Low GPU and CPU usage but LOW FPS also...why?

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Hi guys, Im really enjoying DCS 1.5 since a few weeks but there is something driving me crazy since the start...with the system in my sign (with vsync activated in NCP as I cant stand tearing) many times for NO REASON I get low fps (below 60fps) with lots of GPU and CPU power remaining :mad:...sometimes I see my fps lowering as low as 40 and GPU at 50% and CPU over 40%...WTH?¿?¿?...Even I cant use mirrors as they COMPLETELY TANKS my fps to unplayable levels.

 

I have tried limiting my fps in both, game configs cfgs and riva tuner through msi AB, using full screen (alt+enter once in game wich greatly improves stuttering but not fps drops), using windowed, using Timer resolution, configuring NCP for vsync, AF, high performance, etc. nothing works.

 

The only thing that bothers me is the vram usage which may be the culprit...when I see in AB the vram usage some times in heavy graphics moments I see a very low vram usage (like 2gb or 3 gb) which could be normal, but the weird thing is that other times in very light conditions I see vram usage skyrocketing to 3,5/3,8Gb Vram so I suspect there is something weird here but even if Im out of vram that should not be the reason for a sustanined low fps and low cpu/gpu usage I think...also, system ram is not that heavy in usage as other report because I have NEVER ever seen anything over 7,8Gb total ram usage out of 16Gb...

 

I must say I have some mod/tweak done in my game which obviously increases system resources usage so if I delete them my system is able to sustain a constant 60fps flow but this cant justify why my fps drops when there are yet resources availables...

 

Btw, the only thing I have done to the game are:

 

-Starway 3.2 texture mod

-Increase objects distance (fardistance) to 40.000

-Increase texture loading (distance10x10 and distanceLevel0 ) to 150.000 each.

 

Im running 1.5.2. Settings in game are all maxed out except the DoF (off) AA at 4x, MFD at 512 single frame and 1080p.

 

Any help here guys??:thumbup:

Edited December 14, 2015 by watermanpc

[dburne]

I have noticed the same and commented on it in the 1.5 bugs thread ( under game performance).

 

Some missions I get great GPU usage which equals very high FPS, and some I am seeing really low GPU usage numbers which equates to really low FPS, lower than I ever saw previously in 1.5 builds. I also notice my vram usage is very low, like around 2gb or slightly over.

 

Hard to see a rhyme or reason why it is doing this in some missions. Note my GPU clock speed stays at max, as does my cpu speed, but the GPU usage really drops down drastically.

And I am not running any mods at all.

[Brisse]

Could be a vram bandwidth bottleneck. Nvidia made some kind of strange design decision on the GTX 970 which causes the vram bandwidth to plummet when vram usage goes over 3,5gb.

 

See this article for more information:

http://www.pcgamer.com/why-nvidias-gtx-970-slows-down-using-more-than-35gb-vram/

[dburne]

Could be a vram bandwidth bottleneck. Nvidia made some kind of strange design decision on the GTX 970 which causes the vram bandwidth to plummet when vram usage goes over 3,5gb.

 

No that does not have anything to do with it, the vram usage is not going anywhere near 3.5 gb. In fact, 2.0 I can run at 3.7gb of vram usage and still get great performance.

In fact I have not seen frame-rates in 2.0 near as low as I am seeing in 1.5.2., even over Vegas.

Edited December 14, 2015 by dburne

[Brisse]

No that does not have anything to do with it, the vram usage is not going anywhere near 3.5 gb. In fact, 2.0 I can run at 3.7gb of vram usage and still get great performance.

 

Op wrote:

 

I see vram usage skyrocketing to 3,5/3,8Gb Vram so I suspect there is something weird here

 

So I thought it was a possibility that the >3,5gb issue was a factor.

[dburne]

 

So I thought it was a possibility that the >3,5gb issue was a factor.

 

Ah gotcha, I was thinking of my experience should have read the OP closer for his...

[Lao Fei Mao]

Same here，I think one main reason is the DCS engine doesn't take good use of the CPU multi-thread or core.No matter 4 or 8 cores your CPU is , there are only 2 cores served for the engine. Another reason is the particle effects, which will drastically low the fps while multiple explosion happens simutaneously.

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Well, thank for the replies mates!!...the reason I talked about high and low vram usage is because I suspect there may be some problem with MSI AB readings just that, but maybe not...thats because I think its weird to see 3,5+Gb vram usage flying alone in a barely populated area and then see just 2 or 3Gb vram usage in heavy scenery moments, that makes me think that probably vram usage is SO high that for some reason it just overflow or something like that and get a wrong usage/reading...but maybe thats normal and there is not any problem :huh:

 

The fact is that right now I got this:

 

 

even lower that what I said before...just 7Gb RAM used and 3Gb vram, over 40%GPU and 35/40%CPU usage, all running at correct clocks...a FXXXING 22fps count with my system in a game based on an engine (despite EDGE improvements) that I used to run with my P4 2Ghz back in 2003!! :P...our systems should run this soft at 200fps+ maxed out 16XSSAA :music_whistling:

 

It just happens when looking at groud targets/objects, as soon as I look to oher place fps rise to the sky but again, looking at the "hot zone" all goes to shit!!:cry:...damn!22fps!OShit!!

