Huge difference in graphic quality

[Frankster]

Just fiddling with my settings as usual. Decided to do another calibration of the monitor.

Whoa, major increase in quality. I suspect some of my colors were making it tad darker in game, now everything is so much more bright and fresh, the colors really "pop" now, and I visualize opponents better.

I think possibly the monitor might have drifted "color wise" as the monitor broke in, or something along those lines.

Anyhow, calibration is something people should be looking at, if not done so already.

[TomzzZ_]

My Acer XF240H is a nice panel. It says it's TN, I think it's VA, it's nearly IPS quality.

I turn the backlight all the way down and can increase the brightness through the custom full rgb color temperature controls. I found it out on coincidence.

This screen is buggy though, it has some weird syncing issues. Freesync/gsync is off and the screen performs best at 120hz, not 144hz. It seems to not happen frequently. I have to change the game mode to normal mode, or turn the screen off and on to get it to resync.

It's been a pain in the ass, but I haven't found a screen I wanted yet. Looking into ultrawide or going back to 4k.

[Percepticon]

All monitors drift over time and are worth recalibrating now and then. Some need it more than others. My Dell up2716d is much better in this regard than the zowie xl2720 that I use for quake.

I found a utility for my zowie on blur busters that really helped. It allowed control over the strobe light, and the result is a much brighter and more punchy image when motion blur reduction is enabled - and if your monitor has decent motion blur reduction you'll want that enabled.

I'm not sure which models work with the utility or if it's only for Benq Zowie screens, but blurbusters is a good site anyway, with some nice tests and is worth checking out.

https://www.blurbusters.com/

@Toms - modern TN's are pretty good colour wise and even viewing angles are much better than they used to be - its only at the 90% grey and above or the 10% grey and below that an IPS will shine - the rest of the range is spot on with good TN's. Its almost never a problem in games and its only really an issue if your some sort of designer.

[TomzzZ_]

Originally posted by Percepticon:

All monitors drift over time and are worth recalibrating now and then. Some need it more than others. My Dell up2716d is much better in this regard than the zowie xl2720 that I use for quake.

I found a utility for my zowie on blur busters that really helped. It allowed control over the strobe light, and the result is a much brighter and more punchy image when motion blur reduction is enabled - and if your monitor has decent motion blur reduction you'll want that enabled.

I'm not sure which models work with the utility or if it's only for Benq Zowie screens, but blurbusters is a good site anyway, with some nice tests and is worth checking out.

https://www.blurbusters.com/

@Toms - modern TN's are pretty good colour wise and even viewing angles are much better than they used to be - its only at the 90% grey and above or the 10% grey and below that an IPS will shine - the rest of the range is spot on with good TN's. Its almost never a problem in games and its only really an issue if your some sort of designer.

Freesync/Gsync seems to eliminate a lot of motion blur as well if you get it working right. I had a VG279 screen with ULMB and it worked excellently. The bl strobing was built into the screen. That was a great screen but I returned it because I thought my old screen was broke, this was when I had got the 5700xt and it was the problem. Then I hooked up my old XF240H and it was broke too, it's got a weird syncing issue I haven't figured out. - Other than it may keep trying to turn adaptive sync back on - when I have off in nvidia. There are no options for the syncing in the screens options, I think it's built in on auto.



lol

[Frankster]

Originally posted by Toms:

Originally posted by Percepticon:

All monitors drift over time and are worth recalibrating now and then. Some need it more than others. My Dell up2716d is much better in this regard than the zowie xl2720 that I use for quake.

I found a utility for my zowie on blur busters that really helped. It allowed control over the strobe light, and the result is a much brighter and more punchy image when motion blur reduction is enabled - and if your monitor has decent motion blur reduction you'll want that enabled.

I'm not sure which models work with the utility or if it's only for Benq Zowie screens, but blurbusters is a good site anyway, with some nice tests and is worth checking out.

https://www.blurbusters.com/

@Toms - modern TN's are pretty good colour wise and even viewing angles are much better than they used to be - its only at the 90% grey and above or the 10% grey and below that an IPS will shine - the rest of the range is spot on with good TN's. Its almost never a problem in games and its only really an issue if your some sort of designer.

Freesync/Gsync seems to eliminate a lot of motion blur as well if you get it working right. I had a VG279 screen with ULMB and it worked excellently. The bl strobing was built into the screen. That was a great screen but I returned it because I thought my old screen was broke, this was when I had got the 5700xt and it was the problem. Then I hooked up my old XF240H and it was broke too, it's got a weird syncing issue I haven't figured out. - Other than it may keep trying to turn adaptive sync back on - when I have off in nvidia. There are no options for the syncing in the screens options, I think it's built in on auto.



lol

I'm surprised your not using adaptive sync, it's the magic setting for me that makes everything run like butter. Although, I do get a bit more fluctuation in framerates, I don't get any of the tearing or stuttering issues with other settings.

