Horrible Fps W/ Decent Card
r3dsk4r3
Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16257Members
Join Date: 2003-05-13 Member: 16257Members
for some strange reason, i am getting ~20 fps on NS, and ~5 fps on DOD. i am running a p3 550mhz, 128mb ram, and a geforce 4 mx 440, i have a new computer which i am yet to put the mx 440 in, but i fear that it may encounter the same problems. i know that this isn't the best setup in the world, but it should be getting more than that, as the 16mb card i replaced was getting only a little lower. the card is rated at agpx4, but my mobo has agpx1. could that cause the problem? there aren't any artifacts and the textures/lighting looks fine, this isn't a quality issue, its straight fps. are there any hl specific variables that could cause this, other than fps_max? i'll get back here as soon as i can find a similar game to compare these resuults to.
p.s. this isn't my only computer, nor is it anywhere near my best, so don't flame my setup. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
p.s. this isn't my only computer, nor is it anywhere near my best, so don't flame my setup. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
Comments
i am probably going to move the card into my new system, athlon 2500+, 512mb pc3200, soyo kt400 mobo. it has the correct 4x/8x agp slot too. i hope that i get more than 20 fps on that setup. if not i will be seriously... you know... mad.
vsync
control panel - > display -> settings -> card settings
though that was for my g4
im sure radeon has some ways to turn off vsync too....right?
256 ram
Geforce 4mx 440
Never go below 30fps usually locked at 60.
id also suggest closing jsut about every program you can, including any icons next to the clock (those are really running programs)
500mhz P 3,
192 megs ram
gf2 mx
40-50 fps at start and good rooms, mostly 30 in normal situations and 15 and below in firefights :/
And amount of RAM if you didn't in original post.
2.0 gigs
512mb RAM
64 mb GeForce 4 MX 440
and i get a constant 100 fps, make sure vsync is off and you are running in OpenGL
vsync
control panel - > display -> settings -> card settings
though that was for my g4
im sure radeon has some ways to turn off vsync too....right? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
my fps lagging to 20 or so or being sub 100 doesnt bother me in the slightest :/ Its how Ive always played. The problem I have atm is my mouse, its 2 fold, 1. my drivers (i think) are causing me to get what looks like 10 fps or less randomly and frequently and 2. On my desk (though I change house in 2 weeks) my mouse doesnt work well, its so bad that playing games like shattered galaxy and UFO: Enemy Unknown I cant click on the correct icons most of the time and lose due to that!
turn v-sync of. (it really slows you down)
ATI: desktop>properties>settings>advanced>openGL> wait for vertical sync (put it on default off.)
go to your config.cfg file and set "fps_max 100" (standard it is 70 i believe)
i had the same with my old comp on a mx 440 and those 2 settings solved everything. (most of all the v-sync.)
now i play with a steady 100 fps hole game long.
fps_max 100
cl_updaterate 50
cl_cmdrate 50
I have my rates set higher because it runs smoother that way on my connection for some reason.
I now have AMD 1700+ and 512 RAM
GeForce FX 5200 (the crappy one) 128 MB ram and I currently get 85 FPS (My monitors max) at 800x 600
My questions for the origional poster:
Are you running OpenGL?
What screen size?
In game rates?
Hardware Acceleration on (for vid card)?
Are you running ANYTHING in the background other than the two I mentioned earlier?
When was the last time you derfragged?
p.s. this isn't my only computer, nor is it anywhere near my best, so don't flame my setup. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Have you upgraded your drivers recently? If not go to www.nvidia.com and get on that. The thing that makes nVidia own is their drivers, so take advantage!
I mean, I was running 1.1 ghz 128mb on a GeForce2 MX 400 and getting ~90 ( open GL and vsync OFF ).
Now I get 100 constant with my 2.6ghz 256 mb GeForce FX 5600 Ultra 128 =]. But yeah, drivers > you.
Gee i wonder what the problem is...
Ok first off, the MX 440 is a budget version of the GF4 and is quite heavily cut down, it isnt a fantastic card - but that doesn't matter, because at the moment unless you're running in quite a high resolution, your CPU simply isnt fast enough to push any card of the last few years.
Half life is an old game, very old. It has no bump mapping, no fancy shader effects, no amazing hardware accelerated light tricks. Basically, it doesn't stress the video card. Assuming you're running in a modest resolution (800x600, 1024x768) and not making use of any FSAA or anisotropic filtering, which video card you run is going to make practically no difference to your framerate.
What is going to make a difference, the most pronounced difference in this case, is the speed of your processor. And your processor is obsolete tech. 128mb is also probably cutting it tight for NS.
