7900gt sli setup bottlenecked?

[MonkeyFaces]

I game at 1280x1024 with a p4 prescott 630 @ 3.3ghz and 7900gtsli cards. I know the sli is overkill, but i got it so i could game at 1280x1024 at near max-max for about a year or more. I don't feel like my performance suffers at all, but i want to know if it could get better. I get occasional slow downs from graphically intensive games. Are these hiccups in any way related to my processing power?
How does bottlenecking work in general? I was lead to believe that only my maximum fps is capped, so that if my gpu is capable of outputting 90fps, I would only get 70 fps, and if my gpu outputs 40fps, then my cpu doesn't matter since it sets the cap at 70. Am I right at all in thinking this?

 

[SpeedZealot369]

Just raise the resolution to 1600x1200 and it shouldn't slow down anymore. Plus OC your cards for a little extra framerate boost because of the higher resolution strain.

With a setup like that you are wasting alot of horsepower playing at that resolution, even if it's maxed out.

-SZ

 

[akshayt]

1)Try if raising the res increases the performance. It won't, in 90% of the cases, and with such a weak CPU it will go down by a significant margin.

2)No need to oc the card. OC the CPU more. The cards won't help if SLi is already supported.

3)Your CPU is the bottleneck. But if you play games like Oblivion and GRAW at 12X10 MAX with HDR+AA+AF(no AA for nVidia), this is more or less what these cards are anyways capable of, especially with this CPU.

 

[TheRyuu]

Originally posted by: akshayt
1)Try if raising the res increases the performance. It won't, in 90% of the cases, and with such a weak CPU it will go down by a significant margin.

2)No need to oc the card. OC the CPU more. The cards won't help if SLi is already supported.

3)Your CPU is the bottleneck. But if you play games like Oblivion and GRAW at 12X10 MAX with HDR+AA+AF(no AA for nVidia), this is more or less what these cards are anyways capable of, especially with this CPU.

1.) Meh, 3.3ghz P4 is alright. It probably is a the bottleneck, but hey, at 1280x1024 instead of getting 150fps, you'll get 100fps (no difference). Also is 1280x1024 your LCD monitors max res?

2.) You ALWAYS want to get the most of what you paid for. Therefor you should OC your card. And what if 3.3ghz is the max his CPU can get? 7900GT's get pretty good OC's with or without the vmod. (550mhz on core w/o vmod, 1600-1700 on memory w/o vmod)

3.) I agree. Games like Oblivion will most likely remove the CPU as the bottleneck and make the GPU the new bottleneck.

 

[imported_Truenofan]

i'd agree with the 1600x1200, i play games in that with max everything, averaging 60-100 or sometimes over 100fps in bf2, css, and hl2. your in the dead zone i guess. where the video cards arent working at they're best, and your cpu isnt doing so hot. you probly dont need to oc your cpu. if you did, you'd probly be better off trying to find out if the core 2 duo will work in that system instead. a c2d would spank that cpu all around the block. just humor us and attempt to run 1600x1200.

 

[deadseasquirrel]

There have been suggestions to up your playing resolution. I'm guessing you're playing at 1280x1024 because you have an LCD that runs native at that res. In which case, you won't be able to run any higher.

What games, specifically, are you talking about? And how much system RAM do you have?

I wouldn't worry about bottlenecks though. That term is often over-used and is a bad reason to upgrade. Keep in mind that you're on an enthusiast forum. You'll have people tell you that running RAM at 2T will kill your performance, when, in real-world settings, it does not.

 

[m21s]

Why would you suggest he ups his resolution when you never asked if he uses a CRT or LCD?

If he's using a LCD he must be at a native 1280x1024.
And most of your advice is not helping.

 

[JBT]

yeha its probably holding you back. But really at 1280x1024 getting a better CPU probably isn't going ot help that much. Like someone else said you'll be going from 150 fps to 100fps there is no difference in the real world.

 

[MonkeyFaces]

My monitor is a 19" LCD with a 1280x1024 resolution. My next upgrade should obviously be a monitor upgrade, but any monitor that isn't a marginal step up from a 19" would be way over my budget. The games that I get fps hiccups in are brothers in arms earned in blood (only graphically unintensive game I get em on, could be due to bad porting from console?), cs:s with 30+ players, and the big eye candy games like oblivon, fear, and cod2. Would a better cpu address these hiccups, or are the fps drops mainly gpu chokes?

 

[deadseasquirrel]

CS:S online with 30+ players would likely play better with a faster CPU, but at 1280x1024, you're not going to get rid of any slowdowns on Oblivion, FEAR, or COD2 with a faster CPU.

Some things to check-- are you completely sure you don't have any background applications running (whether spyware or otherwise) that could be affecting your gameplay? Are your GTs overclocked at all? What PSU are you using? Have you verified that your GTs in SLI are working properly (i.e. disable and run a benchmark, then re-enable and rerun)?

 

[MonkeyFaces]

I usually have KAV, Ewido, and zone alarm pro (game mode) running in the background. My psu is an antec neo 550HE, my GTs arent overclocked, and my GTs are in SLI.

I havent overclocked my cards yet because I currently have only one card with a vf-900. I also noticed there is some kind of air pocket forming on my first card due to lack of space between my aftermarket fan and my second video card. How would I go about creating proper airflow between the cards? I can't use an nv silencer because it gets in the way of the fan power connector.

 

[BFG10K]

Your CPU and resolution are far too low.

 

[MonkeyFaces]

"Your CPU and resolution are far too low."
I am confused here. Some people think my cpu is woefully inadequate, yet others say my only major limiting factor is my monitor.

 

[Elfear]

I wish I would have tested more thoroughly in actual gaming situations but when I oced my Opteron 146 from 1.8GHz to 2.8GHz, I gained ~2000 points in 3DMark05 with my two 7800GTs at stock. SLI has some overhead to it and when you couple that with games that need a lot of cpu power (Oblivion, CS:S, etc.) and the fact that you are using a P4 I can see why there might be some slowdowns.

 

[corsa]

always always always remember that Crossfire/SLI is only really an option if you have a monitor that can do 1600x1200

anything less than this is a waste of money on a second gpu.

Also keep in mind that SLI/Crossfire really needs a dual-core cpu for maximum benefit, but again that is another story.

Thats a quote by 'Happy Games' pulled from DFI-Street.

 

[SpeedZealot369]

Just apply the super AA stuff and 16xAF... that should put some strain on the GPU's. Make sure all game graphical detail's are on max, and make sure driver settings are on HQ.

-SZ

 

[akshayt]

do one thing, try reducing your settings to 10X7, if FPS decrease then they might increase with higher res, else they may not.

Also, try using 8x SS AA @ 12X10, that way there is no GPU bottleneck left.

However in my oppinion most of the time, whatever you get at a lower res will equal or be lower to what you get at a higher res/settings.

 

[Sable]

Originally posted by: akshayt
do one thing, try reducing your settings to 10X7, if FPS decrease then they might increase with higher res, else they may not.

Also, try using 8x SS AA @ 12X10, that way there is no GPU bottleneck left.

However in my oppinion most of the time, whatever you get at a lower res will equal or be lower to what you get at a higher res/settings.

You w0t? :laugh:

 

[betasub]

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