The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim PC Performance discussion

I had ENB mod installed, but have since taken it off. I have a fresh install of Skyrim on steam, but my saves crash instantly when I load. I found if I have my Skyrim.ini as my old one (enb) and not the default one Skyrim Launcher makes, the saves then work. Can anyone tell why this is happening?

Old Skyrim.ini (working saves)
Code: 
[Display]
sD3DDevice="NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti"
[Grass]
b30GrassVS=1
[Water]
bReflectLODObjects=1
bReflectLODLand=1
bReflectSky=1
bReflectLODTrees=1
bTreesReceiveShadows=1
bTreesReceiveShadows=1
[General]
sLanguage=ENGLISH
uGridsToLoad=7
uInterior Cell Buffer=48
uExterior Cell Buffer=288
iPreloadsizeLimit=524288000

Launcher defaulted to Ultra (CTD on any save game, starts a new game fine)
Code: 
[General]
sLanguage=ENGLISH

uExterior Cell Buffer=36

[Display]
fShadowLODMaxStartFade=1000.0
fSpecularLODMaxStartFade=2000.0
fLightLODMaxStartFade=3500.0
iShadowMapResolutionPrimary=2048
bAllowScreenshot=1

[Audio]
fMusicDuckingSeconds=6.0
fMusicUnDuckingSeconds=8.0
fMenuModeFadeOutTime=3.0
fMenuModeFadeInTime=1.0

[Grass]
bAllowCreateGrass=1
bAllowLoadGrass=0

[GeneralWarnings]
SGeneralMasterMismatchWarning=One or more plugins could not find the correct versions of the master files they depend on. Errors may occur during load 

or game play. Check the "Warnings.txt" file for more information.

[Archive]
sResourceArchiveList=Skyrim - Misc.bsa, Skyrim - Shaders.bsa, Skyrim - Textures.bsa, Skyrim - Interface.bsa, Skyrim - Animations.bsa, Skyrim - 

Meshes.bsa, Skyrim - Sounds.bsa
sResourceArchiveList2=Skyrim - Voices.bsa, Skyrim - VoicesExtra.bsa

[Combat]
fMagnetismStrafeHeadingMult=0.0
fMagnetismLookingMult=0.0

[Papyrus]
fPostLoadUpdateTimeMS=500.0
bEnableLogging=0
bEnableTrace=0
bLoadDebugInformation=0
[Water]
bReflectLODObjects=1
bReflectLODLand=1
bReflectSky=1
bReflectLODTrees=1
 
I tried copying my skyrim save file from home to another computer so I can play it there too. But everytime I try to load it I just wait at the loading screen forever. Started a new game up fine and those saves load, but my other save wont.

Any ideas?
 
elseanio said:
I had ENB mod installed, but have since taken it off. I have a fresh install of Skyrim on steam, but my saves crash instantly when I load. I found if I have my Skyrim.ini as my old one (enb) and not the default one Skyrim Launcher makes, the saves then work. Can anyone tell why this is happening?
Click to expand...
On your old ini you have uGrids set to 7. That'll nuke your save games if you revert back to the default (5 I think it was). There was a console fix for it I remember seeing posted here I think.

Edit: Yep it's in the OP
 
I was getting random CTD with absolutely no error message. Google told me to lower my sound bps quality. I had no idea where that was, but I found in my settings that I didn't have Dolby DTS encoding enabled. I enabled that and haven't had a single CTD since. Weird.
 
So did the better fire and smoke mod make the game darker too? On my 2nd playthrough I'm noticing dungeons and interiors in general are much darker, like I have a really hard time seeing unlit walls which wasn't happening on my 1st run.
 
Ledsen said:
So basically my GTX 560Ti is doing 16-235 automatically? That's fucked up, can't say I've noticed it though. So after doing this, how do i make sure my TV (Panasonic G20) is set to 0-255?
Click to expand...

yup. Its annoying as hell because Nvidia thought they'd "play it safe" and send 16-235 video levels to HDTV's as they'd likely get "the fewest support request" that way. Many cheaper HDTV's have no support for displaying/processing anything but TV levels (16-235) and thus when they are sent PC levels they look overly dark and contrasty. Its a slap in the face to the HTPC community who cares about keeping everything reference and beautiful.

