Counter-Strike: Source. Low FPS. Help!

[aok_richy]

Contents:



1. Description of the problem

2. System specifications

3. Possible Solutions that I've tried

4. My yell for help!



1. Description of the problem:



The problem I have with Counter Strike: Source is 'unplayable' amounts of lag in-game. I say "in-game" because this is only when it happens. It doesn't happen on the main screen or when the server list is populating,
just when I attempt to play the game itself. The lag causes the gfx to
be very jumpy (I guess the frame rate is like 7 or something!) and also
affects the sound in the same way causing it to be very jumpy too. In
response to this, players and the server usually start to respond to my low performance
in-game and I usually have a short following of "You have been
disconnected from the server" or something similar due to lag. I have
no idea why this problem has come about - I have checked the minimum/recommended requirements for Counter-Strike: Source and I meet them.
I've used the support of steam's system diagnostic (trouble shoot) and
I've used all of their possible solutions.



2. System specifications:



==System==



Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (5.1, Build 2600)

Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) M processor 1.70GHz

Memory: 1015MB RAM

Page File: 639MB used, 1802MB available

DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)



==Display==



Name: Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS, 910GML Express

Manufacturer: Intel Corporation

Chip Type: Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset

Approx. Total Memory: 128.0MB



Main Driver: igxprd32.dll

Version: 6.14.0010.4764 (English)



==Sound==



Name: Realtek AC97 Audio

Version: 5.10.0000.5870 (English)



3. Problem Solutions that I've tried:

(a through g - not in order)



a. www.systemrequirementslab.com - I pass all of the hardware tests for Half-Life2 (Counter Strike: Source isn't listed)

b. Updated all drivers, including DirectX to 9.0c, Graphics card to the
latest (and correct) version and Sound card to the latest (and correct)
version.

c. Ran the Steam Systems Diagnostic and attempted _all_ of their
solutions. Forced Dxlevel 70, 80, 81 and 90 and even tried nosound +
window (mode) but no luck.

d. Checked for applications that may be running in the background and
slowing my system - I've closed all that I deem may cause confliction
but this made no difference.

e. Played single-player mode of Half-Life2 and compared game play
performance with that of Counter Strike: Source. There was a
significant difference in performance (I could actually play it!) but
there were some minor to expected lag issues depending on the amount of
objects/enemy characters on the screen at any one time (but I deem that
normal with most games/pcs)

f. Uninstalled and reinstalled - nothing!

g. Turned down the gfx to minimum they can be - again, nothing.



4. My yell for help!



If anybody could help me to resolve this lag issue I'd be so grateful!
My post is just to show what I've tried so far and the information
regarding my system.



I don't know what is causing this lag!

Thanks.

Aok_Richy

[nwo75200]

From the sounds of it, it is definitely your graphics card. You have built in/onboard Intel graphics which are horrid for playing FPS games, especially online ones where you will usually get less performance. Is this a laptop you're descibing? If so, then there is probably nothing you can do because you most likely won't be able to upgrade your graphics card due to the fact that there is only a small amount of laptops that have upgradable graphics.

[swampthing1]

The problems could be that you don't have enough ram, your processor is kinda old mine is a 2.8 gig and it still lags and finally if you run it on a large moniter it runs alot slower then it would on a smaller one.

[nwo75200]

Last thing I can tell you is that the problem can most likely be caused by 1 or more of the following:
1. It's definitely your intergrated graphics card.
2. The fact that you are getting kicked out of servers due to lag could be because of you internet connection, or high ping.
3. 1GB of RAM should be a decent amount for mostly smooth gameplay in Source, so that should not be causing problems, although 2GB would be smoother.

[RamonGTP]

yeah, onboard intel GPU's are not for gaming, even light gaming would cripple them, especially the chipsets found on laptops.

[pullmyfoot]

From the sounds of it, it is definitely your graphics card. You have built in/onboard Intel graphics which are horrid for playing FPS games, especially online ones where you will usually get less performance. Is this a laptop you're descibing? If so, then there is probably nothing you can do because you most likely won't be able to upgrade your graphics card due to the fact that there is only a small amount of laptops that have upgradable graphics.

thats where you are wrong. source is very processor based, not GPU. even with a seperate graphics card your system is still gonna struggle at real low FPS. In other words you need a better system on the whole to play source properly. a pentium M is just not gonna be good enough, even more so since its working as a processor and GPU at the same time, which sucks up even more of its resources. your gig of ram is sufficient though

Played single-player mode of Half-Life2 and compared game play
performance with that of Counter Strike: Source. There was a
significant difference in performance (I could actually play it!) but
there were some minor to expected lag issues depending on the amount of
objects/enemy characters on the screen at any one time (but I deem that
normal with most games/pcs)

source is alot more demanding than hl2. and hl2 is also alot less processor based. but then again your using onboard.. hl2 is just less demanding on the whole

[nwo75200]

thats where you are wrong. source is very processor based, not GPU. even with a seperate graphics card your system is still gonna struggle at real low FPS. In other words you need a better system on the whole to play source properly. a pentium M is just not gonna be good enough, even more so since its working as a processor and GPU at the same time, which sucks up even more of its resources. your gig of ram is sufficient though

Pentium Ms are overall very good mobile processors. They may not be the best out right now considering Core2 Duos but Pentium Ms are still better than Pentium 4s and the entire Athlon XP series. Don't be fooled by the clock speed of only 1.7GHz, a Pentium M clocked at 1.7GHz is on par with an Athlon 64 3200+ which is a pretty solid gaming CPU that can handle source without any problems. I've played source on a socket 754 3000+ and a plain Nvidia 6800. All the settings were on high, no AA/AF, and no fps config.

Bottom line is that a Pentium M 1.7GHz is not the bottleneck in his system, it is his graphics card.

[RamonGTP]

nwo75200: 1
pullmyfoot: 0

Pullmyfoot, I don't think you quite realize exactly how weak integrated intel chipsets are.

[carl33p]

Your ONLY bottleneck is your integrated video. There isnt any problem with your computer. Simply isnt cut out for gaming.

HL2 is slightly less demanding than CS:S. 2 years ago I had a Celeron and onboard video: I could play HL2 but not CS:S.

Suggestions:
Lower ALL video settings and make the RESOLUTION smaller.
Type net_graph 3 in the console to display your framerates.
Certain maps are more demanding than others. Search around and see if you can find a playable map.
Dont play on servers with lots of people.

Your best bet- Go back to Counter-strike 1.6

[SoloCamo]

source is alot more demanding than hl2. and hl2 is also alot less processor based. but then again your using onboard.. hl2 is just less demanding on the whole

Do you not realize that Source is just the name of the engine?

HL2 is slightly less demanding than CS:S. 2 years ago I had a Celeron and onboard video: I could play HL2 but not CS:S.

Only because of the extra load on the CPU. In general, CS:S has a lot more bots/players on screen at any given time compared to HL2.

[KarmaKiller]

I don't think you quite realize exactly how weak integrated intel chipsets are.

That's my vote..

[pullmyfoot]

ok. whoops. sorry. i was wrong then. i always thought the pentium M was really weak. ok. but anyhows, Counter strike source is more dependent on the CPU compared to the GPU