Asus 6850 poor WoW performance

Lord_Exodia said:
Your average power draw for a 5830 from your measurements that your providing is 288w and average for 6850 is 265W. That's a difference of 23 watts. Subtract 23 watts from 393 watts power consumption I provided with a 5830 and you have 370Watts.
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What are you talking about? You are comparing real world testing results with some arbitrary online calculator, from a PSU manufacturer at that (they seriously overcalculated the required wattage, I wonder why).

You do realize he has 4gb DDR 3 ram, Sata hdd, at least 1 optical drive, case fans, and a overclocked CPU to push with that power supply dont you? You can't just reference the video card when considering the power supply. His whole system is pulling somewhere between 370-400watts.
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You should have checked the included links.

Anandtech:
Intel Core i7-920 @ 3.33GHz
Asus Rampage II Extreme
OCZ Summit (120GB)
Patriot Viper DDR3-1333 3 x 2GB (7-7-7-20)

Hardwarecanucks:
Intel Core i7 920(ES) @ 4.0Ghz (Turbo Mode Enabled)
Corsair 3x2GB Dominator DDR3 1600Mhz
Gigabyte EX58-UD5
CoolIT Boreas mTEC + Scythe Fan Controller (Off for Power Consuption tests)
Pioneer DVD Writer
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB

PC Perspective:
ASUS P6X58D Premium Motherboard
Intel Core i7-965 @ 3.33 GHz Processor
3 x 2GB Corsair DDR3-1333 MHz Memory
Western Digital VelociRaptor 600GB HDD


EDIT:
I see you posted more power calculators. Please, pick any review out there and check the REAL power requirements. Someone with "an extensive tech background" should know better.
 
When it comes down to crunching such tight numbers, it's time to upgrade your PSU.
 
Meeho said:
What are you talking about? You are comparing real world testing results with some arbitrary online calculator, from a PSU manufacturer at that (they seriously overcalculated the required wattage, I wonder why).



You should have checked the included links.

Anandtech:
Intel Core i7-920 @ 3.33GHz
Asus Rampage II Extreme
OCZ Summit (120GB)
Patriot Viper DDR3-1333 3 x 2GB (7-7-7-20)

Hardwarecanucks:
Intel Core i7 920(ES) @ 4.0Ghz (Turbo Mode Enabled)
Corsair 3x2GB Dominator DDR3 1600Mhz
Gigabyte EX58-UD5
CoolIT Boreas mTEC + Scythe Fan Controller (Off for Power Consuption tests)
Pioneer DVD Writer
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB

PC Perspective:
ASUS P6X58D Premium Motherboard
Intel Core i7-965 @ 3.33 GHz Processor
3 x 2GB Corsair DDR3-1333 MHz Memory
Western Digital VelociRaptor 600GB HDD
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Ah I didn't catch that. Those are for total system power consumption. I dont have the patience to check how they were measured. I'll say this, the power supply companies probably do slightly boost the requirements but it may not be for selfish reasons. They probably calculate market trends based on how a user would upgrade their system and how long they plan on using the PSU.

Either way still too close IMO. His CPU uses alot of power, your measurements are comparing oranges to apples since they are not the same setup, different CPU's clocked differently @ different voltages, on a different chipset etc.... Overclocking your CPU and bumping up the voltage to do so, which I believe the OP has had to do going from 2.7 or 2.5 to 3.4 along with running your videocard, Ram, and harddrive at 90 or 100% load will pull enough to warrant checking any Power supply under a good quality 450Watt unit.
 
First of all I was just having fun and a bunch of you guys took it to heart. It doesn't matter, im not running furmark or crysis full load. Once again my CPU is at stock voltage. On the WoW character loading screen I'm showing 7% cpu load and 44% GPU and its artifacting on my 6850 at stock clocks and my 5770 is running everything(WoW, MOH) flawlessly on the same setup with a steep overclock. There is no signs at all of a PSU problem, Im not sure what you guys are even basing that off of except from pretty numbers on the side of a psu or a 100%CPU/GPU load scenerio chart that isnt even the issue here nor did I indicate it. Ive been building systems since 1996, im not helpless and I've run them myself and have seen enough underpowered systems to see the signs. The only signs of an underpowered PSU in this thread are numbers on a box. Im glad the once well liked EA-380 which ive seen run g92's in SLI before is now only good enough for stock cpus and IGP's. Granted that was an original seasonic one not the Delta model I have. I have the current EA-380D 80 plus Bronze

PS: thanks for the guys that backed me up on the flaming :)
 
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So, are you getting another 6850 or something else? BTW, anyone seen the PSU rater on NewEgg? That thing is outrageous.
 
