Skyrim - 560ti runs better than new 7950?

[haas1mj]

Last night I went out and bought a new 3GB Gigabyte 7950 from Microcenter to replace my 1GB EVGA GTX 560ti. I came home, removed the old Nvidia drivers from my machine, got the new card up and running, and then installed the 13.1 Catalyst drivers and fired up Skyrim. Unfortunately the game has now turned into a micro stutter fest when I run it on the highest settings. On my 560ti it seemed to run much smoother on the same settings but with stock speeds on the 7950 everything feels much choppier. This is making me want to go back to Microcenter and swap this card with a 3GB 660ti. Is this a normal issue with AMD cards and Skyrim or is there some sort of tweaking that needs to be done? Because I've read about some latency problems with their drivers/cards but every review and forum i've read says that the 7950 is the card to go with at the $300 price point.


Intel Core i5-2500K running at 4.5Ghz
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
ASRock Z77 PRO3
16Gb G.SKILL Ripjaws Series DDR3 1600
EVGA 1Gb GTX 560ti (384 cuda cores)/Gigabyte 3GB HD7950
Antec NEO ECO 520C 520W Continuous Power ATX12V
Antec 300 Case
ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD

 

[Eureka]

Try 13.2 beta drivers, if it still doesn't work for you, return the card.

The 7950 is known to stutter in Skyrim. It's a good bang-for-buck card but this current generation is having issues with Skyrim. 670 is also a good bang-for-buck card at $300, but harder to find at that price.

 

[bigsnyder]

I have also heard to also try the 12.11 cap add-on, even with the 13.1 driver.

 

[MTDEW]

Its normal, Skyrim simply plays better on Nvidia hardware, but you can do some things to help it run better/smoother on AMD hardware.

Try installing the Simple Borderless Window Mod for Skyrim.
That is the best option I've found to smooth out Skyrim on AMD cards.

Basically, select your normal resolution you play at in the Skyrim launcher, only check the Windowed mode option also.
Then start the game with SBW.exe and the game will start in a window , and in a few seconds change to full-screen and you're good to go, you wont even know SBW is running and the game will play a lot smoother.

 

[tweakboy]

You might need to do a format. Cuz ATI then owing nvidia after that or vice versa you might get performance issues big time. gl

 

[lavaheadache]

or you can set a 60 fps frame limiter and it will be smooth sailing as well.

 

[parvadomus]

1- Try using RadeonPRO.
2- Also this: http://benchmark3d.com/microstutter-case-study-skyrim-diving-deeper
I don´t know how skyrim runs over 1 core but it might work.
3- Catalyst 13.2 seems to be the driver fixing this issues.
ED : It seems to me, that skyrim problem is the tipical wrong multithreaded game, also nvidia driver seems to do better, maybe thanks to using a bigger framebuffer or something.

 

[Fx1]

Its normal, Skyrim simply plays better on Nvidia hardware, but you can do some things to help it run better/smoother on AMD hardware.

Try installing the Simple Borderless Window Mod for Skyrim.
That is the best option I've found to smooth out Skyrim on AMD cards.

Basically, select your normal resolution you play at in the Skyrim launcher, only check the Windowed mode option also.
Then start the game with SBW.exe and the game will start in a window , and in a few seconds change to full-screen and you're good to go, you wont even know SBW is running and the game will play a lot smoother.

No it doesnt.

my 7970 runs skyrim at max FPS 100% of the time with the HD textures and mods installed.

The issue is with FPS going to 61-62 FPS indoors and it makes the game stutter. Im not sure what causes this but a fix is to use MSI On Screen Display App which you can limit the FPS 60 and the issue goes away.

 

[haas1mj]

Thanks for the responses, a lot of things I can definitely try before throwing in the towel on this card.

 

[Rikard]

Last night I went out and bought a new 3GB Gigabyte 7950 from Microcenter to replace my 1GB EVGA GTX 560ti. I came home, removed the old Nvidia drivers from my machine, got the new card up and running, and then installed the 13.1 Catalyst drivers and fired up Skyrim. Unfortunately the game has now turned into a micro stutter fest when I run it on the highest settings. On my 560ti it seemed to run much smoother on the same settings but with stock speeds on the 7950 everything feels much choppier. This is making me want to go back to Microcenter and swap this card with a 3GB 660ti. Is this a normal issue with AMD cards and Skyrim or is there some sort of tweaking that needs to be done? Because I've read about some latency problems with their drivers/cards but every review and forum i've read says that the 7950 is the card to go with at the $300 price point.


