Bottlenecked? gaming pc that should be performing better?

[scout54]

Hello,
as the topic states my gaming pc feels a little slow, it runs gpu heavy games like skyrim and empireTW very nicely however when it comes to games like farcry 3 i have to run at low settings, what am i missing here folks XD
specs: I7 2600k 3.4 ghz
evga nvidia GTX 560 2gig gddr5 native res- 1920x1080
1TB seagate HDD
8 gigs kingston hyper X 1600 ddr 3
asus p8z68 le motherboard
500 watt corsair psu
windows 7 64bit
i dont think im forgetting anything but open to questions and hoping for help!

 

[swifty_morgan]

I would have to say the architecture of the card(560). A lowly gtx660 is twice as fast.

 

[scout54]

hmm well im no computer expert, i should have done more research on vid cards. clearly my bad

 

[tiny voices]

The 560 is almost 3 years old. Its just not up to it for newest games.

 

[scout54]

in everyone's opinion is the rest of my setup good to support a better video card? and what are some recommendations for a good card thats not like $400+

 

[tiny voices]

The rest of your computer is perfectly fine and modern. Look at a gtx 660 or an hd 7870.

 

[Onus]

If you prefer nVidia, such as to get PhysX, get a GTX660. If AMD is acceptable, a HD7870. Either will be a significant improvement over a GTX560, and cost around $200-$225.

 

[scout54]

thanks! think i will go for a gtx 660, i tend to prefer nvidia

 

[skit75]

I was a bit skeptical that would solve all your problems. In a Tom's article posted here... http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/367947-33-256bit-geforce-192bit the graph would have you believe the increase in performance is roughly 30%. I am guessing Farcry 3 utilizes way more shaders than your other examples.
I also use a 560ti and haven't seen the performance hits, yet...

 

[scout54]

well i have just the gtx 560 not the ti and i cant comment on shader amounts between games because of ignorance, mainly i just want to be ready for games coming out this year like Rome total war 2 and the new sim city. i just used far cry 3 as an example, i finished the game soon after i got it and while enjoying myself got bored with it.

 

[chugot9218]

Ehh, could be a Windows 8 issue as well...

 

[Outlander_04]

have you installed fraps to check the actual frame rates? What are they?
Do you have advanced image settings on ? AA? AF ?

 

[scout54]

poop i dont know what kind of brain flatulence i had when i posted that but to correct it i have windows 7 64x NOT windows 8

 

[scout54]

fraps no, but i was getting like 15-25 fps on 3dmark11 and for the nvidia control settings i have it set to let the application decide. i try to run all my games maxed out in their individual setups as thats the way they should be enjoyed. having to drop settings to even be able to play rankles me.

 

[Outlander_04]

Install fraps

its free

 

[scout54]

i might but i dont need to see the actual frame rates to perceive that the game im playing is stuttering and lagging visually. what else can fraps tell me?

 

[Outlander_04]

you can compare your results in fraps with online benchmarks for the same card
[ taking note of settings others used]

That will tell you if there is a problem with your card and/or drivers

or if you are just expecting too much from it

 

[apache_lives]

Ehh, could be a Windows 8 issue as well...

Ummm no.

 

[scout54]

from what ive been reading, just expecting too much from this card. will surely be upgrading when i have the moolah

 

[patrick47018]

I would go with AMD 7800 or 7900 series and get the free games they have going right now, I got a 7950 and couldn't be happier

 

[scout54]

i prefer nvidia

 

[yyk71200]

Before buying a new card, install the latest drivers if you haven't done so. (Make sure to fully uninstall the old ones and run driver fusion to remove the remains).

 

[swifty_morgan]

i might but i dont need to see the actual frame rates to perceive that the game im playing is stuttering and lagging visually. what else can fraps tell me?

the free version will tell you FPS....... which everybody should know......... frame rates don't tell the entire story of how a card performs.