Can Anyone Run MAX Everything?

[numb1]

Your right the only thing i dont have is the enviroment set up.Been trying to figure out what the hell that was its the full updates one correct?And i dont have that on at all.And it will drop to about 45 min in a heavy fight but like i said the full updates are not on.If i turn those on it kills my fps.So srry i was wrong i guess its not fully maxed out sir.Plus my far cry is bad because i am using really old drivers due to the flickering in AH i get when using new drivers for my 7850 which is pretty common with 12.8 drivers and above for 7series gpus.The new drivers are suppose to improve far cry performance by like 36 percent.

I would just turn off the full updates and keep everything else maxed out.

[Chalenge]

My head hurts. 

[Noir]

congrats on making the most demanding game in the market 

[Chalenge]

In helping users to figure out why their systems are not giving the expected results it became obvious that two options that confuse people on the driver settings are the antialiasing setting "Override any application settings" and the "Adaptive" setting under power management. If a user chooses to override the antialiasing setting so that they can make use of their cards' optimized routines (rather than standard anti-aliasing) then they need to be aware that the setting also might override the vsync setting.

The "Adaptive" setting for power management is supposed to allow for cooler and quieter operations but for Aces High this is NOT a good idea. You want the card set to maximum performance at all times. The clock speed of the card itself are controlled with this setting and you might very well be forcing your video card to slow down when you dont want it to (you never want it to).

When someone says "I can get..." it is not a very scientific statement because "can" clearly is saying there is a time when "cannot" occurs.

[715]

In Catalyst Control Center "Override Application Setting" is a per feature item, i.e. the override for AA is separate from the override for Vsync.  Same for AF.

[Chalenge]

Okay. Currently I can only test Nvidia. Quad SLI with 2x690s. SLI with 2x680s (4GB). SLI with 680(4GB) + 680(2GB). SLI 580(3GB).

EDIT: The one thing that is clear is that SLI does scale well but with AH once you get to the 690 range you have just about hit the peak. The 680 4GB model is the best Nvidia has to offer. The 2GB model is fine for single monitor but if you are into multi-monitor then you want 4GB. Yes the 690 has 4GB but its 2GB/GPU is the issue. Also the difference between Ivy Bridge and Sandy Bridge-E is not significant enough to suggest an upgrade would be beneficial unless you have another need for that type of setup. The real bottleneck of performance is the CPU right now. GPUs are really much further ahead than one might think. So (here is the rub) multi-monitor systems and big fancy GPUs cannot hit their stride yet and you might as well stick to one monitor. Three and four monitors might make you feel macho but your killing yourself.

[Gman]

Three monitor isn't about "macho" imo at all, but just a part of the constant evolution of gaming.  I saw a guy at NCIX's display at a tech show in Vancouver running 3 42" LED size TV's with a quad SLI setup...now THAT I would classify as showing off/macho, but tons of people I know are running 3 screen, and none of them have even HEARD of Aces high, much less play it.

That said, I'm a believer in what Chalenge is saying, 100 percent.  The more I'm fiddling with this, the more I'm realizing that it is the CPU holding back performance.  Also, I don't know anyone running "adaptive" power settings, unless they haven't read up on anything regarding video card performance settings.  As for the anti aliasing, I just want to be sure I understand what Chalenge is saying, that the best setting is to just leave it to application control, in terms of Aces High at least.

I've been saying what Chalenge has said regarding the 4gb 680s since I bought them, on the advice of somebody who is a tech/gamer and builds all of NCIX's systems, and has his own uTube tech channel.  That with 3 monitor gaming, the 4gb 680's SLI are better than the 690 option, which is why I traded my 690 in for the 680's in the first place, as I wanted to run a cheap (24" Asus LED) 3 screen setup (sorry, I didn't buy any MACHO high end monitors) just to see if it was really worth going to a higher end 3 screen setup at some point.  I already had one of the Asus screens, and they had a bundle on sale for buying 2 of the exact same model for 150$.  How can you go wrong with that?  I would say that it is, as so many other games are really cool with the extra screens.  As for Aces, I'm still undecided if it is worth the performance hit and the strangeness of how every thing seems and looks.  Of your setup configurations possible, what would you recommend Chalenge to a person looking for a high end box/upgrade in terms of Aces High?  I understand you points regarding the 2011 x79 at this time, but considering that some people are investing in this platform awaiting the new stuff coming out, what would you think the best cpu/gpu set up would be for both current platforms, ie 3770/2600k 3820/3930k?

