jg0001's NVIDIA Settings for Quality (ver2)
By
Armsman,
Posted on: 2008-04-04 18:58 in ALL ACCESS Gameplay Technical Issues Bugs
Yeah - I am at 1680x1050.
Putting world detail back to 100% (from 200) made a big difference!
Thanks.
Thanks for the info. I missed around with the settings and got about 10 to 25 fps better now. Things look alot better in game.
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Yeah - I am at 1680x1050.
Putting world detail back to 100% (from 200) made a big difference!
Thanks.
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I'd point out that World Detail really does change on the fly, so if you are outdoors, pick a nice distant building or a whole street to look at and tweak the slider around. Then, turn on your fastest travel power and zip in one direction down the street, paying attention to the buildings both near and far. Lower world detail until you care and you should have a nice FPS boost. [Sorry if by saying this you now pay more attention and want a HIGHER world detail level.]
I'm getting a new computer with E8400 core 2 duo and want to max everything (at a 1400x900 resolution).
The prices to buy them independently are closer, but this is what the custom build sites are charging:
GeForce 9600 GT $109
GeForce 8800 GT $134
GeForce 9800 GTX $234
I read that 9600 GT < 8800 GT < 9800GTX = 8800 GTS < 8800 GTX.
How long would each be viable? I want a long term card.
Can 9600 run max settings at 60ish FPS, and if not how much better is the 9800 or 8800? What settings would yield 60FPS on each?
A game is not supposed to be some kind of... place where people enjoy themselves!
I wouldn't even consider the 9600GT ... the 9800GTX seems a little too pricier over the 8800GT though... make sure that 8800GT has 512 MB of memory if you consider it...
Eh?
http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/...dup/page11.asp
The 9600GTs acquit themselves quite well against the 8800GT
Not including the superclocked cards (which would cost more), you're looking at a 10-35% increase in performance going from the 9600GT-> 8800GT. Given that they are priced quite close to one another, why bother with the weaker card? We don't need to debate this ... the numbers in the link you provided can speak for themselves versus whatever pricing deals people can find online.
In other news, I'm now running a GTX 280 SSC that replaces the 9600GT I had in my Vista64 machine. FWIW, it is smoother by far than the old card, but I still get dips in FPS when things get hectic... (Q9450 @ 3.60 GHz for the CPU).
Just as an FYI to potential shoppers, the 8800GTs are on the way out, being replaced by the 9800GTs, which are the exact same chips using a 55nm fab process.
Also,
http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards....&card2=544
At stock speeds, the 9600GT and the 8800GT are extremely close in raw power
Not disagreeing with your basic point jg, just wanted to point out that the 9600GT should not be summarily dismissed.
One thing to keep in mind if its an issue to you or your system is the GTS and GTX models are built dual slot coolers by design. GT models are not unless they are specifically upgraded by the manufacer. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this fact. I am pretty sure after spending hours staring at newegg looking for my new card.
Anyone buying a new video card needs to keep in mind the following 'physical' properties of the card, in order of greatest importance:
(1) Slot type -- PCI-Express, AGP, PCI -- almost all new cards are PCI-e; some people still have older AGP slot PCs, however
(2) Power Requirements of the Card -- most mid-range cards require additional power - most of these will be fine with molex style adaptors off the PSU, assuming the PSU has enough juice; ALL high-end cards require additional power, and many are beginning to truly tax the output of PSUs to the point where you really want a 600W+ PSU OR you need to watch your power requirements very closely. The NEWEST video cards (GTX 2__ series, for example) require considerable dedicated power lines from the PSU, with the GTX 280 requiring both a 6 pin and an 8 pin power connector. Very few PSUs older than 1 year old will have 8 pin PCI-E power connectors; even most current ones do not have that.
(3) Video Card LENGTH -- this is a potential deal killer; height is important too, but rarely an insurmountable problem. Be sure the card you want to buy isn't too long to fit inside your case. I have relatively large cases (Antec P180's) and I have to remove the extra 3.5 drive cage to fit in most high end cards. On some motherboards, the video card will also extend very close to memory slots (mine does, it fits, but it's snug) and on others, the video card may actually block SATA ports entirely.
(4) Video Card HEIGHT -- while this does matter, few people use up so many slots that the height is a dealkiller. I pretty much expect my video cards to be double height, and plan for that when getting a mobo.
(5) Exhaust/fan type & placement -- poor airflow can lead to a dead card OR hot air blowing from the card onto other components
The video card length can be very troublesome indeed, especially since it's oftentimes hard to tell that it will cause problems until you actually try to get the card into your rig 
(Curse you, ill-placed capacitors!!)