I suspect ,onitors have better results with slightly different settings, depending on the model and the video power loading it.

[TomzzZ_]

Originally posted by Frankster:

Originally posted by Toms:

Freesync/Gsync seems to eliminate a lot of motion blur as well if you get it working right. I had a VG279 screen with ULMB and it worked excellently. The bl strobing was built into the screen. That was a great screen but I returned it because I thought my old screen was broke, this was when I had got the 5700xt and it was the problem. Then I hooked up my old XF240H and it was broke too, it's got a weird syncing issue I haven't figured out. - Other than it may keep trying to turn adaptive sync back on - when I have off in nvidia. There are no options for the syncing in the screens options, I think it's built in on auto.



lol

I'm surprised your not using adaptive sync, it's the magic setting for me that makes everything run like butter. Although, I do get a bit more fluctuation in framerates, I don't get any of the tearing or stuttering issues with other settings.

I suspect ,onitors have better results with slightly different settings, depending on the model and the video power loading it.

I'll give gsync another shot, it doesn't seem to work with some games? Idk, a lot of people said to turn it off. I have had good and bad experiences with it. regular vsync latency is usually not that bad if it's integrated properly. I've only seen a few games have latency or problems with it. The triple buffering basically eliminates most of the latency if the game uses it or opengl or w/e.

[Frankster]

https://youtu.be/_35si5TV7iE

Adjust some settings, and re-calibrated the monitor. Getting consistent 250-290+fps keeping it above the 240 hz refresh rate. Enabled "ultra low motion blur in both Application State, and Request State. Details on medium and everything else on low, FXAA enabled as well, per your suggestion I believe. I can't really tell if it's sharper with that, but It don't affect performance. It seems to help along the along edges of objects some, during movement.

Running nice without any stutter that I can notice. No tearing, no, no micro stutter, it just plays so much better than anything I've played in the past.

Seems to be helping my game some too, but I still suck.

[♡]

If people are interested, then I think I'll do a n00b guide on the community page. I gather it can be tedious having information overload when you just want things to just work, so I'll just do it in a fashion that quickly tells you what's important & what to change for competitive play.

I only really actually play Quake these days, not much else (though not so much anymore), but I play at a pretty high level. Anyway, everyone's an 'expert', so here's some screenshots for credibility

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/921424127587502530/0E7914C70CEF40112F756D6DCA3EA0A1000F6213/

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/951838019825661472/C3326486FEC90FE2A468C9441F369312894437F2/

You can Youtube the two players behind me in second place. They're both pro tournament players that play for money.

Here's me in random public

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/778489832976532772/0117900C69A2620E0326DA6DB60E0DCB28E66C28/

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/760474756242846341/43543058B29C256F260323B29C8086D6D2EE6B9F/

Those were taken on my old rig, in which even getting 120fps was an issue, so I'm aware of most of the tricks to squeeze out performance & try & get it as smooth as possible.

[Frankster]

Originally posted by DYsukker:

How about an indepth explanation for the rest of us on how to dedicate the 3+ cores of ur cpu to QC and the apps that allocate more gpu resources to the game. What exactly are u calibrating on ur monitor settings that make QC run smoooother minimal tears etc. ?

The calibration doesn't make it run smoother (ie. stutter), but helps with correcting color and brightness, which isn't going to be noticeable on anyone else's monitor, except mine. Just mentioning that "calibration" every now and then. For what it's worth.

I don't understand your reference about the 3+ cores to the CPU, but enabling "fast sync" and "adaptive" in Vsync appears to have mitigated any tearing and stutter, for me. I had to "enable" "adaptive sync" within my monitor settings also and I also set "response time" to low. (I don't much understand this setting, isn't low always better?) There are also several different styles of "gaming" config's in "picture mode" which help some with picture quality. Enabling the "low motion blur" seems to help some also.

Originally posted by Ang:

Your FOV seems so low lol. Does your monitor support ULMB @ 240hz? Most don't.

To conclude; I just don't think you gain as much of an advantage with super high frame rates in this game, as you lose by having a blurry picture quality like this. The trade-off isn't really worth it imo.

My FOV might appear low to you probably since I'm using 1080p (some are using 1440p) resolution@75% scale. My monitor is 1080p@240hz, and yes, it supports it. Show's it running both within my monitor settings and also within my windows 10 settings. I can "feel" the input difference when I set it back to around 144hz or lower.

I fully agree it's a trade off, although I'm still not sure which is better for me for me. For now, the lower resolution seems to be working best (with high frame rates) But, I'm very old school, so this has always been the traditional philosophy from where I stand. Perhaps, there are better methods, of late.

That's why I post this information, so that it can be debated, and to try and learn from it.

Pretty impressive stats for sure. A guide would be great. Especially for the newer players here. Focus on configuration and setup would be a plus. I think many newer players might get stuck trying to figure out a workable binding scenario, as everyone learns different, and it's hard to change settings your already used to using.

