GTX 1070 AMP! Extreme underperforming

[nico.k]

Hey guys!

So I have a potential problem with my GTX 1070 from Zotac

I previously had a 1060-6GB running in my setup which is as follows:

i7-4770k
12GB DRR3 Dual channel XMP
SSD

So my problem is, in my most played game, i now get less performance with the 1070 than I did with the 1060.
I was able to keep steady 120fpsw ithout ever dropping or stutters and ever since I put the 1070 in, my fps wildly fluctuate between 100 and 130fps with sometimes tanking as low as 80 fps and extreme stutters..
I noticed that my card hardly stays at >90% gpu load and only uses 2.5-3GB VRAM at a maximum whereas my old 1060 sometimes used up to 4.8GB..

I'm really getting frustrated as I can't seem to get behind the problem, I really hope you guys can help me..

Did some 3DMark Firestrike already, heres my results: https://www.3dmark.com/fs/15673437

 

[herrwizo]

Check your CPU usage and temperatures, report them back.

Do you have this 4770k OC'ed and if so, how much?

 

[finitekosmos]

Could be a couple of things. the first possibility that crosses my mind is the performance mode that Windows is set to. Try setting your PC to High Performance mode....

1. Click the Start Menu button.
2. Click on Settings.
3. in the settings window there is a search box. click on it and type in Power. Select Choose a Power Plan from the options provided.
4. Select the Option for High Performance.

The second part is to change the power settings for the GPU too.

1. Right Click on the desktop and select Nvidia Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel window select Manage 3D Settings.
3. on the right side of the window a list of options will be made available. Select the tab labeled Global Options.
4. Scroll down the options until you see Power Management Mode. Click on it and change it to "Prefer Maximum Performance".

Try your games again.

4. Select Power Management Mode

 

[nico.k]

Check your CPU usage and temperatures, report them back.

Do you have this 4770k OC'ed and if so, how much?

it's not OC'ed and I already monitored my cpu and it isn't a bottleneck, with it never crossing the 75% usage line and temps are fine aswell

 

[nico.k]

Could be a couple of things. the first possibility that crosses my mind is the performance mode that Windows is set to. Try setting your PC to High Performance mode....

1. Click the Start Menu button.
2. Click on Settings.
3. in the settings window there is a search box. click on it and type in Power. Select Choose a Power Plan from the options provided.
4. Select the Option for High Performance.

The second part is to change the power settings for the GPU too.

1. Right Click on the desktop and select Nvidia Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel window select Manage 3D Settings.
3. on the right side of the window a list of options will be made available. Select the tab labeled Global Options.
4. Scroll down the options until you see Power Management Mode. Click on it and change it to "Prefer Maximum Performance".

Try your games again.

4. Select Power Management Mode

sadly I did all that already


edit: also deinstalled old drivers with DDU multiple times as I switched back and forth between 388.71 and newest drivers to see if it makes a difference

 

[herrwizo]

Temps are fine aswell you say... how fine exactly, please provide numbers

As for OC, you should actually do it, if you really want to push games like CS:GO to max FPS. 4770k can usually be OC'ed to 4.5GHz without issues. Of course, you need to have appropriate mobo for that (Z97).

You are bottlenecked by the CPU for sure. Mind you, your CPU does not have to be at 100% usage to be bottlenecked - bottlenecking also happens when a game ONLY uses single or 2 threads and they are at 100% - all other threads can be idle, resulting in lower than maximum overall usage of the CPU, but you are basically still bottlenecked if the game *does not know how to use all the threads*. This is the case with CS:GO. So it is overclocking you need to boost single thread speed to maximum.

And if you don't feel like OC-ing, you can certainly increase resolution and level of details to maximum, and framerate should stay the same or similar, because GPU has plenty of power to spare, so why not use it if you can...

 

[nico.k]

Temps are fine aswell you say... how fine exactly, please provide numbers

As for OC, you should actually do it, if you really want to push games like CS:GO to max FPS. 4770k can usually be OC'ed to 4.5GHz without issues. Of course, you need to have appropriate mobo for that (Z97).

