Battle Of Normandy VR Performance

[Iflewforthefuhre]

I came back to discover my original thread was closed by a moderator ( https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/80192-battle-of-normany-review-experience-so-far/#comment-1211721 ) as I haven't had time to update it yet with more info and what I have found to be stable settings which might help some people facing similar issues (I note in the IL2 Great Battles FB group there are others complaining of the same issues I originally posted about, regardless of hardware vendor) 

I have managed to get the game to be a playable experience now with the following graphics settings for VR using Oculus Rift S with Pixel Density set at 1.33. I am also using Open Composite and VR performance kit with the default settings. It is not perfect, but it's the most consistent performance I have been able to achieve so far in the game. Other things that may or may not help you is I have updated to Windows 11 22H2 (which seemed to optimize CPU performance in other games I play as well, most notably the new Spiderman remaster which saw significant drops in CPU usage) and also undervolted my 5800X3D which helps it hold higher boost clocks. 

Note how the settings are wildly different to what others of similar or better configurations are claiming both positively and negatively (as in, it's higher quality in some areas than others with equal or better hardware and lower in others) All in all, given the amount of people who are experiencing the same thing and the inconsistency in settings versus performance I don't think this is an AMD specific issue but rather something to do with the game engine. But that is my opinion. 

Maybe some others can try and replicate my settings and see if it positively or negatively improves their experience, particularly if they are using AMD hardware. 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Iflewforthefuhre

[kestrel79]

Rift S user here too, nice settings! I think my PC is behind yours, and I don't have Open Composite either. So I have some work to do as I hear those help.

[1Sascha]

On 10/7/2022 at 4:21 AM, Iflewforthefuhre said:

I have managed to get the game to be a playable experience now with the following graphics settings for VR using Oculus Rift S with Pixel Density set at 1.33.

With this sort of SS/PD, shouldn't you disable FXAA in-game? From what I understand, having both SS and any AA enabled will result in some significant FPS-hits. Might also want to reduce your resolution there... AFAIK this is "just" what will be rendered on your monitor, but it's still a lot of additional pixels that need to be rendered for no real reason.

 

I was brought down to earth a bit when I re-started flying in VR a few days ago with my upgraded setup (2070 Super to 3070, I'm also on a Rift-S) and the very first missions in both the Stalingrad and Normandy careers brought my PC to its knees ... instead of the steady 80 FPS I'm getting in quick missions with 16 planes around, it went down to the mid 40s and became quite stuttery. Going to have to hunt for new settings I suppose or perhaps go back to my monitor and TrackIR until I can afford another GPU upgrade (and a new VR-set, lol).

It kinda sucks flying non-VR after you've experienced the VR-sensation, but performance and looks really are an issue. Plus I find ground attack, low level stuff like tank-hunting almost impossible to do with the blurry pic I'm getting - and with no way of locking my head in on my gunsight like I can in non-VR. I'm left-eye dominant and am having a hard time finding a good position behind the Revi in the German planes. ?

 

 

 

S.

Edited October 11, 2022 by 1Sascha

[354thFG_Drewm3i-VR]

1 hour ago, 1Sascha said:

With this sort of SS/PD, shouldn't you disable FXAA in-game? From what I understand, having both SS and any AA enabled will result in some significant FPS-hits. Might also want to reduce your resolution there... AFAIK this is "just" what will be rendered on your monitor, but it's still a lot of additional pixels that need to be rendered for no real reason.

 

I was brought down to earth a bit when I re-started flying in VR a few days ago with my upgraded setup (2070 Super to 3070, I'm also on a Rift-S) and the very first missions in both the Stalingrad and Normandy careers brought my PC to its knees ... instead of the steady 80 FPS I'm getting in quick missions with 16 planes around, it went down to the mid 40s and became quite stuttery. Going to have to hunt for new settings I suppose or perhaps go back to my monitor and TrackIR until I can afford another GPU upgrade (and a new VR-set, lol).

