Aces High Bulletin Board
Help and Support Forums => Technical Support => Topic started by: Nilsen on April 21, 2009, 01:57:17 PM
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The one i use now has a single core 1,6ghz cpu, ati mobility x600 gpu and 2gb ram. It gives me an ok framerate and im happy with the performace.
The one i am looking at has a 2ghz dual core (core2 duo) cpu, ati 3450 gpu (512mb) and 4gb ram. Its a Dell (dont hit me lol) studio 15.
Will the new one be good enough for the upcomming terrain updates and whatnot you think? Not looking for 1000 fps but similar playability as the one i have now (or better doh!).
Any thoughts? Do you all think i will be able to keep playing with the new rig when the update is out or will it be a "huge" jump in computing demands like the change from AH to AH2 was?
-edit- For the record the ati 3450 gpu has a score of 3922 in 3dmark 05 vs 1800 points for the x600.
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The new one will definitely be enough to play the game. Perhaps not at maximum frame rates, but it should hold you over for many updates to come.
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Thx im hoping it will. The new terrain looks great though and that sorta has me abit worried :)
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I've got a dell xps1530 with 2.5ghz dual core, nvidia geforce 8600m gt 512mb gpu (average 3dmark05 of 6175), and 4 gb ram, and I can't play the game without warping all over the place (apparently due to hardware problems).
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hmmm... thats not good :uhoh
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Avoid the "Sigmatel" sound chip Nilsen. It has absolutely no hardware acceleration or buffers available and generally poor DirectSound drivers.
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Avoid the "Sigmatel" sound chip Nilsen. It has absolutely no hardware acceleration or buffers available and generally poor DirectSound drivers.
As far as i can see the sound chip in the Studio 15 is "Intel HD sound 2.0" whatever that means.
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I've got a dell xps1530 with 2.5ghz dual core, nvidia geforce 8600m gt 512mb gpu (average 3dmark05 of 6175), and 4 gb ram, and I can't play the game without warping all over the place (apparently due to hardware problems).
Your hardware is more than powerful enough to work with the game. The problem is that you have too many background processes bogging down the system which already has a power-saving processor (may be powerful, but doesn't run as sturdy).
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-edit- looks like the 3450 gpu in the laptop im looking at has 256mb of ram and not 512.
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Well, graphically you'll be fine. But if you stick with onboard audio, forget about sound packs.
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Well, graphically you'll be fine. But if you stick with onboard audio, forget about sound packs.
The soundpack i have now (mitsu i belive) works great on my ooooold laptop so why should the new one have issues?
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Yes, it works, but it strains the processor. Onboard sound requires the processor to play back the sound files associated with the game. A sound pack (as I understand it) then increases the load as the processor now has to process higher quality sound files. Sometimes the processor can handle the load, other times it causes the famous jitters and lag. The less work the processor has to perform on sound, the more it can devote to the game thus making your flying experience a little more enjoyable.
If you were buying a desktop, I would simply recommend you buy yourself a PCI sound card as that would eliminate the load on the processor (you might have seen some of the threads regarding sound in the past). Many players in the past have had great success adding a sound card to their system. I'm sure if some are around they can describe the difference to you on the, "Before-and-After" spectrum.
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rgr that Denholm. My knowledge of sound is high-end music audio, and not gaming audio.
Ive always flown with laptops so ive been at the mercy of whatever cards are in them. Im sure that the new puter will be awesome for the current version of AH as it is ALOT faster than the one i play on now. Its this new and imminent (2 weeks) introduction of better terrains that worries me abit.
Was sorta fishing for a simple "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" for the lappy im about to get from the HTC staff before i invest ;) Im sure they have an ide of any increased system requirements with the new terrains.
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Newer is not always better. In the case of laptops, the OEM's have been working hard to reduce costs. The upshot of those cost reductions is hardware which is simpler and does less so they can rely more on the CPU to do the work.
Onboard sound chips are getting dumber and dumber, in order to get cheaper. Do you really expect a $1 sound chip to have the processing power of a $100 sound card?
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Well, in the past HTC always tried to make the game available to low-end and dial-up users. I don't think that has changed. Yes, that particular laptop will play the game now and after the update.
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Do you really expect a $1 sound chip to have the processing power of a $100 sound card?
