New SweetFX settings.

[Markie]

Hi, been fiddling with SweetFX for a while. In the beginning it was the most frustrating thing to make it work. I followed the instructions and it all came to nought. However I finally made a breakthrough and started testing. The permutations are almost unlimited and because of this you must change one thing at a time. I am very particular so in order to get natural colour I went outside and observed clouds, grass, sea etc. Over the period of three days I tweaked the digits but ultimately I kept coming back to the same ones more or less. Now, it must be observed that people have different monitors and that colours change during the day also. So there must be sacrifices and compromises when looking for a happy medium. On my monitor it looks great but I accept not everyone will be ecstatic with these settings. This may be the single biggest improvement to the game you make - it should not be understated!

To do with your graphics card settings I will say this - either change those or install this and change these settings. With what I have produced here you can just put all files into the main game folder and it should work. There is I know a problem sometimes with the file d3d9.dll and should this occur with you remove to see if it makes a difference. I have produced screenshots and some people thought they were photo edited but the strong contrast and vivid colouring are typical of what is achievable with this powerful little upgrade. The original default colours are muted and unreal but I guess safe. You can see all the dials all the time and everything at the same intensity. Quite differently these settings show sunstrike, fog, shadows, fire, bloom and bleach etc. more naturally and I hope it feels more realistic. Yes, I have tried all the other types about and of course I will be delirious with my own preferences but I encourage you to test them all out too.

Simply unzip WinRAR file attached. Inside will be a yellow folder named "SweetFX" and eight other assorted files. All these are copied and pasted into the main folder of game (Where "Launcher.exe" is). Now you may play. * If you have an existing set of SweetFX files and folders in your main game folder remove these first to avoid conflicts with these files.

When you get adventurous you can change the settings in "SweetFX_settings.txt" and overwrite the original one in main game folder to test. To go further I have created four other types under the "Presets" folder under the "SweetFX" folder.
They are Sepia, Black and White, Insipid and Technicolor." To use one of these simply remove original "SweetFX_settings.txt" file from main game folder and replace it with one of the four i.e. "SweetFX_settings-B&W.txt" The "-B&W" part is just a reminder of the description and should then be removed so it reads the same as original you have previously removed. Good to go. Enjoy and post comments please.

P.S. Look further on in post for my latest SweetFX 1.5 settings! Even better.

[RedBeard]

Nice, definitely going to try this out some time.

[flugkapitan701]

Thank you! Looking forward to trying this when I have the time.

Cheers,
Scott

[priller26]

Hello, this works with 4.0? Colors look great, could you please verify below that this is the correct file path to direct the 8 files and the yellow sweetfx folder? Thanks

P.S. I opened the zip file, Markies...and see the 8 files and the sweet fx file, I dont extract the folder (the Markiesfiles) I just copy and paste the sweetfx and the 8 other files in the launcher.exe folder? I think this is the file path:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\il-2 sturmovik cliffs of dover

[priller26]

Installed it, love it~!

[arvigna]

itou !

great !

[Markie]

Yes, just unzip the files and you will be left with a yellow folder named "SweetFX" and eight single files. All these go straight into the main game folder structure with files such as "Launcher.exe" I have tested it with TF4.00 update and all fine. If you wish to see the difference between the default and new versions just click onto Scroll Lock key. You may prefer an insipid, dilute, uninspiring, boring, bleached look compared with the new, fresh, powerful, robust and rich look - I don't really know. I just know which one I prefer! Hard to look back now.

[priller26]

Yes, just unzip the files and you will be left with a yellow folder named "SweetFX" and eight single files. All these go straight into the main game folder structure with files such as "Launcher.exe" I have tested it with TF4.00 update and all fine. If you wish to see the difference between the default and new versions just click onto Scroll Lock key. You may prefer an insipid, dilute, uninspiring, boring, bleached look compared with the new, fresh, powerful, robust and rich look - I don't really know. I just know which one I prefer! Hard to look back now.

Hello Markie, I really do love the new look and the colors. I have found that the interior of the cockpits, that is, the gauges appear to me to be a bit too dark. I have a BENQ 27inch 120 Hz monitor. I am able to adjust my various contrast and brightness settings, however my brightness is maxed out. Any suggestions you have to lighten up the interior a bit? Thanks for the awesome tool! The colors really are rich and vibrant.

[Markie]

Haha - I thought someone would mention it being dark in the cockpit, actually this is closer to the truth in aerial combat than we may think. It encourages you to fly with the sun at your back and when it gets darker in the evening to switch on primary and secondary interior lighting. But I do sympathise with you if you have run out of brightness settings on your monitor. Remember this is just a start to getting it all "Picture perfect!"

So yes, we can change it! If you open the file "SweetFX_settings.txt" and there are four types I tinker with continuously - Lift Gamma Settings, Tonemap Settings, Vibrance Settings and Curve Settings. At the top of the page are the types to introduce into picture as an effect and to turn on we make it 1 instead of 0 for example if we want Technicolor on we make this 1. Descriptions are given as to what each function these types have. Below are the individual settings for the aforementioned types and the range is typically -1 to 1. You may know all this but I'll mention it in case you don't.

