User:Ah42/Benchmarks

I was not satisfied with the combined output of FRAPS and GPU-Z, since Skyrim can become fairly CPU-bound depending on configuration, and these do not record this information. I also disliked having to remember to start/stop the monitoring. Instead, I chose to use Skyrim Performance Monitor to record all data. This has the added benefit of not needing a baseline (i.e. idle) benchmark for RAM usage, as SPM only tracks usage by the Skyrim (+enboost) processes. In partnership with some formulae and LibreOffice, the output was distilled to provide the Average() and StdDev() from the moment of RAM + DiskIO Spike when choosing a New Game, through the program quitting (using console "qqq" at the first auto-save)

The data monitored with this method:

CPU Load
GPU Load
GPU Temperature (1)
FPS (2)
Disk IO (3)
Threads
System RAM (used by Skyrim)
Dedicated VRAM (used by Skyrim) (4)

Notes:

(1) Ambient temperature fluctuated during the multi-day benchmark period, as the weather went from summer extreme to autumn mild. Starting (minimum) GPU temperature is provided, and all other temperatures are listed as relative to this base.
(2) My display runs at 50Hz to avoid tearing in other applications. Therefore my FPS is also capped at 50Hz.
(3) Official BSA's are on a RAMDisk, and symlinked to from my Data directory which is on SSD. Mod Organizer is also on SSD. This appears to cause SPM not to record Disk IO for the Official BSA's, which means the mod-added IO stands out more starkly against the baseline.
(4) SPM tracks total VRAM. Minimum used RAM (i.e. at the start of logging) has been subtracted to find Skyrim's VRAM usage

Run	CPU %	Disk IO	Max Disk IO	FPS	GPU %	GPU °C	Delta GPU °C	Threads	RAM (MB)	Max RAM	VRAM (MB)	Max VRAM
0 Vanilla + SKSE Default Settings	44 ± 6.95	2.2 ± 6.47	100	50.0 ± 2.38	53 ± 7.77	15 ± 4.47	20	37 ± 1.59	1223 ± 83.05	1305	763 ± 92.23	893
1 Vanilla + SKSE 1366x768	43 ± 7.24	3.7 ± 13.25	106	49.6 ± 3.67	54 ± 8.37	16 ± 4.90	21	37 ± 1.87	1220 ± 116.20	1325	779 ± 137.84	941
2 Vanilla + SKSE 1920x1080	44 ± 7.39	3.9 ± 13.72	109	49.5 ± 3.93	68 ± 11.14	19 ± 5.73	24	37 ± 1.63	1185 ± 130.98	1283	850 ± 132.39	957
3 STEP: 1.B. Launcher Options	43 ± 7.16	3.9 ± 13.28	109	49.6 ± 3.78	69 ± 13.06	15 ± 5.24	20	36 ± 1.85	1183 ± 129.77	1286	738 ± 136.27	897
4 STEP: 1.D. INI Tweaks	44 ± 7.32	3.9 ± 13.54	107	49.7 ± 3.82	71 ± 11.34	15 ± 4.92	21	37 ± 2.02	1185 ± 124.65	1281	735 ± 126.44	883
5 STEP: 2.D. Fixes	44 ± 9.44	7.2 ± 26.02	297	49.0 ± 4.94	71 ± 12.83	15 ± 5.88	22	37 ± 1.59	1059 ± 151.88	1150	957 ± 147.01	1033
6 STEP: 2.E. Interface	45 ± 8.52	7.2 ± 26.66	295	49.3 ± 4.37	70 ± 12.92	16 ± 6.12	23	37 ± 1.68	1085 ± 139.31	1177	948 ± 129.64	1022
7 STEP: 2.F. Conflicting Graphics	47 ± 10.08	8.3 ± 28.34	302	48.7 ± 5.15	73 ± 14.81	15 ± 5.96	23	37 ± 2.02	1136 ± 204.09	1274	1030 ± 201.63	1139
8 STEP: 2.G. Landscape & Env	47 ± 9.85	9.9 ± 33.87	351	47.9 ± 5.61	77 ± 16.84	17 ± 6.65	24	38 ± 1.54	1446 ± 234.03	1605	1135 ± 176.32	1190
9 STEP: 2.H. Char. & Creatures	48 ± 9.38	10.4 ± 29.98	264	47.4 ± 6.36	78 ± 13.44	17 ± 6.43	25	37 ± 1.73	1591 ± 216.71	1755	1128 ± 114.83	1168
10 STEP: 2.I. Clothing & Equip.	48 ± 9.99	11.3 ± 32.20	298	47.2 ± 6.47	75 ± 16.26	18 ± 6.99	26	37 ± 1.72	1644 ± 256.37	1840	1134 ± 137.42	1198
11 STEP: 2.J. Anim. & Effects	48 ± 9.86	11.2 ± 32.69	316	47.4 ± 6.21	77 ± 16.25	19 ± 7.07	27	37 ± 1.80	1645 ± 250.47	1840	1279 ± 161.75	1352
12 STEP: 2.K. Clutter & Misc	48 ± 9.23	11.1 ± 33.42	338	47.1 ± 6.29	77 ± 15.22	19 ± 6.53	26	37 ± 1.72	1657 ± 235.44	1833	1261 ± 138.78	1319
13 STEP: 2.L. Sound	48 ± 10.18	11.4 ± 29.67	259	47.0 ± 6.65	77 ± 15.11	17 ± 6.73	25	37 ± 1.61	1651 ± 261.28	1842	1232 ± 163.19	1282
14 STEP: 2.M. Gameplay	48 ± 9.85	11.6 ± 35.49	377	47.3 ± 6.72	76 ± 17.74	14 ± 4.88	20	37 ± 1.54	1661 ± 250.95	1851	1311 ± 163.31	1371
15 STEP: 2.N. Patches	48 ± 10.18	11.4 ± 33.06	309	47.5 ± 5.85	77 ± 14.96	18 ± 6.90	26	38 ± 1.35	1663 ± 250.19	1853	1253 ± 148.11	1309