PC performance when using VR

[novkev]

Hi all, I'm hoping to get some guidance here if possible.

 

My uncle has a PC setup that's used purely for DCS, and I'm trying to help him tweak it's performance (he's 71). He's using the below setup:

 

i7 4790 @4GHz

Z97MX Gaming 5

32GB DDR3 2400

Titan X 12GB

Oculus (the first model that was released)

SSD

Logitech G940

 

Besides FPS dropping on some of the busier maps, the game will frequently freeze for a split second, as if something needs to load in the background.

 

When using VR mode, the FPS is 20-25. Looking at task manager, RAM usage is around 12-15GB, and the CPU and GFX are not even close to maximum. In this case, I'm not sure what the limiting component would be?

 

We tested the game in non-VR mode on a single monitor, and here the GFX card gets practically maxed, with FPS jumping to 50-60 FPS. However, there are still the occasional sudden split-second freezes which break the immersion.

 

Can anyone suggest where we can improve the setup, or what could account for these differences? There's one mission in particular that he's wanting to play, where you fly a FW-190 and intercept multiple bombers, and this map in particular brings the PC to its knees :D

 

Appreciate any assistance here!

[Gladman]

Is it a 4790 or a 4790K?

[novkev]

Not the K unfortunately, so no overclocking options

[Leaderface]

I think you should check for underlaying software interferences there.

Antivirus, peripherals software, any mobo or GPU instaled bloatware......

It´s not the fastest rig on earth, but you should have nearly 80-90 FPS flat screen on 1080p and mid-tuned Hi settings from what i´ve read on the forum.

Maybe the gaming performance thread will be of help for you.

[Thinder]

Hi all, I'm hoping to get some guidance here if possible.

 

My uncle has a PC setup that's used purely for DCS, and I'm trying to help him tweak it's performance (he's 71). He's using the below setup:

 

i7 4790 @4GHz

Z97MX Gaming 5

32GB DDR3 2400

Titan X 12GB

Oculus (the first model that was released)

SSD

Logitech G940

 

Besides FPS dropping on some of the busier maps, the game will frequently freeze for a split second, as if something needs to load in the background.

 

When using VR mode, the FPS is 20-25. Looking at task manager, RAM usage is around 12-15GB, and the CPU and GFX are not even close to maximum. In this case, I'm not sure what the limiting component would be?

 

We tested the game in non-VR mode on a single monitor, and here the GFX card gets practically maxed, with FPS jumping to 50-60 FPS. However, there are still the occasional sudden split-second freezes which break the immersion.

 

Can anyone suggest where we can improve the setup, or what could account for these differences? There's one mission in particular that he's wanting to play, where you fly a FW-190 and intercept multiple bombers, and this map in particular brings the PC to its knees :D

 

Appreciate any assistance here!

 

 

If his headset is a Rift CV1, no matter what settings you will try, it will still be limited to the lowest resolution available for a headset of this price range.

 

I also have one, resolution and sharpness are low, and despite having moderately good frame rates due to the high settings I have for graphics, it doesn't change much.

 

The bottleneck is the CV1, I checked, you don't have a CPU/GPU bottleneck and probably enough fast memory for DCS.

 

Next month, I'll upgrade my CPU with a Ryzen 7 2700X CPU 8 Core 4.3GHz and double the memory, but that's just in preparation for an HP Reverb G2.

 

 

......

Edited August 28, 2020 by Thinder

[Leaderface]

Next moth, I'll upgrade my CPU with a Ryzen 7 2700X CPU 8 Core 4.3GHz and double the memory, but that's just in preparation for an HP Reverb G2.......

Did you mean 3700X?

[Thinder]

Did you mean 3700X?

 

 

No precisely the Ryzen 7 2700X CPU 8 Core 4.3GHz, it gives me the lowest bottleneck possible with 8 Core, plenty of overclocking head room, that's 4400 MHz all Cores in auto voltage setting.

 

I have an Artic Freezer cooler ready for it...

 

https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/amd-ryzen-7-2700x-review,29.html

 

 

......

[Leaderface]

I won´t go that route unless second hand bargain.

And thinking on second hand: Zen3 is coming.

Of course is your money, but going today on an almost two generations old CPU don´t look a good idea for me.

But, again: is your money. (Just trying to find the reason). Just that.

Enjoy!

[Thinder]

I won´t go that route unless second hand bargain.

And thinking on second hand: Zen3 is coming.

