Help please... I surrender! Long time AMD Radeon user gives up and returns to Nvidia

[KPnutskgwanchos]

Hi folks....so I have a Sapphire NITRO radeon RX5800 and having upgraded to a 27 inch 2k screen it's not holding its own and the freesync doesn't seem to work . Also I get the distinct impression that Nvidia cards are better supported generally and seem to have less issues in IL2. So I'm asking for recommendations please for best bang for the buck Nvidia card in the UK that will give me at least 40 FPS and working freesync without breaking the bank (I usually buy second hand or last year's higher specs)... Any advice much appreciated. 

[RedKestrel]

1 hour ago, KPnutskgwanchos said:

Hi folks....so I have a Sapphire NITRO radeon RX5800 and having upgraded to a 27 inch 2k screen it's not holding its own and the freesync doesn't seem to work . Also I get the distinct impression that Nvidia cards are better supported generally and seem to have less issues in IL2. So I'm asking for recommendations please for best bang for the buck Nvidia card in the UK that will give me at least 40 FPS and working freesync without breaking the bank (I usually buy second hand or last year's higher specs)... Any advice much appreciated. 

I think you may have the card model wrong. RX5800 has not yet been released yet, I think. 

 

First things first - what are your overall PC specs? Include processor, RAM, OS it may be that your card is not the culprit. Make sure Windows power settings are set to performance, not power saving.

 

Give us the graphics settings you're using in Il-2. Get into your AMD driver settings and if you can post a screen shot of that. Sometimes there are strange setting in the driver that impact performance heavily. 

For your monitor, tell us the model and specs. Some models have only a very narrow range of framerates where freesync works, and after that Vsync has to kick in. Otherwise the frame rate gets chopped in half when it goes out of the range.

By 2K I assume you mean 1440p - although there are a few other resolutions that fall under the 2K label. 

[KPnutskgwanchos]

26 minutes ago, RedKestrel said:

I think you may have the card model wrong. RX5800 has not yet been released yet, I think. 

 

First things first - what are your overall PC specs? Include processor, RAM, OS it may be that your card is not the culprit. Make sure Windows power settings are set to performance, not power saving.

 

Give us the graphics settings you're using in Il-2. Get into your AMD driver settings and if you can post a screen shot of that. Sometimes there are strange setting in the driver that impact performance heavily. 

For your monitor, tell us the model and specs. Some models have only a very narrow range of framerates where freesync works, and after that Vsync has to kick in. Otherwise the frame rate gets chopped in half when it goes out of the range.

By 2K I assume you mean 1440p - although there are a few other resolutions that fall under the 2K label. 

Sure thanks RedKestrel   ... yes you are correct its an RX580! .... I will pull together all you are asking for over the weekend for your analysis ... cheers! 

[RedKestrel]

33 minutes ago, KPnutskgwanchos said:

Sure thanks RedKestrel   ... yes you are correct its an RX580! .... I will pull together all you are asking for over the weekend for your analysis ... cheers! 

If it is an RX580 that card is probably not suitable for 1440p/2K gaming. Its a bit underpowered. So likely the card is not achieving the kind of frame rate that would put you into the G-sync range.

I use a GTX 1660 Super and run the game at 1440p at mid-range settings, and get a pretty consistent 60FPS. The 1660 Super is about 300 dollars CDN more or less, no idea what it would cost in the UK. Used it might be cheaper. You won't be able to max out your game settings but in my experience it runs just fine, and the higher resolution is a better tradeoff than higher graphics settings.

[KPnutskgwanchos]

Thanks RedKestrel

 

The  GTX 1660 Super is a reasonable price in the UK but Im not sure it offers much more power over the RX580 (see comparison at bottom) .... So maybe I have setting just too high in game? ... Having said that if I didnt have to use Vsync in game to stop the tearing I get very reasonable frame rates (normally over 50) but still the freesync doesn't seem to cut in      

 

Here are my full specs ...

 

 

Windows 10 PC

 

Screen iiyama prolite pl2792qsu-b1

 

Processor i5-3470 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 3501 Mhz, 4 Core(s)

8Gb Ram

Mother board Z68AP-D3

 

 

 

 

 

[RedKestrel]

1 hour ago, KPnutskgwanchos said:

Thanks RedKestrel

 

The  GTX 1660 Super is a reasonable price in the UK but Im not sure it offers much more power over the RX580 (see comparison at bottom) .... So maybe I have setting just too high in game? ... Having said that if I didnt have to use Vsync in game to stop the tearing I get very reasonable frame rates (normally over 50) but still the freesync doesn't seem to cut in      

 

Here are my full specs ...

