[James Ross]

Mike B, on 19 May 2014 - 08:40 AM, said:

Thank you! Mark this one solved.

Excellent news!

Mike B, on 19 May 2014 - 08:40 AM, said:

Looks like my next investment needs to be a better video card...probably nVidea for futureproofing though ATI/AMD does still seem to work in Win7. I don't think the rest of the system should be a problem; CPU % never goes above 20 (in a quad-core). usually around 15-17, and with or without LAA memory usage has not yet exceeded 1 GB.

Before you invest any money, make sure it is the right component to upgrade. :lol2: Open Rails is often limited by single-core-speed due to the way DirectX 9 and MSTS content works. You can use the GPU-Z utility to check what the "GPU Load" is - if it's not pushing 90% then a better graphics card will probably make no difference to Open Rails with that content.

[Lindsayts]

James Ross, on 19 May 2014 - 11:41 PM, said:

Excellent news!



Before you invest any money, make sure it is the right component to upgrade. :lol2: Open Rails is often limited by single-core-speed due to the way DirectX 9 and MSTS content works. You can use the GPU-Z utility to check what the "GPU Load" is - if it's not pushing 90% then a better graphics card will probably make no difference to Open Rails with that content.

For what its worth the above is correct. I have tried an NVidia GTX 580soc, a GTX 680 4 gig ram and an Radeon 7870 with 2 gig of ram. The 680 and the 7870 are little faster then the 580 (in OR).

The limit in moden GPU's actaully is the amount of data that has to be fed to the card. A single thread being unable to keeo the modern GPU's busy. One of the sugested solutions is to use two threads the first feeding the actual drawing commands to the GPU the second feeding all the data, textures and such to the card. Tests show this can between double and triple the frame rate in high object density area's.

Lindsay

[Mike B]

Thanks all. I will certainly check the GPU load. But it seems likely I do need some kind of graphics upgrade. Besides, the HD5450 (no fan!) card I have will be relegated to "legacy" status by AMD when Catalyst 14 comes out (in beta now) so that will sort of push things along.

I'm considering Nvidea's 750 or 750ti. They are far more capable than what I have, small, don't need an extra power plug (I only have a 450W power supply), and moderately priced (around US$150 for the ti). The ti got a generally favorable rating at Tom's, and the AMD alternatives aren't even close for power requirements.

Cheers.

Mike B

EDIT: late Tuesday night ... discovered that AMD just released Catalyst 14.4 and the HD5xxx series is still supported. Pleasant (?) surprise? I'm still looking at those Nvideas.

[markus_GE]

On my machine, it´s for sure the CPU (Intel Core i5 M430 virtual quad core (actual dual core) @ 2.27 GHz) that is limiting performance, with the ORTS debug HUD showing the updater thread (I think) @ over 90% constantly. My AIT Radeon Mobility HD 5650 card´s got no problems at all, and this on a 4 year old laptop computer (1 power supply (don´t have the specs) and one fan for the whole case, which sits on small wooden blocks on every corner, as to allow more air in under the machine).

What route have you done your checks on, and what are your graphics settings in ORTS itself (think shadows, primarily). Also, the 5450 does seem to be a stronger / better card than mine, AFAIK...

I´m perfectly fine with about 20 FPS, but no stutter, on something like the MONON or Surfliner II.

Cheers, Markus