Running trainz
- Thread starter presflo
- Start date
If, like me, you have a computer that only accepts AGP slotted cards than I fear we are stuck. Newer motherboards use a faster range.:'(
Newegg still offers some good AGP video cards. You might find something more powerful than what you have now.
Mick Berg.
Thanks for reminder. Present one (purchased in China): 7600GS-256.
1st Oct........has Ernie relented
Kennilworth
Active member
Hi
A word of warning about upgrading with a new AGP video card. I went down this route with my old computer and saw no benefit whatsoever. Presumably the rest of the system was a bigger bottleneck than the video card. I had to build a new system to get any improvement. Previously I had upped the RAM from 1Gb to 4Gb which did show a considerable improvement but the further upgrade to the video card (from an ATI X800 to a HD3650 card) was a complete waste of money.
Regards
Brian
A word of warning about upgrading with a new AGP video card. I went down this route with my old computer and saw no benefit whatsoever. Presumably the rest of the system was a bigger bottleneck than the video card. I had to build a new system to get any improvement. Previously I had upped the RAM from 1Gb to 4Gb which did show a considerable improvement but the further upgrade to the video card (from an ATI X800 to a HD3650 card) was a complete waste of money.
Regards
Brian
your x800, like my x850, wasn't that much of an improvement over the HD 3650 -- you'd have to get into the 4000 series to see twice as much gain. but, also, a pci kind of motherboard will help too. my FPS for harlem line jumped -- for the section i'd focused on -- just as the f-unit leaves the station -- from 11fps to 40-60 -- all settings maxed -- with a 4890. i'm saving for the 5000 series ati, and that might up fps to around 90-120. what this means is not only a more cinematic experience with trainz, but also no stutter.
for sure, though, one of the newer motherboards and cpu's will build a stronger foundation for the video card... a lot of the work in trainz is mathematically computed with the cpu? but, loading and holding the textures and transforming triangles and stuff -- that's still video card stuff, no?
.....
A word of warning about upgrading with a new AGP video card. I went down this route with my old computer and saw no benefit whatsoever. Presumably the rest of the system was a bigger bottleneck than the video card. I had to build a new system to get any improvement. Previously I had upped the RAM from 1Gb to 4Gb which did show a considerable improvement but the further upgrade to the video card (from an ATI X800 to a HD3650 card) was a complete waste of money.
Regards
Brian[/quote]
for sure, though, one of the newer motherboards and cpu's will build a stronger foundation for the video card... a lot of the work in trainz is mathematically computed with the cpu? but, loading and holding the textures and transforming triangles and stuff -- that's still video card stuff, no?
.....
A word of warning about upgrading with a new AGP video card. I went down this route with my old computer and saw no benefit whatsoever. Presumably the rest of the system was a bigger bottleneck than the video card. I had to build a new system to get any improvement. Previously I had upped the RAM from 1Gb to 4Gb which did show a considerable improvement but the further upgrade to the video card (from an ATI X800 to a HD3650 card) was a complete waste of money.
Regards
Brian[/quote]
Kennilworth
Active member
Hi again
According to Toms Hardware there should have been about a 50% improvement in performance with the HD 3650 over the X800 card. I didn't see any at all. Surely even allowing for different builds of machine etc if the video card was the main factor in performance I should have seen some improvement. I could have perhaps looked for a better chip on e-bay for the socket 939 motherboard that I was using but I decided that rather than risk more money on what was a 4 year old machine I would put the money towards building a new one. This has proved to be a wise move as the new machine runs trainz with a smoothness that has transformed the game for me.
My last post was made to point out that improving the video card isn't always the answer as many components contribute to performance.
Regards
Brian
According to Toms Hardware there should have been about a 50% improvement in performance with the HD 3650 over the X800 card. I didn't see any at all. Surely even allowing for different builds of machine etc if the video card was the main factor in performance I should have seen some improvement. I could have perhaps looked for a better chip on e-bay for the socket 939 motherboard that I was using but I decided that rather than risk more money on what was a 4 year old machine I would put the money towards building a new one. This has proved to be a wise move as the new machine runs trainz with a smoothness that has transformed the game for me.
My last post was made to point out that improving the video card isn't always the answer as many components contribute to performance.
Regards
Brian
FootplatePhil
Trainz Tragic since 2002
If the jerking is the result of poor frame rates, then as others have said above, your probably looking at a graphics card upgrade (at the least). If your frame rate is reasonable, yet the results are still jerky, you could try adding the following line to your trainzoptions.txt file...
-vsync=1
With this option Trainz will attempt to synchronise frame rates with your monitors refresh rate. In my experience this results in a slower frame rate, but smoother view.
Phil
-vsync=1
With this option Trainz will attempt to synchronise frame rates with your monitors refresh rate. In my experience this results in a slower frame rate, but smoother view.
Phil
Last edited: