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Portal 2 on new iMac - Windows vs OS X

barefeats said:
I posted my full test results for Windows 7 vs OS X gaming using both a Mac Pro 6-core w/ 5870 and 2011 iMac w/ 6970:
http://barefeats.com/imac11e.html

(includes Portal 2, L4D2, Starcraft 2, and WoW results at 2560x1440)
Click to expand...
Nice!

Since these numbers are measured without AA:
Does WoW/OSX @ 2560x1440 + 4xAA + "high" preset + vsync ON run smooth or does it stutter from time to time (e.g. in cities).

I don't need a benchmark value (doesn't matter because of VSync), I just want to know if it runs smooth at those settings (e.g. no fps-drops).
 
sth said:
Nice!

Since these numbers are measured without AA:
Does WoW/OSX @ 2560x1440 + 4xAA + "high" preset + vsync ON run smooth or does it stutter from time to time (e.g. in cities).

I don't need a benchmark value (doesn't matter because of VSync), I just want to know if it runs smooth at those settings (e.g. no fps-drops).
Click to expand...

?? It says that AA is set at 4x for the benchmarks...
 
Here's what I'm curious about: why does vsync cause my FPS in games to drop from 60 to 30 temporarily, then go back to 60? This is especially noticeable in World of Warcraft, where the FPS will be at a constant 60, but if I get on a flying mount and fly straight up, and turn my camera a certain way, it drops to 29.9 every single time. I haven't installed Boot Camp yet to see if the issue is prevalent there as well, but I'm curious what's causing this.
 
Dyne said:
Here's what I'm curious about: why does vsync cause my FPS in games to drop from 60 to 30 temporarily, then go back to 60? This is especially noticeable in World of Warcraft, where the FPS will be at a constant 60, but if I get on a flying mount and fly straight up, and turn my camera a certain way, it drops to 29.9 every single time. I haven't installed Boot Camp yet to see if the issue is prevalent there as well, but I'm curious what's causing this.
Click to expand...

Because triple buffered vsync is not currently in OS X. Only double buffered vsync. Hopefully Lion addresses this with the new OpenGL implementation.
 
aiqw9182 said:
Because triple buffered vsync is not currently in OS X. Only double buffered vsync. Hopefully Lion addresses this with the new OpenGL implementation.
Click to expand...

So if I were to play the game in Windows 7, this issue would be eliminated completely?
 
JordanNZ said:
?? It says that AA is set at 4x for the benchmarks...
Click to expand...
Indeed it does. But the corrected numbers on the previous page are saying 1xMSAA with almost exactly the same fps numbers under OSX. Can that be?


barefeats said:
When I ran WoW under Windows 7 on the 2011 iMac 3.4GHz,
I forgot to disable vsync. That made OS X look faster.
Here are the corrected numbers.

Windows 7 at 2560x1440 = 86 fps
OS X at 2560x1440 = 75 fps
Windows is 14.7% faster

Windows 7 at 1920x1080 = 120 fps
OS X at 1920x1080 = 107 fps
Windows is 12.1% faster

Settings were 1x MSAA and "High" preset.
Click to expand...
 
aiqw9182 said:
You can either play in Windows with triple buffered vsync or turn off vsync while playing under OS X.
Click to expand...

I'm currently playing games with vsync off, but screen tearing is not the most fun thing in the world. :)
 
sth said:
Indeed it does. But the corrected numbers on the previous page are saying 1xMSAA with almost exactly the same fps numbers under OSX. Can that be?
Click to expand...


It can.. Since the last Portal2 patch (which fixed an AA bug), turning on AA barely dents FPS.
World of warcraft is the only odd one out here... I have a feeling the 'good' preset may include ultra water effects. Which turns AA back down to 1x because of a driver bug.
 
Going to bump this one, since I got Portal 2 on the Summer Steam Sale.

Having some issues with screen tearing on Portal 2. Im saying screen tearing, its just not smooth. The framerate seems high enough. I've tried different settings and the framerate doesnt seem to be impacted. I've tried all the different v-sync settings (double, tripple and none). Have tested on nigh and med. settigs, native resolution on 27", with 2xAA. Does anybody have any tips? On i7 3.4, 1 GB ram on 6970.

edit: Ok, I tweaked the settings, and turned on the FPS counter. With overall medium settings and native resolution I'm managing stable 59 fps. Thats with triple v-sync option abled. So overall good.
 
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