Games used to run smoothly.

T

Tngfan

New Member
Okay I have posted this question before on other sites but have never felt like I got an adequate answer. I have a Dell Xps 600 which I got in 2004. However it seems for the past while that games that used to run smoothly all the sudden stutter for a few seconds. I used to be able to play Test Drive Unlimited and would have smooth performance all the time but now when I'm driving, the game switches back and forth from running smoothly then stuttering for a few seconds. How can I get the games to run like they used to? This is tricky due to my situation which I will explain below

So I don't have the money for a new computer. I know that my motherboard is very limited in what cpu it will take so I can't upgrade it.

Somone suggested upgrading my ram and gpu but I don't know if that's the best option. I don't want to spend money on ram and gpu if it's the cpu that's slowing me down. I feel like since these components were capable of handling these games before that one of them is not able to process as fast as it did before.


My computer specs are

Win xp 32bit
Cpu-Pentium D dual core processor 2.5 or 2.7 ghz
Chipset-Nvida Nforce 4 sli x16
Memory-2 gigs ddr2 ram
Graphics-Nvidia GeForce 6800

Thanks
 
The first things I would do is open the computer up and give it a good clean (pay close attention to the cpu and gpu heatsinks) and make sure the fans are working, if its overheating this could be causing the problem, its a good thing to do it anyway even if its not the problem. If you have a multimeter I would check the PSU's voltages under load, but the easiest way to test for a bad PSU is to put in another one that you know works.
 
Shlouski said:
The first things I would do is open the computer up and give it a good clean (pay close attention to the cpu and gpu heatsinks) and make sure the fans are working, if its overheating this could be causing the problem, its a good thing to do it anyway even if its not the problem. If you have a multimeter I would check the PSU's voltages under load, but the easiest way to test for a bad PSU is to put in another one that you know works.
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Thanks for the reply. I downloaded speed fan so that I could check the cpu temps. And it showed that my cpu was 80 Celsius yikes lol and it also showed my gpu being hot as well. So I opened up the pc (dust wasn't too bad) and the first thing I noticed was that the fan on the graphics card was not running. So that is obviously why the gpu is getting hot. All other fans seemed to be working icluding the ones that vent the cpu. So for some reason the cpu is not getting cooled properly.

At this point I think it will be best to get a new a graphics card and get a new heatsink and fan for thecpu as well as reapplying thermal paste. I know dell's can be tricky as far as parts so I don't know what the best cooling system Icould get that would work with my cpu. I just want to make sure I'm going to buy something that will fit correctly.

Also whats would be a good replacement graphics card that's not too overpowered for this setup

Thanks
 
Tngfan said:
Also whats would be a good replacement graphics card that's not too overpowered for this setup
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I would get a 8800GTX. Expect to pay around $30-40 max. Might be cheaper. Use Gixen and snipe it! LOL http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=8800gtx&_sop=15

Looks like the 8800GTX needs at least a 300 watt PSU? 650 wats is what you have I guess so it should work so long as the PSU has 28 amps on the 12V rail.

Or you can just buy another 6800 on ebay. But for the money I would buy a 8800. I may have an old Geforce 6800. I'll have to look.
 
Is your CPU at 80c at idle or while your gaming?
If you wanted you could remove the broken fan on the GPU and replace it with another fan using cable ties, maybe you have a spare one lying around.
I guess looking at your system you have a low powered PSU and your system would be able to run a good graphics card anyway, any new low powered card would be an improvement on that 6800.
Can you tell me what psu you have or tell the the Wattage and the ampage on the 12v rail.
 
Agent Smith said:
I would get a 8800GTX. Expect to pay around $30-40 max. Might be cheaper. Use Gixen and snipe it! LOL http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=8800gtx&_sop=15

Looks like the 8800GTX needs at least a 300 watt PSU? 650 wats is what you have I guess so it should work so long as the PSU has 28 amps on the 12V rail.

