Cant Explain FPS Drop on High-End Rig

[Tingle1337]

Hi, I've been spending some time modding Skyrim now and have finally gotten the game how I like it. But I noticed my FPS drops down when looking at heavy load scenes - that should not really be that heavy load for my rig.

 

So when looking at this scene, my FPS drops down to 45-46:

http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/927/screenshot17647.png

 

This is my rig;

- Intel Core i7-3820 @ 3.60 GHz

- 16GB DDR3-1866 MHz RAM

- 2x Geforce GTX 660 Ti 2048MB SLI

 

So trying to find my bottleneck I looked through my load info when looking at that scene:

- CPU at ~45% load @ 36°C

- RAM at 4.45GB / 16GB capacity

- GPU at ~62% load @ 62°C

- VRAM at 1502MB / 2048MB

 

So I am not near my resource cap.

 

As to the games settings and "intense" mods. I'm running Skyrim at 1920x1080 over a HDMI cable to a 1080p TV on Default-Ultra settings with no Anti-Aliasing. The two heavy load mods I'm running is ENB v0.123 with Ambient Occlusion, Detailed Shadow, Sun Rays and Reflection, and RCRN v36 HDR Classic. So maybe I configured something oddly wrong to cause such a FPS drop or not let my system handle it?

 

Thanks for any ideas and suggestions.

[Tingle1337]

Ok, just removed the heavy load mods and I still have the issue - not only there but other places.

Also tried using clean .ini files with only these active: bTreesReceiveShadows=1 bDrawLandShadows=1 bShadowsOnGrass=1 and bFloatPointRenderTarget=1- Still pushes my FPS down.

Edited December 2, 2012 by Tingle1337

[steve40]

45fps in that Riverwood location is very good :rolleyes:

[acidzebra]

Ya honestly, 45 fps there with ENB & RCRN + other mods + land, trees, grass shadows?

 

>first world problems.jpg

Edited December 2, 2012 by acidzebra

[TheGreenLion]

Hah, 45 fps...I'm lucky if I get 30 with my poor old comp at the best of times running on medium. I get up to 60 when I stand looking straight at a wall though! :biggrin:

 

 

I wouldn't trouble yourself over that, your system is handling it very well. If you dropped into the single digits that might be a problem.

[Xescream]

Well, he shouldn't have issues with two 660ti's. He isn't even using DoF and it's clear from the screen he isn't using crazy AA. From my experience the gpu usage at 62% usually means skyrim is not using your second GPU. I am running a single EVGA 680 right now so I can't offer direct support. I would suggest bringing up nvidia inspector and manually setting sli gpu selection for the skyrim profile. Also, in enbseries.ini, try setting VideoAdapterIndex=2. This will make sure enb series knows to use both gpu's as it has been known not to on occasion.

[dayglo98]

What is your full list of mods ?

[wclancey]

I found that using the official high-def texture packs in conjunction with other texture replacements like SMIM, Skyrim HD 2k and WATER would cause a lot of stuttering and lag. Disabling the official texture packs and only running the others fixed my issue. Game runs like a dream with everything maxed out.

[dayglo98]

I found that using the official high-def texture packs in conjunction with other texture replacements like SMIM, Skyrim HD 2k and WATER would cause a lot of stuttering and lag. Disabling the official texture packs and only running the others fixed my issue. Game runs like a dream with everything maxed out.

 

There is always the optimized bethesda DLC mod, thats what I use, alongside WATER and SMIM. VRAM usage pretty high (like 3.3Gb) but still working great on a 2Gb Radeon HD7850. between 55-60 fps outside and in towns, 1920x1080 8xEQ AA /everything AA related maxxed out in Catalyst Control Center + 8xAF.

 

To the original poster, did you look at the Skyrim tweak guide at..tweakguides.com ? You should start there. Also maybe try lowering shadows and decals to super low as these are cpu dependant (just to see if it makes any difference).

 

Are you using ugridstoload=7 or 9 ?

[Tingle1337]

My VRAM isn't full, do I so there is no need to used the optimized pack, or is there? And I'm using FXAA from RCRN v36. So I have turned off AA and FXAA on the game. I dont see any jagged edges ingame. Just alpha things dont seem AA'ed like trees and plants. So far I have managed to get stable 60 fps and never going under by using various tweak guides, setting my Shadows to High instead of Ultra - other than that everything is on ultra setting. And yes, SLI is active - I get far less with it off.

 

I am using ugridstoload at 5. Using 7 killed some fps, sadly because I would have loved to use it on 7.

 

So basicly using ugrids 5 and High shadows fixed my fps issues. Not sure why tho, my CPU and GPU are far from at there limits. Odd because I can run Crysis 2 on Extreme settings with the extra Maldo HD mod (if its called that) and get stable 60fps.

 

Btw is there any way to sharpen up the tree's and plant's?

Edited December 3, 2012 by Tingle1337