[Medlar]

Hi guys,

Totally new to the forum and looking around you seem to a very knowledgeable bunch of people so i thought someone
might be able to help me with an on-going issue i have had over the past few months.

I play alot of World of Warcraft, been playing years in fact but lately (especially since the new expansion),
I have been struggling with fps, especially over the last few motnhs since the latest patch dropped.

When sitting idle in a populated area (Stormwind etc)Im lucky to get around 22fps, In 25 man raid 4fps, World bosses (30+) 2fps etc.
Prior to the patch I could easily achieve 60-70fps in a heavy pop area and fps in their 20-30's for the rest.
Im even starting to get 7-8fps in 10 man raids at low graphic settings, forcing my enjoyment and raiding skills down.

I know my machine isnt the most powerful, but i really shouldnt have a problem:

Spec:
Intel® Pentium® D CPU 3.40GHz (2 CPUs), ~3.4GHz
8192MB RAM
AMD Radeon HD 6570
Dedicated Memory: 2035 MB (driver: 3/29/2013 03:37:02, 1155264 bytes)

Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1

Full DxDiag here:
DXDIAG


Ive tried everything i can possibly think of at this stage to see if i could locate the problem
following the directions laid out by a Blizzard in this thread on their forums:
FORUM LINK


So far i have:
Checked for gcard updates
Uninstalled WoW
Defragmented both Hdd's
Re-installed WoW
Ran DPC Latency checker and found no driver issues.
Deleted add-on and What the... folder and allowed for repair of game
Ran game with no add-ons/backround programs
Lowered all graphic setting to LOW and reduced WoW sound quality.
Installed 2 extra fans for cooling on my gcard which runs at no more then 50degrees at high load.
Currently using the 64bit client but even tried reverting to the 32bit one.
Tried switching to Directx9 instead of 11 through user cp.

This game is running on bare settings at the minute and my machine is not struggling whatsoever, apart from the graphics which at this stage
is unbearable and tbh forcing me to possibly give up the game until i can either afford a newer machine, or get some help trying to resolve it.
Whats really irritating is there are friends with machines similar/not as good as mine clearing 80-100fps idle outside heavy populated areas and at least 30fps in 25 man raids!


Really sorry for the long read but i really need some advice here guys, im baffled!
And also a big thank you in advance

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Medlar

I do not play WOW and so cannot help with anything game related but after reading your OP I feel that your issue may be hardware related and a possible culprit is the PSU (power supply unit) this is the one item that you have not told us about.
Has the stock PSU ever been upgraded and if so can you tell us the brand and model name or number of the PSU.

Your computer (Dell OptiPlex 745) comes in four case sizes Desktop, Mini Tower, SFF (small form factor) and USFF (ultra small form factor) and they all have one thing in common, the stock PSUs that they are shipped with are not powerful enough to support your video card.
Which particular model of the four options do you have.

The HD6570 video card requires a PSU with a minimum output of 400W but the highest output of any of the stock PSUs that are shipped with the OptiPlex 745 is the one supplied with the Mini Tower and that is only 305W.

HD6570 video card system requirements http://www.amd.com/u...overview.aspx#3

Dell OptiPlex 745 specifications http://www.dell.com/...45techspecs.pdf

Let us know the answer to the two questions that I have asked first of all please.

[phillpower2]

Medlar

I do not play WOW and so cannot help with anything game related but after reading your OP I feel that your issue may be hardware related and a possible culprit is the PSU (power supply unit) this is the one item that you have not told us about.
Has the stock PSU ever been upgraded and if so can you tell us the brand and model name or number of the PSU.

Your computer (Dell OptiPlex 745) comes in four case sizes Desktop, Mini Tower, SFF (small form factor) and USFF (ultra small form factor) and they all have one thing in common, the stock PSUs that they are shipped with are not powerful enough to support your video card.
Which particular model of the four options do you have.

