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[Kit Guru] AMD to limit performance of Radeon GPUs in games to cut-down power consumption

10K views 126 replies 65 participants last post by  iSlayer 
#1 ·
http://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/anton-shilov/amd-to-limit-performance-of-radeon-gpus-in-games-to-cut-down-power-consumption/
Quote:
For many years all developers of graphics processors for notebooks limited display refresh rates in cases when they did not matter in order to cut-down their power consumption. In addition, designers of GPUs reduced performance of chips in cases when it was not required. One of the things that no one has done yet is to limit performance of GPUs in games where incredible framerates do not matter. Apparently, this is what AMD is going to do.

"Earlier this week I got to play with our new Dynamic Frame Rate Control feature in a (coming soon) version of Catalyst and it was awesome," said Chris Hook, reports 3DCenter. "Being able to limit your FPS to 60fps on a game where it doesn't matter too much if you're able to get 150FPS. The power savings were mind blowing."

AMD's DFRC technology will complement existing technologies that AMD has to limit power consumption of its APUs, CPUs, GPUs and platforms. In general, it should allow AMD to improve battery power of high-performance notebooks with powerful graphics processors.
This seems like a feature that should have been around years ago. It's just common sense.
 
#2 ·
Will it underclock the GPU to achieve these power savings, or something else?
 
#4 ·
Quote:
"Being able to limit your FPS to 60fps on a game where it doesn't matter too much if you're able to get 150FPS. The power savings were mind blowing."
So basically its a framerate capper?
 
#6 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by go4life View Post

So basically its a framerate capper?
I think you can get better power efficiency if you do more then just cap fps. The fps will be capped but also the core will downclock instead of just lower GPU load. For exmaple a GPU @ 500MHz @ 0.7v @ 100% will use less power then GPU 1000MHz @ 1.3v @ 50%.
 
#7 ·
So is this just a copy of RadeonPro DFRC?

http://www.radeonpro.info/features/dynamic-frame-rate-control/
Quote:
Features »» Dynamic Frame rate Control (DFC)

Dynamic Frame rate Control feature or DFC allows for real time control of maximum rendered frames displayed per second. DFC is aimed at providing smoother gameplay by limiting the maximum displayed frames per second for games whose frame latency vary too much, for example, if a game is keeping frame rate between 50 and 80 FPS, you can set a limit of 45 FPS and enjoy a smoother experience thanks to more stable frame latency. Even if the game is capable to deliver 60 FPS, DFC set to 60 FPS as target can also help by smoothing the frame latency, try titles like Assassin's Creed Brotherhood or The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the stuttering seem on those games with plain V-sync is removed by using DFC + V-sync on.

The target frame rate can be changed in real time without leaving your game. Just press the hotkeys assigned to DFC control, by default the keys are CONTROL+Insert to increase target and CONTROL+Delete to decrease target.

DFC doesn't remove screen tearing so if you want to avoid tearing, either turn V-sync always on in RadeonPro Tweaks tab or use your in-game v-sync option.

Like DVC, DFC can also be turned on and off with the press of a key.

See also: Dynamic V-sync Control (DVC)

- See more at: http://www.radeonpro.info/features/dynamic-frame-rate-control/#sthash.3aeRjpvA.dpuf
That isn't a bad thing
biggrin.gif
. DFRC made Skyrim playable for me, and tying it to GPU power-states is a smart idea.
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by geoxile View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by go4life View Post

So basically its a framerate capper?
It seems that way. Driver-side framerate capper. To say the least it will be nice to have it driver-side. It seems like he's also implying that there will be some sort of frequency/power control.
If it's actually based on the RadeonPro feature (which is likely, seeing how the dev was hired by AMD.), I think it's more than just an FPS capper. It seems to smooth out hitches/slow frames more than other FPS caps I've seen.

