What computer does WoW take to get 60 fps?

I have a laptop, alienware and it has:
1.66 dual core intel
2 gb ddr ram
nvidia 8700m gt

i thought this video card would be good enough to 60 fps WoW but it runs it kinda poorly actually, i even have settings turned way down..what gives?

 

If anything, you should probably be able to run WOW maxed with high Multi-sampling and still get 60fps. First thing to always check for, are your power settings set to power saver?

 

Yeah, check your power settings, because even those little netbook laptops with onboard graphics can run WOW maybe not at 60 fps, but they can still run it which means if its running poor on a high end graphics card like yours then it must be down to power settings, or graphics drivers.

Or maybe resolution.

 

yeah i thought so.. my power settings are on high performance, i checked them since i know i've made that mistake before x_x
e--the resolution is 1400x900, it looks very blurred at anything below this.. is this an ok resolution though?
e2-- running vista also

 

Could you download GPU-Z, check under the "Sensors" tab and tell us what clock frequencies and temperatures you see there? it might be a problem related to PowerMizer, or at least that is what it sounds like.

GPU-Z Download.

 

Doing that now Aeris, thanks.

 

May be GPU driver problem ?

 

GPU Core Clock: 625.0 MHz
GPU Memory Clock: 799.0 MHz
GPU Temp: 96.0 ' C

 

The clock frequencies are OK, but that temperature is definitely not OK, is that the idle temperature your graphics card gets?, or did you just finish playing a game / are playing a game?

 

i have WoW open yeah sorry, should i close it and check the temps?
e- doing that now

275mhz
301mhz
79'C, going down slowly still

 

Just in case, but, right now that you are playing WoW, play some more, but check the "Log to file" checkbox under the GPU-Z's "Sensors" tab, it will most likely prompt for a location for the logfile to be saved, continue playing until that you notice a slowdown, play for like 1 minute more after that, then stop and show us the logfile, it might be that the card is downclocking due to overheating to prevent damage.

 

alright ill do that right now, thanks again for your help.

 

You are welcome. I am glad to help you.

 

Here's the logfile for a couple of minutes:
Date , GPU Core Clock [MHz] , GPU Memory Clock [MHz] , GPU Temperature [°C] ,

2008-11-21 03:38:35 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 93.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:38:50 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 93.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:38:51 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 93.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:40:11 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 96.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:40:20 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:40:21 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:40:22 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:40:23 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:41:05 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

2008-11-21 03:41:06 , 625.0 , 799.0 , 95.0 ,

 

That's a hella high GPU temp :/ the HP in my sig plays WoW with 60fps at around 55-60 degress tops after a few hours. I took the battery out and run it on high performance with mid to high settings.

Maybe you should use a cooler, or at least make sure the laptop bottom is clear from obstructions. I have mine proped up on 2 dvd covers at the back while I'm looking into getting a cooler.

 

Okay, there are no signs of underclocking due to high temperatures, but you might want to drop Alienware's Support Team a call, because 90+ C is kinda within the danger zone, and your card might actually be experiencing slowdowns that are not clock-frequencies-related but actually heat damage related, and since there is a problem with the soldering that Nvidia used for the 8 series mobile cards, you should call them, and you might even have to RMA the laptop in, I am sorry. :/

 

i see, ill do that thanks

 

those temps are just crazy, you need to clean out those vents if you have not done so. and do buy a cooler. and maybe turn your AA down. My desktop hd 3650 Gddr3 cannot run 60fps with AA maxed

 

You are welcome, good luck with fixing your laptop's problem, Veixveiy.

 

Agreed, AA is a FPS-Killer, but not even if the fans were clogged, the temps should not rise that much above the average-running temps.

 

veixveiy your card is good enough to pull over 80FPS. unless you are talking about Very crowded Cities, then you are CPU bound.

 

I used to own a Sager 5791 a few months ago with an 8700m GT, I ran WoW for a few hours just to see what the hype was about, I ran it in 1920x1200 16xCSAA 60-120FPS in almost everywhere. There's something seriously wrong with that system. Temps are insane. Like others have said, the first thing to do is to clean out the air vents, use canned air on the intake vent. Get new drivers. Check to see if the GPU heatsink is held down, and it's not wobbly or loose if you have access to it. Beyond that? get tech support because it may need repairs.

 

Going to add another "too hot" vote...

