Will my PC Run this? What CPU/GPU to get? What settings? System Specifications.

[Hoofin 10]

Hey lads :) i just dropped a G on this system i want to be able to play the Vietnam mod with say 500 A I not to bothered about a huge view distance, is it possible with this rig?

CPU: NEW! Intel Core i5 2500K

CPU Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper TX3

Operating System: Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

Motherboard: NEW! Asus P8P67 LE (Rev. 3)

Memory: NEW! 8.0GB Corsair DDR3 1600mhz Vengeance (4x 2GB)

Hard Drives: NEW! WD Caviar Black 1TB S-ATAIII 6.0Gb/s

Graphics card: NEW! ATI Radeon HD 6850 1GB

Sound card: Asus Xonar DS 7.1

Speakers: Creative Inspire T10

Monitors: 22" Widescreen LCD

Case: Xigmatek Asgard

PSU: NEW! 400W Xigmatek

[-)rStrangelove 0]

@Hoofin: yes (theory), but having 500 AI in a mission (without dynamic spawn scripts) is never a good idea (fact). With an SSD your machine would be perfect.

@solidsnake2384: fastet 775 cpu should be an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9770 (link) but keep in mind you might need a new MB for it, so its not really worth it imo.

[mrmoon 19]

Ordered radeon hd 5870 sapphire forgetting I would probably need to get a new psu. My current psu is only 450 w but I have an old one in my old pc that says it is 500w (which is the recommended power supply) but I cant find any more info about the said model all I have is a label on the side with a tick by 500w, so god knows if it is actually good enough.

Will probably end up shelling out 50 quid for a new one.

I don't think I've ever spent so much money to play one game, Ive almost actually bankrupted myself this month on the new graphics card, lets hope its all worth it :).

[Leon86 13]

I want to upgrade my CPU and GPU but I dont know which to change first. My CPU is an E5700 but my GPU is a Geforce 240. I know Arma 2 is more CPU dependent but my graphics card is really low. Also if you guys reccomend me a CPU/GPU its gotta have a 775 socket.

I'd go for a new gpu first. an e5700 isn't that fast but a 240 is very slow. e5700's overclock very well by the way.

---------- Post added at 07:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:28 PM ----------

Hey lads :) i just dropped a G on this system i want to be able to play the Vietnam mod with say 500 A I not to bothered about a huge view distance, is it possible with this rig?

CPU: NEW! Intel Core i5 2500K

CPU Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper TX3

Operating System: Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

Motherboard: NEW! Asus P8P67 LE (Rev. 3)

Memory: NEW! 8.0GB Corsair DDR3 1600mhz Vengeance (4x 2GB)

Hard Drives: NEW! WD Caviar Black 1TB S-ATAIII 6.0Gb/s

Graphics card: NEW! ATI Radeon HD 6850 1GB

Sound card: Asus Xonar DS 7.1

Speakers: Creative Inspire T10

Monitors: 22" Widescreen LCD

Case: Xigmatek Asgard

PSU: NEW! 400W Xigmatek

some sort of oem system? anyway, 500 ai is pushing it but that cpu is pretty much the fastest you can get for gaming. the 6850 should be ok but dont expect great performance at high resolution with post and high levels of aa, there are a bunch of gpu's that are much more powerfull, you'd also have to have a bigger psu for those.

---------- Post added at 07:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:33 PM ----------

Ordered radeon hd 5870 sapphire forgetting I would probably need to get a new psu. My current psu is only 450 w but I have an old one in my old pc that says it is 500w (which is the recommended power supply) but I cant find any more info about the said model all I have is a label on the side with a tick by 500w, so god knows if it is actually good enough.

Will probably end up shelling out 50 quid for a new one.

I don't think I've ever spent so much money to play one game, Ive almost actually bankrupted myself this month on the new graphics card, lets hope its all worth it :).

a good 450W psu should be able to handle an 5870. What is the brand, age and how many A can it deliver on +12V? (should be on the sticker)

And what is the rest of your system?

[nmike 10]

PhenomII X4 965 3.4

MSI 890

Radeon 5870 1GB

2X4GB DDR3 1333

Auzentech Prelude

Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit

Seagate 7200.12

Asus 27inch 16:10

With this setup, I'm able to run in 1900x1200 with everything high except AA in normal. I do notice that hard drive has to defragged in order to eliminate occastional stutter. That's why running ARMAII on SSD is a good idea.

