Problem with my new Radeon HD 5850 ....

Kmo917

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Jul 25, 2008
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Hey guys, this is my fist time posting on this forum, and I am truly desperate here (I've been trying Google for days now in search for answer to my problem).

So here's the story:

I recently built a gaming PC, and since it was my first build I really wanted something that was powerful for playing games. I purchased the ATI Radeon HD 5850 as my graphics card because of the benchmarks/reviews I saw and the reported performance of the card.

Now my computer turns on perfectly, and it is very responsive (no crashes, reboots, or random errors). However, my graphics card just can't seem to live up to any of the benchmarks/tests I put it through. It performs poorly in 3D Mark, doesn't meet FPS in RE5, and can barley run Crysis at 1280x1024 with no AA, gets a 6.0-7.5 on the Windows Index Experience

I just don't understand what could be causing the problem. I suspect that something may be bottlenecking it, but all of my components seem to be operating as they should be (and I think my computer should be able to handle the 5850).

Below are my computer specs:

Case - Antec P183
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129061

PSU - Antec CP-850 (850W)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371024

CPU - Intel Core i7-860
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115214

MoBo - ASRock P55 Extreme
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157172

RAM - G.SKILL 240-Pin DDR3 1600 (I have 8 gigs)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231193

HDD - Western Digital Caviar Black (7200 RPM)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284

Graphics Card - SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 5850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102857

OS - Windows 7 Ultimate x64

I understand that it wasn't necessary to include things like my case or even the HDD, but I did so just in case they may be a factor. I'd also like to point out that I have not overclocked anything in my computer, so everything is running stock. Also, I have reformatted several times and reinstalled the latest ATI driver (and even their hotfix) to no avail. My card is still underperforming.

Here is a screenshot of my card's performance in 3D Mark Vantange:

Capture.png

I highlighted the GPU score.

Also, when running the RE5 fixed benchmark test, I always score a B and never touch 60 FPS.

What's going on here guys? Is my GPU being bottlenecked? Is it defective? What could possibly cause this problem? I only have 14 days left to issue an RMA at Newegg. I just don't understand how it could be defective, or how any of my parts could be bottlenecking its performance. Please guys, I'd love to hear input from you. :(
 
Solution
Sounds like a PSU problem, maybe not enough amps or stability on the 12V rails. Usually not the case with antec, but you may have a dodgy unit. The 5k series have an inbuilt overvolt protection, it will dramatically downclock if theres a power problem to prevent damage.

The fact that you put that card in a different (worser) rig and it performed better, yeah.. borrow your friend's PSU and use that for a bit.

Kmo917

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Jul 25, 2008
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That's what I thought. The specs on my PC look more than capable of handling the 5850, but apparently there's something wrong.

To answer your question, yeah, I have tried my card on a friend's computer. He was running an intel core 2 duo, and 6 gigs of ddr2 ram yet my card seemed to perform a bit better on his rig. In RE5 he managed to get an A rating on the benchmark test (that's over 60 FPS consistently) with everything maxed.

Now the interesting thing about that RE5 test is that from what I've seen in benchmark tests, there shouldn't be to noticeable a difference in fps when running the game in DX9 or DX10, however when I run RE5 on DX9 with my rig I easily get over 90FPS. Now that is a significant leap from the 40-50 FPS I'm getting now.

I recently noticed something else about my PC. Even though I have an 850W PSU, it takes a little long to power up my PC; I'm not sure if I could describe it as lag but after I press the power button it takes my PC about 5 seconds to actually turn on. Now I'm worried that it's the PSU that's causing the problem. Maybe there is something wrong with the PSU that is causing my graphics card to be underpowered. Could this result in a performance drop?
 

Kmo917

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Jul 25, 2008
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Actually, I already stopped giving too much mind to that Windows assessment score. My card was rated a 6.0 once, and I just couldn't take that test seriously after that.