 

There must be a way to improve this!!...I really LOVE the game but this performance with our systems is unaceptable:cry:...are you guys with gtx 980/980ti/titanx/390/390x, etc experiencing this kind of fps drops when LOOKING AT ACTIVITY HOT SPOTS?¿?¿?¿?

[Corrigan]

I have basically an identical system to yours, as you can see. The only important difference is that I have 8 gigs of RAM currently (although I have 16 fresh GB on my desk ready to go in)

 

Send me your mission/track and I can take a look at the performance! Although I will say that I have never seen anything like 22 fps in single player, in an F-15, at that altitude.

[kazereal]

When posting about problems like these, first remove the mods and disable extra programs like MSI AB: these can cause problems, sometimes conflicting with other pieces of code and causing the problems.

 

Also it will help developers to find and fix problems if you can show if the problem occurs after eliminating these possibilities.

[vicx]

Watermanpc, you have several forests in that view and I think this is why you are only getting 22fps.

 

I have done a HEAP of testing of 1.5 and one thing I can say without any reservations is that TREES KILL the framerate like nothing else can.

 

And forests are the worst.

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Im out right now, i will try to upload the mission but im not sure it could be possible as it was during a instant action or fast mission so i dont think i can give you the file...about trees, well maybe they are the culprit but i dont think so as i can look all the way to the forest and the game runs 60 fps and as soon as i look to the ground forces, even if there are not almost any tree and fps drops to hell due to the extremely low system usage...

 

I will try closing after burner soft, will report then...

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Ok, here I am again...well, I have tried disabling AB, disablin OC, trying several NCP options, closing programs, disabling Aviruses, lowering trees to MINIMUM, disabling ALL kind os AA, etc...nothing works...to recreate the situation Im getting just enter in create fast mission and then select F-15, select 12h, winter, clear weather, done!...

 

I have just realiced that the own DCS indicates you detailed info about the game running status if you press again RCtrl+Pause twice:P...so I think I have the problem identified:

 

Look at the VRAM usage that the game measures, before even starting mission:

 

 

After few secs from the start:

 

6.300+Mb VRAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WTF?¿?¿?¿?:huh::mad: and this is withOUT ANY AA, no vsync, and it happens with trees at max or at minimum it doesnt matter. This is absolutely CRAZY for a game with those outdated graphics and little to none modern graphics effects!!!

 

Whats more, I have realized that if I turn AA 4X, trees max, and 1024 for cockpit displays the vram usage is less :huh::huh::huh::huh::doh::doh: WTF is this??

 

 

 

Performance readings (without AA nor vsync...512 displays res ):

GPU load at 30%, CPU 30/40% and AB reading just 2600Mb Vram usage :huh:, maybe I was right after all...system RAM usage just 6,4Gb out of 16Gb, even with chrome opened :huh:

 

Well, after all this I think we can be asure there is something serious going on here, the game ram/vram usage seems very broken to me (even when all this is happening in 1.5.2 which is suposed to fix a "memory leak")...even if I disable my tweaks and decrease visibility distance at half, it would well overflow the most common vram amount today, and again in a pretty powerful system with and engine 10 years old...how the hell did people 5 years ago managed to mod visibility distances, textures, AA, etc with their system if I cant do so with mine?¿?¿?:huh:...whats the performance with 980ti/380x?¿?¿? and those 4gb+ vram cards???where are those EDGE performance increases?? god, Im really dissapointed right now, I though I would be able to run the game at absolutelly wonderful quality/performance after so many time and now this...:cry:

Edited December 14, 2015 by watermanpc

[Corrigan]

Alright buddy, let's get this sorted out. There's something wrong somewhere (which is good news!), that's not the performance you should be getting.

 

First of all, show us your settings (screenshot the options page). 22 fps sounds low but flat shadows = off and a few other settings can really take a toll.

 

Second, attach a mission in which you get poor performance at the beginning. "Create fast mission" randomizes a mission so we can't use that for testing.

 

Also, that "video memory" number that the game is reporting is always that high. I'm not sure how it works but it might be VRAM+RAM occupied by the game, in which case 6 gigs is fine.

[Lt_Maverick]

Low GPU and CPU usage but LOW FPS also...why?

 

I'm having the same issues with 2 970s in the same area on the map. Port cities with high density have been killing me.

 

I agree with everybody that this is very annoying. One thing I've seen mentioned a lot is the smoke and clouds. The older smoke and clouds have not transferred to the new engine well and supposedly cause massive frame dips. If you look over cities you can see multiple smoke stacks throughout.

 

Additionally, we're still in the beta/alpha stage of all of this. I think that once we get our finite release we're going to see more airframes at a more robust pace. We'll enjoy SLI, and I think our frames will go up too. Simulators always seem to lag the market in terms of frame rate. Hell, I downloaded Xplane 10 briefly and my frame rates were deplorable and that's an industry tool.