You are bottlenecked by the CPU for sure. Mind you, your CPU does not have to be at 100% usage to be bottlenecked - bottlenecking also happens when a game ONLY uses single or 2 threads and they are at 100% - all other threads can be idle, resulting in lower than maximum overall usage of the CPU, but you are basically still bottlenecked if the game *does not know how to use all the threads*. This is the case with CS:GO. So it is overclocking you need to boost single thread speed to maximum.

And if you don't feel like OC-ing, you can certainly increase resolution and level of details to maximum, and framerate should stay the same or similar, because GPU has plenty of power to spare, so why not use it if you can...

I don't have exact number now as I don't sit infront of my pc now but i remeber temps staying somewhere between 65 and 75C°

that's my problem, i don't have a Z97 mobo :/

Also I should have been more clear about my cpu usage, I monitored all cores and not only overall and none of the cores hit 100% usage, not even 90%


edit: also could a weak psu limit my performance? i don't get crashes or BSOD's but if my psu is insufficent could that lead to achieving lower performance than usual? I have a beQuiet 500W PSU, I don't know which one exactly I just know that it's atleast 4-5 yrs old

 

[Mike Prior]

A possibility?
Has your game automatically ramped up the detail/quality settings on noticing the 1070?

 

[nico.k]

A possibility?
Has your game automatically ramped up the detail/quality settings on noticing the 1070?

no it hasn't done that automatically, although i had to set it up manually. as with the lower settings a achieved greatly lower performance than with my settings i have now

 

[herrwizo]

PSU cannot be the cause for lower performance, no. Also, your temps are indeed fine.

There is one thing that also comes to mind - you have 1 2GB of DDR3, so it is impossible for it to run in dual channel (or at least in true dual channel). If you have 3 memory sticks, remove one and leave 2x4 identical sticks for true dual channel. If you have 1x8 and 1x4, then it does not matter, you cannot do anything except replacing a 4GB one with 8GB which should in all respects be identical to your existing 8GB stick.

Apart from this, no idea what else could it be - I can also suggest a full OS reinstall with latest ISO image of Win10 and see if it helps. It indeed could, although I am aware that for many users this is something they would rather avoid. But if everything else fails...

 

[nico.k]

PSU cannot be the cause for lower performance, no. Also, your temps are indeed fine.

There is one thing that also comes to mind - you have 1 2GB of DDR3, so it is impossible for it to run in dual channel (or at least in true dual channel). If you have 3 memory sticks, remove one and leave 2x4 identical sticks for true dual channel. If you have 1x8 and 1x4, then it does not matter, you cannot do anything except replacing a 4GB one with 8GB which should in all respects be identical to your existing 8GB stick.

Apart from this, no idea what else could it be - I can also suggest a full OS reinstall with latest ISO image of Win10 and see if it helps. It indeed could, although I am aware that for many users this is something they would rather avoid. But if everything else fails...

I indeed have 1x 8GB and 1x 4GB sticks.. although in bios it says that it's running in dual channel mode.. how would i go about finding out that it's not running in "true" dual channel?

 

[RobCrezz]

Thats not an ideal setup for ram, but unlikely to be causing the problem.

Have you tried forcing your gpu into maximum performance mode in the power settings (nvidia control panel)? Ive noticed with some driver updates it forces it into power save mode.

 

[nico.k]

Thats not an ideal setup for ram, but unlikely to be causing the problem.

Have you tried forcing your gpu into maximum performance mode in the power settings (nvidia control panel)? Ive noticed with some driver updates it forces it into power save mode.

That's what I thought too especially because bios says it's running dual channel.. however just ordered another 8GB stick from same brand with same timings and speed just for the sake of trying it, can always send it back if it wasn't the issue..

yes I've set it to "prefer maximum performance"

 

[Tolis_GR]

Try to push harder your gpu. No one mentioned what was your resolution with the 1060 and what is now. You should go for 1440p, put strain on the gpu that can handle and utilize it's resources.

