[SOLVED] Which upgrades make the most sense to improve online FPS performance?

Aug 14, 2019
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ASUS ROG Strix B450-f Gaming
Radeon 7 2700 running stock
16GB Ballistix Tactical Tracer (2x8) 2666 mhz
MSI RX 480 4gb Gaming
Coolermaster 240mm watercooler
Windows 10 on 120GB PNY 2.5 SSD
Games on 1 TB Mushkin 2.5 SSD
Dual 16:9 1080p 75hz monitors
2nd pc with similar Intel/Nvidia specs
Centurylink dedicated 80Mbps service (2 home pc's running games like APEX, BO4, R6S, PUBG, etc. , 4k streaming to tv, 1 PS4 running same games, several phones on wifi all running simultaneously)
Gigabit routers and switches keep the pc's and tv hard wired. PS4 is currently wifi.

So, all that said...I know I currently suck at FPS games, but I feel like opponents with higher end pc's have an advantage over me. Maybe I am just worse than I think, but something seems off.

We downgraded from COX Gigablast and there is a noticeable difference when all devices are running. I know game servers can let us down sometimes too. But when only the 2 pc's are gaming, I feel the speed is fine.

I want to upgrade the RX480 to a RX 5700 XT in the next couple months as drivers and cooling are improved. Budget is tight or I would go with RTX 2080 Super or ti, obviously. Plus I just feel better about buying AMD right now.

Should we hold off on the GPU upgrades and look into 144hz 1440p monitors first? Or maybe we should go back to COX ($100/month price difference).

Just dont want to feel like I suck if upgrading might help me hear, see, and react better.

Oh, headsets, mice, and keyboards are all decent as well.

And, I like thing to work out of box, have not had success OCing the cpu or gpu in any meaningful way.

What to do 1st?

Thanks in advance!
 
Solution
I suggest getting a new GPU and monitor for a better experience. The GPU you choose will impact what monitor you get. The 5700xt is a good GPU, so if that is what you want to go with, then go for it. Pairing it with a 1440p/144hz monitor will be very nice.

If you get the 5700xt, you current monitor will be your bottleneck as the GPU will max out the 75hz refresh rate. If you get a 1440p monitor first, you will have to dial back settings to get to 60fps as the 480 is not really a 1440p GPU.

So it is up to you which you want to do first, but know that both should be done to get the experience you are looking for.
I suggest getting a new GPU and monitor for a better experience. The GPU you choose will impact what monitor you get. The 5700xt is a good GPU, so if that is what you want to go with, then go for it. Pairing it with a 1440p/144hz monitor will be very nice.

If you get the 5700xt, you current monitor will be your bottleneck as the GPU will max out the 75hz refresh rate. If you get a 1440p monitor first, you will have to dial back settings to get to 60fps as the 480 is not really a 1440p GPU.

So it is up to you which you want to do first, but know that both should be done to get the experience you are looking for.
 
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Solution
Monitor dictates GPU. A 5700XT would be wasted on 1080p, let alone your 75Hz monitor (I assume you only game on one at a time, since dual screen split is very awkward)

Have you used anything (FRAPS, WattMan Overlay, etc) to monitor your frame rates in these games?

  1. OC your CPU
  2. 144Hz FreeSync monitor
  3. I've tested my RX480 @ 1400MHz/1150mV. That's 13% higher than "stock". I can assist you with that process if you want.
 
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Thank you! This makes sense. Will probably go with the gpu first. 2070 super is on my mind too, but $$...

The 2070S is very close to performance with the 5700xt. But the 2070 does support ray tracing. So if that is your thing, it would be something to consider. Though, not many games out there have ray tracing and it will be some time before it becomes more prevalent.
 
Aug 14, 2019
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Thank you! This makes sense. Will probably go with the gpu first. 2070 super is on my mind too, but $$...
Monitor dictates GPU. A 5700XT would be wasted on 1080p, let alone your 75Hz monitor (I assume you only game on one at a time, since dual screen split is very awkward)

Have you used anything (FRAPS, WattMan Overlay, etc) to monitor your frame rates in these games?

  1. OC your CPU
  2. 144Hz FreeSync monitor

Monitor dictates GPU. A 5700XT would be wasted on 1080p, let alone your 75Hz monitor (I assume you only game on one at a time, since dual screen split is very awkward)

Have you used anything (FRAPS, WattMan Overlay, etc) to monitor your frame rates in these games?

  1. OC your CPU
  2. 144Hz FreeSync monitor
  3. I've tested my RX480 @ 1400MHz/1150mV. I can assist you with that process if you want.
Framerates maintain at 60 fps for all games and I have used many tools to monitor this.

I will upgrade gpus and monitors for both rigs eventually...within 3-4 months hopefully.

OCing this cpu has just not been as easy as my old FX-8350. OC on the gpu is and has always been pointless at least in improving fps. [edit] I actually have had stable OC's on the 480 on my old mb, but for some reason the new mb /cpu upgrades have been having issues with overclocking anything. I just got frustrated with both and finally gave up. I have used Wattman and Afterburner for the gpu and ASUS AI Suite3, Ryzen Master, ASUS BIOS AI Tweaker as well as manual BIOS tweaks for the cpu. I am not terribly experienced in overclocking yet and tend to defer to YouTube for most of my knowledge. All drivers and bios are current and up to date, but there have been so many updates over the past couple months. Everything runs stable now at stock settings with 1080p monitors. Just happy to have recently upgraded mb, ram and cpu.