When someone says "I can get..." it is not a very scientific statement because "can" clearly is saying there is a time when "cannot" occurs.

I'm not sure if that is directed at me, I'm not trying to win the science fair, and I've been pretty clear about the scenario I'm talking about with regards to fps in Aces High at max settings (multiple friendly and enemy cons both as aircraft and gv's, low alt over smoking town/base nearby).  I would consider it understood that at higher altitudes with less action that any of the cpu/gpu in the last few pages of the thread would suffice for sustained max FPS with vsync on with a 1080p or similar monitor at 60hz, I realize the 120hz monitors will perform differently.

[Chalenge]

I am not digging at anyone. The macho comment was directed at the stereotypical male image of buying bigger and faster which I myself am guilty of. The "I can get..." comment was actually answering what I think you were pointing out about people claiming they achieve from their systems. No one has posted a benchmark method for AH and yes I was looking into making one but when I wrote Skuzzy about it he pointed out that consistent results would be difficult to acheive. Square one.

If asked for a recommendation I would recommend buying what you can afford. I am using a Sandy Bridge-E which is something Nvidia clearly never intended their cards to run well on. I like the 2011 (3970X) but I dont expect to see more than a couple of people in AH running with one. I usually dont reach outside of my own experience so if I make a recommendation or report results that is because I have that system and have tested it to the best of my ability. I have a 3770 and I have to tell you I dont even like the Intel graphics being there. It just doesnt seem right. This last buying cycle for me was the first time in a long time that I moved away from EVGA motherboards. I bought the Z77 and X79 Sabertooth boards because they seemed less glitchy (I tried the EVGA boards and returned them). I think the Z77 is a tad more stable but the X79 has not had any real issues aside from ESET not initializing smoothly every time.

Whatever you buy make sure you research the memory you intend to use and make sure it works well with your board. I only found one manufacturer that could supply the maximum memory and neither was expensive. You can probably imagine the aggrevation when a MB is not stable because it cant offer reliable voltage to the memory you chose.

As to your last comment about high altitude. . . dont count on it. I bought these systems to work on rather than to play AH. AH is just something I like to do not something I have to do. My work system (the 3970X) has Adobe Creative Master Suite on it and more Autodesk apps than I can count. I also attend online classes with it and so it must have JAVA and Flash and several other security problems active. In testing AH I have used it (without using AlacrityPC) and even though the system is capable of great things running the background processes for all those apps can get in the way. You and I and several others know how to handle that but I bet you Skuzzy can tell you nightmare stories about troubleshooting those situations. Then again there is the situation of strat raids. Consider full settings on your card when you have twenty formations of B-29s (like it or not they hit resources more than any other aircraft do) escorted by thirty P-51s. With shadows on and multiple skins (does the B-29 have more than one skin?) your resources are going to take a hit. Then toss in defenders and puffy ack.

These uber cards are nothing! But yes they are still held back by the CPUs.

[Changeup]

With the new upgrades to the game, hardware, drivers etc, maybe it's time for another fps improvement document.  I know one is out there but things have changed a ton, even since I built my rig a year ago.  I've bought two gpus since I built it. 

Just thought because you guys are providing a lot of important information that most folks don't already know

[Changeup]

Btw, maybe just a doc for nVidia control manager settings for optimal performance and once for Radeon.

[Chalenge]

I pass to Gman. Right now I have too many irons in the fire.

[Skuzzy]

Actually, the game is designed around using the defaults for both ATI and NVidia.

[Changeup]

Actually, the game is designed around using the defaults for both ATI and NVidia.

So if I messed with the control manager after I installed my 660Ti I should just reset it to the default settings and I'm good?

[Chalenge]

With a 660 thats probably the best you can expect. With more horsepower on a single monitor there is some tweaking you could do. I would try the different AA settings anyway myself even with that card.

Something like AF x4 AA override CSAA x16 3 pre-frendered clamp bias quality textures and vsync locked (from memory).

[Changeup]

With a 660 thats probably the best you can expect. With more horsepower on a single monitor there is some tweaking you could do. I would try the different AA settings anyway myself even with that card.

Something like AF x4 AA override CSAA x16 3 pre-frendered clamp bias quality textures and vsync locked (from memory).

I do real well around 59-60 unless I load Full Updates...then it craters pretty easily