Disappointed with my GTX 670 SLI

WiSH2oo0

Weaksauce
Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Messages
73
So I went out and dropped a bunch of dough to run BF3. The gear I bought is

Asus Maximus V Formula, BIOS 1604
Samsung 840 Pro 256GB SSD
2x Gigabyte GV-N670OC-2GD GTX 670 2GB SLI
BenQ 24" XL2420T

I overclocked my 2500K to 4.5G and lapped it to help keep temps down. I have not overclocked the video cards yet. But I had to turn everything to medium, 4x AA, no v-sync, AD off in game and it still drops below 100 FPS. So after spending $1,700 and not capped out at 120 FPS non stop, I am not to happy. I thought I would post here so someone else doesn't waste a bunch of cash like I did.
 
Sounds like something isn't configured correctly. What's your GPU utilization looking like?
 
its a fantasy thinking you will stay above 100 nevermind 120 fps in all games. even Dead Space 2 will drop to right at 100 fps in a few spots that are not very optimized and lowering the res makes no difference. we need much faster cpus to achieve 120 fps minimums in all games as all the gpu power out there cant do it until we do.
 
Yeah, anything below 120 FPS is unplayable. I would be pissed too. [COLOR="#22222"]/s[/COLOR]
 
somethings wrong with your setup i had a similar setup and i was getting 45-70 with ultra settings (thats with 4xAA) and why would you need 100 fps? btw are you running 3d?
 
somethings wrong with your setup i had a similar setup and i was getting 45-70 with ultra settings (thats with 4xAA) and why would you need 100 fps? btw are you running 3d?

He's got a 120hz monitor.
 
did you see any GTX 670 SLI reviews getting more than 100fps in BF3 before you buy them?
 
I didn't say all games, just BF3. Like my last statement said I made this post so no one else drops 17 bills to try and run there BenQ at a steady 120 FPS in BF3. If you are current w/ the BenQ/Asus monitors at all, mdrejhon recommends that you stay above 120 FPS to take full advantage of motion blur with lightboost. So I thought I would toss cash at my comp to see if it was possible. It is not for me atleast.
 
did you see any GTX 670 SLI reviews getting more than 100fps in BF3 before you buy them?

Nope. Every review I have ever seen when testing video cards they think 60 FPS is fine. Then they will bump up the res to 2560x1600 then move on to multi monitor set ups. None of the reviews seem to think about anything above 60 FPS when it comes to people that use 120hz monitors for FPS games.
 
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yep there are a couple of games that have areas where my cpu can barely keep the framerate above 60fps. and for many areas of GTA 4, it cant even keep it above 40 fps on max settings. I need to turn shadows off completely to stay at 60 fps as that setting is horribly optimized for the cpu in that game.
 
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I havent read up much on the subject in a while, but are the cards only running at x8/x8 because of the z77 chipset?
 
My f150 cannot do 200mph and Im really disappointed.

Reality is, BF3 is not an easy game to run hard. 680 sli and even 7970 CF will have the same issue.
 
My f150 cannot do 200mph and Im really disappointed.

Reality is, BF3 is not an easy game to run hard. 680 sli and even 7970 CF will have the same issue.
well yes because its the cpu NOT the gpus that are the issue here.
 
Yeah clock that 2500k higher! i had the same setup awhile back, 2500k under a lapped TRUE120 i was able to push the volts up to 1.4v though and stay under 70 degrees. should be able to hit 4.7 at least
 
I can try to push a little more juice to it psyclist. My max load temps after 24hrs of Prime95 was peaked out at 64C w/ my CPU fan at 5v.
 
More research?

Should have considered 680 SLI or 690 SLI to begin with?

Then you would have said, "This a waste of money for 120Hz gaming!!!!". Then you would have gone another route.
 
Turn off msaa. It is a fps killer. I run a single 670 with medium fxaa and sweetfx smaa and medium/high settings with ultra mesh and get 100+ fps with some dips below but the average is above 100. 1920x1080 and 4.5 2500k. Oh, and make sure the gpus don't go above 70C or they will throttle down I think.
 
I have a similar setup. I downgraded/returned/sold my cards at loss when I realized the same thing -- there just isn't a game (or points in games) where frames won't drop to noticeable lows.

Could be game optimizations or lack thereof, could be just the limitations of current architectures. I eventually got used to lowering settings for overall smoothness.

At the end of the day, I should really stop throwing money at the issue and just play the damn game. But then again, who knows what I'll do when the new cards come out XD
 
More research?

Should have considered 680 SLI or 690 SLI to begin with?

Then you would have said, "This a waste of money for 120Hz gaming!!!!". Then you would have gone another route.

I did do my research since my 670's should have no probs hitting 680 speeds since they are built on a 680 PCB. As far as money goes some of the statement is true for sure. I do know the last couple hours I spent playing BF3 tonight I was called a hacker on several occasions. I went from a 2.5 KD ratio to 4.5 KD ratio. I will say this BenQ makes it look smoooooth as silk running around fraging people. I was just hoping for a 120 FPS non stop is all. I will try a new OC on my 2500K tonight before bed and start up Prime95.