 

 

Windows 10 PC

 

Screen iiyama prolite pl2792qsu-b1

 

Processor i5-3470 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 3501 Mhz, 4 Core(s)

8Gb Ram

Mother board Z68AP-D3

 

 

 

 

 

I have Vsync enabled in my Nvidia settings so that if the framerate drops out of the Freesync range, Vsync takes over to handle screen tearing. I think you do need to set a target FPS for everything to work properly. Freesync should work within its range (looks like 48-60), and only trigger Vsync when it drops out of that range, so it should not affect performance that way. I would set the frame limiter in-game at 60FPS which is the top end of your freesync range. I'm not an expert on the various sync technologies, but I do have FreeSync working with my 1660 and monitor. For my card it has to be plugged into a DisplayPort port on the back of the card to work, but I think that is a Nvidia thing.

When I took a quick look at benchmarks I saw closer to a 50% improvement score overall for the 1660 super vs the RX580, but that is a more comprehensive breakdown of various aspects.  Be advised that the Super is about the same in performance as the TI but its more about the faster memory rather than raw power. The 1660 is considered a marginal card for 1440 I think but its significantly cheaper than the next step up.

My settings are almost identical to yours, but I have the graphic pre-set set to High instead of Ultra, and Canopy reflections set to Normal. I also have a target FPS set to 60, since 75  isn't available and my monitor has a 50-75 hz freesync rate. I rarely go below 60 FPS, and get no screen tearing. 

Rather than buying a new card I would turn down your preset to high, make those other tweaks I mentioned, and see if that gives you the extra  headroom you need. Nvidia and AMD are either launching new cards or close to it at the moment so best to let the dust settle and either pick up used cards on the cheap from people upgrading, or indulge in one of the new ones yourself and be a little bit future proof. 

[Livai]

11 hours ago, KPnutskgwanchos said:

I have a Sapphire NITRO radeon RX5800 and having upgraded to a 27 inch 2k screen it's not holding its own and the freesync doesn't seem to work .

 

I am pretty sure that is more your new 27 inch 2k screen. Is this a VA - Panel? - Avoid VA-Panel and freesync on Radeon cards = a direct road to problems! BTW you can increase the freesync range when you use that tool "Custom Resolution Utility".  Never ever use Vsync together with freesync = input-lags

[KPnutskgwanchos]

Thanks RedKestrel... Makes alot on sence... I will try the settings you suggest and see if I can seg the freesync working. I am pretty tempted by the card you have... It's at the lowest price its ever been at the moment (258 dollars)... Also I have the idea that the game may look better with an Nvidea card as there always seems to be lingering graphics issues for AMD owners! 

[KPnutskgwanchos]

7 hours ago, Livai said:

 

I am pretty sure that is more your new 27 inch 2k screen. Is this a VA - Panel? - Avoid VA-Panel and freesync on Radeon cards = a direct road to problems! BTW you can increase the freesync range when you use that tool "Custom Resolution Utility".  Never ever use Vsync together with freesync = input-lags

Hi Livai ... the iiyama prolite pl2792qsu-b1 has an IPS panel luckily ... I will try your advice re Custom Resolution Utility ... sounds very interesting thanks   

[RedKestrel]

12 hours ago, KPnutskgwanchos said:

Thanks RedKestrel... Makes alot on sence... I will try the settings you suggest and see if I can seg the freesync working. I am pretty tempted by the card you have... It's at the lowest price its ever been at the moment (258 dollars)... Also I have the idea that the game may look better with an Nvidea card as there always seems to be lingering graphics issues for AMD owners! 

Well, I have no complaints with it. Perhaps not the most 'future proof' card but the price was right and for me it was a significant upgrade.

[LLv34_Flanker]

S! 

 

Small thing, nVidia does not use FreeSync but either AdaptiveSync or G-Sync. So nVidia is pretty much useless on a pure FreeSync display. 

