Frame Rates Dropping in game

edbert
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Jul 13, 2004 5:00 am

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by edbert »

I just got my TIR3-pro today. Fired up IL2 2.01 and checked it out. I don't have the frame rate drop after a few minutes thing you report. But I am getting a veritable slide show when the TIR software is running (mimized, tray, or full). I'm talking one frame a second or LESS. I know it is the TIR somehow since if I alt-tab out and kill the app everything is back to normal. I don;t have a serious gaming rig or anything but IL2 usually runs like silk at 1024X768X32 with detail set to high. I have an XP2100 with a gig of RAM and a 9800-pro-128. Any ideas what I've done wrong? As I said I just got this thing today so I'm pretty sure the problem is with me.
nealg
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 5:00 am
Location: Caifornia

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by nealg »

Hi edbert; well, I can offer you a couple simple things to check on this problem. First and foremost....when you start the TIR software, before starting IL2 FB, make sure the TIR is in 'enhanced' mode. Also, close down any other background software you have running....just run what is essential for FB.

Check your distance from the unit....try to get as close as you can, then move back, see if/how much the movement smooths or doesn't. Also, the room you are in...if it is well lit, try to make it as dim as you can, to see if you are getting any outside light source interference, especially from directly behind you.

If you run the TIR from a USB hub, is it self-powered? Are there any other devices plugged into it?

If you are certain you have the TIR software in enhnaced mode, check the FB conf.ini file...in one of the sections there is a line like this: 'trackirUse=#', where # can be 0 (zero = no track ir ) or 1 ( track ir used ). Occasionally this flag doesn't get set properly. Make sure it is set to '1' - if not, make the change and save it ( conf.ini is a text file in the main FB folder and can be opened and edited using Windows' Notepad ).

Not much, sorry...and you may already know about these steps, if so, my apologies...but perhaps there is something there that might help. If not, at least you can eliminate some of them as the culprit.

[ July 14, 2004, 04:37 PM: Message edited by: Nealg ]
VFS-22_SPaRX
Posts: 61
Joined: Sun Jul 04, 2004 5:00 am

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by VFS-22_SPaRX »

Wayne,

Anything to report yet?

Just to give you some more info on what i have done as well.

Last week i did a complete OS resinstall. Format C and started from scratch. Installed all current drivers for all my hardware. Only game i have installed is IL2 FB/Aces. Still at ~30 mins into a mission/map, FPS drops as stated before.

Some other things i though of that you also might like to know. I am running my 9800pro 128 meg card with 4.7 drivers. Settings are 1024 x 768, 4x FSAA, 4x AF.

Hope this additional Info helps you out.

SPaRX
nealg
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 5:00 am
Location: Caifornia

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by nealg »

One other thing I have found that can trigger this for me; what the offline console command defines as 'time overflows'. These are the more severe pauses, similar to online respawn pause in DF servers. I started getting these more frequently after adding BOE until I turned off the Active Front Line option. The frame drop doesn't always occur immediately...sometimes not until after the current mission is finished and the next mission is nearly finished.

Another trigger is what I have come to refer to as the '1000 lb bomb lurch' ; the explosion of one of these if I am in the vicinity ( it doesn't have to be visible on screen ) can trigger the eventual frame drop with TIR active. Again, it isn't always immediate....sometimes it takes another mission before it happens.

What it seems to relate to is the severe in game dropping of a frame rate....a lag, warp, or pause, where frames take a sudden drop from double digits to very low single digits, then shudder a bit when building back up. And the effect isn't always immediate....sometimes it waits until the next minor drop, as in a heavy combat situation, and then it will occur - or even somewhere in the next mission. Disabling the TIR brings the frames back up...or just breaking contact, like holding your hand between the dot and the unit. For me, it remains in this state until I end the mission and start a new one offline...then all is back to normal.

This continues after the 2.04 patch, just released. I am trying to see if there is a difference in frequency of occurrence between having FB's video compression enabled/disabled ( in Setup ). It seems to be more frequent with no compression, but I cannot be certain. There may be no difference at all. Compression On does seem to reduce the frequency of the 'time overflows', however.

For anyone not familiar with the offline console....it is accessed by pressing shift+tab. After you get strange pauses or jerky play, try it, and read any messages at the bottom ( shift+tab also closes the console offline ).
Wayne
Posts: 891
Joined: Thu Jan 08, 2004 5:00 am
Location: Oregon

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by Wayne »

Thanks Nealg,

We feel pretty sure now that this is a game related issue, and I will be working with Ubisoft to help determine the nature of the frame drop.

I am sure this will be an easy problem to fix.
Thank you for all the feed back this is helping so much.
nealg
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 5:00 am
Location: Caifornia

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by nealg »

Wayne; I hope so...I'm not always good at explaining stuff.