It kinda sucks flying non-VR after you've experienced the VR-sensation, but performance and looks really are an issue. Plus I find ground attack, low level stuff like tank-hunting almost impossible to do with the blurry pic I'm getting - and with no way of locking my head in on my gunsight like I can in non-VR. I'm left-eye dominant and am having a hard time finding a good position behind the Revi in the German planes. ?

 

 

 

S.

What cpu?

[kraut1]

2 hours ago, 1Sascha said:

With this sort of SS/PD, shouldn't you disable FXAA in-game? From what I understand, having both SS and any AA enabled will result in some significant FPS-hits. Might also want to reduce your resolution there... AFAIK this is "just" what will be rendered on your monitor, but it's still a lot of additional pixels that need to be rendered for no real reason.

 

I was brought down to earth a bit when I re-started flying in VR a few days ago with my upgraded setup (2070 Super to 3070, I'm also on a Rift-S) and the very first missions in both the Stalingrad and Normandy careers brought my PC to its knees ... instead of the steady 80 FPS I'm getting in quick missions with 16 planes around, it went down to the mid 40s and became quite stuttery. Going to have to hunt for new settings I suppose or perhaps go back to my monitor and TrackIR until I can afford another GPU upgrade (and a new VR-set, lol).

It kinda sucks flying non-VR after you've experienced the VR-sensation, but performance and looks really are an issue. Plus I find ground attack, low level stuff like tank-hunting almost impossible to do with the blurry pic I'm getting - and with no way of locking my head in on my gunsight like I can in non-VR. I'm left-eye dominant and am having a hard time finding a good position behind the Revi in the German planes. ?

 

 

 

S.

Hi,

-I have a Rift-S too and a 2.5 years old mid-class system.

-I have to use in general missions with low plane numbers.

For the new Normandie Map:

-with steam VR I have to use Low / Balanced Graphic Settings combined with Distant Landscape Detail 2x and FXAA 2x

-since some days I am using OpenComposite again and it has a real positive effect on fps., High Graphic / and Cloud settings seems to be working now (but most other graphic options only standard), For OpenComposite I had to use Landscape Filter Sharp instead of Blurred.

-If you have major issues with missions with to much planes you could try Vanders Easys Mission Generator. With this tool you can create fast interesting missions the plane numbers as

-With OpenComposite the ugly ghosting effect when planes are passing is reduced too.

 

 

 

Microsoft Windows 10 HomeVersion 10.0.19043 Build 19043, AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8-Core Processor, 3593 MHz, 8 Kern(e), 16 logische(r) Prozessor(en),
Installierter physischer Speicher (RAM) 15,9 GB,
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8GB
Oculus Rift-S Firmware 2.2.0 Serial No.1WMGH5208S9494
Steam VR Beta General Video Settings: Render Resolution Automatic
Steam VR Beta Home Render Res. 100% = 2016x2172
Nvidia driver version 516.40
Nvidia Coontrol Panel Settings:
Global Settings: default, Program Settings: not defined
Monitor Screen Res. 1920x1080

[1Sascha]

7 hours ago, drewm3i-VR said:

What cpu?

i5 12600K, slightly OCed. 16 GB of DDR4. CPU is definitely not overly impressed with IL-2 VR - if usage and power consumption are to be believed. I do use HWMonitor from time to time to see how my PC holds up in VR.

 

System runs IL-2 non-VR at 1440p with high to ultra setting at 165 FPS (my monitor's max refresh-rate) all day long. Same in Doom Eternal in 1440p with most stuff set to Nightmare or higher.

 

I think I may have gone a bit overboard with IL-2's VR settings after I upgraded the GPU - although I hadn't flown for a month, so I hadn't used the latest version of the game until a few days ago.

