nVidia Beta driver release 320.18

[Hellshade 110]

A few updates but nothing earth shattering.

 

Release Summary

This is the GeForce Game Ready driver for Metro: Last Light providing up to 10% faster performance and Microsoft WHQL certification.

Get optimal game settings for Metro: Last Light with GeForce Experience and enjoy NVIDIA PhysX effects and DirectX 11 tessellation.

Includes the production release of GeForce Experience (version 1.5) as an optional installation. GeForce Experience replaces NVIDIA Update as the easiest way to keep your drivers up to date.

New in GeForce R320 Drivers

• Performance Boost – Increases performance by up to 20% for GeForce 400/500/600 series GPUs in several PC games vs. GeForce 314.22 WHQL-certified drivers. Results will vary depending on your GPU and system configuration. Here is one example of measured gains:
  

• 
  GeForce GTX 660:
• 
  
  • Up to 20% in Dirt: Showdown
    
  • Up to 18% in Tomb Raider
    
  • Up to 10% in Metro: Last Light
    
  • Up to 8% in StarCraft II
    
  • Up to 6% in Sniper Elite V2
    
  • Up to 6% in Metro 2033
    
  • Up to 6% in Far Cry 3
    
  • Up to 6% in Deus Ex: Human Revolution
    
  • Up to 5% in F1 2012
    

• 
  GeForce GTX 660 SLI:
• 
  
  • Up to 17% in Dirt: Showdown
    
  • Up to 18% in Tomb Raider
    
  • Up to 9% in Metro: Last Light
    
  • Up to 9% in Assassin’s Creed III
    
  • Up to 7% in StarCraft II
    
  • Up to 6% in Far Cry 3
    
  • Up to 6% in Deus Ex: Human Revolution
    
  • Up to 6% in Battlefield 3
    
  • Up to 5% in BioShock: Infinite
    
  • Up to 5% in F1 2012
    

• SLI Technology
  
  • Added SLI profile for Alien Fear
    
  • Added SLI profile for Call of Juarez: Gunslinger
    
  • Added SLI profile for Dead Island: Riptide
    
  • Added SLI profile for Dragon Sword
    
  • Added SLI profile for Neverwinter
    
  • Added SLI profile for Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
    
  • Added SLI profile for GRID 2
    
  • Added SLI profile for Human Head 2
    
  • Added SLI profile for Remember Me
    
  • Added SLI profile for The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct
    
  • Updated SLI profile for Natural Selection 2
    
  • Updated SLI profile for Resident Evil 6
    
  • Updated SLI profile for Trackmania 2: Canyon
    

Additional Details

• Installs PhysX System Software 9.12.1031.
  
• Installs HD Audio v1.3.24.2
  
• Includes support for applications built using CUDA 5.5 or earlier version of the CUDA Toolkit. More information at http://developer.nvidia.com/cuda-toolkit
  
• Supports OpenGL 4.3 for GeForce 400-series and later GPUs.
  
• Supports DisplayPort 1.2 for GeForce GTX 600 series GPUs.
  
• Supports multiple languages and APIs for GPU computing: CUDA C, CUDA C++, CUDA Fortran, OpenCL, DirectCompute, and Microsoft C++ AMP.
  
• Supports single GPU and NVIDIA SLI technology on DirectX 9, DirectX 10, DirectX 11, and OpenGL, including 3-way SLI, Quad SLI, and SLI support on SLI-certified Intel and AMD motherboards.
  

[MudWasp48 3]

I'm on dial-up and seldom update to a beta, just takes too long. I visited a friend with high speed, gave him a list that didn't include this, but he tossed it on anyway.

 

I'm impresses with this driver. Coming from 314.somthing that was a windows suggested D/L. Did notice frame rate increase, I'm running adaptive v-sync @ 60, noticed higher frame rates at game start while firing up the plane and forming up. They went from 40's to max @60 and steady with no stutters. Made a differnece in Dog fights and flying low over heavily rendered terrain.

 

I'm running a 660 Ti top Asus 2gb. Used to have issues with all sliders to 5 in south where the are moutains. This flixed that issue. No need to to turn down anything.

 

I'd like to chat about Nvidia control panel settings. My af is 4x, aa is 16x csaa

[MudWasp48 3]

I wound up bumping up Nvidia control panel settings and the game looked better and ran just as fast or a hair faster.