Edited December 14, 2015 by Lt_Maverick

[Mustang]

The older smoke and clouds have not transferred to the new engine well and supposedly cause massive frame dips. If you look over cities you can see multiple smoke stacks throughout.

 

A tip for solving the overkill of smokestacks, in your terrain lua use switchoffFetchSmokes = 1; (highlighted in screenshot)

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Alright buddy, let's get this sorted out. There's something wrong somewhere (which is good news!), that's not the performance you should be getting.

 

First of all, show us your settings (screenshot the options page). 22 fps sounds low but flat shadows = off and a few other settings can really take a toll.

 

Second, attach a mission in which you get poor performance at the beginning. "Create fast mission" randomizes a mission so we can't use that for testing.

 

Also, that "video memory" number that the game is reporting is always that high. I'm not sure how it works but it might be VRAM+RAM occupied by the game, in which case 6 gigs is fine.

 

Many thanks mate, I really apreciate your help my "brother in system specs "!!:lol:

 

Here are my settings, basically maxed out

 

("Fuera" means off)

 

But anyway, I think that lowering the graphics, while would work to increase fps for sure, its no the REAL solution!, I mean, look at our systems and look at the game graphics... whats more, look at how old the base engine is and where we used to run "lock-on"...now tell me we cant play this game with those settings:doh:..and also when we are suposed to be running the "new" EDGE engine...the problem here are not the settings, the problem is my hardware is barely being used (30/40%) so thats the problem because if it could be working as suposed to do, I shoud be getting 90fps+ with this settings.

 

I refuse to lower the settings in this game with my system!!:D , even less when we are running edge...

 

I'm having the same issues with 2 970s in the same area on the map. Port cities with high density have been killing me.

 

I agree with everybody that this is very annoying. One thing I've seen mentioned a lot is the smoke and clouds. The older smoke and clouds have not transferred to the new engine well and supposedly cause massive frame dips. If you look over cities you can see multiple smoke stacks throughout.

 

Additionally, we're still in the beta/alpha stage of all of this. I think that once we get our finite release we're going to see more airframes at a more robust pace. We'll enjoy SLI, and I think our frames will go up too. Simulators always seem to lag the market in terms of frame rate. Hell, I downloaded Xplane 10 briefly and my frame rates were deplorable and that's an industry tool.

 

Yeah, I guess thats a "work in progress" and so there can be problems, but of course its not a very good first contact with the new version. Hope to see SERIOUS improvements in hardware utilisation.

Edited December 14, 2015 by watermanpc

[dburne]

There is definitely something somewhat amiss in this regard in 1.5.2. Stuck out at me like a sore thumb. Heavy texture area, much lower GPU and Vram usage than previously. Much lower frame-rates, lower than I have ever seen in 1.5, and way lower than in 2.0.

[Lt_Maverick]

There is definitely something somewhat amiss in this regard in 1.5.2. Stuck out at me like a sore thumb. Heavy texture area, much lower GPU and Vram usage than previously. Much lower frame-rates, lower than I have ever seen in 1.5, and way lower than in 2.0.

 

 

I run the steam version so I can't vouch for 2.0 but I hear you on the 1.5.2. The last few releases of 1.5.1xxxx were the same way.

 

 

 

 

"The first time I ever saw a jet, I shot it down."- General Chuck Yeager, USAF, describing his first confrontation with a Me262.

 

 

JayRac3r/Lt_Mav YouTube Channel

[Corrigan]

Those settings look reasonable, but I still can't compare without a mission file. I did created one like you said, and had 70+ fps, but it was a different location on the map so we can't be sure. I can also say that I've never ever seen 22 fps in 1.5.

[_Dredd]

What are your Nvidia control panel settings set to to ? Can you take a screen shot.

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

Well, I agree with you saying 1.5.2 seems to have a worse performance than 1.5.1 (I downloaded DCS recently so never tried previous versions)...

 

Here is attached the mission I have been using for testing...just from the begining and specially from the cockpit and looking directly to the "action" the fps drops to 20fps for me for some reason and I do repeat, I have increased view distance for villages and the Starway 3.2 texture mod, but this should not be the problem as the problem is the AWFUL SYSTEM RESOURCES USAGE that the game performs at least in my system, independently of the graphic settings and/or mods used...

 

Looking forward your test Corrigan:thumbup:, thanks mate!!

FPSdropM.miz

[Ala12Rv-watermanpc]

What are your Nvidia control panel settings set to to ? Can you take a screen shot.

 

Here you have mate!!

 

Dont worry about the transparent AA, I have also tried with and without it and performance and GPU usage is the same...20fps with and without it in this mission...also 3d vision is uninstalled

 

 

Many thanks!!

[_Dredd]

You're doubling up on MSAA, Anisotropic with the game egines implementations.

 

Restore Nvidia 3D settings.., set maximum performance, and test again. Leave all other settings default.

Edited December 15, 2015 by _Dredd

[ShuRugal]

Looking at your screenshots, it appears you are in the area of Gudauta/Sukhumi? Do you have this low FPS problem elsewhere? I have noticed since 1.5 that in the Sukhumi area, my framerate also falls off the bottom end of the scale.