Of course is your money, but going today on an almost two generations old CPU don´t look a good idea for me.

But, again: is your money. (Just trying to find the reason). Just that.

Enjoy!

 

 

AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8 Cores - 3600 MHz £299.95. Ryzen 7 2700X CPU 8 Core 4.3GHz £189.99 in the same shop.

 

Frankly, it matters little of it's 2 generations older, it supports my memory, can easily run a 4.4GHz and cost nearly £110 less.

 

I'll need an extra £129.59 for the RAM even before thinking about the G2, so this sort of consideration is not my priority, performance price ratio is.

 

 

......

Edited August 28, 2020 by Thinder

[Waxer]

12GB RAM is a big bottleneck and an easy fix.

My advice is don't dick around: just get 32GB. If you can't afford that upgrade, no problem, but definitely upgrade to 16GB.

 

Is he currently using 2x 6GB sticks? If so you could always go 4x 6GB sticks. 24GB would work fine too.

[Leaderface]

AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8 Cores - 3600 MHz £299.95. Ryzen 7 2700X CPU 8 Core 4.3GHz £189.99 in the same shop.......

3700X: 3,6 Base clock / 4,4 Ghz turbo (one core) (65W envelope) (and almost 20% more IPC per core).

 

You are comparing the wrong way.

And your Mobo will support it I think (without seeing the compatibilty list).

Memory wise: I don´t know how are your frequencies right now but should´nt be a problem (ideal for Zen2 are 3200 or 3600 Mhz, but will work with anything and you better clock your memory as high as posible with your 2700X because it have high dependency on that to perform on DCS)... Less on Zen2.

Anyway: I see you allready have an upgrade plan up and running so I was only trying to make sure you know what you are doing and I see that the plan is allready well thought and on the go, so the only thing I can do is wish you all the luck in the world and have as much enjoyment as posible.

Upgrading is allways a matter of compromises.

Good luck!

[Thinder]

3700X: 3,6 Base clock / 4,4 Ghz turbo (one core) (65W envelope) (and almost 20% more IPC per core).

 

You are comparing the wrong way.

And your Mobo will support it I think (without seeing the compatibilty list).

Memory wise: I don´t know how are your frequencies right now but should´nt be a problem (ideal for Zen2 are 3200 or 3600 Mhz, but will work with anything and you better clock your memory as high as posible with your 2700X because it have high dependency on that to perform on DCS)... Less on Zen2.

Anyway: I see you allready have an upgrade plan up and running so I was only trying to make sure you know what you are doing and I see that the plan is allready well thought and on the go, so the only thing I can do is wish you all the luck in the world and have as much enjoyment as posible.

Upgrading is allways a matter of compromises.

Good luck!

 

 

I'm comparing according to my budget and best CPU/GPU bound.

 

By principle, I do not buy premium gear (the HP G2 will be the exception), as I already stated, I intend to add an extra 32GB of RAM which is already set to run at 3200Mhz.

 

My Motherboard doesn't support the 2700X at the moment (it might be possible with a software update, I don't know) but even if it does in the future, I see little interest in getting one CPU which runs at lower frequency for an extra £100 and doesn't bound as well with my GPU:

 

AMD Ryzen 7 3700X has a bottleneck of 7.02% at 1080P and 10.49 at 2160P/4K, vs 3.65% and 7.64% for the 2700X.

 

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X will never run as well as the 2700X at 2160P/4K with a 1080 ti, 2160P/4K is a resolution I Intend to run when I have a headset that can manage it, and it looks like the HP G2 runs 2160 x 2160 LCD per eye.

 

So not only I made the right choice when it comes to maximum frequency, but also in terms of bottleneck, more than twice lower with the 2700X at 1080P the bottleneck 10% at 2160P/4K.

 

 

......

Edited August 29, 2020 by Thinder

[Motomouse]

3600x is 15% faster single core than 2700x and the better alternative if you are on budget.

[Thinder]

3600x is 15% faster single core than 2700x and the better alternative if you are on budget.

 

 

It's a viable alternative, although it cost > than 12% more and has more bottleneck at all resolution, it stays below 10% even at 2160/4K.

 

What matters is for me to be able to fully use the GPU and PCU power, when it comes to RAM, I'm good with DDR 4 3200.

 

Right now, I'm looking at 32GB extra RAM, one of those two processors but also replacing my rear case fan with something new and with higher airflow.

