Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
noelgallagher

Performance question

Recommended Posts

Hello,

I tried to ask this on LM forum, but received no answer.

I run P3D v2.5 and until last week I was experiencing really bad fps. Flying with the Aerosoft Airbus A320, I struggled to maintain 20-25 fps at cruise altitude, 12-15 fps on approach at detailed airports (like FSDT) and 8-10 fps on the ground.

Then I came across the OPTIMIZE PARTS=1 tweak, which gave me an extra 10 fps, which is great.

However, looking at other threads, it seems that these fps are still pretty low, if compared to what other people are experiencing, even those with low-end computers.

I understand this is very subjective, but I'm still wondering if, given my PC specs, I should ask for more performance and if there might be something I'm doing wrong.

I tried to play with the settings, but nothing seems to help boosting the fps.

I can post here my sim settings and prepar3d.cfg, if needed.

 

My specs are:

P3D v2.5

Intel Core i7-3770K @3.50 GHz

8GB DDR RAM

Sapphire HD7970 3GB GDDR5

VoxAtc 6.5+Ultimate Traffic 2 (traffic set to 35%)

 

Any help is much appreciated.

Share this post


Link to post

Need your EXACT sim settings to be able to diagnose.


Philip Manhart  :American Flag:
 

13.jpg

- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." ~ Plato

Share this post


Link to post

Hi there,

 

i had the same CPU but i oc´ed it to 4.6GHz and i cooled it with an H80. But from what i see you have an AMD GPU. P3D2 is more nVidia friendly. I completed my setup with an GTX780ti which is a pretty tough GPU besides a Titan. 

 

UT2 eats a lot of FPS too especially if you run the CPU @ stock clock. Nevertheless it would be good if you post your prepar3d.cfg.


Greetz


MJ


 


My youtube blog________________________Prepar3D v2.5/v3


youtubefooter.jpg

Share this post


Link to post

You really cannot compare FPS between two systems even if they APPEAR to be identical - you are chasing your tail.

 

Go for the SMOOTHEST flight experience you can get WITHOUT looking at the FPS - then stay with that and never look at the FPS again.

 

FPS are for bragging rights - smoothness is for enjoyment.

 

Vic


 

RIG#1 - 7700K 5.0g ROG X270F 3600 15-15-15 - EVGA RTX 3090 1000W PSU 1- 850G EVO SSD, 2-256G OCZ SSD, 1TB,HAF942-H100 Water W1064Pro
40" 4K Monitor 3840x2160 - AS16, ASCA, GEP3D, UTX, Toposim, ORBX Regions, TrackIR
RIG#2 - 3770K 4.7g Asus Z77 1600 7-8-7 GTX1080ti DH14 850W 2-1TB WD HDD,1tb VRap, Armor+ W10 Pro 2 - HannsG 28" Monitors
 

Share this post


Link to post

You really cannot compare FPS between two systems even if they APPEAR to be identical - you are chasing your tail.

 

Go for the SMOOTHEST flight experience you can get WITHOUT looking at the FPS - then stay with that and never look at the FPS again.

 

FPS are for bragging rights - smoothness is for enjoyment.

 

Vic

Thanks for your explanation. I understand that it's not possible to compare fps between two systems, however the purpose of my question was to determine if there is something I can do to enhance my flight experience with P3D, given my PC specs and P3D settings.

You are absolutely right about FPS and smoothness. The thing is, I never used to look at FPS, but I can't get a true smooth flight too. This led me to look at FPS, and couldn't help but notice that they were incredibly low and most of all unstable. Tried to mess around with the settings, followed LM tuning suggestions, added OPTIMIZE_PARTS=1 to the cfg file, but still wouldn't define my flight as "smooth". Which means there's something I'm not doing right, because my system should be capable to offer me an enjoyable simulation. Unfortunately I'm really not familiar with P3D tuning.

 

Thanks everyone for your replies, I will post my cfg file later today, when back home.

Share this post


Link to post

Need your EXACT sim settings to be able to diagnose.

