• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

It may be upgrade time again

Page 2 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
Well, loaded it up again just to check my settings: 1680x1050, everything high with Forced GLobal Lighting OFF, vertical sync OFF and EAX + Reverb (whatever it is) ON. Like I said, it does slowdown once in a while, but is usually very playable and smooth. I can handle a bunch of splicers and even a big daddy or 2 on at once. Even at a certain level where you get 'zerged' by splicers, it ran without a hiccup. Maybe I'm lucky or maybe it's cause I have very few things running in the background. I'm using the latest Windows Certifie (WESA?) drivers by Nvidia, not the Betas.
 
I am looking at nTune, and want to explore using the sliders to overclock my system a bit and see if it improves performance in BioShock.

Like I said, I currently use uGuru to bump my CPU from 210mhz to 216mhz.

However, if I go to the Adjust MOBO Settings in nTune, it shows my System Clock currently at 216mhz, but has the option of setting the slider all the way to 250MHz. Is it safe to move the slider all the way to 250, or some number between 216 and 250?

I am not familiar with GPU overclocks, but the default clock settings on my video card are Core Bus of 500Mhz and Memory Bus of 750Mhz...what settings should I move these sliders to for overclocking my GPU?

I also noticed that nTune offers a Tuning utility...takes 3 hours to "Fine Tune" my system. What does this Tuning utility do...does it test my system and come up with a safe overclock profile?
 
Hey Starbuck, I've got a similar computer (X2 3600+, 2GB DDR2, XFX 7900GT, WD Caviar SE16 250GB) and I get great FPS at 1280x1024 as long as shadow maps and post processing is turned off. Post processing is like the HDR stuff, which I think is overrated anyway, and no shadow maps eliminates some of the shadows (but not all of them). With these two things turned off Bioshock runs very well for me.
 
I am not familiar with GPU overclocks, but the default clock settings on my video card are Core Bus of 500Mhz and Memory Bus of 750Mhz...what settings should I move these sliders to for overclocking my GPU?
Click to expand...

I discovered a great little program for overclocking a GPU, called ATITool. Just google it. And yes, it works with Nvidia and ATI boards 😉
After reading lots of negative stuff about NTune (and trying it), I installed ATITool, rebooted, and proceeded to overclock the card.

It's really great because with ATITool, you can watch a 3-D window spin while you OC the card and look for artifacts...so you take it really slow and you'll be fine.

With my 8800GTS, I was able to OC from 512Mhz Core / 792Mhz Memory to 594Mhz core/1002Mhz memory no problems!
I also ran some Bioshock and 3DMark06 to make sure she's stable.

Oh, also includes a little temp readout in system tray.
 
Originally posted by: cputeq
I am not familiar with GPU overclocks, but the default clock settings on my video card are Core Bus of 500Mhz and Memory Bus of 750Mhz...what settings should I move these sliders to for overclocking my GPU?
Click to expand...

I discovered a great little program for overclocking a GPU, called ATITool. Just google it. And yes, it works with Nvidia and ATI boards 😉
After reading lots of negative stuff about NTune (and trying it), I installed ATITool, rebooted, and proceeded to overclock the card.

It's really great because with ATITool, you can watch a 3-D window spin while you OC the card and look for artifacts...so you take it really slow and you'll be fine.

With my 8800GTS, I was able to OC from 512Mhz Core / 792Mhz Memory to 594Mhz core/1002Mhz memory no problems!
I also ran some Bioshock and 3DMark06 to make sure she's stable.

Oh, also includes a little temp readout in system tray.
Click to expand...

will atitool keep the overclock when you restart?
 
Originally posted by: Laminator
The solution is to get a 15" LCD monitor so you are forced to play at 1024x768.
Click to expand...

I'm on a 15 and the native res is 1280x1024

Anyway, I think the game itself is broken. It doesn't matter if I run in 640x480 or in 1280x1024, there is literally no performance difference between them. I can also change between no AA and 8x AA with no performance hit, at any resolution. My system is a C2D 6600, GeForce 7950. Frame rate with high/low settings, high/low res, high/low AA is in the range of 30-40 all the time. I really doubt the computer has anything to do with the frame rate of this game.
 
I have heard mixed things about nTune, but I have read that ATItools is a fairly robust tool for overclocking...I will give it a whirl tonight and see what it does.

It is also difficult to figure out which eye candy options on BioShock result in the biggest performance hit...I will try turning off post processing and shadow maps to see what that does for me.

Inevitably, a GPU upgrade will be necessary, but I would like to hold off until the better 8 series cards fall below $300.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top