VR DCS 2.9 WOW!!!!

[Nealius]

For whatever reason with DLAA only and upscaling off, my framerates were in the 20s.

[Hiob]

DLAA gives me the best picture I ever had in VR (Valve Index). I still have to reduce some gfx settings (draw distance most noticeable, and the lesser important lighting stuff like SSAO) but the picture quality is perfect. Most noticeable the absence of shimmering.

[Guldendrak]

Same as many I love the DLAA with some sharpening, best VR experience I've had on DCS (RTX 3090 - I9 11900kf - quest 2 link cable). DLSS is really too blury and unconfortable. I just had to reduce the distance visibility to keep my 72 fps on syria map. I still have some settings to try but it's already really nice.

[Steel Jaw]

Pfft, how m any people are in the ED closed beta, like 4 ????

[Antonisrho]

Hi all,

Unfortunately, 2.9 is quite a disappointment graphics-wise, at least from what I've seen in the forums for people like us having Oculus Quest 2. Don't know how other VRs with OpenXR perform for them but for me it's a blurry/ghosting mess. I've tried all different variations so far, the one that works best for me is DLAA without any DLSS. Ghosting is less but still 2.8 was much better visually in VR with the same settings. I hope it will be fine-tuned in the future.

 

EDIT: I switched back to MSAA which restored DCS as it was. No ghosting and smooth now. 

Edited October 21, 2023 by Antonisrho

[Chapa]

I have a quest 2 with a 3080ti. You have a 3080, so I assume that our constraints and performances are quite the same.

There are no magical best settings. It depends about our expectation, criteria priorities and stuff constraints.

For me, by order of importance :

FPS > Shimmering > Clarity > Visual sugar features 

=> my dream, no ASW and 72Hz or more everytime

=> ASW is okayish with modern planes (f18/f16/f15 etc…). ASW impossible with warbirds. Canon dogfight is not compatible with ASW ghosting effect…

With the 3080ti, I can’t solve this requirements.

With DLSS, I can’t solve it anyway, so DLSS is not a solution for me. The decrease in quality gives not enough performance, si the cost in quality makes no sense.

The sweet spot for me, because FPS and shimerring are my top criteria by order of importance is :

1. I reduce the resolution in the oculus app from x1.5 to x1.2

2. I installed mbuchia quad foveated rendering that is now usable for me with DLAA because the peripheral view doesn’t shimmer with DLAA (it was a mess with DCS 2.8)

3. With the performance gain, I have enabled terrain shadows and grass 

(note that I have disabled link sharpening in Oculus Debug tool and use sharpening at 0.7 in DCS instead. I have the feeling that link sharpening creates some stutters)

Personnaly, I am really really happy with my quest 2 and DCS 2.9. 

DLAA is a game changer for me. Hope it can give you other perspectives but VR and expectations are very subjectives

 

 

 

 

[LucShep]

Thoroughly tested 2.9 in VR, with a plethora of different settings and combinations (DLAA, TAA, DLSS Quality + Sharpening, etc) and I'm far from impressed, quite the opposite.

2.9 works mighty fine on a 2D screen @4K resolution indeed (can testify) but not in VR, in my opinion. 
In VR, it still can't hold a candle to the older DCS 2.56, modded and equipped with a "shaders mix" (based on Kegetys + Mustang) for VR, which still does both performance and image quality shockingly better.

It's still the utterly foggy atmostphere image (haze) in 2.9, still far too heavy even with MSAA x2 (forget MSAA x4, which I do use in 2.56 no problems) and DLAA or TAA is a blurry mess, big ghosting trails on aircraft and etc. Trying DLSS is like brushing a layer of vaseline in the lenses (though that was expected, it's not intended for VR but for monitors).
Using sharpness does disguise some of the blurriness but then its effect makes the image look like a cartoon (very poor image quality on VR). Total immersion breaking.
And while the stuttering of MT in VR has been largely improved, it's still present.

Quite the disapointment to be honest.
I just wish you guys could see it like I do, and take your own conclusions, like I just did. It's a world of difference in VR.
It's back to DCS 2.56 with absolutely no regrets (like a dream in comparison), while awaiting for DCS 3.0 (w/Vulkan + further updates/fixes) and now not even sure on that one...

