# [SOLVED] Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War



## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

Hello everyone, I'm having some strange performance issues with CoDWaW. But first, the required information:

I already followed the steps shown here and optimized my pc for gaming, but the problem persists. My specs are the following:

* Power Supply – Zalman ZM460B-APS, 460 watts, 34amps on the +12V rails.
* Motherboard – Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3 v1.0, Socket LGA775, bios version F13.
* CPU – Intel Core 2 Duo E 6750, Socket LGA775, 2.66GHz(no overclock), my heatsink is a R3 Systems Iceage 120 Plus with Arctic Silver 5(I've applied the thermal grease correctly, and have this heatsink for an year already with no problems at all).
* RAM – Patriot DDR2 800MHz(at 5-5-5-15) 2GB(2X1GB), 1.8V(low performance profile. These mems support 4-4-4-12 at 2.2V, but I don't use this mode).
* Video Card – Nvidia XFX Geforce 8800GT Alpha dog Edition(with the default fan, but this version has a larger one), PCI-E, 512MB, single card, [email protected](Core 600/Shader 1500/Mem 900).
* Hard Drive – Seagate ST3320620AS , Sata 2, 320GB, 7200rmp, 16MB cache.
* Operating System - Windows Seven Professional 64bit.

All my drivers are up to date.

Ok, here's my problem: I own the Steam version of Call of Duty: World at War(version 1.5.1220, the latest one), and the performance Is terrible. I've already checked the minimum specs and my pc is way over them.

The worst case is in the "Black Cats" mission. I used fraps to measure the frames in the same spot(while looking at the other plane, just as the level starts) and here's what I got:

Everything on the highest possible configuration, at 1024X768: 8~10 fps.
Everything on the lowest possible configuration, at 640X480: 10~12 fps.

During other parts in the game there are moments when the fps are just fine, then if something different happens, like an explosion, the frames drop a lot. And the worst is still to come: sometimes a major slowdown happens, and after that the game goes incredibly fast for 1~2 seconds(by fast I don't mean high fps, but everything happening faster than it's supposed to).

I've already checked the integrity of game files using the Steam tool, and everything is fine. I've also defragmented game files, and they're 0% fragmented.

I reinstalled windows in another partition, updated the drivers(cleaning any vestiges of the previous one), installed the newest version of directx, and the problem persists.

Before, I used Windows XP 32bit and this also happened. At that time I tought maybe the problem was related to that old Windows XP installation, so I upgraded to seven(formatted the partition, so no vestiges from XP), and it's still happening.

I think the problem might be somehow related to the Steam version of the game, and other people with configurations similar to mine have posted the same problem at the steam forums(here), but still I'm not sure, because someone else in the tech support forums has got this problem too(here).

Sorry for the long post guys, but I wanted to give you as much information as possible in order to solve this problem.

Thanks.:wave:


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

Hello goliathvv!

First, I recommend using Revo Uninstaller to uninstall the game, then reinstall it. (www.revouninstaller.com). There should be a folder entitled something like "Save" in your World at War folder, so you should copy and paste that somewhere so you don't lose all your data when reinstalling. If, after reinstalling, the problem still persists, check your computer for viruses. You should most likely have a well enough antivirus to scan and remove any viruses. Also, make sure there aren't too many useless processes running while you are playing the game.

Specs wise, your computer is completely fine to run the game.


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



alimadari said:


> Hello goliathvv!
> 
> First, I recommend using Revo Uninstaller to uninstall the game, then reinstall it. (www.revouninstaller.com). There should be a folder entitled something like "Save" in your World at War folder, so you should copy and paste that somewhere so you don't lose all your data when reinstalling. If, after reinstalling, the problem still persists, check your computer for viruses. You should most likely have a well enough antivirus to scan and remove any viruses. Also, make sure there aren't too many useless processes running while you are playing the game.
> 
> Specs wise, your computer is completely fine to run the game.


Hi alidamari, thanks for your response.

I guess I'll try reinstalling the game later using the tool you recommended, after all, downloading 9Gb on Steam again will take some time!:sigh: But should nothing else work, this'll be my last resort.