 

From what I read vsync is not recommended to be on with FreeSync. That is how I used it without issues. When I had the G-Sync monitor hooked to my 5700XT the Adaptive Vsync without issues. 

Edited October 4, 2020 by LLv34_Flanker

[RedKestrel]

On 10/4/2020 at 3:54 AM, LLv34_Flanker said:

S! 

 

Small thing, nVidia does not use FreeSync but either AdaptiveSync or G-Sync. So nVidia is pretty much useless on a pure FreeSync display. 

 

From what I read vsync is not recommended to be on with FreeSync. That is how I used it without issues. When I had the G-Sync monitor hooked to my 5700XT the Adaptive Vsync without issues. 

Newer Nvidia cards will work with FreeSync displays - I think basically the 1000 series and up. My display is a Freesync display and works with my 1660. They just don't guarantee that it will work as well as with a G-sync display. But G-sync displays are a lot more expensive than equivalent FreeSync displays, or at least they were when I was shopping.

When I tried it with Vsync completely off, when my FPS fell out of the FreeSync range (50-75 FPS) I would get screen tearing. Turning Vsync on in the Nvidia driver settings, not the game, (as suggested by someone on the forum) stopped that from happening on the odd time my system goes below 50 FPS, but adaptive sync does the heavy lifting.

[RedKestrel]

Coming back to this thread, I was on Combat Box last night and I will say that on the bodenplatte map with heavy cloud and over dense forest, My FPS was getting down into the 40 range when looking at the cloud (this is with clouds on High). Most online maps stick to scattered clouds which have a much lower effect on FPS. 

Just as a data point if you are set on getting the new card, it does have its limitations in 1440p. It sort of comes in at the bottom of the 1440p suitable cards, but it is quite a bit cheaper than the cards that will crush that kind of resolution though. As I mentioned earlier, if you have the money and the time, you may be best to wait until AMD puts up their offering to counter Nvidia's 3000 series, or at least until the 3000s become more widely available - even if you don't want to go with them, there might be a really good gently used market of people selling their RTX2060s and 2070s, which would be an improvement over the 1660.

[KPnutskgwanchos]

Thanks RedKestrel.... I've been messing around with sync settings as advised and I cannot get the screen to appear to be using freesync at all. Then I tried a setting called Radeon Enhanced Sync in the Radeon control centre and with just this setting enabled I have no tearing and frame rates steady at 60 or more in most situations.  I can tell there is a little bit of "fudging" going on momentarily where the worst of the tearing was (turning head left to right in cockpit) but its a thousand times less noticeable than the original tearing and with seemingly no FPS loss. So that will see me ok for now and yes as per your advice I will be hanging on for prices to drop as the new cards come out. At least now I can feel the wait won't be as painful as it has been regards the screen tearing! 

[56RAF_Stickz]

I have a amd580, I dont think there is any way you will get freesync to operate reasonably at that resolution. I use 1920x1080 resolution and high settings, and get frame rates around 50-60 fairly consistent, its a generation back re modern cards. I updated my monitor which improved my picture (previously a tv monitor) immensely but I cant run its full native resolution (similar to yours) and keep frame rateup, need a 5700 or similar I would guess to run higher res (in my case a whole pc and government to stop nicking 30% of my pension) from amd

Edited October 8, 2020 by 56RAF_Stickz

[jollyjack]

It's always a battle with a budget when you decide what to upgrade first. If you can afford the time for saving up a bit:

I found a complete specially put together upgrade kit at a reliable internet store which was fairly priced; they probably were overstocked LoL.

Had even an i79700K and a 2080ti included. The offer only lasted a few days, then all was sold out.

You need  a reliable storet, as i was allowed to exchange the watercooler for one with longer hoses for my casing.

 

If i has bought all parts separately it would have been 30% more at least.

Edited October 9, 2020 by jollyjack

[forktailedflyer7]

Wait for 3070/3060 or the new AMD cards.  Its only a month or so.  Il-2 is also very CPU intensive, should only really be an issue with VR though.

Edited October 9, 2020 by dprumph33

[kestrel79]

Long time AMD video card owner who also recently switched to Nvidia. I went from your same card a Sapphire RX580 to a Gigabyte 2060RTX and am very pleased with the performance. I can run IL2 maxed out graphics in 1080p resolution on 1 screen  and average graphic settings in VR.