Computer upgrade for SF2

[Bossco82]

Hi guys,

 

I mainly play SF2V with the gold expansion pack using advanced shaders. In campaign if I am over highly populated areas like Hanoi etc my fps would drop to a stutter.

 

I managed to get round this by deleting some target areas and reducing the AAA. I also changed the maxsecondarystrikevalue=2 to =0 to reduce the amount of ai aircraft in one area. I use the low quality .TOD files in my terrain aswell as only using the flak and afterburner effects from the Gold expansion Pack

 

I also tweaked the flight engine

 

[GraphicsSettings]

ZBufferDepth=24

MaxVertexCount=32768

MaxIndexCount=32768

MaxTextureCount=8192

MaxModelType=4096

MaxMeshPerScene=4096

MaxModelPerScene=4096

MaxLightPerScene=512

AspectRatio=1.6

MinPixelSize=1.0

 

[FarSceneClip]

FarClipDistance=80000.0

NearClipDistance=3000.0

 

[NormalSceneClip]

FarClipDistance=25000.0

NearClipDistance=249.9

 

[NearSceneClip]

FarClipDistance=250.0

NearClipDistance=1.2

 

[LowDetailOption]

HorizonDistance=45000.0

DetailMeshSize=3

DetailLevel=0

WaterEffect=0

NoiseTexture=0

MaxTextureRes=128

 

[MedDetailOption]

HorizonDistance=50000.0

DetailMeshSize=4

DetailLevel=1

WaterEffect=1

NoiseTexture=0

MaxTextureRes=256

 

[HighDetailOption]

HorizonDistance=60000.0

DetailMeshSize=5

DetailLevel=2

WaterEffect=2

NoiseTexture=1

MaxTextureRes=1024

 

And I use the following settings

 

Object Detail=high

Object texture=high

Cockpit texture =high

Mirrors=Off

Reflection=Off

Shadows=Low

Effects=Low

Terrain Detail=Medium

Terrain Texture=Medium

Horizon=Normal

Ground Objects=Medium

Water Detail=Low

1920x1080res native to my monitor

 

My system specs are

Windows 7 64

4Gb PC2-8500 ram

E8500 @ 3.6

750w PSU

Asus P5Q SE2 motherboard

Inno3D GTX 260 192core. 190.38 drivers

 

I was thinking of replacing my mobo with a SLi capable motherboard and another GTX 260 to improve my performance in SF2V, however I would need a new case to do this. I had the chance to buy a GTX 260 and P5N sli mobo at a good price but someone beat me to it. So now i'm thinking of upgrading my GTX 260 to a GTX 460 or even 470 but i'm worried my E8500 would bottleneck it. Believe it or not i'm not a big computer game fan but I love the SF2 series so thats all I use my computer for gamewise. Looking at my system and the settings I use in game what would be better GTX 260's in SLi or a single GTX 460/470? What performance increase would either give me?

 

Any advise appreciated

 

 

[+Fubar512]

SF2 doesn't take advantage of SLI. OC'ing your processor to 3.6 ghz will yield a bigger bang for your money.

Edited September 11, 2010 by Fubar512

[Bossco82]

Thanks for the reply Fubar, I did suspect that Sli was a no go with SF2.

 

I have oc'd my E8500 now I have matched my memory. I use to have 2 sticks os PC2-8500 and 2 sticks of PC2-6400. I now have 4 sticks of PC2-8500 and can run 2.1v on them. I have a stable 3.6 but i'm going to try to get 3.8.

 

Do you think that upgrading to a GTX 460 or 470 would mean I could run higher setting or add more effects/objects in SF2. Or should I shop for a 2nd hand GTX 280. I'm worried that with SF2 only using one core of my E8500 I wouldn't see a benifit from upgrading my GPU, although I do use DX10 now. Keep the GTX 260, buy a GTX 280 or a newer GTX 4** series card. What would you recommend. I have a bit of spare cash to treat myself and in this situation it either goes on my car or a computer upgrade, my evo is finally how I want it so its spare to go on my computer. I just dont know as much about computers as I know about cars so any advise is appreciated.

 

Cheers

Edited September 11, 2010 by Boostjunky

[+Fubar512]

Thanks for the reply Fubar, I did suspect that Sli was a no go with SF2.

 

I have oc'd my E8500 now I have matched my memory. I use to have 2 sticks os PC2-8500 and 2 sticks of PC2-6400. I now have 4 sticks of PC2-8500 and can run 2.1v on them. I have a stable 3.6 but i'm going to try to get 3.8.

 

Do you think that upgrading to a GTX 460 or 470 would mean I could run higher setting or add more effects/objects in SF2. Or should I shop for a 2nd hand GTX 280. I'm worried that with SF2 only using one core of my E8500 I wouldn't see a benifit from upgrading my GPU, although I do use DX10 now. Keep the GTX 260, buy a GTX 280 or a newer GTX 4** series card. What would you recommend. I have a bit of spare cash to treat myself and in this situation it either goes on my car or a computer upgrade, my evo is finally how I want it so its spare to go on my computer. I just dont know as much about computers as I know about cars so any advise is appreciated.

 

Cheers

 

At present, the series is not that graphically demanding, other than running best with a card that sports a 1024 mb frame buffer or greater.