 

Anyone have any control panel settings they would like to share?

 

Much of this confusing and to me.

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

As a tip: load the ATI or NVIDIA preset in my OFFset settings manager (included in OFFice). These set in CFS3Config some texture, memory management, rendering, and other settings key to performance and stability on these lines of cards. Most of these settings recommendations can be found digging around the forums, the tips at overflandersfields.com, and from Microsoft support, but I've consolidated all that knowledge so it's just a few clicks away for OFFice users:

1. Run OFFset.
    
   
2. Click Import.
    
   
3. Select "ATI Graphics" or "NVIDIA Graphics" from the list.
    
   
4. Click Verify to see the settings that will be changed.
    
   
5. Click Commit to confirm the changes.
   

Here's an additional tip from Microsoft I haven't yet had a chance to test and integrate into these presets. If your system has more than 256MB of RAM (which I'm sure we all do these days):

1. Run CFS3Config, either from OFF Workshops, OFFset, or the Start Menu shortcut.
    
   
2. Click Custom Settings.
    
   
3. On the Window menu, click Texture information.
    
   
4. Change any Texture setting that is set to D3DPOOL_Default or D3DPOOL_Managed to D3DPOOL_SystemMem.
    
   
5. Click OK, and then exit the CFS3Config tool.
   

If anyone tries this and it makes a difference, please let me know and I'll incorporate it into the presets.

[MudWasp48 3]

I'll try the D3DPool thing and let you know

[Andy73 3]

MudWasp,

I'm also using a GTX 660 (AMP! Edition) and my Settings in the Control Panel are (I use the German Version, so I try to translate it):

 

Anisotropic Filter -16x

Antialiasing FXAA -Off

Antialiasing -32xCSAA

Antialiasing Gamma -On

Antialiasing Mode -"Overwrite any..."

Antialiasing Transparency -8x Supersample

CUDA-GPU'S -All

Triple Buffer -On

Energy Mode -Adaptive

Pre-Rendered Frames -3

Multi-Display/mixed GPU -Single-Display Mode

LOD-Bias -Clamp

Texture Quality -Quality

Trilinear Optimization -On

Threaded Optimization -Off

Ambient Occlusion -Off

Vertical Sync -Adaptive

 

Make sure to use these Global Settings also for your Program Settings (OFF and CFS3)

 

In Game I'm playing with my Sliders on 5,5,3,3,5,5 and in Workshop Settings the Ground Object Density is Medium.

In the Graphics Config I'm using the following Settings:

 

Composite Terrain Texture Pool -Managed

Composite Terrain Texture Usage -Rendertarget

Composite Aircraft Texture Pool -Managed

Composite Aircraft Texture Usage -Rendertarget

Vertex Buffer Pool -Managed

Index Buffer Pool -Managed

Fullscreen Swap Effect -Swapeffect Copy V_Sync

 

With these Settings my FPS are always at 60 and never less than 55. Graphics are outstanding :-)

Edited June 9, 2013 by Andy73

[MudWasp48 3]

Thanks Andy!

I have the af and AA the same.

Not sure about the rest. Much of this is confusing to me. I don't know what some of these tweaks do, but I've been learning by trial and error and google searches. Greatly appreciate your input.

Been running on all 5's with a heavy overclock on "Asus GPU Tweak". Only time I ran into slow down was over the mud with a HUGE dogfight. I paused the game, resumed and it was fine.

Don't see much difference in 5 scenery unless I'm on the ground. Took a bicycle out for a spin near London and saw a difference....Detail one can't see unless on the ground or very, very low flying and sight seeing.

Lately I went to all 5's except for terrain and scenery at 4 and unlocked the V-sync. The fps were in the 70's on takeoff with 10 planes on the field. Much of the flight had fps in the 90's, 60's in 6x8 df.

 

Lothar,

I tried the D3DPool thing and noticed no difference so I went back to default.

 

Andy, your translation worked great!

I'll try out your config settings.

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

othar,

I tried the D3DPool thing and noticed no difference so I went back to default.

Not noticing a difference isn't a reason to not to go with Microsoft's recommendation. Your performance is probably just limited by a different factor. Go ahead and set them back to D3DPOOL_SystemMem.

 

I can't remember if it's terrain or scenery, but one of them there's no reason to bump up to 5, 4 is really the max and the 5 is just for future higher-end settings (maybe used by WOFF?).