Skyrim isn't running properly (PC) - help desperately needed!

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**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Hi dakka,

I come to you in my greatest hour of need, I've got skyrim for my PC because I am absolutely positive that it will run and my spec is easily high enough and yet it won't run smoothly, and when I say that I mean super super stuttery with a pitiful frame rate......

Here's what I know, unfortunately I am no expert in computers but I do what to get into them:

Quad AMD athlon II processors (hope thats spelt right)
8GB Ram
1TB memory
Nvidia GeForce 7025/630a graphics card

I can't remember the rest but it matches up to what is needed.

It won't run on even the lowest quality settings! The only thing I can think of is the graphics card. But I know it runs direct x 9 quite happily so I'm further confused.

If there is anything else you would need to know to help me out, I'll try my best to find the info

Can anybody help a fellow elder scrolls addict??

Many thanks in advance

**Necroshea**

1. Need more info instead of it just won't work.
2. Google Skyrim Nexus, locate the top 25 mods, there's one in there for old nvidia cards that might help you.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Sorry basically, I load up the game and everything is fine for a couple of seconds until the smoke starts on the title screen and then everything becomes very slow and stuttery, the same happens for the loading screen (took at least ten minutes to load the game) and exactly the same for the starting sequence on the wagon (took at least 25 minutes to do that instead of just less than five). So basically its running very very very slow

Does that describe it better?

**Necroshea**

I can do very little from here, but it just sounds like your computer isn't up to snuff. Have you checked out can you run it?

http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyri/intro.aspx

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

I am not currently on the said computer so I'll have a go when I can, thanks for the help

**Phototoxin**

I dropped my AA down to 4x from 8x just to make it run smoother. Try on minimum settings and then tweak up. Update your drivers!

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Now I don't want to sound like a total dunce (though I did mention in the OP that i'm not all to familiar with computers) but what do you mean by 'update your drivers?'

I have run it on minimum settings as I tested it on the minimum settings and it was as mentioned above

I think I've found one problem, my graphics card runs DirectX 9 and not 9c, that may affect it??

**Ratius**

Graphics cards ahve software coded to them called "drivers" - they allow the gfx to run and interact with the rest of your pc/software.
You need to update them regularly as out of date ones can cause problems.
Go to the Nvidia site and search under their driver section for the make of card you have.
DL and install them and reboot. Try running it again.
Based on my limited knowledge it sounds like your gfx card isnt powerful enough - afaik its a motherboard integrated one and they usually suck Im afraid :(

**Soladrin**

Yea, if your using an integrated card your pretty much always boned on the gaming department. They just don't cut it.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

If I have an intergrated one then can I use an additional graphics card? Done some research and it would seem that the GTX 260 would suit my needs if I can use it?

Much appreciated dudes

**Soladrin**

Depends if you have the right ports on your motherboard, integrated ones have the nasty habit of gobbling those up.

**Phototoxin**

integrated graphics tend to allow you to 'see' things. That's about it. Anything more complex than a pyramid and they tend to spasticate I find! For skyrim you need a DEDICATED graphics card

Your ram seems fine and I'm guessing your cpu is fine also. You'd need a graphics card. Don't get a top notch £300 one as in 6 months it will be worth about £100!

I'd go for one that is PCI-E which has at 512-1gb gfx memory and has good reviews. You will also need to make sure that it fits in your pc case as some of the more modern ones have uber fans built in which make them epically thick.

**Ratius**

No expert but the GTX 260 is aging slightly and prices I've seen are nonsense for a card pushing 2-3 years old.
Dosent support DX10 either which isnt a big deal now but you always want to try and future proof your hardware.

As Photo said PCIE is a good choice and definetly make sure your motherboard/case can fit the card.
Going to a reputable hardware retailer and asking for advice is always recommended.
Otherwise spend some time over at tomshardware.com for up to date and comprehensive reviews.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Soldarin - I better start praying I have a port then!!!

Photo - just done a quick search and they seem reasonably priced, I sure as hell don't want to pay much more than £100, I don't have as much money as I would like

The radeon series seem to pop up quite a lot, they good in your opinion?