95C is WAY too hot for an 8700m GT.
My x205 had an 8700m GT and even OC'd by 30% never got higher than 69C.

I also concur that the 8700m GT is MORE than enough to run WoW at 60fps+ with everything and the kitchen sink turned on.

 

According to the log, heats not the issue, though I would like to see a longer log file; 4 mins isnt really long enough to tell much, other than he can hit 96C w/o downclocking.

 

But getting to 96 at ONLY 4 minutes really means something's wrong, maybe no the GPU, but the heatsink/fan dissipator thingy..

 

Latest updates of Wow add small graphical updates. In this case, in the form of shadows etc, thus getting a performance hit on usually good enough systems. Check disabling the shadows a tad bit to see how it fares.

Your temperatures are high indeed, I advice you to atleast check how dusty is your notebook to give it a clean. Also check with your notebook manufacturer.

For reference, even 9700GT cards can't get full 60fps with all enabled in the latest build of WoW, and the 9700GT is a tad bit stronger than 8700GT.

 

Yeah, 3.0.2 is a performance killer, and Blizz says they are only going to try for more graphics updates in the future.

 

ughhhhh i heard that too....

hopefully they dont get too intense and demanding...i dunno if i can afford to spend on a new laptop just yet.....

 

I'd talk with your manufacturer... 95-96C after a few minutes is just plain insane. It SHOULD be downclocking at those temps.

Ryz, he's at 1440x900... im sure WoW might have added some stuff, but at that resolution I highly doubt it would dip far below 60fps. (50fps is still more than playable)

 

Well, I believe Nvidia already admitted to G84 and G86 based GPUs to be faulty, and seeing as the 8700mGT is based on the G84, then chances are he has a faulty GPU. Whether or not this affects his GPUs ability to render correctly at given clock speeds is unknown to me, but if his GPU is fine and is just hot ( not to the point of downclocking ), then there may be another issue. That is of course speculation.

Also, 4 minutes isnt that short; think about it, his GPU goes from idling to 3D rendering at max clock speed, after 4 minutes it should be near its max temp.

 

I dunno, since Wrath of the Lich King maxed out everything @ 1680x1050 I drop into the 30's at times (on desktop in sig). Dunno if it's bad coding or the fancy shadows they added but I can run Unreal 3 higher steady fps than I can WOW.....LOL!

I might try the latest drivers to see what helps. Got some new low latency ram on the way, maybe to OC my CPU a little more and mess with ram timings just to see...

 

I don't think so. Some desktops in my internet cafe have G8400 in them, and I used to play WoW from there. In ran smoothly (50+ fps, I think), even at the highest settings. It even ran Perfect World smoothly at the highest setting, so it's certainly not about the GPU. Hell, my X3100 could play WoW at 50+ fps (though Intel's stupid driver freezes my Warcraft 3), and it's an IGP.

 

Don't forget that it is an Alienware, and that alone could be the heat problems.

 

my 9700m gts gets destroyed by WoW in large cities and in the forests. My temps are also peaking in the mid 90's after a while of gaming with no signs of downclocking though

 

There have been more complaints ever since the release of Wotlk (the expansion). It seems like its either some sort of bug, or they gave their graphics an overhaul (shadows etc.). I dont actually play anymore so I wouldnt know.

Do a google search on wotlk and fps and youll see what im talking about.

 

Is that just WotLK or earlier? mine runs fine with the 9600M GT but I guess the busiest place I've been so far is Orgrimmar so maybe that's not much of a test... I don't have WotLK yet.

What did they do... only offer the beta to people with the highest quality cards? :/ I smell a huge further patch download

 

This new expansion has brought my graphics card to a struggle also. I use to run wow 60 fps all the time and 40 fps in major cities. (all high native res) Now they added this new shadow slider which kills so much performance it is not even worth the effects.

I have an 8600m gt and on normal clock speeds with everything on high it stays around 15 fps which is unplayable. I turn shadows 1 notch up above the lowest and average 30 fps. The shadows are a huge problem and i do not believe it is well optimized. Also note that the setting called: reduce interface lag, has a huge hit on performance. I unchecked this box and with everything on high it was running 40 fps ( including shadows on max).

Thing is the fps showed 40 fps and it felt very jerky. The fps stayed consistent and i do not know what caused the jerkiness. In the end i turned reduce interface lag back on and even though it shows lower fps it feels much smoother.