Or you can just buy another 6800 on ebay. But for the money I would buy a 8800. I may have an old Geforce 6800. I'll have to look.
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I see that computer come with a 650w PSU, but is he is still using the original PSU? and if he is its 11 years old I don't know if you could trust it. He could buy a new low powered card that would murder a very very old power hungry 8800GTX, I have to disagree with this choice of card.
 
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Shlouski said:
Is your CPU at 80c at idle or while your gaming?
If you wanted you could remove the broken fan on the GPU and replace it with another fan using cable ties, maybe you have a spare one lying around.
I guess looking at your system you have a low powered PSU and your system would be able to run a good graphics card anyway, any new low powered card would be an improvement on that 6800.
Can you tell me what psu you have or tell the the Wattage and the ampage on the 12v rail.
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Yes the 80c was at idle. I turned off the computer for a few minutes then turned it on and as soon as I logged into windows I checked the temp. It started out at 68c but climbed up to 80c within a few minutes.


I'm not sure what psu I have. But the two I see come up for the xps 600 is either the dell Xh734 or dell k2242.
 
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Well 80c at idle is not normal if the fan is working and there is no dust, far from it. Something is wrong there and I hope its speedfan showing the wrong temp, try CPUID's HWMonitor and see if that gives you the same temperature and its also a good idea to check your CPU temperature in the bios.
 
Or after 11 years, the thermal compound is cracked/worn and the CPU-to-HSF connection/bond is no longer there.

Remove (carefully! - watch YouTube videos if you're not familiar and don't force anything off!) the HSF, clean off the old compound, and re-apply new.
 
Shlouski said:
Well 80c at idle is not normal if the fan is working and there is no dust, far from it. Something is wrong there and I hope its speedfan showing the wrong temp, try CPUID's HWMonitor and see if that gives you the same temperature and its also a good idea to check your CPU temperature in the bios.
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The first picture is what hwmonitor shows the second one is speed fan. I entered the bios but never saw anything that showed the current temp.

http://imgur.com/zO6Wdpb

http://imgur.com/neVvzrF

Edit: okay actually I think I just figured out that 80c is the core temp not the cpu temp. I don't see anything that shows what the actual cpu temp is.
 
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Tngfan said:
Okay thanks. I'm gonna get some thermal paste and replace the cpu heatsink and get a new gpu.
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As they are so hot they will both be almost definately throttling while gaming. This is reducing core speed due to temperature so it doesnt overheat. This is where the problem lies and the lower performance you are seeing. A better GPU will give you better performance but if your GPU and CPU were fine with the games before. Just replace the thermal compound on both the GPU and CPU heatsinks and they should be good to go aslong as all the required fans are working and the heatsinks are clean.

No need to get a new heatsink or replace the GPU if the games you were playing ran fine before any temperature issues.
 
tylerjrb said:
As they are so hot they will both be almost definately throttling while gaming. This is reducing core speed due to temperature so it doesnt overheat. This is where the problem lies and the lower performance you are seeing. A better GPU will give you better performance but if your GPU and CPU were fine with the games before. Just replace the thermal compound on both the GPU and CPU heatsinks and they should be good to go aslong as all the required fans are working and the heatsinks are clean.

No need to get a new heatsink or replace the GPU if the games you were playing ran fine before any temperature issues.
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Thanks the reason I was going to replace the gpu was that I noticed that the fan attached to it wasn't running so I think that is whats causing it to be hot. As far as the cpu goes I will replace the thermal paste and see if that helps.
 
Agent Smith said:
Then what card would you recommend?
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Just so you know I am only voicing my opinion, its nothing personal, I just don't agree with your choice of card.
I'm not against the idea of purchasing second hand cards, in fact there are some great deals to be had, but caution is needed.
As for what I would recommend, I'm unsure, I would like to know for sure what PSU he has and what his budget is first before deciding on a card.
 
Shlouski said:
Just so you know I am only voicing my opinion, its nothing personal, I just don't agree with your choice of card.
I'm not against the idea of purchasing second hand cards, in fact there are some great deals to be had, but caution is needed.
Click to expand...

Well if you're going to post BS saying a better card could be used withe less power than you need too back up your "opinion."
 
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