[MOD] [TC/AP] X3 Rebalance Mod (XRM) - Total conversion - v1.30d (02.12.13)

[Scoob]

Hi Paul,

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah, it's a weird one. I've been in battles equally as large in heavily modded XRM for TC. Always before when I've seen the FPS dip I see one core of the CPU being worked hard. This time nothing.

Codec-wise this machine is fine - it's a pure gamer, no codecs or other crap. One of the reasons I rarely get any sort of system issues.

Oddly, a couple of minutes after posting, my FPS jumped back to a more normal 40+ fps for a large battle. GPU's still at < 25% usage each and CPU load unchanged. All that had happened was an Argon Titan had just been destroyed. As it was one of many (12+) large ships, not to counter the numerous fighters and M6's, it seemed odd that the destruction of 1 ship would increase my fps by four.

I'm thinking it must be some odd glitch, but will keep monitoring things.

Oh I might see if there's an update for my on board sound, though I did update it not so long ago...still, it's not caused a problem previously.

Cheers,

Scoob.

[Alan Phipps]

@ Scoob: You said "NONE of my four cores (2500k @ 4.6) are showing more than 20-25% use tops"

I would almost bet that what you are seeing is the cpu load being displayed as if 'averaged' across the 4 cores because the OS/BIOS switches cores (not multi-threading but switching) frequently to manage core heat and power and that when fps drops, actually one is working its little socks off at about 100% while the other 3 are idling - no matter what the monitor program says it is showing (they lie!).

[LordGaara]

Hey guys,

A qiuck question: I just installed AP 2.0 and XRM 1.18, havent even started a game yet. So the wierd thing is, Plugin Manager isnt showing XRM installed at all, but the main screen has the XRM logo. Is this normal or something is wrong?
P.S I followed the installation instructions step by step.

[Scoob]

Hi Alan,

Good point, but not the case in this..erm...case

I'm actively monitoring all four cores using Process Explorer on my 2nd monitor so I can see the separate loads on each core.

At this moment, flying through Midnight Star, with minimal activity I'm at 60fps (vSync) GPU load is ~15% on each card, my overall CPU usage is ~35% with no more than 20% (peek) showing on any single core. Temps on my hottest core are ~43c. System is basically ticking over.

Odd thing is, I see near the same CPU and GPU usage when the low-fps situation starts. Something is a little odd, not sure what just yet.

Cheers,

Scoob.

[swatti]

Any chance to boost M2+ speeds when using turbo? The darn thing costs a zillion and barely adds any to larger ships. Could be a nice way to "trade laser/shield energy" into proper speed for a moment.

I do understand these ships are meant to be slow but they are too hard to use as player-ships due to the speed and AI tends to run off god knows where when the ship is needed elsewhere.
Large battles are quite hard simply due to the fact that its near impossible to gather all large ships into one place.

[Alan Phipps]

@ Scoob: Yes the monitor 'says' they are completely separate core loads but there has to be a duration element for load sampling that cannot react to fast core switching. Also remember that fps is capped at 60 fps now so who knows what the high or 'normal' fps would really be on a good system like yours. On your rig 60 fps due to processing (rather than capping) may equate to a slideshow on a mere mortal's system and where even very small additional loads have greatly disproportionate effects on fps!

Sorry Paul, I've gone way off topic but I have learned not to believe all that system monitors tell me. Shutting up now.

[Scoob]

Hi Alan,

(Sorry Paul, off-topic a little but if it leads to helping others with FPS issues...)

These tools will never be exact that's for sure, I don't know how events between ticks of the monitor are handled - maybe missed, maybe averaged out - either way it's not fool proof. Still, from my own testing and that of others I've learnt to consider Process Explorer to be fairly reasonable.

Point of interest, I just entered Belt of Aguilar where a major scrap is going on. My FPS has tanked to around 12, my GPU load has dropped to 5% (usually a sign of CPU bottleneck) yet my CPU still appears to be ticking along at an overall load of ~30 to 35% This time however one core is hovering around 70-80% load while the other three are 10-20% Hottest core is now a little warmer at @45c.

So, while I now have one core that's a little busier, it's still far from being hammered. Though it is closer to the limit. If Process Explorer was inacurate it might explain things, though my core temps suggests things aren't quite maxxed.

So, going by Process Explorer and the core temps, the system is still far from loaded despite the slide-show.

Oh yeah, glad you mentioned the 60fps cap as I wondered why disabling vSync (in fact ALL my driver level overrides just to be sure) saw it still there.

Gonna concentrate on playing for a bit to see if I come up with a reason for this. I am running a fair number of other scripts so one of those could be misbehaving.

Oh, just before I noticed this FPS issue I'd just reverted to the v1.1 RRF files as posted up by LV. Oddly I'm still yet to see and RRF ships (despite a new game and hours of play) yet I now get this FPS issue. Coincidence? Maybe...dunno yet.

Cheers,

Scoob.

[the Mercenary]

What are the light blue weapons, the aegir can mount in left an right turrets? they are not in the list

[deca.death]

What are the light blue weapons, the aegir can mount in left an right turrets? they are not in the list

unofficial FAQ links: strange unnamed laser collors in some terran /xenon ships

[Bishop Weyland]

Hy Paul thx for this mod , great work

Is XRM 1.18 compatible with the German Vers. of AP 2.0?

[paulwheeler]

Hy Paul thx for this mod , great work

Is XRM 1.18 compatible with the German Vers. of AP 2.0?

Yes it is, although the German language file is in English.




@Scoob - did you remember to turn off autoupdate for AP in Steam? It may have put the 2.0 RRF files back in before the game started.