I got a Nvidia 9600 GT and have issues sometimes where the screen gets dark (like I'm playing in the night time). This happens usually in a dark room or when I'm visiting a black/dark web page. Is it my settings?
I also get a Nvidia control panel window that pops up every time I start my computer.
Thanks in advance.
Champions Server:
Brodir, 50 tanker
Outbreak, 50 mastermind
Freedom Server:
Black Griffin, 50 scrapper
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I got a Nvidia 9600 GT and have issues sometimes where the screen gets dark (like I'm playing in the night time). This happens usually in a dark room or when I'm visiting a black/dark web page. Is it my settings?
I also get a Nvidia control panel window that pops up every time I start my computer.
Thanks in advance.
[/ QUOTE ]
You may want to check your monitor first. If your monitor is LCD:
1: Make sure your contrast is not set too high, many set it to 100% but that tends to wash out color definition. Same with brightness. Try setting both to 50% and adjusting from there.
2: Make sure you are not using any built in image processing features on tour monitor.
Just installed the 177.92 Nvidia drivers, after uninstalling/cleaning older one, and I'm still getting occasional freezes of up to 15-20 seconds, less if I alt-tab out and back again. Have aa/af maxed on card, most settings maxed in-game, no bloom, DoF. PCI bus is set to 100 Mhz in bios, as I don't like Auto's ability to slow it down without me knowing, then trying to fix a slowdown by other methods first. CPU is a Intel dual core, 2.53Ghz, 2 GB PC800 Hyper X RAM, Audigy 2 ZS sound card. Temps on all of them seem ok, so I doubt it's overheating causing it.
Edit: GAAAHHH! I THINK it may have been that I somehow lost the trusted status for my home network. No idea why or how that happened though.
Edit2: Nope. Just had a BSOD, something that hasn't happened in a LONG time. 
Reset PCI bus to Auto, turned Enhanced CPU protection(or whatever its called on a GA-P35-S3G). Trying it now.
Edit3: Nope, still getting occasional freezes. 
JohnX
If I wanted to PvP, I would just run outside and gank people with rocks.
GhostbustersBR
I wonder if anyone has ever been offended by my hero "Asparagus-Man" because someone they know is a vegetable...?
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I got a Nvidia 9600 GT and have issues sometimes where the screen gets dark (like I'm playing in the night time). This happens usually in a dark room or when I'm visiting a black/dark web page. Is it my settings?
I also get a Nvidia control panel window that pops up every time I start my computer.
Thanks in advance.
[/ QUOTE ]
Are you playing on a screen with automatic dynamic contrast? This is more common with LCD HDTV sets than with PC monitors, to my knowledge... (with these, the screen brightness/contrast will automatically adjust BOTH for the ambient lighting in the room AND for the brightness of what's on screen).
Here's a quick test. Set your windows background to solid black. Open up a colorful picture in paint or something... make it so that it only takes up about 1/4 of the screen or less. Open up notepad and expand it so that it would take up most of the screen. Drag notepad so that it is mostly off screen and not showing. Keeping the mouse button down (to continue to drag the notepad window), rapidly move it so that it takes up most of the screen and then zip it away again. Keep your eyes focused on the picture. Does it seem to change when notepad is on screen and then again when it's off? If so, you'll want to check your monitor for an auto settings in relation to contrast/gamma/brightness. I know SHARP LCDs have this feature, though I forget it's name. Sometimes you can only minimize it's use, which is a be-otch if you really hate it.
177.92 seems a better for me (crashwise, as tested by a racing game I play (GRiD)) than the .83 version. However, I also installed a hotfix recently, so perhaps that is my actual salve. [I ran a 3dmark Vantage test and the .92's peformed almost right on top of the .83's]
As always, thanks!
Do you know why I keep getting the Nvidia control panel window opening when I start up the computer?
Champions Server:
Brodir, 50 tanker
Outbreak, 50 mastermind
Freedom Server:
Black Griffin, 50 scrapper
Can it be pre-loaded? I havent looked for a setting, as I likely wouldnt use it, but somehow, thats whats happening it seems.
Sadly, I just CTD'd, no error, after alt-tabbing to fix freeze. Went to alt tab back to game, it wasnt there. This is a typical Netgraph for me(blocks are freezes)Freezes. NO idea what change, but I was fine net-wise just last month, never had any graphic/freeze problems like this. Its making me want to dig out my old FX5900... I have a EVGA 8600GTS now, running at 55C in-game, so heat's not causing my problems. Using 177.79 drivers(I have just about every driver on Nvidia's site, none made any difference), Driver Cleaning after every uninstall, totally at a loss for an explanation, other than something with my connection, that I havent been able to solve. Running 32 bit XP, by the way, 2GB Kingston Hyper X ram(at stock 800MHz or OCd to 1066MHz(FSB speed) makes no difference in freezing/crashing). CPU is dual core Intel, 2.53 GHz(stock speed).
