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rabidrage

Trying to run Doom at its best

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I've been finding some really noteworthy stuff out there.  My computer can handle a lot of it, but it gets bogged down sometimes and even freezes if I try the top end stuff.  I'm talking about that relatively new wall shadow feature in GZDoom (whatever it's actually called) and Cacodemon Textures.  Those are wonderful, but they slow Doom down to less than a crawl.

 

My computer is an HP p7-1380t.  Nothing added to it or changed, just off-the-shelf.  8GB of RAM.  What should I/can I do to upgrade it so it can handle more quality Doom?  More memory?  Better graphics card?

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Looking up the specifications, it came in multiple configurations, but even given the best options on the list, it is both an old and weak computer, I would strongly advise building or purchasing a new and much better one.

 

That being said, at the bare minimum, upgrading both the power supply and graphics card may go a long way, though the CPU is probably still going to be an issue. On the page, they list only a 300W PSU, get at least 700W to run a high-end graphics card.

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11 hours ago, rabidrage said:

I've been finding some really noteworthy stuff out there.  My computer can handle a lot of it, but it gets bogged down sometimes and even freezes if I try the top end stuff.  I'm talking about that relatively new wall shadow feature in GZDoom (whatever it's actually called) and Cacodemon Textures.  Those are wonderful, but they slow Doom down to less than a crawl.

 

My computer is an HP p7-1380t.  Nothing added to it or changed, just off-the-shelf.  8GB of RAM.  What should I/can I do to upgrade it so it can handle more quality Doom?  More memory?  Better graphics card?

I assume you mean AO? Yeah that is a total FPS killer since the AO is done in software and not baked in like it is in quake so if you have a lower end CPU and GPU you basically have no chance of using it whatsoever :( I would know, I have a low spec laptop and when I try to turn on AO even on the IWAD maps I get down to 7-8 fps...

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If you're trying to put it on high, change it to low. You'll still get the experience of it but it's culled much more (I think?) and doesn't look too vastly different but will save you frames! I ran on an i3 with a GTS450 1GB GPU so I'm hardly hitting out the ballpark when it comes to specs!

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On 9/27/2018 at 6:33 PM, rabidrage said:

What should I/can I do to upgrade it so it can handle more quality Doom?

One thing to note is that some of the features you are describing are bleeding edge technology, which means that they are new developments, probably not well optimized, and subject to change on a daily basis. Trying to get these new test maps, using this new technology, might be misguided. Tomorrow, a patch might make those features run 10x as fast.

 

Also, the fastest computer you can buy can get easily bogged down by a bad map. From what you describe, you have a quite beefy PC there. Take comfort in knowing how many maps your PC can play well, vs. worrying about the few that it cannot play well. Most likely, *all* PCs have difficulty with the maps in question.

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Okay, so I'm getting the impression that my computer is good for the average joe, not so hot for a gamer who wants to keep up with the latest and greatest.  I understand a new one would be the best option for what I want to use it for; in the meantime, all I can afford is maybe a better graphics card, power supply and perhaps more memory.  That being said...what works with my setup?

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Prboom+ an Eternity work on anything. Start with that. Then you can play all of the fun stuff like Ancient Aliens and BTSX.

GZDoom may have all these fancy things, but it comes at a great cost for performance, which is especially notable on lower end and even midrange systems on some occasions.

If you just wanna play doom on any computer, the Boom-based ports have it covered.

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Edward850's answer makes a lot of sense. There's "software" Doom rendering, and "hardware" Doom rendering. Originally, Doom was 100% software rendering, meaning that the CPU was responsible for figuring out how to scale, texture, and essentially paint all the graphics. Conversely, hardware engines describe the level's polygons and textures to a specially-equipped "3D" video card, and processors built into the video card do the heavy lifting.

 

These video cards can do special effects that would simply be too slow for the main CPU. These are new effects that were never part of original Doom. Maps that use these effects require a "hardware" Doom engine, as well as the actual hardware: A 3D video card that can handle the effects. This is why it is difficult to answer your question: There are a lot of ways to render Doom!

 

This is why Edward850's answer makes sense: The majority of Doom maps do not use the more advanced effects, and can be rendered very well by modern software engines. The other maps that require the hardware engines and the power of a good 3D video card...require a good 3D video card!

 

For the setup you describe (decent CPU with 8Gb memory), if you're not satisfied with performance, first verify that your trying to render a map that utilizes hardware-only features. Also, verify your 3D performance in other recent games, and ask for recommendations online. Then you can look into a nice fast 3D video card, armed with some info.

 

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