R9 290x Low Fps on Battlefield 4

[Armorhype]

I need some advice/help on diagnosing why my 290x is obtaining lower than average fps in battlefield 4 than all review sites.  I know battlefield 4 has had a flaky launch and numerous issues but not to the extent of averaging 43fps (ultra preset, 1200p) when most average 60+.

 

My system specs follow;

- R9 290x stock/referance (uber)

- i5 2500k stock (cooled by H60)

- Corsair vengeance 8GB ram (single channel)

- OCZ vector (128GB)

- Corsair RM 650

- Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3

 

- Windows 7 (OEM, up-to date)

- AMD catalyst driver 11.13 beta 8 

 

Resolution I play is 1920*1200p.

 

Any suggestions would be great.

 

[guas5373]

Unpark your cpu cores? There is a post on the forum somewhere.

 

Edit: This is the post: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/72210-this-will-help-all-you-bf4-players-how-to-fix-frame-dips-and-boost-fps-in-most-games/

[Imabigmac]

You could be maxing out the cpu or ram, I had youtube and bf4 running and I was maxing my 8GB of ram and I was lagging pretty bad. 

[Vitalius]

My system specs follow;

- R9 290x stock/referance (uber)

- i5 2500k stock (cooled by H60)

- Corsair vengeance 8GB ram (single channel)

- OCZ vector (128GB)

- Corsair RM 650

- Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3

- Windows 7 (OEM, up-to date)

- AMD catalyst driver 11.13 beta 8 

 

Resolution I play is 1920*1200p.

 

Any suggestions would be great.

What I boldened, underlined, and made much bigger is almost definitely the problem. 

You have to realize that Dual Channel memory is rated at it's speed based on the idea that it is being used in dual channels. 

If you have 1600MHz memory, but you are using it as single channel memory, it is really running at 800MHz speed. 

According to Corsair, RAM speed means a lot to BF4. 

 

Do the math.

[Armorhype]

Unpark your cpu cores? There is a post on the forum somewhere.

 

Edit: This is the post: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/72210-this-will-help-all-you-bf4-players-how-to-fix-frame-dips-and-boost-fps-in-most-games/

 

Unpraked all my cores; fps seem to fly all over the place. 40-60-50-90, still most of the time around 45.

What I boldened, underlined, and made much bigger is almost definitely the problem. 

You have to realize that Dual Channel memory is rated at it's speed based on the idea that it is being used in dual channels. 

If you have 1600MHz memory, but you are using it as single channel memory, it is really running at 800MHz speed. 

According to Corsair, RAM speed means a lot to BF4. 

 

Do the math.

 

What would be the best option to go from here; buy a highspeed dual channel kit, or another stick? 

[Hunter259]

What I boldened, underlined, and made much bigger is almost definitely the problem. 

You have to realize that Dual Channel memory is rated at it's speed based on the idea that it is being used in dual channels. 

If you have 1600MHz memory, but you are using it as single channel memory, it is really running at 800MHz speed. 

According to Corsair, RAM speed means a lot to BF4. 

 

Do the math.

To which it is really running at 400mhz.

[NohbdyKnows]

Unpraked all my cores; fps seem to fly all over the place. 40-60-50-90, still most of the time around 45.

 

What would be the best option to go from here; buy a highspeed dual channel kit, or another stick? 

Get a nice dual channel kit at 1866 or higher(make sure that your mobo supports it) BF4 LOOOOVESSS high speed mem

[Vitalius]

Unpraked all my cores; fps seem to fly all over the place. 40-60-50-90, still most of the time around 45.

 

What would be the best option to go from here; buy a highspeed dual channel kit, or another stick? 

 

Buy another stick. All normal DDR3 RAM is dual channel by default. Whatever RAM is in your system is meant to be with another stick. Just buy one that is the same specs. Brand doesn't matter.

To which it is really running at 400mhz.

No. If it rated at 1600MHz, it is actually running at 800MHz per stick. If he has only 1 stick, it is running at 800MHz.

It would only be running at 400MHz if it were DDR or DDR2 RAM because DDR3 RAM is never rated at 800MHz unless it is ancient. 

[Godlygamer23]

What I boldened, underlined, and made much bigger is almost definitely the problem. 

You have to realize that Dual Channel memory is rated at it's speed based on the idea that it is being used in dual channels. 

If you have 1600MHz memory, but you are using it as single channel memory, it is really running at 800MHz speed. 

According to Corsair, RAM speed means a lot to BF4. 

 

Do the math.

Um...no. That is not what dual channel means.

