Does SH4 need 4GB Patch

mikehcl · 04-28-20, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XenonSurf

What I would do:
Yes, set 30 FPS but turn VSynch=OFF in SH4 grafics menu, and of course max-out all grafic settings except Window Mode and Gamma. Also you can set your power card to not run in Turbo Mode for this game, so you will save GPU load. With my GTX 1660 6GB I reach a max of 40% load only at 50°C and I try to get even lower. It may be that you see tearing when moving the mouse to change the view in-game, in that case you can set a higher FPS cap, say 60, but not higher than your 144 which is your monitor refresh rate. Or: don't set a FPS cap and turn VSynch=ON in the game menu, but this will come at more GPU load for your card, the game running as smooth and best it can.

I'm not an expert in these things, but I have just discussed with a guru at guru3d.com for that matter. Still his answer is pending...But it's really not simple and also depends on the tool you use to set performance tweaks.

XS

Exactly, if I set 30 fps when I move the mouse I have a lot of tearing, I try to set 60fps and I leave the G-sync active in the nvidia control panel

Mad Mardigan · 05-01-20, 01:50 PM

Reporting in, on my findings after going in & setting up 30 as the max frames rate...

Ok, tried the whole set max frame rate to 30... and got tearing, so.. I set it all back to run under the universal settings, applied that, closed out the control panel for my card... went into SH4 & set vsync to on... and... no tearing...

Live & learn, as they say...

And that concludes this report.

XenonSurf · 05-01-20, 06:56 PM

After consulting some expert links about FPS, my system is now as follows (from my post in the Fleet Interiors mod thread):

---------------------------
To add to my above report about performance with these additional rooms and open hatches, I have consulted various good links about how and when to cap FPS, and wether to use VSynch=ON in the game settings, this also to run at best the FOtRSU mod package. Here my conclusions:

a)
Set Vsynch=ON in the game.

If you have a 60 Hz monitor you will get 60 FPS with a larger frame delay and latency, but the good is: With any reasonable GPU the FPS will not drop much for you to see a real difference, and you will get rid of screen tearing and input lags. Also good is that your GPU load will be reduced compared to illimited FPS and Vsynch OFF.

b)
Set Vynch=OFF in the game, but...

First run the game with a tool that tells you the FPS onscreen. If you see a very large number like 500+ FPS while in your sub and moving, then you can safely set a framecap of 2x your monitor refresh rate, say 120 if you have a 60 Hz monitor. With that, if you don't get tearing or imput lag, great

Very good is: Even if the FPS drop during game, you will never see or notice this at such high FPS.
From there, measure your GPU load, if it's just below 50% with a good GPU you are just fine, if it's around 20-30% you can raise the cap, the more FPS the better until you get around 40%-60% load and your GPU temperature doesn't get too high.

If instead you get tearing after capping your FPS at 2x your monitor Hz, then you need to raise the cap until it goes away while still not exceeding 50-60% GPU load. With a lower card this may not be possible, so better go with a) and set Vsynch=ON, also if your GPU load is around 70-80+% which is not necessary for this older game.

I hope this little excursion in the FPS world helps!
---------------------------

After trying both a) and b) with my GTX 1660 6GB VRAM, I just set Vsynch=ON in the game and it remains constant @60 FpS (60Hz monitor) without any tearing, at very low GPU load, I never hear the vent. That's with the modded interiors. Wihtout interiors you should get even less GPU load.

If you can do b) with little GPU load and without tearing, then chose this solution because: the more FPS, the better.
In the case of a) with Vsynch=ON, you want to experiment with Tripple Buffering (set it in your NVidia panel for the app) which often gives better colors and image for pre-2012 games at basically the same GPU load.

Finally, returning to the title: The 4gb patch is always good for games developed for WinXP because they have a 4GB RAM limit minus the OS consumed RAM, which is: Little, especially if mods are loaded with the risk to go out-of-RAM which means CTD. The 4GB patch will enhance all those games and use your system RAM if necessary.
The 4GB patch requires your OS to be 64-bit.

XS

Treetop64 · 05-02-20, 05:35 PM

Realize that there is literally no reason to cap the GPU's FPS rate any higher than your monitor's refresh rate. If you have a 60Hz monitor, then your GPU shouldn't be cycling any higher than 60fps. Same for 120Hz monitors - the GPU shouldn't be capped any higher than 120 fps. This is especially true if your GPU is set to preload and stack frames before rendering them.

Also note that if you are still using a 32 bit OS then 4GB patches for .exes will yield no benefit. Indeed having more than 4GB of system RAM in a 32 bit system is a waste since the OS will never use more than a total of 4 gigs concurrently for everything running, no matter how much RAM you have physically installed. I'm only bringing this up because some have quite vigorously argued to me in the past that this isn't true.

propbeanie · 05-02-20, 06:31 PM

If you have a 32-bit OS, you can alter the Boot.ini and tell Windows to give you more, but you will never get more than 3 gig tops, and it does take away from the OS, which can be a bad thing also...

