Gtx275 poor performance

[brother52]

I just got an XFX GTX275 to replace my BFG 9800GT. this benchmarking on 3dmark06 at 10959 3d marks which is only marginally faster than the 9800Gt it replaced. 🙁 system details below, any ideas?

Asus M3A mobo / BIOS Ver. 0901
Phenom 8450 triple core CPU Rev B3
2 x OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 / 1066 MHz / Reaper HPC Edition / 2GB / (BIOS timings set manually to CAS 5 / TRCD 5 / TRP 5 / TRAS 18)
onbard Realtek Audio
400GB Hitachi HDD

NVIDIA Drivers version 186.18
Windows XP
DirectX 9.0c
Enermax 600W Power supply

I'm using 3dmark06 basic (free) version to test. I also tried BIOSHOCK, Fort Frolick level which gave me problems with my old card, it's noticably better, but still jumpy at times.

I really hope this isn't a hardware bottleneck somewhere else, I can't afford to upgrade anymore kit 🙁

 

[coozie7]

First off, set your system back to its defalut status, you'll get nowhere with the system tweaked for a previous configuration.
Second off, uninstall and reinstall the drivers, it sounds a waste of time, but it's a good way to set the system to a known, good state and undo any tweaks you might have forgotten that might impact the new hardware.
There should be no problems with Bioshock, unless you're playing at 1920x1200 with AA forced through the drivers, in which case, turn it off.

 

[brother52]

Thanks for the reply Coozie!

I already reset all the system settings to default and reinstalled the drivers (removed first). I had to manually set the ram timings as there is a problem with the SPD settings on the RAM I have, the times are as recommended by the manufacturer.

The nvidia console has the default for everything set to application controlled.

the 3dmark score for the old 9800GT was 10100, with the new card giving only 10959 I'm wondering if there's a bottleneck somewhere, mebe the timings to the PCI express slot :/

 

[coozie7]

Sounds like you know what you're doing, mate
To clear up any possible configuration isues check the MB/CPU settings with CPUZ and the card with GPUZ. Also, use Rivatuner to monitor the GPU when you play, start it and leave it running to monitor the GPU speeds, just to confirm they jump to full 3D settings.

 

[roco_nights]

Man you're being bottlenecked by your processor... however this will only make effect on synthetic benchmarks, and FEW modern games like Grand theft auto... most modern games take more advantage on GPUS than CPUS, so don't worry about your 3d marks scores for now... in the future you might want to couple your new shiny 275gtx with a c2q @ 2,4 GHz or phenom x4 @ 2,8.... these will make you take more advantage of your GPU

 

[brother52]

aaargh, ok, so i went ahead and installed far cry 2 that came with the game, shoved all the settings to maximum and it ran smooth, cool i thought, then it stared giving a big green square artifact, flashing for maybe 1 frame, when i quit the game i got a BSoD in the NVDISP driver 🙁 so time to check temperatures i guess.

 

[megamanx00]

Yeah, check your temps. Also remove and re-install your driver. Also, your GPU is rather bottlenecked by your CPU, so there won't be too much of an improvement in synthetics like 3DMark, but you should still get higher min frames and thus smoother gameplay. If overclocking your CPU gives you a noticeable improvement, then yeah the CPU is your bottleneck 😀.

 

[brother52]

ok, ran the game till it gave a glitch, rivatuner reports
core clock/rop domain of 669.6
core clock/shader domain 1476
memory clock 1188
core temp 87
ambient temp 65

 

[lucuis]

Yeah it's running a bit warm, try upping the fan speed manually. Anything higher then 50% should be enough.

 

[coozie7]

Back from the X3 universe!
Boost the card fan speed and take a look at the wiring inside your case, moving it can improve airflow. Install a front intake fan or install one with higher flow to send a good stream of cool air at the card.
Take less notice of 3D Mark, concentrate on your gaming experience.
Overclock the CPU, it is holding the card back, but take a look at the overclocking forum first, there's plenty of good advice there.
Give the system a good spring clean to rid it of unwanted processes and move any file folders from the desktop to the hard disc root directory.

 

[xyzionz]

Try overclock ur CPU pass 3.2GHz

 

[brother52]

Ok, for some reason the fan was not speeding up as the card gor warmer, I used rivatuner to manually increase the fan speed to just below jet engine noise levle and all is well.

As for the house keeping, yeh, i do a lot of that, force of habit, always keep running processes to the minimum, and disable unecessary services. I do tend to have shortcuts on the desktop for various games etc. didn't think this made any difference?

Case already has a front and rear fan, but most of the blanking plates at the rear are removed, I was thinking if I put these back in it would help the GPU to suck air through itself rather than the front case fan just blast it straight out the back.

ahyhow, thanks for all the help guys, obviously a bit dissapointed on the performance front, but If I can run FarCry2 with everything on Ultra with no apparant ill effects I'm happy WoW still runs at 17fps in Dalaran ofcourse, but that's more down the Blizzard requiring a little Pixie to paint each shadow by hand.

Thanks guys!

 

[brother52]

Ok, tried to edit my last post in order to correct poor typing, but for some reason I'm not allowed to edit it?

 

[wh3resmycar]

he's not gonna get far with a phenom x3.

a 3ghz phenom2 or c2q would yield significant improvements considering my basic 3dmark06 score with gtx260-216 + 3ghz c2q is @ 14k.

in actual gameplay, that'd be around 5-15fps tops.

 

[coozie7]

@ Brother52: Good to hear you have correct housekeeping prictise, so many times at work people have asked 'why is my system so slow?' only to find they have a dozen programs loaded and masses of files on the desktop.
The shortcuts are fine, it's files that can be a problem on the desktop.