Graphical settings, please help me :)

[greg765]

Hello guys,

 

I am trying to set up my DCS world Graphical Settings. But there are so many options and so many topics on this subject, with so many different configurations, I thought your experience would probably save me a lot of time and trouble, hence this post. 
 

What settings would you recommend for my hardware configuration ? It’s far from high end so I need some compromise between the appearance and the FPS...

 

- DCS 2.5 Open Beta

- Windows 10

- Both DCS & Windows installed on a PCI Express SSD

- RAM : 16 GB DDR4

- CPU : Intel i5 10600

- GPU : GTX 970(only 2GB of GDDR5)

 

I also use the Track IR. My screen is a 4K TV plugged in HDMI but I use it in 1920x1080. 

Are there some settings I should absolutely avoid ? Are there some tips that may help me save a few FPS / have better results in terms of rendering ? Are there some gotchas ?
 

Your help is much appreciated

Edited January 18, 2021 by greg765
GTX 970 iso 770

[borisbarzotto]

I've always thought that DCS has few graphic config parameters. What you should do is start from a medium settings, make sure never activate the SSAA, also leave off Depth of Field and Lens Effect. So in game hold Right Ctrl + Pause, this will allow you to monitor your FPS, and depending on your fps go setting values up or down. There are critical parameters that require more processing than others: shadows, MSAA, textures, trees visibilty for example are demanding. So go modifying little by little and then in game check your fps, Anyway there are guides there explaining each of the parameters and their level of demand, remember hardware are different do not find a formula, know the few parameters and use RCtrl+Pause in flight.

 

 

https://forums.eagle.ru/topic/172165-25-settings-comparisons-and-gpu-impact/

[draconus]

13 hours ago, greg765 said:

What settings would you recommend for my hardware configuration ?

I'd start with that and see how it's going. For textures I wouldn't go high on any module that's been created (or re-created) 2018 or newer.

If the aliasing is unbearable you can try MSAA x2 but it'll be hard on the card.

If you can live with tearing turn off Vsynch.

Lens+Dirt effect is cheap on gfx and gives you much better sun blinding effect if you can live with those unnecessary fictional "lenses".

 

Generally your card is old - it is the main bottleneck because of both performance and VRAM. RAM is ok for SP - for total no-stutter or MP you'd need more. CPU should be no problem at all.

[draconus]

Since you changed card from 770 to 970 you have more freedom now - MSAAx2 is playable and you can add some shadows.

[greg765]

Thank you to the both of you for your answers.

I made a mistake in my initial message (now edited), I have a GTX 970, not 770 (still 2 GB VRAM though). Sorry for the confusion. Still not a very good GPU but slightly better...

 

I did what you advised and tried to run DCS with the FPS displayed.

 

With the settings you suggested @draconus  (thank you for the picture by the way) I was able to run an A10C II quick action mission at about 70 FPS. Sometimes it dropped a bit (into the 60s) but never for too long, sometimes it went up to 80/85. I then added the VSYNC (it wasn't on for my first trial) and it seems to have locked the FPS at 30 on the same mission, but it remains very smooth and stable. 

I am fairly happy with those settings, I will have to try in multiplayer to see how it affects my performance. I haven't tried MSAA x2 yet, but even without it it doesn't look that bad...

Any suggestion concerning the Windows 10 Game mode ? I have seen some comments suggesting that it should be disabled, some others say the opposite ? For now I have turned it off.

Once again thank you very much for your answers.

 

6 minutes ago, draconus said:

Since you changed card from 770 to 970 you have more freedom now - MSAAx2 is playable and you can add some shadows.

I will give it a try, thanks !

 

[cw4ogden]

2 hours ago, greg765 said:

Thank you to the both of you for your answers.

I made a mistake in my initial message (now edited), I have a GTX 970, not 770 (still 2 GB VRAM though). Sorry for the confusion. Still not a very good GPU but slightly better...

 

I did what you advised and tried to run DCS with the FPS displayed.

 

With the settings you suggested @draconus  (thank you for the picture by the way) I was able to run an A10C II quick action mission at about 70 FPS. Sometimes it dropped a bit (into the 60s) but never for too long, sometimes it went up to 80/85. I then added the VSYNC (it wasn't on for my first trial) and it seems to have locked the FPS at 30 on the same mission, but it remains very smooth and stable. 

I am fairly happy with those settings, I will have to try in multiplayer to see how it affects my performance. I haven't tried MSAA x2 yet, but even without it it doesn't look that bad...

Any suggestion concerning the Windows 10 Game mode ? I have seen some comments suggesting that it should be disabled, some others say the opposite ? For now I have turned it off.

Once again thank you very much for your answers.

 

I will give it a try, thanks !

 

 

Force Vsync through Nvdia control panel not DCS.  There are a ton of threads on optimization but one titbit floating around is to delete Users\username\saved games\DCS (or DCS.openbeta)\fxo and metashaders.  Purging those folders periodically.  Terrain textures low seems to help me on syria and nevada maps which both lag more for me than caucases / PG.   ALT - Enter once you are playing adds a few frames for me. 

 

Going to 32 gigs didn't make much difference but HD transfer speed was huge when I went to an M2 SSD on the installed directly on the motherboard.  Load times dropped from minutes to seconds.  Also made periodic stutters virtually disappear.

 

I'd recommend perusing reddit or here because there are some really obscure windows'y tips floating around as well.  

 

Best of Luck!

 

Edited January 19, 2021 by cw4ogden

[Lurker]

Unfortunately that 970 with 2 Gigs of VRAM will simply not cut it in DCS. You will be able to make it work, but 2GB VRAM is the bare minimum and IMO falls below the "actual" minimum requirements for DCS World (never mind the listed requirements, they are always slightly optimistic) 

I used to have a 970 with 4GB Ram, and for example the F14 (which is one of the highest poly modules) was absolutely unplayable for me in multiplayer. I had to switch to a 2060RTX to actually be able to play DCS World with the F14. 

 

[draconus]

3 minutes ago, Lurker said:

I used to have a 970 with 4GB Ram, and for example the F14 (which is one of the highest poly modules) was absolutely unplayable for me in multiplayer.

Did you try with textures low and no MSAA?

I'm playing with that card 2 years now and it is totally playable - there are gfx options for a reason and it's also pointless to compare without all the settings and spec shared.

[Lurker]

1 minute ago, draconus said:

Did you try with textures low and no MSAA?

I'm playing with that card 2 years now and it is totally playable - there are gfx options for a reason and it's also pointless to compare without all the settings and spec shared.

 

Im pretty sure I did, this was about a year and a half ago. Heatblur might have made some changes to the Tomcat in the meantime which improved it's memory management and\or lowered it's poly and texture count. A 2GB VRAM card will work with LOW settings but it will probably still be slow and will cause issues. Especially if the OP plans on playing on populated multiplayer servers. 

My point was actually a suggestion that in his case if he did choose to upgrade, his graphics card would be the obvious starting place. 

[draconus]

10 minutes ago, Lurker said:

 

Im pretty sure I did, this was about a year and a half ago. Heatblur might have made some changes to the Tomcat in the meantime which improved it's memory management and\or lowered it's poly and texture count. A 2GB VRAM card will work with LOW settings but it will probably still be slow and will cause issues. Especially if the OP plans on playing on populated multiplayer servers. 

My point was actually a suggestion that in his case if he did choose to upgrade, his graphics card would be the obvious starting place. 

HB did some improvements but certainly not by lowering poly's or texture's count. I'm pretty sure RAM would have to go first for MP use.