I'm debating on driving to Tiger Direct right now to get this solved. I'm not planning on upgrading my PSU unless these guys are right so that rules out Nvidia
 
@ heflys20:

You have to check testing methodology. In the first review they measured with Prime95 + OCCT GPU test, and in the second one during 3DMark. Prime and especially OCCT GPU test are way more demanding than real world usage one will have during heavy processing or gaming. Those are real torture tests.
 
Meeho said:
I stopped reading here.
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Lol, pretty much.
Lord_Exodia said:
Your average power draw for a 5830 from your measurements that your providing is 288w and average for 6850 is 265W. That's a difference of 23 watts. Subtract 23 watts from 393 watts power consumption I provided with a 5830 and you have 370Watts.
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Did you check out the specs of the system that's used to take those measurements? Or furthermore, how those measurements are actually taken? I'm guessing you didn't or you did and didn't understand them otherwise you would stop posting misinformation.

In short, reviewers systems are useful for comparing video cards within said review, and at best across the review site. They are not applicable to any one system you wish or a benchmark for what is required for these cards since most of these systems are heavily overclocked without power consumption considered. To give you a real world example to show you why you're misinformed, the system in my sig, which has more parts and is much more heavily overclocked than the OP's, doesn't even crack 275W while gaming, and I think Furmark might bring it up to 320W. I could run this system on his EA380W with no problem. PSU and video card manufacturers artificially inflate power consumption figures to A) sell higher end gear to increase profits and B) cover their asses when someone uses a POS no-name part.

qwksi1 said:
I'm debating on driving to Tiger Direct right now to get this solved. I'm not planning on upgrading my PSU unless these guys are right so that rules out Nvidia
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Again, your PSU wattage is fine. Also note that the 6850 has very similar, low power usage like the 5770 - the small increase you put on the system with the 6850 wouldn't "push it over the edge" unless it was a defective unit. Like I said, you're probably using 200W during a gaming load, if that, so you're well within the capabilities of the PSU. I'd try booting into the system without any driver installed and seeing if you still get artifacting. If so, RMA the card. If not, try a driver clean install and play your games again. Also try several games, not just one. Good luck with it.
 
Meeho said:
@ heflys20:

You have to check testing methodology. In the first review they measured with Prime95 + OCCT GPU test, and in the second one during 3DMark. Prime and especially OCCT GPU test are way more demanding than real world usage one will have during heavy processing or gaming. Those are real torture tests.
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Thanks, I was getting kinda disheartened there. Folks keep recommending people buy expensive PSU' that, if those charts are any indication, are more than excessive.
 
heflys20 said:
Thanks, I was getting kinda disheartened there. Folks keep recommending people buy expensive PSU' that, if those charts are any indication, are more than excessive.
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Buying an excessive PSU is obviously overkill, but then again so is using a borderline weak PSU. Buying a PSU to match your system precisely, doesn't mean buying one that will result in one component upgrade overloading your system. People generally buy PSU's to match their system and any propable upgrades they will make.

The fact that we're having this discussion at all is a red flag.
And ATI's website recommends 500W, and your PSU of course isn't on the certified PSU list (Not that it matters).

The Earthwatts 380 is a good PSU, I use it in one of my alternate gaming rigs, but saying it's "fine" for that kind of system is a stretch.

We're also completely ignoring PSU degradation.
I'm not sure how real of a problem that is, but your PSU efficiency will degrade over time.
 