 

I've started to reduce stuff like general detail level from Ultra down to High, viewing distance from 130km to 70km, turned off FXAA, etc. Only thing I've still set high is Steam VR's general SS (set to 1.5x of the Rift's vertical resolution, resulting in 1.22 PD in-game) - and I think clouds which are set to high. All that makes things a bit less choppy, but still not as smooth as it used to be with the older iteration of the game, my old settings and my 2070 Super installed.

 

 

 

S.

Edited October 11, 2022 by 1Sascha

[Iflewforthefuhre]

20 hours ago, 1Sascha said:

With this sort of SS/PD, shouldn't you disable FXAA in-game? From what I understand, having both SS and any AA enabled will result in some significant FPS-hits. Might also want to reduce your resolution there... AFAIK this is "just" what will be rendered on your monitor, but it's still a lot of additional pixels that need to be rendered for no real reason.

 

I was brought down to earth a bit when I re-started flying in VR a few days ago with my upgraded setup (2070 Super to 3070, I'm also on a Rift-S) and the very first missions in both the Stalingrad and Normandy careers brought my PC to its knees ... instead of the steady 80 FPS I'm getting in quick missions with 16 planes around, it went down to the mid 40s and became quite stuttery. Going to have to hunt for new settings I suppose or perhaps go back to my monitor and TrackIR until I can afford another GPU upgrade (and a new VR-set, lol).

It kinda sucks flying non-VR after you've experienced the VR-sensation, but performance and looks really are an issue. Plus I find ground attack, low level stuff like tank-hunting almost impossible to do with the blurry pic I'm getting - and with no way of locking my head in on my gunsight like I can in non-VR. I'm left-eye dominant and am having a hard time finding a good position behind the Revi in the German planes. ?

 

 

 

S.

FXAA is very non resource intensive so it's a matter of personal choice really whether or not to leave it on. MSAA however is extremely resource heavy even at only 2X. I experimented with the resolution and it seems to make no appreciable difference in my performance so I just leave it at native resolution cause it looks nicer. 

What CPU do you have? It sounds like you are CPU bound. But then again, I have upgraded my CPU twice and it hasn't made that much of a difference, when there are a lot of units on screen it causes irrational dips in performance. Definitely try open composite though it helps. You should theoretically be able to outperform me with a 3070 but it will also depend on what CPU you have. 

[354thFG_Drewm3i-VR]

15 hours ago, 1Sascha said:

i5 12600K, slightly OCed. 16 GB of DDR4. CPU is definitely not overly impressed with IL-2 VR - if usage and power consumption are to be believed. I do use HWMonitor from time to time to see how my PC holds up in VR.

 

System runs IL-2 non-VR at 1440p with high to ultra setting at 165 FPS (my monitor's max refresh-rate) all day long. Same in Doom Eternal in 1440p with most stuff set to Nightmare or higher.

 

I think I may have gone a bit overboard with IL-2's VR settings after I upgraded the GPU - although I hadn't flown for a month, so I hadn't used the latest version of the game until a few days ago.

 

I've started to reduce stuff like general detail level from Ultra down to High, viewing distance from 130km to 70km, turned off FXAA, etc. Only thing I've still set high is Steam VR's general SS (set to 1.5x of the Rift's vertical resolution, resulting in 1.22 PD in-game) - and I think clouds which are set to high. All that makes things a bit less choppy, but still not as smooth as it used to be with the older iteration of the game, my old settings and my 2070 Super installed.

 

 

 

S.

That cpu is very good, but unfortunately il-2 isn't able to leverage all of its cores, hence the slow downs and time dilation.

[Iflewforthefuhre]

20 hours ago, kraut1 said:

Hi,

-I have a Rift-S too and a 2.5 years old mid-class system.

-I have to use in general missions with low plane numbers.

For the new Normandie Map:

-with steam VR I have to use Low / Balanced Graphic Settings combined with Distant Landscape Detail 2x and FXAA 2x

-since some days I am using OpenComposite again and it has a real positive effect on fps., High Graphic / and Cloud settings seems to be working now (but most other graphic options only standard), For OpenComposite I had to use Landscape Filter Sharp instead of Blurred.

