Hello everyone,

 

I recently built a new gaming PC, and have been playing GTA on it for a while now. However, I feel that I should be getting more performance. What can I do? Is my processor bottlenecking my PC? I haven't tried overclocking yet; I don't really know how to. I usually get high 20s- low 40s for FPS without any ENBs. I did try both iCEnhancer and Game4Video, but they both pushed my FPS into the high teens at the lowest, and mid 20s at the highest. I do have 4 modded police cars, three of them high-poly. I use Large Address Aware, I have set GTA's priority to Realtime in Task Manager, and my commandline is this:

-norestrictions
-percentvidmem 100
-frameLimit 0
-nomemrestrict
-noprecache

PC Specs:

AMD FX-4350 Quad-Core @4.20 GHz with stock cooler

Gigabyte Radeon R9 270X with 2GB GDDR5

8 GB DDR3 RAM @1600 MHz

500W Power Supply

 

What else can I do to get more FPS?

 

Thanks for any help.

First off, don't set a process priority to "realtime". That is bound to cause other, potentially damaging, issues to your operating system. 

 

On to my questions: Is the game up to date? Is it a legal copy of the game? Are you running the game as administrator? 

First off, don't set a process priority to "realtime". That is bound to cause other, potentially damaging, issues to your operating system. 

 

On to my questions: Is the game up to date? Is it a legal copy of the game? Are you running the game as administrator? 

 

So then should I set it to "high"?

 

Yes, the game is 1.0.7.0, a legal version, and I am running it as administrator.

Just leave it as it is, there is usually no need to change the priority of a process. A realtime priority thread process can never be pre-empted by timer interrupts and runs at a higher priority than any other thread in the system. As such a CPU bound realtime priority thread can totally wreck a machine.

 

Does the game lag without the car mods? 

Edited December 23, 201312 yr by ineseri

Just leave it as it is, there is usually no need to change the priority of a process. A realtime priority thread process can never be pre-empted by timer interrupts and runs at a higher priority than any other thread in the system. As such a CPU bound realtime priority thread can totally wreck a machine.

 

Does the game lag without the car mods? 

 

Well when I set it to high instead of normal, I did get a few more FPS. But is that not worth it, as it could wreck my machine?

 

I will load my vanilla backup back in.

Potentially, not necessary. Try that and report back, could be the car mods that are hogging your machine. 

Making in game modifications can really help your game performance, as shown above with a commandline. What also helped for me is out of game modifications. By that I mean removing some of the programs you don't need running in the background. This can preserve the resources your memory needs to use. 

Potentially, not necessary. Try that and report back, could be the car mods that are hogging your machine. 

 

I just installed the game again, and the results are about the same, but the FPS stays in the high 30s to mid 40s most of the time, but that's without LCPDFR, ELS, the trainer, and any car mods.

Your PSU might not be powerful enough to power all of it. Try using a PSU calculator, using several too, so you can have some reliability.

I calculated 550w atleast, but other calculators may say otherwise.

Your PSU might not be powerful enough to power all of it. Try using a PSU calculator, using several too, so you can have some reliability.

I calculated 550w atleast, but other calculators may say otherwise.

 

Could you post a link or a screenshot of the calculator you used? The ones that I found were under 500w.

http://support.asus.com/powersupply.aspx - 550w w/ DDR3 RAM, R9 270x, and 4350 processor. Desktop motherboard.

What ones did you use?

 

Also, http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm You should try to aim a little bit higher than what it recommends. 

Edited January 2, 201412 yr by theninja35

http://support.asus.com/powersupply.aspx - 550w w/ DDR3 RAM, R9 270x, and 4350 processor. Desktop motherboard.

What ones did you use?

 

Also, http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm You should try to aim a little bit higher than what it recommends. 

 

So does that mean that my system isn't performing at its full potential because it doesn't have enough power? Do I need to buy a new power supply and rewire everything?

Well, if it is indeed the power supply being too low, you won't get enough FPS as there will not be enough power for the game you are trying to play to utilize/use, so it will not be able to run at full potential. If you think it is not the power supply because of what calculator you used, that is fine.