I've already checked my computer for viruses yesterday with Avast Home Edition and got rid of 3 viruses, so I think now my PC is clean.

As for the processes running on background, I guess that might not be the problem, because even on that brand new installation of Windows the problem persisted.(and the default windows processes surely wouldn't affect the game in such a way that I would only get 10 frames on the lowest settings )

Thanks for your help.:smile:


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

No problem!

Post your results after reinstalling, it might just fix the problem.


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

Your PSU isn't strong enough to power your graphics Card. I would have a look in my signature for the power supply selection sticky. Its got a lot of info you should read up on.

This is what I recommend.

Corsair 750w
$110


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

The 460W Zalman PSU has 2 +12V lines, so the actual output of the combined lines is not 34A. It's more like 24 to 26A, which is not enough for a PCIE 8800GT.

You could go for Mcninjaguy's 750W Corsair to allow for future upgrades, but the 650W version would cover your current system. With the price difference between the 650 and 750 being so small, I would go for the 750W.

The rest of your specs are easily good enough to get over 30fps on games like World At War, but the weak power supply will be holding back the graphics card's performance.


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



Mcninjaguy said:


> Your PSU isn't strong enough to power your graphics Card. I would have a look in my signature for the power supply selection sticky. Its got a lot of info you should read up on.
> 
> This is what I recommend.
> 
> ...





koala said:


> The 460W Zalman PSU has 2 +12V lines, so the actual output of the combined lines is not 34A. It's more like 24 to 26A, which is not enough for a PCIE 8800GT.
> 
> You could go for Mcninjaguy's 750W Corsair to allow for future upgrades, but the 650W version would cover your current system. With the price difference between the 650 and 750 being so small, I would go for the 750W.
> 
> The rest of your specs are easily good enough to get over 30fps on games like World At War, but the weak power supply will be holding back the graphics card's performance.


That I wasn't expecting...

I already have this PC for over 18 months and everything ran just fine on med-high settings(games like Fallout 3, Crysis, Call of Duty 4, Mass Effect, Bioshock, and so on...). I never had any problem, even now I don't have with those other games.

And I don't mean to be disrespectful, but are you sure the amperage isn't 34A? I didn't just sum the amperage on each line, I went to the product's page in Zalman's website and calculated the value from a table at the end of the page.(here) In this table, the +12V lines have a combined output of 408W, so I divided 408W by 12V, and the result was 34A. Is this procedure right, or am I doing something wrong?

Thanks for your help.:smile:


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

Positive about the amps. The table in your link show +12V1 is 16A and +12V2 is 18A, but you need to allow for inefficiency with multi-rail PSUs (70-80% for good quality units). Also, the overall power output from PSUs deteriorates over time, not much but enough to make a difference when stressed by games.

For example, my 650W Toughpower has four 18A +12V lines, giving a total of 72A, but it's actual output is only approx 50 to 56A. This is plenty for my PCIE 8800GT, but not the full 72A you might expect.

The fact that your other games, which are quite demanding, are running ok means there's probably some other cause for World At War to be performing poorly, but the PSU is a concern.


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



koala said:


> Positive about the amps. The table in your link show +12V1 is 16A and +12V2 is 18A, but you need to allow for inefficiency with multi-rail PSUs (70-80% for good quality units). Also, the overall power output from PSUs deteriorates over time, not much but enough to make a difference when stressed by games.
> 
> For example, my 650W Toughpower has four 18A +12V lines, giving a total of 72A, but it's actual output is only approx 50 to 56A. This is plenty for my PCIE 8800GT, but not the full 72A you might expect.
> 
> The fact that your other games, which are quite demanding, are running ok means there's probably some other cause for World At War to be performing poorly, but the PSU is a concern.


Well, thanks for the advice then! Before buying this PSU last year I did a lot of research and it looked like the perfect one for my budget and config. I really never expected it not to be good enough for my VGA.

I'll take a look at that soon, but for now the current PSU will have to hold the PC a little longer.