Thank you all for your fed back tonight! I do love learning new things but it did hit the pocket book a little hard to this lesson :p
 
At the end of the day, I should really stop throwing money at the issue and just play the damn game. But then again, who knows what I'll do when the new cards come out XD

Lol, my buddies tell me that same thing when I keep putting new mods on my 07 Yamaha R6. They tell me to ride the dang thing instead of working on it all the time when its nice out.
 
Dude it's your CPU.

Lower mesh quality, because that effects the draw calls which tax the CPU.
 
Try these settings:
Texture: high
Shadows: medium
effects: low
mesh:high
terrain:high
terrain decor: high
aa deferred: off
aa post: medium
af: 16X
ambient occusion:eek:ff

Install sweetfx and run the ultra settings. The end result looks like this with ONE 670 and a 2500k at 4.5

http://sweetfx.thelazy.net/
SweetFX Configurator_1.3.3 - installer version

For some reason the fps counter doesn't show but both had 110+ fps. The game runs and looks great on these settings. The only jaggies are the power lines which only msaa can help more. Whatever. The gameplay is tight and fluid.

bf32013-02-0310-16-47-883_zpsf0fd8eee.jpg

bf32013-02-0310-10-10-526_zps3e6ad76b.jpg
 
Dude it's your CPU.

Lower mesh quality, because that effects the draw calls which tax the CPU.

im running c2q 9550 at 4ghz and my cores are only running 50-60% in bf3 with mesh on high, im not sure you know what you're talking about.
 
im running c2q 9550 at 4ghz and my cores are only running 50-60% in bf3 with mesh on high, im not sure you know what you're talking about.
bs unless you are running one weak ass gpu. even during single player I average about 60-70% cpu usage with a 2500k at 4.4.
 
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BF3 (multiplayer) is extremely demanding. I play at 1920x1080 with ultra settings on my GTX 690 (i5 3750K @ 4.5GHz) and my frames definitely will not stay above 100 fps at all times unless I'm on a tiny TDM map with a low player count. I haven't done any formal testing but I'd say I do stay above 60 fps 99.9% of the time. Expecting 100 minimum is probably unrealistic with your setup. That said you should still have a very enjoyable experience with BF3 and you still are getting way higher min FPS than the average BF3 player.
 
Compared to the OP i'm running a faster CPU (5Ghz 2500k), Faster Videocards (680 SLI), and a bigger, better monitor (Samsung 120hz 27"). I concur that it's not realistic to expect 120fps in the majority of situations. OP should be content that it stays above 60 most of the time.

OP, if you find there is too much tearing due to the lack of VSync, try the Adaptive VSync Half Refresh Rate option. On a 120hz monitor that will lock the FPS at 60 (unless it dips below). I personally just leave Adaptive VSync on at 120hz and deal with the slight tearing when it dips below.

At the end of the day, I should really stop throwing money at the issue and just play the damn game. But then again, who knows what I'll do when the new cards come out XD

You were most likely CPU limited with your old cards, why would you think you wouldn't be CPU limited when the "new cards" come out also?

im running c2q 9550 at 4ghz and my cores are only running 50-60% in bf3 with mesh on high, im not sure you know what you're talking about.

If you're trying to derive useful information from % figures in task manager, you're really in no place to be telling other people they don't know what they are talking about. Without a shadow of a doubt, your CPU certainly IS holding you back.

A 9550 should be pinned at 90 to 100% i agree.

Depends on what you are looking at. On a Quad-Core CPU without hyperthreading 25% would mean full utilization of a single core, 50% would usually mean 2 cores are being utilized, etc. You wouldn't see 100% usage unless all 4 cores were actually being fully utilized, which is still an extreme rarity for most games.
 
I've never owned a 120 hertz monitor so forgive me if this is a dumb question. Why do you need the game to play at 120 FPS? What if the game runs at say 60 FPS? Will that make the game choppy or the same as someone playing on a 60 hertz monitor at 60 FPS?
 
I've never owned a 120 hertz monitor so forgive me if this is a dumb question. Why do you need the game to play at 120 FPS? What if the game runs at say 60 FPS? Will that make the game choppy or the same as someone playing on a 60 hertz monitor at 60 FPS?

It makes the game smoother and your response is better. It is a must have for FPS.
 
Oh and I like the 307.74 drivers btw. I get better fps with them than the newer ones.
 
I've never owned a 120 hertz monitor so forgive me if this is a dumb question. Why do you need the game to play at 120 FPS? What if the game runs at say 60 FPS? Will that make the game choppy or the same as someone playing on a 60 hertz monitor at 60 FPS?

Its the same but you get used to the higher framerate so it may not feel as smooth.
 
I'm perplexed too.
nothing to be confused about if you pay attention the context. he has a 120hz screen and was hoping for 120fps with 670 sli so how is that perplexing to you or considered trolling? the op just did not realize that it would be his cpu that would keep him from maintaining 120 fps.
 
Don't you have to increase the settings to get more of the load on the GPUs? Hmm.

There has to be settings that allow for 120 fps average if I can do 100 fps avrg with one 670 he should get 120 with 2? You would think so.
 
Don't you have to increase the settings to get more of the load on the GPUs? Hmm.

There has to be settings that allow for 120 fps average if I can do 100 fps avrg with one 670 he should get 120 with 2? You would think so.
if the cpu is limiting you to a certain minimum then increasing the graphics settings will not change that. in fact many graphics settings impact the cpu too so framerate can actually go down.
 
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