Guild Wars 2

Hey all, I haven’t been playing GW2 that much so I don’t know if things have changed but I used to get very good FPS on my current build, but when zoning into WvWvW, not surprisingly, my fps would drop to about 10-15. I am assuming this is because i played on ultra and my processor was the bottleneck of the build. Below are my specs, take a look and tell me what you think needs upgrading in order for me to play @ max settings in wvwvw.

XFX AMD Radeon R7770 Core Edition
8G Ram
AMD FX-4100 processor
Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2 Motherboard
Standard 7200RPM HDD

Really the only variables in this is either the graphics card or the processor, usually. I;m thinking that the fx-4100 is really bringing down my card, as I cannot overclock it without my computer hard locking or black screening so I haven’t played GW much, if at all.

TL;DR —- What should I upgrade in other to play comfortably on max settings in wvwvw?

I was thinking of getting an i7-3770 or an i5-2500k, mainly uncertain weather the latter is going to cut it or not.

Getting an AMD FX-8350 CPU would be your best bet; if you get an Intel processor, you’ll need a new motherboard. So again, if you’re on any type of budget, just get an FX-8350.

Your GPU is fine, I use the same one; FPS drops are a common issue no matter your specs, but upgrading your processor should definitely help.

thanks for the reply sheer, didn’t know that about my motherboard, and you’re right the 8350 looks like a good choice as its the best benchmarked amd cpu. thanks again!

Fathme.5216:

thanks for the reply sheer, didn’t know that about my motherboard, and you’re right the 8350 looks like a good choice as its the best benchmarked amd cpu. thanks again!

No problem! Just keep an eye on when you do intend to upgrade your motherboard/CPU that the sockets match so you don’t run into any problems. If you’re familiar with Newegg at all, you can find the socket information simply by looking in the “details” section of the component.

In fact, anytime you go to upgrade a part of your computer, make sure it’s compatible. It can save you a headache in the future.

I just upgraded my whole rig and it came down to the 8350 vs the 6300. After spending several hours reading around and comparing I would definitely say save the 50 bucks and get the FX6300 if you are thinking 8350 currently. You will hardly notice a difference in GW2 as it won’t utilize 8 cores. A FX6300 can also be clocked up to 5Ghz with the right cooler. Many overstock on the stock cooler but it is loud IMO.

Sheer.7529:

Getting an AMD FX-8350 CPU would be your best bet; if you get an Intel processor, you’ll need a new motherboard. So again, if you’re on any type of budget, just get an FX-8350.

Your GPU is fine, I use the same one; FPS drops are a common issue no matter your specs, but upgrading your processor should definitely help.

Thats really bad advise his MB will not support that chip.
http://www.cpu-upgrade.com/mb-Gigabyte/GA-78LMT-S2(rev._1.0).html
Now for the good stuff update your BIOS and get the 6300 get a decent aftermarket cooler and overkitten to about 4.0 or higher if that cheap mother board will let you, ultra is out of the question. cut the shadows and reflections to off/low and play the game.
The 7770 video card is pretty much a entry level video card for gaming.

Alex -

Actually, the AMD FX-8350 holds the world record for the highest stable overclock speed; with the fact that he said he hasn’t been playing GW2 much lately, I’m assuming he’s also using his computer for things other than just this game in particular. In which case, spending the extra $50 for a generally better processor across all boards is worth it, in my opinion. Nevertheless, see the following regarding my opinion for this specific thread -

Zerk -

I apologize; you’re correct. I didn’t look into the motherboard much past the AM3+ socket type for the sake of time when I posted. In this case, yes, it would be best to go with an FX-6300 since the FX-8350 isn’t compatible with the specific motherboard.

Your problems with overclocking your current processor are most likely due to your motherboard. The board most likely can’t handle the stress of the overclock (VRM isn’t meant to supply higher voltages, and has no heatsink). If you want to get a good overclock with any chip, you’ll need a new motherboard. Something like
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128519
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128514
should allow you to overclock your current processor or an upgrade (both will support up to an FX8350).