Assuming you're moving up to the specs you quoted (athlon 2500+, 512mb pc3200) you can expect a very noticable jump in framerate. However, now that you have a respectable CPU, the video card is going to start showing its failings, as the CPU is fast enough to start pushing it hard. If you stick with a low resolution and don't try and do anything silly like use FSAA, you should be fine with the 440, but you might want to consider an upgrade to your gfx card later down the line. The 440 should be ok for HL1, but as the rest of your system is quite nice, you're probably considering playing more up to date games. I wouldn't want to be the guy stuck playing HL2 or Doom 3 on a MX440.
It'll run OK. You'll just be missing a lot of eye-candy.
2.0 gigs
512mb RAM
64 mb GeForce 4 MX 440
and i get a constant 100 fps, make sure vsync is off and you are running in OpenGL <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Well DUH! Your computer is 4 times faster than r3dsgsahgaligalog.....uh....... whats-his-name's.
Tbh, I find FPS is more dependant on processor speed than gfx card, but I may be wrong.
I went from an 800mhz, about 10-20fps, to a 1500mhz, 40-60fps.
They had similar graphics cards (one Nvidia, one ATI, the 1.5's is slightly faster though).
With a 500mhz processor I can only say...... sorry m8. Get a better one <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo--> (that isn't helpful, is it?)
p.s. this isn't my only computer, nor is it anywhere near my best, so don't flame my setup. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo--><!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm afrad that most of these people are correct stating that your pentium 3 processor just isn't good enough for your geforce4 mx 440 and here is why. Your geforce4 mx 440 video card ( as cheap as it maybe ) does have a lot of technical, graphical advancements that were just not available in the pentium 3, celeron and older amd k7 processors coding and this is why your frame rates appear so slow. Upgrading to a pentium 4 or xp athlon processor with your geforce4 mx 440 video card will show a drastic improvement in performance.
But if your springing for a newer/faster PC, you may want to upgrade to a better/faster video card as well. The ATI Radeon 9200 or 9600 pro or the Geforce Ti 5200 or 5600 are all reasonablely priced buget video cards that can pack a pretty good punch and take advantage of the latest and greatest DirectX 9 and 4X/8X AGP port advancements.
Also, you have not mentioned what operating system your running. Windows 98 & ME are better at gaming chores ( when using the pentium 3 processor ) as compared to any NT based operating system but you can tweek your NT5 operating system (win2k/winxp) to perform well enough. A good start to improving your frame rates if your running NT5 with the P3, celeron or K7 processor is to use D3D instead of openGL and to disable wait for vsynk in your video card settings.
<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> i am running a p3 550mhz, 128mb ram, <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
i have a P1 in my basement thats so old it doesnt even have an ethernet card... your 550mhz isnt too far ahead of that.
triple the the proc speed and ram and you should actually get preformance on par with your Gf4
personally, i run a 2.2gig AMD with 640meg PC133 and i only have a geeforce2 64 TI platnum... i maintain 85+ FPS
i think the point is, the vid card doesnt make THAT much of a diference unless itsone of nvidia or ATIs new generation cards... then the card starts to show its worth in HL
OH YEA, run in OGL, not d3d... even my machine chockes on D3D alittle.
<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> i am running a p3 550mhz, 128mb ram, <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
personally, i run a 2.2gig AMD with 640meg PC133 and i only have a geeforce2 64 TI platnum... i maintain 85+ FPS
OH YEA, run in OGL, not d3d... even my machine chockes on D3D alittle. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I think your missing a small point here.
<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Geforce4 mx 440 16mb 4X agp<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
As pathetic as this video card may appear to be, it is more video card then his simple P3 system can handle. Although I have never seen the geforce4 mx 440 with only 16mb unless in the PCI form or intergrated.
r3dsk4r3, are you sure about these specs?
Also, FYI, Half-Life doesn't get any better than 100FPS.
Also, FYI, Half-Life doesn't get any better than 100FPS. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Good point PseudoKnight but let me elaborate on this subject some.
Most standerd monitors have a default refresh rate of 60hz which is ok for the adverage person who only uses thier pc's for 30 mintes or less and does not do any kind of serious gaming. Video cards with "wait for vsync" enabled can only refresh as fast as the monitors refresh rate will allow.
So in short, a 60hz refresh rate will only allow a maximum of 60 fps. Also note that win2k/xp can not control monitor refresh rates properly if your using the "default" monitor driver. Use anything but "default".
For those of you reading this that don't know how to fix this problem, heres how.
Open the control panel, click display. On the display properties page, click the setting tab. Click the advanced button on the bottom. Now click the monitor tab. If the monitor type is default or plug & play, change it to the correct driver for your monitor or use Super VGA with the highest res you know your monitor can take. Also, be sure to check the screen refresh rate. If set at 60hz, increase it to 75hz. Some standerd monitors can't really go any higher but if it can, the higher your refresh rate is, the higher your fps can get.