Edited October 27, 2023 by LucShep

[-Sky-]

59 minutes ago, LucShep said:

I just wish you guys could see it like I do, and take your own conclusions, like I just did. It's a world of difference in VR.

 

Many of us are seeing the same issue, especially with the Oculus Quest 2 for some reason
It's so ghosty

+ my game is crashing now, i said before it was unplayable because of the blurring and ghosting but with these crashes it's seriously irritating

[ODBU_Mongoose]

Like @Antonisrho and @-Sky- are saying, for me it has also become a ghosting mess in VR since 2.9.

Even with DLSS off and just DLAA on. MSAA indeed provides much better picture. Hate planes with a huge ghosting tail.

Im on OpenXR, Mbucchia 1.13, 4080, 13600K and Quest Pro

Edited October 23, 2023 by ODBU_Mongoose

[Motomouse]

Why I Enjoy DCS (2.9) VR espically on the Varjo Aero: Key Takeaways from Various Tests

45 FPS Sync Mode: The Varjo Aero offers an effective 45 FPS sync mode. It's notable how it delivers stable performance even without motion reprojection. This efficiency permits relatively high settings, contrasting with HMDs that need 60 FPS or more.

Performance with 5600 & 3080 Combo: On the Aero, 90 FPS is attainable at ultra low settings using this hardware combination. While it's an interesting configuration to test, for regular play, the enhanced visual quality at 45 FPS proves more favorable to me.

VRAM Management on the 3080: Given the VRAM limitations of the 3080, it's essential to monitor video memory usage. For this, I disabled varjo-foveated rendering and turned to the openxr-toolkit to gauge VRAM under different settings. Be wary: hitting the VRAM limit leads to severe stuttering, with FPS dropping sharply to one digit numbers.

Balancing Resolution and Performance: In my initial tests, I leaned heavily into optimizing varjo-foveated settings for clarity, but even small values increase the rendered resolutions substantially. This over-optimization, however, came with trade-offs in multiplayer and demanding scenarios. Now, I stick to default varjo-foveated settings, paired with VRAM-friendly DCS configurations and MSAAx2, ensuring consistent 45 FPS performance and a pleasant visual experience in all situations.

Edited October 25, 2023 by Motomouse

[McCloud]

Given up with DLSS and DLAA. Neither work well for my G2 and 3090 due to the ghosting issues.

Now running without. Finally useable again.

[SpiffnZ]

Hey guys is anyone still running a GTX 1080ti & if so what settings are you using to get clear visuals after the 2.9 update?

At present I get lots of blurry indistinctness & am keen to try & clear the fog!!!!

Thanks

[Ahogephilia]

I too ended up rolling back to MSAA X2 because of ghost tail.

 

Instead, Qaud-view FFR and VDXR help.

[JesterIsDead]

On 10/21/2023 at 1:37 PM, Chapa said:

I have a quest 2 with a 3080ti. You have a 3080, so I assume that our constraints and performances are quite the same.

There are no magical best settings. It depends about our expectation, criteria priorities and stuff constraints.

For me, by order of importance :

FPS > Shimmering > Clarity > Visual sugar features 

=> my dream, no ASW and 72Hz or more everytime

=> ASW is okayish with modern planes (f18/f16/f15 etc…). ASW impossible with warbirds. Canon dogfight is not compatible with ASW ghosting effect…

With the 3080ti, I can’t solve this requirements.

With DLSS, I can’t solve it anyway, so DLSS is not a solution for me. The decrease in quality gives not enough performance, si the cost in quality makes no sense.

The sweet spot for me, because FPS and shimerring are my top criteria by order of importance is :

1. I reduce the resolution in the oculus app from x1.5 to x1.2

2. I installed mbuchia quad foveated rendering that is now usable for me with DLAA because the peripheral view doesn’t shimmer with DLAA (it was a mess with DCS 2.8)

3. With the performance gain, I have enabled terrain shadows and grass 

(note that I have disabled link sharpening in Oculus Debug tool and use sharpening at 0.7 in DCS instead. I have the feeling that link sharpening creates some stutters)

Personnaly, I am really really happy with my quest 2 and DCS 2.9. 