And after doing the edid driver mod the TV will read as a DVI-PC device instead of an HDMI-HDTV. Basically windows will now see your screen as a true PC monitor and not levels limited HDTV screen. You'll also know by using calibration test images and if you are very familiar with your screen, you should be able to tell when its not displaying a true black or properly hitting colors.
 
Ponti said:
On your old ini you have uGrids set to 7. That'll nuke your save games if you revert back to the default (5 I think it was). There was a console fix for it I remember seeing posted here I think.

Edit: Yep it's in the OP
Click to expand...

Ahh, thanks a lot. Will try the fix now.

Edit* Yay, worked!
 
moop1167 said:
Anyone know why when I take a screenshot with Steam using the FXAA injector settings, the screenshots turn out vanilla-style?
Click to expand...

If its anything like MLAA, Fraps wont catch it.

On my AMD cards with MLAA, I have to use RadeonPro and make sure I check the box telling it to retain the MLAA on the screengrab. Im not sure what the Nvidia equivalent is or if it even has such a function.

I remember someone saying that Steams built in screenshot taker will retain MLAA. Have you tried that with FXAA?
 
moop1167 said:
Anyone know why when I take a screenshot with Steam using the FXAA injector settings, the screenshots turn out vanilla-style?
Click to expand...

Use the print screen button, if i recall it has something to do with the level on which the screen capture is taking place.
 
So anyone has a fix on the weird Light Source issue inside dungeons, as i get closer to them they start actually lightning up the surroundings, didnt care before but now that i noticed i cant unsee it :(
 
Ok, can someone tell me why the launcher automatically sets me to "high"?

I have the following specs:
I5-2500k@4ghz
GTX580
8gb RAM

My friend's launcher sets him to ultra and he has:
I7-2600k stock
ATI5770
8gb RAM

You can't tell me my rig isn't worthy of ultra???
 
Klyka said:
Ok, can someone tell me why the launcher automatically sets me to "high"?

I have the following specs:
I5-2500k@4ghz
GTX580
8gb RAM

My friend's launcher sets him to ultra and he has:
I7-2600k stock
ATI5770
8gb RAM

You can't tell me my rig isn't worthy of ultra???
Click to expand...

Stop stealth bragging and just set it to Ultra yourself, what's the problem?
 
Klyka said:
Ok, can someone tell me why the launcher automatically sets me to "high"?

I have the following specs:
I5-2500k@4ghz
GTX580
8gb RAM

My friend's launcher sets him to ultra and he has:
I7-2600k stock
ATI5770
8gb RAM

You can't tell me my rig isn't worthy of ultra???
Click to expand...

Does it for me as well on dual GTX 580's... don't worry about it. I run everything on ultra with a ton of ini tweaks to improve graphical quality.
 
Klyka said:
Ok, can someone tell me why the launcher automatically sets me to "high"?

I have the following specs:
I5-2500k@4ghz
GTX580
8gb RAM

My friend's launcher sets him to ultra and he has:
I7-2600k stock
ATI5770
8gb RAM

You can't tell me my rig isn't worthy of ultra???
Click to expand...

I have a:
2500k
4GB RAM
6950

And it sets me to medium lol.
 
Pagusas said:
and here is one for ATI, seems the latest CAT drivers may have removed reference level switches: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1289487


ATI's old drivers allowed for this type of configuration:
Capture003.jpg


as I no longer have an ATI card I have no way of seeing whats new and not. If it still has that type of selection you want Full RGB
Click to expand...

It is still there, thanks for that! And it was limited by default.
 
zephervack said:
So anyone has a fix on the weird Light Source issue inside dungeons, as i get closer to them they start actually lightning up the surroundings, didnt care before but now that i noticed i cant unsee it :(
Click to expand...

Make "fLightLODStartFade=1000.0000" and "fInteriorShadowDistance=2000.0000" bigger in skyrimprefs.ini
 
Okay I left my PC on yesterday and Steam auto borked my .exe file. I have gone from a beautiful looking, perfectly stable game to one that crashes within 5 min. I don't have a old version of the .exe file and don't really want to revert my whole PC to a previous day.

