My new system has arrived- where to from here?

[hansangb]

And no, you shouldn't use wifi unless you have ZERO options. And I still wouldn't use wifi. Wired is the way to go, especially since you'll be downloading large packets (DCS). Of course if your Internet speed is 50Mbps anyway, it won't make much of a difference with wifi.

[Zoomer]

For VR I find DCS it not that optimised. I find my 1070 is around the 60-70% usage with fps skittish around 45, along with 20% cpu on the i7. I jumped back into IL2 BOS and it's far superior in VR, more prettier on the eye with a lot more clarity on the models, cockpit and terrain especially in Kuban, while making full use of the GPU.

DCS has a good bit of catching up to Il2 on their engine performance. I wouldn't expect miracles with the 1080ti. OP try out BOS if you can, you'll get it cheap on sale. As a WW2 sim nothing comes near and it's glorious in VR.

[ElCuco68]

I'm going to definitely check it out. Yeah, I had a similar usage pattern with the setup I'm currently upgrading from. With an FX-8350 and the 1080Ti, I was getting about 40% usage on both the CPU and GPU.

 

EDIT: Just downloaded BOS. Wow!

Edited September 8, 2018 by ElCuco68

[Sn8ke_iis]

Sockets have redundant pins, you can bend a few and it won't make a difference. The vendor wasn't necessarily being unethical or unscrupulous especially if he said there were bent pins in the ad. That being said, avoid if possible.

 

Nowadays you're pretty much buying the motherboard, CPU, and RAM as a package. Upgradability is limited. Check benchmark scores on 3Dmark. That's a much better guide for high performance parts than outdated build guides. For example, I have top 100 benchmark scores for my CPU/GPU combo. If you check the individual scores you see the same dozen or so people at the top. They're just tuning and benchmarking their systems multiple times. The guy with top scores for 7700K/Titan Xp has my same motherboard.

 

As of now, the 7700K may be a better buy than 8700 or 8086 for DCS. Other Flight sims are CPU bottlenecked. DCS tends to be bottlenecked by GPU. The extra $ might not actually get you any more FPS or settings. The new Persian Gulf map seems to utilize CPU better than other maps, so as always YMMV. Maybe the new Intel 9000 series 8 core will rock on Vulcan API. DCS can very easily hit 100% on GPU utilization even at lower resolution if you are using external views. DCS will usually run smoothly at 70-90% GPU utilization and that gives you a cushion for flying over cities and airfields.

 

Don't skimp on fast RAM. There is a noticeable difference if I don't use the XMP profiles to OC my RAM in my BIOS. Slow RAM can definitely be a bottleneck, but you hit diminishing returns per $ real quick.

 

I actually turn off the overclock on my CPU for DCS. No difference in performance on my rig. My CPU was bought directly from Silicon Lottery. In fact, the higher voltage just heats up my cooling loop, so with the CPU at factory overclock my GPU stays cooler longer, especially on warm summer days with high ambient. I have an undersized cooling loop for my configuration though. It really needs separate loops and radiators for the components. I was going for compact and quiet. My last build was too big and noisy.

 

I use MSI afterburner for GPU OC, EVGA Precision XOC is equivalent. Make sure you set up your OSD for temps and utilization. Otherwise you just be throwing darts in the dark with graphics settings. Utilization varies a lot depending on Map, altitude, and scenery. Keep an eye on temps relative to the max temp in the specs to prevent thermal throttling. I burnt out one of my 1080's from my SLI rig playing The Witcher 3 at 4K because I wasn't watching my temps. A long gaming session cooked her. AIDA64 is really good monitoring software but I rarely use while playing DCS. I always use the OSD from Afterburner.

 

I stress test and tune DCS graphics with mirrors ON. That way when you hit a spot with FPS drops, say over a Dubhai or the Vegas Strip, you can just flip the mirrors shut and it will get smooth. Then when you're back out over the desert or high altitude, just flip the mirrors back down. Don't worry about all the other burn in and stress/ stability tests that some forums recommend. Just play DCS for an hour or two and watch your temps. DCS's graphic engine will push the limits of any PC out there. If you get persistent crashes, lower your overclock or go to factory defaults and go up from there. Rather than try and OC in one afternoon or weekend. It should be a gradual process. Just nudge it up a bit every time and you'll find the sweet spot. Even a slight increase in my current OC will cause my GPU to become unstable, but it stays rock solid at the current OC. I play the OpenBeta build so I still get crashes from time to time, rarely reproducible though. The current builds are much more stable than when 2.5 first released.

 

Performance can vary quite a bit, map to map, and module to module. One setting for one aircraft and map may not be the best settings for another.