DLAA is a game changer for me. Hope it can give you other perspectives but VR and expectations are very subjectives

 

 

 

 

Thanks for your post. I have similar specs/expectations as you and I am happy with DLAA for the most part. I use QVFR as well. I am still trying to figure out shadows. I have it on low right now. I love DLSS fps but the blurriness/ghosting is a deal breaker. I will try terrain shadows and grass to see if my system can handle it.

[Chapa]

I have now the quest 3 but it does not  change so much the settings.

After more hours of flight and deep testing with the openXR fps and GPU headroom, I noticed that the cost of DLAA is in fact huge (about 15-20% headroom). The same as MSAAx4 because with DLAA you have to increase the resolution to reduce the blurryness.

So MSAA = more clarity but more shimmering

DLAA = less shimmering but less clarity even with high pixel density 

I also think that it is finally not a so good idea to use shadows with QFV because it renders two view and shadows hit hardly the CPU.

I have finally decided to keep it simple and I am happy with my choice because the FPS is near always 72Hz now :

- no anti-aliasing at all

- no QVF

- openXR Toolkit to reduce the color saturation from 50 to 30 to have more realistic colors 

- pushing the quest 3 at its max render resolution in the occulus app (x1.3) (it is not so bad as antialising)

- link sharpening = quality (less clarity but I like it better because smooth effect and less shimmering)

With the 3080ti, I think I can only focus on the FPS. With a 4090, I could include settings that reduce shimerring and improve graphics in general.

It is for sure a less beautiful view but in the P51 during a dogfight the most important thing by far is the FPS and then kill the enemy

 

 

[jaapgrolleman]

Laubox made some recommendations for settings here: 

 

Pico4, Quest 2, Quest 3, Pimax Crystal

[JesterIsDead]

On 10/21/2023 at 8:09 PM, LucShep said:

Thoroughly tested 2.9 in VR, with a plethora of different settings and combinations (DLAA, TAA, DLSS Quality + Sharpening, etc) and I'm far from impressed, quite the opposite.

2.9 works mighty fine on a 2D screen @4K resolution indeed (can testify) but not in VR, in my opinion. 
In VR, it still can't hold a candle to the older DCS 2.56, modded and equipped with a "shaders mix" (based on Kegetys + Mustang) for VR, which still does both performance and image quality shockingly better.

It's still the utterly foggy atmostphere image (haze) in 2.9, still far too heavy even with MSAA x2 (forget MSAA x4, which I do use in 2.56 no problems) and DLAA or TAA is a blurry mess, big ghosting trails on aircraft and etc. Trying DLSS is like brushing a layer of vaseline in the lenses (though that was expected, it's not intended for VR but for monitors).
Using sharpness does disguise some of the blurriness but then its effect makes the image look like a cartoon (very poor image quality on VR). Total immersion breaking.
And while the stuttering of MT in VR has been largely improved, it's still present.

Quite the disapointment to be honest.
I just wish you guys could see it like I do, and take your own conclusions, like I just did. It's a world of difference in VR.
It's back to DCS 2.56 with absolutely no regrets (like a dream in comparison), while awaiting for DCS 3.0 (w/Vulkan + further updates/fixes) and now not even sure on that one...

 

What do you do for campaigns in 2.5.6 I love all the ones with voice acting but only a few can run in 2.5

[LucShep]

On 10/22/2023 at 4:09 AM, LucShep said:

Thoroughly tested 2.9 in VR, with a plethora of different settings and combinations (DLAA, TAA, DLSS Quality + Sharpening, etc) and I'm far from impressed, quite the opposite.

2.9 works mighty fine on a 2D screen @4K resolution indeed (can testify) but not in VR, in my opinion. 
In VR, it still can't hold a candle to the older DCS 2.56, modded and equipped with a "shaders mix" (based on Kegetys + Mustang) for VR, which still does both performance and image quality shockingly better.

It's still the utterly foggy atmostphere image (haze) in 2.9, still far too heavy even with MSAA x2 (forget MSAA x4, which I do use in 2.56 no problems) and DLAA or TAA is a blurry mess, big ghosting trails on aircraft and etc. Trying DLSS is like brushing a layer of vaseline in the lenses (though that was expected, it's not intended for VR but for monitors).
Using sharpness does disguise some of the blurriness but then its effect makes the image look like a cartoon (very poor image quality on VR). Total immersion breaking.
And while the stuttering of MT in VR has been largely improved, it's still present.