The other possibility is that your CPU is overheating, so I’d add aftermarket cooling if you don’t have it already. If you add much voltage at all you’ll hit the thermal limits of your CPU pretty quickly on stock cooling, and there’s no reason to risk frying your hardware when a $30 cooler can keep things reasonably under control.

Sheer.7529:

Alex -
Actually, the AMD FX-8350 holds the world record for the highest stable overclock speed

Off topic, but that wasn’t really a “stable” overclock.

A 3770k would be the best choice, but u will need a new motherboard for it.

If in the end u cant afford both the 3770k and a new motherboard, then the FX 8350 would be the next best thing. that said, ur current motherboard wouldnt support it so u would be looking at the FX 6300. IMO if u cant go up to a FX 8350 with ur current board, u might aswell switch to a Intel setup.

The only time its really worth upgrading one amd to another for GW2, is when u can go to a FX 8350, if u cant ..then change motherboard and go Intel.

What ever u choose u will need a good aftermarket cooler aswell so u can OC ur chosen CPU.

Does anyone really run WvW with maxed out settings (ultra shadows etc) and not drop to painfully low fps in the biggest zergs? I have an i5 2500k at 4.3 ghz and I get between 20-30 fps in the middle of these fights. Dropping all my settings down to the lowest only gives me about 10 extra fps, so 25-40 fps in huge zergs on lowest settings.

Someone told me yesterday that they ran WvW on ultra with no noticeable lag, he said he had an i7 cpu at 2.6 ghz or something, that’s all the info I could get other than “i built this pc for 1100£”.

So, who here runs WvW smoothly on max settings in huge fights, please post your pc specs.

Well me personaly, i cant run max settings ..technicaly i cant even run all high, my GPU just cant handle it when in those extreme situations, it is the next big upgrade on my list of things to do., ill ether be buying a GTX Titan (if it comes down in price just a tad) or waiting for the 780 to release.
However i do run shadows on high ..reflections on terrain and sky, and all other settings on max (sampling on native) even in WvW. By the time their is enough people on screen to cause my GPU to max out, its also usualy at the point my FPS would start dipping due to CPU bottlenecking.

If i set all settings to medium in a very large battle i may get 45fps, if i set them to the settings as staded above it may go down to 35. But on both settings the lowest FPS is the same, 30, as at that point the CPU bottleneck surpasses the GPU bottleneck.

So it is possible to run at near max/ or totally max settings in WvW, u just need a very good GPU and a heavily OC’ed CPU.

So is my i5 2500k 4.3ghz bottlenecking my sapphire 7970? I never get 45 fps in huge fights even on low..

yes…bassicaly.

For one, its only got 4 threads. Now although thats enough for most of GW2, in really heavy situations like special events (karka invasion) and heavy WvW battles, it does help to have those extra threads, my CPU can hit 50% overall usuage in some rare heavy situations, thats the equivalnet to 6 full threads.
Secondly, 4.3ghz isnt enough, u need atleast 4.6ghz on a sandy, and atleast 4.4ghz on an ivy. I generaly just say aim for 4.5ghz.

basketcase.3894:

Your problems with overclocking your current processor are most likely due to your motherboard. The board most likely can’t handle the stress of the overclock (VRM isn’t meant to supply higher voltages, and has no heatsink). If you want to get a good overclock with any chip, you’ll need a new motherboard. Something like
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128519
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128514
should allow you to overclock your current processor or an upgrade (both will support up to an FX8350).

The other possibility is that your CPU is overheating, so I’d add aftermarket cooling if you don’t have it already. If you add much voltage at all you’ll hit the thermal limits of your CPU pretty quickly on stock cooling, and there’s no reason to risk frying your hardware when a $30 cooler can keep things reasonably under control.

Sheer.7529:

Alex -
Actually, the AMD FX-8350 holds the world record for the highest stable overclock speed

Off topic, but that wasn’t really a “stable” overclock.

