Windows 10 Question

BigCoffinHunter · 08-14-2016, 11:16 AM #1

I'm currently using Windows 7. I can run Wii games with the internal resolution at 1080p using a G3258 at stock speed (I got a dud for overclocking so I leave it stock), but it's precarious. I had to completely disable my anti-virus to run Wii games without stutter. I'd like to upgrade to Windows 10, but since my computer seems to be on the edge of playing Wii games acceptably, would upgrading be a good idea? I'm concerned that Windows 10 may use more resources in the background compared to Windows 7, and would cause Dolphin to slow down. I don't want to go through the trouble of installing a new OS only to find that Dolphin doesn't run well.

**AnyOldName3** · 08-14-2016, 12:02 PM #2

Windows 10 has a much faster kernel than 7, so should be faster, even if it is doing extra stuff. Personally, I'm a big fan of Windows 10 and would recommend the upgrade.

Craftyawesome · 08-14-2016, 12:02 PM #3

You should be fine.

**admin89** · 08-14-2016, 12:22 PM #4

DX12 is the main reason for upgrading . Without it , Windows 10 is just another Windows 7 with different UI

**leolam** · (This post was last modified: 08-14-2016, 11:10 PM by leolam.)

Windows 10 will not make the CPU much faster than under Windows 7, and there's no reason it would. However, it does enable you to use D3D12 (as said by admin89), which can be a performance boost. But keep in mind that D3D12 can be unstable, especially on AMD GPUs.

Since Windows 7 will eventually become unsupported, it may be a good idea to upgrade to 10 anyway (if you plan to stay with Microsoft OSes).

BigCoffinHunter · 08-15-2016, 12:35 AM #6

(08-14-2016, 11:10 PM)leolam Wrote: Windows 10 will not make the CPU much faster than under Windows 7, and there's no reason it would. However, it does enable you to use D3D12 (as said by admin89), which can be a performance boost. But keep in mind that D3D12 can be unstable, especially on AMD GPUs.

Since Windows 7 will eventually become unsupported, it may be a good idea to upgrade to 10 anyway (if you plan to stay with Microsoft OSes).

It's not so much that I want Windows 10 to make the CPU faster; I don't want it to have more going on behind the scenes than Windows 7 and end up making my CPU slower. The G3258 is "just" running Dolphin acceptably at 1080p internal resolution for Wii games. Based on the replies I should be okay. I definitely want to upgrade since I'm sticking with Windows for now.

Thanks all for the help.

**leolam** · 08-15-2016, 12:41 AM #7

I doubt 10 will slow down your system, so really, you should be okay with upgrading.

This is slightly off-topic, but is there a reason you are not overclocking it? Even if it doesn't overclock very well, unless we're talking about a very unstable CPU which can barely go above 3.2GHz, going from 3.2GHz to, say 4.0-4.2GHz should still be a nice performance improvement, especially in Dolphin.

BigCoffinHunter · 08-15-2016, 02:06 AM #8

(08-15-2016, 12:41 AM)leolam Wrote: I doubt 10 will slow down your system, so really, you should be okay with upgrading.

This is slightly off-topic, but is there a reason you are not overclocking it? Even if it doesn't overclock very well, unless we're talking about a very unstable CPU which can barely go above 3.2GHz, going from 3.2GHz to, say 4.0-4.2GHz should still be a nice performance improvement, especially in Dolphin.

I've been told I should hit those speeds on the stock cooler since the G3258 overclocks so well. After reading multiple tutorials and posting multiple questions, I can't go past 3.5 or 3.6 (I tried last year so I don't remember which speed it was) without a blue screen. So I gave up and left it at stock speed. So far I've played a few games, including Super Mario Galaxy, Skyward Sword, and Xenoblade Chronicles with the HD texture packs without issue. I don't change any graphic settings other than the internal resolution to 1080p.

**leolam** · (This post was last modified: 08-15-2016, 02:08 AM by leolam.)

Erm, assuming you overclocked it correctly, that is indeed a bit low… I guess 3.2→3.6GHz wouldn't have been a very big difference.

You can probably go above 1080p if your GPU can handle it; graphical enhancements don't really increase the load on your CPU.

BigCoffinHunter · 08-15-2016, 05:54 AM **#10**

It's possible that I overclocked incorrectly. I have the ASRock Z97 Anniversary motherboard which is pretty much made for the G3258. There's a bunch of different settings in the BIOS for overclocking. I was told to incrementally adjust the multiplier and voltage and not touch any other settings. I even tried using the auto-overclock setting to no avail. I think I just have a bad CPU for overclocking.