CPU Bottleneck i7 930

R

Rycon

Weaksauce
Joined
Mar 19, 2007
Messages
97
Hey Everybody,

I wanna start by saying thanks for the I've received over the years from people here at this forum, I appreciate your time and effort.

I believe I have a serious CPU bottleneck, as I have been struggling to achieve *stable* frames in GTAV and Fallout4.

Current Specs:
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R
i7 930 2.8ghz
12GB DDR3 1333 mhz (9-9-9-24-74-2T)
R9 390x (DD)
Samsung 850 EVO
Corsair TX 750
Clean Win 8.1 with Crimson 15.11.1 / 2560x1440

Despite constantly experimenting with different graphic settings within GTAV, I cannot constantly hold 60 FPS. With VSYNC off I can often reach 70-80 FPS in many areas but get drops to 40ish frames and as low as 35ish in busy sections at high speed. CPU usage stays around 60-80%, however looking at the individual cores one can reach 90% at certain times.

I decided to give overclocking a try to see what difference it would make, and sure enough it makes a very strange difference. I overclocked to 3.4ghz and now I hold a much more stable 48 FPS but it strangely doesn't go beyond that like before. I believe it's due to my very basic overclock settings:

-Disabled Turbo Boost Tech
-Disabled CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E)
-Disabled CPU EIST Function
-Changed BCLK Frequency to 164 (164x21=3.44)
-All Voltages left to Auto

I'm sure those overclock settings are asking for trouble, I'm inexperienced with overclocking.

I'm not sure if it's just me but certain things within GTAV seem to run at hyper speed like running.. or at least the animation seems to. Input lag seems reduced and menus and such are snappier). I'm guessing this is happening since I disabled Turbo Boost Tech which fluctuates the core speed, causing it to max out at 48 FPS? I apologize if I'm completely way off.

To sum this all up, I'm looking for your opinion on the following questions:

-Does my reasoning seem sound for a CPU bottleneck?
-If it is indeed a CPU bottleneck, is it worth upgrading the CPU alone or am I now restricted by the motherboard and socket?

I would love to get away with just upgrading the CPU to alleviate my frame drops, but I'm unsure if the rest of the system is also to blame and it would be better to start fresh. I don't have anything against going for a proper overclock since my cooling should be well up to the task, but I struggle with knowing the exact voltages and such I should adjust.

I apologize if I have posted this in the wrong section, but since I believe it pertains to buying new hardware I thought it was best here. Thank you for your time.
 
Update,

This may be a Memory issue. I changed a bios setting called Memory Performance Enhance from STANDARD to EXTREME and I now am back to 60fps (instead of stuck at 48).

I wonder if my issues are coming from having two different types of memory installed. I have 6 sticks total.

3xKingston PC3-10700 (667 mhz)
3xCrucial PC3-12800H (800mhz)

24e5qj8.jpg

1zuh77.jpg


I'm wondering if this timing mix is causing me issues...
 
Upgrading to a newer platform would likely help your minimum frame rates quite a bit. If you can find a 6 core Xeon for under $100.00 that might be an option as well. Although, there's no guarantee you'll be able to overclock it much higher than your 930.
 
mix-matched memory is never a good idea for stable overclocking. gta5 likes lots of fast cores so an upgrade to a 6-core may help stabilize framerate fluctuations, you may still be inconvenienced by a soft frame rate cap if those 6-cores aren't running very fast. you can ditch one set of memory to achieve more stable overclocking with your i7 930. this chip with the right cooling is capable of 4-4.2ghz. this is the only way you'll be able to achieve better gaming performance and not spend any money.
 
There are a few areas to focus for stability. I used HardOCP years ago to build my gaming rig (see signature), and have been rock solid stable due to the generosity of the members here. Here is what I see:

1. Processor Speed - the processor you have is exactly the same as mine and my wife's CPU. Get a closed loop CPU cooler and run 4.0GHz all day. My CPU is now on year 5 of running 4.0. As HardOCP has posted in the past processor speed is a crucial part of your overall FPS. There are some excellent reviews posted regarding this subject.

2. RAM mis-match. - When you start looking for speed, variables are the enemy. You will want to ensure you have matching RAM that can easily handle the OC speeds you are looking to achieve. The Mushkin RAM I ordered 5 years ago is still pushing my overclock. Again, I made my selection based on the results of other HardOCP members testing contributions.

3. OS - while I'm not interested in an OS debate, I can tell you that the latest AMD and NVIDIA drivers for Windows 10 have really made gaming much nicer.

Just to show that my setup isn't a fluke, I built my wife the exact same PC with the exact same parts. The only difference over the years, is that we upgraded from 6GB RAM to 12GB RAM. I took her 3 2GB sticks (I have 6 total), and she bought 3 new ones, 3 4GB sticks. She also changed teams and went green on her video choice.

Bottom line, is that you have a lot of untapped potential in your system. I suggest utilizing the full available information in this community to uncover what your system can do. There are some excellent posts on how to OC the exact build you have.
 
You may have an issue with that CPU. It is rather old. If you don't wish to replace it then at least aim for a 4Ghz OC. Matching RAM will help, but you should be able to adjust the timings individually for each set so they all match.
 
You want that 930 at least running at 4ghz. It's like having a new rig at that speed and should get rid of any CPU bottleneck which you are having. Only issue might be you'll need 1600 RAM.

I run my 920 rig up to 4.2ghz without issue with a AIO cooler. 3.8 to 4 ghz on air (non-stock cooler) runs smoothly.
 
Yakk said:
You want that 930 at least running at 4ghz. It's like having a new rig at that speed and should get rid of any CPU bottleneck which you are having. Only issue might be you'll need 1600 RAM.

I run my 920 rig up to 4.2ghz without issue with a AIO cooler. 3.8 to 4 ghz on air (non-stock cooler) runs smoothly.
Click to expand...

I agree with yakk. You may need to get yourself a better CPU HSF to achieve that OC but it would be well worth the small investment over a whole new system. And all of those mobo settings you did are not dangerous at all. You basically just disabled turbo and speed step. Just run all of your memory at whatever memory chip has the slowest timings. You can ensure better stability that way.
 
Take the voltages off of Auto. you are just asking for extreme overvolting by leaving them on Auto when overclocking.

As for the RAM in the board, even back in the day when the platform was new-ish, 1066 really sucked for games. 1333 was better, but 1600 on up was where you wanted it. RAM at around 2000 was just sweet on the x58 platform.

Get that 930 up to 4Ghz or close and run some RAM at 1600+ and you will notice a nice boost in performance.

As others mentioned, a hex core XEON (westmere based - x56xx) is also a nice upgrade.
 
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