Yea, I’ve tried overclocking it before, but was unsuccessful in using AMD OverDrive, I have not attempted the manual OC through the BIOS; personally it seems like too much of a hassle to go into that every time i want to set it back to normal clock speeds, so i just don’t do it. But yes, a lot of strange things happen when i OC mostly just game crashes and stuttering when browsing the web; the start menu will change its style along with windows, having smaller Close, Restore, and minimize options (top right)… I will most likely just get a new motherboard as you say, and also a new cpu…

Fathme.5216:

Yea, I’ve tried overclocking it before, but was unsuccessful in using AMD OverDrive, I have not attempted the manual OC through the BIOS; personally it seems like too much of a hassle to go into that every time i want to set it back to normal clock speeds, so i just don’t do it. But yes, a lot of strange things happen when i OC mostly just game crashes and stuttering when browsing the web; the start menu will change its style along with windows, having smaller Close, Restore, and minimize options (top right)… I will most likely just get a new motherboard as you say, and also a new cpu…

I highly recommend using the BIOS rather than software if you want to overclock. If you do it properly and get a stable overclock in the BIOS with reasonable temps and voltages, there’s not much reason to switch back to stock speed. Even then, many motherboards will let you save profiles, so you can save your overclocked settings (or multiple overclocks) and quickly swap as you start up.

basketcase.3894:

Fathme.5216:

Yea, I’ve tried overclocking it before, but was unsuccessful in using AMD OverDrive, I have not attempted the manual OC through the BIOS; personally it seems like too much of a hassle to go into that every time i want to set it back to normal clock speeds, so i just don’t do it. But yes, a lot of strange things happen when i OC mostly just game crashes and stuttering when browsing the web; the start menu will change its style along with windows, having smaller Close, Restore, and minimize options (top right)… I will most likely just get a new motherboard as you say, and also a new cpu…

I highly recommend using the BIOS rather than software if you want to overclock. If you do it properly and get a stable overclock in the BIOS with reasonable temps and voltages, there’s not much reason to switch back to stock speed. Even then, many motherboards will let you save profiles, so you can save your overclocked settings (or multiple overclocks) and quickly swap as you start up.

it’s just extra wear and tear on the cpu if you overclock it 24/7 though, no?

Fathme.5216:

basketcase.3894:

Fathme.5216:

Yea, I’ve tried overclocking it before, but was unsuccessful in using AMD OverDrive, I have not attempted the manual OC through the BIOS; personally it seems like too much of a hassle to go into that every time i want to set it back to normal clock speeds, so i just don’t do it. But yes, a lot of strange things happen when i OC mostly just game crashes and stuttering when browsing the web; the start menu will change its style along with windows, having smaller Close, Restore, and minimize options (top right)… I will most likely just get a new motherboard as you say, and also a new cpu…

I highly recommend using the BIOS rather than software if you want to overclock. If you do it properly and get a stable overclock in the BIOS with reasonable temps and voltages, there’s not much reason to switch back to stock speed. Even then, many motherboards will let you save profiles, so you can save your overclocked settings (or multiple overclocks) and quickly swap as you start up.

it’s just extra wear and tear on the cpu if you overclock it 24/7 though, no?

While higher voltage (the speed isn’t really the issue, it’s the voltage you’ll need to make it stable) does theoretically decrease the life of your processor, it probably won’t cause you problems if you stay within reasonable limits. Most people who care enough to overclock are probably on a quick enough upgrade cycle that the loss of longevity would never be noticed anyway (I’d bet you fall in this category, since you have a CPU that’s <1.5 years old and you’re looking for more performance, although this may say more about the kitten-poor optimization of this game than your upgrade habits).

If you’re really concerned about decreasing your CPU’s lifespan, you have the option of backing off on the voltage you’re willing to use slightly (this will limit your overclock potential though). Often you’ll reach a point where a small increase in speed will require a relatively large increase in voltage. If you’re really concerned about longevity, don’t take that step.