Meet reqs, but performance issues

[Taconic]

The box states that the minimum requirements are:
Dual core P4 3.0GHz
1024MB of RAM
GF 7800 256MB

My system meets these requirements.
2 3.06GHz Xeons (not dual core, 2 actual CPUs)
2048MB RAM
GF 7800GS 256MB (latest drivers)
WinXP

Even with everything in the graphics options set to "very low," AA/AF/PP off, and view distance set to 600m, the game is basically unplayable. I can't complete the first campaign mission because my framerate is < 10FPS and the LODs of the foliage and buildings default to something so low beyond 100m that I really can't even tell what I'm looking at in the environment.

I meet the minimum requirements, so I was hoping that I could at least play the game even if it wouldn't look so good. Unfortunately, that isn't the case. Basically, I'm just wondering if I'm missing anything. Switches, perhaps a way to force higher LODs (ala OFP--I can live with 10FPS if I'm able to tell the difference between a house and a rock in the distance,) or anything else I may have overlooked.

Thanks.

[TheMantis]

1. do you have the latest 1.02.5... patch installed?

2. open up: yourname\documents\arma2\arma2.cfg with notepad.

change HDRprecision to 32
is your localVRAM =268435456 ?

thats what it should be for a 256 mb card. Mine was restricted.

to change it put that number in place of whats there,

make note of what your nonlocalvram is.
click save.

then right click on the arma2.cfg file and click properties and then check read only. (This will make it so that arma2 can't mod it on its own, which is what it did for me.)

3. In video options in the game I suggest
Postproccessing off
AA off
ANI off
Shadows off
terrain normal/low
textures normal
objects normal
then play around from there.

4. You can also try and open up the other file in that folder (yourname) and change the scenecomplexity basically this just makes an overall adjustment to the settings.

I hope this helps some.

EDIT: Is that an AGP 7800GS? if it is what is your agp aperture size in bios?

[i am haji]

theres in unaccessable setting thats killing the fps, i bet its the shaders

[Taconic]

1. do you have the latest 1.02.5... patch installed?

Yup.

is your localVRAM =268435456 ?

No, it was 250167296, but now it's changed.

make note of what your nonlocalvram is.

257949695

3. In video options in the game I suggest
Postproccessing off
AA off
ANI off
Shadows off
terrain normal/low
textures normal
objects normal
then play around from there.

All of that has already been done, but I don't even have the option for "normal" textures. The only one that appears from me (aside from the first time I ran the game) is "very low."

4. You can also try and open up the other file in that folder (yourname) and change the scenecomplexity basically this just makes an overall adjustment to the settings.

Good tip. It's currently 300000. Is this LOD-related?

EDIT: Is that an AGP 7800GS? if it is what is your agp aperture size in bios?

Yeah, it's AGP, which is why I don't just get a newer card.
Aperture is 256MB.



I will try all this and report. Thanks for the input.

---------- Post added at 05:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:50 PM ----------

OK. I can report that something in that list of changes (still haven't messed with scenecomplexity) definitely helped my framerate. Before I would get mid to high teens on the Utes airfield with no other units placed--it's now 25.

However, I still have no options beyond "low" in textures. The first time a "normal" setting appeared, but I haven't seen it since. I figure there has to be a way to force it in the config, but I haven't found it.

Nighttime performance is also still pretty bad. I figure this has to be because of lighting effects. Is there any way to change the lighting precision anywhere? That might make the first campaign mission playable for me.

[TheMantis]

@ Taconic

I'm glad that some of those changes worked.

Did you change the HDRprecision?

other things to try..

1. Since you have 2gb ram try and set your nonlocalvram setting to 1. the same as your localvram, and 2. exactly twice your vram. and compare. You can google MB to bytes coverter. 512MB should give you 536870912 bytes.

2. Set scenecomplexity to 150000 or 100000. and compare to what you get with 300000. Make sure that your set the file to read only.

3. Make sure that in Nvidia control panel for arma2 is set to what you want, including forcing vsync off.
Threaded optimization on
AA off
ANI off
Maximum prerendered frames 8
Single display performance mode

I hope this helps some more.