Ratius - Ah ok I will avoid it then, just going on scraps of info that I find lol. I am quite fortunate, I do have a computer hardware store literally 10-20 doors down so I should go and talk to them and see if they know any more, they may be able to even help me choose one and fit it. And thanks for the website, I'll have a look in a bit.

All hinged on whether I have the correct port, who knew it would all come down to one tiny hole

Thanks again all

**Phototoxin**

Aye places like dabs also should have them.

Something akin to this might do for £60 but you'd need to make sure that you i)have a pic-e slot, ii)that your PSU would power it

**Soladrin**

PCI express port is what you need (AFAIK).

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Photo - wow that seems to be excellent value, thanks for the link!

Sol - awesome, I will bear in mind for when I get home and see what I can find

I'll check out what exactly the option I have are when I get home, it shall be a long and tense wait

I should have an update on what I have later.

Cheers guys!

**Soladrin**

Just look up a picture of the slot, and see if you have one free on your own motherboard, and how much space is left surrounding so you can actually fit those turbo boosted monster fans they come with today.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Alright guys maybe some progress, here's the info about the PCI-express you mentioned with my computer:

Revolutionary PCI express interface provides scalable bandwith for multi-purpose usage. PCI-E x16 interface doubles the bandwidth of graphics interface of previous generations thus delivering the utmost gaming experience. PCI-E x1 interface provides twice the bandwidth of PCI interface up to 250MB/s for new generation I/O peripherial devices.

This any use at all or is it as sol said, straight forward have a look what you've got?

Cheers as always

**Soladrin**

Yep, either your motherboard has it or it doesn't. That's it.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Ok guys, a big breakthrough I think.

Got a nice big baby blue PCIE16 port with nothing in the way on my motherboard, that sound like the ticket??

Thanks as always

**Soladrin**

Don't forget to uninstall your old cards drivers when you hook up the new kit. These things have a habit of getting conflicted.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Yay! So it is the one! Skyrim isn't too far off then, have to wait until the end of the month though

Cheers Sol, I will bear that in mind, many thanks for your time and expertise

**Ratius**

My mates a tech head Scotti and says this:

PCI Express is actually the preferred interface for graphics cards. AGP is outdated and slower.

ANYWAY – I know the EXACT best card you can get for £100

ATI Radeon HD 6770 IceQ X Turbo 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card

Make sure your mate buys the card with the EXACT same wording. Because you can get a standard 6770 which isn’t as good.

That card there is insane bang for your buck and will have no probs with Skyrim.

**Soladrin**

You'll stop thanking us when you realize we have ruined all your free time by making you a fellow addict.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

Awesome! Cheers ratius I'll look it up and treat myself at the end of the month and send my thanks to your friend

Haha I'm sure it won't matter Sol, when I got my two week easter break from school when oblivion was pretty new, in fourteen days I think I must have clocked 120+ hours nevermind the rest of the last four years I've spent playing it and then there's morrowind!!! I'm sure losing another few hundred hours to Skyrim won't be too bad

**KingCracker**

I dunno man, when Morrowind dropped, I was hooked on that game for nearly 2 years, its all I ever played. I just hope that since Morrowind, Ive grown, and became a homeowner/father that I wont be so sucked into it.....then again

**Grabzak Dirtyfighter**

Both uninstalling your integrated cards drivers and manually going into control panel/system/device manager and disabling the device should be enough to stop your integrated card from conflicting with your new one, otherwise your PC is at least twice as powerful as mine and I run skyrim flawlessly. Both the uninstallation and the disabling can be done from the same place.

Also don't trust the installation disk for the card to have the newest drivers, go to the manufacturer's website and verify them as well as get the newest directX. If it still runs crappy check your drivers for your sound card, which can sometimes cause errors unrelated to sound, including game crashes and poor performance.

**Brother-Captain Scotti**

King cracker - I haven't had chance to play morrowind properly, I was twelve when I first bumped into it and only ever mucked about, just loved discovering things, so I have two elder scrolls games to fully explore, my GF will be chuffed!!

saying that she wants to play Skyrim herself

but seriously KC you aren't going to resist are you? You know you want too........

Grabzak - cheers dude! that is some really handy information to have, was going to look up how to do that later but you've saved me the hassle! Thanks!