The two I would touch for lightening up are: Gamma Gain Settings and Tonemap Settings.
How to use these to see results in the game while playing you may ask? Here's how.

First bring up "SweetFX_settings.txt" by double left clicking on this file in main game structure. Go to top of page and to #define USE_SPLITSCREEN (Make digit a "1" to turn on effect of splitscreen for comparisons of old and new image). Go to bottom of page and on to #define splitscreen_mode (Make digit a "3" to give 50/50 angled splitscreen effect). Save these settings by overwriting the original file in main folder (Go to "File" top left of Notebook, "Save as", "Save"). Leave file open on desktop.

Start game. Get to a scene with land and sea and a plane (Various different elements and colours etc.) When ready to change settings click "Tab" and "Alt" keys together and go to the file open on desktop. Fiddle with digits. I suggest doing one effect at a time and writing a log of events on paper to monitor the changes. Save file as before by overwriting. Click "Tab" and "Alt" key again to return to screen. This time it will show a splitscreen displaying old and new effects. Keep fiddling with digits until happy. When finally satisfied remember to turn off Splitscreen effect at top of page (1 to 0) and save. If you do get lost and forget which was the last thing touched before it all bleached out or something similar you can always download my files again and place these in main folder to overwrite these files and start again. Hope this helps, enjoy the differences! * P.S. you can periodically check changes by clicking on "Scroll Lock" on keyboard.

[danperin]

You are almost getting there, mate! :salute:

[HarveyKrumpet]

Markie...really like your settings.

FYI - There is a new version of Sweetfx 1.5 You can find it at guru3d
http://www.guru3d.com/files_details/sweetfx_shader_suite_download.html

Going to try and "transplant" your settings into the new version

Regards

GvB

Moderator - I believe it its OK to include a site address. If not I am sorry and won't do it again

[priller26]

Haha - I thought someone would mention it being dark in the cockpit, actually this is closer to the truth in aerial combat than we may think. It encourages you to fly with the sun at your back and when it gets darker in the evening to switch on primary and secondary interior lighting. But I do sympathise with you if you have run out of brightness settings on your monitor. Remember this is just a start to getting it all "Picture perfect!"

So yes, we can change it! If you open the file "SweetFX_settings.txt" and there are four types I tinker with continuously - Lift Gamma Settings, Tonemap Settings, Vibrance Settings and Curve Settings. At the top of the page are the types to introduce into picture as an effect and to turn on we make it 1 instead of 0 for example if we want Technicolor on we make this 1. Descriptions are given as to what each function these types have. Below are the individual settings for the aforementioned types and the range is typically -1 to 1. You may know all this but I'll mention it in case you don't.

The two I would touch for lightening up are: Gamma Gain Settings and Tonemap Settings.
How to use these to see results in the game while playing you may ask? Here's how.

First bring up "SweetFX_settings.txt" by double left clicking on this file in main game structure. Go to top of page and to #define USE_SPLITSCREEN (Make digit a "1" to turn on effect of splitscreen for comparisons of old and new image). Go to bottom of page and on to #define splitscreen_mode (Make digit a "3" to give 50/50 angled splitscreen effect). Save these settings by overwriting the original file in main folder (Go to "File" top left of Notebook, "Save as", "Save"). Leave file open on desktop.

Start game. Get to a scene with land and sea and a plane (Various different elements and colours etc.) When ready to change settings click "Tab" and "Alt" keys together and go to the file open on desktop. Fiddle with digits. I suggest doing one effect at a time and writing a log of events on paper to monitor the changes. Save file as before by overwriting. Click "Tab" and "Alt" key again to return to screen. This time it will show a splitscreen displaying old and new effects. Keep fiddling with digits until happy. When finally satisfied remember to turn off Splitscreen effect at top of page (1 to 0) and save. If you do get lost and forget which was the last thing touched before it all bleached out or something similar you can always download my files again and place these in main folder to overwrite these files and start again. Hope this helps, enjoy the differences! * P.S. you can periodically check changes by clicking on "Scroll Lock" on keyboard.



Many thanks for the detailed and informative instructions, and the work! I've decided to leave the settings just as they are, I like them very very much, and I dont mind now the darker cockpit settings, as you mentioned, the shadows are great, and you just turn on the cockpit illumination when needed, the colors are very rich and vibrant!@

[|450|Devil]

I followed Markie's instructions and installed the SweetFX folder and files in my il2 folder and it looked really great.

Unfortunately after about a day I started getting Launcher crashes after about 15 minutes of flight. I then deleted the SweetFX folder and files from the il2 folder and everything is now working OK.

Any suggestions as to what might be going wrong?

[ATAG_Lolsav]

Unfortunately after about a day I started getting Launcher crashes after about 15 minutes of flight.

Hmmmmm *Shelock looks around*

- Could it be? :idea:




Any suggestions as to what might be going wrong?