Sometimes, you've got to break old habits, and try newer ones, to make any progress.

[♡]

asdfasdf

[Frankster]

Originally posted by Ang:

I mentioned it, because my monitor can be set to 240hz within the Nvidia control panel/Windows & also have ULMB on, but it's either one or the other for me, even though it can show both as being on.

I tried it more with Quake Live (switching between the two), & ultimately decided 240hz was nicer, personally. But as I said, with QC there's some kind of jank. Perhaps there's just some kind of inherent bottleneck due to memory bandwidth/textures, etc, that'll never make it as smooth as QL & its relatively tiny memory footprint. I guess it's more fashionable to just blame the QC engine though lol

Yea, I"m not for sure if the ULMB is indeed working or not, I don't even know if it's actually supported with this monitor, (Monoprice apparently repurposes LG and Apple A- B+ reject screens) I just checked those boxes, just in case. To be honest, if it's doing anything, it's very minor at most. I don't have much problems with blur to be honest. When I try the test over at blurbusters, everything appears as it should be. No blur that I can notice, or very minor at worst. (My eyes are more blurry than my screen)

Watching 60hz Quake on 21 inch CRT for 5+ hrs a day for almost 20 years has diminished my eyesight for sure. These 240hz screens are simply amazing, but came too late for people like me.

Here is a video of blur busters test, it says it's running 240hz, although the video is a bit choppy because it's recorded @ 60 fps I believe.
https://youtu.be/oRjq_mVoKlY

Back to the subject of binds, I suspect your RG, Zoom, Gauntlet, HMG and RL are very Quick buttons in your config (judging by your stats), how are they positioned in relation to your movement binds?

[Frankster]

I certainly agree this is not the format. But people like you have invaluable information to share. I encourage you to do just that. The best guide I've found, IMO, is this one..
(Thanks for sharing this with me, Justin "Effortless" Yergeau )
https://www.mikemartin.co/gaming_guides/quake_champions

Although, it does have some redundant and information that's become somewhat dated and obsolete. However, there's still plenty of excellent, relevant information.

A guide on improving game play, and techniques, is what's sorely needed. (IMO) It's almost completely non existent, for improving tactics, and competing at higher levels. (ie. what type of exercise to practice, methods for developing better skills)

[Frankster]

Disabling High Precision Event Timer HPET

Tap on the Windows-key, enter cmd, right-click cmd.exe in the results listing and select to run the command prompt with administrative privileges.
To disable HPET in Windows run the command bcdedit /deletevalue useplatformclock


What about threaded optimization, should that be "on"? (I'm assuming this is for dual threaded cpu's).

[Frankster]

When I choose "high priority" in task manager, it always goes back to "normal" when the program is reopened again, is there any way to make this setting stick? I've tried in Admin mode and nothing seems work.

Originally posted by Ang:

Another cheap option is to find a £30 budget air cooler for your CPU. This will stop any throttling under sustained loads & you can OC more. CPUs like the

Yea, I've got water cooling on my i5@5gh, seems to help quite a bit. My CPU gets above 65C even under full load.

[Frankster]

Originally posted by Batman:

the best setup for gsync is vsync on in nvcp, off ingame and you need to cap your fps at -3 your maximum refresh rate so if 144hz=141fps

I've got AMD free-sync with Nvidia GTX1070 8GB powering it. The fast sync and adaptive settings are working fine for me. I guess I got lucky with this monitor, because all of them don't seem accepting those settings, from what I hear.

There is a confirmed list of monitors that accept this config, I believe, but I can't find mine on it, so again, I just lucked out. But this is a fairly obscure monitor, I don't believe there are many of them.

I put a great deal of reading and research before building this rig (as always) and made it a short time before the ryzen processors come out on the market. For the price (about $900), I did very well.

Intel i5 9600+@5GH
MSI GeForce GTX 1070 ARMOR OC 8GB
G.SKILL Ripjaws 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3200@3400mhz
Crucial MX500 1TB SSD
Gigabyte Gaming M z390
Corsair Hydro Series™ H110i GT 280mm Extreme Liquid CPU Cooler
Corsair Gaming K70 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard — CHERRY® MX Fast
Logitech G pro mouse
3D Speed Edition Razer Goliathus XXL
Monoprice Zero-G Gaming Monitor - 25 Inch AMDFreeSync, 240Hz, 1ms

[Frankster]

Originally posted by Batman:

fast sync actually increase input lag quite a bit, unless your fps x5 your refresh rate ( good luck with that on qc ), try what i just said above ( it will eliminate tearing and microstutter without adding extra latency )

check blurbuster.com ( gsync guide ) for more details

Yea, I average around 260-290 fps, well above my 240hz refresh rate.
My latency appears to be around 3-4 ms.(in game)

https://youtu.be/_35si5TV7iE