[Vitalius]

Um...no. That is not what dual channel means.

That's exactly what Dual Channel means. 

Look at my reply to your PM.

[digitalnav]

99% sure its your memory, WIndows 8.1 also gives some FPS improvement

[ercineker]

Now a days RAM is rated as 1600mhz cause it's transferring twice in every cycle hence the DDR (dual data rate) name. 800*2 not cause of dual chanel

[Vitalius]

Um...no. That is not what dual channel means.

Now a days RAM is rated as 1600mhz cause it's transferring twice in every cycle hence the DDR (dual data rate) name. 800*2 not cause of dual chanel

@Glenwing

Who is right? 

Bandwidth for RAM is directly related to the Clock Speed (1600MHz in this case). 

It being Dual Channel means the bandwidth is doubled (twice as many lanes for data to flow through and be accessed). 

Bandwidth = real clock rate * data transferred per clock cycle * bits transferred per clock cycle / 8

Which I took from here: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Everything-You-Need-to-Know-About-the-Dual-Triple-and-Quad-Channel-Memory-Architectures/133/2

 

Which states this:

 

Memories based on the DDR (Double Data Rate) technology, such as DDR-SDRAM, DDR2-SDRAM, and DDR3-SDRAM, transfer two data per clock cycle. As a result they achieve double the transfer rate compared to traditional memory technologies (such as the original SDRAM) running at the same clock rate. Because of that, DDR-based memories are usually labeled at double their real clock rate. For example, DDR3-1333 memories actually work at 666.6MHz ransferring two data per clock cycle, and thus are labeled as being a "1,333MHz" device, even though the clock signal doesn't really work at 1,333MHz. You will need to use the real clock rate on the above formula, or you can simplify the formula as follows and use the DDR clock rate:

bandwidth = DDR clock rate * bits transferred per clock cycle / 8

 

...

 

The dual-, triple-, and quad-channel architectures work by increasing the number of data wires available in the memory bus, doubling, tripling, or quadrupling the available bandwidth, respectively.

Now... think about it logically. More lanes = more bandwidth. Double Data Rate means "twice as much data transferred" which is the same thing as saying "double the bandwidth". Again, do the math.

If you are only using one stick, you are in single channel mode. If you are in single channel mode, you are cutting the available bandwidth in half. If the available bandwidth is cut in half, the memory isn't effectively "DDR" anymore.

DDR has everything to do with Dual Channel and vice versa. Without one, you cannot have the other. The only way that RAM can transfer two data (bits) per clock cycle is if there are two modules, and thereby, two channels, thus dual channel. Because if there is no Dual Channel, then the two RAM sticks cannot be accessed simultaneously. 

Dual Channel in RAM is the same thing, effectively, as RAID 0 with HDD's. Double the bandwidth, and capacity of a single module (HDD or RAM). RAM doesn't need redundancy because it's RAM.

And yes, this effectively means that while in Triple and Quad channel setups, DDR is a misnomer because it is then working at triple and quadruple the bandwidths, and thereby, triple and quadruple the clock speeds. 

So in DDR3 1600MHz RAM's case (where a single module runs at 800MHz), it is actually running at 3200MHz in Quad Channel. 

[FluffyNuggets]

Pretty sad that I get more FPS with a 780 at 2560x1440 than you do at 1920x1200. So much for it being uber!

[Glenwing]

@Glenwing

Who is right? 

Bandwidth for RAM is directly related to the Clock Speed (1600MHz in this case). 

It being Dual Channel means the bandwidth is doubled (twice as many lanes for data to flow through and be accessed). 

Bandwidth = real clock rate * data transferred per clock cycle * bits transferred per clock cycle / 8

Which I took from here: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Everything-You-Need-to-Know-About-the-Dual-Triple-and-Quad-Channel-Memory-Architectures/133/2

 

Which states this:

 

Now... think about it logically. More lanes = more bandwidth. Double Data Rate means "twice as much data transferred" which is the same thing as saying "double the bandwidth". Again, do the math.

If you are only using one stick, you are in single channel mode. If you are in single channel mode, you are cutting the available bandwidth in half. If the available bandwidth is cut in half, the memory isn't effectively "DDR" anymore.

DDR has everything to do with Dual Channel and vice versa. Without one, you cannot have the other. The only way that RAM can transfer two data (bits) per clock cycle is if there are two modules, and thereby, two channels, thus dual channel.

Dual Channel in RAM is the same thing, effectively, as RAID 0 with HDD's. Double the bandwidth, and capacity of a single module (HDD or RAM). RAM doesn't need redundancy because it's RAM.

