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Thread ID: 126925	2012-09-25 02:31:00	What would be the gaming bottleneck in this system?	Drenwick (13216)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1303300	2012-09-25 02:31:00	Hey guys, So I've had this system for a couple of years now, and I'm looking to upgrade soon. As of right now I can run most games on the market at usually mid-high settings at 1440x900. If I try to run some games at 1920x1200 on the same settings I get significant slow down, others no slowdown. For example, GTA IV on high settings at 1440x900 gets me around 50-60 FPS. At 1920x1200 it goes down to 20-25 FPS. I realize jump in required power, but I'm trying to identify the short coming before upgrading. Similar thing with Skyrim. Specifications: Motherboard: GA-890FXA-UD5 Processor: AMD Phenom II X6 1055T 2.8GHz Memory: 8GB GPU: GeForce GTX 550 Ti (4GB Memory) Thanks guys!	Drenwick (13216)
1303301	2012-09-25 02:40:00	Basically when you are going up from 1440x900 to 1920x1080 you are actually going from 1.3 Megapixel to 2 Megapixel so you are looking at 40% more load on the GPU. Your card is currently ranked at 63 on this list (community.futuremark.com) (slower than a much older 9800GX2). So that would be your first thing to look at upgrading.	tmrafi (5179)
1303302	2012-09-25 02:46:00	Depending on the game, for most it is the GPU. The 550Ti is entry-level gaming. To run at 1920x1080 or 1920x1200 (depending on your monitor aspect ratio of course - the former is far more common) you'll really want to look at at least a 660Ti/7870 or better, imo. A few games will also be CPU-limited in your setup, though GPU will have a bigger impact.	inphinity (7274)
1303303	2012-09-25 02:56:00	some games at 1920x1200 on the same settings I get significant slow down, others no slowdown. For example, GTA IV on high settings at 1440x900 gets me around 50-60 FPS. It's the game. GTA was badly written too. If you want super performance and high res on all games, well, you go to to an i7, 8GB and the lateste (or last years) top end GPU. Or accept that some games will do that once you crank the res up. better to have a bit lower res and all the affects instead. Or if you have the budget the super cool GPUs....	pctek (84)
1303304	2012-09-25 03:03:00	Thanks for the quick replies. My first thought was a 660 ti for an upgrade, but I wanted to check with you about the CPU. Doing a CPU upgrade means a new motherboard as well, so I may stick to a new GPU first.	Drenwick (13216)
1303305	2012-09-25 03:44:00	Here are some interesting benchies showing how the CPU can effort the game if using the same GPU.. 42904290 When OCing IB Intel CPUs, performance increase is almost linear 4291 New AMD FX Chip, not so much 4292	SolMiester (139)
1303306	2012-09-25 03:46:00	Here are some interesting benchies showing how the CPU can effort the game if using the same GPU.. Do note, though, in this case the GPU is a GTX680, which is rarely a bottleneck in any current game at 1920x1200 ;)	inphinity (7274)
1303307	2012-09-25 04:16:00	Do note, though, in this case the GPU is a GTX680, which is rarely a bottleneck in any current game at 1920x1200 ;) I noted that too. In this case, the 6-core 2.8Ghz AMD is going to be *far* more than ample, whereas the 550Ti is definitely going to be holding things up. You could easily spend $500 on a new GPU and I'd suggest it'd still be the bottleneck. After that, I'd personally look at getting a SSD before upgrading your CPU.	Chilling_Silence (9)
1303308	2012-09-25 04:20:00	Don't forget the extra power requirements of a 660Ti, it'd be a good Idea to check with a PSU calculator to make sure you have sufficient power. The GPU is definately the weakest point of your system, and the only part you can upgrade without a total MB/CPU upgrade. I'd reccomend upgrading the graphics and leaving it at that for now, some games may be CPU bound but most will not. and you can always keep the graphics card if you end up upgrading more later. The 660Ti would be Ideal but if it's too much a cheap 2nd hand 560Ti or better could be worth considering for decent performance (a lot of people seem to have upgraded from these since the 6 seies came out so they are around 2nd hand for now). They are a couple of levels slower than the 660Ti but still more than fast enough for most current games at these resolutions. I have both a 580 and a 560Ti and honestly can't tell the difference 99% of the time. If you spend your money smartly the more you spend the longer it'll last you.	dugimodo (138)
1303309	2012-09-25 04:28:00	Do note, though, in this case the GPU is a GTX680, which is rarely a bottleneck in any current game at 1920x1200 ;) Eh?...The benchies show the effect of different CPU matched with the same GPU...If pairing the GTX680 with the OP's CPU he will lose almost 20% of the GPU performance, hence someone said the X6 will become a CPU bottleneck......Clock the Intel up to 4.5Ghz, and the AMD chip is losing almost 28% of the GPU performance.... Its not about the GPU being a bottleneck at all?! Actually, that X6 is at 2.8, not the 3.3 in the benchies, so the OP CPU is worse still....	SolMiester (139)
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