Quite the disapointment to be honest.
I just wish you guys could see it like I do, and take your own conclusions, like I just did. It's a world of difference in VR.
It's back to DCS 2.56 with absolutely no regrets (like a dream in comparison), while awaiting for DCS 3.0 (w/Vulkan + further updates/fixes) and now not even sure on that one...

On 12/4/2023 at 6:19 PM, JesterIsDead said:

What do you do for campaigns in 2.5.6 I love all the ones with voice acting but only a few can run in 2.5

Yep, it's far from a perfect solution, and the main problem with DCS 2.5.6.

Any of today's content that was already available then (March of 2021), and as of that version release, runs much better there (in my experience and of many others), inclusively online if with people using that same version. But you're left behind with what already exhisted back then, as explained in its download page details.

As to say, if you're an advocate for MP public servers, and/or of latest updates/fixes, and/or of most recent content (modules, campaigns, etc), then it will not serve you. 

There was loads of content already (actually most of today's) and plenty campaigns available at the time for a plethora of modules. It might be the case for yours (see in the DLC page which version it requires). If you're intrigued, and if you have the drive space, my suggestion is to give it a good go and see how it works for you. 

For me, I'm finally enjoying DCS in VR, no more frustration with framerate, frametimes, stuttering and whatnot, and can inclusively run higher settings.
And as much as I was antecipating upcoming content (Mig-17F, A-7E, Kola), my conclusion is that the performance benefits, as of today, are too good with 2.5.6 to ignore it. 
Not going to suck it up with the issues and/or upgrade perfectly capable HW just to keep up with the joneses. Not again.

Edited December 10, 2023 by LucShep

[winghunter]

TAA is super blurry, MSAA has lots of shimmering. DLAA seems like the best compromise but it still looks very blurry to me. I dont like the sharpening due to the artifacts it creates, especially noticable on ground textures.

 

 

Edited December 6, 2023 by winghunter

[Granny]

On 10/28/2023 at 3:06 AM, SpiffnZ said:

Hey guys is anyone still running a GTX 1080ti & if so what settings are you using to get clear visuals after the 2.9 update?

At present I get lots of blurry indistinctness & am keen to try & clear the fog!!!!

Thanks

Yes, I have a 1080ti,  Ryzen 5 5500, combo with Quest2 headset.  Just made the move from 2.8 to 2.9 and experimenting with the new settings. 

What map you're on makes a big difference.  I can get much better performance and quality on the Caucus maps than the Mariannas Map.   In 2.8, on the Marianna map I set MSAA at X2 (gotta have it or aliasing and shimmering are unbearable), textures low, shadows off, cockpit res at 1024, clouds low, pix density to 1.1, with headsets refresh rate at 80hz.  That keeps the stuttering and aliasing to a minimum, cockpit is still a bit blurry but not bad.   I'm still working with 2.9 but so far the settings are basically the same, except I tried switching from MSAA to TAA.  That deduce the aliasing and shimmering a lot, but more ghosting and microstutters, particularly over the congested parts of the islands, and the cockpit res is pretty bad. 

Jumping over tto he Caucus map,  I can bring a lot of my settings up to medium (keep texture and clouds low, shadows flat or off)  TAA or MSAA 2x both seem to work fine. I can increase pixel density to 1.3-1.4 which helps alot, and up my headset's refresh rate to 90hz.   I'm still experimenting with upscaling and sharpness features of 2.9.  So far I can't see the sharpness doing much.

A few other things things that seem to have helped, I use Oculus tray tool and reduce my FOV to 0.7ish.  Also, in the Nvidia control panel, I set a cap on my max framerate at 45fps (basically half the refresh rate of the headset).  Saw that on a youtube video somewhere, not sure why it helps, but it got rid of a lot of stuttering and tearing. Runs much smoother now. I overclock my CPU using Ryzen Master and apply its generic Gaming settings. I also overclock my 1080ti with MSI afterburner a little bit. 

Its still not super awesome but its playable. I think I'm pretty much squeezing all the juice out of my system that I can. Hoping to upgrade in the future, probably a Ryzen 7 5000X3D, but not sure what GPU to go with.   Anyway, hope that helps.

