Quick GPU Question - Shader Model Detection

Gaffer

With the release of Borderlands for PC just around the corner, I checked http://www.yougamers.com/gameometer to see what the specs were and if this rig could run it.

Dell Precision 6300M with:
Intel Core 2 Duo @ 2gHz
2 Gigs Memory
Nvidia Quadro FX 1600M

The app is telling me my shader model is 2.0, but both Gpu-z and the manufacturer's website tell me my card supports SM 4.0. I have had trouble running newer games (e.g. Call of Duty) and even old stuff like Guild Wars yet TF2 and L4D run okay, so I suspect my shader models may be at issue. Any way to see/detect what the current status is on this card and/or fix the problem if it exists?

Thanks guys.

Zxerol

Your GPU is the mobile version of the G84 core (around an Geforce 8600-8700 level), and thus is a DX10/SM4.0 part. The website app probably just doesn't recognize more exotic chips and half-assed its assessment.

The issue with your games has no bearing with the shader model, especially considering none of the games you listed uses SM4.0.

TychoCelchuuu

The Quadro is a graphics card for professional 3d work. I guess it could run games but it's not designed to do that and you would probably end up with some problems.

Gaffer

I was sorta hoping that was the case. That being said, this laptop has been unable to run stuff like Empire Total War and Call of Duty 4 + 5 at more than 10 frames despite being past min requirements. I guess my remaining questions are if this would run borderlands (given Randy Pitchford's claim that if one can enjoy TF2 on the machine, one can enjoy Borderlands as well) and if using third party drivers gleaned from the web might have any effect on performance.

Edit: This laptop was bought on the cheap as a gift for me and I did not choose it myself. Upgrading really isn't a choice as the GPU is fused with the motherboard if I remember correctly.

TychoCelchuuu

There's really no way to know if it's going to work with Borderlands before you try it. I'd wait for a demo, or if any of your friends have it, log in through their Steam account and try it out. Third party drivers can, I imagine, help out, especially with performance, but I'm not sure if they would or would not be the difference between a game functioning or not.

Gaffer

When the game unlocks on Steam tomorrow I'll see what performance is like and maybe consider changing to more recent drivers. The fact that it's midterm season is a major :x though.

flatlinegraphics

a quadro is *not* a game card. no amount of driver upgrades are going to fix that. it is designed for high end 3d and video work, and emphasizes quality over speed. need to rotate complex models in autocad or 3dsmax? need to accelerate your openGL video renders? need to bump performance in adobe c3+? quadro all the way. games? no way.

and no, generally you cannot upgrade/crossgrade the video card.

upshot, find an engineering student, double the money you spent on this laptop, and get a one with a generalized card.