The HD6570 video card requires a PSU with a minimum output of 400W but the highest output of any of the stock PSUs that are shipped with the OptiPlex 745 is the one supplied with the Mini Tower and that is only 305W.

HD6570 video card system requirements http://www.amd.com/u...overview.aspx#3

Dell OptiPlex 745 specifications http://www.dell.com/...45techspecs.pdf

Let us know the answer to the two questions that I have asked first of all please.

[Medlar]

Hi Phillpower2 and ty for the quick response.


My machine is the Optiplex 745 small form factor, the next one down from the mini but not the smallest of that model.
Yes i upgraded the psu when i first got the machine to cope with the gcard needs and just for a bit more power.

It came with a 250w from what i remember (i could be wrong memory isnt what it used to be),
and i upgraded to a 500w Antec (model no. Bp500u).

In saying that since the machine is practically on 20 hours a day and im feeling i need another psu as the fan
in my current one is starting to sound like its not spinning right.

Not too sure if that makes any difference tbh?

Once again, thanks for the reply

Edited by Medlar, 05 May 2013 - 04:37 AM.

[phillpower2]

Hi Medlar

You are welcome and thanks for the additional information

Antec are one of the better brands of PSU but they will expire in time like everything else and especially if used 20 hours per day, your model of PSU has a 3 year warranty is it still covered if it turns out to be bad.

I am aware that you have added additional case fans but you may still have overheating problems in such a cramped case, can you do some gaming or watch a video and then run Speedfan and HWMonitor as detailed below;

Download Speedfan and install it. Once it's installed, run the program and post here the information it shows.
The information I want you to post is the stuff that is circled in the example picture I have attached.
If you are running on a vista machine, please go to where you installed the program and run the program as administrator.


(this is a screenshot from a vista machine)

To capture and post a screenshot;

Click on the ALT key + PRT SCR key..its on the top row..right hand side..now click on start...all programs...accessories...paint....left click in the white area ...press CTRL + V...click on file...click on save...save it to your desktop...name it something related to the screen your capturing... BE SURE TO SAVE IT AS A .JPG ...otherwise it may be to big to upload... then after typing in any response you have... click on browse...desktop...find the screenshot..select it and click on the upload button...then on the lower left...after it says upload successful...click on add reply like you normally would.

Depending on the results we may need to run further software for comparison http://www.cpuid.com.../hwmonitor.html

Screenshot instructions are provided to assist those that may read this topic but are not yet aware of the “how to”.

[Medlar]

lol, cheers again mate.

Ok, so my Psu is around 16 months old, im not too sure if i have the receipt etc but will look into replacing it pretty soon.
And i really do understand in regards to the small size of the case and probable heat issues, these dells have a btx motherboard
so the card sits right at the very bottom of the case.I usually keep the case open with an extra fan blowing on the card just for
my own peace of mind lol.

I have added both before and after screenshots below.
Before sitting idle with all programs but Chrome browser open and after with just the game running/Chrome.

I have also installed the second link you provided and added screenshots from before and after, same as above

Note that i left the game running for about 5 mins before taking the second screenshots in a highly populated area but i was sitting idle,
and still only achieving around 28fps

Attached Thumbnails

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Edited by Medlar, 05 May 2013 - 07:33 AM.

[phillpower2]

Thanks for the screenshots

Unfortunately neither Speedfan or HWMonitor are showing us the PSU readings that we need, please run Speccy and provide the url to see if we can get them from there http://www.piriform....file-to-the-web if we have no look with Speccy you can check the BIOS for the readings, the readings there however are not conclusive, please see below as to why;

NB: BIOS voltage readings.

The readings are not conclusive in the BIOS as the computer is under the least amount of load, if they are higher or lower than what they should be though it does suggest a PSU problem.

[Medlar]

Hi again,

Ok so i downloaded 'Speccy' and saved the system snapshot, heres the link:
SPECCY

Not too sure if what your looking for is there, i will go check the bios now and
see if i can get anything there also and update this post in the next few mins.

