Computer doesn't stress?

[Eroge]

Please take the time to read everything and give me some advice <3

MSI GTX 460 1GB (factory overclocked edition) I have not tried using MSI Afterburner to overclock myself
AMD AthlonII x4 640 @3ghz (Stock speeds) I only bought this because it was cheap and people told me CPU didn't matter for gaming -.-
1920x1080 27in monitor
8gb DDR3 1333

1 reason I'm making this thread is because even though I'll experience low framerates in games, my computer never sounds like it's being stressed. I remember my old computers I'd be playing a game for a few hours and I'd hear my fans picking up loudly making me believe it was working hard to run the game for me - On this computer, it's silent (though I see the fans moving) and if I'm lagging in a game my CPU will still say like 60% utilized, and my video card will hover around 30-60% usage. -.- If my computer is having a hard time running a game, shouldn't CPU and GPU usage be at 100% at all times? I played Diablo 3 for 14 hours yesterday and my graphics card didn't get hotter than 57 according to HWmonitor. I just feel like my computer isn't even trying

Some games I bought that I can't play
SWTOR
Tera Online
GW2
The Secret World

When there are people around or too much action going on, my FPS is the same 14-20fps range whether I'm on max video settings or lowest. I'm guessing that would mean my processor is a piece of junk for gaming, but then why is it not even being stressed? This is the only computer I've ever owned where gaming wouldn't make my computer sound like a wind tunnel.

I'm just upset because people are supposed to be able to run GW2 on lowest with a $40 graphics card and a Pentium processor. Yet for me on lowest I lagged in every dynamic event and WvW was extremely unplayable

 

[blakwidowrsa]

Your PC seems good enough. AMD's are usually quieter than Intel. You can go into the BIOS and disable Cool and quiet. See if that helps.

Why cant you play to last games, fps too low?

What PSU are you using atm?

 

[Eroge]

Your PC seems good enough. AMD's are usually quieter than Intel. You can go into the BIOS and disable Cool and quiet. See if that helps.

Why cant you play to last games, fps too low? Yea. My FPS drops to under 20 and it's just not enjoyable so I quit.

What PSU are you using atm?

I don't have the box but I'm pretty sure it was called "Thermaltake R2 650w" I know for sure it is 650w and Thermaltake though

My computer never acts weird like random slow downs, crashes, blue screens, errors...any of that. It shuts down and starts up seamlessly, and never locks up. I defrag the HDD with Auslogics Disk Defrag once a week, and I keep Microsoft Security Essentials up to do along with Windows updates. I check Nvidia control panel for driver updates also

Should I check anything else for updates?

My Motherboad was pretty cheap because I only needed 1 video card slot, and don't care for extra features. I was told it's good enough though - Biostar TA785G3 HD - Someone told me it's not a "great gaming board" but I don't even overclock so what's the difference?

 

[blakwidowrsa]

Did you try Cool and quiet? It is a CPU feature...

 

[Eroge]

Did you try Cool and quiet? It is a CPU feature...

I just disabled it. I'm going to have to do some gaming to see if I notice any difference.

Still open to other peoples suggestions

 

[blakwidowrsa]

And an Improvement ?

 

[Eroge]

I don't notice anything different. I'm leaving CoolnQuiet disabled but so far zero increase in temperature, CPU usage is still around 30-50% when gaming, and my computer is still silent

I'm looking in my case to see if anything is unplugged or something. I lost all my hardware manuals a year ago, so I can't double check how my GTX 460 is supposed to be installed. Could anyone take a look at this image and tell me what that unused slot is for? I can't remember why I left that unplugged

http://i.imgur.com/gwlLv.jpg

I wish I didn't lose my motherboard and graphics card manuals because they both have tiny red LEDs on them to notify me of stuff and I'd like to know what they mean.

 

[Eroge]

Maybe something is wrong with my hard drive? http://i.imgur.com/35FOt.jpg

 

[blakwidowrsa]

Sorry but I am unable to see the images coz im on 3G and my isp is blocking alot of sites with their new apn crap.

But anyway, windows power profile set to High-performance/balanced in control panel ?

I really feel helpless atm.

It must be one of these things. I know, just excuse if I mentioned some already:
= PSU is not strong enough.
= CPU/mobo is being underclocked by something or in the BIOS.
= power management is set to Power-saver
= incompatible RAM(but barely working)
= faulty VRM's
= BIOS might need an update
= motherboard has a very weak/cheap chipset like SiS, Via
= OS is having trouble with ACPI
= a sata cable is skew\not properly plugged in a port
= failing usb devce
= AV software is creating issues
= a process/s priority is set to high/real-time
= pc has malware
= bad drivers

that's to name a few... I would really like to be able to go through the windows logs myself an find the issue.

 

[simon12]

I would try updating the graphics driver 1st. Its not because somethings under clocked at it would go to 100% usage even quicker. And yes the Athlon is fine for those games.

 

[Eroge]

Wow, I can't believe how many possible problems could go wrong without me even knowing

I have the latest Nvidia Driver

I never actually manually updated my Motherboard or anything. I keep Windows 7 x64 Home Premium up to date at all times though. My Motherboard did come with a software disc but it's gone now and I was kind of told not to use it. When I go into device manager, nothing warns me that updates are needed or anything

Power Management is set to high performance
I don't think I've got malware because I've been using Microsoft Security Essentials and the only things installed are games, chrome, steam, ect. I don't download torrents, music, watch porn on this computer, or do anything risky. I use Adblock and don't download stupid browser plugins or anything. My computer still runs as if it were brand new

If there is something wrong with my RAM, PSU, or something not installed correctly, I'll probably never figure it out.

I'm guessing my processor just isn't good enough to play an MMORPG (games like need for speed, age of empires, bastion, batman, sims 3, ect. play fine) Though my computer can't handle the Sims 3 on highest settings without getting lag when moving the camera...but why does my CPU/GPU usage never skyrocket and my computer never gets hot so the fans never have to speed up. Feels like my computer isn't using its full potential

In an MMORPG I can get the same FPS on low and max settings which tells me the processor is bottlenecking so much

For my next computer I'm not sure if I should build it myself again, or just spend the extra money to have Ibuypower or someone do it. -.-

 

[blakwidowrsa]

It is sad that your PC is like it is. But hey, don't let this get you down. At least you don't experience so much issues as many people get when they get the latest and greatest hardware with SLI or CF. Sometimes a monster build is hard to get right and maintain.

I am happy with a decent single card build that gives me more to spend on more Ram and a better CPU, than pulling my hair out coz my dual 7990 crossfire uber build is stuttering in Skyrim and cant figure out why ^^.


So grab a A+ ebook and teach yourself the hardware tit-bits and it will give you insight into pc's like never before...

 

[voiidwulf]

That's really strange. It's like your computer is just lazy or something. Maybe a driver update in the future will fix it.