2008 system due an update - target 75FPS

[UrbanKiwi]

Hi all,

After many years of good service and only an upgraded graphics card, my first self built system is creaking under the strain. I would ideally like to retain as many existing components as possible in my quest to achieve a 75FPS score for potential use of a Rift or rift like substitute in the future (or an ultra-wide monitor on high res).

My current system is as follows:

Intel Q6600 Quadcore CPU G0 2.4Ghz
ABIT/IP-35 S775 MOBO
Antec P182 ATX case
Nvidia GeForce GTX 460 1GB
4Gb ram

I am unsure if I can get away with just a graphics card upgrade, I only have a PCI 1.0 slot and I am not sure how much my CPU will throttle the GPU performance? I was hoping not to have to change the CPU and/or the Motherboard or is this unrealistic?

Any help would appreciated!

Thanks.

[ChinesePate]

I was in similar situation, and upgraded my GF first to R9 290 and to be honest it was grand, but I knew in few months I'll be upgrading mobo/cpu so the r9 wouldn't be a waste. In your case getting anything faster than 750i or 270x/280 is not a good idea as it will be bottle necked by the cpu. the q6600 is still a very potent cpu

[UrbanKiwi]

Thanks for the response. How do you work out the point where the CPU becomes the bottleneck ? Is there a chart ?

[DanceswithUnix]

Thanks for the response. How do you work out the point where the CPU becomes the bottleneck ? Is there a chart ?

It would depend on the specific game you are playing.

If you know that in a short time you will upgrade the CPU as well, then personally I wouldn't worry about throttling. If you never upgrade the CPU, then when DX12 comes out you will also see an improvement.

[kalniel]

Thanks for the response. How do you work out the point where the CPU becomes the bottleneck ? Is there a chart ?

You can check reviews, or if you already have the other equipment you can change resolution and see the effect - if lowering the resolution doesn't improve frame rates then you weren't GPU limited, and were instead likely CPU limited.

[UrbanKiwi]

You can check reviews, or if you already have the other equipment you can change resolution and see the effect - if lowering the resolution doesn't improve frame rates then you weren't GPU limited, and were instead likely CPU limited.

Thanks I will try that in conjunction with the FRAPS utility.

[shaithis]

Recently dealt with someone who plays Battlefield 4 and Starcraft 2 and bizarrely had a Q6600 and a HD7990!!

He downgraded the 7990 to a 7970 and upgraded the Q6600 to an i5-4690K.

Both games now perform noticeably better.

Oddly, he was running 2 titles that love high-IPC CPUs but the Q6600 is really starting to show it's age these days....and the more powerful the graphics card you want to drive, the more powerful the CPU you'll need behind it.

You will need a damn good GPU to render 2 x 1080p @ 75 FPS and that is the lowest resolution to expect from Rift.....I doubt your going to be able to run a GTX980 or HD390x with a Q6600 without bottlenecking it to hell and back.

[UrbanKiwi]

Recently dealt with someone who plays Battlefield 4 and Starcraft 2 and bizarrely had a Q6600 and a HD7990!!

He downgraded the 7990 to a 7970 and upgraded the Q6600 to an i5-4690K.

Both games now perform noticeably better.

Oddly, he was running 2 titles that love high-IPC CPUs but the Q6600 is really starting to show it's age these days....and the more powerful the graphics card you want to drive, the more powerful the CPU you'll need behind it.

You will need a damn good GPU to render 2 x 1080p @ 75 FPS and that is the lowest resolution to expect from Rift.....I doubt your going to be able to run a GTX980 or HD390x with a Q6600 without bottlenecking it to hell and back.

Thanks. What about with an upgrade to an i5 and a GTX9 series? Is the 2 x 1080p @ 75 FPS likely to be achievable?

[ChinesePate]

with 960 - no chance with ultra settings, lower the details and more likely

[shaithis]

Thanks. What about with an upgrade to an i5 and a GTX9 series? Is the 2 x 1080p @ 75 FPS likely to be achievable?

An i5 isn't going to be bottlenecked by a single GPU. You might get away with a 970 for the GPU, although you will be in the situation where the "RAM issue" will raise it's head due to the VRAM you'll use rendering 2 images.

[UrbanKiwi]

Looking like I might switch tack and perhaps look at an ultra wide display, less cpu/gpu hungry .

[Bonebreaker777]

Ultra wide screens are lovely.Had a chance to see 2 x LG 34UM65-P in action.That is one big desktop