 

 

Hi there,

 

i had the same CPU but i oc´ed it to 4.6GHz and i cooled it with an H80. But from what i see you have an AMD GPU. P3D2 is more nVidia friendly. I completed my setup with an GTX780ti which is a pretty tough GPU besides a Titan. 

 

UT2 eats a lot of FPS too especially if you run the CPU @ stock clock. Nevertheless it would be good if you post your prepar3d.cfg.

Here's my prepar3d.cfg:

 

[JOBSCHEDULER]
AffinityMask=185
[Display]
ChangeTime=4.000000
TransitionTime=4.000000
ActiveWindowTitleTextColor=255,255,255
ActiveWindowTitleBackGroundColor=0,28,140,64
NonActiveWindowTitleTextColor=255,255,255
NonActiveWindowTitleBackGroundColor=24,33,87,64
InfoUpperRightTextColor=255,0,0
InfoUpperRightBackGroundColor=0,0,0,0
InfoLowerLeftTextColor=255,255,255
InfoLowerLeftBackGroundColor=255,0,0,128
InfoLowerRightTextColor=255,255,255
InfoLowerRightBackGroundColor=255,0,0,128
InfoBrakesEnable=True
InfoParkingBrakesEnable=True
InfoPauseEnable=True
InfoSlewEnable=True
InfoStallEnable=True
InfoOverspeedEnable=True
InfoWeaponSystemEnable=True
InfoCountermeasureEnable=True
SKINNED_ANIMATIONS=1
TEXTURE_BANDWIDTH_MULT=30
UPPER_FRAMERATE_LIMIT=0
WideViewAspect=False
FullScreenExclusive=True
FullScreenAutoFill=True
FullScreen=False
TEXTURE_FILTERING=4
MSAA=2
SSAA=0
VSYNC=1
FXAA=1
TRIPLE_BUFFER=1
BLOOM_EFFECTS=0
TextureMaxLoad=6
[sCENERY]
POP_FREE_AUTOGEN=1
AUTOGEN_BATCH_LOD=2
AUTOGEN_TREE_MAX_DRAW_DISTANCE=9500.000000
AUTOGEN_TREE_MIN_DISTANCE_TO_LOD=2500.000000
IMAGE_COMPLEXITY=2
[Main]
User Objects=Airplane, Helicopter, Submersible, ExternalSim
SimObjectPaths.0=SimObjects\Airplanes
SimObjectPaths.1=SimObjects\Rotorcraft
SimObjectPaths.2=SimObjects\GroundVehicles
SimObjectPaths.3=SimObjects\Boats
SimObjectPaths.4=SimObjects\Animals
SimObjectPaths.5=SimObjects\Misc
SimObjectPaths.6=SimObjects\Submersible
SimObjectPaths.7=SimObjects\Weapons
SimObjectPaths.8=SimObjects\Countermeasures
SimObjectPaths.9=SimObjects\UT2 Aircraft
LabelsSupported=Airplane, Helicopter
Location=-8,0,1032,1080,\\.\DISPLAY1
Maximized=2
HideMenuNormal=1
HideMenuFullscreen=1
LocationFullScreen=0,0,1600,900,\\.\DISPLAY1
FIBER_FRAME_TIME_FRACTION=0.01
 
 
 
