I think I am not lucky with new SMP v3.0

[arb65912]

Hello,

I think I am in that no luck group that is unable to run SMP v3.0 with my settings.

Here is the brief description.

I was running previous version using Saab 340 A , FF B772 and other complex X-Plane pay ware aircraft and my frame rates were never below 25-27 which as you agree it is on a low side but still flyable with pleasure.

Unfortunately , new SMP is not making my computer setup happy.

I was getting frame rates in a range 10-15.

I uninstalled SMP , all went back to normal frame rate wise.

I installed it again and it started with frame rate (Saab 340 A) of 25+ but within minutes frame rate dropped again to a 10+ range.

I do not try to start a long discussion here about where the problem is but maybe someone can put me in a right direction for what can I possibly do to fix that behavior.

One thing that bothers me the most is that with version 2 I had no such problems but version 3 makes my SMP unusable.

I would love to see that beautiful skies again but I am totally stack here.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

Cheers, AJ

P.S. You can see my PC specs , more than enough. Nothing has been changed but SMP version and that is repeatable.

[sundog]

Try hitting the reset button in our configuration screen.

 

In particular, the upper bound on the cloud draw distance setting has been increased in SMP 3. So the same slider setting in SMP3 will results in many more clouds than it did in SMP2. Even though SMP3's clouds are more efficient, that only gets you so far if you're almost out of resources.

 

If trouble continues, post your log.txt so we can see what's going on.

[arb65912]

Thank you for fast reply Frank.

 

No luck.

Installed SMP again.

KLGA, Saab340A.

Cleared all clouds in XP weather window.

Hit reset in SMP and applied changes.

 

FPS outside 19-20   Inside 13-14

 

Uninstalled SMP v3.0

Restarted XP.

 

Same conditions.

FPS outside   30-31   Inside 30-33

 

I will install SMP again tomorrow and attach the log file.

 

Thanks again.

[Cameron]

What does the SMP 3 settings window show for your memory usage?

[arb65912]

Hi Cameron,

 

I will post it tomorrow. Bed time now. Thanks for help.

[arb65912]

Hello Frank and Cameron,

 

Well, things improved a lot.

What I did , I changed the number of objects from tons to default in XP Rendering Settings .

 

I was able to fly Saab 340A with moderate SMP cloud settings at  around 20 FPS which is still acceptable for me.

 

I still would like to know where I am at as far as my GPU and PC power abilities.

 

Please take a look at below SSs and let me know.

I am computer literate but unfortunately all these settings related and linked as I believe they are are not my strong asset.

 

Please let me know what do you think.

 

Thank you for a great program ,love these clouds.

 

Cheers, AJ

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 25, 2015 by arb65912

[sundog]

You don't have much memory left on your video card, which is probably the main issue. Your card is actually a good one and has plenty of memory, but you're using it all up somehow. Usually custom scenery is the culprit. Do you have HD mesh or something installed, or high-resolution photoscenery? If so, those are probably consuming most of it.

[arb65912]

Thank you Frank.

Believe it or not, I expected what you said above.

 

I do not HD mesh installed but I am using 3 monitors so maybe that affects things.

 

I might build a new system after I get my tax return..   with more RAM and better GPU but I still wonder what "eats up" my GPU memory so bad.

 

Thank you for a quick reply, love these new clouds.

[Cameron]

Almost undoubtedly 3 monitors is the issue here. That's major cause for fill rate issues! You'd probably be shocked as a fun test to see how much better your performance is on just one monitor (even if this is not practical for you).

[sundog]

Agreed, driving 3 monitors will eat GPU memory and fill rate alive. Your video card is a good one, but I do think you'd benefit from something even better. A 6GB GTX 980Ti is pricey, but it might make sense for you.

[arb65912]

Gentlemen,

 

Thank you very much for your input.

I can not believe I was so dumb not considering the fact that my GPU drives 3 monitors with different content.

Should have thionk about it ....

 

I have switched to two moniytors and the difference is about 10+ FPS which as we know makes day to night difference .

 

Thank you very much for your invaluable comments, now my GPU is totally happy.

 

Beside changing to 2 monitors, I also experiences something really nightmarrish and I wante dto share it here.

 

You are not going to believe it... Listen to my brief story.

I was about to quit the whole thing, chop the computer off and play chess instead of fighting the simulator ...lol.lol.
The chess part is a joke but I really had enough.

All of the sudden I get the message xp is totally out of memory.
My frame rate is around 60.... Wtf?

As much as I hated to do it I started uninstalling and deleting plugins, sky max pro, maxfx, my favorite Saab 340a ... And few sceneries.

No luck, the same error ... I was cursing bad, Carolina was trying to calm me down, but it did not work very well.

Then, I was thinking ... Maybe that sloppy throttle I bought few years ago is doing something wrong.....?
I unplugged that sob.... All works, tested several times, perfect.
Reinstalled major plugins and Saab.

Frame rates are in 40+ range.

 

Lesson: if naything goes out of whack in X-Plane all of the sudden, unplug your joystick, throttle quadrants etc. as THAT might be the cause of X-Plane going bananas instead of the software related issuses.

 

Cheers, AJ

[Cameron]

Lesson: if naything goes out of whack in X-Plane all of the sudden, unplug your joystick, throttle quadrants etc. as THAT might be the cause of X-Plane going bananas instead of the software related issuses.

 

That's really bizarre. What brand?

[arb65912]

Hi Cameron,

 

It was GoFlight one, in my opinion way overpriced but anyway ...

 

I bought the one that supposed to be mounted for a home made cockpit as you can see below.

 

Since the knobs were very sloppy while pushing/pulling them I made a Teflon bearings to make movements smoother and more lined up.

The back end of the pushers are connected to linear resistors but ends of the pushers are not supported making the movements not axial.

 

Then I moved the quadrant while changing setup and my Teflon bearings finally broke ( I did not feel like dsign a real proper support in the back for sliding push rods).

 

To make the story short, throttle push rod was so misaligned that I used a electrical tie to keep it together.

 

I did not investigate the problem but I assume that impulses coming from the unit must create a problem.

Before I switched the throttle quadrant to my old Saitek one, I have experienced all kind of weird things in X-Plane, axes were messed up, throttle was gone for different aircraft etc., etc.

 

It seems that all works now as advertised.    See another SS with Saab 340 A about half an hour after take off.

 

Thank you again for pointing me in the right direction.