-If you have major issues with missions with to much planes you could try Vanders Easys Mission Generator. With this tool you can create fast interesting missions the plane numbers as

-With OpenComposite the ugly ghosting effect when planes are passing is reduced too.

 

 

 

Microsoft Windows 10 HomeVersion 10.0.19043 Build 19043, AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8-Core Processor, 3593 MHz, 8 Kern(e), 16 logische(r) Prozessor(en),
Installierter physischer Speicher (RAM) 15,9 GB,
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8GB
Oculus Rift-S Firmware 2.2.0 Serial No.1WMGH5208S9494
Steam VR Beta General Video Settings: Render Resolution Automatic
Steam VR Beta Home Render Res. 100% = 2016x2172
Nvidia driver version 516.40
Nvidia Coontrol Panel Settings:
Global Settings: default, Program Settings: not defined
Monitor Screen Res. 1920x1080

The 3700X is holding you back the most, I know because I had a 3800X and then went to 5800X and now 5800X3D

[d2k77]

I've been mulling over getting an upgrade myself at the end of the year because of the performance of IL2. 5800x with a 3070 and I have noticed the game hits the vram on my gfx card pretty hard when there's loads of AI in there air. 

[kraut1]

On 10/7/2022 at 4:21 AM, Iflewforthefuhre said:

 with Pixel Density set at 1.33. I am also using Open Composite and VR performance kit with the default settings.

 

Thanks for your post, I have 2 questions:

-in which program / menu is the Pixel Density at 1.33 to be set? (when using OpenComposite)

(I know only the steam VR Resolution Setttings, that are not relevant for OpenComposite)

-what is the "VR performance kit"?

[Iflewforthefuhre]

1 hour ago, kraut1 said:

Thanks for your post, I have 2 questions:

-in which program / menu is the Pixel Density at 1.33 to be set? (when using OpenComposite)

(I know only the steam VR Resolution Setttings, that are not relevant for OpenComposite)

-what is the "VR performance kit"?

If you have a Rift S like I do then you will find the pixel density setting in Oculus Debug Tool. You have to set it before you launch the game every time or it won't apply. 

VR Performance kit is here:

https://github.com/fholger/vrperfkit

Basically you can use upscaling techniques to squeeze a bit of extra performance out of your system 

[kraut1]

36 minutes ago, Iflewforthefuhre said:

 pixel density setting in Oculus Debug Tool. You have to set it before you launch the game every time or it won't apply. 
 

Thanks very much for your answers.

1 Last question: will the changed Pixel Density be used / considered in Steam VR too?

[dburne]

1 hour ago, kraut1 said:

Thanks very much for your answers.

1 Last question: will the changed Pixel Density be used / considered in Steam VR too?

 

You should use one or the other (Steam VR or Oculus) for Pixel Density not both. I would suggest Oculus.

Edited October 12, 2022 by dburne

[Customizer171]

9 hours ago, Iflewforthefuhre said:

The 3700X is holding you back the most, I know because I had a 3800X and then went to 5800X and now 5800X3D

 

Would you say it it's worth it to upgrade from 5800X to the 5800X3D, if only playing IL-2 in VR ?

[Iflewforthefuhre]

On 10/13/2022 at 3:50 AM, Customizer171 said:

 

Would you say it it's worth it to upgrade from 5800X to the 5800X3D, if only playing IL-2 in VR ?

No, but if you play MSFS and DCS as well you will get more benefit out of it. The 5800X is probably faster when overclocked due to the higher core clock frequency. This game doesn't appear to benefit from the cache like other simulators do. It appears to like higher clocks and more IPC than anything else. 

[Customizer171]

58 minutes ago, Iflewforthefuhre said:

No, but if you play MSFS and DCS as well you will get more benefit out of it. The 5800X is probably faster when overclocked due to the higher core clock frequency. This game doesn't appear to benefit from the cache like other simulators do. It appears to like higher clocks and more IPC than anything else. 