[Westsailor 10]

I must say, I am amazed at the performance I get out of my ThinkPad W500 (2.53 Ghz dual core, ATI Mobile FireGL V5700 w/512 Gb).

I've never been able to play another game at 1680X1050, certainly not with the decent/playable framerates i'm getting w/ Arma 2 & OA. Especially with all the bells & whistles set on high!

It does warm things up though :)

Hats off to BIS for an obviously well optimized engine!

[rob151515 10]

I've currently got a Vapour-X 5770 (playing with almost maxed out settings at 1920x1080) and I'm finding the frame rate is great provided I don't go into towns/cities. As soon as I do I get a large hit to frame rate and things start to become a little choppy.

I'm looking at potentially upgrading to a 6970 but it's going to cost me around $300.

Do you think I will see a significant difference? Is it worth the money or is there another card I should be looking at?

[mrmoon 19]

Well Ive just figured out why arma is so crappy on my system they have given me the wrong hardware!

A 350 w psu instead of a 450 and a 5450 instead of a 5770.

Grrr just ordered new card and power supply as well.

[nmike 10]

I've currently got a Vapour-X 5770 (playing with almost maxed out settings at 1920x1080) and I'm finding the frame rate is great provided I don't go into towns/cities. As soon as I do I get a large hit to frame rate and things start to become a little choppy.

I'm looking at potentially upgrading to a 6970 but it's going to cost me around $300.

Do you think I will see a significant difference? Is it worth the money or is there another card I should be looking at?

What's your CPU and RAM? CPU power is important to this game.

---------- Post added at 06:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:09 PM ----------

Well Ive just figured out why arma is so crappy on my system they have given me the wrong hardware!

A 350 w psu instead of a 450 and a 5450 instead of a 5770.

Grrr just ordered new card and power supply as well.

LOL. That's a huge difference. Build your own rig:j:

---------- Post added at 06:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:11 PM ----------

I must say, I am amazed at the performance I get out of my ThinkPad W500 (2.53 Ghz dual core, ATI Mobile FireGL V5700 w/512 Gb).

I've never been able to play another game at 1680X1050, certainly not with the decent/playable framerates i'm getting w/ Arma 2 & OA. Especially with all the bells & whistles set on high!

It does warm things up though :)

Hats off to BIS for an obviously well optimized engine!

WoW. It's amazing you can manage to play the game at that resolution.:eek:

[Westsailor 10]

So far so good but I'll get back to you when I get into some battles where a buncha $hit is going on :)

[rob151515 10]

What's your CPU and RAM? CPU power is important to this game.

CPU is i5 3.2 with 4GB RAM. Do you think I will see much of a difference between the 5770 and the 6970?

[solidsnake2384 10]

Ok, thanks for the responses.

[rangerpl 13]

Would upgrading from this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103932

to this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103849

have a significant effect on my performance in ArmA 2? If not, what would? Other specs below, in my sig.

I was doing a test in Chernogorsk today, just running around with these settings:

Resolution: 1920x1080

VD: 1000m (I use a mod to change it dynamically, so I usually go back up to 4000-6000m when I need it)

Textures: High

Video Mem: Very High

AF: Very High

AA: Low

Terrain: Medium

Objects: High

Shadows: High

HDR: Medium

PP: Low

Vsync: Off

Inside Chernogorsk, running around, my FPS were in the 20s. Playable but frustrating and annoying. However, my CPU monitor displayed roughly 70% load on all the cores (it fluctuates of course), however I was stunned to discover that my GPU was hovering at about 40% load! What could this mean?

The game is certainly playable for me, except when I look at grass (3D grass) through a scope or binoculars with AA enabled. Then FPS drops to the 10-20 range and the game becomes unplayable. I refuse to disable AA, however, because the "jagged" look of the game without AA drives me nuts.

What can I do to improve performance? I have a decently sized budget, but I don't want to replace my GPU as it's pretty new in itself.

Edited April 27, 2011 by RangerPL

[Leon86 13]

Would upgrading from this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103932

to this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103849

have a significant effect on my performance in ArmA 2? If not, what would?

not really, clockspeed is only 15% higher. the L3 cache helps as well but its not worth it imo. The most noticable upgrade will be overclocking that athlon I think.

