Best FF Gfx Card for ~ $150

Lynus · 07-20-2010, 07:16 AM

I'm sick of having 10-60 fps. I want FF to be perfectly smooth, and really couldnt give a shit less about the appearance of the game, I just dont want to have the choppiness anymore. Any help (preferrably by devs) greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

My specs : e6300 core2duo 1.86ghz (stock)
550w psu
windows xp pro 32 bit(also have win7 if its better for fps)
< also 32bit vs 64 bit ... whats better for FF? >
4gb pc6400 g.skill
dg865wh intel board.

thinking about replacing mobo+cpu as well so any tips on this also would be great, though I'm thinking :

Athlon II X3 435 + ASUS M4A77D mobo

Any thoughts? And... will getting an SSD improve FF's fps choppiness?????? FUCK! Can I say choppiness anymore?

Choppiness

**Elmo** · 07-20-2010, 09:34 AM

depends on the source of your problems - you haven't said the gfx card you have currently

Most of FF is CPU dependant, if your choppiness doesn't improve when you change GFX settings (lower quality and lower res) then it's probably your CPU. If you see many improvements then it probably is indeed your GFX. Likelihood is that it is a bit of both (CPU and GFX) if your PC is quite old...

You can often tell from comparing netgraph and +showbudget to see what fps you get. Please someone correct me if I'm wrong cause I can't remember for sure; but if driver time (quoted in miliseconds on +showbudget) is high and the fps is lower than the fps shown in your netgraph then it's your CPU that's dragging. Choppiness is often CPU related I've found and correlates directly with what's being shown in +showbudget.

Could you go 'sv_cheats 1', put '+showbudget' and 'net_graph 3' on, spam a lot (mirvs, pipes, grens) and screenshot.

Aftershok/Squeek do you think we could change +showbudget from cheats in a future patch? I cant see why it is and believe it would be useful to check in multiplayer.

**Elmo** · 07-20-2010, 09:35 AM

I hope this helps in some way.

Lynus · 07-20-2010, 02:01 PM

I currently have a 7600gt which I believe to be dead. Died while playing Dragon Ages Origins, though I'm going to throw it in the oven for a few minutes to see if that trick helps... then if not, pawn it on ebay for a few bucks.

I've been playing on a dual core, 4gb laptop with (i think) a 3200 radeon hd build in vid card... FF is playable but gets choppy from time to time.

So yea, I would love to be able to turn the settings up in the game to get the eye candy factor while also have a glitch free gaming experience.

BTW - is DX 11 at all integrated into FF? and if not, will it be?

EDIT : Also while I've got ya here Elmo, is FF being ported for the Orange Box engine still, and if so - what kind of gameplay/visual improvements will we see?(clueless on that topic)

**mervaka** · 07-20-2010, 02:05 PM

really? i run a very similar system to you. i have an Intel E6600 and XFX Geforce 7900GTX. been running that for about 4 years, runs fine!

Lynus · 07-20-2010, 02:21 PM

It was on 1 gig of ram when it was choppy... just recently upgraded.

Gwarsbane · 07-20-2010, 02:33 PM

I've got a AMD X2 4800 AM2 cpu with 4gigs ram and Asus M3A mobo. I'm running Windows Home XP SP3 32bit.

For around 150 bucks I was able to pick up a Powercolor Radeon HD 5770 video card. I'm able to run Fortress Forever at 1920x1200x32 (16:10) on a 24 inch monitor. I have all the settings maxed and its nice and smooth. I believe my FPS are around 70 to 120+ (depends on the map and where on the map I am)

I am more then happy with this card.

Here is the exact card I have

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-327-_-Product

http://www.ncixus.com/products/48581...PG/PowerColor/

After rebate now its cheaper then when I got it.

The mobo and cpu you picked out are nice, I have been thinking of a mobo like that too where I could easily upgrade to an AM3 in the future. My current mobo can go upto a 95watt AM2+ cpu which limits what I can get. The mobo you picked out can take virtually any AM2/AM2+/AM3 CPU up to 140watts. So even if you get that CPU you picked out you will have lots of room to expand in the future.

