CPU upgrade = Worse performance?

[Charlie Tame]

I am running Vista Ultimate x32. I recently upgraded my CPU from an AMD
Athlon 64 3200+ Single core to an Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Dual Core. I have found
that since the installation, Windows Vista has been running a lot more
sluggish. Before the upgrade, Aero was smooth.. now browsing has seemed
"labored" if you will. Scrolling up or down in IE is a lot slower than
before, and moving open windows around is like trying to walk in 3 feet of
water.

Certain games will run extremely poor, or not run at all. Halo 2, for
example, will run at no more than 2 - 3 frames per second, and sound will be
choppy right along with it. GTA will not even function once past the loading
screen. I thought graphics drivers were necessary, so I made sure those were
updated, but that did not improve anything. Other games, however, like
Half-Life 2 or Portal will run perfectly with no problems, even better than
the old CPU.

I checked to make sure that both cores were recognized, and they were. I
downloaded the AMD Dual Core Optimizer, and no success. My motherboard does
support the CPU with the latest BIOS, and I made sure it was updated.

Essentially, Vista was running better with my older and slower CPU, but I
don't want to downgrade, especially after buying the new CPU. I'd prefer to
unleash the full power of the new CPU. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

System Specs:
Gigabyte GA-K8NSC939 Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Dual Core CPU
2GB Kingston Dual Channel RAM
XFX GeForce 7900GS 256mb AGP x8 Graphics

That's interesting, I have almost the same setup X 2 and my 3800 seems
to go faster than the dual core 4200 no matter what OS is in use. I
recently built a machine with a slightly newer MB and 4800 and it flies.

The speed difference is right across the board from first boot stuff.


Honestly I don't have time to investigate in depth, and it's not a huge
difference that bothers me, but it is something I was curious about.

 

[Charlie Tame]

Will be interesting to see what happens, I don't think it's anything to
do with Vista (In my specific case at least) since I see the same thing
running any OS and it makes no difference

Also seems to show up when booting, which I guess leaves BIOS but that
is allegedly compatible.

 

[Guest]

I am running Vista Ultimate x32. I recently upgraded my CPU from an AMD
Athlon 64 3200+ Single core to an Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Dual Core. I have found
that since the installation, Windows Vista has been running a lot more
sluggish. Before the upgrade, Aero was smooth.. now browsing has seemed
"labored" if you will. Scrolling up or down in IE is a lot slower than
before, and moving open windows around is like trying to walk in 3 feet of
water.

Certain games will run extremely poor, or not run at all. Halo 2, for
example, will run at no more than 2 - 3 frames per second, and sound will be
choppy right along with it. GTA will not even function once past the loading
screen. I thought graphics drivers were necessary, so I made sure those were
updated, but that did not improve anything. Other games, however, like
Half-Life 2 or Portal will run perfectly with no problems, even better than
the old CPU.

I checked to make sure that both cores were recognized, and they were. I
downloaded the AMD Dual Core Optimizer, and no success. My motherboard does
support the CPU with the latest BIOS, and I made sure it was updated.

Essentially, Vista was running better with my older and slower CPU, but I
don't want to downgrade, especially after buying the new CPU. I'd prefer to
unleash the full power of the new CPU. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

System Specs:
Gigabyte GA-K8NSC939 Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Dual Core CPU
2GB Kingston Dual Channel RAM
XFX GeForce 7900GS 256mb AGP x8 Graphics

 

[Rick Rogers]

Hi,

Did you reinstall to rebuild the system files specific to the new
configuration? While it may be the same brand of processor, there are a
number of differences in the architecture and supporting files.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com

 

[Andre Da Costa[ActiveWin]]

Boot from your Windows
Vista DVD, select the System Repair Option > on the setup screen, select
'Repair Computer > Select your installation of Windows > select Startup
Repair option and follow instructions.

 

[Guest]

I did a boot from the Vista DVD and ran the Startup Repair, but it did not
detect any problems. I am going to try reinstalling Windows like Rick
suggested, and we'll see if that repairs the slowdowns.

 

[Guest]

Since I have the upgrade version of Vista, I formatted and reinstalled XP..
believe it or not it runs MUCH quicker and more stable now. I don't know if
this has to do with the reformatting, or the fact that it's XP and not Vista.
I guess we'll see, I'm gonna try to upgrade to Vista later tonight or
tomorrow to see how things run then.

 

[Guest]

Well, turns out to be a problem with Vista. I upgraded to Vista after a
successful run with XP, and it runs just as choppy as it did before. I'm
pretty disappointed now.. any other ideas on what to do? It definitely
seems like a graphics issue. Even though my graphics card is AGP 8, it says
right on the box "Vista Essential."

 

[Not Me]

Check the manufacturer's website for new drivers.
A lot of hardware has driver issues with Vista.
Unless Vista offers something that you just can't get with XP, I'd stick
with XP.
Some people claim Vista is the best thing since sliced bread, I don't see it
as an improvement at all.
That is why I have it on only 2 of the 250 machines I manage.

 

[Guest]

Turns out it was the chipset all along! I never updated the drivers since I
bought the motherboard. Things are running great now. Thank you everyone
for your input and help.