[domokun 515]

Resolution: 1920x1080

VD: 1000m (I use a mod to change it dynamically, so I usually go back up to 4000-6000m when I need it)

Textures: High

Video Mem: Very High

AF: Very High

AA: Low

Terrain: Medium

Objects: High

Shadows: High

HDR: Medium

PP: Low

Vsync: Off

Inside Chernogorsk, running around, my FPS were in the 20s. Playable but frustrating and annoying. However, my CPU monitor displayed roughly 70% load on all the cores (it fluctuates of course), however I was stunned to discover that my GPU was hovering at about 40% load! What could this mean?

The game is certainly playable for me, except when I look at grass (3D grass) through a scope or binoculars with AA enabled. Then FPS drops to the 10-20 range and the game becomes unplayable. I refuse to disable AA, however, because the "jagged" look of the game without AA drives me nuts.

What can I do to improve performance? I have a decently sized budget, but I don't want to replace my GPU as it's pretty new in itself.

Try changing:

1) Video Mem from Very High to Default

2) AF from Very High to Normal

3) Objects from High to Normal

4) Vsync from Off to On

To be sure, change them gradually, i.e. #1 then test, #2 then test

[rangerpl 13]

not really, clockspeed is only 15% higher. the L3 cache helps as well but its not worth it imo. The most noticable upgrade will be overclocking that athlon I think.

Well the Phenom has six cores.

Edit: Also, I have an unplayable, single-digit FPS rate in the second ArmA 2 benchmark (the one in the dark with a large battle). Is that a CPU issue?

[Leon86 13]

Well the Phenom has six cores.

Edit: Also, I have an unplayable, single-digit FPS rate in the second ArmA 2 benchmark (the one in the dark with a large battle). Is that a CPU issue?

yes the second benchmark is cpu limited. More cores dont help, arma uses only 3 cores effectively. 4 cores are slightly better than 3 but beyond that there's no gain.

If you want a cpu that's noticably faster you'll have to get an i5 2500K + new mobo.

[froggyluv 2130]

Well the Phenom has six cores.

Edit: Also, I have an unplayable, single-digit FPS rate in the second ArmA 2 benchmark (the one in the dark with a large battle). Is that a CPU issue?

I believe it is - I went from Dual core 8500 to I5 2500 @4.4 and with same exact graphic card that Bench went from 12-15 to 25-30 fps.

[rangerpl 13]

yes the second benchmark is cpu limited. More cores dont help, arma uses only 3 cores effectively. 4 cores are slightly better than 3 but beyond that there's no gain.

If you want a cpu that's noticably faster you'll have to get an i5 2500K + new mobo.

What about the Phenom with Turbo to 3.7GHz?

Also that Athlon worked just fine a few months ago, perhaps it's damaged. It doesn't have L3 cache but it's not a bad chip and it handled ArmA 2 a little better at first than it does now.

I also mentioned earlier that my CPU or GPU never get to 100%, and I still lag. What else could be causing bottlenecks?

Edited April 27, 2011 by RangerPL

[Leon86 13]

a broken cpu would result in a bsod, not bad performance.

Things to keep in mind when performance decreases is gpu drivers, changes in patches (like the new atoc thingy) and the patching itself that leaves the arma folder fragmented. defragment your harddisk a couple of times after patching.

[rangerpl 13]

a broken cpu would result in a bsod, not bad performance.

Things to keep in mind when performance decreases is gpu drivers, changes in patches (like the new atoc thingy) and the patching itself that leaves the arma folder fragmented. defragment your harddisk a couple of times after patching.

Well, this is a pretty fresh install of W7, only a month old (installed 3-25-2011). I'll defrag overnight or while I'm at school tomorrow.

This Phenom II should be roughly on par with the i5 2500k, right? I won't have to get a new mobo, allowing me to pocket the cash or buy more RAM.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103913

Also, before I forget. My HD5770 had 1GB of VRAM, this GTX460 has 768MB. On the Combined Ops box, it says "Recommended: 1GB Video RAM". Would this cause lag inside cities and on grass?

Edited April 27, 2011 by RangerPL

[Leon86 13]

You can run out of vram but with the right settings it shouldn't be a problem, try monitoring it with gpu-z while playing.

The PhenomII is not on par with the 2500K in games, arma uses only 3 cores effectively, so you might as well get a cheaper phenom quad, performance will be identical.

I wouldn't upgrade at all if I were you, just overclock your athlon to 3.8 or something. If you dont want to overclock just save up for a 2500k+mobo.

[rangerpl 13]

You can run out of vram but with the right settings it shouldn't be a problem, try monitoring it with gpu-z while playing.

The PhenomII is not on par with the 2500K in games, arma uses only 3 cores effectively, so you might as well get a cheaper phenom quad, performance will be identical.