[PANELS]
IMAGE_QUALITY=1
SAVE_AND_LOAD_PANEL_STATE=0
PANEL_OPACITY=100
PANEL_MASKING=1
PANEL_STRETCHING=1
UNITS_OF_MEASURE=1
QUICKTIPS=1
[Weather]
WindshieldPrecipitationEffects=1
MinGustTime=10
MaxGustTime=500
MinGustRampSpeed=1
MaxGustRampSpeed=200
MinVarTime=5
MaxVarTime=50
MinVarRampSpeed=10
MaxVarRampSpeed=75
TurbulenceScale=1.000000
WeatherGraphDataInDialog=0
AdjustForMagVarInDialog=1
DynamicWeather=0
DownloadWindsAloft=0
DisableTurbulence=0
CLOUD_DRAW_DISTANCE=5
DETAILED_CLOUDS=1
OPTIMIZE_DENSE_CLOUDS=0
CLOUD_COVERAGE_DENSITY=6
THERMAL_VISUALS=0
VolumetricFog=1
[CONTROLS]
Controls_Default=Standard
Controls_Current=Standard
force_master_gain=10000
force_stick_force_enabled=1
force_stick_shaker_enabled=1
force_gear_bump_enabled=1
force_crash_enabled=1
force_ground_bumps_enabled=1
force_machinegun_enabled=1
KBDAIL=64
KBDELEV=64
KBDRUD=64
force_master_enabled=0
[TextInfo.1]
Latitude=1,1
Longitude=1,2
Altitude=1,3
Heading=1,4
AirSpeed=1,5
WindDirectionAndSpeed=1,6
[TextInfo.2]
FrameRate=1,1
LockedFrameRate=1,2
GForce=1,3
FuelPercentage=1,4
[TextInfo.3]
Latitude=1,1
Longitude=1,2
Altitude=1,3
Heading=1,4
AirSpeed=1,5
WindDirectionAndSpeed=1,6
FrameRate=2,1
LockedFrameRate=2,2
GForce=2,3
FuelPercentage=2,4
[slewTextInfo.1]
Latitude=1,1
Longitude=1,2
Altitude=1,3
Heading=1,4
AirSpeed=1,5
[slewTextInfo.2]
FrameRate=1,1
LockedFrameRate=1,2
[slewTextInfo.3]
Latitude=1,1
Longitude=1,2
Altitude=1,3
Heading=1,4
AirSpeed=1,5
FrameRate=2,1
LockedFrameRate=2,2
[DynamicHeadMovement]
LonAccelOnHeadLon=-0.020000
LonAccelOnHeadPitch=-0.010000
RollAccelOnHeadLat=0.010000
YawAccelOnHeadLat=-0.100000
RollAccelOnHeadRoll=0.100000
MaxHeadAngle=5.000000
MaxHeadOffset=0.300000
HeadMoveTimeConstant=1.000000
[VirtualCopilot]
VirtualCopilotActive=0
[uSERINTERFACE]
SHOW_MISSION_CAPTIONS=0
PAUSE_ON_LOST_FOCUS=0
PROMPT_ON_EXIT=1
SITUATION=FLIGHTS\OTHER\Prepar3D
SHOW_SCENARIO_WINDOW=1
RestoreTimeOnMove=0
Map_Orientation=2
MUTE_ON_LOST_FOCUS=1
[PointOfInterestSystem]
CycleSetting=0
[sOUND]
PrimaryPlaybackDevice={DEF00000-9C6D-47ED-AAF1-4DDA8F2B5C03}
VoicePlaybackDevice={DEF00002-9C6D-47ED-AAF1-4DDA8F2B5C03}
VoiceCaptureDevice={DEF00003-9C6D-47ED-AAF1-4DDA8F2B5C03}
SOUND=1
SOUND_QUALITY=2
SOUND_LOD=0
UISound=1
SOUND_FADER1=0.500000
SOUND_FADER2=0.500000
SOUND_FADER3=0.250000
SOUND_FADER4=0.000000
[GRAPHICS]
TEXTURE_MAX_LOAD=2048
NUM_LIGHTS=4
COCKPIT_HIGH_LOD=1
AIRCRAFT_REFLECTIONS=1
LANDING_LIGHTS=0
DAWN_DUSK_SMOOTHING=1
LENSFLARE=1
HDR=1
BLOOM_LEVEL=2
SHADOW_QUALITY=0
TERRAIN_SHADOW_CAST_DISTANCE=0
CLOUD_SHADOW_CAST_DISTANCE=0
OBJECT_SHADOW_CAST_DISTANCE=0
CONTENT_NO_SHADOW=0
INTERIOR_SHADOWS_CAST=0
EXTERIOR_SHADOWS_CAST=0
SIMOBJECT_SHADOWS_CAST=0
TERRAIN_SHADOWS_CAST=0
VEGETATION_SHADOWS_CAST=0
BUILDING_SHADOWS_CAST=0
CLOUD_SHADOWS_CAST=0
INTERIOR_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
EXTERIOR_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