Intel Core i5-2500K running at 4.5Ghz
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
ASRock Z77 PRO3
16Gb G.SKILL Ripjaws Series DDR3 1600
EVGA 1Gb GTX 560ti (384 cuda cores)/Gigabyte 3GB HD7950
Antec NEO ECO 520C 520W Continuous Power ATX12V
Antec 300 Case
ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD

1. Catalyst 13.1
2. RadeonPro beta
3. Make a profile for Skyrim in RadeonPro
4. In tweaks tab, set display rate to 60 Hz (or what you use)
5. Vsync control -> Dynamic
6. Right click Skyrim profile, "Apply now", then "Play"
7. Enjoy Skyrim maxed out at 1080p without any micro stutter at all

 

[BeauCharles]

Returned an HD 7850 2GB for that exact reason - it actually ran worse than the GTX 460 1GB it was to replace (Skyrim is still the primary game I'm playing). I was using stock driver settings on the Ultra preset with both. Got a GTX 670 instead and its been perfect (if a lot more expensive).

Apparently you can use third party apps and tweaks to remedy the situation, but I'd prefer it to work properly to begin with.

 

[haas1mj]

Returned an HD 7850 2GB for that exact reason - it actually ran worse than the GTX 460 1GB it was to replace (Skyrim is still the primary game I'm playing). I was using stock driver settings on the Ultra preset with both. Got a GTX 670 instead and its been perfect (if a lot more expensive).

Apparently you can use third party apps and tweaks to remedy the situation, but I'd prefer it to work properly to begin with.

Yeah I feel the same way, if you spend that much money you shouldn't have to tweak it or use "fixes" just to get it to operate the way it should in the first place. Anyways, the 13.2 catalyst betas are out now so that will be the test to see if i'm making a trip back to MicroCenter or not.

 

[MTDEW]

The new 13.2 beta 3's were just released which supposedly also help the frame latency issues with Skyrim on AMD hardware, so you might also want to give those a try along with any other fixes/workarounds you've decided on.

As i'm sure you've discovered reading by now even at a consistent 60fps, AMD cards haven't been as smooth as Nvidia with this game and the frame latency fixes are supposed to solve that.
(see the MANY frame latency threads / arguments....LOL)

I can confirm Skyrim has played better on my 670 / 470 cards vs my 7950 / 6970 cards.
But that doesn't mean that the game plays horrible on AMD cards by any means using a workaround, as a matter of fact it plays great.
You'd really only notice if you can see them side by side.


Im going to try the 13.2 b3's then, since capping my FPS with Radeon Pro or MSI Afterburner(ie: Rivatuner) limiter never quite felt as smooth as running the borderless window mod with Skyrim.

Either way, no worries, you will get it to play well one way or the other using the workarounds and/or new drivers.

 

[MTDEW]

Yeah I feel the same way, if you spend that much money you shouldn't have to tweak it or use "fixes" just to get it to operate the way it should in the first place. Anyways, the 13.2 catalyst betas are out now so that will be the test to see if i'm making a trip back to MicroCenter or not.

If that is how you honestly feel, i never argue with that way of thinking.
Some people just want things to work and play the game and not waste time tweaking.

If that is the case and Skyrim is of top importance, you are better off with a Nvidia card.
Because Skyrim is also known to have rare/random texture flashing on AMD 7xxx series cards also.
Not sure if AMD has fixed that yet in the 13.2 b3 drivers either.

 

[MTDEW]

1: Restored my clean image of windows 7 that has never had any video drivers installed.
(this was to ensure a clean install of GPU drivers obviously)

2: Installed clean install of Cat 13.2 beta 3's (see above)

3: installed a "clean install" of Skyrim with official texture pack only.
(no mods or ini tweaks...nothing)
Thank god i own the collectors edition on disc.

Result: It looks to me like you picked the right time to buy an AMD card for Skyrim.
Game played flawless with no tweaks/workarounds.
No texture flashing either.
Played flawless with x-fired enabled or disabled.

Of course i'm just one person and one setup, but these 13.2 b3 drivers look good to me running un-modded Skyrim.
I Haven't tested any mods yet, since I really play Skyrim on my GTX 670 rig, im just testing it on the AMD rig.

But i can tell you these 13.2 b3 drivers are a HUGE improvement on my 7950's and Skyrim.
EDIT: Note, I am one of those who saw random texture flashing in Skyrim on my 7xxx cards only (my 6xxx cards never had that issue), and these drivers cured that issue on my rig.
Just thought that would be helpful info to add.
I'll play the game for a few hrs (why not) and if i do see any flashes, i'll edit/post it.


Just for clarity sake, here the specs of the rig i tested on.
Two Sapphire 7950's in x-fire
2600k @ 4.7ghz
16gb Gskill DDR3
Asus P8Z68-V PRO mobo
Asus Xonar DG sound
Corsair HX850 psu
Cooler Master HAF X
Intel SSD
WD HDD
etc...etc..etc...yada...yada

 

[Tweak155]

1: Restored my clean image of windows 7 that has never had any video drivers installed.
(this was to ensure a clean install of GPU drivers obviously)

2: Installed clean install of Cat 13.2 beta 3's (see above)

3: installed a "clean install" of Skyrim with official texture pack only.
(no mods or ini tweaks...nothing)
Thank god i own the collectors edition on disc.