With the new cpu you picked out and the video card I suggested, your FPS should be higher then mine if you are running it at the same rez I am, if its a lower rez then they will be higher then mine for sure.

The power supply should be enough, but you need to make sure its got a 6pin connector on it because most newer video cards require at least a single 6 pin connector. If you don't have one, you should be able to pick up a 6 pin adapter should look like this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-106-_-Product

Other then that your power supply should be ok, though I would consider upgrading that in the near future too. I went with a little over kill when I got mine, I went with a 750watt one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-006-_-Product Its not modular cables which would have been nice and there are lots of long cables, but with this thing I'm set for a long long time and can upgrade to pretty much any video card, cpu, and mobo I want.

**Elmo** · 07-20-2010, 02:34 PM

I used to have a 7600 which used to run okay - it was the best 7600 around though. But if yours is dead then it's dead. I'm currently running a 8800GTX which runs fairly decently with my Q6600. I'm not up to date on hardware anymore n am sure you might want to invest in something new.

Could try overclocking your E6300 a bit. I'm sure you can put it up a fair few MHz without having to worry about voltage/temperature. Though maybe its cache related - I dunno.

Oh btw I doubt an SSD will change anything once your in game! It'll just let you load faster.

There;s nothing even DX10 related with source I think. Nothing DX11 for sure.

WRT orange box, I'd look up on the forum for the main threads about it - I can't tell you anything more than what's there. But as a quick reply: There wouldn't be much gain, esp not from just changing engines. We'd have to put in the work ourselves to make use of most new features. The main difference to us would be the multi core support (which i think would come with moving engines alone - no extra work). Which would be lovelly but currently theres no development of that kind going on. It's not a small task at all.

Lynus · 07-20-2010, 02:56 PM

Thanks guys, I appreciate the input.

What about 64 bit vs 32 bit os?

Gwarsbane · 07-20-2010, 03:01 PM

The video card I suggested is DX11 capable, but only if you have vista (with the update to DX11) or windows 7 (which is DX11 right out of the box)

While it looks like a nice improvement, there are not a whole lot of games that are DX11 only. Only reason I got it was because it was within my price range and I wanted to be DX11 ready for when I eventually pick up windows 7. Still don't know when that will be, but at least I'm ready for it. (dirt 2 that comes with the card is amazing looking in DX9.0c, it should look even more amazing in DX11)

**Elmo** · 07-20-2010, 03:07 PM

64/32 won't change anything for FF right now. half life source is a 32bit process.

I don't think any hl mods are 64-bit?? But don't hold me to that last part.

Lynus · 07-20-2010, 04:11 PM

Right on... been helpful..

Thanks again!

07-20-2010, 07:16 AM	#1
Lynus I like Ceyx Beta Tester Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: MI Posts Rated Helpful 11 Times	Best FF Gfx Card for ~ $150 I'm sick of having 10-60 fps. I want FF to be perfectly smooth, and really couldnt give a shit less about the appearance of the game, I just dont want to have the choppiness anymore. Any help (preferrably by devs) greatly appreciated! Thanks! My specs : e6300 core2duo 1.86ghz (stock) 550w psu windows xp pro 32 bit(also have win7 if its better for fps) < also 32bit vs 64 bit ... whats better for FF? > 4gb pc6400 g.skill dg865wh intel board. thinking about replacing mobo+cpu as well so any tips on this also would be great, though I'm thinking : Athlon II X3 435 + ASUS M4A77D mobo Any thoughts? And... will getting an SSD improve FF's fps choppiness?????? FUCK! Can I say choppiness anymore? Choppiness Last edited by Lynus; 07-20-2010 at 07:19 AM.

