My new eVGA 7600gt CO running slower than I thought it would

[AhrenBa]

Hey Guys,

I just got the eVGA 7600gt CO and put it in my Dell 4700 with 512MB of RAM, 2.8ghz P4, and a 80GB SATA hard drive.

When I am playing AOE3, I have the graphics options on the highest they can be, and I am only getting a top of 34fps and sometimes it dips down to like 19-21fps. Is this normal?

I also ran the Aquamark3 test and got a score of 55,801, is that normal? When I was running the test, the fps counter in the bottom barely got above 40fps.

This card is 580/1500mhz and has 256MB of RAM.

Also, in Civilization 4, I am only getting 44fps with max settings.

What do you guys think?

 

[imported_Silverturtle]

You're being hugely CPU and memory limited. Try and upgarde those parts.

Also, what is your power supply?

 

[AhrenBa]

Thanks for the reply.

What is the minimum CPU speed and memory I should have in my PC while running the 7600gt?

My power supply is only a 305w with dual 18amp 12v rails. I know that seems EXTREMELY low, but I don't have much running in my system:

2.8ghz P4
CD-RW
Hard Drive
Two sticks of RAM
Modem Card
Graphics Card
System Fans

What do you think I should do? Thanks

Oh and also, my friend just bought a BFG 6800GS for his Dell 4600. He has the exact same setup as me, except he has a 3.0ghz P4. Will he be affected the same way? (limited by CPU and RAM)

 

[schneiderguy]

Originally posted by: AhrenBa
Hey Guys,

I just got the eVGA 7600gt CO and put it in my Dell 4700 with 512MB of RAM, 2.8ghz P4, and a 80GB SATA hard drive.

When I am playing AOE3, I have the graphics options on the highest they can be, and I am only getting a top of 34fps and sometimes it dips down to like 19-21fps. Is this normal?

I also ran the Aquamark3 test and got a score of 55,801, is that normal? When I was running the test, the fps counter in the bottom barely got above 40fps.

This card is 580/1500mhz and has 256MB of RAM.

Also, in Civilization 4, I am only getting 44fps with max settings.

What do you guys think?

AoE3 is pretty demanding. your framerate sounds about right for that. Aquamark3 tests your CPU and GPU, so if you have a slower CPU like you do, your score goes down. i get ~70k with my A64 3500+, 7600gt, 1.5 gigs of ram in aquamark3

 

[imported_Silverturtle]

Originally posted by: AhrenBa
Thanks for the reply.

What is the minimum CPU speed and memory I should have in my PC while running the 7600gt?

My power supply is only a 305w with dual 18amp 12v rails. I know that seems EXTREMELY low, but I don't have much running in my system:

2.8ghz P4
CD-RW
Hard Drive
Two sticks of RAM
Modem Card
Graphics Card
System Fans

What do you think I should do? Thanks

Oh and also, my friend just bought a BFG 6800GS for his Dell 4600. He has the exact same setup as me, except he has a 3.0ghz P4. Will he be affected the same way? (limited by CPU and RAM)

Sure does seem extremely low. :Q (about the power supply)

Although your friend's computer isn't exactly very balanced, his is pretty good, except for the 512MB of memory. I think him investing in some more RAM is more than worth it.

Your computer, on the other hand, is definitaley not balanced at all. I think you should buy a new power supply, a quality 450 watter should do the trick. I also think you should get either a 1GB stick or another 512MB stick of RAM, and a new CPU. Anything over 3.2-3.4 Ghz should be decent for that setup. I would probably choose the memory upgrade over that CPU upgrade if only one was possible.

Also, would you mind running 3D Mark 06 on it, just for some comparison purposes? I think this will give a better idea of performance than AquaMark.

 

[PrayForDeath]

IMO the first thing you should do is upgrade your memory to 1Gb. 512Mb is extremely low for today's games.
Then if you feel like you're still limited by your CPU, upgrade to the fastest CPU that your mobo supports (and combine that with a PSU upgrade).

 

[happy medium]

I score 65,000 (Aquamark) with my setup, so he's about right.
He needs some ram is all.

For comparison: 3d mark 05 6300
mark 06 3331

My cpu is the 533 bus version so his cpu should be close to mine.

Edit : I know what it is! The 128 bit memory on his video card. He said he's playing with all settings at the highest. The 7600gt is not that great when you crank up the res in games. It shines at 1024x768 and depending on the game it's ok at 1280x1024,but 1600x1200 it starts to go down in the benchmarks I've seen.

Your power supply is more than enough.

 

[imported_Silverturtle]

You really think 305 watts is sufficient for a 7600GT?

 

[happy medium]

My system was a Dell 4550 with a 250 watt power supply and ran fine with no overclock and my 7800gs with no overclock. They have very good quality power supplies.

Edit: look at my powersupply now!

 

[bamacre]

His PSU is perfectly fine. Trust me, I know my Dell's.

His cpu is fine for a 7600 GT as well.

I would recommend you get another 512MB of ram, as others have stated. Just make sure you keep dual channel mode, so get two 256MB modules, and not one 512MB module.

 

[TanisHalfElven]

ok your problem is you've probably set something akin to texture res to HIGH.
that mean its using a ridiculous amount of memory. lower it to low and memory usage will down to level acceptable on 512 mb. then it won't be pagin to the hdd continously.

that or you could update your ram to atleast `1 gb

 

[lopri]

AOE3 benefits from both faster CPU and faster GPU, and of course >1GB of RAM. The game is extremely dynamic as most RTS: At the beginning of the game it'll be mostly GPU bound, but once things get heated (i.e. 200+ military units with lots of physics on buildings) the CPU will be the factor.

 

[Avalon]

The RAM is probably your biggest killer. Funny thing is, I never knew how much 512MB of RAM bogged your games down until I had to loan one of my two 512MB sticks to my sister's computer while she got her memory RMA'd.

I can't play anything without choppiness and reduced framerates. Sometimes I even have problems with HL1 based mods.


I'd also suggest going for 2x512MB or 2x1GB for your system, and not add 2x256MB sticks, or you'll be running your memory at 2T which may hinder your performance slightly on the Intel system. Still, adding 2x256MB will be much better than not. Whichever option is cheaper for you.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: Avalon
I'd also suggest going for 2x512MB or 2x1GB for your system, and not add 2x256MB sticks, or you'll be running your memory at 2T which may hinder your performance slightly on the Intel system. Still, adding 2x256MB will be much better than not. Whichever option is cheaper for you.

No, no. That is only true for AMD systems. For his system, there would be zero difference if he had 2 512MB modules, or 4 256MB modules.