How can you tell if your CPU is the gaming bottleneck

[almoststew1990]

It's pretty obvious when your GPU is the bottleneck in your set up due to variable framerates depending what you're looking at, looking at floor increasing framerates etc etc.

What about a low end CPU? Does it cause jerky inconsistent framerates (not necessarily low frame rates)? Hang ups? Long loading times only?

I ask because with my £6 AMD e350, when I load into a game properly, I often get 1 frame every 4 seconds or so, for 30 seconds and then it will return to a normal 30fps or so. Is this my CPU?

(yes yes I know this CPU/motherboard is meant for, well, nothing at all really, but I'm just messing around with it.)


EDIT- I also get hangs around Windows that can last up to 10 seconds. I have Page Filing off.

Rest of specs are

Windows 7 64Bit
AMD e350 OC to 1.7GHz
4GB DDR3 RAM @ 1413MHz
512MB NVidia 9600GT
Some old 250GB HDD.

 

[almoststew1990]

Don't ever turn the page file off with 4gb ram. You're leaving nowhere for data to go when the memory floods.

I've turned it back on and set it to system managed and it still does the hangs :/ I'll try out FSX and watch it weep.


As an aside the Page File is an overflow area for when you run out of RAM- Windows moves the least accessed data into the Pagefile. Is that a correct 'in an nutshell' explanation?

Why would I ever use more than even 2GB of RAM at a time, especially on a system with a low energy passive CPU? The game in question is Allied Assault, which needs 128MB of RAM. Even if it took 768mb I would still be no where near my RAM limit. I don't have Steam open, no chrome tabs open, no Antivirus, no bloatware...

 

[almoststew1990]

If anyone is interested, I coupled the CPU with my SSD and now it really flies compared to before- none of the hangs around Windows and in games. It really would be fine in a basic internet and Word PC. The integrated GPU is good for Oblivion, GRID at 136*768. Pretty good for £6 I might try it with my 7970 to see how much the frame rates actually improve.

 

[almoststew1990]

Well there is only one thing a CPU and SSD can do together! It's not as if it's possible to set them up on a date.