What would be the bottleneck on an AH530
#1
It's an Intel i3-370m processor, with 4gb of DDR3. The i3 has the GPU in it, so I'm assuming that it's the graphics, but I'd just like to make sure.

I can get around 20 - 30 fps on .hack GU, yet my desktop gets 60fps, with a Phenom II 710, 8gb DDR3 and an 8600 GT.

The laptop can play some games well though, FFX for example, full speed on that =)
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#2
Yeah, I'll almost guarantee it's your GPU. If it's "nothing special", then it's integrated (and not saying to your CPU). Are you using native resolution? It is easier for a weaker GPU to handle.

Open your "Start Menu" and type:

dxdiag

...then press enter. Go to the "Display" tab and see what GPU you're running on.
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#3
Yeah, been checking out what it would be, supposedly it'll be a GMA5700MHD. Also, I think I checked out GU wrong, I was getting 30 - 40fps just now.
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#4
Yeah, any of Intel's GPUs are usually very weak. The integrated part is what really kills. Some games will still be slow even on native resolution. Either way, at least some games will do alright. Smile
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#5
Well, I've updated the driver and told it to do max performance. I would prefer if I could manually set the amount of RAM it can use, instead of this dynamic thing where it decides.

Guess it's less stressful games for the laptop =).
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#6
Hmm, I'm not sure if there is a setting for that. I always thought it was based on the amount of system RAM available in total... I can tell you your problem is less likely the amount of RAM, but more due to the speed of the allocated RAM. Faster system RAM can actually improve an IGP's performance, but this is still minimal since it's relative to the GPU's weaker performance in general (and allocation is still a slower process).

But, hey, it's PS2-mobile, even if it isn't every game. Wink
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#7
Haven't found one, but I did realise that with my new driver, I could use Direct3D 10 hardware mode instead of 9, since with the old driver, 10 would crash the games after a few minutes.

Also, I disabled the hyperthreading in the bios, so it think it's 2 cores now instead of 4, so it's using the 2 physical cores more efficiently, since it was stuck at 50% before, since it's only optimised for 2.

Tried software mode, which was actually faster lol. Plus it has less graphical glitches, since Haseo bugs out in hardware mode =)
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#8
Yeah, I thought I'd read that Intel's had some troubles with DX10. Glad it's working for ya. Smile

You disabled HyperThreading? Did you see a noticable increase in your performance? I know I've seen it happen before a few times, but I like to hear that it helps more and more Core i users. More physical cores usually can help a bit, but HT seems to make a mess of things sometimes.

Software mode is like "magic" at times (IMO). It's always worth a try if you encounter a stubborn game. Even if you GPU isn't weak, some games will still run faster than with the Hardware Renderer. And the way it can clean up graphic issues...
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#9
Yeah, I just got around 46fps at a minimum looking at some graphical intense bits in mac anu, which it playable, since it depends on where you look. I then tried my Mana Khemia and got 30fps lol. Hardware mode brought that back up to 60fps though, so it depends on the game, as you say. For now, these are the only types of games I'll be playing, so I'll figure out more stuff if and when I find they don't work.

But yeah, disabling hyperthreading worked brilliantly, as I said, the cpu usage before was 50%, which was the equivalent of two cores. With the software mode, it went to 96% or so, but I'm not sure if it didn't use 100% because of the GPU or whether it didn't need the whole CPU or what.
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#10
With Software mode, the GPU basically has no impact on performance. It's performance is directly related to the CPU, so the "load" of emulation is on it.

Glad to hear disabling HT helped you. I hope you find many of your games to be playable with the right settings. Don't forget to make the most out of the Speedhacks, too! Smile
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