07-20-2010, 09:34 AM	#2
Elmo Gets tickled by FF Fortress Forever Staff Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: UK Class/Position: Med Solly HW Gametype: Any/CTF Posts Rated Helpful 41 Times	depends on the source of your problems - you haven't said the gfx card you have currently Most of FF is CPU dependant, if your choppiness doesn't improve when you change GFX settings (lower quality and lower res) then it's probably your CPU. If you see many improvements then it probably is indeed your GFX. Likelihood is that it is a bit of both (CPU and GFX) if your PC is quite old... You can often tell from comparing netgraph and +showbudget to see what fps you get. Please someone correct me if I'm wrong cause I can't remember for sure; but if driver time (quoted in miliseconds on +showbudget) is high and the fps is lower than the fps shown in your netgraph then it's your CPU that's dragging. Choppiness is often CPU related I've found and correlates directly with what's being shown in +showbudget. Could you go 'sv_cheats 1', put '+showbudget' and 'net_graph 3' on, spam a lot (mirvs, pipes, grens) and screenshot. Aftershok/Squeek do you think we could change +showbudget from cheats in a future patch? I cant see why it is and believe it would be useful to check in multiplayer. __________________ Support FF: Done: ff_monkey Done: ff_bases Done: ff_warpath Forever Doing: ff_medieval (beta#99999999)

07-20-2010, 09:35 AM	#3
Elmo Gets tickled by FF Fortress Forever Staff Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: UK Class/Position: Med Solly HW Gametype: Any/CTF Posts Rated Helpful 41 Times	I hope this helps in some way. __________________ Support FF: Done: ff_monkey Done: ff_bases Done: ff_warpath Forever Doing: ff_medieval (beta#99999999)

07-20-2010, 02:01 PM	#4
Lynus I like Ceyx Beta Tester Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: MI Posts Rated Helpful 11 Times	I currently have a 7600gt which I believe to be dead. Died while playing Dragon Ages Origins, though I'm going to throw it in the oven for a few minutes to see if that trick helps... then if not, pawn it on ebay for a few bucks. I've been playing on a dual core, 4gb laptop with (i think) a 3200 radeon hd build in vid card... FF is playable but gets choppy from time to time. So yea, I would love to be able to turn the settings up in the game to get the eye candy factor while also have a glitch free gaming experience. BTW - is DX 11 at all integrated into FF? and if not, will it be? EDIT : Also while I've got ya here Elmo, is FF being ported for the Orange Box engine still, and if so - what kind of gameplay/visual improvements will we see?(clueless on that topic) Last edited by Lynus; 07-20-2010 at 02:04 PM.

07-20-2010, 02:34 PM	#8
Elmo Gets tickled by FF Fortress Forever Staff Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: UK Class/Position: Med Solly HW Gametype: Any/CTF Posts Rated Helpful 41 Times	I used to have a 7600 which used to run okay - it was the best 7600 around though. But if yours is dead then it's dead. I'm currently running a 8800GTX which runs fairly decently with my Q6600. I'm not up to date on hardware anymore n am sure you might want to invest in something new. Could try overclocking your E6300 a bit. I'm sure you can put it up a fair few MHz without having to worry about voltage/temperature. Though maybe its cache related - I dunno. Oh btw I doubt an SSD will change anything once your in game! It'll just let you load faster. There;s nothing even DX10 related with source I think. Nothing DX11 for sure. WRT orange box, I'd look up on the forum for the main threads about it - I can't tell you anything more than what's there. But as a quick reply: There wouldn't be much gain, esp not from just changing engines. We'd have to put in the work ourselves to make use of most new features. The main difference to us would be the multi core support (which i think would come with moving engines alone - no extra work). Which would be lovelly but currently theres no development of that kind going on. It's not a small task at all. __________________ Support FF: Done: ff_monkey Done: ff_bases Done: ff_warpath Forever Doing: ff_medieval (beta#99999999) Last edited by Elmo; 07-20-2010 at 02:34 PM.

07-20-2010, 02:05 PM	#5
mervaka A Very Sound Guy! Fortress Forever Staff Join Date: May 2005 Location: UK Posts Rated Helpful 15 Times	really? i run a very similar system to you. i have an Intel E6600 and XFX Geforce 7900GTX. been running that for about 4 years, runs fine!

