GTX 970 VRAM allocation bug

Discussion in 'Videocards - NVIDIA GeForce' started by Milan, Jan 7, 2015.

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  1. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Hi,

    I think (maybe) is here a little problem with GTX 970. If I run some games, for example Far Cry 4, GTX 970 allocate only around 3500MB video memory, but in same game and same scene GTX 980 allocate full 4000MB video memory.
    But if I change resolution to higher - 3840x2160, then all memory is allocated.
    Same problem exist in many other games like Crysis 3, Watch Dogs etc..

    Where is problem?? I really dont know...

    So and MSAA (8x, 4x) does not have effect for allocate all memory in named games - memory allocation in 1080p still around 3500MB...

    This problem have many other friends. :thumbup:
     
  2. Goldie

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    perhaps it's the new maxwell memory compression tech.
    very interesting as no other cards i've heard of do this.
    amd vs nvidia vram usage differs sure.
     
  3. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Ok, but why 980 allocating 4000 in 1080p game and in the same game 970 allocating only 3500?? I dont understand...
     
  4. Goldie

    Goldie Guest

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    because a 980 can juggle 4gb worth of textures with ease, 970 not so.
     

  5. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Any detailed explanations? Why is memory management so different in 970 case?
     
  6. Goldie

    Goldie Guest

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    try x2 970s and see if 4gb is used, either way i'd read some detailed 980 /970 reviews that explain the new maxwell tech.
    Hilbert's initial 980 review is a good place to start, then other trusted reviewers, perhaps wiki for more maxwell tech info.
    i work 6 night a week, time is little.
     
  7. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Anyway thanks, maybe it is driver bug. I will check your tips.
     
  8. JohnLai

    JohnLai Guest

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  9. Anarion

    Anarion Ancient Guru

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    I've seen my use over 3900 in 1080p.

    I can't believe the amount of bull**** I have to read about vram these days. There is no technical reason why 970 couldn't use 4GB or more. Memory controller may not support more than x amount of physical vram though (but don't worry, it can definitely handle 4GB).
     
    Last edited: Jan 8, 2015
  10. southamptonfc

    southamptonfc Ancient Guru

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    Does this bug have any effect on gameplay? Are you seeing stuttering with the 970?
     

  11. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Yes and no, yes when I play newest games which using all available vram, and no for older games or games which using only some part of vram.
    But as I wrote - in same place in same game where 980 using ALL vram, 970 using only around 3500...
     
  12. VultureX

    VultureX Banned

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    Hmm, yea I've seen this too in The Evil Within at 1440p when tweaking some parameters that increase vRAM usage. The game becomes totally unplayable due to the constant vRAM swapping, but it always goes from 3000 to 3500 and back in bursts, never above.
     
  13. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Yes, that´s what I´m talking about... vRam usage is "strange" in 970... Still around 3500 MB max... Only when resolution is 4K (DSR or native) then vRam is used (sometimes) all - 4GB, but in this case game frames falling down - as if card using system ram for swap upper / last 512MB - may be this last part of memory vram modules inaccessible? I really don´t know, but it is strange.
     
  14. fisher6

    fisher6 Active Member

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    Shadow of Mordor uses 3500 VRAM for me too (with Ultra textures) but there is nothing wrong performance wise.
     
  15. Milan

    Milan Guest

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    Then why is not 970 made with only 3500 MB, if more vram is inaccessible? :)
     

  16. Goldie

    Goldie Guest

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    basically it could have two gb or four gb.
    3.5 is way better than 2.
    just sayin, hell if i had x2 970s i'd be happy with say ..around 6gb max usage(fully optimized /no bottlenecks at all) i'll be honest.
    x2 980s i'd be more than happy seeing 7gb used, the visuals would need to be incredible no doubt,( or use some kinda ultra zooming view distances like blasting off into space or some such ...sry):D
    multi-layered uber textures and such.
     
    Last edited: Jan 9, 2015
  17. wtbarms

    wtbarms Member Guru

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    I haven't been able to use more than 3.5gb in watch dogs or far cry no matter what the settings are, but when using Kombuster's vram test i can hit 3.9gb with no issues. (I can also hit it if I move from 1440p to 4k).

    Could this be a driver issue and/or software issue?

    The fist video here (November) the 970 was using 4GB of vram vs the later one (December) where vram usage is stuck around 3.5gb. I know ACU has been patched a lot, but that seems a bit weird. (I beleive both videos are on max settings).

    http://www.overclock.net/t/1514085/official-nvidia-gtx-970-owners-club/9600#post_23321222
     
  18. VultureX

    VultureX Banned

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    Someone should test AC:U with the driver he used in the first video (344.65) and the current 347.09.

    I'm not liking the 347.09 very much for my cards, I'm anxiously awaiting the next release and in the mean time reverted to 344.80.
     
  19. wtbarms

    wtbarms Member Guru

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    Just loaded up Unity at 1440p and 1080p. Maxing out setting with both (With FXAA) was around 3.5GB. Adding either 4x or 8x AA pushed me up to 3.8-4gb consistently.
     
  20. sykozis

    sykozis Ancient Guru

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    Why so concerned with memory utilization? Is there an actual problem associated or is everyone just bitching because their memory usage went down?
     
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