SIMOBJECT_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
TERRAIN_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
VEGETATION_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
BUILDING_SHADOWS_RECEIVE=0
SHADOW_NUM_CASCADES_LOW=4
SHADOW_NUM_CASCADES_MID=5
SHADOW_NUM_CASCADES_HIGH=7
SHADOW_NUM_CASCADES_ULTRA=12
GROUND_SHADOW_TEXTURE_SIZE=2048
CLOUD_SHADOW_TEXTURE_SIZE=512
SHADOW_LOG_PARTITION_LOW=0.850000
SHADOW_LOG_PARTITION_MID=0.850000
SHADOW_LOG_PARTITION_HIGH=0.850000
SHADOW_LOG_PARTITION_ULTRA=0.850000
EFFECTS_QUALITY=1
EFFECTS_DISTANCE=1
TEXTURE_QUALITY=3
IMAGE_QUALITY=0
See_Self=1
Text_Scroll=1
MIPMAP_VC_PANELS=1
TESSELLATION=1
HIGHMEMFIX=1
GROUND_SHADOWS=0
[TrafficManager]
AirlineDensity=0
GADensity=0
FreewayDensity=0
ShipsAndFerriesDensity=0
LeisureBoatsDensity=0
IFROnly=0
AIRPORT_SCENERY_DENSITY=0
[AContain]
ShowLabels=0
ShowUserLabel=0
ShowLabelManufacturer=1
ShowLabelModel=1
ShowLabelTailNumber=1
ShowLabelDistance=1
ShowLabelAltitude=1
ShowLabelAirline=0
ShowLabelAirlineAndFlightNumber=0
ShowLabelFlightPlan=0
ShowLabelContainerId=0
ShowLabelAirspeed=0
ShowLabelHeading=0
LabelDelay=1000
LabelColor=FFFF0000
[TERRAIN]
LOD_RADIUS=5.500000
TESSELLATION_FACTOR=85
MESH_RESOLUTION=21
TEXTURE_RESOLUTION=25
AUTOGEN_VEGETATION_DENSITY=2
AUTOGEN_BUILDING_DENSITY=2
DETAIL_TEXTURE=1
WATER_REFLECT_CLOUDS=1
WATER_REFLECT_USERAIRCRAFT=1
WATER_REFLECT_SIMOBJECTS=0
WATER_REFLECT_TERRAIN=0
WATER_REFLECT_AUTOGEN_VEGETATION=0
WATER_REFLECT_AUTOGEN_BUILDINGS=0
WATER_REFRACT_CLOUDS=0
WATER_REFRACT_USERAIRCRAFT=0
WATER_REFRACT_SIMOBJECTS=0
WATER_REFRACT_TERRAIN=0
WATER_REFRACT_AUTOGEN_VEGETATION=0
WATER_REFRACT_AUTOGEN_BUILDINGS=0
ENABLE_BATHYMETRY=0
WATER_CLARITY=30
WATER_DETAIL=2
SWAP_WAIT_TIMEOUT=30
[MAIN]
FIBER_FRAME_TIME_FRACTION=0.33
[GRAPHICS]
SHADER_CACHE_VERSION=1
[ATC]
AutoOpenAirTrafficWindow=0
UsePilotVoice=0
PilotVoice=0
ShowATCText=0
[iNTERNATIONAL]
ASLAT=2
ASLON=1
MEASURE=1
[REALISM]
PFactor=1.000000
Torque=1.000000
GyroEffect=1.000000
CrashTolerance=1.000000
General=1.000000
UnlimitedFuel=False
AllowEngineDamage=True
TrueAirspeed=False
AutoCoord=False
RealMixture=True
StressDamage=True
GEffect=True
ManualLights=True
GyroDrift=False
CrashWithDyn=False
CrashDetection=False
OnCrashAction=0
AutoTrim=False
[ATTACHMENTS]
WeaponHighlight=False
HighlightDuration=1.000000
AutoWeaponSwitching=False
UnlimitedWeapons=False
UnlimitedCountermeasures=False
IgnoreAttachmentWeight=True
IgnoreAttachmentForces=True
[RECORDER]
RecordAITraffic=True
RecordAirportVehicles=True
RecordLeisureBoats=True
[sIM]
SYSCLOCK=0
OPTIMIZE_PARTS=1
[sTARTUP]
DEMO=0
STARTUP_DEMO=
LOAD_SIMDIRECTOR=1
LoadWindow=1
[FACILITIES]
COUNTRY=
STATE=
CITY=
GTL_BUTTON=4096
[Misc]
Com_Rate=7
[DISPLAY.Device.AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series.0.0]
Mode=1600x900x32
[FlightPlanMap]
LineWidth=2
[MULTIPLAYER]
condAccoutPassword=0
VoiceVolume=0.000000