05-01-20, 01:50 PM	#2
Mad Mardigan Admiral Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Grand Rapids, Mi. Posts: 2,327 Downloads: 491 Uploads: 0	Re: Reporting in on end results of 30 fps setting for graphics... Reporting in, on my findings after going in & setting up 30 as the max frames rate... Ok, tried the whole set max frame rate to 30... and got tearing, so.. I set it all back to run under the universal settings, applied that, closed out the control panel for my card... went into SH4 & set vsync to on... and... no tearing... Live & learn, as they say... And that concludes this report. __________________

05-01-20, 06:56 PM	#3
XenonSurf Sea Lord Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Germany, Italy Posts: 1,721 Downloads: 107 Uploads: 4	After consulting some expert links about FPS, my system is now as follows (from my post in the Fleet Interiors mod thread): --------------------------- To add to my above report about performance with these additional rooms and open hatches, I have consulted various good links about how and when to cap FPS, and wether to use VSynch=ON in the game settings, this also to run at best the FOtRSU mod package. Here my conclusions: a) Set Vsynch=ON in the game. If you have a 60 Hz monitor you will get 60 FPS with a larger frame delay and latency, but the good is: With any reasonable GPU the FPS will not drop much for you to see a real difference, and you will get rid of screen tearing and input lags. Also good is that your GPU load will be reduced compared to illimited FPS and Vsynch OFF. b) Set Vynch=OFF in the game, but... First run the game with a tool that tells you the FPS onscreen. If you see a very large number like 500+ FPS while in your sub and moving, then you can safely set a framecap of 2x your monitor refresh rate, say 120 if you have a 60 Hz monitor. With that, if you don't get tearing or imput lag, great Very good is: Even if the FPS drop during game, you will never see or notice this at such high FPS. From there, measure your GPU load, if it's just below 50% with a good GPU you are just fine, if it's around 20-30% you can raise the cap, the more FPS the better until you get around 40%-60% load and your GPU temperature doesn't get too high. If instead you get tearing after capping your FPS at 2x your monitor Hz, then you need to raise the cap until it goes away while still not exceeding 50-60% GPU load. With a lower card this may not be possible, so better go with a) and set Vsynch=ON, also if your GPU load is around 70-80+% which is not necessary for this older game. I hope this little excursion in the FPS world helps! --------------------------- After trying both a) and b) with my GTX 1660 6GB VRAM, I just set Vsynch=ON in the game and it remains constant @60 FpS (60Hz monitor) without any tearing, at very low GPU load, I never hear the vent. That's with the modded interiors. Wihtout interiors you should get even less GPU load. If you can do b) with little GPU load and without tearing, then chose this solution because: the more FPS, the better. In the case of a) with Vsynch=ON, you want to experiment with Tripple Buffering (set it in your NVidia panel for the app) which often gives better colors and image for pre-2012 games at basically the same GPU load. Finally, returning to the title: The 4gb patch is always good for games developed for WinXP because they have a 4GB RAM limit minus the OS consumed RAM, which is: Little, especially if mods are loaded with the risk to go out-of-RAM which means CTD. The 4GB patch will enhance all those games and use your system RAM if necessary. The 4GB patch requires your OS to be 64-bit. XS Last edited by XenonSurf; 05-01-20 at 07:20 PM.

05-02-20, 06:31 PM	#5
propbeanie CTD - it's not just a job Join Date: May 2016 Location: One hour from Music City USA! Posts: 10,134 Downloads: 453 Uploads: 4	If you have a 32-bit OS, you can alter the Boot.ini and tell Windows to give you more, but you will never get more than 3 gig tops, and it does take away from the OS, which can be a bad thing also... __________________ "...and bollocks to the naysayers" - Jimbuna

05-02-20, 05:35 PM	#4
Treetop64 Torpedoman Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bay Area, California Posts: 114 Downloads: 229 Uploads: 0	Realize that there is literally no reason to cap the GPU's FPS rate any higher than your monitor's refresh rate. If you have a 60Hz monitor, then your GPU shouldn't be cycling any higher than 60fps. Same for 120Hz monitors - the GPU shouldn't be capped any higher than 120 fps. This is especially true if your GPU is set to preload and stack frames before rendering them. Also note that if you are still using a 32 bit OS then 4GB patches for .exes will yield no benefit. Indeed having more than 4GB of system RAM in a 32 bit system is a waste since the OS will never use more than a total of 4 gigs concurrently for everything running, no matter how much RAM you have physically installed. I'm only bringing this up because some have quite vigorously argued to me in the past that this isn't true.