JohnX
If I wanted to PvP, I would just run outside and gank people with rocks.
GhostbustersBR
I wonder if anyone has ever been offended by my hero "Asparagus-Man" because someone they know is a vegetable...?
Hmm now I've got an odd question.
The current driver for a geforce 8 series on windows xp 32bit on the Nvidia website is 175.19
Now the card is made by EVGA, on EVGA's website the current driver fot the geforce 8 series on Win XP 32bit is 177.79
Should I be downloading the EVGA driver since they made the card or play it safe and stick to Nvidia's?
See, thats the thing. Does EVGA "pull a Dell", and make their own little tweaks that render Nvidas drivers wonky(for lack of a beter term), or are they fully compatible? I have tried the EVGA drivers, dont recall , but I dont think they helped, I may pop them back in.
JohnX
If I wanted to PvP, I would just run outside and gank people with rocks.
GhostbustersBR
I wonder if anyone has ever been offended by my hero "Asparagus-Man" because someone they know is a vegetable...?
Unless there is something special about the EVGA card you have, I don't see why they'd spend all that time writing their own drivers when nVidia makes them anyway. So, I'm going to assume here that the ones EVGA has for download are infact nVidia's drivers, just a later version than the ones nVidia currently supports (anything after 175 is in Beta, IIRC).
Mad Cat
I dont think they are, because when I had the EVGA drivers in, there was no control panel(to adjust AA,AF, clamp/allow LoD, ect). They wouldnt have to write new drivers, just make modifications. Nvidia just makes the chipset, their licensees make the hardware. I dont know, maybe Ill actually look it up. lol
JohnX
If I wanted to PvP, I would just run outside and gank people with rocks.
GhostbustersBR
I wonder if anyone has ever been offended by my hero "Asparagus-Man" because someone they know is a vegetable...?
[ QUOTE ]
Hmm now I've got an odd question.
The current driver for a geforce 8 series on windows xp 32bit on the Nvidia website is 175.19
Now the card is made by EVGA, on EVGA's website the current driver fot the geforce 8 series on Win XP 32bit is 177.79
Should I be downloading the EVGA driver since they made the card or play it safe and stick to Nvidia's?
[/ QUOTE ] I also tend to believe 177.79 are NVidia's, and people post issues with that particular driver all the time. If you are going to load beta drivers, go with the 177.83, or 177.92 shown in my signature instead.
According to the readme with the EVGA drivers, it IS Nvidia's, as seen here.
JohnX
If I wanted to PvP, I would just run outside and gank people with rocks.
GhostbustersBR
I wonder if anyone has ever been offended by my hero "Asparagus-Man" because someone they know is a vegetable...?
[ QUOTE ]
I checked the recommendations here, and tweaked my settings a bit. I have a pretty good (not top) system, but I can get fps as low as below 30 in, say, south Steele Canyon. (It can also go into the 50s, depending on what is in view).
I have an 8800GT (OC), 2GB RAM, dual core 2.6GH processor. Checking Task Manager, basically no CPU wasted on other programs and about 1/4 GB of RAM used for system crap. I hear of other people with similar systems (or worse) with settings set to what is suggested here, and they claim much higher FPS.
Is this surprising? Is any guru reading this, and saying to themselves, "Oh - that can't be right" ?? Just wondering if there might be something obvious or significant I am missing.
Sorry if this is straying from the OP topic - I wasn't sure if it fit or not.
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The one MAJOR item people forget to compare, when they state their FPS, is the RESOLUTION they are running at.
It's no different than having two identical cars, one with five fat dudes in it and one with a lone skinny driver and trying to compare acceleration times.
I run one screen at 2560x1600 using an 8800GTX and another at 1280x1024 using a much lower card... and they both perform admirably. The reason being that the 8800 GTX is handling 4 million pixels while the other card is pushing only 1.3 million pixels.
So, that said, what resolution are you running at?
If you're at 1680x1050 or higher and are getting a solid 30 FPS in most places with bumps higher (50+ or so), then you are fine.
One way to help with the FPS (without changing your resolution) is to lower the world detail %. World Detail determines how far out the scenery and buildings are drawn & detailed. Low world detail = pretty plain looking buildings and as you get closer, the details fill in. High world detail = buildings are drawn with most details and pop-in is virtually negligible. For a game like this, other than when traveling (rapidly), you may not notice popin too much. This isn't a racing game or a GTA like game where it would matter more.