[SOLVED] Components FPS question

[Misha_2]

I am having trouble with FPS in modern games. I have just upgraded to an FX-8350 from an FX-6300. What components would I need to change to get better FPS in my games.
components
RAM: Crucial 8GB Single DDR3 1600 MT/s PC3-12800 CL11 Unbuffered UDIMM 240-Pin Desktop Memory CT102464BA160B
CPU: AMD FX 8-Core Black Edition FX-8350
GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB SSC GAMING
Mobo: Gigabyte AM3+ AMD DDR3 1333 760G HDMI USB 3.0 Micro ATX Motherboard GA-78LMT-USB3

 

[axlrose]

If you just upgraded the cpu and you have 8gb of ram, I imagine the gpu is the next place to look for fps.

 

[Misha_2]

If you just upgraded the cpu and you have 8gb of ram, I imagine the gpu is the next place to look for fps.

interesting, I talked to another guy and he said that upgrading the RAM is the next best solution, I feel very skeptical about his advice. Do you think he is correct?

 

[Tumeden]

More ram never hurts, but 8GB is usually sufficient to meet minimum specifications for most games right now.

I don't see anything about your hard drive, do you happen to have a solid state drive?
people underestimate the importance of a nice speedy SSD, a lot of hardware bottlenecks on the slow performance of an HDD, so i definitely recommend starting there.

 

[RaDiKaL_]

You'll need to check if your games are using all your 8GB of RAM or not, if they do then yes, more RAM will help since you'll avoid a heavy use of virtual memory on the HDD which is extremely slow.

"I have just upgraded to an FX-8350 from an FX-6300". That is an upgrade which will only benefit you on rendering / streaming and that kind of stuff. Games will most likely not use more than 4 cores with a very few exceptions. Gaming wise there is virtually no gain going from an FX-6300 to a FX-8350 other than the extra 200mhz whose impact is practically unnoticeable for a person.

Honestly your best move was to get a ryzen or a newer Intel generation. FX series were ok at its time, but they tend to jitter a lot so they produce high fps but are dropping so hard intermittently that the gaming experience is not what was expected.

 

[Misha_2]

You'll need to check if your games are using all your 8GB of RAM or not, if they do then yes, more RAM will help since you'll avoid a heavy use of virtual memory on the HDD which is extremely slow.

"I have just upgraded to an FX-8350 from an FX-6300". That is an upgrade which will only benefit you on rendering / streaming and that kind of stuff. Games will most likely not use more than 4 cores with a very few exceptions. Gaming wise there is virtually no gain going from an FX-6300 to a FX-8350 other than the extra 200mhz whose impact is practically unnoticeable for a person.

Honestly your best move was to get a ryzen or a newer Intel generation. FX series were ok at its time, but they tend to jitter a lot so they produce high fps but are dropping so hard intermittently that the gaming experience is not what was expected.

im not looking to upgrade my CPU to a different socket because of the whole process of getting a new winjdows version and having to spend extra on a mobo with a different socket.

 

[Misha_2]

More ram never hurts, but 8GB is usually sufficient to meet minimum specifications for most games right now.

I don't see anything about your hard drive, do you happen to have a solid state drive?
people underestimate the importance of a nice speedy SSD, a lot of hardware bottlenecks on the slow performance of an HDD, so i definitely recommend starting there.

idk about the SSD i have but here is the HDD: Seagate 1TB Desktop HDD SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive

 

[geofelt]

You made a sideways move.
You got 2 more threads, but the individual single thread performance is about the same.
Past that, you are not in great shape to overclock on that motherboard.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2384030/motherboard-tier-list-am3-chipsets.html

Only if you are multitasking while gaming might more than 8gb be useful.


Some games are graphics limited like fast action shooters.
Others are cpu core speed limited like strategy, sims, and mmo.
Multiplayer tends to like many threads.

You need to find out which.
------------------------------------------------------------
To help clarify your CPU/GPU options, run these two tests:

a) Run YOUR games, but lower your resolution and eye candy.
If your FPS increases, it indicates that your cpu is strong enough to drive a better graphics configuration.
If your FPS stays the same, you are likely more cpu limited.

b) Limit your cpu, either by reducing the OC, or, in windows power management, limit the maximum cpu% to something like 70%.
Go to control panel/power options/change plan settings/change advanced power settings/processor power management/maximum processor state/
This will simulate what a lack of cpu power will do.
Conversely what a 30% improvement in core speed might do.

You should also experiment with removing one or more cores/threads. You can do this in the windows msconfig boot advanced options option.
You will need to reboot for the change to take effect. Set the number of threads to less than you have.
This will tell you how sensitive your games are to the benefits of many threads.
If you see little difference, your game does not need all the threads you have.



It is possible that both tests are positive, indicating that you have a well balanced system,
and both cpu and gpu need to be upgraded to get better gaming FPS.
-------------------------------------------------------------

 

[RaDiKaL_]

You'll need to check if your games are using all your 8GB of RAM or not, if they do then yes, more RAM will help since you'll avoid a heavy use of virtual memory on the HDD which is extremely slow.

"I have just upgraded to an FX-8350 from an FX-6300". That is an upgrade which will only benefit you on rendering / streaming and that kind of stuff. Games will most likely not use more than 4 cores with a very few exceptions. Gaming wise there is virtually no gain going from an FX-6300 to a FX-8350 other than the extra 200mhz whose impact is practically unnoticeable for a person.

Honestly your best move was to get a ryzen or a newer Intel generation. FX series were ok at its time, but they tend to jitter a lot so they produce high fps but are dropping so hard intermittently that the gaming experience is not what was expected.

im not looking to upgrade my CPU to a different socket because of the whole process of getting a new winjdows version and having to spend extra on a mobo with a different socket.

Then your only move remaining to improve the performance CPU wise beyond what the FX-6300 offered is to OC that FX-8350 as much as you can.

 

[sizzling]

Your potential FPS is dictated by your cpu, what graphics settings you can run is dictated by the gpu. Ok this is over simplified but is generally true. The old FX series have very cores, going from a FX6300 to FX8350 did not change this. To push higher FPS in modern games you need to move to a modern cpu platform and yes unfortunately that means new motherboard and RAM but this is the reality of the situation.

FYI keep a close eye on your cpu speed (GHz) when gaming. Your 8350 is a 125w cpu and your motherboard is notorious for throttling 125w cpu’s due to its weak VRM design. If you see the cpu speed dropping you will need to look at ways of cooling the VRM’s or underclocking.

 

[axlrose]

Maybe too simple here, but when I run the overlay during gaming with afterburner, I believe it gives info on the % of my cpu power and gpu power as well. Lines up with the good advice from geofelt, but I can see when I max out modern fps games that my gpu is often running near capacity while my cpu is lower. In other games, I can see the cpu being used more. Might be an easy way to monitor use in addition to temps.

When I play fortnite, afterburner reports in the upper 90's for my gpu use and in the lower 30's for my cpu use.
When I pay Rimworld, afterburner reports in the lower 30's for my gpu use and in the lower 40's for my cpu use.

 

[Corwin65]

I'd return the 8350 and save up as it won't do much for you.