This is the best balance between performance and graphics I could come up with. I followed this tutorial to set the Affinity Mask value correctly. Again, I'm no tuning expert, so any suggestion is highly welcomed.

One more thing: as Mickeyj correctly pointed out, UT2 eats a lot of FPS and resources, I mean LOTS. I need AI traffic because i mostly fly offline, do you know if a native P3D traffic addon exists? Or if MyTraffic is less hard on performance? 

 

Thanks again.

Share this post


Link to post

I would drop the AFFINITY MASK, and maybe drop the FFT from the config, if you run with unlimited framerate. Try locking it @30fps or lower in the config, to keep the graphics engine from overloading the graphics card. Cloud Density is also a performance hog, try lowering the value.

 

To identify if the problem is GPU-related, I would install GPU-Z, and run it simultaneously with P3D. On my machine, if the GPU spikes at 100%, the entire sim will go jerky, like walking i mud. Very different to CPU starvation. Max clouds and heavy anti aliasing is GPU killer in P3D. 

Overclocking:

I have the same CPU as you, and I run mine @4,9 for P3D (it will do 5, but requires lowering the memory speeds to regain stability. Not worth it). An Ivy Bridge is very easy to overclock, although it requires a powerful cooling solution - like a water cooler (Corsair H80, H100 and equvivalents - even better: custom loop). It will easilly do at least 4,2 (mine does 4.0 @ stock voltage), but reaching for the 4,9-5,0 mark could be tricky - unless you got lucky in the chip lottery:) There are several videos and guides available on how to do this, in a safe manner. As long as you keep an eye on the temps, it will be fine! In my experience, an Ivy Bridge passing 85 degrees C in a stability test, is not going to be stable for very long..! What kind of motherboard do you have?

 

Share this post


Link to post

I suggest you FIRST delete your P3D.cfg file and let P3D rebuild. The one you posted is a mess. You have duplicate sections and entries.

 

Kristoff's suggestion of clocking that CPU is excellent - you really need to be around 4 GHZ if possible.

 

Suggestions to start -

 

leave Affinity mask alone

Set LOD radius to 4.5

Set texture_max_load to 1024

lock frames at 20

 

put in no tweaks yet - like FFTF or Optimize-Parts

 

If you can - start out with NO addons - try to get smooth there - then work the add-ons in one by one.

 

You need to get a solid base to work from rather than trying to patch the results.

 

Vic


 

RIG#1 - 7700K 5.0g ROG X270F 3600 15-15-15 - EVGA RTX 3090 1000W PSU 1- 850G EVO SSD, 2-256G OCZ SSD, 1TB,HAF942-H100 Water W1064Pro
40" 4K Monitor 3840x2160 - AS16, ASCA, GEP3D, UTX, Toposim, ORBX Regions, TrackIR
RIG#2 - 3770K 4.7g Asus Z77 1600 7-8-7 GTX1080ti DH14 850W 2-1TB WD HDD,1tb VRap, Armor+ W10 Pro 2 - HannsG 28" Monitors
 

Share this post


Link to post

I would drop the AFFINITY MASK, and maybe drop the FFT from the config, if you run with unlimited framerate. Try locking it @30fps or lower in the config, to keep the graphics engine from overloading the graphics card. Cloud Density is also a performance hog, try lowering the value.

