Graphic Cards Where is the bottleneck (if any)?

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Gautham

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Hey guys :) I recently joined here. Let me get straight to the point.

I bought a new rig recently, and a graphics card with it. My card is a Sparkle 9800GT hybrid power card, it doesn't need an extra power connector. Even considering this, I somehow feel it's not performing well enough. What I mean is mainly the 3DMark 2006 score. On default settings, I get a score of:

Setting (GPU Clock/Memory Clock/Shader Clock)
- Default Clocked (550/1800/1375): 12126
- Normal Clocked (601/2002/1501): 12521
- Over Clocked (625/2002/1550): 12736

I checked the scores in Tom's Hardware and some other 9800GT reviews, the score was around 13K.

On a resolution of 1024x768, Crysis gives me an FPS 18 - 50 on highest settings depending on the situation.

So what I want to know is, is there any bottleneck in my configuration?

Config:

Motherboard: Intel DG41RQ
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400
Memory: 2 x 2GB RAM (DDR2 @ 800MHz)
Graphics Card: Sparkle GeForce 9800GT (Model: SX98GT512D3G-VM)
Harddisk: Seagate ST3500418AS (500GB)
Cabinet: Zebronics Calyx
PSU: Zebronics Economy Series (400W)

I know the PSU is weak, but none of the dealers in CTC (Hyderabad) had any clue about the subject. Every damn shop I went to, all they knew about the types were "normal" and "server" PSUs. There was this one shop which had some gaming PSUs, but I was out of cash to get an upgrade. I got a couple blue screens (3 times till date). Funny thing is, it never happened when I was playing Crysis in full settings, but it happened when I was playing NFS Undercover under full settings. I play in 1024x768 btw.
 
Why are you using a quad core cpu on a entry level motherboard that also of Intel original? and the 3DMark 2006 score which you are getting are almost same to Tom's Hardware i.e 12736 in your rig and 13000 in Tom's Hardware and also check what setup they are using and don't try to overclock on this Little Intel motherboard
 
I guess you must be using a Nvidia 9800gt Eco card .

Change your psu quick or say Kal Ho Na Ho to 9800gt.

BSOD is the first sign
 
Four cores at 2.66 shouldn't bottleneck a 9800GT.

Computer Bazaar, the fourth shop to left from the main entrance does stock Corsair PSUs, ask for "Mr. Gaffar". You'll prolly be asked to wait while he gets one from the distributor. A CX400 will suffice, last time I checked it was about 3,200.
 
Everything is normal dude , 3d mark score is good enough and crysis is also normal . 20-40fps is normal for 9800gt on highest settings , try some other games .
 
woho no!!!!!!!
is that true that no 1 in ctc knows about branded psu's
iam going for a rig in a few weeks there(man please confirm it)

i enquired some idiot there who gave me a** kikn prices for corsair psu's:@
cx 400w(4.2k) :no:and vx450 was lot higher than that

and i asked for a tagan psu
he gave me a TAG psu 500w-----450rs :O
 
ocizer said:
woho no!!!!!!!
is that true that no 1 in ctc knows about branded psu's
iam going for a rig in a few weeks there(man please confirm it)

i enquired some idiot there who gave me a** kikn prices for corsair psu's:@
cx 400w(4.2k) :no:and vx450 was lot higher than that

and i asked for a tagan psu
he gave me a TAG psu 500w-----450rs :O
Click to expand...

Hhehehehe lol......get TAGAN 500 for RS 450.

thts guy will be an idiot for sure. He wouldnr even have cheked price list when replying to ur query. Corsair VX 450 is @ 4k.......which is pretty high considering it used to retail @ 3.3k a few years back.:(
 
Get your PSU changed as soon as possible or you will be in all sorts of trouble.
Get-:
Gigabyte superb 460 (2.3k)
FSP Saga 400
or
Corsair CX 400(3.3K)
 
Dont worry, CPU overclock equates to massive score increases in 3DMark, check what setup they are using.

BTW CPU plays big role @ low resolutions, you should overclock if mobo permits, many of the games I tested scaled right up to 3.6GHz (Core 2 Architecture) combined with midrange GPU (OCed 260/4870), high end GPU like 5870 etc can utilize modern processor @ very high clocks (4GHz+).
 
