Games run slow

ShadyGame · Feb 3, 2008, 08:57 PM

Hi..i have a big problem....everytime a run a game it runs slow..no matter what resolution i use.....even with the minimun visual effects it runs slow....I have formated one partition and reinstalled windows xp but happens the same thing...
I have the drivers instaled....i have a hard disk with 2 partitions..one for windows vista and another for windows xp..they run slow in the 2...

My pc specs...
Ati Radeon HD 2600 pro 512 mb
2 pentium 4 3.20 ghz
1,25 ram ddr
Windows XP or Vista
Motherboard is AsRock P4VM800
I cant live without playing games lol..help me out please

**temeteus82** · Feb 3, 2008, 10:23 PM

Hi there and welcome to DriverHeaven!

First I moved this thread to more appropriate part of the forums.

Can you give us more info what games are you running and do you have the newest drivers from VIA and AMD installed?

**Mousey** · Feb 3, 2008, 11:24 PM

Yeah Teme's right, is there a particular game or game engine your'e having trouble running?
How many different games have you tried, And are the drivers for your 2600 up to date?

cozumel · Feb 3, 2008, 11:27 PM

Also latest windows updates, chipset & sound drivers.

ShadyGame · Feb 4, 2008, 02:10 AM

now i have tried with gta san andreas..and call of duty 4..but i had problems before too with need for speed pro street..e have downloaded and instaled the last catalyst..the 8.1...i think its that...i have the sound drivers instaled too...could be cause of the power supply?
i have seen somewhere that could have not enought power..mine only is 350 watts..sorry my english im from portugal...

humm...i dont have windows updates..will try that..but answer my question

thanks for the help..nice forum...

i forgot to mencione one game...halo.the first..it runs slow sometimes lol my pc should play it well without problems..i think...

**temeteus82** · Feb 4, 2008, 08:09 AM

if it was the PSU then the whole system would be unstable. And most modern games needs a bit more raw power from the CPU and you have older Pentium 4 so don't expect to run all modern games with full details.

ShadyGame · Feb 4, 2008, 04:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by temeteus82

if it was the PSU then the whole system would be unstable. And most modern games needs a bit more raw power from the CPU and you have older Pentium 4 so don't expect to run all modern games with full details.

Buti dont want with full details...gta san andreas itsa old game and i try to run in a resolution of 600*800 and runs slow..

**temeteus82** · Feb 4, 2008, 06:38 PM

hmm... You have the newest chipset drivers from VIA??
And have you defragmented your hard drive ??

**Mousey** · Feb 5, 2008, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by temeteus82

hmm... You have the newest chipset drivers from VIA??
And have you defragmented your hard drive ??

Pah defragmention, voodoo from the 80s imo.
Performance gains by that are so short-lived and so minutely noticeable i reckon it's a complete waste of time, you can get better results running disk cleanup in like a quarter of the time on a really clogged HDD.

I'd suggest trying a different mobo (if you can get hold of one) and if you don't get any better performance from that i don't think there's anything else you can do. Socket 478 is so outdated now your'e at a dead end with regards to processors, i'd advise getting an LGA775 board + processor if your budget can stretch that far (New board + cpu + memory + gfx), perhaps the extra bandwith from the more up to date socket would help?
For the love of christ stay away from VIA chipsets, evil things

BlueMak · Feb 5, 2008, 09:25 PM

Mousey what are you talking about? Defrag of the HDDs is very important for performance. Not if you defrag every few days of course.

**Mousey** · Feb 5, 2008, 10:55 PM

I've never defragmented my HDD once, my dad's completely paranoid and uses a special utility, i just keep my files organised and run disk cleanup every few weeks, problems solved :/

BlueMak · Feb 5, 2008, 11:09 PM

Keeping your files organised has little or nothing to do with fragmentation. Oh well.

**Mousey** · Feb 5, 2008, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueMak

Keeping your files organised has little or nothing to do with fragmentation. Oh well.

Yes i do know, but that's how i keep my files and folders running smoothly

And when i spend most of my time in C4D/Photoshop or TF2 i can never be arsed defragging anyway

OldBuzzard · Feb 6, 2008, 02:03 AM

I love how people seen to think that if THEY can't seem to get a particular piece of hardware/software to work (even though thousands, if not millions of others have problems with it) that it's junk.

Up until this MB, I've used VIA chipsets along with ATI cards since my old Athlon 1.2 T-Bird. Never had a problem, and all systems have been as stable as a rock.

Now to the OP. Disk Cleanup and Defragging will help.

Another thing to look at, especially if you have multiple partitions, is how much free space you have. An 'almost full' partition/drive will cause poor performance also.

Another thing is other programs/services running in the backround.

Page/swap file size is also something to take a look at. If it's too small it will also degrade performance.

Try going to this site: PC Pitstop: Free PC Diagnostics, computer help and Tuneups and let it run it's tests on your system. It may point you to areas that are causing you problems.

ShadyGame · Mar 1, 2008, 06:46 PM

YeaH...I thinik defragmentation of the disk helps a lot...
But now..i have that problem only with gta san andreas...
Sometimes runs well others slow -.-'
When i enter in the game menu i get framerate of 300 and 400 =O
When im in game my framerate is 35...then it slow in some parts of the city to 15..when i shoot..damn..

