SH3/8800GTX/Resolution/Fraps..troubleshooting

[locher25]

This is what I have found out so far. If anybody has same problem or knows how to fix it, then this post is for you.

The no cd crack and the resolution d3d9 fix work great.
Game looks awesome on my Asus 22" LCD Monitor at 1680x1050 with GFX settings all on max
But, will CTD if you run FRAPS (no matter what resolution setting you choose in the d3d9 file)
would love to know if a different video capture program would work

Trying to make a movie using FRAPS
don't bother with the 1024x800 setting in SH3 data/cfg/main folder.....nothing will change
--have not noticed any improvement by changing to 1024x768 or cranking up to a higher resolution
I'm stuck with Fraps recording at 1024x768 (Fraps version 2.9.3)

Trying to squeeze the best graphics out of the 1024x768 resolution (for movie purposes)
Running a single Nvidia Geforce 8800GTX at max 3d settings (Manage 3d settings/Global settings/all maxed out)
everything looks OK except under Antialiasing - Mode...."Override any application setting" causes bright white particles on horizon (when on the bridge)
--if I can find a way to disable the AA within the game (if it has it somewhere), then it might fix this...possibly
--will try cntrl+p and shift+pg up/dn.....not expecting any changes
have tried the following drivers but haven't noticed any improvement: 163.75, 169.04, 169.09

.....since this is all on a brand new build, i'm thinking about installing ntune, tweaking the 8800gtx, then uninstalling ntune (your thoughts?)

rig specs:

Win XP Home SP2, with all the updates
Intel Quad core Q6600 stock 2.4 Ghz not overclocked
EVGA 680i sli ready motherboard with latest driver and Bios flashed to P31
EVGA Nvidia Geforce 8800 GTX 768 Mb not overclocked, current driver is 163.75
4 Gigs OCZ Reaper Ram 1066, pc8500, with 2 Gigs removed
Thermaltake toughpower 1000 watt, Modular


Silent Hunter 3 specs:

I have Deleted all my mods, and did a fresh reinstall, then Patched to v 1.4
--at first I thought it was a couple of Mods conflicting

[VikingGrandad]

Welcome to the forums locher25, and thank for the advice.

http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/10.gif Just so you know, the 'no CD crack' is a taboo subject on these forums! The issue, in my opinion, is less serious now because SH3 is apparently now available without Star Force. However, Ubisoft (understandably) has a strict zero-tolerance view on discussing cracks, so if I were you I'd say no more about it.

Getting back to your post... I wasn't aware that running SH3 with an 8800 card was a problem. Is it a problem for every 8800 card, or just the one you have?

[tuddley3]

Only advice I can give you, is to get ahold of Stabiz over at Subsim.com(He is a SH3 Movie Guru so to say). Maybe he will have some ideas for you.

As far as taking screenshots using Fraps and higher resolutions, I use Photobie(But there is no Video Capture feature with Photobie).

[locher25]

UPDATE

at 1024 x 768 resolution, for movie making, shift + pg Up works great, although you lose some GFX detail, but what works even better is turning off "antialiasing gamma correction"

of course, the game looks awesome at 1680 x 1050 and 1280 x 1024, but, still no luck finding a video capture program that will work

didn't know about the cd crack taboo......currently not using it (obvisously since I need fraps to work). It caused alot of problems and since I play so much, My SH3 DVD is basically glued inside my DVD drive....really no need for it.

I'm not saying the 8800 GTX or my 8800 GTX is having a problem.

I was just wondering if I should get into nTune and see at least if I can crank up its fan speed and then probably make sure everything is set at default (not overclocked and won't OC til much later)

You have to understand that I accidentally created a custom profile in the Nvidia control panel.....next thing I know......my FPS was between 1200 and 1500.

Deleted that profile since, but haven't checked to see if my timings or anything got restored back to normal as far as the Monitor and GFX card are concerned, all seems OK.

I will say that with SH3 synchronized in the main menu (video options) FPS when idle and not recording video is 60fps and 30fps when recording.

With SH3 unsychronized in video options, Fps is around 80 idle and 30 recording.

Not much going on during these tests. Used "Happy Times" single mission to aquire this data.

Last time I checked Fps with , what is it, ??? cntrl + f8 ??, it was flickering so fast i couldn't tell if it said 600fps or 800fps

I ceratinly hope if Silent Hunter 5 ever comes out, it would be back on the German side again, I love this game so much I haven't even installed my Silent Hunter 4.

Good Hunting

[tuddley3]

As far as checking Fps, I use the Fraps Fps counter in the upper left corner. I do also know that when you use video with Fraps, it does suck a lot out of your Fps.

Maybe we should get ahold of Fraps, and get them to test SH3 with the ResFix, and see what they could do. That way, we can solve our problem, and get the testers from Fraps hooked on SH3 http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/784.gif