 

My case is built like a brick, full thick and heavy metal apart for the front panel, but it's the case from my Pentium III and was built in 2001 (according to the check-pass stamp inside).

 

So I'll have to modify the back (I'm equipped and already modified it in the past) to fit a second, smaller one below the GPU and help reduce case temp further, I've sorted cabling now it's neat, direct view from front fan to GPU without much cabling in the way.

 

£129.99 for the RAM, between 189.99 and £213,99 for the CPU and £24.79 for the fan.

 

£344.77 to £368.77 is a lot of money, considering that I will have to spare whatever the HP G2 will cost in the future after that.

 

I could reduce cost of course by selling this CPU and Oculus Rift CV1 to CEX or on Ebay for the CV1...

 

 

 

 

......

[Leaderface]

Are you basing your buying decisions on a webpage called bottleneck calculator?

Real world is not sinthetic.

I don´t know if a 3700X is worth 100 $ more than the 2700X but don´t blame that calculator if the reality is not that perfect.

I see you are having fun upgrading and that´s what is important.

[Thinder]

Are you basing your buying decisions on a webpage called bottleneck calculator?

Real world is not sinthetic.

I don´t know if a 3700X is worth 100 $ more than the 2700X but don´t blame that calculator if the reality is not that perfect.

I see you are having fun upgrading and that´s what is important.

 

 

Since I buy everything or almost from the same company who employs very competent techies, I believe it is better to use bottleneck calculator as a guide rather than end up with a bad bound.

 

I have spoken with them and both the 3600x and 2700x were my option from that time, I picked the cheaper option and might go for it if my finances are too tight.

 

In the real world, a 15 to 20 % bottleneck, as we've seen from some players in this forum, isn't going to provide them with the performances they were looking for despite spending 25% more than I did.

 

 

.......

[reece146]

Locally there is $30 difference between the 2700X and the 3600XT.

 

 

 

The single core performance difference between them is noticeable. Given that Ryzen doesn't overclock much if at all... If this is a dedicated DCS rig I'd be all over the 3600XT in this price bracket.

 

 

 

Whatever floats your boat.

 

 

$0.02

[westr]

There are things you need to do with Oculus to get the most out of it. Have you run the oculus tray tool and disabled ASW before running DCS in VR?

Also it’s not a bad idea to overclock you’re gpu but if your using msi afterburner make sure it’s not polling like this guy found vvvv

 

I went into Afterburner/Settings/Monitoring and changed the polling time from 1000 ms (every second) to 60k, i.e. every minute.

Linked to the FXO folder deletion, that's resulted in a massive reduction in smearing. Awesome.

 

Then I would suggest looking through your DCS settings. Pixel density in VR settings has a big effect on frames. Terrain distance and shadows as well, and of course MSAA, but I do run MSAA at x2 because I find the jagged edges too horrible without it. I’m able to get a solid 45fps on most maps in most aircraft in most scenarios so I would say you should be able to achieve better performance than what you are currently achieving.

[Leaderface]

I have spoken with them and both the 3600x and 2700x were my option from that time, I picked the cheaper option and might go for it if my finances are too tight........

If the Question here is about not wasting money, I don´t understand the improvement in the actual monocore DCS between a 3200G running at 4.0 Ghz and a 2700X running at 4.3 Ghz (That is a mere 7,5% improvement in Mhz alone and surely less on real performance).

Things will be different on a multiCPU enviroment though.

I´ll better save my money for the future in that case.

And don´t get me wrong: I´m only trying to give you a little food for thought. That´s it.

Edited August 29, 2020 by Leaderface

[reece146]

For the record, 4.0GHz in one generation of chips is not the same as 4.0GHz in another generation of chips. Every generation gets tweaks that make single thread performance better per clock cycle.

 

 

And it definitely does not apply across different chip manufacturers. 4.0GHz on AMD does not automatically imply the same single thread performance on Intel at 4.0GHz.

 

 

 

Kind of obvious but worth stating for reference.

[Leaderface]

3200G running at 4.0 Ghz and a 2700X running at 4.3 Ghz (That is a mere 7,5% improvement in Mhz alone and surely less on real performance).

Same Zen+ Cores between those two AMD procesors @Reece (one with graphics and the other without IGPU), but same CPU base, don´t let the name 3xxx or 2xxx confuse any. (Maybe diferent cache size for the GPU, but that´s in favour of the 3200G. But I´m talking on memory here).

Gotcha! :smartass:

Edited August 30, 2020 by Leaderface