AHA! Eureka! :-)

http://theairtacticalassaultgroup.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7417&p=85163&viewfull=1#post85163

Case Solved!

[Markie]

Currently feeling out the SweetFX 1.5 program and making adjustments. I am not completely happy with my settings although we are very close to a natural and believable environment. The big problem is getting one set to suit all the different times and conditions. I do not stop until I am happy so rest assured another set will come out sometime soon. It is a big leap from the original defaults and not simply by darkening or increasing contrast. I have seen dark, cartoon like settings and B&W, sepia, monotone and all sorts but to me the most important is natural, as though you are there - without scratches and saturation and vignettes.

[Markie]

O.k. been diddling with SweetFX 1.5 - didn't like cartoon and other features just basics but this does seem to have a finer feel about it, certainly more choices. I present here my latest settings but am not finished yet. See what you think and impressions please. Be fair and understand that these will never work perfectly for all lighting conditions and weather situations. There are obvious compromises. The biggest being everything is darker to bring out more definition. The midrange has to tampered with to offset this to a degree. Enjoy!

Download WinRAR file and uncompress (To desktop perhaps or an empty folder), highlight and copy these and they go straight into the main game folder as before (Where "Launcher.exe" is). To be safe if you already have SweetFX files in this folder remove first to avoid conflicts.

[HarveyKrumpet]

I used your previous version and I think you have out down yourself on this upgrade! I "flew" several single missions on automatic, just to see the whole show going on. There were times when one view just jumped out and looked absolutely real . Your coloring and clarity are masterful. BRAVO

I know sometimes this is a thankless job.....but keep at it, your work is very appreciated.

Bill

[Markie]

Really appreciate comments like this, it compels me to try harder and do more. I know not always do we hit the target but the impetus is there. I had one particularly brutal comment when I first started out in the forums and it set me back a bit. Also there are those who seek attention with worthless and cynical comments so when they are good I feel inspired.

Please consider looking at my other posts. Under Forum : Utilities & Tools - "WWII beauties for the cockpit" - photos I have composed for the cockpit of Idols from the forties and also the "WWII music compilation" that changes themes and songs and speeches every time you start the game. These three I believe really contribute to the ambience of the game in no small way. I will diversify as I go on but it is a beginning. If I was good at programming I would hit the weather part of game and produce rain, snow, lightning, rainbows etc. Now that is an area that would solidify the realism of the graphics. Also the menus need work. Anyway I will still tweak these settings and see if they can go any further.

[arvigna]

thanks again for this setting Markie ...

:thumbsup:

[Bear Pilot]

I'm away from my cockpit at the moment but should be able to be back in the air in a little over a week. The first thing on my to do list when I get home is try out your new Sweetfx settings into the game. I've never touched sweetfx before but looking at those screenshots, I'm kicking myself now. Also, I'm going to need to pick a new lucky lady to keep me company in the cockpit. That does add to immersion for me. I remember some time back, maybe TF v3.0, where new music compilations had come out and honestly I'd forgotten until you just mentioned it. Right now I've turned the music off as it just got too monotonous but now I can't wait to try out yours.

I'm sure all three will be great immersion enhancers!

:salute:

[Markie]

One thing I forgot to mention and was just pointed out to me is of course the reduction in "Jaggies" or stepping on the edges. The anti-aliasing has been dealt with or to and now it is more immersive and real. I turn off all the script on the screen (Sometimes I have the german translation on I must admit) and throttle indicators etc. so that it is a cinematic experience. When the Boss is out I crank up the volume also and the beautiful clouds and landscape and detailing of the plane really come out. I am sure some will think the contrast or brilliance has just been fiddled - a simple fix. If there are any doubts compare the original SweetFX_settings.txt file with the new one and note the differences. It is a huge shift away. I kept going until I was satisfied these settings were good for most periods of the day. When you see the new settings for a while I'm sure you may lose the appreciation of the new colours and detail. It was always there but hidden from view. If you are a staunch purist push the Scroll Lock key and go back to the old game and try to get excited about it. Check out my screenshots - type in TF 4.0 screenshots in search bar in main menu of this site under Markie and be converted. I really wish these settings were included in an update as standard.

[zionid]

I tried this before, kinda liked it, and wanted to retry with the new settings, but when copying (both from rar or from a new folder) to the Il2 folder I get an error message

Could not find this item

(Location listed)

SMAAdlls

Zup wi dat?

All other relevant files seems to copy nicely.

Edit; additionally, it does not seem to be working for some reason. No difference pressing scroll lock either. Weird....

[Markie]

There may be a compatibility problem. I suggest all the previous SweetFX files be removed first if you have them. After this download the 1.5 version given here in the post and after uncompressing to a folder highlight all of these files and put into main folder of game or simply uncompress directly into the main game folder. The SMAA dlls folder is supposed to have no files in it, this is not a mistake. Try this and will be interested to see the results. It has worked for me and other people so there is something different for sure between systems and settings.