Would disabling my "grid" tweeks improve stability or am I going to have to beg someone for a safe 1.1 .exe file. =)
 
I have yet to patch this game, by keeping Steam in offline mode. But today I wanted to go online with Steam, and so I tried to disable automatic updates for Skyrim before doing so. As I feared, Skyrim is currently set to automatically update, and I cannot click the drop down menu to change it.... it doesn't seem to be greyed out, it's just not clickable. Any ideas?
 
TheKurgan said:
Okay I left my PC on yesterday and Steam auto borked my .exe file. I have gone from a beautiful looking, perfectly stable game to one that crashes within 5 min. I don't have a old version of the .exe file and don't really want to revert my whole PC to a previous day.

Would disabling my "grid" tweeks improve stability or am I going to have to beg someone for a safe 1.1 .exe file. =)
Click to expand...

Use the 4GB launcher linked in the OP.
 
I've only had one problem with Skyrim so far that I haven't been able to fix with INI tweaks: when characters are standing directly to my right, I can't hear them. Their voices drop to zero volume. Apparently this is a problem for people with Realtek onboard sound and can be fixed by setting their system to 5.1 (instead of 2.1) and disabling the front and rear channels... but I'm using an Audigy 2. Has anyone else experienced this? I tried setting the Audigy to 5.1, but it doesn't seem to have made a difference.
 
Salaadin said:
If its anything like MLAA, Fraps wont catch it.

On my AMD cards with MLAA, I have to use RadeonPro and make sure I check the box telling it to retain the MLAA on the screengrab. Im not sure what the Nvidia equivalent is or if it even has such a function.

I remember someone saying that Steams built in screenshot taker will retain MLAA. Have you tried that with FXAA?
Click to expand...


FRAPS captures FXAA Injector settings fine, both in screenshots and video capture.
 
aasoncott said:
I've only had one problem with Skyrim so far that I haven't been able to fix with INI tweaks: when characters are standing directly to my right, I can't hear them. Their voices drop to zero volume. Apparently this is a problem for people with Realtek onboard sound and can be fixed by setting their system to 5.1 (instead of 2.1) and disabling the front and rear channels... but I'm using an Audigy 2. Has anyone else experienced this? I tried setting the Audigy to 5.1, but it doesn't seem to have made a difference.
Click to expand...

I actually fixed mine by switching from 5.1 to 2... and did virtual surround
 
I did put a small disclaimer on the 4GB Skyrim fix for newer exe's as I've read that some can't get it to work. If I were to recommend anything, it would be retrieving your older pre patch exe and backing that up. Then you could just repatch LAA in and have a clean backup too. As I said yesterday, I have 3 backup - 1 clean 1.1 exe, 1 LAA exe, and the non patched draconian exe from yesterday.
 
Anyone else having an issue with the Realistic Fire and Smoke mod causing big, black pixelated squares above the fire where the smoke should be?
 
I dropped any hint of Sharpening from the Injector settings, and really love how the game looks now. For a while I thought the minor sharpening enhanced some things, but it got to the point where some places were riddled with artifacting.

The pop of the autumn colors really seals the deal for me, I love it.

And man, the newest water shaders look phenomenal!
 
INDIGO_CYCLOPS said:
I dropped any hint of Sharpening from the Injector settings, and really love how the game looks now. For a while I thought the minor sharpening enhanced some things, but it got to the point where some places were riddled with artifacting.

The pop of the autumn colors really seals the deal for me, I love it.

And man, the newest water shaders look phenomenal!
Click to expand...

You probably sharpened it too much. I seem to have have the sweet spot, very crisp and everything looks fantastic without any of the over-sharpen artifacts and no effect on the text.

Also, only do pre-sharpen, stay far away from post.
 
Sethos said:
You probably sharpened it too much. I seem to have have the sweet spot, very crisp and everything looks fantastic without any of the over-sharpen artifacts and no effect on the text.

Also, only do pre-sharpen, stay far away from post.
Click to expand...

Thats a possibility yes, I used some settings posted in the tutorial in the OP. What are your settings for both pre- and post-?

I will have to try again; in some areas it looked really great.
 
Anyone know what's making my shadows do this sometimes?

x8zd2.jpg


Here is what it's like on people:

FhVzK.jpg


It's not everywhere, just now and then.
 
INDIGO_CYCLOPS said:
Thats a possibility yes, I used some settings posted in the tutorial in the OP. What are your settings for both pre- and post-?