[Qcumber]

53 minutes ago, Granny said:

Yes, I have a 1080ti,  Ryzen 5 5500, combo with Quest2 headset.  Just made the move from 2.8 to 2.9 and experimenting with the new settings. 

What map you're on makes a big difference.  I can get much better performance and quality on the Caucus maps than the Mariannas Map.   In 2.8, on the Marianna map I set MSAA at X2 (gotta have it or aliasing and shimmering are unbearable), textures low, shadows off, cockpit res at 1024, clouds low, pix density to 1.1, with headsets refresh rate at 80hz.  That keeps the stuttering and aliasing to a minimum, cockpit is still a bit blurry but not bad.   I'm still working with 2.9 but so far the settings are basically the same, except I tried switching from MSAA to TAA.  That deduce the aliasing and shimmering a lot, but more ghosting and microstutters, particularly over the congested parts of the islands, and the cockpit res is pretty bad. 

Jumping over tto he Caucus map,  I can bring a lot of my settings up to medium (keep texture and clouds low, shadows flat or off)  TAA or MSAA 2x both seem to work fine. I can increase pixel density to 1.3-1.4 which helps alot, and up my headset's refresh rate to 90hz.   I'm still experimenting with upscaling and sharpness features of 2.9.  So far I can't see the sharpness doing much.

A few other things things that seem to have helped, I use Oculus tray tool and reduce my FOV to 0.7ish.  Also, in the Nvidia control panel, I set a cap on my max framerate at 45fps (basically half the refresh rate of the headset).  Saw that on a youtube video somewhere, not sure why it helps, but it got rid of a lot of stuttering and tearing. Runs much smoother now. I overclock my CPU using Ryzen Master and apply its generic Gaming settings. I also overclock my 1080ti with MSI afterburner a little bit. 

Its still not super awesome but its playable. I think I'm pretty much squeezing all the juice out of my system that I can. Hoping to upgrade in the future, probably a Ryzen 7 5000X3D, but not sure what GPU to go with.   Anyway, hope that helps.

Have you tried Quad Views Foveated rendering? It works in fixed mode with the Q2 and you can adjust it for lower res in the periphery. It can give you a pretty big performance boost. You will need to use MT and turn of bloom and lens effects in DCS settings. 

https://github.com/mbucchia/Quad-Views-Foveated

 

[Granny]

4 hours ago, Qcumber said:

Have you tried Quad Views Foveated rendering? It works in fixed mode with the Q2 and you can adjust it for lower res in the periphery. It can give you a pretty big performance boost. You will need to use MT and turn of bloom and lens effects in DCS settings. 

https://github.com/mbucchia/Quad-Views-Foveated

 

I have not been able to get it to work.  Not sure if my system is not compatible or if I'm doing something wrong.  I have OpenXR Tool kit, and I reset that to default in safe mode as per the instrutions.  I re-enabled it, then installed Quad View.   When I open the OpenXR menu, again there are no options related to Foveation.  There are specific instructions on the wiki about various headsets, but the Quest 2 is not one of them.  Any suggestions?

[Qcumber]

10 minutes ago, Granny said:

I have not been able to get it to work.  Not sure if my system is not compatible or if I'm doing something wrong.  I have OpenXR Tool kit, and I reset that to default in safe mode as per the instrutions.  I re-enabled it, then installed Quad View.   When I open the OpenXR menu, again there are no options related to Foveation.  There are specific instructions on the wiki about various headsets, but the Quest 2 is not one of them.  Any suggestions?

QVFR is separate to OXRTK. You can edit the settings through the config file. The instructions here show you how to do this: 

Advanced Configuration · mbucchia/Quad-Views-Foveated Wiki · GitHub

Another way is using this companion app: 

QuadViews Companion (digitalcombatsimulator.com)

If you run QVFR you only need to use OXRTK if you want to override resolution or alter the contrast, brightness etc. 

 

[Phantom711]

@Granny

 

[fab.13]

Hello

QuadView need 2000 nvidia series minimum as indicated in docs when i tried

( tested a long time ago on my 1080ti )

let’s see if a commit has added support to 1000 series

Edited January 26, 2024 by fab.13