[X-Raptor]

Hi Markie, thank you for your work about Sweetfx, I would like to try your feature but first I would like to know one thing: did this Sweetfx setting (5.1 here you posted) use Dx 9c? I ask this because I have a win 8.1 O.S. and I think this involve my CLOD is using Dx 10, so I want to know if using this Sweet Fx will affect my sistem to use Dx 9c instead that I'we read is a downgrade in graphic visual of the game. Thank you for your attention about. :salute:

[Markie]

Wow, good question! I am no expert on that but I'll tell you what I know. Someone may give a better answer to give you assurance. My understanding is that this version 1.5 is formulated to work with DX9 and of course DX10 being better you will have a lesser quality. How much so I do not know. I use Windows 7 and have no problems. When a new version of SweetFX comes out I will again play with the settings and try releasing another settings file which could suit Windows 8/8.1 better. Like any specific file released to the general masses few people have on their computer all other systems to test it. I think in terms of disrupting a system this is more supplementary to the existing game files and should not cause dire consequences to launching etc. I know some people to be sure back up a copy of all game files should there be problems and can replace with these. If a person already has a version of SweetFX on their system these files should be removed first before this one is installed. If overwriting is done remnants may remain and conflict with latest files. Also I have been questioned about importing the files. The files are uncompressed into the main game folder (Where Launcher.exe) is. The yellow folders are not broken down into files before putting into this main game folder. They remain as is. This may be a sticking point for some. It has been made to be as simple and painless as possible. I fell into the trap of thinking ahead when first downloading SweetFX a while ago and it didn't work. I opened the files and it all seemed very daunting. I made the mistake of breaking into the yellow folders and injecting these files along with the other single files into main game folder and it didn't work. Stupid program I thought! Left it for a while and this time did exactly what the instructions on the can said along the edge and knock me over with a feather it worked perfectly. Sort of skewed off track there, can't offer more. One of the geniuses here can fill you in if they read this. I really want to help but pull up short on experience with your operating system. I hope you see it in all its glory sometime soon.

[X-Raptor]

Thank you Markie for your complete reply to me. I also hope that someone will answer this question about Dx9-Dx10 dilemma about sweetFx as soon as possible because I find very,very good your work about fine-tuning this injector and I like your in-game shots. Wish you too can keep on working on sweetfx as your experience in it is jet very good. Cheers. :salute:

[joker68]

AFAIK, there's no SweetFX working for CLOD and Win8.1 x64 yet. Tried every possible combination out there, to no avail.
Must wait until a working version comes out.
Cheers

[Markie]

Thanks, that answered the question perfectly. I knew someone had tried all the combinations.

[1lokos]

This is a very good set.
The colours make things more visible - like ground targets - just only a bit dark.

But unfortunately SeewFX and my computer are not "compatible" - the game crash after minutes. Had tried before with the same result.
I think is due the ATI HD7970... No KB KB2686509 installed (Win7 64).

Sokol1

[Acegun77]

This is a very good set.
The colours make things more visible - like ground targets - just only a bit dark.

But unfortunately SeewFX and my computer are not "compatible" - the game crash after minutes. Had tried before with the same result.
I think is due the ATI HD7970... No KB KB2686509 installed (Win7 64).

Sokol1

Have You Tried Un-installing The Platform Update KB2670838 ? That's The One That Did It For Me.
I'm Now Enjoying Sweet FX To Its Full ! Hazaaar =p

[Markie]

I won't pull my punches here, some of the worst "Viruses" have been Microsoft updates that have had me trying to repair my computer, deleting files and ripping my hair out. Whoever created this SweetFX program has opened up the world for us to relatively easily change the way the game looks. I am not a programmer and haven't been to University or suchlike so it has been a revelation. If it does not work for somebody chances are it may well be the updates talked about here. I really want everyone to experience the changes because it removes a haze over the terrain as though wearing polarizing glasses on a sunny day. Persistance is rewarded!

[♣_Spiritus_♣]

Agreed. I use only three of the settings, mainly to deal with the haze issue, give the color some more pop, and the increase bloom a hair.

Good stuff.

[JG5_Emil]

Thanks Markie

Your settings are awesome, can you tell me how I turn off FXAA so I can only use the in game AA?

I turned off any AA in Nvidia control panel.

[♣_Spiritus_♣]

Emil-

Got into your CloD folder programs/steam/steamapps/common/il2 or whatever it is. There you will find the readme file SWEETFX SETTINGS.

Open that, right at the top you will see what options are on or off by either a 1 or 0. FXAA is at the top I think, just turn it to 0 and it will be off.

[JG5_Emil]

Thanks!

It's odd because it was already set to zero.

I like the contrast these settings give me much easier to see contacts now.

[ATAG_Eshark]

Well all I can say is thankyou so much Markie.Iam so glad that there are smart tech savvy guys like you on this site to help the not so savvy improve the look,and performance of the sim and make the imerssion all that better.I have just tried your SFX settings and the are phanomominal I tip my hat to your expertise,and hope that people like you carry on with such great input
Salute
DD_Eshark

[Sandhill]

Thanks for MarkiesNewSettings, good stuff! :thumbsup:

[ATAG_Lewis]

Which of the criteria do I have to change in order to only affect the contrast....?...Thanks, this will save me a whole lot of time trial and erroring...or trolling..