 

Although, I had a worst processor than you and only a GTX 550 ti (R9 270x is slightly better than the GTX 660, which is much better than the 550ti) w/ enough power and I could run the game at slightly more FPS than you on High w/ mods, including ELS and such. I ran it on Windows 7. 

 

If you can, try and buy a slightly higher wattage PSU, maybe 550w/600w to even 700w. You might also want to be able to return it just incase it isn't what is causing the low FPS. If you want to get Crossfire (2 cards+ running at the same time) in the future, 700w+ is the lowest you can have that will run them. Keep that in mind if you ever think you will upgrade to get two 270x's in the future.

 

Have you also checked to make sure the card is plugged in correctly, aswell as everything else? You might want to try that one time.

(2 day old thread, Sorry.)

 

Two things that work perfectly for me are (See attachments)

 

Here is the commandline I use, It works great (Might make the game look crappy but gets great FPS).

 

And secondly, a reflections mod and light reducer...The sun wont glare and lights on cars wont have glare, that would usually blind you but that does seem to give a good FPS boost as well.

 

If both of these combined doesnt work, along with lowest settings then you probably cant run the game without lag.

 

Reflections mod/lighting reduce - http://www.thegtaplace.com/downloads/f5270-gta-iv-lag-fix-real-time-reflections-mod

Well, if it is indeed the power supply being too low, you won't get enough FPS as there will not be enough power for the game you are trying to play to utilize/use, so it will not be able to run at full potential. If you think it is not the power supply because of what calculator you used, that is fine.

 

Although, I had a worst processor than you and only a GTX 550 ti (R9 270x is slightly better than the GTX 660, which is much better than the 550ti) w/ enough power and I could run the game at slightly more FPS than you on High w/ mods, including ELS and such. I ran it on Windows 7. 

 

If you can, try and buy a slightly higher wattage PSU, maybe 550w/600w to even 700w. You might also want to be able to return it just incase it isn't what is causing the low FPS. If you want to get Crossfire (2 cards+ running at the same time) in the future, 700w+ is the lowest you can have that will run them. Keep that in mind if you ever think you will upgrade to get two 270x's in the future.

 

Have you also checked to make sure the card is plugged in correctly, aswell as everything else? You might want to try that one time.

 

I just searched Google to find a power supply calculator, and after trying a few of the links on the first page, apparently I have enough power.

 

However, maybe in a little while I will buy a higher wattage PSU. Probably 700 or 750 because I might want to do Crossfire in the future. I have a Corsair CX 500W right now. Can anyone give advice if I should stick with that line, or go with another Corsair line, such as one that is more efficient? Is that worth it? I have heard that Corsair is pretty reliable, so I think I would want to stick with that.

 

I will check to make sure my card is plugged in properly, but wouldn't the card just not work if, say, one of the six-pin connectors wasn't plugged in? My card takes two six-pin connectors.

 

(2 day old thread, Sorry.)

 

Two things that work perfectly for me are (See attachments)

 

Here is the commandline I use, It works great (Might make the game look crappy but gets great FPS).

 

And secondly, a reflections mod and light reducer...The sun wont glare and lights on cars wont have glare, that would usually blind you but that does seem to give a good FPS boost as well.

 

If both of these combined doesnt work, along with lowest settings then you probably cant run the game without lag.

 

Reflections mod/lighting reduce - http://www.thegtaplace.com/downloads/f5270-gta-iv-lag-fix-real-time-reflections-mod

 

As you can see above, I am using a commandline. I am talking about getting more FPS when maxing out GTA's settings (except detail and view distance). Please, anyone, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think my card is powerful enough to run GTAIV at high settings with more FPS than I am getting now.

 

I would like to investigate other reasons, like not having enough wattage, before reducing the settings or using a mod to help lag.

I just searched Google to find a power supply calculator, and after trying a few of the links on the first page, apparently I have enough power.

