So, it's been about 2 years since I built this rig here, and already it feels like it's starting to show it's age. :< I'm attempting to do streaming of SC2, and most streaming programs seem to wtfpwn my fps in sc2 with my game on high-ultra settings, even with a 3.6(3.8 with turbo)ghz overclock on my I7920! :< I want atleast 45 fps and non-chunky feeling gameplay, so im thinkin I need a new CPU for this. Something atleast one step above an overclocked 920, which leads me to look at the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115223 (980 extream 6 core cpu) After seeing the price tag tho, I had to start wondering on if the power difference between it and my OC'd 920 would be worth it! If it's a HUGE boost, then obviously I want one, but if it's a tiny boost.. Then hell no, lol. Another thing on my mind is the new 2011 socket CPU's coming out later this year. The sandy bridge ones may be out now, but those are simply the main stream/common ones released ahead of time. The 2011's are supposedly for the serious users, as the x58's/i7's were also for the serious users. Depending on how strong and costly they are tho, waiting on them might be the best idea. However, if that 980 extream can keep up with the near top of the line new gen cpu, then maybe the 980 is still worth it? I dunno! These are the things bouncing around in my mind honestly. Hopefully someone will have some advice to give me on this one tho to help me decide on what to do. Atm tho, im leaning twards waiting to see just what the new 2011 socket cpu's will bring to the table tho.
Since most games only use 2-4 cores at most....there's no reason to upgrade from a quad core to a Hexacore. Hardcore/Enthusiast and "Serious Users".....not the same thing. So far, the 980X has lost to Sandy Bridge when overclocked....so, the chances of it "keeping up" with the LGA2011 processors is pretty low. Also, the "mainstream" processors aren't bad....in fact, in most gaming instances, the Core i7 870 outperforms the Core i7 950 on "similar" clocks....in fact, the i5 750 has no problem keeping up with the 950...
That's unfortunate to hear about the 980. :/ Honestly tho I don't want the more cores for gaming, but for the streaming program to use. SC2 only uses 2 cores, but with 6 I could allocate 8 virtual cores to the streaming and 4 virtuals to the game. I think I'll definitely wait on the new 2011's tho if the sandy bridges are out doing the 980. Thnx for the info. :>
Streaming video, games, etc...from/to the internet, won't really be impacted by a hexacore either as it's dependent on the network controller. Integrated Realtek Network controllers only use 1 core. A better network controller, faster network/internet would be better.
The internet part isn't an issue or what im talking about. I'm talking about the performance of the PC/game itself with the streaming programs running, because of how heavy they are on the CPU usage due to recording/encoding/etc etc. streaming program = super hardcore cpu usage game + streaming program = cpu chugs trying to do everything at once This all equals to me wanting a faster cpu, or one with more cores for better cpu allocation, so I can give specific cores specific tasks, and have enough to get the job done smoothly. IE, xspit (streaming program) would get 8, and SC2 would get 4, with the 6 core cpu. Because as is, xsplit needs to use every core, or it just doesn't work worth ****. That means all 8 virtual cores get hogged by it, while sc2, trying to use it's 4 virtual cores, gets caught up in the crossfire of it's power hogging ways.
I would go with a faster video card as a GTX295 is basically two GTX260s, no I'm not saying your video card is slow at all, far from it but the fact is SC2 on SLI isn't that great.. maybe its game or driver issues. As far as streaming goes it also depends on your upload speed and bitrate settings, higher quality = higher bandwidth upload as well as more cpu usage. I have a good amount of experience with streaming games and such on jtv and I too have streamed Starcraft 2 games and an i7 920 OCed is still good. Going to a 6core (if you want to spend that much) will benefit your streaming and framerate but imo I think its better to get a newer video card as this will boost your fps. Pretty much all you need is about 2~ cores to stream whatever is on your desktop at a good resolution and SC2 can take the other 2 cores which is plenty. What I use for streaming is FME 3.1/3.2 (for quality), 2.5 (for performance) along with VHScrcap. The only reason why I say its not on the CPU is because I have seen many casters with i7 and even with my friend's i5@4ghz we were able to stream her playing SC2 on a GTX460. So you may want to look into another GPU. As for next gen upgrade I would wait for the new X79, P67 is really good and fast with the whole 5ghz but you would be better off upgrading later on.
Let me see if I can explain this. Your Network Controller is using, at minimum, 1 core for ALL network transmissions. Your sound card, is also using 1 core for all audio processing. If you replace the POS, software based network card with a hardware based card (Intel EXPI9400, 9401, 9402, 9502...or any of the Intel server adapters...or a Killer NIC), it would help with CPU usage. Also, since you're gaming....getting a gaming audio card such as the Creative X-Fi XtremeGamer, would also help as it performance hardware level audio processing. Adding more physical and virtual cores, won't give you any great performance gain as processor time per core has to be divided between threads. A hexacore can still only process 6 threads "simultaneously" as each core can only actually process 1 thread at a time, thus dividing processing time between the 2 threads assigned to the core.
Both of the above posts are very good/helpful things to note with the streaming. Thanks guys. :> For the record btw, with my video card and cpu overclock, without streaming, I get 80-90 fps in sc2 games normally on all ultra settings. As soon as I turn on xsplit tho, it drops down to a VERY chuggy 35-40 on some maps (like delta quad). Like, the FPS may be high, but it doesn't feel smooth or reliable. It feels like it's actually going at a much lower fps. This is what I was thinking that the extra cores could help with, but.. guess not! lolololol. *edit* Btw, I have a sound blaster x-fi sound card in the thing atm to replace the standard mobo one, which I think is the kinda thing you're talkin about here. Definitely need a different network card tho it looks like, lol.
Perhaps you shouldn't be running a CPU heavy multimedia streaming/encoding/broadcasting program while you try to play a hardware intensive game at ultra high settings Seriously though, the kind of work you are asking your PC to do, you would be best off building a super workstation computer that is made for multitasking. Build a machine with dual Xeon processors or something.
regarding your fps...do you have HPET enabled? Also how is your NIC configured...like is checksum offload enabled? Interrupt moderation?.... maybe I'm asking the obvious but you never know...
I have no idea honestly. I don't even know what the HPET is, outside of what I read on wiki, lol. Don't know much about my NIC config either. What would I want these things to be ideally speaking? and what benifits would I see from changing them around, if they need to be changed?
