Positive note on 2.1 Performance

[mrsparks]

Against all the good advice on these forums, I upgraded my system. Yes, mainly it was for 2.1 as it is now, but more broadly in anticipation of the future.

 

Previous system:

i5 @ 3.5mhz

8gb DDR3 RAM

GTX 1070

1TB SSD

 

Current system:

i7 7770K

64gb DDR4 RAM

GTX 1080ti

512mb m.2 NVME storage

 

Results were *very* encouraging, indicating there isn't an unbreakable ceiling to performance in 2.1, but rather a relative (expected) decrease in performance vs the partially optimized 1.5.

 

On the previous system, Normandy was borderline unplayable. I mean, I played it - don't get me wrong :lol: but it was a struggle. It was more likely testing the map than playing. Looking at the wing, the trees chugged along at was seemed like 5 fps.

 

On the current system, Normandy is totally playable. There's a normal* level of ghosting in the terrain when looking at the wing, but everything else is very smooth. I was able to increase pixel density from 1.7 to 2.1 without a problem (2.5 was playable, but the tradeoff wasn't worth it).

 

*normal = same as IL2 BOS (and most other games) even at medium settings. Ghosting in this scenario seems impossible to alleviate without resorting to ASW in most games.

 

*Settings*, unchanged between configs:

All the dropdowns on "high" except heat blur and lens effects. Yes, even shadows.

AA and Anisotropic off.

All sliders set to the middle.

Terrain shadows on flat.

Global cockpit lighting on.

 

Based on this, I wouldn't hesitate to update your system if you were planning to anyway. You'll likely notice positive improvement right away, and it will only get better as optimizations are shipped.

Edited June 10, 2017 by mrsparks

[Esac_mirmidon]

So in essence what you are saying is for a smooth experience with DCS we need around 2000 $ in PC components.

 

And terrain shadows in flat.

 

I think i preffer to wait for improvements through incoming updates and use this 2000 dollars in a well deserved vacation trip.

[mrsparks]

So in essence what you are saying is for a smooth experience with DCS we need around 2000 $ in PC components.

 

And terrain shadows in flat.

 

I think i preffer to wait for improvements through incoming updates and use this 2000 dollars in a well deserved vacation trip.

 

A very sane choice. :) I'm sharing simply to add a real-world data point to the increase "will more RAM help?"-style questions.

[Ghostrider142]

So in essence what you are saying is for a smooth experience with DCS we need around 2000 $ in PC components.

 

And terrain shadows in flat.

 

I think i preffer to wait for improvements through incoming updates and use this 2000 dollars in a well deserved vacation trip.

 

Yep, I had just bought a 1070 to play it on 1440p. Before that I was playing on a 50" screen with a GTX780 at 1080 and it was working great.

 

I then began playing on this 32" 1440p with the 1070 at max settings, and I mean max. Solid and steady whether it was Caucasus or NTTR. I enjoyed that for about 4 weeks then 2.1 hit.

 

Now I can play some missions in NTTR with settings much lower than I really want, but some missions won't play without really severe stuttering and I can't do anything in Normandy except fly a single plane with nothing else in the map.

 

I hope we get a real optimization update soon.

 

I was playing nightly with 3-4 of my friends and now we haven't together played since, only I have kept looking for a way to make it playable. :(