A Nasty Little Bottleneck

[pcgamer808]

Hello.

I bought a new system a few days ago and I seem to be having a bottle neck problem.

The reason I say this is because while I'm playing games, it will run smoothly then suddenly stutter to load in new textures and what not. Sometimes the game'll even slow down. Now I understand that these are normal signs of my video card not being powerful enough, but I'm running a 640MB 8800GTS here, and my room mate who's running a 7950GT (256MB I believe) doesn't have these stuttering problems.

For those who are helping me out, here are my specs:
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz
Mobo: ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
GPU: PNY VCG88GTSXPB GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16
PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W
RAM: OCZ SLI-Ready 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

What I forgot to add above was that one of the DVI outputs on the video card is damaged (pink tinged output if I use that slot, to solve the problem I just use the other slot which works just fine) and the CPU doesn't even get about 1 FPS in the 3DMark06 CPU bench section.

Either of the two could be the problem I think, but there's also the fact that my HDD is some really old 80GB fossil (about a year old). Could it be that the HDD is causing the mid-game stutter to take the time for loading new textures, etc? The vid-card performs pretty well in 3dMark06, it's 30-55FPS for the majority of the video tests with the occasional 18-20FPS and 60-80FPS. That said, I don't think the video card is the problem (or is it?). The CPU or hard drive must be the problem here... can anyone give me some help here?

Thanks guys. I always come here when I have some tough issue that I need solved and I always find an answer. You guys rock!

 

[mysvxrocks]

sorry that this is off topic, but what cooler are you using on the 6000? I have the same setup, mobo,cpu,video,ram. And what is your cpu temp?

 

[pcgamer808]

Sure thing.

Right now my CPU is at about 117-120 Fahrenheit. This is under heavy load (Breetown in Lord of the Rings Online). For those unfamiliar with this game, it's a highly populated town. This is also maxed out settings.

The cooler I'm using is the default, but I'm thinking of upgrading because idle temps are around 50 Celsius.

I also have 5 case fans - 2 weak 80mm intakes in the front, one strong 80mm intake on the side, one strong 120mm output in the back, and one strong 80mm output on the top.

 

[mysvxrocks]

Im having problems at the moment... my idle temps are at 60C, and thats with Zalman aftermarket cooling...

 

[pcgamer808]

Dang... not sure what to tell you there. How's your ventilation? That was my biggest problem when I first put together my machine. The CPU is still pretty hot, but I'm thinking about using some of that arctic 9 heat paste stuff and remounting the heatsink. I had some trouble putting it on the first time so maybe I messed it up a little. Who knows.

 

[CMH]

You might need to check your installation with that Zalman cooler too, if the contact's not good, your heatsink's not gonna work well neither.

For the initial problem, it might be something or another overheating. You might be interested in checking if there's enough airflow in your computer, or that 8800GTS might overheat and stutter.

Or it could be a dodgy card, as you can see with the pink hue, I'd solve that problem before trying to solve another. Go RMA it as suggested in your other thread about that problem.

Get an aftermarket cooler for that CPU too, extends the life of it a little, and if its a good enough aftermarket cooler, you might just be able to transfer it to your next system. Most of them have clamps and stuff to work on just about any motherboard out there at the moment, with the ability to adapt to others which are not out yet.

 

[pcgamer808]

I really hate to say it, but I foolishly already sent back the UPCs on everything for rebates and stuff.

I OCed the vid card and the stuttering seems to have went down by quite a bit. I still wonder if the CPU getting nothing above 1 FPS in 3dMark06 is a problem related to the stuttering though... and even the hard drive thing.

 

[CMH]

I don't get the part about UPC...

nvm, it really doesn't sound like your graphics card isn't powerful enough to run it.... Your HDD may be the problem, but it sounds exaggerated to me, it might slow things down, but not that much.... Especially since you've got gobs of RAM (2gb is somewhat "gobs" today).

Then again, its not going to cost you tons to upgrade your HDD. If you could afford that 8800, you should be able to afford at least a brand new 320gb HDD, so try that first. You sound like you need it.

 

[pcgamer808]

The thing about the UPC is that I can't RMA if I already cut out the UPC to send in for a rebate.

Thanks, you're probably right about that HDD. I'll try that out.

Being that the system cost around $1300+, I'm being a little critical about the performance. Hopefully the HDD fixes the problem. I think I'll shoot for a SATA version this time, instead of that old IDE thing.