More power hungry systems than his use less than 70 % of his power supply's capabilities, under Furmark. During gaming, it's even less. Only way he would be in need for a stronger PSU is if he heavily overclocked (>1.4 V and >4 GHz for CPU) and bought a more power hungry card (or massively overclocked and overvolted this one).

None of that matters for his current problem, though, and that is his setup as it is now and with a stock 6850.

Before returning the card, I would check it with a clean Windows install (or first after TWL's ATI cleaner and driver installation instructions) and then with another PSU (or in another computer if possible), to eliminate potential malfunction of the current one.

Since cheap PSUs are often only half of their specified rating and older ones are weaker on 12 V rail, it's no surprise that ATI recommends 500 W.
 
OP perhaps I was a little touchy, particularly when I go to a thread and feel completely disregarded or dis resptected when I was taking the time to help somebody is something that kind of pisses me off. It's not the first time it happens. What did I have to gain by asking you to troubleshoot something not worth troubleshooting? I jump at the chance to help anyone having a pc troubleshooting issue, more often than not people are appreciative. Your statement about me giving you advice not worth following because I had a high end GTX card just made you sound like a unappreciative Fanboy. I expected you to at least say you didn't mean it that way or offer an apology.

Maybe it's not warranted because I'm oversensitive to this bullshit. But either way. Your power supply is bronze rated to over 80% efficiency. You'll get sub par performance above 80% and par performance below. Also your unit is rated pretty poorly amperage wise on the +12v rail. Here are the specs

Output
+3.3V@20A, +5V@20A, +12V1@17A, +12V2@15A, -12V@0.8A, +5VSB@2.5A

Here is the source http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371033

AMD themselves along with every single manufacturer recommends a 500 watt or greater power supply on their websites, which is way more than you need but it hints to the card requiring strong 12v amperage.

I have a feeling your 17A on +12v 1 or 15a on +12v 2 could be suspect and perhaps it has nothing to do with the actuall wattage as I suggested earlier. Good luck whatever you eventually find. In the end everyone deserves a card that will give them enjoyment after the money we pay these days It was not my intention to flame you but more my request/demand for some appreciation. I've only looked out for people regardless what brand card they buy.
 
Why even argue about this? It's such a dumb thing to argue about, like whether you should change your oil at regular intervals, dust out your computer, or eat vegetables... I mean, you can avoid doing all of these things if you really want to, that doesn't mean it is a smart decision or a well calculated risk.
 
Lord_Exodia said:
OP perhaps I was a little touchy, particularly when I go to a thread and feel completely disregarded or dis resptected when I was taking the time to help somebody is something that kind of pisses me off. It's not the first time it happens. What did I have to gain by asking you to troubleshoot something not worth troubleshooting? I jump at the chance to help anyone having a pc troubleshooting issue, more often than not people are appreciative. Your statement about me giving you advice not worth following because I had a high end GTX card just made you sound like a unappreciative Fanboy. I expected you to at least say you didn't mean it that way or offer an apology.

Maybe it's not warranted because I'm oversensitive to this bullshit. But either way. Your power supply is bronze rated to over 80% efficiency. You'll get sub par performance above 80% and par performance below. Also your unit is rated pretty poorly amperage wise on the +12v rail. Here are the specs

Output
+3.3V@20A, +5V@20A, +12V1@17A, +12V2@15A, -12V@0.8A, +5VSB@2.5A

Here is the source http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371033

AMD themselves along with every single manufacturer recommends a 500 watt or greater power supply on their websites, which is way more than you need but it hints to the card requiring strong 12v amperage.

I have a feeling your 17A on +12v 1 or 15a on +12v 2 could be suspect and perhaps it has nothing to do with the actuall wattage as I suggested earlier. Good luck whatever you eventually find. In the end everyone deserves a card that will give them enjoyment after the money we pay these days It was not my intention to flame you but more my request/demand for some appreciation. I've only looked out for people regardless what brand card they buy.
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Sorry man I was just being playful, I'll admit my comment was aimed at the Nvidia running folks who have to run bigger psu's to run their Nvidia cards to reach the same performance as AMD. It was supposed to be in good fun not a war. The bottom line on the PSU thing is its not that, also my PSU is only 4 months old. It is not suffering from any notable degradation. The WoW login screen isnt a big draw on your system, when 1 card fails and one card is fine, its the card. Also I safemoded and driversweeped my system to death and tried 3 different catalysts even the hotfix from a few days ago all to the same end. I'm not really an AMD fanboy, I'd buy whatever card I felt was a better fit to me(although my last Nvidia card was the 65nm 9800GTX+ at launch and Ive ran 5 AMD cards since the 4850/70 launch), I don't want to have to upgrade my psu so I knew the 6850 would be a better bet, and at the time they were still $20 cheaper.

