I’ve been fiddling with my GPU config to try to improve the graphics of my Zwift. I was not happy with the jaggedness of the road at 4K. This is something anti-aliasing can improve as far as I understand.
In Zwift there are no options within the program to change any advanced graphics settings.
In Windows, with a good Nvidia card we have some advanced options to play with that can significantly change the way Zwift looks and performs.
Looking at my log file the only reference to an anti-aliasing setting or advanced GPU setting I found was the following.
Unknown command “aniso 4”
set gSSAO=1
set gFXAA=1
OK so =1 usually means use it, and there we have SSAO and FXAA. SSAO isn’t anti-aliasing, but FXAA is and it appears to be enabled and is the AA method of choice for the Zwift software.
I had my FXAA OFF in my Nvidia settings because its not the best AA solution, so I’ve enabled FXAA ON and I’ve set my AA enhancement to 4X. Zwift has never looked so smooth at 4K. Big Improvement for me, YMMV.
This is jaggedness I am referring to in a low resolution auto-Zwift screenshot from a 4K ride before enabling FXAA and 4X AA sampling rate. Ridiculous.
Nice pics. I should have been more clear about the jaggedness I was referring to. It is most noticeable in the yellow road lines when going around a corner with some amount of up or down elevation.
I should have also been a little more systematic in testing different settings, including starting out with the default Nvdia settings and working forward from there.
My system specs, i5-8600k @4.7Ghz, GTX 1080 @1949Mhz
So I did 3 rides/ tests today on Watopia Figure 8, found a hilly corner and took some pics:
First ride at restored default Nvdia settings. locked @ 60FPS
Second ride with Ambient Occlusion and FXAA ON. I used these 2 settings based on the set gSSAO=1, set gFXAA=1 variables in the log file. locked @ 60FPS
Third ride with same settings as ride #2 but with Vertical Sync OFF. Using the default Nvdia settings with vertical Sync ON (use the application setting) limits your FPS to the refresh rate of your monitor running Zwift, so I was locked at 60fps for the first 2 rides. Ride 3, Average 107 FPS
Interesting results, Absolutely no difference in the jagged yellow lines on the hilly corners! lol. Though I do believe shading and lighting improved with each test. (subjective)
Changing the Antialiasing mode to Enhance the application setting made a noticeable improvement to the jagged yellow road line in curves with elevation. Unfortunately when taking a pic of my test corner, you can’t see the difference in a static image. The improvement is only noticeable while in motion/ in game. I’m to lazy to cap videos but if was to describe it, I’d say it turns the jagged yellow lines into smoother waves while in motion. There’s no getting rid of the phenomenon @ 4K, it’s baked into the graphics of the game but the AA seems to improve it.
So my preferred 4K Nvidia settings are now:
Ambient Occlusion=Performance
FXAA=ON (I’m not sure whether the AO or FXAA is what changed the lighting in my test corner or if its a zwift time of day thing)
Antialiasing-Mode=Enhance the application setting
Antialiasing-Setting=2X
Triple Buffering=ON (good to use if you have 8GB of GPU memory AND you are using Vertical Sync)
Vertical Sync=Use the application setting (using V-sync caps your FPS at your screen refresh rate, and I’m happy with a rock solid 60FPS @4K, I can push over 120 FPS with this setting off but my GPU is above 80% usage. Running with the V-sync my GPU purrs along at ~ 50% usage.
Ok I got off my lazy click finger and made a quick 10 minute @ 4K with those settings.
Not saying these are the best settings, just trying to keep the conversation going for graphics enthusiasts. Must watch in 4K (on a 4K monitor) for effect.
You can see some great things and some not so great things in this current setup.
@Anders_Grund,
You say 83 FPS. Where did you determine that?
I have only heard of and used zwiftalyzer dot com and I only get 60 FPS. I just upgraded my PC (which I only use for zwift) to a gaming PC with a new gaming monitor and I hope to exploit all the graphics I can.
I would appreciate any information, links or tips you might have.
JWR
