[SOLVED] Looking to upgrade my PC, need some insight!

[moe2o56]

Hi,

I'm looking to upgrade my CPU in the near future probably around black Friday for a good deal. I'm undecided on what exactly to do and would like some incite from some other people. I put this system together around fall of 2017 and recently upgraded my monitor and video card within the last few months. I mainly game on it and that's it sole purpose.

So my initial thoughts was to upgrade the CPU to a 3900x and keep the same motherboard for now since I upgraded the bios to run the 3rd gen ryzen chips and at some point upgrade the motherboard.

But then I was thinking I could go the Intel route and get a Intel CPU and motherboard even though I've never build a Intel CPU and I have always build AMD....

I'm a huge Battlefield guy and just so annoyed with all the bugs and stuttering going on in BFV and the constant fps drops I'm getting now from like 140-45 when I spawn and so many random stuttering while playing. I know most of that is on EA/Dice's end not my pc but still....

Currently gaming at 3440x1440p

Current Build:
Windows 10 Home
AMD RYZEN 7 1800X 8-Core 3.6 GHz (4.0 GHz Turbo) Socket AM4
ASUS ROG Crosshair VI Hero AM4 AMD X370 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 ATX AMD Motherboard
Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 3200MHz C16 Desktop Memory Kit - Black (CMK16GX4M2B3200C16)
CORSAIR HXi Series HX1200i 1200W 80 PLUS PLATINUM Haswell Ready Full Modular
EVGA - GeForce RTX 2080 Ti XC Ultra Gaming 11GB GDDR6 PCI Express 3.0 Graphics Card
Alienware - AW3418DW 34.14" IPS LED UltraWide HD G-SYNC Monitor

 

[SgtScream]

My graphics settings are set at High with a few settings at low and all of the post processing stuff is off as well. I was only getting about 80-90 fps..... My Dell 34" ultra-wide is 144Hz.

What resolution is the ultrawide?

 

[moe2o56]

What resolution is the ultrawide?

3440 x 1440 144Hz.
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/alienw...c-monitor-epic-silver/6147408.p?skuId=6147408

 

[SgtScream]

Are you on the latest Windows 10 Build? Build 1903 was designed to better optimize for Ryzen processors.
You can go to the settings gear icon and then "Update & Security". After you are on the latest build, make sure your Windows 10 power plan is set to High Performance.

Also please describe the power supply cable(s) that you have running to the RTX 2080 ti. Does one end of the cable plug into the power supply, then the other end of the cables have two plugs? If so you have to get another one of those cables and run two dedicated cables to your graphcics card.

 

[moe2o56]

Are you on the latest Windows 10 Build? Build 1903 was designed to better optimize for Ryzen processors.
You can go to the settings gear icon and then "Update & Security". After you are on the latest build, make sure your Windows 10 power plan is set to High Performance.

Also please describe the power supply cable(s) that you have running to the RTX 2080 ti. Does one end of the cable plug into the power supply, then the other end of the cables have two plugs? If so you have to get another one of those cables and run two dedicated cables to your graphcics card.

I'll confirm the latest windows later when i get home from work but I'm 99% sure i am on the latest one and I know the performance is set to high performance. And will also check out the power cables to the graphics card cause I may need to put another dedicated cable on it not sure!

 

[SgtScream]

I'll confirm the latest windows later when i get home from work but I'm 99% sure i am on the latest one and I know the performance is set to high performance. And will also check out the power cables to the graphics card cause I may need to put another dedicated cable on it not sure!

You have to manually run the build 1903 update.

 

[moe2o56]

You have to manually run the build 1903 update.

So if i don't have it how do you manually run it? I didn't know that.

 

[SgtScream]

So if i don't have it how do you manually run it? I didn't know that.

It's in the windows update section that I detailed in my previous post. It looks like a link.

 

[moe2o56]

It's in the windows update section that I detailed in my previous post. It looks like a link.

Going to check it out when I get home and update it and make sure i have 2 dedicated power cables running to the card, I believe I have 1 cable that splits into 2.... If that's the case maybe its not getting the power it needs....

 

[SgtScream]

Going to check it out when I get home and update it and make sure i have 2 dedicated power cables running to the card, I believe I have 1 cable that splits into 2.... If that's the case maybe its not getting the power it needs....

I've resolved numerous threads by suggesting two dedicated psu cables, so it's a good chance that is the problem. Good luck!

 

[moe2o56]

I've resolved numerous threads by suggesting two dedicated psu cables, so it's a good chance that is the problem. Good luck!

Well thats good news! Can't wait to see what I actually did with it later once I get home but I'll let you know!!! Thanks!!!!

 

[moe2o56]

I've resolved numerous threads by suggesting two dedicated psu cables, so it's a good chance that is the problem. Good luck!

So turns out i was running on windows 1809 so I updated it to 1903 and also only had one power cable going to the video card, so i added a second cable and all I can say is WOW. BFV seems to run a lot smoother even though I only played for a little bit tonight but will play more in the upcoming days. CPU usage is averaging between 85-94% so its not maxed out anymore and I overclocked it to 4.0GHz. And the GPU usage is averaging about 80-85% which is much higher than before. So looks like I can ride this 1800x out a little longer but at some point it would be nice to upgrade the processor just so I won't be bottle necking the 2080Ti! Thanks so much for your incite and will keep you updated the next few days and hopefully it stays like this!

