Benchmark conditions: STEP 2.2.1 Guide
The following table provides means ± standard deviations for:
- GPU temperature
- GPU load
- Dedicated VRAM (on-card memory) - This caps at 1,024 MB on my system
- System VRAM (swapped-to-system memory) - lower is better, > 500 MB produces moderate/severe stuttering (not available on my system; no senor to monitor this)
- FPS
The table below represents the data from my system. Notice below where the standard deviation (SD) is rather large for dedicated VRAM when there the VRAM usage is at peak efficiency (operating at near maximum capacity). However, the SD quickly goes down as available VRAM shrinks. This is because VRAM from second to second has nowhere to go but down, when it previously had room to get much higher OR much lower. When SD decreases, this should correspond to an increase in swapped VRAM, which should beget stuttering or lag in gameplay. I typically start experiencing stutter when my VRAM exceeds 1000MB, so the goal for my system would be to keep the VRAM maximum between 900MB and 1000MB for smooth gameplay.
As the GPU becomes VRAM taxed:
- FPS goes down
- Mean-dedicated VRAM consumption increases
- Mean-dedicated VRAM SD increases at first and then decreases as if fills to capacity
- Mean-system VRAM increases
- Mean-system VRAM SD increases rapidly as it is relied upon in varying degrees and then decreases as it fills to capacity (or the swap capacity of the GPU)
At the point that the System VRAM SD begins to noticeably decrease, stuttering should become significant, as this indicates a very high swap frequency. Template:Notice Small
| Assessment | GPU Temp. [?C] | GPU Load [%] | Dedicated VRAM [MB] | System VRAM [MB] | FPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows background | 45.6 ± 1.0 | 0.07 ± 0.48 | 122.0 ± 0.0 | n/a | n/a |
| (1) Bench 1.F.2 INI Tweaks | 72.1 ± 6.1 | 97.6 ± 4.2 | 486.9 ± 38.0 | n/a | 46.8 ± 6.0 |
| (2) Bench 2.D Fixes 1 | 61.1 ± 1.4 | 66.6 ± 7.6 | 1,876.6 ± 8.8 | 85.2 ± 64.6 | 52.7 ± 7.7 |
| (3) Bench 2.D Fixes 2 | 60.2 ± 1.7 | 66.1 ± 7.6 | 1,854.1 ± 78.0 | 91.2 ± 10.3 | 52.5 ± 8.1 |
| (4) Bench 2.E Interface | 61.0 ± 1.5 | 65.7 ± 7.7 | 1,868.4 ± 75.8 | 88.9 ± 7.7 | 52.6 ± 7.5 |
| (5) Bench 2.F Conflicting Graphics 1 | 61.8 ± 1.3 | 67.5 ± 5.9 | 1,918.3 ± 37.8 | 83.7 ± 6.7 | 49.9 ± 8.3 |
| (6) Bench 2.F Conflicting Graphics 2 | 61.0 ± 1.6 | 66.8 ± 6.1 | 1,970.0 ± 18.1 | 93.8 ± 11.2 | 49.0 ± 8.5 |
| (7) Bench 2.G Landscape & Environment 1 | 59.6 ± 1.5 | 69.1 ± 6.8 | 1,975.5 ± 14.8 | 208.0 ± 34.2 | 35.4 ± 11.2 |
| (8) Bench 2.G Landscape & Environment 2 | 59.9 ± 1.6 | 75.7 ± 7.6 | 1,974.9 ± 18.6 | 236.2 ± 35.5 | 32.4 ± 11.3 |
Note that the windows background numbers are included in the first rows. This should be subtracted from all of the data following as a proxy for resources consumed only by Skyrim.
- (1) Bench 1.F.2 INI Tweaks - Performed after 1.F.2, 2.2.1 Guide, Pure Vanilla HD, no modifications
- (2) Bench 2.D Fixes 1 - Performed after 2.D Fixes , DDSopt, Vanilla HD Textures, 1k-constrained, no "Optimized HRDLC" (Vano89)
- (3) Bench 2.D Fixes 2 - Performed after 2.D Fixes , DDSopt, Vanilla HD Textures, 1k-constrained, including "Optimized HRDLC" (Vano89)
- (4) Bench 2.E Interface - Performed after 2.E Interface , DDSopt, Vanilla HD Textures, 1k-constrained, including "Optimized HRDLC" (Vano89)
- (5) Bench 2.F Conflicting Graphics 1 - Performed after 2.F Conflicting Graphics , DDSopt, Vanilla HD Textures, 1k-constrained, including "Optimized HRDLC" (Vano89)
- (6) Bench 2.F Conflicting Graphics 2 - Performed after 2.F Conflicting Graphics , DDSopt, Vanilla HD Textures, 1k-constrained, including "Optimized HRDLC" (Vano89) (also includes my own tweaked 2k overhauls, which is the 2k DDSOpted version of both Skyrim HD & Serious HD with 1k-constrained normal maps for non-dungeion textures).
- (7) Bench 2.G Landscape & Environment 1 - Identical to Bench (6) but including L&E
- (8) Bench 2.G Landscape & Environment 2 - Identical to Bench (7), but SFO is DDSoptimized, without constraints