I wouldn't upgrade at all if I were you, just overclock your athlon to 3.8 or something. If you dont want to overclock just save up for a 2500k+mobo.

Well, I read that Turbo on that Phenom brings three of the cores to 3.7GHz so that's why I asked, since arma uses three of them as you say.

I'm a bit afraid to overclock, though buying a good cooler/heatsink is definitely more affordable than a new CPU, I don't want to end up trashing my current one.

I think I'm being a bit bratty about my performance, 18 months ago I still had 2GB RAM and a dual-core Athlon 64. :rolleyes:

Edit: Unrelated question, is it safe to run GPU at 100% fan speed all the time?

Edit 2:

I did what domokun told me...

Chernogorsk test

When running at these settings, inside Chernogorsk, I averaged roughly 20-30 FPS, depending on what I was looking at. Generally high twenties, dropping when I looked inland, rising when looking towards the sea (due to fewer buildings, etc). Choppy but playable.

My VRAM usage hovers above 700MB but never maxes out, GPU load fluctuates from 60-30% but doesn't max out either. CPU (all four cores) hovering at about 50-70%.

Control

Resolution: 1920x1080

VD: 1000m (I use a mod to change it dynamically, so I usually go back up to 4000-6000m when I need it)

Textures: High

Video Mem: Very High

AF: Very High

AA: Normal

Terrain: Medium

Objects: High

Shadows: High

HDR: Medium

PP: Low

Vsync: Off

AF SET TO NORMAL

FPS: No gain

VMEM: A bit less (+/-10MB)

GPU: No change

Video Mem to Default

No real difference

Video Memory to High

FPS: Small gain, still choppy when looking at a long distance

VMEM: Down quite a bit, hovering about 680MB

GPU: No real difference

Objects to Normal

FPS: No difference/negligible

VMEM: Down to 680MB

GPU: 40-50%

VSYNC on

No difference

Benchmark 2

This is the one that kills CPUs... Mine drove all four cores to about 70%, and did not max out. I had single-digit FPS the whole time. GPU was at roughly the same as Chernogorsk test, a bit easier on the VRAM.

I did not max out my CPU during this test, yet it still lags like s***.

Advice?

Edit 3:

FRAPS pushes my CPU to 100%. It did not do this before... I used to be able to play while recording, that is now impossible.

Edited April 28, 2011 by RangerPL

[Leon86 13]

That you dont "max out" your cpu in bench2 doesnt mean it's not cpu limited.

You say you have "single digit" fps in bench2, still seems a bit low. I get 17 fps on my q6600 @ 3.3 Alhough my settings arent that demanding.

Edited April 28, 2011 by Leon86

[rangerpl 13]

That you dont "max out" your cpu in bench2 doesnt mean it's not cpu limited.

You say you have "single digit" fps in bench2, still seems a bit low. I get 17 fps on my q6600 @ 3.3 Alhough my settings arent that demanding.

Well, I tried to limit cpu usage as much as I could, by offloading things to the GTX460, and I'm actually quite satisfied with my graphics performance (if things get too bad I turn off AA, usually that's not necessary though), my GPU doesn't even get that hot (idles at 40-50, in arma the highest I saw it reach was mid-60s, when running about in Cherno).

The CPU performance bothers me though.

The Core i5 looks very nice, and if I had the cash back then, I would have bought an i7, but I don't want to ditch a year-old mobo, which has an up-to-date CPU socket and an up-to-date PCI-e. Hopefully my next build will be Intel, I've been using AMD due to budget reasons. I have no problem switching CPUs as I planned to replace this one anyway (give it to my brother or use for a HTPC) but I do not want to tear apart a year-old pc.

I'm also going to take a look at my Hard Disk, as, from what I've read in the troubleshooting forums here, arma is pretty HDD-dependent too, and the HDD is very vulnerable to damage (I had a wrecked HDD before that still ran without bluescreens, just lagged like hell. Maybe this one is at an earlier stage of terminal illness)

You suggested OC'ing the Athlon earlier, how would I go about preparing for that? How risky is overclocking from 2.8 to, say, 3.7? I know I'd have to get a more appropriate cooler (Mine is pretty average, it's not the one that came with the CPU though), but are there other considerations? I understand that I need to test for stability with Prime95, etc, but are there other things to watch out for? Generally you will get crashes and bluescreens before you "melt down", right?

And would a simple frequency increase be enough to solve my problems?