GPU Upgrade advice
Posts: 60
I need some advice on my current hardware setup. I want to play coh2 on max settings without noticing big fps drops when moving around the map. I dont have exact performance numbers but I just notice fps drops when a flamethrower tank hits the field or just when moving around the map.
Current setup:
CPU: Intel i7-4790
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 2GB GDDR5
MOBO: ASRock B85M-HDS
RAM: Corsair 2x4GB, DDR3, PC12800, CL9, Vengeance
Im pretty sure my GPU is the bottleneck. My budget is as low as possible.
Posts: 47
which is rumored around july
Posts: 453
Posts: 453
Posts: 60
Whats your ram latency timings?
IDK. Does this make sense: SPD Latency 9-9-9-24 ?
Also, this game uses alot of the cpu. Is the cpu being overclocked? Increasing the cpu and northbridge frequencies can help with bottlenecks.
This cpu and mobo arent made for overclocking. GPU is really lacking in this case.
Posts: 769 | Subs: 1
I have a GTX770 and, like most people with a relatively modern mid-range plus card, my CPU is the limiting factor (due to the game engine's poor code). My GPU doesn't use anywhere near all of its power. Most games are the other way around. They use some of the CPU, and then all of the GPU as they pump out as many frames as possible.
So don't feel pressured to get a high-end video card just for this game. It will almost certainly be wasted on this game due to the bizarre way that it depends on CPU but also fails to use much of it.
Nvidia cards tend to be more expensive, but use less power (if your bills are an issue) and have less problems.
ATI cards are cheaper and simpler, but try to make up on performance by using more electricity and generating more heat. I also had lots of weird problems with my last ATI card.
Either way, try to get one with 4GB of VRAM.
Posts: 60
That's a pretty good CPU, so your old GPU is almost certainly your bottleneck. Check out section 3.4 in my guide below if you want to confirm it.
I have a GTX770 and, like most people with a relatively modern mid-range plus card, my CPU is the limiting factor (due to the game engine's poor code). My GPU doesn't use anywhere near all of its power. Most games are the other way around. They use some of the CPU, and then all of the GPU as they pump out as many frames as possible.
So don't feel pressured to get a high-end video card just for this game. It will almost certainly be wasted on this game due to the bizarre way that it depends on CPU but also fails to use much of it.
Nvidia cards tend to be more expensive, but use less power (if your bills are an issue) and have less problems.
ATI cards are cheaper and simpler, but try to make up on performance by using more electricity and generating more heat. I also had lots of weird problems with my last ATI card.
Either way, try to get one with 4GB of VRAM.
Ive actually used your guide before making this post but couldnt decide on the GPU. I dont want to rely on the numbers too much(the benchmark numbers, not yours ). Prefer to hear peoples experience like your post now.
Posts: 769 | Subs: 1
Ive actually used your guide before making this post but couldnt decide on the GPU. I dont want to rely on the numbers too much(the benchmark numbers, not yours ). Prefer to hear peoples experience like your post now.
Yeah, I totally get that. My guide doesn't really focus too much on what specific bits of hardware to buy. The market is just too complex and constantly changing. It's easier to just give people an idea of what features or general areas to look for.
In this case I was mostly referring to using GPU-Z or Process Explorer if you want to get an understanding of how your current GPU is performing.
Posts: 453
Posts: 322
With coh2 the GPU memory architecture is an important factor. GCN (2011 ATI) was ahead of its time but it works well for coh2. nVidia went to high bandwidth when they eventually released the 780, which benches as well or slightly better in coh2 (but uses as much power). Some 780 users on this forum have reported problems though, so perhaps drivers are an issue.
With current gen you should be safe in theory getting a 390 or a 970.
Although if you're upgrading infrequently maybe going high-end makes more sense, in which case wait for the new cards (it will mean price drops in a few months).
Posts: 1021 | Subs: 1
Nvidia cards tend to be more expensive, but use less power (if your bills are an issue) and have less problems.
ATI cards are cheaper and simpler, but try to make up on performance by using more electricity and generating more heat. I also had lots of weird problems with my last ATI card.