*Edit, checked the bios and there doesnt seem to be anything in there in relation to the psu and its voltages etc,
Am i missing something?

I also have noticed after looking over speccy that my one of my sticks of ram is different to the others, would this be a factor?

Slot #1
Type: DDR2
Size: 2048 MBytes
Manufacturer: A-Data Technology
Max Bandwidth: PC2-6400 (400 MHz)
Part Number: DQVE1B16
Week/year: 17 / 09
SPD Ext.: EPP



The other 3 slots have this RAM installed.
Slot #2
Type: DDR2
Size: 2048 MBytes
Manufacturer: Samsung
Max Bandwidth: PC2-5300 (333 MHz)
Part Number: M3 78T5663AZ3-CE6
Serial Number: 713FF66A
Week/year: 18 / 07
SPD Ext.: EP

Edited by Medlar, 05 May 2013 - 09:17 AM.

[phillpower2]

Unfortunately you are correct in that the readings we require are not showing in Speccy either
The readings in the BIOS may look similar to those in the attachment below.

Can you recall if you had added any new hardware or software just previous to the issue starting.

The faster 400MHz Ram will clock backwards to 333MHz and should not cause you any problems.

Please remove any testing software that we have used that you do not wish to keep.

[Medlar]

Hmm very strange, well looking at the pic you attached my bios is nothing similar and
i just cannot seem to find anything in relation to the psu or its voltages.

I took some photos on my phone (excuse the quality) of the drop down lists and their content from my bios.

As for the programs, some very handy ones there so i think i will hold onto them

Attached Thumbnails

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[phillpower2]

Last throw of the dice for trying to get the readings so if you will please try Everest for us;

Download and install Free Everest Home Edition http://www.filehippo...d_everest_home/
Open it.
1: In the left pane expand Computer folder.
2: Click once on Summary
3: In upper menu, go to Report
4: And then to Quick Report-Summary
5: Save it in text file, and paste it in your next post.
Click the + by computer, click on Sensor. Get a screenshot and post it so your temps and voltages can be checked.


DO NOT INCLUDE ANYTHING UNDER THE LINE THAT SAYS "DEBUG- PCI"

[Medlar]

Ok so i installed the program and upon opening received these messages,
Not too sure what they mean but thought i should let you know.

Still no reading from sensor tab in Everest though im afraid

Everest report as requested:
http://pastebin.com/6HkRaWuF

Attached Thumbnails

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[phillpower2]

There is a first time for everything I suppose and this is the first time I have not been able to get any power readings from so many testing programs

If you expand the MB tab in the Everest report what does it show please.

I asked earlier;

Can you recall if you had added any new hardware or software just previous to the issue starting.

Any recollection at all.

[Medlar]

Yeah its pretty baffling alright, might it be because its not stock psu that the mobo might not be reading it?
Im not too sure on the technical side of things lol.

When you say mb tab i presume you mean motherboard tab?

List as follows:
Cpu
Cpuid
Motherboard
Memory
Spd
Chipset
Bios

thats all thats listed there.

As for new hardware or software, well i havnt upgraded anything in about a year and really only use this pc for WoW and some web browsing tbh.

[phillpower2]

Again no help but worth a try and thanks

Check your ISP performance now please http://www.pingtest.net/

Next do a 15 to 20 minute burn in test of the video card ( less if the card fails before this )http://www.ozone3d.net/benchmarks/fur/

[Medlar]

Ok no problem,

Heres the result for the ISP perfromance:
http://www.pingtest....lt/80844333.png

All seem to be ok there, getting a grade A result.


As for Furmark, well i ran it for 20 mins on a burn in test but couldnt find a report method so added a screenshot below
It ran at 77degrees at peak at 7fps.

I then ran a benchmark test for the full 15 minutes required, the result screenshot below.
Tested at 1920x1080, same as current display.

Hope this helps some more

Attached Thumbnails

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Edited by Medlar, 06 May 2013 - 09:55 AM.