Post your RIG

[Fraggle79]

Since I updated the PC time to update my specs.

CPU:  Amd  X4 630 2.8Ghz
RAM:  3GB DDR2
Mobo: Asus M3N78 Pro (Has Nvidia Geforce 8300 gpu built in)
Video Card:  MSI Nvidia GTX 460
Sound: Creative X-Fi extreme music- With I/O drive bought seperately.
Display: 23"Acer LCD   1080p with HDMI
Speakers: Logitech Z-2300
Mouse:  Logitech Cordless Rechargeable Laser, forgot model number.
Keyboard:  Basic Microsoft

[crazydog]

@1080p:
Man, I hate how all monitors are becoming 16:9 aspect ratios. I was looking at Lenovo laptops (my dad gets a ginormous discount for being part of the CA state bar association), but they all run at 1366x768. wtf!

[Luggage]

Just got a new 5850 to replace aging 8800GT.  Strangely, sometime I still get fps of ~60/70 in TF2 at high settings (1920x1080).  Processor is E8400 (3GHz dual) and have 8GB of RAM (DDR2 1066).  I wonder if CPU is actually a bottle-neck here; would never have imagined that to be the case for TF2.  Thoughts?

[Mustard]

Source is a very CPU intensive engine. Even at 3Ghz it could still be the CPU. Which is kind of a bitch.

[crazydog]

Source is a very CPU intensive engine. Even at 3Ghz it could still be the CPU. Which is kind of a bitch.

Especially with all of TF2's fancy particle effects and ragdolls.

I have an E8400 + a GTX 460.

I get 303 FPS in CSS, 60 FPS in L4D2 (might be capped, maybe I left vsync on?), and 30 FPS in TF2. It's ridiculous.

I'd upgrade my CPU, but I'd really like to change socket type for an i7, but I shouldn't really be spending money on it right now.

[Luggage]

this is after OC'ing the E8400?  I understand you can get to 4GHz w/o much difficulty.

I am planning to OC mine again (ran it at 4.05 stable for a month and went back to stock after that) to see if that helps

[crazydog]

Mine's not overclocked, but I probably should do that. I had it overclocked in the past, but it wasn't necessary at the time.
I bought some 3rd party air cooling, so I should be able to easily get to 3.5 without much trouble.

[Fraggle79]

Mine gets about 60-70 or so in TF2 also, I think the game is just fucked up that way.
I need to make sure multi core threading is disabled... helped doing that in CSS.

[Luggage]

Source is a very CPU intensive engine. Even at 3Ghz it could still be the CPU. Which is kind of a bitch.

I'd upgrade my CPU, but I'd really like to change socket type for an i7, but I shouldn't really be spending money on it right now.

Dude - you don't need to change socket types for another 1-2 years easy.  E8400 should be more than enough for your needs (particularly if you OC to 4GHz using 3rd party air cooling).

[crazydog]

I know - I'm just saying that if I were to upgrade my CPU, I'd want to switch to a newer socket, so I'd need a new motherboard, and in turn new RAM (maybe).

Multicore rendering in TF2 used to be bad, but then it started working. I did have to turn it off in CSS the other day to stop from dropping down from 303FPS to ~15 every 15 seconds or so, so maybe I'll try turning it off in TF2 again..

[Mustard]

I really recommend not going over 3.5 OC without liquid cooling. If you have really decent aftermarket air cooling (and proper air flow) you could probably stay stable at ~3.4 to 3.5, but that's about as far as air will take you. With the cooling I've got now, I don't take it over 3.3. It can go higher, but I like to stay nice and safe.

[crazydog]

I OC'd to 3.3 tonight. I've had CoreTemp running the whole time...did a 3DMark Vantage test, Just Cause 2 benchmarks + gameplay, and a l4d2 versus campaign. Both cores maxed out at 68C. Not bad, but could be better.

[Mustard]

When I was your age we had move switches on the mobo to overclock and it was a BITCH!! Damn kids

[crazydog]

When I was my age we had motherboards that automatically adjusted voltages and RAM speeds!

[Luggage]

Dude! 66-68C is the upper limit of what is acceptable (70C is absolute tops for stress tests since that means while gaming, you'll be in the mid 60s) 

You shouldn't be hitting that temp with a mild OC like 3.3Ghz 

Did you increase your CPU voltage?  I don't even think you need to do that to hit 3.3GHz.  Sorry if I am explaining something you already know, but CPU voltage bump is only reason temps would go up and you only bump CPU voltages if needed to reach stability.  If you are letting mobo decide, that might be the problem.  For instance, I tried OC'ing last night and when I set speed to 3.6GHz and let mobo decide voltage, the bloody fool went up to 1.3625 directly which is the max voltage for E8400 at which point my idle temp shot to 50C and load to 67-68C.  I cranked it down to 1.275 and system is totally stable at 3.6Ghz with load temps of 60-62C.  My cooling system is Zalman 9700 CPU heatsink/fan + 1 rear fan (came with case) + 1 weak-ass side fan (came with case).  I have kept my rig stable at 4.05Ghz for extended periods of time (1 month) at temps lower than 68C using same setup and there are hundreds of posts, including from various reputable sources (tomshardware, anandtech, etc.), that show vast majority of E8400 being stable on air at 4+Ghz so it's totally doable.
 

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