YES! ofcourse :D
meh... i know what you mean. I wish Dell could offer abit more detail about what soundcard is in the box. Intel 2.0 is alteast to me abit vague
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In my experience if it's Intel, it's onboard. And if it's onboard, it typically bogs down the processor.
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ugh was afraid of that :furious
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I do not believe you have a choice with a laptop.
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Maybe a soundcard in the expresscard slot would take some load of the cpu.
The "creative soundblaster x-fi notebook" or "creative soundblaster x-fi xtreme audio notebook" may be an option unless they require a boatload of crappy software.
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Never, ever install the apps and utilities Creative ships. NEVER!
Only install the drivers and your computer will be a much happier camper.
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Goto Hp..check the HDX series...more bang for you $. I have one..top of the line. Runs AH WITH a "sound pack"..no problems.
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Ignore all that creative stuff...
Im getting what i have always been meaning to get. A great external dac/headphone combo. No software at all. You just plug it in to the pc and it takes over. Outstanding for 2channel stereo but costs alot.
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Goto Hp..check the HDX series...more bang for you $. I have one..top of the line. Runs AH WITH a "sound pack"..no problems.
The reason for going with Dell even if i kinda hate them is because i get a great discount through my business. If i didnt get it as cheap as they are offering it to me i would not even get a new lappy now as the old one works good enough for the tasks i give it :)
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The reason for going with Dell even if i kinda hate them is because i get a great discount through my business. If i didnt get it as cheap as they are offering it to me i would not even get a new lappy now as the old one works good enough for the tasks i give it :)
I'm sure you've checked with HP for a similar discount...right??? :) Anyway, best of luck with whatever you buy.
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I'm sure you've checked with HP for a similar discount...right??? :) Anyway, best of luck with whatever you buy.
Thx and yes. Nothing beats the Dell Studio 15. Price is 400 USD and only the entry level stripped down HP models with crappy amd and integrated graphics even come close. :)
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Placed the order today so it should be here... no later than may 12th website sais, but as it is already in production over in Ireland it should not take that long :aok
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I hope it fits your needs like a glove. Have fun. :)
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Thx... hope so too, but at that price it cant be wrong. :) Shipped today so i should have it in a few days :aok
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Thx... hope so too, but at that price it cant be wrong. :) Shipped today so i should have it in a few days :aok
Want to buy me one too? :)
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Unplayable. Great framerates but warpy as heck. No idea what the problem is but its bad. Not the connection as it is the same as on the old lappy.
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Whats the difference between the vista version and the xp version of the game? Im running windows 7 build 7100 but i doubt that is the problem because AH ran without a problem on the old lappy with windows 7 beta. Dont remember if i installed the vista version on that though as i have on this one.
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The difference is that Vista runs more processes and tries to play, "big brother." If you have certain services enabled, too many processes, or the game is installed in, "Program Files." The game will be unplayable. Read some of the threads in this forum for tweaking Vista, then get back to us with how many processes are running. I'm certain we can get the game working for you.
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Whats the difference between the vista version and the xp version of the game? Im running windows 7 build 7100 but i doubt that is the problem because AH ran without a problem on the old lappy with windows 7 beta. Dont remember if i installed the vista version on that though as i have on this one.
I think the only difference is the read me file. In the vista version it suggest you load the game in a fold off of the main root drive instead of in the default location.
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The difference is that Vista runs more processes and tries to play, "big brother." If you have certain services enabled, too many processes, or the game is installed in, "Program Files." The game will be unplayable. Read some of the threads in this forum for tweaking Vista, then get back to us with how many processes are running. I'm certain we can get the game working for you.
Windows 7 RC, not vista. Have Win 7 beta on the old lappy that runs it great.
Created a folder called Games that i put AH in so its not in "program files"
Running 28 processes and some 55-60 services. The old lappy runs about the same number of processes but over 80 services.
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I think the only difference is the read me file. In the vista version it suggest you load the game in a fold off of the main root drive instead of in the default location.
Dang it! I missed him saying, "Game" not, "Windows." Here I am giving him a brief overview of the difference between XP and Vista Operating Systems not game installers.
Sorry about that Nilsen. Yes, I know you were using Windows 7. However, I always got the impression that Windows 7 beta runs off the Operating System already installed on your computer system not as a stand-alone Operating System. If this is true, it would seem plausible that Vista is playing with you in the background.
