70256-70313 - which gives you best performance?

[palanoid 0]

70313 with exthread=3 does the best for me,running the chernogorsk benchmark mission.

FPS average min. increased by 2 ,to 24,other values have increased by 1-2 fps too.

rig:amd x3 720 @ 2.8Ghz , 2GB ram, ATi HD4870 512mb ,WinXP 32bit SP3

settings: reso 1280x800 w/ 100% 3d fill rate,all settings at Normal except shadows high,Postprocessing Off.

[pauliesss 2]

Best for me is still WITHOUT exThreads=. :confused:

[ast65 10]

Yesss, back on track again: 70313 with -exThreads=3 is doing fine for me (besides some minor pixel- flashing in areas with dense antialliasing I still get).

OA, here we come:p

---------- Post added at 09:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:40 AM ----------

My experience on my rig (specs below) is that '- cpuCount=4' doesn't change anything noticeable for me and my system: in windows taskmanager I couldn't detect anything different comparing to launch without this parameter. Seems to be logical for me, because of using quad core (why should the game has to be forced to use 4 cores when it uses them by default / by detecting the quad core). But there may be different experiences / knowledge ... so are there any different experiences / is there better knowledge ?

Yes, and thx to BIS for giving such plenty possibilities to test.

-cpucount=4 is only needed if you use a quad- core with Hyperthreading enabled in BIOS.

[Richey79 10]

Interesting that -exThreads=3 - for me - occasionally leads to slight pauses between pressing fire and sound/bullet travel. The whole game pauses very slightly in these situations, so it doesn't put the player at a disadvantage in SP.

Perhaps the sound or bullet trajectory calculations were previously off-loaded to the processing thread we're playing with here?

I still prefer -exThreads=3, but perhaps this is the resource trade-off Suma was refering to earlier.

[kroky 1]

for me -exThreads=0 or without any exThreads is best performance. Playing with an old Athlon X64 dual core

But after comparing to beta 63826, the new betas are definitely more stuttering.

Edited May 12, 2010 by Kroky

[InFireBaptize 0]

can't tell the difference between the latest two good beta patches but both rid the game of the LOD/texture flickering/pop up and the stuttering issue i had with the exThread=3 switch. I played a single player scenario where you can buy units/weapons and take over cities, AI was galore, all over the place and i was the only player and the game never stuttered and all graphical problems i described above seized to exist

Great job Suma :). Now is it possible to load two threads =2 and =3 to test? just curious.

Edited May 12, 2010 by InFireBaptize

[Alex72 1]

Did you guys try to fly real fast in the latest beta? And especially just above the tree tops. As close to the ground as possible and high speed. I have no lag/stutter at all and FPS is 100-ish in chernarus. Amazing. Using the value 3 on the extra thread param.

However the only thing still killing my pc - even the new one - is the grass. At places and when zooming/scoping where lots of grass is i drop 50FPS in the worst places. That is a bit too much imo. And this is with normal/low terrain detail. Chernogorsk without grass gives me 60-120FPS and when i turn it on i have 20-45FPS. 20 is in town where some bushes plus a lot of grass is. Would love for some optimization in this area.

[NoRailgunner 0]

Still get texture swapping, sometimes sky flickering and stuttering. Reducing the setting below "Normal" gets worse and depending on mission + AI usage - on "High" after a while I get black screen (A2 still running). :(

note to improved AI:

I've seen that some of the AI teammates do form up with/follow the player more faster but somehow the AI teamleader + x AI units are still too cautious. Is it possible to get the whole AI team act + move faster if there is no enemy infantry around or in a certain range - for example up to 200-300m?

[InFireBaptize 0]

Still get texture swapping, sometimes sky flickering and stuttering. Reducing the setting below "Normal" gets worse and depending on mission + AI usage - on "High" after a while I get black screen (A2 still running). :(

note to improved AI:

I've seen that some of the AI teammates do form up with/follow the player more faster but somehow the AI teamleader + x AI units are still too cautious. Is it possible to get the whole AI team act + move faster if there is no enemy infantry around or in a certain range - for example up to 200-300m?

this is strange, i was able to play on 1680x1050 with 200% fillrate "without ACE" but with a sound mod with no tiny stutter/flickers!! I played an official mission with an AI that keeps generating, lots of vehicles as well! i don't remember the name of the mission but it was the fourth or the fifth mission.

[Alex72 1]

Roughly 80 people voted in here so far wich is good, but i wished even more tested and reported/voted.

Never the less, please set some time aside to test the beta. More reports = better foundation for BIS to make the performance better. We have this great thing going here where the developers communicates with us and makes changes to the game based on our reports wich is a very good (and rare in this business) opportunity for us to help BIS get us better performance. :)

To beta newcomers:

The beta will not do anything to your existing 1.05 game since it will install its own "beta" folder together with a new icon that launches the beta version. So your 1.05 game is still there untouched and you can launch it anytime you like just like normal, and the beta takes litteraly seconds to install so your testing the beta within a minute. The beta shortcut is in your ARMA2 folder once installed. You can also play MP with the beta even if the others are running 1.05 or other beta's. Installing an official patch takes much much longer so there really isnt anything to it, and ofcourse the more reports BIS gets - the better game we will have!

