FRAPS creates a huge FPS loss when recording

[NJMike]

I just want to know why FRAPS makes me lose almost 30 FPS once I start recording? I'm running at around 30 FPS on Mid and the moment I start recording I go down to about 2 FPS. I've never had this issue with Guild Wars, another full-screen MMO I used to play -- FRAPS recorded it smoothly.

I'm running Singularity and here are my computer's specs:

CPU: Intel Pentium 4 Northwood (2399.57 MHz)
Memory: 1536 MB
OS Version: Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 3 (Build 2600) compatibility mode. real ver: 6.0 (Build 2900)
Graphics Card Vendor: NVIDIA Corporation
Graphics Card: GeForce 7300 GT/AGP/SSE2
Windows Graphics Driver Version: 6.14.0012.7061
OpenGL Version: 2.1.2
SSE Version: SSE2

[Niko Kozower]

I would recommend upgrade the graphics card. Anyway most of the hardware is outdated which could be the main reason why you lose so much FPS.

[NJMike]

Upgrade my graphics card? I just got this one May 18th and it's the best card I can get for my computer.

Anyway, I don't know about the hardware thing, because I've been able to record other full-screen games with no problem with FRAPS and that was back when I had 512 MB of RAM and a 128 MB Radeon 9250 graphics card.

[leliel Mirihi]

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NJMike wrote:

Upgrade my graphics card? I just got this one May 18th and it's the best card I can get for my computer.

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There's a good chance you got ripped off and it's far from the best card you can get for that machine. Anyway it's pretty well known that FRAPS can cause a large hit in performance.

[NJMike]

Show me a card you think I should use, then. Because this is the best AGP card I could find (my friend told me AGP was better than PCI when it comes to graphics cards because it's more dedicated to video than PCI).

Regardless, this card gets the job done for me. I just wanted to see if I could figure out why FRAPS slowed it down but my other games played fine. Maybe my resources are getting eaten up.

[leliel Mirihi]

There are at least 20 cards that are faster. Off the top of my head I'd suggest either the 7800GS AGP or the X1950GT AGP, both are 3-4 times faster than what you have. Not that I'd recommend buying anything for that machine now. The 7300GT is actually slower than the top of the line cards available when your machine was made. 

Yes the resources are getting eaten up. FRAPS can cause a performance hit if you try running a demanding game while recording, which is what you're doing.

 

[Steph Catseye]

I'd suggest to run a performance logger!

The graphics card should be ok, not sure if the processor and ram can handle it! A performance logger will tell you exactly what short comings there are, also one would need to know in which resolution your run SL whith what kind of settings and if you enabled shaddows or not because if you run it in Ultra Mode with Shaddows in any higher resolution i would believe your system is already providing on the limit! Recording Full Screen your graphic card should handle well!

Again.. use a performance logger, even the windows built in one can give you some ideas!

[NJMike]

Well I forgot to mention I was looking for a card under $100, and my 512MB GeForce 7300GT was $52. I just wanted something quick and cheap that could handle SL well since my old 128MB Radeon 9250 died, and this card does just that.

@Steph Catseye: How do I do that? And I have my game on Mid always.

[Morgan Talbot]

Windows loves memory.. you barely have enough to run Windows and SL, and I'm willing to bet you're paging out to the hard drive for memory, add video logging and you're definately using your hard drive for memory.

If spending a few hundred dollars on a new PC isn't an option, the only upgrade I would recommend is upgrading your memory to 4 gb.

[leliel Mirihi]

Ram prices start going back up once it becomes obolete. Gettting 4GB for that machine would cost $100 which is about $95 more then I'd be willing to spend on it. I think a $300 laptop is a better option.

[Ormand Lionheart]

Your PC is underpowered for using FRAPS and SL at the same time. Even with a DuoCore I would get up to 90% cpu usage doing that and FRAPS would drop about 10-15 fps. Try to  get a DuoCore system with at least a 8800GTX and 2 GB RAM.