Maybe a very stupid question

[bamsemats]

Hey, I've recently purchased the gtx 1080ti, and was watching Linus go through 'bottlenecking'. I realised that I might be bottlenecked in my other components - CPU, RAM, etc... (see specs in signature) When doing GPU benchmarks, my GPU never exceeds 30% capacity, and I'm not thrilled over my scores... I'm thinking of upgrading my PC soon(ish), and wanted to get some feedback from more knowledgeable people in the realms of computer stuff.

 

So, this are two questions, really: (1) Is my computer bottlenecked by the motherboard, cpu and/or RAM? (2) If I wanted to upgrade the PC, to match the 1080ti, what board, cpu and RAM would be preferable? Say I got about $1000 to spend... 

 

Thankful for any constructive comments!

[Origami Cactus]

Do you have vysnc/gsync on while benchmarking?

What resolution are you trying to play? If you are doing 1080p 60hz then it isnt a suprise that the gpu usage is 30%.

That cpu won't bottleneck at 4k or 1440p, but at 1080p it will be a bottleneck.

 

[Sauron]

6 minutes ago, bamsemats said:

When doing GPU benchmarks, my GPU never exceeds 30% capacity

This is not normal and your other hardware would never cause a bottleneck this severe. Make sure nothing is overheating and that vsync is not on during benchmarks.

[bamsemats]

Just now, Origami Cactus said:

Do you have vysnc/gsync on while benchmarking?

What resolution are you trying to play? If you are doing 1080p 60hz then it isnt a suprise that the gpu usage is 30%.

That cpu won't bottleneck at 4k or 1440p, but at 1080p it will be a bottleneck.

 

No vsync nor gsync on. The resolution IS 1080p (got a 144hz monitor, to get the smoothness in FPS). For me, as a tech dummy, how come the CPU bottlenecks at 1080p, but wouldn't at 4k?

[bamsemats]

2 minutes ago, Sauron said:

This is not normal and your other hardware would never cause a bottleneck this severe. Make sure nothing is overheating and that vsync is not on during benchmarks.

No overheating (CPU and GPU at 35 and 55 degrees, respectively), and I don't have vsync on... My CPU only get like 900 score in Cinebench, so I figured that might be an issue...

[Sauron]

1 minute ago, bamsemats said:

No vsync nor gsync on. The resolution IS 1080p (got a 144hz monitor, to get the smoothness in FPS). For me, as a tech dummy, how come the CPU bottlenecks at 1080p, but wouldn't at 4k?

I don't think your CPU is the problem here, but to answer your question at 4k the GPU is stressed more and the CPU doesn't have to work as much to keep up. The CPU does more or less the same work per frame regardless of resolution, so a lower framerate means less stress on the cpu.

[Sauron]

1 minute ago, bamsemats said:

No overheating (CPU and GPU at 35 and 55 degrees, respectively), and I don't have vsync on... My CPU only get like 900 score in Cinebench, so I figured that might be an issue...

900Cb is not bad at all for a quad core, and I know for a fact that the 4790K is still perfectly capable of keeping up with a high end graphics card.

[bamsemats]

Just now, Sauron said:

I don't think your CPU is the problem here, but to answer your question at 4k the GPU is stressed more and the CPU doesn't have to work as much to keep up. The CPU does more or less the same work per frame regardless of resolution, so a lower framerate means less stress on the cpu.

Ok, thanks! Is there any way I could test and find out what is the issue here?

[Sauron]

1 minute ago, bamsemats said:

Ok, thanks! Is there any way I could test and find out what is the issue here?

Try reinstalling your gpu drivers to make sure they aren't bugging out. Try only using one screen. Check cpu and ram usage during benchmarks.

[Dedayog]

Had similar setup, but went 35" ultrawide 1440p to enjoy the 1080Ti more.  At 1080p, you're not really using the 1080Ti much, so it's more wasted than being bottlenecked.

 

Hate that word now, along with futureproofing.

 

Game at a better resolution, unless you're an esports pro player.