Link to the beta's: ARMA2 BETA VERSION

Go for the version top of the screen inside the green bar.

Thank you!

[mosh 0]

70313 seems to run about the same with exthreads=1 or 3. It also runs fine without eving using the exthread command (just -nosplash and -mod=beta) which is how I have played it most.

All three variables were tested with and without addons and using different scenarios and a couple hours in MP (MP test was without exthread in command line). I really couldn't tell a difference between them. Settings displayed in my spoiler, most everything on very high.

[otrebla_snake_ita 2]

70313

-exThreads=1

Bench1: 20fps

Bench2: 8 fps

-exThreads=3

Bench1: 20 fps

Bench2: 8 fps

I had more stuttering with -exThreads=3. However, I had the best result with 1.05 patch

PS: I was trying to install the "benchmark 3 mission" but I don't know how to do that. I've copied "init.sqs" and "mission.sqm" files in "C:\Program Files\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA2\Mission\" folder but I can't play it (it's not with "single player missions"... XD

I've tested performance with ArmA 2 mark too:

-exThreads=1

Slightly better result but low textures loading

-exThreads=3

Fastest textures loading but worst performance

Edited May 12, 2010 by otreblA_SNAKE_[ITA]

[cl288 10]

Core i7 860 @default

4GB 2000MHz

Radeon 5850@830/4400

Samsung HD103SJ

Windows 7 x64

cpucount=8 processpriority=high

1680*1050

1.05 49

exThreads=0 47

exThreads=1 44

exThreads=3 45

without cpucount parameter:

1.05 49

exThreads=0 46

exThreads=1 47

exThreads=3 47

_TEST_FPS6-Chernogorsk.Chernarus:

Avr Avg.min Max Min

38 22 63 7 [ver.1.05]

35 18 59 7 [exThreads=0]

34 17 63 7 [exThreads=1]

39 20 67 8 [exThreads=3]

Core i7 860 @3400

Avr Avg.min Max Min

47 29 69 15 [ver.1.05]

50 31 70 11 [exThreads=3]

Edited May 13, 2010 by cl288

[Beagle 684]

I dont see any difference in FPS in Benchmark1 with settings 0,1,2 exThreads

It stays always at 24fps, all settings High, FSAA and post processing off with 3000m Viewdistance.

But exThreads=3 makes it seem more fluent and with less noticeable Texture and LOD switching/loading.

[Inkompetent 0]

I dont see any difference in FPS in Benchmark1 with settings 0,1,2 exThreads

It stays always at 24fps, all settings High, FSAA and post processing off with 3000m Viewdistance.

But exThreads=3 makes it seem more fluent and with less noticeable Texture and LOD switching/loading.

There isn't any real difference in avarage FPS. You'll have to pay attention to stuttering and texture-loading. There's another benchmark mission linked early in this thread (Chernogorsk mission) that has more and better statistics, and where texture-loading and stuttering is more apparant.

[metalcraze 290]

Did you guys try to fly real fast in the latest beta? And especially just above the tree tops. As close to the ground as possible and high speed. I have no lag/stutter at all and FPS is 100-ish in chernarus. Amazing. Using the value 3 on the extra thread param.

That's right. But still not worth (due to playing mostly infantry) the overall FPS loss which is 10-15% and is thus pretty big.

I rather prefer 1.05 with white texture appearing once in hours for a half of a second and a bigger FPS than the lack of flickering textures and more laggy gameplay.

[=kct=blackmamba 44]

There isn't any real difference in avarage FPS. You'll have to pay attention to stuttering and texture-loading. There's another benchmark mission linked early in this thread (Chernogorsk mission) that has more and better statistics, and where texture-loading and stuttering is more apparant.

i would say option 3 is best for texture loading..

normaly the textures still pop up when starting any given mission

but now the textures are there allready.

VOTED 3...

[langgis08 10]

And this is with normal/low terrain detail. Chernogorsk without grass gives me 60-120FPS and when i turn it on i have 20-45FPS. 20 is in town where some bushes plus a lot of grass is. Would love for some optimization in this area.

Alex, I'm asking you because as far as I've read the posts it seems you achieve a very high performance, if not one of the best here.

So, under which setup environment (ingame setup, amounts of AI, start-up parameters) do you achieve 60 FPS and rising in Chernogorsk ? rig => your signature ?

Maybe your all-together-setup could be a reference in high end performance for the game, and so it would be a good information for (at least some of) us here in this testing forum ... :)

[quicksilver67 10]

Of the threads, option three is the best. However, that said, the current series of beta patches are all slower on my machine than 1.05. There has been quite a lot of stutter, mainly when looking down at the clutter layer or at buildings from above.

