AMD FX 8120.......why am I lagging?!?!?

[saveaux]

Hi there, I am having issues with my hardware build that I don't understand. Whether I am playing Guild Wars 2 or SWTOR I get a very small lag spike what seems like every 2-3 seconds consistently the entire time I play. Its very frustrating and I'm at my wits end o figure this out. Also, my ex wifes computer use to be hooked up next to mine,

My System:
Motherboard - ASRock 960GM/U3S3 FX AM3+ AMD 760G
Processor - AMD FX 8120
GPU - Radeon 7850 HD 2GB DDR5
RAM - 16gb Vengence
CAT 6 cable hardwired to DOCSIS 3.0 Modem, 50mbps download, 12mbps upload, 10ms ping


My exwifes computer use to be hooked up right next to mine and wirelessly her pc had zero lag when we were both playing GW2 together. Her specs were:
Motherboard - Crosshair lV Formula
CPU - Phenom ll X4 Black Edition
RAM - 8gb

So on the same internet her PC ran smoother and yet she has half the spec's as me. What gives?

So heres what I'm thinking:
Cheapest thing to try - OC the 8120 to 4ghz. Well I tried the BIOS OC utility and after I restart my PC it turns on but the display is blank and it does nothing. I then have to physcially reset the CMOS on the motherboard and the restart. I have never OC'd something before but I feel I am completely capable. What am I doing wrong?

Easy fix - Buy an AMD FX 8350 processor and just plug it in to see if that fixes my issues

Not AS easy fix - Buy either a Sabretooth 990 motherboard or a Crosshair V Formula Z 990 motherboard to see if its my motherboard

Last resort - Buy a new motherboard/CPU combo for +/- $400.

I am coming to you guys because I just don't know what to do. Please give me any legitimate advice (and not just AMD sucks buy Intel).

 

[maxiim]

If its your internet that is lagging, upgrading mobo, cpu etc wont do a thing to fix it. Have you recently updated your GPU drivers? How old is the build? Did the issues start occurring right away? Did you install all of the utilities drivers for your mobo?

 

[ingtar33]

both games GW2 and SWTOR are a bit heavy on the cpu side of things. which means your problem is the very poor IPC of that bulldozer cpu. You see both games are SINGLE threaded for the most part. which means even though you have x2 the cores of your wife's system, it doesn't mean a thing. The reason people keep calling bulldozer "fail-dozer" is because it delivered significantly worse single core performance compared to the older phenomII cpus. So, though your wife has a 2 or 3 year older cpu, with just 4 cores, her cpu is actually the BETTER cpu at stock frequencies.

Now that i've explained the "why," we'll look at possible solutions.

1) overclock that 8120 ~ to give you a mental idea of how fast you'll need to clock it to match your wife's PhII, the 8120 has a clock speed of 3.1ghz, the phII x4 965be has a clock speed of 3.4ghz. The phII is about 25% faster per core then the fx8120... so you'd need to clock the 8120 up to about 4.25ghz to match the phII at stock speeds. That's a fairly achievable overclock for the 8120.

~You problem is the motherboard you're using with that fx8 core. It's basically junk for overclocking an fx 8 core. Frankly i'm amazed that motherboard isn't overheating and crashing you or throttling back your cpu at STOCK voltages. It's really a poor motherboard for running an 8 core FX and i can't in good conscience suggest you overclock with it.

~which of course means if you wish to overclock a bit to bring up your cpu's performance, you'll likely need to get a new motherboard. You don't need to buy a sabertooth or formula... just a simple m5a99x evo will do just fine. I mean we're not talking about setting world records with that overclock here.

2) you could replace the cpu with an fx8350/8320... both run on the bulldozer revision, known as piledriver. Piledriver is still slower then the PhII in some limited situations, but generally about as fast clock for clock, meaning the 8320 at stock should be about as fast on one core as your wife's PhII. That said, I wouldn't suggest this option, for the same reason i'm frowning on overclocking. because of your motherboard.

-so here is my suggestion

Spend $100-$110, get a new motherboard like the m5a99x evo, spend another $80-$100 and get a corsair h100i or h80i (depending on your computer case, and which will fit better). Fit the new cpu cooler to your cpu in the new motherboard. Overclock the heck out of it. ~enjoy those games playing as good or better then your wife's computer.

 

[saveaux]

ingtar33 Thank you so much for your enlightening post to my dilema, I truly appreciate your time and knowledge. So it sounds like I have two things that are really not up for gaming. My CPU and Processor. If one was good then I would replace the other, but since it sounds like they both are not for my application then I think I may just replace both. With that being said I'm wondering if you could give me a recommendation on the best motherboard/cpu combo I could get for around $400 from microcenter. I have a microcenter about a mile from my house and I have tomorrow off so I'd really like to do this then. They have Intel CPU/Motherboard combos but I've already made a bad choice in buying these so I'd really like your suggestion. I was thinking of getting the i7 4770K with a motherboard but I don't know squat about these things. Is that a good CPU, is there better for gaming thats around its price? If Intel isn't the best way to go then what else would you recommend? I know I'm asking you to do some research but I would really appreciate any insight that you could give me!

ps want to buy my cpu/motherboard setup?

 

[Outlander_04]

The 960G motherboard may have thermal limits that stop you overclocking . Its older hardware and chipset
and the 8120 will get hot fast if overclocked

 

[ingtar33]

ingtar33 Thank you so much for your enlightening post to my dilema, I truly appreciate your time and knowledge. So it sounds like I have two things that are really not up for gaming. My CPU and Processor. If one was good then I would replace the other, but since it sounds like they both are not for my application then I think I may just replace both. With that being said I'm wondering if you could give me a recommendation on the best motherboard/cpu combo I could get for around $400 from microcenter. I have a microcenter about a mile from my house and I have tomorrow off so I'd really like to do this then. They have Intel CPU/Motherboard combos but I've already made a bad choice in buying these so I'd really like your suggestion. I was thinking of getting the i7 4770K with a motherboard but I don't know squat about these things. Is that a good CPU, is there better for gaming thats around its price? If Intel isn't the best way to go then what else would you recommend? I know I'm asking you to do some research but I would really appreciate any insight that you could give me!

ps want to buy my cpu/motherboard setup?

😀 already got a fx8320 and an ASUS m5a99x evo motherboard... but thanks for the offer.

as to your question... just went on the microcenter webpage... the best "bang for the buck" deal they've got is for a i5-3570K & ASRock Z77 Extreme4 motherboard for $279.98. gonna be hard to beat that combo anywhere. You can find the bundle here http://www.microcenter.com/site/brands/intel-processor-bundles.aspx. I'd take the money you saved and get a solid cpu cooler like a hyper evo 212, and an SSD like a 120gb Samsung 840 Evo... and completely revolutionize your system.