[Rebel]

From the readme for 1.5.1:

Levels : Sets a new black and white point. A fast and easy way to increase contrast but it causes clipping. The Curves effect does this in a more subtle way without causing clipping.

Curves : Contrast adjustments using S-curves - without causing clipping.

[DeXaÏ_☨]

Thank you very much Markie, this looks nice !

I installed the posted setups, but it is a little too sharp for my screen/setup (the lines on the map don't look straight, the chat is hard to read (...) for example). Anyone knows what to tweak, and where, to soften the picture out a little ? (According to previous post it's in "curves", but there are quite a lot of parameters).

Thanks in advance !

Edit: Oops, read too quick. It's in the sweetFX_Settings text file, in the CLOD MOD folder that you have to make the changes.



/*-----------------------------------------------------------.
/ Curves /
'-----------------------------------------------------------*/
/*
by Christian Cann Schuldt Jensen ~ CeeJay.dk

Curves, uses S-curves to increase contrast, without clipping highlights and shadows.
*/

float4 CurvesPass( float4 colorInput )
{
float3 lumCoeff = float3(0.2126, 0.7152, 0.0722); //Values to calculate luma with
float Curves_contrast_blend = Curves_contrast;
float PI = acos(-1); //3.1415926589

(...)
tmullrom(float t, float p0, float p1, float p2, float p3)
{
0.5 * ( (2 * p1) + (-p0 + p2) * x + (2 * p0 - 5 * p1 + 4 * p2 - p3) * t * t + (-p0 + 3 * p1 - 3 * p2 + p3) * x * x * x );
}

//0.5 *( (2 * b) + (-a + c) * x + (2*a - 5*b + 4*c - d) * x*x +(-a + 3*b- 3*c + d) * x*x*x)

//y = 1/2 *(x (-a *(x-1)^2+c *(-3 * x^2+4 * x+1)+d * x *(x-1))+b (3 * x^3-5 * x^2+2)) //reduce
//a * x * (x * (1 - 0.5 * x) - 0.5) + b * ((1.5 * x - 2.5) * x*x + 1) + x * (x * (x * (0.5 * d - 1.5 * c) + 2 * c - 0.5 * d) + 0.5 * c) //horner

*/

[implicit A]

If i can help, for me it's AA not curve.

try those settings for SMAA
/*-----------------------------------------------------------.
/ SMAA Anti-aliasing settings /
'-----------------------------------------------------------*/

#define SMAA_THRESHOLD 0.05 //[0.05 to 0.20] Edge detection threshold. If SMAA misses some edges try lowering this slightly. I prefer between 0.08 and 0.12.
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS 2 //[0 to 98] Determines the radius SMAA will search for aliased edges
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS_DIAG 1 //[0 to 16] Determines the radius SMAA will search for diagonal aliased edges
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.

// -- Advanced SMAA settings --
#define COLOR_EDGE_DETECTION 1 //[0 or 1] 1 Enables color edge detection (slower but slightly more acurate) - 0 uses luma edge detection (faster)
#define SMAA_DIRECTX9_LINEAR_BLEND 0 //[0 or 1] Using DX9 HARDWARE? (software version doesn't matter) if so this needs to be 1 - If not, leave it at 0.
//Enable this only if you use a Geforce 7xxx series or older card, or a Radeon X1xxx series or older card.

[DeXaÏ_☨]

Salut Implicit,

Thanks for the advice.

I set "#define Curves_contrast X //[-1.00 to 1.00] The amount of contrast you want" with X from 0.15 to 0, and it seems it helped (not enough though).

For my personal record, the default setups are the following :



#define SMAA_THRESHOLD 0.10 //[0.05 to 0.20] Edge detection threshold. If SMAA misses some edges try lowering this slightly. I prefer between 0.08 and 0.12.
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS 16 //[0 to 98] Determines the radius SMAA will search for aliased edges
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS_DIAG 6 //[0 to 16] Determines the radius SMAA will search for diagonal aliased edges
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.


I'll try your recommendations.

S!

DeX



If i can help, for me it's AA not curve.

try those settings for SMAA
/*-----------------------------------------------------------.
/ SMAA Anti-aliasing settings /
'-----------------------------------------------------------*/

#define SMAA_THRESHOLD 0.05 //[0.05 to 0.20] Edge detection threshold. If SMAA misses some edges try lowering this slightly. I prefer between 0.08 and 0.12.
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS 2 //[0 to 98] Determines the radius SMAA will search for aliased edges
#define SMAA_MAX_SEARCH_STEPS_DIAG 1 //[0 to 16] Determines the radius SMAA will search for diagonal aliased edges
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.

// -- Advanced SMAA settings --
#define COLOR_EDGE_DETECTION 1 //[0 or 1] 1 Enables color edge detection (slower but slightly more acurate) - 0 uses luma edge detection (faster)
#define SMAA_DIRECTX9_LINEAR_BLEND 0 //[0 or 1] Using DX9 HARDWARE? (software version doesn't matter) if so this needs to be 1 - If not, leave it at 0.
//Enable this only if you use a Geforce 7xxx series or older card, or a Radeon X1xxx series or older card.