EDIT: DFC can actually work WITH VSync... So I think it's more than a simple cap.
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by AcEsSalvation View Post

Stupid question, but does the EVGA Precision X frame rate limiter work with Radeon cards? I know it works with my 680. Although, now I'm using RTSS + MSI AB now to do this.
Just use RadeonPro. It actually has a feature with the EXACT same name
tongue.gif


http://www.radeonpro.info/features/dynamic-frame-rate-control/

I prefer dynamic VSync most of the time, but DFC is nice in some games.
 
#12 ·
#14 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by AcEsSalvation View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by brucethemoose View Post

Just use RadeonPro. It actually has a feature with the EXACT same name
tongue.gif


http://www.radeonpro.info/features/dynamic-frame-rate-control/

I prefer dynamic VSync most of the time, but DFC is nice in some games.
Thanks for the tip. I'm not looking for something like this, I was just wondering if there was a reason for AMD to create this.
That's the thing, I don't think they made it from scratch. I think AMD just recycled some RadeonPro code and branded it as a power-saving feature for laptops.
 
#17 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by brucethemoose View Post

If it's actually based on the RadeonPro feature (which is likely, seeing how the dev was hired by AMD.), I think it's more than just an FPS capper. It seems to smooth out hitches/slow frames more than other FPS caps I've seen.

EDIT: DFC can actually work WITH VSync... So I think it's more than a simple cap.
He is not hired by AMD, he works for Raptr which is sponsored by AMD.
 
#20 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadowarez View Post

I dont like limits im a pc user when i build a monster i expect it to forget limits why we at ocn toss $$$$ into our rigs so we can fly high without worry of such things.
Gotta love this thinking especially from a nvidia user.

AMD release a product at half the price of a titan with similar performance- "Uses to much power, you can save that on electricity (you cant) in the next 2 years".

AMD release a tool for lowering power consumption- " This is OCN!! We dont care about power consumption!!".

AMD can do no right in some peoples eyes.
 
#21 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadowarez View Post

I dont like limits im a pc user when i build a monster i expect it to forget limits why we at ocn toss $$$$ into our rigs so we can fly high without worry of such things.
First of all, not everyone can afford to throw "$$$$" into their rigs, even here. It's a forum for enthusiasts, not just rich enthusiasts.

Secondly, if you don't like it (for whatever unfathomable reason), just don't use it. There's no need to come into a thread about a nice, optional feature and start complaining about it.

Back on topic, I worry a little that this sort of thing may impact performance, but as long as the impact is small enough, this will be nothing but good.
 
#23 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Millillion View Post

First of all, not everyone can afford to throw "$$$$" into their rigs, even here. It's a forum for enthusiasts, not just rich enthusiasts.

Secondly, if you don't like it (for whatever unfathomable reason), just don't use it. There's no need to come into a thread about a nice, optional feature and start complaining about it.

Back on topic, I worry a little that this sort of thing may impact performance, but as long as the impact is small enough, this will be nothing but good.
unfathomable. UNFATHOMABLE!
 
#24 ·
What I know some people to do including myself is to use DFC in radeon pro to limit at the refresh rate to keep thermals down and overclock higher than normal to keep minimums higher than normal. GPU percentage isn't always pegged at 99% but you can get nice minimums with sweetfx and smaa.
 
#25 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by brucethemoose View Post

Just use RadeonPro. It actually has a feature with the EXACT same name
tongue.gif


http://www.radeonpro.info/features/dynamic-frame-rate-control/

I prefer dynamic VSync most of the time, but DFC is nice in some games.
Just curious what are the benefits of Dynamic VSync over a full time Vsync + framerate cap? I always thought there's sensible difference in responsiveness when you're setting a framerate cap in a Vsynced game, with RadeonPro you can do it in real time and test for yourself. Also framerate jumps from 60 to 30 are gone with fps cap, at least this is what helped me in games like AC4.
 
#26 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thready View Post

First of all, what is a limit because this is a new word for me.
In mathematics, a limit is the value that a function or sequence "approaches" as the input or index approaches some value.
 
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