CPU bottleneck?

[GovzeGuns]

A month ago I've purchased a Sapphire R9 280X ( http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/product_index.aspx?pid=2024&lid=1).So when I'm playing PVZ Garden warfare, Battlefield 3,4 I'm getting fps drops on all of the settings. I know R9 280X is capable of running those games on 60 FPS and GTA 5 doesn't even reach 60 FPS. So could it be the CPU?

 

 

 

Rest of my specs:

 

AMD FX 8120 3,1 GHz

Kingston Hyperx blu 8 GB 1600 MHz

Chieftec 750 W PSU

ASUS M5A78L-M/USB3

Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC UEFI

Samsung Spinpoint F1 HDD

[xQubeZx]

I dont thinks its a cpu bottelneck, my fx 8350 and gtx 760 runs bf4 at stable 60 fps on medium to high. 3.1 GHz is low for a fx cpu though so maybe. 

[GovzeGuns]

I dont thinks its a cpu bottelneck, my fx 8350 and gtx 760 runs bf4 at stable 60 fps on medium to high. 3.1 GHz is low for a fx cpu though so maybe. 

So I should overclock?

[xQubeZx]

i dont actually know, shouldnt it be running 4.0Ghz stock?

[GovzeGuns]

i dont actually know, shouldnt it be running 4.0Ghz stock?

No you are thinking of FX 8320. Mine is FX 8120 that runs at 3.1 GHz stock

[xQubeZx]

No you are thinking of FX 8320. Mine is FX 8120 that runs at 3.1 GHz stock

Ah lol, dont know that much about that cpu so it might be bottlenecking, check some benchmarks maybe?

[G33k 4 L1F3]

It seems more like a deeper issue then a bottleneck. your processor should be able to keep up, seeing this:http://cpuboss.com/cpu/AMD-FX-8120

 

It seems like a weird thing, and OC....as long as you have the time, but the motherboard you have doesn't really support high effiecient OC.

 

@QubeZx it's stock at 3.1Ghz. but it's an Octo-Core, so that's a good speed.

 

Honestly, have you tried to make sure the Motherboard is making use of all of the cores, or if it's only using like 2? if so, then go through bios and check to see if you can change it.

[GovzeGuns]

It seems more like a deeper issue then a bottleneck. your processor should be able to keep up, seeing this:http://cpuboss.com/cpu/AMD-FX-8120

 

It seems like a weird thing, and OC....as long as you have the time, but the motherboard you have doesn't really support high effiecient OC.

 

@QubeZx it's stock at 3.1Ghz. but it's an Octo-Core, so that's a good speed.

Any ideas? Is it the GPU than?

[G33k 4 L1F3]

Any ideas? Is it the GPU than?

Definitely not. Have you tried making sure you are using the latest drivers, and that the bios have been updated to the latest?

 

It wouldn't make sense that you would not be getting good specs when everything you have are compatible.

 

have you made sure you set the graphics use to dedicated?

[GovzeGuns]

Definitely not. Have you tried making sure you are using the latest drivers, and that the bios have been updated to the latest?

 

It wouldn't make sense that you would not be getting good specs when everything you have are compatible.

 

have you made sure you set the graphics use to dedicated?

I will update the bios and I have the latest drivers and the games work the same on ALL settings.

 

EDIT: I have the latest bios.

Edited April 28, 2015 by GovzeGuns

[ApolloX75]

Rest of my specs:

AMD FX 8120 3,1 GHz

ASUS M5A78L-M/USB3

This is a common issue.

Your board has a 4+1 power phase which is adequate for an FX4 or FX6 and will even overclock those fine. Your FX8 hates it. Never mind that these boards don't even have heatsinks for the MOSFETs and the heatsinks it does have are woefully undersized.

Any FX8 should only ever be run paired with a 990FX or really high quality 970 motherboard. Any 760G/780L board is just asking for trouble.

You think you're having stuttering now? Wait til you try and overclock. Those VRMs will scream and you will see your clock speeds plummet.

I wouldn't be surprised (hell I would bet money on it) if your CPU is being throttled due to thermal limits of the VRMs at your stock speeds.

Run something like HWinfo in the background while you're playing a game and you should be able to see the temps and the throttling.

Get a 990FX board. Any board with a 6+1 or better power phase setup and hefty heatsinks around the CPU socket will seriously extend the life of your system and the enjoyment you get out of it.

[CalculuS]

FX 8120 is actually really awful. Its not even Vishera like the FX x300 series.

 

http://hothardware.com/articleimages/Item1923/et.png

http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/CPU/FX-8350/FX-8350-45.jpg

http://www.bjorn3d.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Alien.jpg

 

Old examples because the FX 8120 is actually really old too.

 

In proper multi-threaded situations however...

 

http://cdn4.wccftech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/FX-8350_Battlefield3.jpg

 

It still packs a punch, but yeah GTA 5 doesn't like your 8120.

 

http://www.gamersnexus.net/game-bench/1911-gta-v-cpu-benchmark-4790k-3570k-9590-more

[Sevilla]

What resolution are you running it at and what resolution are you comparing it to?

[ApolloX75]

@CalculuS so true! Forgot about how old those 8100s are now.

Good call.

[GovzeGuns]

This is a common issue.

Your board has a 4+1 power phase which is adequate for an FX4 or FX6 and will even overclock those fine. Your FX8 hates it. Never mind that these boards don't even have heatsinks for the MOSFETs and the heatsinks it does have are woefully undersized.

Any FX8 should only ever be run paired with a 990FX or really high quality 970 motherboard. Any 760G/780L board is just asking for trouble.

You think you're having stuttering now? Wait til you try and overclock. Those VRMs will scream and you will see your clock speeds plummet.

I wouldn't be surprised (hell I would bet money on it) if your CPU is being throttled due to thermal limits of the VRMs at your stock speeds.

Run something like HWinfo in the background while you're playing a game and you should be able to see the temps and the throttling.

Get a 990FX board. Any board with a 6+1 or better power phase setup and hefty heatsinks around the CPU socket will seriously extend the life of your system and the enjoyment you get out of it.

Thanks  for the info. But my temps are not high. When I'm playing a demanding game like gta 5 or The Crew CPU usage is at 50-70% and the max temps are around 35 degrees. And when I did stress tests on it the temp were 48 degrees max. 

[ApolloX75]

Thanks for the info. But my temps are not high. When I'm playing a demanding game like gta 5 or The Crew CPU usage is at 50-70% and the max temps are around 35 degrees. And when I did stress tests on it the temp were 48 degrees max.

That's pretty healthy.

As someone else pointed out, your 8120 is an older FX so its likely that it is not as demanding as the newer 8300s. I forgot to take that into account.

The age of your FX could actually be the root of the issue. Most Bulldozers perform only marginally better than a comparable Phenom II which are becoming woefully inadequate now.

Give it a shot on the overclocking, but honestly don't be surprised if your board starts to buckle under the extra load.

[GovzeGuns]

That's pretty healthy.

As someone else pointed out, your 8120 is an older FX so its likely that it is not as demanding as the newer 8300s. I forgot to take that into account.

The age of your FX could actually be the root of the issue. Most Bulldozers perform only marginally better than a comparable Phenom II which are becoming woefully inadequate now.

Give it a shot on the overclocking, but honestly don't be surprised if your board starts to buckle under the extra load.

I have looked into the power issue and my board is more than capable of running my CPU. I've overclocked my CPU to 3,6 GHz and there is still some lag, but its much better. The temps are now around 50 degrees on load and 25 idle. I should probably buy a better CPU cooler.