Why my CPU doesn't work at full capacity ?

[mhd lord]

HI......I have I3 550@3.2/4M with GTX560TI ,in most games my cpu load is ~45% while my gpu load is 99% .I wonder why the cpu doesn't reach its full capacity ?
I was told because my cpu is only two core with a hyper tech ,and when ever I get the sensor reading to my cpu like this :
cpu1=37%\cpu2=23%\cpu3=40%\cpu4=70% \ gpu=99% that means my cpu is actually work at full load ,because theoretically it shoud give me the reading : cpu1=50%\cpu2=0%\cpu3=50%\cpu4=0% ,but that is wrong .I used ADIA64 Extreme Edition to stress my cpu while i'm playing and I get this results : cpu1=100%\cpu2=100%\cpu3=100%\cpu4=100% \gpu=~70% and my frame rate was dropped by10 . So WHyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyY the cpu doesn't work at its full capacity ,why?

 

[mhd lord]

Yes ,but I thinking that I'm suffering form what it's called bottle neck .My GUP works hard to give a good performance while the CPU does nothing ? how can I force it to work at 100% in what I chose ? 😱

 

[Supernova1138]

Buy a better graphics card if you want your CPU to do more work. The 560Ti is what is holding you back performance wise. Your CPU has to sit and wait for your GPU to finish its work, which is why your CPU usage is lower. There is nothing wrong with your system, it is performing as it should. Generally speaking, you will have a bottleneck somewhere, and on most properly balanced systems, the GPU is your bottleneck for gaming.

 

[kitsunestarwind]

you can't force it to work at 100%
some games use a lot of cpu time and some don't that's just how it is

stress testing with AIDA dropped your FPS cause it adds more latency to the work being done even though the CPU is not maxed out.

If anything it is prefered this way where your CPU is not at 100% and your GPU is.
Of which too you could upgrade your GPU and probably push it along a bit more too

 

[mhd lord]

so good so far ,I've already tested my sys with 660TI .The frame rate increased by 20fps but its the same matter ,cpu load average is 54% \660ti load is 99% ,while the same gpu 660ti with a better cpu I5 3570 gives a lot much better frames than I3 550
I still think something is wrong !

 

[mactronix]

You do not have a problem. You do not want your CPU to be at 100% as this would indicate that your system is needing to use all its resources to handle the workload you are asking of it.

As you are you have processing power to spare which means that a more CPU intensive game will not struggle on your set up.
If your CPU was at 100% all the time you would need to upgrade soon to avoid a CPU restriction which has the possibility of impacting quite badly on your FPS.

Mactronix

 

[mhd lord]

you don't still answer my question ,if the i5 3570k gives a better frames than I3 550 while works at 50%; that is mean I3 550 doesn't knows how to handle whith the pwo of the gpu !!!

 

[Mousemonkey]

Buy a better graphics card if you want your CPU to do more work. The 560Ti is what is holding you back performance wise. Your CPU has to sit and wait for your GPU to finish its work, which is why your CPU usage is lower. There is nothing wrong with your system, it is performing as it should. Generally speaking, you will have a bottleneck somewhere, and on most properly balanced systems, the GPU is your bottleneck for gaming.

So much is wrong with this post it's unbelievable, an I3 being so powerful that it's being held back by a GTX560Ti !

 

[Dunhill79]

So much is wrong with this post it's unbelievable, an I3 being so powerful that it's being held back by a GTX560Ti !

Really? But Mr Mode, isn't it 500 series just second latest gen pci express?... would it really bottleneck the i3 CPU? Sorry for asking cos i thought that 500 series still can cope with the latest CPU ?!!! Is it really that old now for 500 series ? Please sir i really interested in your explanation regarding this.....

 

[Mousemonkey]

The graphic card is being held back or "bottlenecked" by the CPU, not the other way around as suggested by Supernova1138.

 

[Dunhill79]

The graphic card is being held back or "bottlenecked" by the CPU, not the other way around as suggested by Supernova1138.

Thanks for the explanation about it....i'm just curious as i also using 500 ( gtx 560 ) series and i5 3570k so it pick my interest cos i'm planning to buy 700 series next year and skip the 600 series hoping the 500 series can hold on until the 700 series released.
Thanks for info 😀

 

[mhd lord]

I think that games are designed to consume only 70% as max ,that why I'll never be able to use my cpu at full capacity . I'll be forced to change my cpu to another more powerfull and yes I'm ONLY going to use 70~80% .The bad thing here is if they designed games to use cpu what ever they need ,I still use my old cpu with no problems

 

[mactronix]

I'm almost sorry to be replying to this,

You really have zero idea of what you are talking about.

There are so many factors that make a difference to how your system is using its resources.
Different games use the resources differently, some are CPU intensive and will cause a weak CPU to restrict the total output of a GPU.
Others are GPU intensive which means they will use the GPU to the fullest of its potential but not necessarily use all the processing power of the CPU.
The second one is what you have happening. This is the ideal scenario, its what you want to be happening.

Your idea that games are only designed to use 70% as a max is wrong. However if you want to insist on wasting money on a new CPU that people are telling you isn't needed then hey that's fine with me.

What games are you playing ? What resolution are you using ?

Mactronix