 

However, maybe in a little while I will buy a higher wattage PSU. Probably 700 or 750 because I might want to do Crossfire in the future. I have a Corsair CX 500W right now. Can anyone give advice if I should stick with that line, or go with another Corsair line, such as one that is more efficient? Is that worth it? I have heard that Corsair is pretty reliable, so I think I would want to stick with that.

 

I will check to make sure my card is plugged in properly, but wouldn't the card just not work if, say, one of the six-pin connectors wasn't plugged in? My card takes two six-pin connectors.

 

 

As you can see above, I am using a commandline. I am talking about getting more FPS when maxing out GTA's settings (except detail and view distance). Please, anyone, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think my card is powerful enough to run GTAIV at high settings with more FPS than I am getting now.

 

I would like to investigate other reasons, like not having enough wattage, before reducing the settings or using a mod to help lag.

 

Quad core is acceptable and the 4.0+ Ghz is a plus, more ram would of been helpful...and extra cooling doesnt hurt, overheating can cause FPS drop. I think 500W should be enough for power, try upgrading if not, GPU i have no clue. I would of personally gotten a GTX with 2GB+ Video Memory, i see you have 2gb (Good).

 

Keep in mind, GTA 4 is a VERY demanding game. even comupters that go way over the recomended specs still lag, its because rockstar did a shitty port from console. The game wasnt coded specifically on PC, so its poorly optimized to run. So unless your running a $3000+ computer, or pick your parts wisely you cant really play the game on max settings without A. Texture loss. B>FPS below 35 or 40.

 

High poly cars can cause the lag but mostly texture loss/texture problems. With a 2GB card that shouldnt be any problem...

 

like I said, the game isnt designed to run well with PC's along with FPS drop and constant crashing on some machines. You need a very good computer to be able to run it on maxed out settings, unless you take precatuions with commandlines, or upgrade some parts...the only person I know who runs it maxed has a good 4.5k+ Computer with tons of liquid cooling and fans. obviously thats not necessary so 

 

Overall suggestion(s): one-up your current GPU; Power supply and/or processor.

 

Get liquid cooling or more case fans and such, keeping your computer at minimal temperature helps.

 

Or; dont play on max settings, unless you have no mods at all which may increase FPS.

 

Don't use ENB's or graphic enhancers unless your sure you can run the game on highest settings without issue, once again for VERY high-spec computers.

Edited January 7, 201412 yr by Sonny236

Quad core is acceptable and the 4.0+ Ghz is a plus, more ram would of been helpful...and extra cooling doesnt hurt, overheating can cause FPS drop. I think 500W should be enough for power, try upgrading if not, GPU i have no clue. I would of personally gotten a GTX with 2GB+ Video Memory, i see you have 2gb (Good).

 

Keep in mind, GTA 4 is a VERY demanding game. even comupters that go way over the recomended specs still lag, its because rockstar did a shitty port from console. The game wasnt coded specifically on PC, so its poorly optimized to run. So unless your running a $3000+ computer, or pick your parts wisely you cant really play the game on max settings without A. Texture loss. B>FPS below 35 or 40.

 

High poly cars can cause the lag but mostly texture loss/texture problems. With a 2GB card that shouldnt be any problem...

 

like I said, the game isnt designed to run well with PC's along with FPS drop and constant crashing on some machines. You need a very good computer to be able to run it on maxed out settings, unless you take precatuions with commandlines, or upgrade some parts...the only person I know who runs it maxed has a good 4.5k+ Computer with tons of liquid cooling and fans. obviously thats not necessary so 

 

Overall suggestion(s): one-up your current GPU; Power supply and/or processor.

 

Get liquid cooling or more case fans and such, keeping your computer at minimal temperature helps.

 

Or; dont play on max settings, unless you have no mods at all which may increase FPS.

 

Don't use ENB's or graphic enhancers unless your sure you can run the game on highest settings without issue, once again for VERY high-spec computers.

 

I think I will upgrade my PSU a little later down the road, but I guess I am pretty happy with my performance so far. Again, can anyone give any advice on power supplies?

 

I might also upgrade a lot later to do Crossfire with 2 R9 270X's, or a different card, so I would probably 700-750W.