MitchRapp · Mar 10, 2008, 12:26 AM

basic tips

- Get all the windows updates - some of them fix incompatibility issues with video cards as well as games themselves
- Get the latest drivers for your video, sound and chipset. Make sure you uninstall older drivers before installing new ones
- Clean up useless files on your PC (CCleaner does the trick)
- Uninstall unwanted items from your PC
- Defrag regularly
- Use a SWAP file
- Make sure you don't run games with a thousand things open in the background. If games are slow to load (I know GTA loads a lot of data while you play) it could be your real-time antivirus checking each file ... slows things down !
- Scan your PC for spyware, it could be that.

Feb 3, 2008, 08:57 PM	#1
ShadyGame DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 15 Rep Power: 0	Games run slow Hi..i have a big problem....everytime a run a game it runs slow..no matter what resolution i use.....even with the minimun visual effects it runs slow....I have formated one partition and reinstalled windows xp but happens the same thing... I have the drivers instaled....i have a hard disk with 2 partitions..one for windows vista and another for windows xp..they run slow in the 2... My pc specs... Ati Radeon HD 2600 pro 512 mb 2 pentium 4 3.20 ghz 1,25 ram ddr Windows XP or Vista Motherboard is AsRock P4VM800 I cant live without playing games lol..help me out please Last edited by ShadyGame; Feb 3, 2008 at 09:10 PM.

Feb 3, 2008, 11:24 PM	#3
Mousey Synth's Long Lost Bro Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Web Design Hell Posts: 7,156 Rep Power: 243 System Specs	Yeah Teme's right, is there a particular game or game engine your'e having trouble running? How many different games have you tried, And are the drivers for your 2600 up to date? __________________

Feb 3, 2008, 11:27 PM	#4
cozumel I'm dangerous but cute... Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Under the waves... Posts: 3,577 Rep Power: 58 System Specs	Also latest windows updates, chipset & sound drivers. __________________ Don't worry about money - Be a beach bum! Scuba Rocks

Feb 5, 2008, 09:25 PM	#10
BlueMak HH's Asteroids' Dominator Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Hellas->Macedonia->Thessaloniki Posts: 13,247 Rep Power: 326 System Specs	Mousey what are you talking about? Defrag of the HDDs is very important for performance. Not if you defrag every few days of course. __________________ The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm *Sic semper tyrannis.*

Feb 5, 2008, 10:55 PM	#11
Mousey Synth's Long Lost Bro Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Web Design Hell Posts: 7,156 Rep Power: 243 System Specs	I've never defragmented my HDD once, my dad's completely paranoid and uses a special utility, i just keep my files organised and run disk cleanup every few weeks, problems solved :/ __________________

Feb 4, 2008, 02:10 AM	Thread Starter #5
ShadyGame DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 15 Rep Power: 0	now i have tried with gta san andreas..and call of duty 4..but i had problems before too with need for speed pro street..e have downloaded and instaled the last catalyst..the 8.1...i think its that...i have the sound drivers instaled too...could be cause of the power supply? i have seen somewhere that could have not enought power..mine only is 350 watts..sorry my english im from portugal... humm...i dont have windows updates..will try that..but answer my question thanks for the help..nice forum... i forgot to mencione one game...halo.the first..it runs slow sometimes lol my pc should play it well without problems..i think...

Feb 5, 2008, 11:09 PM	#12
BlueMak HH's Asteroids' Dominator Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Hellas->Macedonia->Thessaloniki Posts: 13,247 Rep Power: 326 System Specs	Keeping your files organised has little or nothing to do with fragmentation. Oh well. __________________ The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm *Sic semper tyrannis.*

Feb 6, 2008, 02:03 AM	#14
OldBuzzard DH's oldest Geek Join Date: May 2003 Location: Oberlin, OH Posts: 2,781 Rep Power: 141 System Specs	I love how people seen to think that if THEY can't seem to get a particular piece of hardware/software to work (even though thousands, if not millions of others have problems with it) that it's junk. Up until this MB, I've used VIA chipsets along with ATI cards since my old Athlon 1.2 T-Bird. Never had a problem, and all systems have been as stable as a rock. Now to the OP. Disk Cleanup and Defragging will help. Another thing to look at, especially if you have multiple partitions, is how much free space you have. An 'almost full' partition/drive will cause poor performance also. Another thing is other programs/services running in the backround. Page/swap file size is also something to take a look at. If it's too small it will also degrade performance. Try going to this site: PC Pitstop: Free PC Diagnostics, computer help and Tuneups and let it run it's tests on your system. It may point you to areas that are causing you problems. __________________ When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

Mar 1, 2008, 06:46 PM	Thread Starter #15
ShadyGame DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 15 Rep Power: 0	YeaH...I thinik defragmentation of the disk helps a lot... But now..i have that problem only with gta san andreas... Sometimes runs well others slow -.-' When i enter in the game menu i get framerate of 300 and 400 =O When im in game my framerate is 35...then it slow in some parts of the city to 15..when i shoot..damn..

Mar 10, 2008, 12:26 AM	#16
MitchRapp a.k.a. pepiman Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Montreal Posts: 998 Rep Power: 49 System Specs	basic tips - Get all the windows updates - some of them fix incompatibility issues with video cards as well as games themselves - Get the latest drivers for your video, sound and chipset. Make sure you uninstall older drivers before installing new ones - Clean up useless files on your PC (CCleaner does the trick) - Uninstall unwanted items from your PC - Defrag regularly - Use a SWAP file - Make sure you don't run games with a thousand things open in the background. If games are slow to load (I know GTA loads a lot of data while you play) it could be your real-time antivirus checking each file ... slows things down ! - Scan your PC for spyware, it could be that.