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The difference is that Vista runs more processes and tries to play, "big brother." If you have certain services enabled, too many processes, or the game is installed in, "Program Files." The game will be unplayable. Read some of the threads in this forum for tweaking Vista, then get back to us with how many processes are running. I'm certain we can get the game working for you.
I'm not so certain. At least I know mine isn't an isolated problem.
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Do you have an OS installer disk around the house? If so, see if a clean install of Windows clears up the issue(s) (Don't forget to back up anything you need).
Since your problem is still unresolved, it sounds as if something got messed up in the root of the Operating System which is really messing up the system performance.
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Sorry about that Nilsen. Yes, I know you were using Windows 7. However, I always got the impression that Windows 7 beta runs off the Operating System already installed on your computer system not as a stand-alone Operating System. If this is true, it would seem plausible that Vista is playing with you in the background.
Vista is not installed or running in the background on any of them. They are fresh installs.
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Have you tried bringing hardware acceleration for your sound chipset down a notch?
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Have you tried bringing hardware acceleration for your sound chipset down a notch?
Ive been given that advice actually, but i cant find the thing lol
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Bring up the DxDiag. Afterward press the, "Sound" tab. Now reduce the acceleration one notch. Afterward press OK and see if that helps.
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Ill do that but i noticed something that may be strange when i was in the game just now..
When i took a simple screenshot from tower the framerates went from 60 something to 30 as i took it. If i remember correctly i never sufferd a framerate drop when taking pictures on my other lappy.
Then i look at what the crtl + i showed me..
No place to uploade picture so ill just type it here:
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Frame Rate 67
VM INTERNAL DM SNAP
VidMem 1604.1M Used 4.1M Cnt=0
SystemMem 2048.0M Used 0.0M Tex = 0.0M
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Sounds abit odd when my ati mobility 3450 card has 256mb dedicated mem and my system has 4gb even i can only see 3 due to the system beeing 32bit
-edit- no sliders at all in my dxdiag sound
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My old laptop shows that it uses 700something mb system memory while the new one shows 0 used.
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Okay.... Let's try another way. (Using an XP here) Head into the control panel, afterward click, "Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices." Now click on, "Sounds and Audio Devices." Afterward head to, "Audio" (Should be a tab at the top) and locate the, "Sound Playback" section. Inside that section there should be a, "Volume" and, "Advanced" button. Press the, "Advanced Button." Afterward browse through the tabs for any sliders regarding Hardware, Sound, or Sample Acceleration/Conversion Quality.
If there's no, "Sound Playback" device listed in the drop down menu for, "Default Device," that could be your problem. No sound device is being picked up by the system.
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I think the soundcard may be an issue. I managed to force the lappy to accept the vista drivers that belongs to the machine for the ati card. Im sure that was good but didnt help none. I tried again to do the same with the vista soundcard drivers and for a minute it was successful but when i rebooted the default win7 drivers was back and the control panel that i had prior to the reboot also were gone again. I also have one unkown device visible in system. Its an intel something. When i googled it it had something to do with in-out system on the Intel chipset.
I got nothing to do for a couple of days so what im gonna do is reinstall the lappy to factory settings with *ugh* vista home premium and note all the systems it has when everything is installed perfectly. Ill then take another stab at win7 and look at the differences in "devices" to see if i can nail down differences in hardware and memory allocations.
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The unknown intel device sounds like the sound chipset. If it is listed as an unknown device it would suggest the drivers are corrupt or not compatible with the operating system. Go ahead and give that OS reinstall a shot. If it works with Vista this might just be a simple driver incompatibility issue which will be resolved in a year or two when Win 7 drivers are a must for the chipset.
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The unknown intel device sounds like the sound chipset. If it is listed as an unknown device it would suggest the drivers are corrupt or not compatible with the operating system. Go ahead and give that OS reinstall a shot. If it works with Vista this might just be a simple driver incompatibility issue which will be resolved in a year or two when Win 7 drivers are a must for the chipset.
Yeah thats what im thinking. I wish i wasnt so trigger happy and that I had noted the name of the device. It was pretty specific but i cant remember im afraid. Maybe I was just lucky that even the now dated beta version of win7 had all the drivers needed for this older HP lappy. I hope they make a compatible driver for my new machine though because until this issue i must say that win7 is their best os yet. It acutally runs faster and gives me better framerates in AH than it did with XP.
Thx for the help so far. Bookmarking the thread for when i retry win7 after doing the Vista thing. :aok
Do you work for Microsoft or something? You seem to know your stuff
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No. I just watch Skuzzy from the shadows.