I will have to try again; in some areas it looked really great.
Click to expand...

If you don't want the artifacting, don't use Post-Sharpen. Only use mild Pre-Sharpen settings.
 
Salaadin said:
If its anything like MLAA, Fraps wont catch it.

On my AMD cards with MLAA, I have to use RadeonPro and make sure I check the box telling it to retain the MLAA on the screengrab. Im not sure what the Nvidia equivalent is or if it even has such a function.

I remember someone saying that Steams built in screenshot taker will retain MLAA. Have you tried that with FXAA?
Click to expand...
Dxtory will capture post-processing in screenshots.
 
Dice said:
Anyone know what's making my shadows do this sometimes?

x8zd2.jpg


Here is what it's like on people:

FhVzK.jpg


It's not everywhere, just now and then.
Click to expand...

Code: 
bTreesReceiveShadows=1
bDrawLandShadows=1
bDrawShadows=1
iShadowMapResolution=512
iShadowMapResolutionSecondary=512
iShadowMapResolutionPrimary=2048
fShadowBiasScale=0.4400
iShadowMaskQuarter=3
iShadowFilter=4
iShadowMode=2
iBlurDeferredShadowMask=12
fShadowDistance=4000.0000
fInteriorShadowDistance=2000.0000

I've settled on these values for my mid-range pc and never have those problems anymore.

As a side note, I don't see the point in having the secondary shadowmap be above 512. The detail isn't noticeable as long as your primary is high enough and the fade distance is around 600.
 
I really hate the shadows in this game. If I set them to low, I can max out every other setting on Ultra and get 60fps inside and 40+fps outside. If I put it just up to medium, the shadows still look like complete shit and my performance goes to hell. I wish disabling the shadows completely actually helped performance because I'd rather have no shadows than whatever the fuck they call the black smudges that appear from the low setting.

I've tried messing with the ini without much success but I'll probably try some more.
 
MrBig said:
Make "fLightLODStartFade=1000.0000" and "fInteriorShadowDistance=2000.0000" bigger in skyrimprefs.ini
Click to expand...

MrBig said:
Code: 
bTreesReceiveShadows=1
bDrawLandShadows=1
bDrawShadows=1
iShadowMapResolution=512
iShadowMapResolutionSecondary=512
iShadowMapResolutionPrimary=2048
fShadowBiasScale=0.4400
iShadowMaskQuarter=3
iShadowFilter=4
iShadowMode=2
iBlurDeferredShadowMask=12
fShadowDistance=4000.0000
fInteriorShadowDistance=2000.0000

I've settled on these values for my mid-range pc and never have those problems anymore.

As a side note, I don't see the point in having the secondary shadowmap be above 512. The detail isn't noticeable as long as your primary is high enough and the fade distance is around 600.
Click to expand...

Thank you for these 2, I actually have the shadow issue too.
 
I'm gonna post a huge glaring problem with the water shaders later tonight, I think a lot of you will have a laugh once I fraps and gif it. Pretty damn hilarious.

edit: i also think a mod that lets you redo your character's face would be worth it. Barbershop!
 
I played a few hours last night, post patch, after installing 11.11a update.

Zero crashes, other than one from testing whether the issue with higher bitrate audio was fixed.

Nope, insta-crash at 96000Hz audio.

I'll need to do more testing with the driver, before rendering an opinion.
 
I've used a well known ini file from this thread and im loving the results. But when the sun moves the game moves to shadows on everything along with it. the way it does this looks awful is it ment to be like that or is there a way to fix it?

It kinda makes the shadows go fuzzy and flicker then goes back to normal for a while till the sun moves again and it does it again. its really doing my head in.
 
taranatar said:
I've used a well known ini file from this thread and im loving the results. But when the sun moves the game moves to shadows on everything along with it. the way it does this looks awful is it ment to be like that or is there a way to fix it?

It kinda makes the shadows go fuzzy and flicker then goes back to normal for a while till the sun moves again and it does it again. its really doing my head in.
Click to expand...
That's just how it works I'm afraid. And it's what causes the movement of the weird lines in that screen higher up the page. Just depends on the angle at which the shadows are cast over a surface. The effect can be reduced by increasing the shadow resolution (a big performance hit), or just by making the shadows fade out closer.
 
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