[Baffin]

Question,

Does SweetFX have any impact on smoothness, frame rate, stutters, etc?

[Markie]

I have not found any change to smoothness or stuttering or frame rates and that is one good reason to use it. However the stutters I have almost seem random. I don't play online but offline, when I go over London I get stuttering and over the sea no stuttering - but sometimes the opposite is true. Very weird and yes I do turn off all other applications first. Stuttering is for me the biggest problem with the game and very difficult to address. I have also applied every "Fix" possible and still do not always get smooth gameplay, it is almost a flick of a coin each night.

[Baffin]

I have not found any change to smoothness or stuttering or frame rates and that is one good reason to use it. However the stutters I have almost seem random. I don't play online but offline, when I go over London I get stuttering and over the sea no stuttering - but sometimes the opposite is true. Very weird and yes I do turn off all other applications first. Stuttering is for me the biggest problem with the game and very difficult to address. I have also applied every "Fix" possible and still do not always get smooth gameplay, it is almost a flick of a coin each night.

Yes, my stuttering is associated with smoke, clouds, and areas with high density buildings. It certainly is exacerbated by certain, apparently random control and graphics inputs. That's why I asked about SWEETFX's impact. Thanks for the reply... if it doesn't make things any worse, I shall give it a try.

[ADDED] It works very well for me and had no apparrant impact on computer performance. Thanks!

[implicit A]

hi ! Here are my ultimate settings for Clod TF. I used Markie's One and tweek it my way. ( thanks Markie for that)
it subjectiv but i want something most photoreal as possible, not to much saturate, and cockpit not to much dark.


10773
here is the conf file to copy to your Clod main folder ( Sweet Fx 1.5.1) rename it in sweetFX_settings.txt

10775
landscape with realistic photoreal blue horizon touch. nice contrast.

10776
Pits structure sharpened, coulours well balanced

10777
well balanced gamma for nice realistic clouds

10778

10774
Don't like when cockpits are too dark, that one is Ok.


Spoting aircraft is Ok with this profile as gamma reflexion and bloom are tweeked for best ingame experience.

[Baffin]

hi ! Here are my ultimate settings for Clod TF. I used Markie's One and tweek it my way. ( thanks Markie for that)
it subjectiv but i want something most photoreal as possible, not to much saturate, and cockpit not to much dark.

Spoting aircraft is Ok with this profile as gamma reflexion and bloom are tweeked for best ingame experience.

Dear Implicit,

When you say spotting aircraft is "OK", do you mean that you can spot them much better than before? OK is one of those words in English that carries many different interpretations. Please clarify, because your pictures are beautiful but I don't want to reduce my ability to spot distant aircraft. :hpyflying:

Merci beaucoup

[implicit A]

Hey fidget, sorry for my poor english "words that carries many different interpretations". Well in French we have many words for only one interpretations.... Many words we don't use more than one time an year or a life or less or only for books ! ;-)
I mean of course a good compromise between spotting abilities and realistic landscape feeling.
I mean a bit better spotting abilities than Stock TF 4.3 of course. don't want something nice and funcky spoting at only 100 yards !:-)
The way to tweek white horizon light & bloom is "exposure" in "tone map" here is -0.07 you can tweek it to -0.20. if not enough for your personal taste uncheck completely bloom.
I use bloom but in a very light setting which can not downing spotting abilities.

the better is to test it, to see if it's pleasant for you. If you don't want to lose your last sweetfx_settings.txt just rename it as sweetfx_settings_goodonebeforeimplicitsone.txt before paste.

But spotting abilities depends too of your screen resolution. bigger it is smallers are the spots. Very true with supersampling wich can avoid horizon jaggies but makes you abilitie to spot down

:salute:

[Baffin]

Thanks for explaining, Implicit. I know the problems with language and try carefully not to offend anyone. It's very good for me that ATAG is not published in French or we would have had an international incident by now.

Sayonara,

[implicit A]

You re welcome. It s a pleasure. !:-)

[DeXaÏ_☨]

Salut Implicit, Markie,

Merci beaucoup to both of you !

S!

[Markie]

Thank you too, there are many people using these settings who say nothing for gratitude. The more settings for different people and preferences the better.

[Baffin]

Observation: My Netstats have become "Skeletonized", and hard to read. I can live with it.

[Leifr]

Morning all.
I'd love to try out SweetFX but unfortunately it seems to have the nasty habit of crashing CLoD within ten-fifteen minutes for me.
Is there a solution?

Cheers! :salute:

[implicit A]

'morning

Leifr, I never had any crash with sweetfx after 10 mn ...
The only crash I know are when i write a coma , instead of a dot in the text file ... and it crash immediately.
but it's win 7 64. maybe you have win 8 ? if this is the case i don't know any issue, try to google it. and check you have sweetfx 1.5.1 revision.


fidget for text reading, you can tweek these line in SMAA :
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.
try different value ( I would try 16) and Alt-tab to your game and refresh.
If no issue uncheck completely lumarsharpen (value 1 to 0.)