...Yes, Skuzzy is a redhead. ;)
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LOL :rofl
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No. I just watch Skuzzy from the shadows.
...Yes, Skuzzy is a redhead. ;)
are you like that cable guy that follows the verizon guy around? :D
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No, that's Skuzzy. I don't have red hair. :D
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Vista is in and all updated but i have the same issues except for the missing device that turned out to be a keyboard/touchpad thing.
I still get the same thing when i get in the game. When looking at the framerates it sais that i use 0mb system memory and that cant be right. On my old lappy it used around 700. Could this be the issue?
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Probably due to power management or sound. Power management is very agressive in the new laptops where parts of the silicon in the video and CPU simply shut down when they are not needed, then power up when they are needed. Helps to extended battery life and in most Windows applications you will not see the difference.
I am not sure if there is any way around it. Vista/Windows 7 is not going to help matters either as they promote the on/off thing as well.
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ugh so im pretty much screwed then :cry
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I am not sure Nilsen. What you are expressing seems to be consistent with other new laptop complaints I am hearing. Hard to know how much of this issue is Vista/Windows 7 related. If you could get XP, the issue may go away.
Could also be agressive thermal control management.
Until I get my hands on one of these things, i am left to speculate as to what is causing the stutters in these laptops.
Have you tried running the game in "Windows 98/ME" compatibility mode?
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I tried the XP compatibility mode and that didnt help none. Tried with and without windows firewall and have set all systems to maximum performance when not running on battery. I have also disabled the powersaver feature thing on my network cards.
The thing that i find so odd is what i said about the game not using any memory at all when i look using ctrl+I . Sais i have 2gig even if i have 4 (3usable) but none is assigned to the game. If i sit still long enough in the tower just watching the netstats it levels fairly good, but when i move to another base it goes bananas. When i hit that ping button thing on logon to the game my old lappy shows it flat with no lost packs but the new one shows no lost packs but rough seas *harr*
This is what ctrl+I sais:
Frame Rate 67
VM INTERNAL DM SNAP
VidMem 1604.1M Used 4.1M Cnt=0
SystemMem 2048.0M Used 0.0M Tex = 0.0M
-edit- by rough seas i mean slightly up and down on the second line from the bottom between 0ms and 1000ms.
-edit2- Without doing any changes i suddenly have started using system memory now. Didnt do that for the past 3 days. *scratches head*
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Is "Super Fetch" and "Ready Boost" services running on the computer? "Super Fetch" is the service that will fill all available RAM with things Microsoft thinks you might want to run at some point in time. Typically, inside of 5 minutes after a computer is turned on, the system will have less than 10KB (yes KB) free RAM, regardless of how much RAM the computer has.
Disable that stupid service, along with ReadyBoost. If those services are not disabled, you will never be able to get the computer to run the game smoothly.
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aha!
I had disabled readyboost, but not superfetch.... running over to dumb dell box to try that..
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That did not help and now it doesnt use any system memory again.. :o :uhoh
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Don't worry about the system memory Nilsen. Windows applications are limited to 2GB, you said that's all the game sees so there's no problem there. Although the game suggests that it's not using any system memory, it is. The readback is just faulty (happens to a lot of players).
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Rgr that. I guess if it didnt use any memory it wouldnt run very well at all :D
:confused: <---- me when i run out of memory
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Did you reboot after you disabled it?
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I gave up.
Logged in and sat in tower while looking at the netstats and whatnot and watching the guys having fun.
Decided to jump in a field gun to do some shooting at friendly guys that happened to fly by.
Noticed they were not warping...
hm...
Hit netstats again
flat... as a pancake :confused:
The variance in delay is flat, but the one on bottom here spikes abit downwards but that has always happend.
Did you call someone at Dell Skuzzy? Did you make them send me some files that worked? Are you God? Is Denholm Jesus? or is this just one of those unexplainable things that just happens? Should I go buy a lottery ticket?
So many questions.
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...Should I go buy a lottery ticket?
Yes...
...For me.
Oh. For Skuzzy too. :D *Rubs bump on head* :rolleyes:
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lmao :D
Oh and yes Skuzzy.. i rebooted after kicking superfetch out the window. I rebooted after every minor and major change i did just to be on the safe side when trying to find the problem.
I dont dare log into the game anymore now just incase the pancake wont come back :noid