But as you said, even if the PSU is a concern, the fact that my other games run fine might be a clue as to who the real culprit is...(and I'm looking at you codwaw :3angry1

I'll keep trying some other things until I re-download the game from Steam. If I find a solution I'll make sure to post it here.

Thanks for your help.


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

It looks like you've already tried the things I would have recommended, like updating the drivers, lowering the graphics settings, defragging, checking background processes, etc. And as others are having the same problem, it's looking like a problem with the game. Keep an eye on the Steam news page and forums for any news of a patch that might fix it.

One other thing you could look at is the nvidia control panel's 3D settings. The settings in here will over-ride any options you choose in the game's menu, so if you've been uninstalling and reinstalling the graphics driver, the settings will be back to default, which might not be suitable for this game. Make sure Antialiasing and Anisotropic Filtering are set to 'Application controlled' and the others are Auto or default.


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

I recently upgraded to a COrsair 850w from my COrsair 750w. I think I may have not needed it but in my case I was confused as to the culprit of odd errors. It turned my crappy Nvidia motherboard was crapping out on me. I use a GTX 260 and its over clocked at around 17% currently so I guess i wanted a really stable PSU for my self. If I do recommend a Corsair 750w instead of a COrsair 650w I am usually thinking about future upgrades/price/what the user uses it for. 

i might run a 7600 GT on that PSU but nothing higher. I personally think thats its better to spend a bit more on a PSU at least for the piece of mind that you know its very stable and won't struggle to run games with what ever setup.


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



koala said:


> It looks like you've already tried the things I would have recommended, like updating the drivers, lowering the graphics settings, defragging, checking background processes, etc. And as others are having the same problem, it's looking like a problem with the game. Keep an eye on the Steam news page and forums for any news of a patch that might fix it.
> 
> One other thing you could look at is the nvidia control panel's 3D settings. The settings in here will over-ride any options you choose in the game's menu, so if you've been uninstalling and reinstalling the graphics driver, the settings will be back to default, which might not be suitable for this game. Make sure Antialiasing and Anisotropic Filtering are set to 'Application controlled' and the others are Auto or default.


I took a look at that, and they were already set to what you said. I tried some other combinations but the problem persisted.

Also, some information was posted on the Steam forums about a new patch that is already being tested, so in two weeks it should come out. I'm placing my bets on this new patch, but on the meantime I'll redownload the game to my notebook, create a backup disk and try to reinstall the game on my gaming pc to see if anything changes.

Thanks for your help.



Mcninjaguy said:


> I recently upgraded to a COrsair 850w from my COrsair 750w. I think I may have not needed it but in my case I was confused as to the culprit of odd errors. It turned my crappy Nvidia motherboard was crapping out on me. I use a GTX 260 and its over clocked at around 17% currently so I guess i wanted a really stable PSU for my self. If I do recommend a Corsair 750w instead of a COrsair 650w I am usually thinking about future upgrades/price/what the user uses it for.
> 
> i might run a 7600 GT on that PSU but nothing higher. I personally think thats its better to spend a bit more on a PSU at least for the piece of mind that you know its very stable and won't struggle to run games with what ever setup.


I think that way too. The only problem is that I was told my PSU was powerful enough to handle my config and even something more powerful. But I will keep that in mind on my next upgrade, thanks for the advice.:smile:


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

Hooray! Great news my friends!:jackson:

Now the game runs perfeclty fine! Know that part I got 12 frames on the lowest settings? Now I get 57 fps with everything at maximum!:laugh:

Before in Fallout 3 my framerate on the wasteland was something around 32 fps with the settings on medium. Now? I get 60 fps on Ultra!:grin:

Now, what I did to solve the problem:

Today I started getting the classig nvlddmkm.sys bson on windows startup, and after the pc reseted everything ran fine. But should the pc be shut down, the screen would show again upon starting.

After doing lots of stuff, from changing clocks to reinstalling windows, I was getting to a sad conclusion: my hardware was gone...:normal: It was only a matter of determining if the VGA was really the faulty one.