Tigerdirect ended up being fail. They didn't stock 6800 series cards yet and the cheapest 460GTX was $220. Someone pointed out that AMD recommends 500W, I read a 460GTX box tonite that says 450W:confused: anyways I'm just going to wait until my RMA goes thru and see whats available at the time.

Thanks for everyones input anyways ill update when I get another card to try.
 
If it's not the PSU then it's the video card. Exchange it and if it was a bad video card be done with it. These things happen all the time and if you had searched you may have even seen this thread that has come up before and others like it. (World of Warcraft Issue, The card was bad.) If you're confident it is not your power supply then it is the video card. No use in dragging it out unless this thread entertains you so much. Exchange it and be done with it all.


Tigerdirect ended up being fail. They didn't stock 6800 series cards yet and the cheapest 460GTX was $220. Someone pointed out that AMD recommends 500W, I read a 460GTX box tonite that says 450W:confused: anyways I'm just going to wait until my RMA goes thru and see whats available at the time.
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I wouldn't trust them. I bought the 275 GTX based on BFG's recommandation for the PSU. My specs matched the machine specs they listed in the small print. Turns out I needed to replace my power supply unit. Same thing with FERMI (470GTX.) I got tired and bought an good quality 850 Corsair which was way above the recommended specs. Went from a 500 PSU to a 550 PSU(returned the 500) to a 850 PSU all Corsair.
 
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martinmsj said:
If it's not the PSU then it's the video card. Exchange it and if it was a bad video card be done with it. These things happen all the time and if you had searched you may have even seen this thread that has come up before and others like it. (World of Warcraft Issue, The card was bad.) If you're confident it is not your power supply then it is the video card. No use in dragging it out unless this thread entertains you so much. Exchange it and be done with it all.




I wouldn't trust them. I bought the 275 GTX based on BFG's recommandation for the PSU. My specs matched the machine specs they listed in the small print. Turns out I needed to replace my power supply unit. Same thing with FERMI (470GTX.) I got tired and bought an good quality 850 Corsair which was way above the recommended specs. Went from a 500 PSU to a 550 PSU(returned the 500) to a 850 PSU all Corsair.
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Hmm those threads are nothing close to the issue I was experiencing, anyways I went to a Tiger Direct (CompUsa) retail store beacuse it was close... No dice. I was just amazed that Nvidia claimed that they needed less power than AMD did.
 
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qwksi1 said:
Hmm those threads are nothing close to the issue I was experiencing, anyways I went to a Tiger Direct (CompUsa) retail store beacuse it was close... No dice. I was just amazed that Nvidia claimed that they needed less power than AMD did.
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My thread was having the same issues as you. Poor WoW performance and artifacting in WOW. (Tested flying around and watched as frame rates plummeted including standing in a field with no one around (crystal forest) and swinging the camera for some single digit frames.)

With the PSU I've learned just like minimum system requirements with any software, never get was it just enough.
 
Just ordered a Asus GTX 460 1gb since the 6850 was out of stock. Def. looking for PSU's now. I told you guys I wasn't a fanboy :)
 
Didn't know WoW was that demanding... Kinda scary and weird at the same time. You could CF your old 5770.
 
I have a G43 board that only has one slot. I think that WoW's engine is very dated and all the textures and effects they have added to it really tax the hardware at max settings. I think the game engine just isn't efficient anymore, although it is looking better.
 
Shadow detail is an absolute KILLER of performance in Dalaran. Turn it off, you'll never notice it after a couple hours.
 
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