[todayskiller 10]

I recently just Installed the new Beta--70313 or w/e. And I got some Still bad, but better than 1.05 results.

On the Benchmark 1: I got 26 FPS--24 in 1.05

On the Benchmakr 2: I got 11 FPS--9 in 1.05

that is still BAD FPS but better than 1.05...but Idk why my computer can't handle it that well here are my Specs:

Windows Vista (x64) SP2

2.20 Ghz AMD Phenom 9550 Quad-Core

640 GB Hard Drive

Nvidia gefore 9800 GT

6 GB RAM

Any Help is appreciated thanks :)...Also btw, how do I turn on ExThreads or w/e--1 option or 3 option?

Edited May 12, 2010 by todayskiller
Forgot to add something

[MavericK96 0]

I recently just Installed the new Beta--70313 or w/e. And I got some Still bad, but better than 1.05 results.

On the Benchmark 1: I got 26 FPS--24 in 1.05

On the Benchmakr 2: I got 11 FPS--9 in 1.05

that is still BAD FPS but better than 1.05...but Idk why my computer can't handle it that well here are my Specs:

Windows Vista (x64) SP2

2.20 Ghz AMD Phenom 9550 Quad-Core

640 GB Hard Drive

Nvidia gefore 9800 GT

6 GB RAM

Any Help is appreciated thanks :)...Also btw, how do I turn on ExThreads or w/e--1 option or 3 option?

You're running a 9800 GT, which isn't particularly super-fast. Also, we would need more information about what settings/resolution you are using in order to make that kind of determination.

In reference to the exThreads, you have to run it in the command line with the parameter "-exThreads=N", where N is either 0 (same as no parameter), 1, or 3.

[todayskiller 10]

Yeah I know my 9800 isn't the fastest card on the planet, but should be able to run this better then what it is now. Don't cha think?

So will putting in ExThreads=3 or w/e make my performance better? possibly?

Also, I am running on Normal settings.

[langgis08 10]

Yeah I know my 9800 isn't the fastest card on the planet, but should be able to run this better then what it is now. Don't cha think?

Nope, first of all it's your CPU that turns out as the bottleneck, I think. Your rig is close to mine (maybe a few steps lower than mine) and I get with ingame settings all maxed (very high) out except VD=3848, AA=high, vidmem=default, res 1280x1024 (100%) in benchmark no 1 -> 24 FPS, with 1.05 and with 70313 (-exthreads=3)

My graphics card is not bad, but my CPU is crawling behind it, I know this and there are many ways to find out (change for example amount of AI in editor, detail of terrain, trees, cities like chernogorsk are sometimes showstopper, and so on ... ). Many players here say that it should be at least a 3,0 GHZ Dualcore or better to beat the 30's in FPS constantly, and I think so, too. Look at my specs (spoiler below) - I know already that my system CANNOT perform better than the benchmark tells me. But I can live with that, now.

;)

[MavericK96 0]

Yeah I guess I didn't think about that, your proc is only at 2.2 GHz. Probably on the lower end for this game, even though it's a quad-core.

And about exThreads...The only way to know if it improves your performance is to try it and see. It's an experimental part of the beta that allows you to alter some of the threading optimizations in order to see which one works best for the majority of users. However, it's probably not going to give you any more FPS overall, because its main purpose is to improve texture streaming and reduce stutter, from what I can tell.

Edited May 12, 2010 by MavericK96

[-GLT-Sarge 10]

made a rollback to Beta 63826 because it gives me the best performance.

the newer the following betas were, the worse the performance of the game got (none of the command line options in the last betas had an effect)

at the SP mission "Dorfsäuberung" (its a vanilla mission, the one in which you can command the AI troops and call in Air support) I have 20-23 FPS when the mission starts with the latest 3 to 4 Beta Versions.....and it got worse as soon as any smoke effect occured, not very smooth feeling overall.

with 63826 (or even playing without any Beta) I have the best performance so far with 28-35 FPS at the beginning of the mission, feels WAYS smoother as well!

PC specs:

Intel QuadCore Q9550 E @ 3.77 GHz

Alpenföhn Brocken Cooler (CPU won't get to hot)

6 GB DDR2 RAM 1024 MHz

Nvidia GTX 275 869 MB RAM with latest Nvidia Beta Drivers (no effect by using older WHQL drivers)

Windows 7 Home Premium E 64 Bit

so the newer betas with all the fancy (listed and obviously not listed) "optimisations" are nothing I will use.

and a little side note, the tree and bush models on the Arma 2 islands (Chernarus and Utes) make 40mm Grenades and HE rounds explode as soon as they touch a leaf or a tweak.

Using Sahrani, modded for Arma 2, just works perfectly well because the grenades and HE are actually not totally worthless!

It would be SO NICE to get a hold of that problem because it annoys the F out of me and anyone else I know who plays that game.

Edited May 12, 2010 by [GLT]Sarge