0000000)
Size 2048 MBytes
Max bandwidth PC2-6400 (400 MHz)
Part number OCZ2P10662G
Number of banks 2
Data width 64 bits
Correction None
Nominal Voltage 1.80 Volts
EPP yes (1 profiles)
XMP no
JEDEC timings table CL-tRCD-tRP-tRAS-tRC @ frequency
JEDEC #1 3.0-4-4-10-16 @ 266 MHz
JEDEC #2 4.0-5-5-13-20 @ 333 MHz
JEDEC #3 5.0-5-5-15-24 @ 400 MHz
EPP timings table CL-tRCD-tRP-tRAS-tRC-CR @ frequency (voltage)
EPP profile #1 (full) 5.0-5-5-15-26-2T @ 533 MHz (2.100 Volts)



Monitoring
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Mainboard Model CROSSHAIR (0x000002AE - 0x0320FD98)



Graphics
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Number of adapters 2

Display Adapters
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Display adapter 0
Manuf. API index 0
Display name \\.\DISPLAY1
Name NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295
Revision B1
Codename GT200
Technology 55 nm
Memory size 896 MB
Memory type GDDR3
Memory bus width 448 bits
PCI device bus 3 (0x3), device 0 (0x0), function 0 (0x0)
Vendor ID 0x10DE (0x3842)
Model ID 0x05E0 (0x1291)
Performance Level Default
Core clock 300.9 MHz
Shader clock 601.7 MHz
Memory clock 100.0 MHz
Performance Level 2D Desktop
Core clock 300.9 MHz
Shader clock 601.7 MHz
Memory clock 100.0 MHz
Performance Level 3D Applications
Core clock 300.9 MHz
Shader clock 601.7 MHz
Memory clock 100.0 MHz

Display adapter 1
Manuf. API index 1
Display name \\.\DISPLAY1
Name NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295
Revision B1
Codename GT200
Technology 55 nm
Memory size 896 MB
Memory type GDDR3
Memory bus width 448 bits
PCI device bus 4 (0x4), device 0 (0x0), function 0 (0x0)
Vendor ID 0x10DE (0x3842)
Model ID 0x05E0 (0x1291)
Performance Level Default
Core clock 576.0 MHz
Shader clock 1242.0 MHz
Memory clock 999.0 MHz
Performance Level 2D Desktop
Core clock 576.0 MHz
Shader clock 1242.0 MHz
Memory clock 999.0 MHz
Performance Level 3D Applications
Core clock 576.0 MHz
Shader clock 1242.0 MHz
Memory clock 999.0 MHz


Software
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Windows Version Microsoft Windows 7 (6.1) Ultimate Edition (Build 7600)
DirectX Version 11.0

You issue is that your Motherboard, RAM and CPU are holding back your GTX 295. I would recommend upgrading those three areas to a current AM3 setup.

CPU/MOBO Combo: AMD Athlon II X3 440 Rana 3.0GHz Socket AM3 & GIGABYTE GA-770TA-UD3 AM3 AMD 770 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1600 Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM

OK. That's fair. But.....

What about the new 6 core AMD CPU? Matched up with one of the Republic of Gamer (ROG) sponsored boards? Then what memory to match?

I would like to make the leap forward to the most modern hardware if I am going to spend money. Rather spend it once and it last a while....


Thanks!!


DC