[Scoob]

@Scoob - did you remember to turn off autoupdate for AP in Steam? It may have put the 2.0 RRF files back in before the game started.

Yep,

Steam in Offline mode, NIC disabled, router removed from wall and placed in lead-lined safe, line to house severed... ok, just the first two are true but you get my drift

It's only during major fights where there are a LOT of shots flying that I have any issues. Once a sector is largely clear my FPS is fine.

Hmm, just had a thought...possibly MARS is a bit too heavy with the large amount of fights going on? Still, I did have it enabled in the TC version with LOTS of battles thanks to MBRR. Will try it out.

Cheers,

Scoob.

[dizzysoul]

Thank you for 1.18!

Problem: After updating to 1.18, I can no longer equip Ion Cannons onto my Carrack. I used to be able to do this fine up to 1.17 and AP 2.0. Now they are not compatible with my ship. I don't see any changes that reflect this in the patch notes.

I don't really mind it as Ion Cannons are pretty OP and other M7's can still equip them. I just find it odd the change was never mentioned anywhere.

[joelR]

@Scoob - did you remember to turn off autoupdate for AP in Steam? It may have put the 2.0 RRF files back in before the game started.

Yep,

Steam in Offline mode, NIC disabled, router removed from wall and placed in lead-lined safe, line to house severed... ok, just the first two are true but you get my drift

It's only during major fights where there are a LOT of shots flying that I have any issues. Once a sector is largely clear my FPS is fine.

Hmm, just had a thought...possibly MARS is a bit too heavy with the large amount of fights going on? Still, I did have it enabled in the TC version with LOTS of battles thanks to MBRR. Will try it out.

Cheers,

Scoob.

Auto update only kicks in when there is a patch released. It will not automatically add or remove anything unless you specifically tell it to using the "verify files" command. Its this weird misconception that people have that steam is constantly replacing files.

[paulwheeler]

Thank you for 1.18!

Problem: After updating to 1.18, I can no longer equip Ion Cannons onto my Carrack. I used to be able to do this fine up to 1.17 and AP 2.0. Now they are not compatible with my ship. I don't see any changes that reflect this in the patch notes.

I don't really mind it as Ion Cannons are pretty OP and other M7's can still equip them. I just find it odd the change was never mentioned anywhere.

Sorry I should have mentioned it in the notes. The IC should not have been there in the first place. Beams are broken when fired manually by the player as they never stop firing. I've removed beams from all main guns.

[Teladidrone]

Do you hate the Paranid much?
Artemis is again barley usable in its primary mini-carrier role because of too small cargo bay to resupply its fighters. As is the Deimos...
Instead the Agamemnon has the cargo space a mini-carrier would need - which does not make much sense... so why no mini-carrier love for the Paranid?

[Jumee]

Do you hate the Paranid much?
Artemis is again barley usable in its primary mini-carrier role because of too small cargo bay to resupply its fighters. As is the Deimos...
Instead the Agamemnon has the cargo space a mini-carrier would need - which does not make much sense... so why no mini-carrier love for the Paranid?

artemis can carry a TS unless Paul changed that (it is the vanila Ariadne right?)

[nap_rz]

Hi Paul,

Having a blast in v1.18 for AP, something that I thought odd however - maybe an engine issue.

I'm in Circle of Labour and there's an Argon fleet along with some Boron having at it with a Terran Fleet. It's really a huge battle. As such I wasn't surprised when my FPS drops into single figures here and there from my usual v-sync'd 60fps.

However, by chance, I have my 2nd monitor up showing both GPU and CPU stats while playing. My GPU's (a pair of GTX 570's) are showing single-figure usage - I assumed because the CPU is hammered - however NONE of my four cores (2500k @ 4.6) are showing more than 20-25% use tops.

So, my CPU is coasting, as are my GPU's, I have plenty of ram - both system and GPU - my HDD isn't thrashing or anything either. So, why the very low fps? This is by far the lowest FPS I've ever experienced in AP.

I know XRM adds a lots of stuff so it's expected to push the CPU harder, however my CPU is hardly working at all. Just a little confused it all.

Running W7 64 bit, 8gb ram, 295.73 WHQL drivers.

Cheers,

Scoob.

That's strange. That battle is as smooth as silk on my system - a very similar spec to yours except only one gti 560ti graphics card and a 2600k...

I'd definitely say you have some kind of system issue there. It certainly shouldn't drop to single figures with that kind of setup. RAM is usually the main bottleneck, but you've got plenty of that. Strange...

Its quite common for dodgy sound card drivers to cause problems in X3 - are your sound card drivers up tot date?

nope, that is normal, I've been seeing that behavior since X3 Reunion! game simply can't use modern hardware power.

[Teladidrone]

artemis can carry a TS unless Paul changed that (it is the vanila Ariadne right?)

Yes it can but I really dont see the point behind this.
Micromanaging between docked TS cargo and carrier cargo? That sucks and basically makes it totally useless for AI usage.
The Tern can carry TS, too, and still has a large enough cargo hold so its actually usable... the point of having TS docking ports is not to artificially extend a too small cargo hold. Or is it?

[Jumee]

artemis can carry a TS unless Paul changed that (it is the vanila Ariadne right?)

Yes it can but I really dont see the point behind this.
Micromanaging between docked TS cargo and carrier cargo? That sucks and basically makes it totally useless for AI usage.
The Tern can carry TS, too, and still has a large enough cargo hold so its actually usable... the point of having TS docking ports is not to artificially extend a too small cargo hold. Or is it?

CLS can automate transfer of cargo from and to the ship/station from the ship docked at it its really simple I use that with all the EqD's as well