Frames keep dropping on every game.

[QCube]

Hello

My custom built rig has been playing up for some time now and It's starting to frustrate me. I don't know whether it's just the graphics can't handle a game or optimisation settings but hopefully someone will be able to help me out

My Specs
AMD FX-8320 Eight Core Processor w/ Cooler master Hyper 212 Evo
AsRock 990FX Extreme 3
XFX Pro Core 550W PSU
XFX Radeon 7970 DD 3GB GPU
1TB Western Digital Caviar Black
8GB (2x4GB) G.Skill Ripjaws 2133Mhz RAM

The main issue is just frame drops on every game. I have the 7970 which is fine for running games (Running at 1050p) and including Battlefield 4 I can run fine but every 2-3 minutes, my frames drop dramatically from about 80fps to 14-20fps for a few seconds then back to 60+ fps which is just becoming so frustrating. This isn't just the case with battlefield 4, same with battlefield 3, Arma 2 and such other games.

I tried tuning up the clock speed but when I tried to join a battlefield game, I got a DirectX error and it closed on me until I reverted my settings. I also put a power target of +20% and that still did nothing. I also downloaded and used AMD gaming evolved and optimised my game using the settings suggested with performance selected and still major frame losses.

I have 4 corsair AF blue LED case fans too (3 exhausts, 2 top, 1 back and 1 front) that I put in my case (Zalman Z11+) and my temps remain within the 50-60 degree celcius range so I don't believe it to be cooling issues.

I have warrenty on my 7970 but I have no idea if the graphics card may be slightly faulty.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

[i7Baby]

Is your cpu getting hot?

 

[QCube]

Is your cpu getting hot?

Not with the 212 Evo with 3 fans around it with the additional fan on the 212 Evo as well. Temps on the CPU is fine too.

 

[i7Baby]

What cpu temps - from bios/uefi - on idle and while gaming?

 

[QCube]

What cpu temps - from bios/uefi - on idle and while gaming?

CPU temps reach about 63-65°C whilst on full load. It could be my CPU but I just believe it to be graphics related with it being frame drops.

 

[i7Baby]

Your temps are too high. They should be 55C max gaming.

If you haven't already, blow your case out to get rid of dust build up - especially fans, filters and coolers.
Get rid of any CPU overclock. Bump up your cpu fan speed.

If that doesn't work, the re-seat your cpu cooler (again)

If that doesn't work, then get a better cpu cooler.

 

[QCube]

Your temps are too high. They should be 55C max gaming.

If you haven't already, blow your case out to get rid of dust build up - especially fans, filters and coolers.
Get rid of any CPU overclock. Bump up your cpu fan speed.

If that doesn't work, the re-seat your cpu cooler (again)

If that doesn't work, then get a better cpu cooler.

I don't mean to offend but the temps on the CPU of 63°C or so Is absolutely fine... Case and fans are clear of dust. The cpu cooler is attached properly without any problems and also with arctic cooling mx-4 thermal paste. The CPU cooler is also fine and is also the most common of the coolers and there is nothing wrong with the 212 Evo. It's a great aftermarket cooler.

I believe the area of the problems is related to the GPU.

 

[i7Baby]

The buy a new graphics card. Why post?

 

[QCube]

The buy a new graphics card. Why post?

My graphics card is fully capable of playing these games. They infact do play these games with an average 80fps on high to ultra settings. It's just giving random frame drops and the graphics card itself is only 7 months old from when I purchased it brand new.

I posted because I was hoping to get answers from people that understand my problem or have been in the same seat as me before and got their issue resolved. I don't want people commenting incorrect information or suggesting wrong or unhelpful tips. Your post of "just buy a new graphics card" isn't helping me or my situation and drives the thread off topic. My point is basically, If you don't know what you're talking about or know anything about my issue, please don't try resolving it with information that isn't going to help me.

 

[Vynavill]

Isn't that PSU a bit too close to the power required by your entire system? I get this weird feeling it's a power related issue...

I currently don't have the numbers at hand nor can look for them, but AMD CPUs tend to require more power than usual, and the 7970 isn't cheap on power requirements either...
If you take into account other factors, like turbo core speeds and oc-level ram clocks, not to mention having leds all over the place, it could very well be a power issue.

Have you got any other PSU you could try with at around 650w? Maybe loaned by a friend/parent for a quick test?

 

[QCube]

Isn't that PSU a bit too close to the power required by your entire system? I get this weird feeling it's a power related issue...

I currently don't have the numbers at hand nor can look for them, but AMD CPUs tend to require more power than usual, and the 7970 isn't cheap on power requirements either...
If you take into account other factors, like turbo core speeds and oc-level ram clocks, not to mention having leds all over the place, it could very well be a power issue.

Have you got any other PSU you could try with at around 650w? Maybe loaned by a friend/parent for a quick test?

At the time of planning my computer the PSU seem right for the part. It may be possible in the time of upgrades I may be bottlenecking my PSU. AMD recommend a 500W power supply for the 7970. and my motherboard and CPU take about 125W max (full load) but I this is all just limits, I haven't quite come close to using the entire 550W before and not only that but If I was having power related issues, my graphics card fan speed would be maxed out and fans increased to 100%. Then If It still needed more power either the GPU or CPU, I'd get the blue screen error which I haven't had yet so I can only assume by this and my temps + fan speed are kept down that the 550W is enough for my build. I might take a look into putting a higher PSU in but I would like to look at optimisation settings first.

 

[Vynavill]

A non sufficient power supply doesn't always fall back to a bsod, especially if the difference between required and consumed power is marginal. Also, about your gpu fans not spinning at 100% not all gpus allow that. If you take my Asus 290x as an example, it won't go over 45-50% unless you set fan speeds by other means.

I believe you posted your cpu temps already, but can you also post your gpu temps AND % fan speeds while gaming? Use gpu-z to take those.

 

[QCube]

A non sufficient power supply doesn't always fall back to a bsod, especially if the difference between required and consumed power is marginal. Also, about your gpu fans not spinning at 100% not all gpus allow that. If you take my Asus 290x as an example, it won't go over 45-50% unless you set fan speeds by other means.

I believe you posted your cpu temps already, but can you also post your gpu temps AND % fan speeds while gaming? Use gpu-z to take those.

I use Evga to automate my fan control speeds and SpeedFan to control case & processor fans. So the possibility of my GPU reaching 100% fan speed is possible, but only if it requires it (If the temperature accelerates dramatically). My GPU temps are around 50-60°C which I've also set my fan speeds to maintain the same speed as it temperature so 50-60% on the GPU fan speeds too.

 

[Vynavill]

Hmm...okay, I honestly don't know where to bump my head then...

I doubt it's a gpu hardware flaw anyway, as you can run games effortlessly and only experience casual stutters, so an RMA should be your last ditch effort. You said it happens with particularly intensive games, but temps look in the norm (the cpu is indeed slightly high, as i7baby said, but still within acceptable limits, and AMDs get hotter than Intels anyway). Have you tried with more lightweight games? Does it happen there too?

Let's keep the PSU out for now, although I still think that's the issue.

The only thing this could fall back to, if we rule out the PSU, would be the HDD. RPM and cache?