It never occurred to me that I should check the temperature of my card while gaming, but there is one thing I've definitely noticed about the temperatures: they never seem to rise. I can't say that I know this for sure, but I'm pretty sure of it because the 5850 has one of the loudest fans I've ever heard (it sounds like a vacuum cleaner at max speed) but aside from just one time at boot, I have never heard the fan speed of my card turn up. Not even slightly. Even when it's running games where the card appears to be struggling, or when it's being tested by 3d Mark or Windows, there has never been an increase in fan speed. Maybe the card just runs very cool, I don't know for sure, but there is definitely someting up.

In CCC I've left all the settings in default, so the "standard settings" is at "balanced". Everything else uses the applications' settings.

When I play games, I try maxing everything (including AA) as long as I know it's something my card should be able to handle. Again, I'll use RE5 as an example. In RE5, I max everything; I turn all the settings as high as they can go. Then I run the fixed benchmark test. However, I can never touch 60FPS on that benchmark.

According to official benchmarking tests, I should easily hit at least 80 FPS with everyting maxed:

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3650&p=10
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-5850,2433.html

(Btw, I'm running the game at 1920x1080)

I don't understand ... maybe it is my PSU. I'm going to run my system with a different PSU, and hopefully there will be better results.
 

bahanime11

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Jan 15, 2010
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Sounds like a PSU problem, maybe not enough amps or stability on the 12V rails. Usually not the case with antec, but you may have a dodgy unit. The 5k series have an inbuilt overvolt protection, it will dramatically downclock if theres a power problem to prevent damage.

The fact that you put that card in a different (worser) rig and it performed better, yeah.. borrow your friend's PSU and use that for a bit.
 
Solution


That's what has me thinking he may be putting it into either the PCI-e X8 or X4 slot on his MOBO instead of the PCI-e X16 slot also (since his MOBO has 3 PCI-e slots and they run at different speeds it is important to put the video card in the correct one !)
 

Kmo917

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Jul 25, 2008
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I'd like to thank you all for your input, and I'd like to inform you that the problem has been officially solved!! :D :bounce: :pt1cable:

Turns out, it was the PSU that was bottlenecking my card's performance. It wasn't that I had a faulty unit, in fact the problem was rather silly. You see, I've been pluggin my computer in through a belkin power adapter (to protect it from any electrical damage) but I didn't realize that the adapter limited the amount of wattage allowed through any single power plug. So basically, I wasn't getting the full 850 Watts (or so I've conlcuded).

I decided to run my computer barebone and plug the PSU directly into my wall outlet and Voilla! Suddenly my graphics card is being rated at 7.7 by Windows and Resident Evil 5 averages 84 FPS!! :D

What's the moral of the story? Make sure you use a power adapter capable of handling the wattage of your PSU, or better yet just plug your computer directly into a wall outlet. Lesson learned.

Again, thank you all for your input, you were all very helpful; however, I'm going to give bahanime11 the best answer since his was most closest to resolving the issue. Happy gaming, guys!


(@JDfFan: Of course I plugged my graphics card into the x16 slot, silly. J/k, thanks for the input.)
 
You'd be surprised how many prople will get that wrong !! And trying ro run a 5850 in a pci-e x4 slot will definitely limit it's performance.

Glad to hear it is all worked out - BUT I'd suggest you get some other power adapter as plugging striaght into the outlet leaves you open to spikes\surges that could take down the system and much cheaper to get a good quality power adapter than a new system !
 

khoipham88

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Jan 23, 2010
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hi guys!! i am having a big problem with the driver here! i just bought a new sapphire 5850. i have uninstalled all the old drivers and plug the card in. it works at first, but after i installed the new driver from the ati website and it doesnt work anymore. i try to reboot my computer several times, however, it sometimes shows the blue screens and sometimes displays nothing after the starting window sign. i have also tried to reinstall my window too. unfortunately, it didnt work either. after all, i try to put the computer in safe mode and it works only for the safe mode. i uninstall the driver from the safe mode and reboot the window and it works. i try to install the driver again and it does the same thing... blue screens and all blank after the starting window sign. please anyone!! help me out!! i will greatly appreciate your kindness.
 

ammarhussain

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Feb 19, 2010
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I guess there is a previous card's driver installed if u had one earlier...try uninstalling every display driver n strip down to primary and then install the new card's driver.. that shud work.

oh yeah .. don't plug the card while u're doing this .. this has to be done on onboard display ..