[Leifr]

Thanks for the speedy response.
I had a look over at the official page and noticed this little clause:


It does not work well with most programs that overlay an image onto the game. It has a workaround for the Steam overlay so that will work, and you can make overlays based on Rivatuner OSD work as well with a compability setting in those overlays , but other overlays may prevent SweetFX from making changes to the image or outright crash the game - turn those off.

Running Steam Overlay is a guaranteed crash for CLoD on my system, occurring most often when someone signs in and the pop-up occurs. Well, I had a think as I run it disabled and then remembered that I am currently running an MSi Afterburner overlay with FPS, temperature and memory usage as I play*. I've just disabled that now, will see how it goes. Cheers!

* It's a new system build that I put together last month so keeping an eye on performance.

EDIT: I fixed it all by removing the dreaded kb2670838! Sorted.

[Baffin]

'morning

Leifr, I never had any crash with sweetfx after 10 mn ...
The only crash I know are when i write a coma , instead of a dot in the text file ... and it crash immediately.
but it's win 7 64. maybe you have win 8 ? if this is the case i don't know any issue, try to google it. and check you have sweetfx 1.5.1 revision.


fidget for text reading, you can tweek these line in SMAA :
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.
try different value ( I would try 16) and Alt-tab to your game and refresh.
If no issue uncheck completely lumarsharpen (value 1 to 0.)

Bizarre! I Changed to 16, and it cleared up the text. So I experimented with 32, 8 and 1 in the field with very little difference from 16. Finally, I returned to 0, and the text remains thin, but clear. I will report back if it reverts to broken characters.

EDIT- Text reverted so pick a number if you want to fix it...

[Baffin]

'morning

Leifr, I never had any crash with sweetfx after 10 mn ...
The only crash I know are when i write a coma , instead of a dot in the text file ... and it crash immediately.
but it's win 7 64. maybe you have win 8 ? if this is the case i don't know any issue, try to google it. and check you have sweetfx 1.5.1 revision.


fidget for text reading, you can tweek these line in SMAA :
#define SMAA_CORNER_ROUNDING 0 //[0 to 100] Determines the percent of antialiasing to apply to corners. 0 seems to affect fine text the least so it's the default.
try different value ( I would try 16) and Alt-tab to your game and refresh.
If no issue uncheck completely lumarsharpen (value 1 to 0.)

Concerning the use of LumaSharpen with SMAA Please see

http://delightlylinux.wordpress.com/2014/03/04/sweetfx-lumasharpen/

...It implies that there may be problems if you use them together. Turning Lumasharpen off [0] solved my text problem.

[DeXaÏ_☨]

Concerning the use of LumaSharpen with SMAA Please see

http://delightlylinux.wordpress.com/2014/03/04/sweetfx-lumasharpen/

...It implies that there may be problems if you use them together. Turning Lumasharpen off [0] solved my text problem.

Also, make sure you use an in game resolution equivalent to the one of your screen. Had changed mine (can't remember why) and it really made the image worse (with most texts "skeletonized").

S!

[SG1_sandokito]

Hi first sorry for my English :D.
There are my seting to my game.
first one short video to show colors.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=m8DLTSExBSo

You have 3 options:
1 video settings whit AA.
2 Video seting whit out AA.
3 Same color but a little lighter.
Now the links
If you use JGSMMOD THIS
(https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=3e185c088bd32edd&id=3E185C088BD32EDD!199&ithint=file,rar&authkey=!ADSASHfa-OvUVc0)
If you use Sweetfx this (https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=3e185c088bd32edd&id=3E185C088BD32EDD!200&ithint=file,rar&authkey=!AN1vnQ6yVG2FfvI)
Now my nvidia control panel

Sorry my control panel is in spanish
On my and my friend test, in tests won 10 fps with little loss of quality.

Aceleración mixta : Pantalla única.
Antialiasing-Conf 4x
FXAA : Activado
Antialiasing Modo: Mejorar la conf de la aplicación.
Corrección gamma: Activado
Caché sombreador: Activado
Transparencia: 4x(supermuestreo)
Filtrado anisotropico: 8x
Filtrado de Texturas-Calidad: Calidad
Diferencias de Lod negativo: fijación
Optimización anisotrópica : Activado
Trilineal: off
Control energía: Max rendi.

[javelina]

Man, I wish this would work for Win8.1....

I love how SweetFX works with all of my DCS modules & Win8.1. But unfortunately, not with Win8.1

Anyone out there having any luck?

[implicit A]

the DCS one, is a tweaked version for 64 bits. with specific dll
here : http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=2136777&postcount=60

If it works on DCS on win 8 it should works on COD, on win 8.
Take the DCS version ( on eagle forum ) put everything in your stock COD folder, and tweek each line in the sweetfxsettings.txt from DCS version with
known good settings for Cod (like markie's one for example )

It should work isn't, give a try and tell us ?
should be nice to find an issue for Win 8 users.