Result: It looks to me like you picked the right time to buy an AMD card for Skyrim.
Game played flawless with no tweaks/workarounds.
No texture flashing either.
Played flawless with x-fired enabled or disabled.

Of course i'm just one person and one setup, but these 13.2 b3 drivers look good to me running un-modded Skyrim.
I Haven't tested any mods yet, since I really play Skyrim on my GTX 670 rig, im just testing it on the AMD rig.

But i can tell you these 13.2 b3 drivers are a HUGE improvement on my 7950's and Skyrim.
EDIT: Note, I am one of those who saw random texture flashing in Skyrim on my 7xxx cards only (my 6xxx cards never had that issue), and these drivers cured that issue on my rig.
Just thought that would be helpful info to add.
I'll play the game for a few hrs (why not) and if i do see any flashes, i'll edit/post it.


Just for clarity sake, here the specs of the rig i tested on.
Two Sapphire 7950's in x-fire
2600k @ 4.7ghz
16gb Gskill DDR3
Asus P8Z68-V PRO mobo
Asus Xonar DG sound
Corsair HX850 psu
Cooler Master HAF X
Intel SSD
WD HDD
etc...etc..etc...yada...yada

Waiting for haas1mj to confirm.

 

[haas1mj]

Well I unfortunately did not have the same results as you. I got home from work and uninstalled the 13.1's, installed the 13.2b, fired up Skyrim, and boom! Blue screen LOL. I tried a few more of the suggested tweaks and I was still getting blue screens. So I ended up taking the card back to Microcenter and forking out the extra cash for an MSI GTX 670 2GB Power edition. It ended up costing me $369, but I am completely satisfied with the new card. Runs Skyrim beautifully with no stuttering or blue screens. I'm not sure if it was a bad 7950 or not, but I think i'll be sticking with Nvidia for a while.

 

[VulgarDisplay]

Well I unfortunately did not have the same results as you. I got home from work and uninstalled the 13.1's, installed the 13.2b, fired up Skyrim, and boom! Blue screen LOL. I tried a few more of the suggested tweaks and I was still getting blue screens. So I ended up taking the card back to Microcenter and forking out the extra cash for an MSI GTX 670 2GB Power edition. It ended up costing me $369, but I am completely satisfied with the new card. Runs Skyrim beautifully with no stuttering or blue screens. I'm not sure if it was a bad 7950 or not, but I think i'll be sticking with Nvidia for a while.

Hardware vendor preferences aside it just sounds like you wasted a lot of time and money because of a botched driver install which happens just as often on nvidia hardware.

 

[Gikaseixas]

Moving from Nv to AMD and vice versa might cause the end user to see the issues you pointed out. With a bit of know how you could overcome that problem. Enjoy your 670, it's a good card.

 

[Tweak155]

Hardware vendor preferences aside it just sounds like you wasted a lot of time and money because of a botched driver install which happens just as often on nvidia hardware.

how much time do you expect him to waste? He exchanged the card and is much happier, get over your fanboyism.

 

[Tweak155]

Moving from Nv to AMD and vice versa might cause the end user to see the issues you pointed out. With a bit of know how you could overcome that problem. Enjoy your 670, it's a good card.

A lot of things "might" cause it. When I switched from my 6870 to 560ti 448, it went smooth with nothing special needing to take place. Tossed the 6870 into another system that was using an 8800gt, also went fine.

 

[haas1mj]

Hardware vendor preferences aside it just sounds like you wasted a lot of time and money because of a botched driver install which happens just as often on nvidia hardware.

It's always a possibility that it could have been a bad install. However, i've never spent such a significant amount of money on a video card before and I figure if i'm gonna plunk down $300+ i'd like it to work the way its intended without having to jump through a few hoops. Just because I didn't have a good experience doesn't mean its a bad product or that I am an Nvidia fanboy.

 

[BrightCandle]

I know a lot of people didn't think this was a problem for a very long time, its amazing how far we have come in a few short months. AMD is going to fix this problem and its going to be on their radar because they are clearly loosing sales of the back of it. We need similar levels of reporting on other serious AMD card bugs so that we can finally get them resolved.

Glad you got the problem resolved even if it was by having to change card.

I suspect in a few short months this problem will have been resolved actually, but even so many of us waited a year for it to show with nothing so who knows when it would actually drop.

 

[VulgarDisplay]

how much time do you expect him to waste? He exchanged the card and is much happier, get over your fanboyism.

Does not compute.

 

[Tweak155]

Does not compute.

Why express, specifically, that a problem occurs on Nvidia hardware as well? Adds nothing to the discussion as he didn't run into any issues with his new card, but did on his previous. Fanboy alert goes off at that point.

Just sayin'.