 

Dual channel is comparable to RAID 0 yes, you double the interfaces but both lead to the same place, so can transfer across both simultaneously to increase throughput, although of course you can't take advantage of it if you only plug in one of them (i.e. putting both RAM sticks in slots that are wired to the same channel on the memory controller.  Dual Channel/Quad Channel memory is a function of the communication structure between the CPU and the RAM, and has to do with the memory controller, the traces, and the physical slots those traces lead to.

 

DDR is a separate thing that also doubles something, not throughput between the DIMM slots and the memory controller, but it doubles the operations that the RAM completes.  The RAM performs two operations on each cycle instead of one.  It is a function of the RAM itself, and only itself, doing what it does.  It occurs in every DIMM individually, independent of channel configuation.  It is a boost to the actual memory operations, whereas Dual Channel is an increase in the maximum possible communication (bandwidth/throughput) between the RAM and CPU.  Operation speed vs. max data transfer rate.

 

The fact that it's called "Double Data Rate" is indeed confusing, since it implies that it has to do with the rate at which data is transferred, however this is not the case.

 

EDIT: I made a mistake here; DDR is about data transfer, not memory ops; DRAMs can transfer data twice on each cycle instead of once, so effectively double the data can be transferred in a given amount of time.  However, again this is still on a per-DIMM basis, whereas dual channel gives you an overall increase in the pipeline between the RAM and the CPU.  DDR doubles bandwidth in and out of each DIMM, and dual channel lets the memory controller handle two DIMMs at once, potentially doubling throughput again.

[Vitalius]

-snip-

I think what makes this confusing is that there are so many things that double performance. 

Let's simplify it then. Does having a single stick of RAM in single channel mode effectively make it's clock speed half of what is advertised? I never mentioned DDR in my original post, and since that complicates things, let's just ignore that.

The reason I believe it does is because it is logical. If I have two DIMM sticks, each at 800MHz (which is a speed way of representing how much data it can push), then accessing both at the same time gives me 1600MHz because they add together.

The same way, if I have two HDD's that read at 100MB/s in RAID 0, I can read at 200MB/s (theoretically).

It's basically the exact same thing. It's also made more confusing because MHz doesn't sound like it translates to bandwidth, but it does in RAM's case.

[Godlygamer23]

Let's simplify it then. Does having a single stick of RAM in single channel mode effectively make it's clock speed half of what is advertised? I never mentioned DDR in my original post, and since that complicates things, let's just ignore that.

It won't. Its clockspeed will remain the same - because of the way DDR works. Each DIMM will have a frequency of say 600MHz, but because of the way DDR works, it effectively becomes 1200MHz.

[Glenwing]

I think what makes this confusing is that there are so many things that double performance. 

Let's simplify it then. Does having a single stick of RAM in single channel mode effectively make it's clock speed half of what is advertised? I never mentioned DDR in my original post, and since that complicates things, let's just ignore that.

The reason I believe it does is because it is logical. If I have two DIMM sticks, each at 800MHz (which is a speed way of representing how much data it can push), then accessing both at the same time gives me 1600MHz because they add together.

The same way, if I have two HDD's that read at 100MB/s in RAID 0, I can read at 200MB/s (theoretically).

It's basically the exact same thing. It's also made more confusing because MHz doesn't sound like it translates to bandwidth, but it does in RAM's case.

 

Not quite, the operation of the RAM at 800MHz means you can pull 1600MHz worth of data from that stick, because the stick can push out data twice in each cycle.  Dual channel lets you access two sticks at the same time (each of which can push out data twice per clock on their own).  So, you get double the data from each stick (DDR).  If you have dual channel, you still get double the data from each stick (DDR), but you can do two sticks at once now.

[Vitalius]

It won't. Its clockspeed will remain the same - because of the way DDR works. Each DIMM will have a frequency of say 600MHz, but because of the way DDR works, it effectively becomes 1200MHz.

Not quite, the operation of the RAM at 800MHz means you can pull 1600MHz worth of data from that stick, because the stick can push out data twice in each cycle.  Dual channel lets you access two sticks at the same time (each of which can push out data twice per clock on their own).  So, you get double the data from each stick (DDR).  If you have dual channel, you still get double the data from each stick (DDR), but you can do two sticks at once now.

Then I suppose I am wrong. Even if it doesn't make sense to me. In regards to the actual speed it is running at, at least.

I mean, if have two CPU's working on the same program at 3.4GHz each in perfect synch, then, theoretically, I have the equivalent of of a 6.8GHz CPU. I imagine the same would be true of RAM. Then, does that mean having 2 1600MHz RAM sticks in dual channel is theoretically the same as having 1 stick of RAM at 3200MHz?