 

[SgtScream]

So turns out i was running on windows 1809 so I updated it to 1903 and also only had one power cable going to the video card, so i added a second cable and all I can say is WOW. BFV seems to run a lot smoother even though I only played for a little bit tonight but will play more in the upcoming days. CPU usage is averaging between 85-94% so its not maxed out anymore and I overclocked it to 4.0GHz. And the GPU usage is averaging about 80-85% which is much higher than before. So looks like I can ride this 1800x out a little longer but at some point it would be nice to upgrade the processor just so I won't be bottle necking the 2080Ti! Thanks so much for your incite and will keep you updated the next few days and hopefully it stays like this!

It's not that your 1800x is a bottleneck, though there is SOME truth to that however there's more factors involved:

1. Yes, your single core performance isn't the greatest, however at high resolutions like 1440p ultrawide and 4k, it's less of a factor than what you might think. To put into perspective, I have a gtx 1080 ti/R7 1700 and experience the same results via 3440x1440p resolution. Your card is just way too powerful for that resolution and is geared more towards 4k resolution gaming. Your RTX 2080 ti just isn't being pushed enough because there is not enough graphical demand from the games you are playing, at that resolution. If you were to install a newer triple A title like Metro Exodus and crank all the the settings to ultra, you'd see your graphics card start to "sweat".
2. You'll often find many times that the reason you aren't seeing full load on the gpu is because of the game optimization and specifically the game mode within said game. Just because your processor is close to 100% load doesn't mean that's unreasonable. The game can take more resources than needed or that high gaming load may be a result of poor game code optimization. For example, I play Call of Duty Black OPS IIII and I see my GTX 1080 ti dip in FPS and is often because of the game mode blackout that I play, which is an open world battle royale game mode. When I switch over to multiplayer or zombie mode, i'll see the graphics card load constantly pegged at 100%.

As the system ages and newer more demanding triple A titles are released, you'll find the gaming load quickly shifts to the RTX 2080 ti and that component will then be the limiting factor. When games can begin to place 100% load on the RTX 2080 ti at 3440 x 1440p resolution you'll start to notice that your cpu load may go down. It's like a seesaw and there's always going to be a bottleneck no matter what the budget is and how high or low end the system is, as well as the gaming demand on said hardware. All that matter is, does your average FPS match the refresh rate of your monitor most of the time and some times it won't and that's not necessarily because of your system but poor game optimization. I guess the moral of this story is people are very over critical of their systems and rightfully so because they spend a considerable amount of their budget to see varying performance, however often times this performance variation has nothing to do with there system and everything to do with the game and it's optimization which is out of their control. If you ever want to see what i'm talking about play newer bethesda games like Wolfenstein and Doom. You'll notice you don't have to configure any graphical settings and your FPS doesn't drop a single frame from matching your panels refresh rate (Specific to high end systems). That's because their gaming optimization (especially for Ryzen) is on point and IMO is one of the best. It's not worth spending the money yet to upgrade. The performance difference just doesn't justify the cost. I'm waiting until 4th gen Zen 3 architecture to upgrade the R7 1700 and if that doesn't work out, I can always purchase a higher core count third gen Ryzen at a reduced price one year from now.

 

[bantyz]

It's not that your 1800x is a bottleneck, though there is SOME truth to that however there's more factors involved:

1. Yes, your single core performance isn't the greatest, however at high resolutions like 1440p ultrawide and 4k, it's less of a factor than what you might think. To put into perspective, I have a gtx 1080 ti/R7 1700 and experience the same results via 3440x1440p resolution. Your card is just way too powerful for that resolution and is geared more towards 4k resolution gaming. Your RTX 2080 ti just isn't being pushed enough because there is not enough graphical demand from the games you are playing, at that resolution. If you were to install a newer triple A title like Metro Exodus and crank all the the settings to ultra, you'd see your graphics card start to "sweat".
2. You'll often find many times that the reason you aren't seeing full load on the gpu is because of the game optimization and specifically the game mode within said game. Just because your processor is close to 100% load doesn't mean that's unreasonable. The game can take more resources than needed or that high gaming load may be a result of poor game code optimization. For example, I play Call of Duty Black OPS IIII and I see my GTX 1080 ti dip in FPS and is often because of the game mode blackout that I play, which is an open world battle royale game mode. When I switch over to multiplayer or zombie mode, i'll see the graphics card load constantly pegged at 100%.

As the system ages and newer more demanding triple A titles are released, you'll find the gaming load quickly shifts to the RTX 2080 ti and that component will then be the limiting factor. When games can begin to place 100% load on the RTX 2080 ti at 3440 x 1440p resolution you'll start to notice that your cpu load may go down. It's like a seesaw and there's always going to be a bottleneck no matter what the budget is and how high or low end the system is, as well as the gaming demand on said hardware. All that matter is, does your average FPS match the refresh rate of your monitor most of the time and some times it won't and that's not necessarily because of your system but poor game optimization. I guess the moral of this story is people are very over critical of their systems and rightfully so because they spend a considerable amount of their budget to see varying performance, however often times this performance variation has nothing to do with there system and everything to do with the game and it's optimization which is out of their control. If you ever want to see what i'm talking about play newer bethesda games like Wolfenstein and Doom. You'll notice you don't have to configure any graphical settings and your FPS doesn't drop a single frame from matching your panels refresh rate (Specific to high end systems). That's because their gaming optimization (especially for Ryzen) is on point and IMO is one of the best. It's not worth spending the money yet to upgrade. The performance difference just doesn't justify the cost. I'm waiting until 4th gen Zen 3 architecture to upgrade the R7 1700 and if that doesn't work out, I can always purchase a higher core count third gen Ryzen at a reduced price one year from now.

@moe2o56 You nailed it. One answer to all the questions floating around the Internet regarding GPU/CPU bottlenecks. My wandering mind is now settled. Thank you.