07-20-2010, 02:21 PM	#6
Lynus I like Ceyx Beta Tester Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: MI Posts Rated Helpful 11 Times	It was on 1 gig of ram when it was choppy... just recently upgraded.

07-20-2010, 02:33 PM	#7
Gwarsbane Slayer of humans D&A Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mostly on earth though in some alt dimensions Class/Position: I'm an Offensive Defensive person Gametype: Fortress Forever Affiliations: I'm a merc, only thing that talks is money Posts Rated Helpful 3 Times	I've got a AMD X2 4800 AM2 cpu with 4gigs ram and Asus M3A mobo. I'm running Windows Home XP SP3 32bit. For around 150 bucks I was able to pick up a Powercolor Radeon HD 5770 video card. I'm able to run Fortress Forever at 1920x1200x32 (16:10) on a 24 inch monitor. I have all the settings maxed and its nice and smooth. I believe my FPS are around 70 to 120+ (depends on the map and where on the map I am) I am more then happy with this card. Here is the exact card I have http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-327-_-Product http://www.ncixus.com/products/48581...PG/PowerColor/ After rebate now its cheaper then when I got it. The mobo and cpu you picked out are nice, I have been thinking of a mobo like that too where I could easily upgrade to an AM3 in the future. My current mobo can go upto a 95watt AM2+ cpu which limits what I can get. The mobo you picked out can take virtually any AM2/AM2+/AM3 CPU up to 140watts. So even if you get that CPU you picked out you will have lots of room to expand in the future. With the new cpu you picked out and the video card I suggested, your FPS should be higher then mine if you are running it at the same rez I am, if its a lower rez then they will be higher then mine for sure. The power supply should be enough, but you need to make sure its got a 6pin connector on it because most newer video cards require at least a single 6 pin connector. If you don't have one, you should be able to pick up a 6 pin adapter should look like this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-106-_-Product Other then that your power supply should be ok, though I would consider upgrading that in the near future too. I went with a little over kill when I got mine, I went with a 750watt one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-006-_-Product Its not modular cables which would have been nice and there are lots of long cables, but with this thing I'm set for a long long time and can upgrade to pretty much any video card, cpu, and mobo I want.

07-20-2010, 02:56 PM	#9
Lynus I like Ceyx Beta Tester Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: MI Posts Rated Helpful 11 Times	Thanks guys, I appreciate the input. What about 64 bit vs 32 bit os?

07-20-2010, 03:01 PM	#10
Gwarsbane Slayer of humans D&A Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mostly on earth though in some alt dimensions Class/Position: I'm an Offensive Defensive person Gametype: Fortress Forever Affiliations: I'm a merc, only thing that talks is money Posts Rated Helpful 3 Times	The video card I suggested is DX11 capable, but only if you have vista (with the update to DX11) or windows 7 (which is DX11 right out of the box) While it looks like a nice improvement, there are not a whole lot of games that are DX11 only. Only reason I got it was because it was within my price range and I wanted to be DX11 ready for when I eventually pick up windows 7. Still don't know when that will be, but at least I'm ready for it. (dirt 2 that comes with the card is amazing looking in DX9.0c, it should look even more amazing in DX11)

07-20-2010, 03:07 PM	#11
Elmo Gets tickled by FF Fortress Forever Staff Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: UK Class/Position: Med Solly HW Gametype: Any/CTF Posts Rated Helpful 41 Times	64/32 won't change anything for FF right now. half life source is a 32bit process. I don't think any hl mods are 64-bit?? But don't hold me to that last part. __________________ Support FF: Done: ff_monkey Done: ff_bases Done: ff_warpath Forever Doing: ff_medieval (beta#99999999)

07-20-2010, 04:11 PM	#12
Lynus I like Ceyx Beta Tester Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: MI Posts Rated Helpful 11 Times	Right on... been helpful.. Thanks again!

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