 

To identify if the problem is GPU-related, I would install GPU-Z, and run it simultaneously with P3D. On my machine, if the GPU spikes at 100%, the entire sim will go jerky, like walking i mud. Very different to CPU starvation. Max clouds and heavy anti aliasing is GPU killer in P3D. 

 

Overclocking:

 

I have the same CPU as you, and I run mine @4,9 for P3D (it will do 5, but requires lowering the memory speeds to regain stability. Not worth it). An Ivy Bridge is very easy to overclock, although it requires a powerful cooling solution - like a water cooler (Corsair H80, H100 and equvivalents - even better: custom loop). It will easilly do at least 4,2 (mine does 4.0 @ stock voltage), but reaching for the 4,9-5,0 mark could be tricky - unless you got lucky in the chip lottery:) There are several videos and guides available on how to do this, in a safe manner. As long as you keep an eye on the temps, it will be fine! In my experience, an Ivy Bridge passing 85 degrees C in a stability test, is not going to be stable for very long..! What kind of motherboard do you have?

 

 

 

 

I suggest you FIRST delete your P3D.cfg file and let P3D rebuild. The one you posted is a mess. You have duplicate sections and entries.

 

Kristoff's suggestion of clocking that CPU is excellent - you really need to be around 4 GHZ if possible.

 

Suggestions to start -

 

leave Affinity mask alone

Set LOD radius to 4.5

Set texture_max_load to 1024

lock frames at 20

 

put in no tweaks yet - like FFTF or Optimize-Parts

 

If you can - start out with NO addons - try to get smooth there - then work the add-ons in one by one.

 

You need to get a solid base to work from rather than trying to patch the results.

 

Vic

Thank you both for your suggestions.

I've done a couple of test flights following Kristoff's suggestions, but still no smoothness. The best option seems to drop AM and keep FFT with frames locked at 30. I get fps in the low 20s at KORD by FSDT, occasionally dropping to 17. GPU average load is at 30%, occasionally peaking at 60, as per GPU-Z.

 

I already suspected that my cfg file was a mess, I think I've somewhere lost the plot...too many tweaks! :) I'll start from scratch and follow Vic's suggestion.

 

As for the overclocking...I've never tried to overclock my PC, assuming a newbie could not do it. It seems to be easier than what I thought. I'll have to buy a cpu cooler, though. Do you have any suggestion for a good quality one, but not too pricey?

 

Thank you.

 

P.S. My motherboard is an ASRock H61M-DGS

Share this post


Link to post

If you're locking at 30 and getting low 20's, you're causing yourself problems. The system will try to maintain 30 at the expense of other items.

 

You are after smooth - not numbers - I run my system maxed at 20 with most sliders maxed and it is smooth as silk.

 

Drop your frames to 20 and see if you can keep them there and get smooth. In this situation, raising the FPS will give you the opposite result.

 

It's a trial and error situation so resist the urge to make multiple changes.

 

Add-on airports and scenery by nature are more detailed and put a bigger load on your system. Work out of a default airport until you get smooth and then start moving to the add-on facilities.

 

You want to eliminate as many of the variables as possible.

 

The corsair water coolers are excellent - you need to look at one that would fit in your case. I'd shoot for an easy 4.2ghz - that should be easy to get.