Then I opened the PC, took out the VGA and started looking closely at it... I removed a dead mosquito on the upper part of the PCB(most likely got there recently, since the last time I cleaned my pc, about two weeks ago, the mosquito wasn't there), and I found what might've been the most important issue: one contact was oxidated on both sides. I carefully scratched the oxidation with a pin(it might not be the right thing to do, but that was my last resort) and cleaned it with a soft brush I use to clean my PC with. After cleaning, it looked just like the other contacts.

After that I cleaned the PCI-E slot with a brush, excanged the memories' slots(they were both on red, so I changed both to yellow) and then installed the VGA. My PSU has two 6-pin plugs, the VGA was connected to the one on the edge, so I connected the middle one this time.

I also removed an Evercool Rocket V cooler I had next to the VGA and then closed my case.

When Windows booted and no Blue-screen was shown I was really happy, but when I started codwaw and the game ran perfectly well, let's just say I can't quite describe that...:tongue:

What I did in short:

*Changed the memory slots.
*Cleaned the VGA PCB and the oxidation present on the connections(the oxidation is likely the real cause for the problems)
*Changed the PSU plug connected to the VGA
*Removed a cooler placed next to the VGA

I don't know for sure what solved the problem, altough the oxidation surely looks like the real source of the problems.

And so, everything is fine!:smile: But here's the scary part of this story: I played Fallout 3 at the same day it was launched(end of october, 2008), and at that time this problem already existed(since I played it on medium, and got 32 fps on the Wasteland), but all the games were playable in med-high settings, so I didn't care much. But only after this happened to CoDWaW I was able to find this problem, so all this time I wasn't actually getting all my VGA's got to offer(more than a year with such a problem, and I didn't even know about it!).

Well, that surely was a shock, but everything is solved now! I hope this might someday help other people with such a rare problem, and I'd like to thank everyone for your help!:grin:

Cheers!:beerchug:


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

I am so happy you got your issue solved! Congratulations for removing a dead mosquito off a piece of your computer. That is creepy! But good job and have fun with CoD!


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



alimadari said:


> I am so happy you got your issue solved! Congratulations for removing a dead mosquito off a piece of your computer. That is creepy! But good job and have fun with CoD!


"Congratulations for removing a dead mosquito off a piece of your computer."

This really isn't something that would make my mom proud, but still that was the best mosquito removal ever!:tongue:


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

I just want to give one word of advice. Your PSU may be working fine now but it is stuggling to power that graphics card. It won't fail slowly but it will fall as if you were Siegfried and his with Tiger attacked you. I think you should consider when you have the money getting a new PSU. I do not want to hear about your computer failing and taking down other components. If you want a second opinion just ask anyone else on the hardware team. 

Well now you're getting your full bandwidth, that is awesome!


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## RockmasteR (Aug 10, 2007)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*

good news that you solved the problem
I strongly agrees with Mcninja about getting a high quality PSU (like the Corsair 650W) the 8800 is a power hungry card and will slowly kill your PSU
I'll mark your thread as Solved


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## goliathvv (Sep 7, 2009)

*Re: Poor Performance in Call of Duty: World at War*



Mcninjaguy said:


> I just want to give one word of advice. Your PSU may be working fine now but it is stuggling to power that graphics card. It won't fail slowly but it will fall as if you were Siegfried and his with Tiger attacked you. I think you should consider when you have the money getting a new PSU. I do not want to hear about your computer failing and taking down other components. If you want a second opinion just ask anyone else on the hardware team.
> 
> Well now you're getting your full bandwidth, that is awesome!


Ok, I will follow your advice. As soon as I get some cash, I'll make sure to get a new PSU.

Well, this problem might have made me lose some time and patience, but at least I discovered this issue related to the PSU, which I believed to be a perfect component for my config. 

Thanks for the advice.



RockmasteR said:


> good news that you solved the problem
> I strongly agrees with Mcninja about getting a high quality PSU (like the Corsair 650W) the 8800 is a power hungry card and will slowly kill your PSU
> I'll mark your thread as Solved


Ok, I will follow his adivce. Thanks.

And thanks to everyone who took their time to read my problem, see ya!:wave:


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