What card would turn my CPU into a bottleneck?

[The Raven]

I did some searches but wasn't able to find anything about this so I thought I'd ask you guys.

I have a socket 754 3400+ clawhammer and I want to know what GPU would max out the performance of it so it becomes a bottleneck. In other words, how can I find out what the most powerful GPU (/sli config) that the 3400 will handle?

And how can I find the BN point for any other proc too?

I'd apperciate any help you could give me. Thank you.

 

[MustISO]

Two 7900GTX's should do it.

Do they make 754 motheboards with PCI-e?
Edit: well they certainly do. Even 1 or 2 with SLI.

 

[biostud]

depends on the resolution you're going to play.

 

[The Raven]

Thanks guys!

Not sure what res I'll be using but I want excellent frame rates and all the fixin's on top.

I guess 1600x1200 (thinkin of the future

 

[Captante]

Originally posted by: biostud
depends on the resolution you're going to play.

QFT... At 800x600 a 7600GT might even be bottlenecked by your CPU & a 7800GT certainly would be.. at around 1600x1200 in new games, an X1900XTX or 7900GTX will become the bottleneck.

 

[The Raven]

Originally posted by: Captante

Originally posted by: biostud
depends on the resolution you're going to play.

at around 1600x1200 in new games, an X1900XTX or 7900GTX will become the bottleneck.

I get the first part but I'm sorry, I didn't quite understand what you're saying here in the second part. You're saying that at higher resolutions, my proc can handle more?

Oh and where are you guys getting this info from? I don't want to keep asking this question in the future.

Again, thanks for the help!

 

[Ichigo]

At the resolution you want, your CPU will never be a bottleneck.

 

[The Raven]

Originally posted by: Ichigo
At the resolution you want, your CPU will never be a bottleneck.

Thanks Ichigo. However, again I am wondering how you come to this conclusion. I don't just want to Know about my proc, but any proc. For example, if my buddy with the old 2000+ wants to get a better G-card than his 9600, how far can he go? I just want to know how we can figure this stuff out. Are there any charts I can make reference to or calculations that I can make?

Thanks for the help.

 

[Munky]

The framerate will always decrease in any modern game as you increase the resolution and other graphic settings because the video card is placed under more stress. That doesnt mean your cpu can or cant handle more, it just means the cpu no longer makes a difference because the video card is already working as hard as it can. The cpu is completely unaffected by the resolution. It's the video card that has to calculate and texture every single pixel on the screen.

Here's one article about the cpu scaling of a x1900xt at various settings in several games.
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=523

 

[akshayt]

is amd 64bit 3200 better than EE 840 at gaming?

 

[Polish3d]

Originally posted by: Ichigo
At the resolution you want, your CPU will never be a bottleneck.

yup, not now anyway

 

[The Raven]

Originally posted by: munky
The framerate will always decrease in any modern game as you increase the resolution and other graphic settings because the video card is placed under more stress. That doesnt mean your cpu can or cant handle more, it just means the cpu no longer makes a difference because the video card is already working as hard as it can. The cpu is completely unaffected by the resolution. It's the video card that has to calculate and texture every single pixel on the screen.

Here's one article about the cpu scaling of a x1900xt at various settings in several games.
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=523

Thanks a lot Munky! That was a cool article.

So correct me if I'm wrong, but after looking at this and comparing the farcry #s on both this site and tom's cpu charts (comparing the 3400 w/ the fx53) I should not see that big of a difference when using a X1900XTX. (I wish he would've used another card on the tests too ) Anyway so it looks like I should get a sli board and grab 2 7950GX2s and set up a rad rig, no? should be worth the money right? (In the future anyway)

Thanks for the help guys!

 

[The Raven]

Originally posted by: akshayt
is amd 64bit 3200 better than EE 840 at gaming?

According to tom's charts that's a yes. But not by much.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: The Raven

Originally posted by: munky
The framerate will always decrease in any modern game as you increase the resolution and other graphic settings because the video card is placed under more stress. That doesnt mean your cpu can or cant handle more, it just means the cpu no longer makes a difference because the video card is already working as hard as it can. The cpu is completely unaffected by the resolution. It's the video card that has to calculate and texture every single pixel on the screen.

Here's one article about the cpu scaling of a x1900xt at various settings in several games.
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=523

Thanks a lot Munky! That was a cool article.

So correct me if I'm wrong, but after looking at this and comparing the farcry #s on both this site and tom's cpu charts (comparing the 3400 w/ the fx53) I should not see that big of a difference when using a X1900XTX. (I wish he would've used another card on the tests too ) Anyway so it looks like I should get a sli board and grab 2 7950GX2s and set up a rad rig, no? should be worth the money right? (In the future anyway)

Thanks for the help guys!

Only get dual cards if you play at a resolution of 1600x1200 or higher. At a lower resolution the dual cards will not be stressed much, and will often perform the same as a single high end card.

 

[akshayt]

FarCry is a cpu intensive game and you may have significant diff between 3400 and FX53, but in FEAR the difference may be nil.

 

[The Raven]

Ok check this out. After reading a bunch of crap it looks like I should grab this mobo
Link

Their info backs up what you guys suggested. (as biased as it may be)
Link
Link

Then I'll pair it up w/ a pair of these bad boys:
Link

My system will be as quiet as it is now and totally rock!

What do you think?

 

[The Raven]

lol and I just notied this:

Originally posted by: Frackal

Originally posted by: Ichigo
At the resolution you want, your CPU will never be a bottleneck.

yup, not now anyway

He he!

 

[bobsmith1492]

Basically your CPU will be able to put out a maximum of, say, "X" frames per second in a particular game. Your video card will be able to put out, say, "Y" frames per second. As you change resolutions, "X" won't change significantly, but "Y" will. Therefore, all you have to do is increase the resolution (and/or AA/AF) until "Y" is lower than "X". Then your video card is doing the most work it can and your CPU is doing nearly as much work as it can.