Brand new system and still poor performance!

[Margulis]

<p>So i went ahead and got a computer with the following specs:</p><p>Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-920 2.66 GHz 8MB CachePower Supply: 1000 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power SupplyGraphics Processor: Single 1,792 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 295Memory: 6GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 3 x 2048MBMotherboard: Intel® X-58 Motherboard- Socket 1366 Core i7 Ready, Dual Triple Channel DDR3 MemoryOperating System: Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium (64-bit Edition) with Service Pack 1</p><p>Based on the feedback I was expecting to be able to either blast through max quality settings pretty good, or at least come close.  Um, no.  Even if I turn off shadows, my fps will drop to the teens running around Kelethin at times during the daytime with the lighting and all.  What the hell?  I did a 3dmark vantage and scored 20,000 with a GPU score of 17,800.  Seemed consistent with what other people with similar systems had, so what is the deal that I am missing here?  Is it the processor?  Is it just the game, or is it maybe the company that put it together (Alienware).  Yes yes, everyone says build your own computer but I don't feel confident in my abilities to do so, resulting in the decision to go with a premade.  Also, I've actually found turning shadows off and on to not really affect my fps at all, it seems to be the same either way.  Anyway, constructive feedback would be appreciated as to what I can do.</p>

[Margulis]

<p>disregard.</p>

[Margulis]

<p><cite>Margulis wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>So i went ahead and got a computer with the following specs:</p><p>Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-920 2.66 GHz 8MB CachePower Supply: 1000 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power SupplyGraphics Processor: Single 1,792 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 295Memory: 6GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 3 x 2048MBMotherboard: Intel® X-58 Motherboard- Socket 1366 Core i7 Ready, Dual Triple Channel DDR3 MemoryOperating System: Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium (64-bit Edition) with Service Pack 1</p><p>Based on the feedback I was expecting to be able to either blast through max quality settings pretty good, or at least come close.  Um, no.  Even if I turn off shadows, my fps will drop to the teens running around Kelethin at times during the daytime with the lighting and all.  What the hell?  I did a 3dmark vantage and scored 20,000 with a GPU score of 17,800.  Seemed consistent with what other people with similar systems had, so what is the deal that I am missing here?  Is it the processor?  Is it just the game, or is it maybe the company that put it together (Alienware).  Yes yes, everyone says build your own computer but I don't feel confident in my abilities to do so, resulting in the decision to go with a premade.  Also, I've actually found turning shadows off and on to not really affect my fps at all, it seems to be the same either way.  Anyway, constructive feedback would be appreciated as to what I can do.</p></blockquote><p>Fixed all my problems just by disabling enviornmental shadows and overclocking the cpu to 3.5 mhz.  Now running around 40-50 fps in the field and 25-40 in cluttered areas of town.  Everything else on default max detail settings except I increased complex shader settings to 1.0 and level of detail bial to 0.100</p>

[TSR-DanielH]

<p><cite>Margulis wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>Fixed all my problems just by disabling enviornmental shadows and overclocking the cpu to 3.5 mhz.  Now running around 40-50 fps in the field and 25-40 in cluttered areas of town.  Everything else on default max detail settings except I increased complex shader settings to 1.0 and level of detail bial to 0.100</p></blockquote><p>Great, I'm glad to hear you were able to tweak the game and get the performance you were looking for.  You might want to try a few different driver versions as well if you're really looking for maximum performance/quality.  The list of the latest supported drivers would be a good place to start, and that is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="http://help.station.sony.com/cgi-bin/soe.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=16163" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://help.station.sony.com/cgi-bi...p?p_faqid=16163</a></p>