The idea is that the RAM should match the CPU speed as the CPU speed is how many cycles occur in a second, so if RAM is operating at 3200MHz, and the CPU is at 3.4GHz, the CPU is idle for 200MHz (on average I would guess). 

Hmm, that makes more sense. Alrighty then.

So DDR means that each side of the RAM module is running at 800MHz, but both can be accessed at the same time thus giving 1600Mhz. Then Dual Channel enables two DIMM sticks to be accessed at a time thus doubling it again. Cool.

However, I am not wrong in that it will halve your total RAM speed. In that since you have one less RAM stick, you read RAM half as fast (i.e. less bandwidth) which is the same as halving your clock speed on the RAM.

[FluffyNuggets]

Then I suppose I am wrong. Even if it doesn't make sense to me. In regards to the actual speed it is running at, at least.

I mean, if have two CPU's working on the same program at 3.4GHz each in perfect synch, then, theoretically, I have the equivalent of of a 6.8GHz CPU. I imagine the same would be true of RAM. Then, does that mean having 2 1600MHz RAM sticks in dual channel is theoretically the same as having 1 stick of RAM at 3200MHz?

The idea is that the RAM should match the CPU speed as the CPU speed is how many cycles occur in a second, so if RAM is operating at 3200MHz, and the CPU is at 3.4GHz, the CPU is idle for 200MHz (on average I would guess). 

Hmm, that makes more sense. Alrighty then.

So DDR means that each side of the RAM module is running at 800MHz, but both can be accessed at the same time thus giving 1600Mhz. Then Dual Channel enables two DIMM sticks to be accessed at a time thus doubling it again. Cool.

However, I am not wrong in that it will halve your total RAM speed. In that since you have one less RAM stick, you read RAM half as fast (i.e. less bandwidth) which is the same as halving your clock speed on the RAM.

You are both right, you're just arguing about different things. Dual channel just means you can access both sticks at once. Hence, one stick is single channel. 

[Glenwing]

Then I suppose I am wrong. Even if it doesn't make sense to me. In regards to the actual speed it is running at, at least.

I mean, if have two CPU's working on the same program at 3.4GHz each in perfect synch, then, theoretically, I have the equivalent of of a 6.8GHz CPU. I imagine the same would be true of RAM. Then, does that mean having 2 1600MHz RAM sticks in dual channel is theoretically the same as having 1 stick of RAM at 3200MHz?

The idea is that the RAM should match the CPU speed as the CPU speed is how many cycles occur in a second, so if RAM is operating at 3200MHz, and the CPU is at 3.4GHz, the CPU is idle for 200MHz (on average I would guess). 

Hmm, that makes more sense. Alrighty then.

So DDR means that each side of the RAM module is running at 800MHz, but both can be accessed at the same time thus giving 1600Mhz. Then Dual Channel enables two DIMM sticks to be accessed at a time thus doubling it again. Cool.

However, I am not wrong in that it will halve your total RAM speed. In that since you have one less RAM stick, you read RAM half as fast (i.e. less bandwidth) which is the same as halving your clock speed on the RAM.

 

Something like that.  All this being said, RAM is hardly the thing that will slow most people's systems down.

[leipero]

I'm sorry, but dual channel have nothing to do with OP problem. Also freq. of CPU is not related in any way with freq. of RAM, or, CPU @3200MHz =/= dual channel RAM @1600MHz.

 

Since we are talking here about IO freq, not core freq. of chips itself, and without ahving latency cycles on mind, for CPU RAM (cache) and DDR.

 

To the OP, you will see 0 difference in going towards dual channel mode, that isn't your problem, problem is elsewhere, probably in driver configuration/game optimization for your specific setup.

 

Sorry, i read your specs again, here is your problem "Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3".

[Armorhype]

I'm sorry, but dual channel have nothing to do with OP problem. Also freq. of CPU is not related in any way with freq. of RAM, or, CPU @3200MHz =/= dual channel RAM @1600MHz.

 

Since we are talking here about IO freq, not core freq. of chips itself, and without ahving latency cycles on mind, for CPU RAM (cache) and DDR.

 

To the OP, you will see 0 difference in going towards dual channel mode, that isn't your problem, problem is elsewhere, probably in driver configuration/game optimization for your specific setup.

 

Sorry, i read your specs again, here is your problem "Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3".

 

My main concern was the mobo; since no-one mentioned it I thought it was okay, but now you've mentioned it.