Given, I am only a simple user and am having even trouble finding info on specs for my comp.

I'm running Windows 7, and ran a dxdiag that gave me these info below (btw, there is also an option 'run dxdiag 64 bits' - wth? )...

There olbviously is more info, but I am posting what i believe is a lot to start by. When running Oblivion,FRAPS give me an FPS of as low as 5 at character generation and the initial Dungeon stuff.

As I have re-installed this several times, I wanna make sure there is anything I can do b4 giving it up for good.

Much obliged - pdesbois.

********************************************

------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 10/14/2010, 08:49:25
Machine name: PDESBOIS-PC
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Basic 64-bit (6.1, Build 7600) (7600.win7_gdr.100618-1621)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Dell Inc.
System Model: Inspiron 545
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: Intel® Core™2 Duo CPU E7500 @ 2.93GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.9GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 4086MB RAM
Page File: 1597MB used, 6570MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)
DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
DxDiag Version: 6.01.7600.16385 32bit Unicode

------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
Display Tab 1: No problems found.
Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
Input Tab: No problems found.

--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D: 0/4 (retail)
DirectDraw: 0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (retail)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (retail)
DirectPlay: 0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow: 0/6 (retail)

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
Card name: Intel® G33/G31 Express Chipset Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel® GMA 3100
DAC type: Internal
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_29C2&SUBSYS_02E01028&REV_02
Display Memory: 256 MB
Dedicated Memory: 0 MB
Shared Memory: 256 MB
Current Mode: 1366 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor Name: Monitor Genérico PnP
Monitor Model: DELL D1901N
Monitor Id: DEL3320
Native Mode: 1366 x 768(p) (59.790Hz)
Output Type: HD15
Driver Name: igdumd64.dll,igdumdx32
Driver File Version: 8.14.0010.1930 (English)
Driver Version: 8.15.10.1930
DDI Version: 9Ex
Driver Model: WDDM 1.0
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 9/23/2009 19:22:58, 5472256 bytes
WHQL Logo'd: n/a
WHQL Date Stamp: n/a
Device Identifier: {D7B78E66-6A82-11CF-1274-EA22A3C2C535}
Vendor ID: 0x8086
Device ID: 0x29C2
SubSys ID: 0x02E01028
Revision ID: 0x0002
Driver Strong Name: oem22.inf:Intel.Mfg.NTamd64:iBLB0:8.15.10.1930:pci\ven_8086&dev_29c2
Rank Of Driver: 00F42001
Video Accel: ModeMPEG2_A ModeMPEG2_C

Card name: Intel? G33/G31 Express Chipset Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel? GMA 3100

That's your problem right there. Onboard chipsets just don't have the horsepower for demanding games, such as Oblivion. You will need to get an actual Video card. Your other specs should be just fine to play Oblivion and even mod it to an extent. You're gonna need a dedicated video card though. Give us an idea of your budget and how comfortable you are with adding hardware. (Very simple actually, just pop the case and slide the card in a slot.) Then we can suggest some decent GPUs (Video Cards) for you. There are plenty of cards around the $100 US range to run Oblivion just as a general idea. If you want to max it out though of course you'll need to spend more. Just give us some more info as follows. Are you willing to upgrade? What's your budget? Can you install the hardware yourself? How much to you want to push Oblivion, to the max, or just moderately? Answer those questions and someone will be able to point you in the right direction.

In the meantime though you might have some success with http://www.oldblivion.com/index.php. This attempts to allow Oblivion to run on dated or under spec hardware. You may or may not be able to get a playable game. Just be warned, it will not be pretty. Oldblivion butchers your graphics and really destroys Oblivion. By destroy I don't mean it's harmful to your system, it's just not Oblivion as it's meant to be. I only suggest it as a last resort if you cannot upgrade for whatever reason.

Good day.

Wow - thx, I actually had a hard time trying to figure out what my video card was, and had no idea that was it.

budget-wise, i'm scrooed - and considering we're in Brazil, what costs $x in US may be costing $2x, no kidding... BUT, this is what would help me: if this card is the real problem, what would be the options for a 'normal' oblivion play? I can install it myself, or have help from neighbours.

By normal I mean I do not need to see every detail in Oblivion, I guess when we first install it, the game's parametres are set so that if you want more / less detail you can adjust yourself.

Also, the mods I add.... do they play a role in all this? I mean, what I actually wanna plug-in r mods that adapt some mechanix (like the Unarmroed Gelarion stuff, Chameleon NoRefraction, Better Bodies).

Again thx for spotting the core of the issue, that already helps a lot

EDIT: I kow about Oldblivion, but I'd rather try it out by upgrading what I have (in a week, a month, a year...?).

Check out some of the ATI 46xx, or newer 57xx cards. You have a 300 watt power supply, so, don't be getting anything that wants more than that.

Either of the above listed cards will run the base game pretty well on your machine. Stay away from graphics intensive mods though, like texture packs, and such. script heavy mods may or may not have a discernible impact for you.

In my experience here on the forum, Brazil is a tough country to shop in for PC components mainly due to the high prices as you said...and lack of PC etailers. If you got any store links you know of that is popular, post them here so we can browse through. Otherwise, you'll have to find a local PC shop or something and take note of the cards they have along with prices.


The Radeon 4650 is a cheap (at least over here in the States) little card that'll pull some high settings in this game. If you can get one of those, you'll be more than pleased based on your expectations. The Radeon 5570, 4670, and 5670 are also decent options. For Nvidia, the GT 240 is a decent buy. All of which will be compatible with your system and the power supply it comes with.

thats all great info - i am copying them into a file coz i am sure i will not remember any of it. so whenever i can search for this, i will keep these examples at hand.

thx :goodjob:

One thing you might want to keep in mind is that most of those cards that were mentioned are DirectX 10 compatible. But DirectX 11 is going to be the standard for today's games fairly soon. If you want to future proof yourself a bit, then look into the 5000 series by ATI and the 400 series by NVidia. Those are their DirectX 11 lines. Otherwise you might find yourself having to upgrade again a short while from now in order to play a game you're interested in.

thx belanos, i'm keeping notes on all advice here.

Well, if you MUST have DX11 right now, the Radeon 5570 and 5670 are what to look for. Still, there aren't that many games right now utilizing it....I'm still waiting for the market to flood with more games using it.

It probably won't be that long now, by next year I suspect there'll be a bunch of them. They'll still be backwards compatible of course, but they'll look best on the proper card. I know Civ 5 at least makes use of DirectX 11 functions for it's terrain graphics. The difference isn't huge but it is noticeable.

Presently, and for the foreseeable future, companies such as Crytek, which produces PC-only games, and never ports to consoles, are in a very small minority. The two most popular game consoles are both getting old, and do not have any replacements in the wings. Because neither of them can display graphics any more complicated than the Dx9 from Windows XP, their influence will put a cap on much of anything beyond Dx10 for PCs, so by the time Dx11 is actually needed, upgrades / replacements of worn out cards will be in order.