Either way, try to get one with 4GB of VRAM.
im sorry, but this is not really a good advice. yes, AMD cards use more power, but heat is not a problem with a good custom design.
the big advantages of AMD are: more power for the money, driversupport is said to be better for older cards. furthermore the gtx 970 is just a big fraud and should not be rcommended, as the faulty RAM causes microlags already at 1080p for some games and this will become an even bigger problem for more games in the future.
dont get me wrong, nvidia has some good cards, but the only card that is worth it is the 980ti, otherwise go for AMD
i personally would wait for the new generation to get a new card. if not go for a good custom r9 380
Posts: 60
Posts: 78
im sorry, but this is not really a good advice. yes, AMD cards use more power, but heat is not a problem with a good custom design.
the big advantages of AMD are: more power for the money, driversupport is said to be better for older cards. furthermore the gtx 970 is just a big fraud and should not be rcommended, as the faulty RAM causes microlags already at 1080p for some games and this will become an even bigger problem for more games in the future.
dont get me wrong, nvidia has some good cards, but the only card that is worth it is the 980ti, otherwise go for AMD
i personally would wait for the new generation to get a new card. if not go for a good custom r9 380
The GTX 970 doesn't "microstutter", this only happens to be the case when you're going above 3.5gigs, but in this case it'll stutter for any GPU.... as the game will then probably use above 4gigs anyways. There are almost no games that cross 3.5gigs currently, except shadow of mordor, assassins creed unity (which is crap optimized) and some highly modded games such as skyrim and some other games. (even BF4 etc will run fine on GTX 770 - 970 without any problems).
Running 180fps in coh2 with my gtx 970, happily setisfied.
Back to topic @OP. You can indeed take a 2nd hand premium gpu or just take the GTX 980 Ti, which is the best bang for buck atm. The card will serve you a really long time and can run anything (prob even be overkill for 1080p atm). The GTX 970 is also great, but since it's released a few years back, it gets kind of outdated even though it still performs well I would still opt to go for a newer card so you don't have to replace it anytime soon!
Posts: 764
im sorry, but this is not really a good advice. yes, AMD cards use more power, but heat is not a problem with a good custom design.
the big advantages of AMD are: more power for the money, driversupport is said to be better for older cards. furthermore the gtx 970 is just a big fraud and should not be rcommended, as the faulty RAM causes microlags already at 1080p for some games and this will become an even bigger problem for more games in the future.
dont get me wrong, nvidia has some good cards, but the only card that is worth it is the 980ti, otherwise go for AMD
i personally would wait for the new generation to get a new card. if not go for a good custom r9 380
Heat doesn't magically disappear. Even if the GPU stays decently cool, the rest of your components will heat up more. Besides power spiking of modern cards.
The whole vram thing has been debunked several times. It doesn't cause any stutters, and the performance hit is neglectable - still shady business practice by nvidia though.
Nevertheless, 200 bucks and the 380 is a good bet. Used 290s can be obtained rather cheap atm. as well for around the same price.
For 300 bucks the 970 comes to mind. They pretty much all got a factory OC of 10-20%, and usually come with some free game - i think it's The Division atm., effectively "saving" you another 30+.
Posts: 88
Banned
Running 180fps in coh2 with my gtx 970, happily setisfied.
Setisfied or not, no point in lieing.
I've got a GTX 970 too with an OC i5 6600k and a lot of other tweaking done.
180fps is not an option in COH2, not even with a Titan or above.
Posts: 1021 | Subs: 1
the gtx 970 does microstutter in games like shaow of mordor, unity, GTA5 in soem cases. seeing that consoles have 8GB of shared RAM, we will probably see increased VRAM usage in the future and therefore more games with microstutters
The GTX 970 doesn't "microstutter", this only happens to be the case when you're going above 3.5gigs
, but in this case it'll stutter for any GPU.... as the game will then probably use above 4gigs anywaysexcept the r9 390 has 8GB and wont stutter...