I only play IL-2 right now but in the future I hope to get into both DCS and MSFS.

However, when that happens maybe it will be better to get a complete new setup.

[Iflewforthefuhre]

1 hour ago, Customizer171 said:

I only play IL-2 right now but in the future I hope to get into both DCS and MSFS.

However, when that happens maybe it will be better to get a complete new setup.

I would just drop in a 5700X or 5600X as they are getting cheaper now and you will get a big jump over your current CPU

[Audgisil]

just a quick note about performance. I about a day before the 5.002 update came out I updated to Windows 11 22H2 (from 21H2). VR Performance in IL-2 took a major hit. I tried all kinds of things to no great avail. As soon as I rolled back to 21H2, all the performance issues disappeared and Il-2 runs great again.

[Customizer171]

17 hours ago, Iflewforthefuhre said:

I would just drop in a 5700X or 5600X as they are getting cheaper now and you will get a big jump over your current CPU

 

I'm having a 5800X right now so I don't think that would benefit me.

It's strange but there is always a thought in the back of my mind what can be done to increase the performance?

Why is it so hard to just be happy with the hardware we got and enjoy the game??? ?

 

Happy flying!

[firdimigdi]

1 hour ago, Customizer171 said:

Why is it so hard to just be happy with the hardware we got and enjoy the game??? ?

 

Oh I'm extremely happy with my hardware, but unfortunately there are issues in IL-2 preventing the SP experience from being pleasant.

[1Sascha]

15 hours ago, Audgisil said:

just a quick note about performance. I about a day before the 5.002 update came out I updated to Windows 11 22H2 (from 21H2). VR Performance in IL-2 took a major hit. I tried all kinds of things to no great avail. As soon as I rolled back to 21H2, all the performance issues disappeared and Il-2 runs great again.

Interesting. I'm on 22H2 myself and only re-started flying in VR since that update came out (summer was just too hot to be wearing a VR-set ? ). So maybe I'm not imagining things here WRT VR performance.

 

I also noticed that slow-downs seem to be largely caused by the number of planes I have around me in a mission. Hopped around different careers and the one that ran totally flawlessly was the Rheinland one where it was one of those boring free hunt missions - this time with only eight friendly 109s and a random group of four or six P-47s - plus I was pretty much at relatively high altitude for most of the mission (4 - 6k). I did check via CTRL F2 and there really were no other Allied or Axis flights around at any given time. 

 

When I went into my Kuban career (whose busy missions ran flawlessly before my summer break), the game threw a He-111 escort mission at me. Eight or so 111s, six 109s in my flight plus Adler-flight with at least four more 109s and a crap-ton of VVS stuff. At least three Soviet fighters flights of four each and one of three IL-2s randomly flying around attacking ground targets. I wouldn't call it unplayable but, at times, it got pretty choppy with slowdowns into the mid 40s. Don't recall these sorts of problems with busy missions in this career before and I initially put the blame on myself for upping SS by too much (PD according to OTT from 1.1 to 1.22). But perhaps there are other factors at play here, too, since I've now reduced PD back to 1.1 and reduced in-game settings by quite a bit but still no joy.

 

The weird thing is that I don't seem to be either CPU- or GPU-bottlenecked. Usage, power consumption and temps on both the CPU and GPU are totally fine and nowhere near where I'd start to worry about their health (or about my 550W PSU ? ). In fact, they're so unspectacular, that I'm starting to think I'm not getting max performance out of my rig for some reason. Even some other non-VR titles give my system a better "workout" than IL-2 VR.

 

 

S.

[Customizer171]

4 hours ago, Firdimigdi said:

 

Oh I'm extremely happy with my hardware, but unfortunately there are issues in IL-2 preventing the SP experience from being pleasant.

 

Good to know.

I only do SP myself but with that information maybe I can rest my urge to upgrade my hardware, hahaha.

I still enjoy the game very much but there is room for improvements.