 

[nico.k]

Try to push harder your gpu. No one mentioned what was your resolution with the 1060 and what is now. You should go for 1440p, put strain on the gpu that can handle and utilize it's resources.

sorry resolution is 1080p in both cases, 144hz monitor and i can't afford to upgrade that right now

 

[Tolis_GR]

Which game are we talking about? In-game performance graphs can help you correlate. Spikes can cause stutter and fps drops despite there is no bottleneck.

 

[nico.k]

Which game are we talking about? In-game performance graphs can help you correlate. Spikes can cause stutter and fps drops despite there is no bottleneck.

PUBG mostly.
Monitored while playing:

Gpu usage hardly ever touches 100% most of times between 60 and ~90%
vram usage at ultra textures at 3.5gb max (although this game is known of comsuming 4.5gb+ with ultra textures and did so on my 1060)

also I noticed that the gpu core clock under load is always over 2000mhz although card baseclock is listed at 1632 and boostclock somewhere in the 1700's

 

[RobCrezz]

Which game are we talking about? In-game performance graphs can help you correlate. Spikes can cause stutter and fps drops despite there is no bottleneck.

PUBG mostly.
Monitored while playing:

Gpu usage hardly ever touches 100% most of times between 60 and ~90%
vram usage at ultra textures at 3.5gb max (although this game is known of comsuming 4.5gb+ with ultra textures and did so on my 1060)

also I noticed that the gpu core clock under load is always over 2000mhz although card baseclock is listed at 1632 and boostclock somewhere in the 1700's

Have you got vsync disabled both in nvidia control panel and the game?

GPU core clock over 2000mhz is fine and to be expected with GPU boost.

 

[nico.k]

-snip-

Have you got vsync disabled both in nvidia control panel and the game?

GPU core clock over 2000mhz is fine and to be expected with GPU boost.

Yes ingame and in control panel

okay fine then

 

[Tolis_GR]

I feel it's just the game. I have seen so many people on high end complaining for bad performance. Your benchmark seems good so there is no hardware related issue. There is an option though in Nvidia control panel that controls the pre-rendered frames queued by your cpu. Try to tweak that as your cpu may be holding back the gpu

 

[nico.k]

I feel it's just the game. I have seen so many people on high end complaining for bad performance. Your benchmark seems good so there is no hardware related issue. There is an option though in Nvidia control panel that controls the pre-rendered frames queued by your cpu. Try to tweak that as your cpu may be holding back the gpu

I always wondered what that's supposed to mean.. Could you clarifiy a bit?

 

[Tolis_GR]

I feel it's just the game. I have seen so many people on high end complaining for bad performance. Your benchmark seems good so there is no hardware related issue. There is an option though in Nvidia control panel that controls the pre-rendered frames queued by your cpu. Try to tweak that as your cpu may be holding back the gpu

I always wondered what that's supposed to mean.. Could you clarifiy a bit?

It;s a setting to control how many frames the cpu puts in a queue waiting the response from the gpu to process and visualize. A fast gpu as the 1070 should process frames so fast, that will bottleneck your cpu and thus no prerendered frames should actually be waiting the response from the gpu. I am not so familiar with Nvidia and whether the setting is auto-adjusted but many claim it can have huge impact on performance for several occasions.

Edit: Try to disable shadowplay too

 

[nico.k]

It;s a setting to control how many frames the cpu puts in a queue waiting the response from the gpu to process and visualize. A fast gpu as the 1070 should process frames so fast, that will bottleneck your cpu and thus no prerendered frames should actually be waiting the response from the gpu. I am not so familiar with Nvidia and whether the setting is auto-adjusted but many claim it can have huge impact on performance for several occasions.

Edit: Try to disable shadowplay too

okay next things im gonna try:

Play around with prerendered frames
disable shadowplay
disable steam overlay
run unigine superposition to see if more vram is used if needed

will report back

 

[Mike Prior]

Have you tried installing latest driver/rolling back to previous driver/reinstalling current driver?
(Yes - All of those.)

 

[Mike Prior]

Clutching at straws but it may be worth going back to a driver before the recent 1060 fix.