Your system seems pretty balanced IMO. If you want more FPS, you need a better card (also a better PSU in that case).
 
@Happy Singh: I know, the mobo is really bad >.< So you're saying my processor is OK? And don't worry, I can't OC on my board even if I wanted to. I checked every nook and cranny of the BIOS (with the jumper changed for config mode and all), all it allows is setting the RAM speeds.

@Anubis: Point taken, thanks :) I'll save money and get a good one.

@damn: Hey, a Hyderabadi! You know that shop I mentioned which had gaming PSUs? It was the same shop, mate. But as I mentioned, I was out of money at that time. Thanks for the references, they are very helpful :)

@rohan_mhtr: Thank heavens. I was worried I didn't have a proper "9800GT".

@ocizer: I spent 2 hours going from shop to shop asking about PSUs and they don't know jack. But as damn pointed out, Computer Bazaar seems to be a good place. Who knows, we might meet there one of these days :)

@Gowt1ham: Tell me about it. And another guy offered me a TAG PSU with a vent on the top for Rs.600 saying it's "of good quality".

@pavasedge: Thanks mate, I'll remember those :)

OK. Considering your replies, these are the points I've taken:

1. My card is just fine.

2. I'm risking a lot with my PSU.

3. I'm good to go for overclocking if I get a good PSU and a better mobo.

Tell me how good point 3 holds. Of course, my first priority is the PSU. Once I've gotten that, do you guys think I need to go for a new mobo just for OCing the processor? I'm a moderate gamer, not too hardcore. Will I be able to play newer games with decent frame rates? Is there really any need for me to OC my processor for gaming or is the current setup fine?

Also, once I get a better PSU, I'm assuming I can take more liberty while OCing my GPU?

EDIT:

@SidhuPunjab: So you're saying the CPU frequency is my bottleneck? Cool, that's point towards getting a better mobo.

@rajan1311: I won't be getting a new GPU anytime soon, so I'll settle for a better PSU and OCing my 9800GT. Thanks :)
 
^ no , 'if' mobo permits not mandatory, stick with currect mobo, invest in better GPU first. Check TE Crysis/3D Mark sticky threads and compare your score.
 
Your CPU,Ram,Graphics Card are OK but mobo is only ok for light gaming not for games like crysis,far-cry,GTA IV. i mean it will run but you may feel bottleneck and un-stability in multi-tasking and not at-all good for Overclocking, so for a good comparison in 3d mark scores and benchmarking you need a good overclocking stability mobo, a good PSU at least 400W(think you got reviews about PSU on this thread) and for much better result in 3d marks and benchmarking will need a high-end graphic card, else your rig is good just change the mobo and PSU
 
I will not recommend a mobo change for the sake of a 9800GT. If you had something like a 4870X2 or a GTX295, then a mobo change might be worthwhile to get the last bit of FPS, but for a 9800GT, definitely not. Even if you get a new mobo, the FPS increase will be negligible unless you intend to overclock heavily (to something like 3.5GHz+) and even then the FPS gain would not be worth the money spent.

If you have any overclocking options (albeit limited) on your Intel mobo, just use them and be done. However, what you absolutely require right now is a better PSU and if you have money to spare, get a better GPU. That would be any day better than getting a new mobo for the same old 9800GT.
 
@Happy Singh: Nice to know my rig is balanced. But hey, I wasn't expecting a 100FPS in Crysis either, I know a 9800GT is old-ish by today's standards. I just wanted confirmation from others.

@Lord Nemesis: Very nicely put, mate, thanks :) No way I could go for a new GPU, I was barely be able to collect money for that. Now I'll have a tough time collecting some for the PSU, but I saw it coming anyway. When I get a new one, maybe I'll put the old one for sale here. You know, people with office computers might be able to use it just fine.

OK. Now say I've got myself a good stable PSU. Can I take more liberty while OCing my GPU? I can't OC my processor, but with stable power, can I try to push my GPU towards the limit? Here's my exact card model, for reference, just want to know how OC-friendly it is.

@foruamit2004: But I can't keep Alt-Tabbing out of games every time, can I? :P Though, I just figured how to use RivaTuner to put up an OSD of all the stats I ever need to monitor. RT is great software! :D
 
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