 

Vic


 

RIG#1 - 7700K 5.0g ROG X270F 3600 15-15-15 - EVGA RTX 3090 1000W PSU 1- 850G EVO SSD, 2-256G OCZ SSD, 1TB,HAF942-H100 Water W1064Pro
40" 4K Monitor 3840x2160 - AS16, ASCA, GEP3D, UTX, Toposim, ORBX Regions, TrackIR
RIG#2 - 3770K 4.7g Asus Z77 1600 7-8-7 GTX1080ti DH14 850W 2-1TB WD HDD,1tb VRap, Armor+ W10 Pro 2 - HannsG 28" Monitors
 

Share this post


Link to post

Additional thought - for now - disable UT - puts a load on your system - get smooth and stable first.

 

 

Vic


 

RIG#1 - 7700K 5.0g ROG X270F 3600 15-15-15 - EVGA RTX 3090 1000W PSU 1- 850G EVO SSD, 2-256G OCZ SSD, 1TB,HAF942-H100 Water W1064Pro
40" 4K Monitor 3840x2160 - AS16, ASCA, GEP3D, UTX, Toposim, ORBX Regions, TrackIR
RIG#2 - 3770K 4.7g Asus Z77 1600 7-8-7 GTX1080ti DH14 850W 2-1TB WD HDD,1tb VRap, Armor+ W10 Pro 2 - HannsG 28" Monitors
 

Share this post


Link to post

Vic's suggestion of deleting your prepar3d.cfg or renaming it at least to rebuild one from scratch will be ESSENTIAL. I don't know what duplicate entries with different values will do to the sim, but could be a source of your framerate issues.

 

I do things a little differently than what was proposed, but here's how I generally setup P3D after an install (or refreshed prepar3d.cfg at least)

  1. Delete your shader cache located in %appdata\local\Lockheed martin\Prepar3d\shaders

After P3D is started up and you are sitting in VA in the F-22, open your display settings and follow below:

  1. Set desired resolution, AA, AF, vysnc and frame rate settings.
  2. Close settings and view FPS, it should be constant if a realistic frame rate setting was chosen (20-40) Remember, this is not FSX and does not require unlimited frames to be used just to work fluidly.
  3. Go page by page and change settings (don't do more than a couple at time, and only related settings at the same time, i.e. AI traffic or cloud range and density), always going back to the sim to check FPS, if FPS dips, then roll a setting back to bring it back up or lower the frame rate setting to compensate. Continue doing this until you have what you want and SAVE it to be retrieved later if you start tweaking again.

Philip Manhart  :American Flag:
 

13.jpg

- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." ~ Plato

Share this post


Link to post

If you're locking at 30 and getting low 20's, you're causing yourself problems. The system will try to maintain 30 at the expense of other items.

 

You are after smooth - not numbers - I run my system maxed at 20 with most sliders maxed and it is smooth as silk.

 

Drop your frames to 20 and see if you can keep them there and get smooth. In this situation, raising the FPS will give you the opposite result.

 

It's a trial and error situation so resist the urge to make multiple changes.

 

Add-on airports and scenery by nature are more detailed and put a bigger load on your system. Work out of a default airport until you get smooth and then start moving to the add-on facilities.

 

You want to eliminate as many of the variables as possible.

 

The corsair water coolers are excellent - you need to look at one that would fit in your case. I'd shoot for an easy 4.2ghz - that should be easy to get.

 

Vic

At last, I see what you mean. I've always thought that having more frames meant to have a smoother simulation. Plus, I didn't fully understand the function of the frame limiter. Now it's clear. I've started to build a brand new cfg file, working out of a default aiport, without addons, as you suggested.

 

 

I do things a little differently than what was proposed, but here's how I generally setup P3D after an install (or refreshed prepar3d.cfg at least)

Delete your shader cache located in %appdata\local\Lockheed martin\Prepar3d\shaders

After P3D is started up and you are sitting in VA in the F-22, open your display settings and follow below:

Set desired resolution, AA, AF, vysnc and frame rate settings.

Close settings and view FPS, it should be constant if a realistic frame rate setting was chosen (20-40) Remember, this is not FSX and does not require unlimited frames to be used just to work fluidly.