. There are almost no games that cross 3.5gigs currently, except shadow of mordor, assassins creed unity (which is crap optimized) and some highly modded games such as skyrim and some other games. (even BF4 etc will run fine on GTX 770 - 970 without any problems).im not saying that the 970 is a terrible card, but the 390 is just the better choice atm
Running 180fps in coh2 with my gtx 970, happily setisfied.
sorry, but the 980ti is NOWHERE NEAR the best bang/buck. its an enthusiast card and those cards are always very pricey
just take the GTX 980 Ti, which is the best bang for buck atm.
. The card will serve you a really long time and can run anything (prob even be overkill for 1080p atm).more like total overkill
. The GTX 970 is also great, but since it's released a few years back, it gets kind of outdated even though it still performs well I would still opt to go for a newer card so you don't have to replace it anytime soon!
the gtx 970 is the same generation as the 980ti?!?!
debunked? if you look at the frametimes of some high VRAM games, it stutters considerably and noticably more than other cards. due to the 8GB consoles, we will likely have more games with this usage!
The whole vram thing has been debunked several times. It doesn't cause any stutters, and the performance hit is neglectable - still shady business practice by nvidia though.
.
For 300 bucks the 970 comes to mind. They pretty much all got a factory OC of 10-20%, and usually come with some free game - i think it's The Division atm., effectively "saving" you another 30+.
the custom r9 390 are OCed aswell and they come with a free game aswell. i got civilization beyond earth and dirt rallye with mine.
Posts: 25
Posts: 470 | Subs: 1
Posts: 764
...
debunked? if you look at the frametimes of some high VRAM games, it stutters considerably and noticably more than other cards. due to the 8GB consoles, we will likely have more games with this usage!
the custom r9 390 are OCed aswell and they come with a free game aswell. i got civilization beyond earth and dirt rallye with mine.
If you exceed vram requirements, then it will stutter. No matter if the card is from AMD or nvidia. Your suggested 380 will have the exact same problems.
My debunked point was clearly towards the "last 0.5gb vram", which does not cause any stuttering, nor any major performance degradation.
The free game is about value. Now a 970 for effectively under 300 bucks is a good deal. A 390 is a good deal as well, no doubt about it, and i'm not trying to sway in either direction, in the end it's a matter of personal preference.
Apropo "personaly preference", to clear it up: i prefer a more efficient card, with less noise / power consumption, overall better driver support, and less frame rate variance - and if i effectively even pay less for it, why wouldn't i buy it?
Hope you get my points.
Edit: anyways, OP wants it as cheap as possible, so either card is pretty much not an option.
Posts: 1021 | Subs: 1
i know that it was towards the last 0.5 gb. can you show me any source with frametime measurements that show that this is not an issue? i can show you the opposite: grman hardware site(sorry its in german, but the graphs should be selfexplenatory)
If you exceed vram requirements, then it will stutter. No matter if the card is from AMD or nvidia. Your suggested 380 will have the exact same problems.
My debunked point was clearly towards the "last 0.5gb vram", which does not cause any stuttering, nor any major performance degradation.
Apropo "personaly preference", to clear it up: i prefer a more efficient card, with less noise / power consumption, overall better driver support, and less frame rate variance - and if i effectively even pay less for it, why wouldn't i buy it?
well, good AMD custom designs are not more noisy. furthermore, AMD has better driver support for older cards and the GTX 970 ESPECIALLY needs good drivers because of its faulty design. therefore it may get a lot worse in future. "less frame rate variance"-> isnt that the reason for the r9 390 with 8 gigs? and they cost the same more or less
Livestreams
103 | |||||
26 | |||||
2 | |||||
61 | |||||
57 | |||||
14 | |||||
10 | |||||
1 | |||||
1 | |||||
1 |
Ladders Top 10
-
#Steam AliasWL%Streak
- 1.829222.789+35
- 2.34857.859+13
- 3.587233.716+3
- 4.1095612.641+19
- 5.882398.689+4
- 6.280162.633+8
- 7.996645.607+4
- 8.379114.769+1
- 9.300113.726-1
- 10.717439.620+1
Replay highlight
- cblanco ★
- 보드카 중대
- VonManteuffel
- Heartless Jäger
Board Info
4 posts in the last week
23 posts in the last month
Welcome our newest member, asherllc
Most online: 2043 users on 29 Oct 2023, 01:04 AM