Thanks to you and everyone at Naturalpoint for the time and effort you've put into this issue. It's one of the things that keeps us recommending TIR and Naturalpoint. I hope Ubisoft can help in getting this resolved, but I know if not, it won't be because people didn't try. That is appreciated.
nealg
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 5:00 am
Location: Caifornia

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by nealg »

One little addition to this...superfluous, perhaps, but something I noticed last night.

Situation: in FB, flying a BOE P47 campaign, had just progressed to the Berlin portion. FB settings all Excellent. Setup using Nvidia 3/4/FX, with only change being that S3TC Compression now enabled. BOE set to use 9 B17's rather than 13, 26, or 39. Vsync is Off. Monitor refresh at 70 ( NEC LCD monitor running Analog ).

1st mission, bomber escort @ 9K meters. No enemy encountered. Bombers dropped eggs. Began the turn for and trip home. I left my 47 D 27 on Autopilot the entire mission, with TIR on. All was working fine. Then, about 1/3 of the way to the final waypoint, I noticed a sizeable drop in frames ( from the high 50's in cockpit down to about 44-48 ; looking around, they stayed in the 40's ). I disabled TIR to check...frames jumped to 60+. Re-enabled...dropped to 48.

2nd Mission: Same all the way around except altitude was < 5K meters. Same results, at almost exactly the same point in return flight. Bombs were 1000 pounders. In neither mission did I see them explode, but knew when they did because frames took a quick drop to mid-40's from 65+ then returned.

Just adding it, in case there is info that can help in working this out with UbiSoft.
Wayne
Posts: 891
Joined: Thu Jan 08, 2004 5:00 am
Location: Oregon

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by Wayne »

Nealg,

Nothing is superfluous, all the info that you find is helpful, thank you Nealg for all your helpful input.
nealg
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 5:00 am
Location: Caifornia

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by nealg »

Wellll...ok.

I did manage to set up a situation where I can reproduce this without fail. Whether it happens with others, I can't say, but in case it might help:

1. Use the IL2/FB QMB.
2. Set up mission as follows: 4 fighter escorts ( I used P47 ) ; 8 B 17 bombers with 1000 lb bomb loadouts ; target Airbase protected by flak ; any map ( I used Smolensk ); clear weather or good ; TOD = noon ; no enemy planes.
3. Fly the mission, keeping your escort flight from attacking the base ( they will if you don't watch them ) ; at target, circle in the area ( doesn't even have to be close to target ) until bombers call bombs away.
4. Watch frame rate; for me, I can tell when bombs hit, as my frames drop hard - up to 20 or more drop. Watch until frames begin to climb back up...it happens pretty quickly.
5. Continue your flight...where or how doesn't matter...checking frames for steadiness as you look around.
6. After a couple of minutes, disable the TIR....for me, my frames will climb another 10 FPS minimum. Re-enable TIR...my frames will lose that 10. Disable TIR...back up. Re-enable, drop 10.
7. Quit mission. Restart it. All back to normal - until the bombs hit again.

I tried this also with sound disabled, just to check....even though I can't always hear the bombs, I thought it might be possible. Nope...same thing, just that the normal frames for me are about 3 to 5 more in all situations.

I tried it also with just 4 B17's.....here, I cannot reproduce the effect 100% of the time. Sometimes it will happen, sometimes not. Seems to depend on where I am on the map, using the 4 bomber setup. This used to be the standard IL2 bomber grouping (4) BTW....it wasn't until the addition of the B17's that I started seeing more 8+ bomber groups with 1000 lb bombs. And this may have been when this effect started....I am sorry, I cannot remember. I do know the effect was worse with the TIR 1 ; the TIR 2 saw a improvement in the actual frame difference between the disable/enable when the effect occurred.

I know this isn't the only thing that triggers it...in fact, it may not happen the same wtih others with this problem. It has been the introduction of BOE/AEP and the increased B17 escort missions in offline campaigns that enabled me to locate and reproduce this as a cause. But it was happening prior to BOE/AEP for me...just not before last winter/spring.

Something changed in one of the IL2 patches, that affected the frame rate fluctuation and triggered this effect with the TIR. As I said earlier, I cannot get it to happen in Rowan's BoB nor in LOMAC. I haven't a clue myself, but I know if someone can reproduce it, it helps to isolate it - perhaps this will help.

Or...not.
Wayne
Posts: 891
Joined: Thu Jan 08, 2004 5:00 am
Location: Oregon

Re: Frame Rates Dropping in game

Post by Wayne »

Thanks Nealg,

This will give me chance to reproduce this on our games machine here.
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