Go page by page and change settings (don't do more than a couple at time, and only related settings at the same time, i.e. AI traffic or cloud range and density), always going back to the sim to check FPS, if FPS dips, then roll a setting back to bring it back up or lower the frame rate setting to compensate. Continue doing this until you have what you want and SAVE it to be retrieved later if you start tweaking again.

 

 

THIS seems to me like a good working method to start adding what I want to the sim, keeping an eye on smoothness. Thank you.

 

 

 

 

Share this post


Link to post

With regards to overclocking the CPU, this link might be of interest: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-express-ivy-bridge-benchmark,3254-4.html

 

You can use the ASRock Extreme Tweaking Utility to tweak/clock while running windows:

http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/H61M-DGS/?cat=Download&os=Win764

 

For easy torture test, download Prime95:

http://www.mersenne.org/download/

 

While running the torture testing, use this software to monitor the CPU temps:

http://forum.techinferno.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=43

Many of the Ivys have a really poor thermal paste between the top heat spreader, and the cores. If the paste is unevenly distributed, the temps on one/two of the cores will skyrocket quickly. A solution to this, is to de-lid the CPU, meaning removing the top heat spreader, removing old thermal paste with isopropanol, and applying a better one. In many cases, the temps will drop 10-15-20 degrees. My first 3770K (bought a few weeks after launch) dropped nearly 20 degrees. My current one dropped nearly 10 (and overclocks A LOT better than the old one).

This Corsair H80i water cooler should fit most modern chassis without difficulty:

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181089&cm_re=corsair_h80i-_-35-181-089-_-Product

 

I don´t think you motherboard will appriciate a huge overclock (it does not seem to be designed for that purpose), and might not be able to keep up/deliver a stable enough voltage. That said - with an OK cooler like the H80, it would probably be possible to hit 4-4.2 :)

Share this post


Link to post

With regards to overclocking the CPU, this link might be of interest: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/z77-express-ivy-bridge-benchmark,3254-4.html

 

You can use the ASRock Extreme Tweaking Utility to tweak/clock while running windows:

http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/H61M-DGS/?cat=Download&os=Win764

 

For easy torture test, download Prime95:

http://www.mersenne.org/download/

 

While running the torture testing, use this software to monitor the CPU temps:

http://forum.techinferno.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=43

 

Many of the Ivys have a really poor thermal paste between the top heat spreader, and the cores. If the paste is unevenly distributed, the temps on one/two of the cores will skyrocket quickly. A solution to this, is to de-lid the CPU, meaning removing the top heat spreader, removing old thermal paste with isopropanol, and applying a better one. In many cases, the temps will drop 10-15-20 degrees. My first 3770K (bought a few weeks after launch) dropped nearly 20 degrees. My current one dropped nearly 10 (and overclocks A LOT better than the old one).

 

This Corsair H80i water cooler should fit most modern chassis without difficulty:

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181089&cm_re=corsair_h80i-_-35-181-089-_-Product

 

I don´t think you motherboard will appriciate a huge overclock (it does not seem to be designed for that purpose), and might not be able to keep up/deliver a stable enough voltage. That said - with an OK cooler like the H80, it would probably be possible to hit 4-4.2 :)

Wow. Thank you so much for your detailed explanation!

I'm trying to get familiar with the overclocking world. I've already watched tons of videos. I want to make sure I really know what I'm doing before touching anything!

I've also thought for a while to upgrade my mainboard and processor, but given that hitting 4Ghz should be enough (as others said), I think I'll stick with what I have, at least for now. Will buy the H80i and go for the overclocking, which is much cheaper.

 

Thanks again, hope I can address to you, if something is not clear :)

Share this post


Link to post

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  
  • Tom Allensworth,
    Founder of AVSIM Online


  • Flight Simulation's Premier Resource!

    AVSIM is a free service to the flight simulation community. AVSIM is staffed completely by volunteers and all funds donated to AVSIM go directly back to supporting the community. Your donation here helps to pay our bandwidth costs, emergency funding, and other general costs that crop up from time to time. Thank you for your support!

    Click here for more information and to see all donations year to date.
×
×
  • Create New...