[Markie]

Great find implicit A, I will try to create a zip file with these files and with my changes to settings for colour and contrast. I will set up another post just for this so those with Windows 8/8.1 can find it easier.

[9./JG52 Mindle]

Hi Markie & Implicit.

Great work, I have now got Sweet FX installed and i love it!

Excuse me for being dim, but if i wanted to swap settings between your two, do i just swap out the Sweet FX Settings TXT file? :salute:

[implicit A]

Yes we can. that's it.

Just save and rename your actual sweetfxsettings.txt as sweetfxsettings_old or anything else to find it again, and paste the new sweetfxsettings.txt instead.

you can tweak it ingame, refresh, alt-tab between notepad, modify a line, save it, alt tab ingame, refresh, see the improvement etc ...
defaut key is "print screen" to refresh or a key just behind

[9./JG52 Mindle]

Great, thanks Implicit. Great work again! :thumbsup::thumbsup:

[Markie]

Great it is working for you, which OS are you running by the way - Windows 8.0 or 8.1?

[9./JG52 Mindle]

windows 7. It worked from the start. Just needed to know it was that easy to swap out settings files. Cheers for the hard work. [emoji1]

[Markie]

Ok, that is great news but I got excited thinking the file implicit A found worked on Windows 8, and that you had tried it with that system. Otherwise you can just download my "MarkiesNewSettings1.5.RAR" from early in post and change nothing at all, settings are all there ready for Windows7.

[9./JG52 Mindle]

Yeah I have those [emoji1]

[Markie]

New Settings - HD. Hi, been fiddling again to get a sharper, bolder depiction of reality. This is boosted and you may find it too pumped up. The edges I defined to the point of graininess and backed off slightly, the metal glistens under the sun, the sun bleaches clouds around midday in one direction, you almost squint into the rich orange sunsets now and the water has a variety of hues not simply green and blue. The dials are hard to read at times (As they are in real life) and the contrast strong but the immersion element enhanced. Hope you enjoy, post comments. You can see a marked difference when pressing Scroll Lock key to see new and original settings. Use primary and secondary illumination when dark in cockpit and zoom in for better view. This is not for everyone, I am pushing the limits to get a depth of field and a feeling of being there. Looks good on my machine. This is not for those using Windows OS 8.0/8.1 - Simply unzip WinRAR file presented here and put all those files and folders into main game folder where Launcher.exe is. Restart game. Enjoy! This is a real card killer and will test your graphics for sure. If too much go back to my last set.

P.S. The only difference to my last WinRAR file is the settings file. All the other files are the same. In other words you can simply swap the old settings file for this one if you have installed my last WinRAR settings folders and files from this post.

[BlueHeron]

I love these settings, everything looks so much better. :) Unfortunately when they're turned on my game crashes to desktop after about 10 minutes of play. Happens all the time so I have to play with the settings turned off.

Any ideas I could try?

[Markie]

Hi, glad you like them. Still got a problem with clouds at 19:30 hrs showing lines much as the sky does all the time. However it is an improvement.
On page 1 of this post ATAG_Lolsav talks about uninstalling platform update KB2670838 to rectify this known problem you have. Look for that and
try it out.

As for the settings - I would say they are still not optimised. The problem is that the lighting in cockpits vary greatly and you want the colours and
sharpness to be realistic and also to read the dials O.K. Somebody has commented on this. If the cockpit lighting for the Spitfire and Hurricane for
example were closer to that of the BF109 (Boosted) I could give some staggering sunrises, sunsets and water colouration. In other words the
changes affect the whole picture not just areas. I don't know how to change values for cockpit primary and secondary lighting to do so.
So, what I mean to say is I would like to make everything a tad darker for detail but then you can't read dials in evening because cockpit lighting
on some planes not strong enough on full.

Anyway wishlist stuff. Considering I had monitor problems at the time the settings are acceptable.

[BlueHeron]

A-ha! Found and removed the evil update, now I'll try out those settings again. Thanks! [Edit: worked like a charm!]

I'll keep an eye out for more of your awesome SweetFx tweaks.

[maxwitt]

Hello everybody,

Just an idea.
Don t you think, it can be possible to do an easy mod surely with sweet fx to represent this:

http://www.historicflyingclothing.com/raf-mk-iv-flying-goggles-complete-boxed_item_10671#.VP7pFOGjBFU

One key and you got yours flip-up anti-glare shield for aiding visibility in bright sunlight.

What do you think? :crazyeyes:

PS: Merci beaucoup Markie. Your last setting work pretty well for me. Un vrai bonheur.

[Markie]

Interesting to say the least! I have already been accused of making settings a little dark in the past so I may remain out of the picture on this one. The biggest problem is changing the settings affects the whole picture. The internal lighting on different planes is ...well, different! So one setting on one may be unacceptable in another. I have tried to equalise as much as possible. Will be curious to see how new operating system in the future (Win10) affects play and whether SweetFX can be applied.