FPS drops to 10-30..

deems · 2011-06-07 11:45:01 UTC

Is there anyone other than me that has NVIDIA and is experiencing a FPS drops problem?

The game runs well at say 60+FPS for a lot of time, but then drops to between 10 and 20 FPS, lasting for about 5-20 seconds.

This seems to happen the most often when there are lots of players on the screen – but not always. It also happens often right after I respawn.

AMD Phenom 9500 X4 @ 2.2 GHz
NVIDIA GTX 480
4 GB Ram DDR2 @ 800 MHz

I’m trying to figure out if this is something odd about my computer or a bug in Brink. Thanks.

(Please please please do not hijack this thread into a hating-Brink or SD thread. I really like the game when it runs smoothly. Thanks.)

Qbix · 2011-06-07 11:53:19 UTC

Although it’s just a wild theory of mine, I’d say you need a better CPU. Not for other games, but obviously for BRINK. I have no other explanation for those drops except perhaps that there is something running in the background which you should look for and disable.

Do those fps drops occur periodically or at specific locations? And make sure you have the latest nvidia drivers installed, just to be sure.

deems · 2011-06-07 12:59:44 UTC

The FPS drops do not occur at a regular period nor at specific locations (as far as I can tell). I’ve also had sessions of game play where they have not happened at all (rare). I do have the latest drivers.

Thanks for your suggestions.

deems · 2011-06-07 20:01:41 UTC

Son of a b****, I think I’ve got it. I think my CPU was overheating. I’ve taken the case cover off and just played for over an hour with none of the drops. I think once it dropped down to 35ish…but compared to before, this is great. Totally playable now. And a great game as well.

Crispy · 2011-06-08 11:56:59 UTC

[QUOTE=deems;335018]Son of a b****, I think I’ve got it. I think my CPU was overheating. I’ve taken the case cover off and just played for over an hour with none of the drops. I think once it dropped down to 35ish…but compared to before, this is great. Totally playable now. And a great game as well.[/QUOTE]Taking the case cover off will only improve ventilation if your current cooling solutions are not doing their job. It’s not really recommended.

Look at removing any dust from your fans/grills/power supply/heat sinks (note: don’t do this with a vacuum cleaner or while the PC is connected to any power socket), ensuring your fans are mounted correctly to push air in the right direction (through the case in one continuous flow) and that they are all operating correctly.

If you post a condump after you boot the game I can tell of there is some other issue (see link in my sig for how to get one).

Smoochy · 2011-06-08 16:27:31 UTC

well worth getting a can of compressed air. you will not believe how much crap can gather. i recently replaced my ageing 8800gtx and im amazed it was still working. the fans were massively clogged up with rubbish.

also, look at getting a better heatsink/fan for the cpu.

ive just ordered one of these:

do you have an exhaust fan for the pc case? i.e. one that pulls the air out of the back? you can also have one in the front to push cool air in. problem being mine sits on the floor so it just added dust (and dog hairs!)

deems · 2011-06-08 18:38:30 UTC

Thanks for the tips guys. I’ll look into getting a better heat sink for my CPU…it’s just the stock at the mo’.

I think the problem is that my case is quite full of things… 3 hds that kind of get in the way of the front fan etc. Also the components I have GTX 480 and Phenom 9500 allegedly run quite hot so…

Things seem to be working great with the cover off for now tho’!

Smoochy · 2011-06-09 09:07:12 UTC

[QUOTE=deems;335647]Thanks for the tips guys. I’ll look into getting a better heat sink for my CPU…it’s just the stock at the mo’.

I think the problem is that my case is quite full of things… 3 hds that kind of get in the way of the front fan etc. Also the components I have GTX 480 and Phenom 9500 allegedly run quite hot so…

Things seem to be working great with the cover off for now tho’![/QUOTE]

yeah, get a decent HSF. also maybe look at getting a new case. you can pick up a decent one for about £35. ideally you want one with a fan at the front and one at the rear. dont forget to put the thermal paste on the CPU when you replace the HSF

Fatfool · 2011-06-09 11:57:04 UTC

[QUOTE=deems;335647]Thanks for the tips guys. I’ll look into getting a better heat sink for my CPU…it’s just the stock at the mo’.

I think the problem is that my case is quite full of things… 3 hds that kind of get in the way of the front fan etc. Also the components I have GTX 480 and Phenom 9500 allegedly run quite hot so…

Things seem to be working great with the cover off for now tho’![/QUOTE]
Agena. Oh yeah that was hot.

Time to do some dusting.

deems · 2011-06-13 19:08:02 UTC

Hi Crispy,

Here are some conDumps, if you wouldn’t mind having a look, I’d appreciate it.

Below are three different condumps, each taken during or shortly after a drop in FPS. Like I mentioned in the forum, my situation is improved…but it still drops down to less 30 fps from time to time, making survival impossible :). I don’t know if it’s unusual, but there are loads of warning and error messages.

The drops seem to happen at random times – I can’t find any common theme to when they happen. In the open areas, in corridors. The only thing is that they do seem to happen more often right after I’ve respawned (but def. aren’t limited to happening then).

My rig is
AMD Phenom 9500 @2.35 GHz
4GB DDR2 RAM
NVIDIA GTX 480

I’m happy to do more tests if you like or gather more data if it helps. I’m a computer scientist, so I can do techy stuff too if that helps. Much obliged for any comments / help you may have.

Thanks
Deems

Crispy · 2011-06-22 18:27:40 UTC

Have you read the performance guide I wrote?

Did you try cleaning out any dust like I said?

It may be worth downloading some free software that will help you check the temperatures of your components. Ask here for recommendations if you need them.

Smoochy · 2011-06-23 12:07:06 UTC

coretemp is what i use to monitor my overclocking.

btw - is your phenom able to unlock any extra cores? i seem to remember tricores being able to be turned into quad cores. read up though, it might be that the 3-cores had a failed core initially or something. ive been intel for ~10years now

Smoochy · 2011-06-23 12:07:40 UTC

[QUOTE=Crispy;343273]Have you read the performance guide I wrote?

Did you try cleaning out any dust like I said?

It may be worth downloading some free software that will help you check the temperatures of your components. Ask here for recommendations if you need them.[/QUOTE]

the best advice would be to buy nvidia i think mate.