If anyone wants to take the time to assist with both overclocks, I would be eternally grateful!
 
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Framerates maintain at 60 fps for all games and I have used many tools to monitor this.
Disabling VSync will both uncap your framerates AND improve (reduce) lag.

If anyone wants to take the time to assist with both overclocks, I would be eternally grateful
Here's a guide I put together for AMD GPU adjustments inside WattMan. Since we have the same GPU, I can easily provide you with voltages if your frequency steps are different than mine.

In regards to your CPU. The simplest solution is to up the all-core multi to 41 and leave voltages & LLC on auto. That should give you a stable 4.1GHz all-core frequency (if a little generous on the voltage). Then you can go back later and test negative voltage offsets if you want to dial down power/heat output. Same procedure for both GPUs and CPUs.
 
Aug 14, 2019
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Disabling VSync will both uncap your framerates AND improve (reduce) lag.


Here's a guide I put together for AMD GPU adjustments inside WattMan. Since we have the same GPU, I can easily provide you with voltages if your frequency steps are different than mine.

In regards to your CPU. The simplest solution is to up the all-core multi to 41 and leave voltages & LLC on auto. That should give you a stable 4.1GHz all-core frequency (if a little generous on the voltage). Then you can go back later and test negative voltage offsets if you want to dial down power/heat output. Same procedure for both GPUs and CPUs.
I think my response is misleading and maybe I am misunderstanding. I don't use vsync on anything. I get readings much higher in loading screens. 200+ in R6S and 300-400+ in APEX Legends. In game though I am usually at 60. I don't pay that much attention as I thought that as long as I see at least 60, I am good. I think someone told me that R6S is capped at 60. I will try one of the tools you suggested above and take a closer look this evening.

I was just responding on another post and started thinking...is my 600 watt psu failing during overclocking? So much rgb and new components. I used a psu calculator for my rig using specific models and it showed me at just about 400 watts.

Also, my temp monitor showed 80C on the highest core today after playing for several hours. Closed my game and refreshed the app and it was back down to 31C. Max temp for this CPU is 95 though. I hope I don't need to replace thermal paste already. Maybe I'll do it anyway.
 
I should point out that there's usually only a 10-15% difference between models in a given manufacturers product stack. Therefore, overclocking can oftentimes net you the performance of an n+1 GPU without having to pay for it. Of course, that n+1 GPU can also be OC'd, but...

I just assumed you had VSync on since you said 60fps. That's a conveniently round number which is the same as what VSync will cap at.
Out of curiosity, what graphics settings are you using? Are you adjusting graphics settings as high as possible to still maintain ~60fps or? Why not shoot for 75fps to match your monitor(s)?

80-95C on a Ryzen 2700 is quite/abnormally high. ESPECIALLY for a 240mm CLC. If it's getting that hot at stock clocks, OCing is going to be a no-go.

All else fails, maybe you do just suck at FPS games (no offense, haha). I'll tell you for sure that I get my butt KICKED whenever I try to play games like Apex/Fortnite, even though my system and 144Hz monitor is better than a large majority of players I'm facing. As we get older, our reflexes slow down (notice the age of competitive/pro gamers?). Also, play time makes a difference also. Don't expect to put in <10 hours per week of gaming and keep up with the young-uns. I just don't have the free time to be good in online gaming anymore, so I've accepted my fate and play either less "twitchy" games, co-op, or offline/single-player.
 
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Aug 14, 2019
8
0
10
I should point out that there's usually only a 10-15% difference between models in a given manufacturers product stack. Therefore, overclocking can oftentimes net you the performance of an n+1 GPU without having to pay for it. Of course, that n+1 GPU can also be OC'd, but...

I just assumed you had VSync on since you said 60fps. That's a conveniently round number which is the same as what VSync will cap at.
Out of curiosity, what graphics settings are you using? Are you adjusting graphics settings as high as possible to still maintain ~60fps or? Why not shoot for 75fps to match your monitor(s)?

80-95C on a Ryzen 2700 is quite/abnormally high. ESPECIALLY for a 240mm CLC. If it's getting that hot at stock clocks, OCing is going to be a no-go.

All else fails, maybe you do just suck at FPS games (no offense, haha). I'll tell you for sure that I get my butt KICKED whenever I try to play games like Apex/Fortnite, even though my system and 144Hz monitor is better than a large majority of players I'm facing. As we get older, our reflexes slow down (notice the age of competitive/pro gamers?). Also, play time makes a difference also. Don't expect to put in <10 hours per week of gaming and keep up with the young-uns. I just don't have the free time to be good in online gaming anymore, so I've accepted my fate and play either less "twitchy" games, co-op, or offline/single-player.
I think there was just a glitch in CoreTemp...everything seems fine now. I am going to use Ryzen Master to up the cpu to 4.1. My gpu is only 4gn and as I understand, there is less capability for oc on this than on the 8gb cards.