Some time ago, in addition to the Nvidia, AMD and Intel graphics card selection guide, we provided you with a complete definition and review of retrying, as well as DLSS, which you can read from the following links. Now it’s time to see how we can see from the benchmark graphics card.
This is a must have, for any Affiliate, promoting any program. If you come across professional PC gamers, you will soon realize that getting a benchmark does not simply mean recording the frame rate in a few games!
More than half of the benchmark work is related to the preparation phase. By default, you can run some games, as mentioned above, to check some things like frame rate, but you will not be able to easily understand how they work on your system.
In the following, we will teach you a step-by-step guide on how to benchmark your graphics card; Are yo ready?
Step 1: Download the benchmark software
You need some good software to get started with benchmarking. We suggest using at least one artificial (simulated) benchmark and one game to accomplish this process. Synthetic benchmarks are tightly controlled so their results are reproducible and stable.
As such, these benchmarks do not specify exactly how your graphics card will perform in real video games. That’s why using a game for a benchmark is better than simulating software.
For the first case, the artificial benchmark, we recommend 3DMark Time Spy, which is both free and uses the now-popular gaming API, DirectX 12. 3DMark Fire Strike is another option that uses DirectX 11, of course. As mentioned, the standard versions of these apps are completely free, but if you are looking to get a 4K benchmark, you should get the extreme version of these apps for a fee.
Conversely, there are not many free games to register a good benchmark. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is a relatively expensive option, as Ubisoft has equipped it with built-in benchmarking software. In addition to its high quality and quantity, this game can be used for benchmarking in various resolutions and various hardware.
Forza Horizon 4 and Shdow of the Tomb Raider are among the other low-cost benchmarking options. Of course, you can download and run them illegally, which we do not recommend, but in any case, their benchmark results are exactly the same when you buy them.
All three games offer good average frame rates, but you need separate software to accurately record your hardware performance when running them. There are many frame rate recording software that FRAPS has the easiest user interface. This software only records and displays the lowest, average and highest frame rates.
Apart from that, if you are only a little familiar with PCs and the tech world, we suggest using CapFrameX and OCAT software. Both are free, open source, and based on Intel’s official PresentMon library, and show you the same information.
Download your game, artificial benchmark software, and frame rate software at this point and get ready to run. Now it’s time to move on to the next step and get the computer ready for benchmarking.
Step 2: Get your computer ready for benchmarking
The first step in making sure your PC is ready for benchmarking is to download the latest drivers. To do this, you need the latest version of the drive released by your graphics card manufacturer (Nvidia or AMD) as well as a Windows update. Downloading a graphics card drive is not a difficult process at all, and you can use the Internet to find out how.
To download the latest version of Windows, press the “Windows” and “S” buttons on the keyboard at the same time to open the Check for Updates page. In this section, if there is an update, download it. When you restart your computer, the graphics card and Windows updates will be installed. After turning on the computer, leave it for 10 to 15 minutes to return to a steady state.
There are some other optimizations that you can do to make the benchmark result more accurate. For example, you can disable automatic Windows notifications and updates. To deactivate notifications, press the “Windows” and “S” keys at the same time and type the same phrase following the Notifications option. After logging in, disable the Get Notifications From Apps and Other option.
Updates should not bother you. You can disconnect from the Internet to block them. Doing so will also block and restrict all background internet connections. The difference in performance is not so great even in this case, but it is better to do it.
Once again, open the Windows search box by pressing the mentioned combination keys and search for Power Plan. Choose one of the Balanced or High Performance options here. The second option offers higher performance in exchange for more power consumption.
If your system has an Nvidia graphics card, right-click on the screen, open the Nvidia Control Panel, and go to Manage 3D Settings. Under Power Management, select the Prefer Maximum Performance option. This option allows your graphics card to always run at maximum speed.
On newer graphics cards, selecting or not selecting this option does not make much difference. However, making the above settings will get your computer ready for benchmarking under any circumstances.
Step 3: Configure settings and perform tests
As mentioned, many proprietary benchmarking software is highly controlled and self-contained. At this point, you are ready to go. Run your favorite 3DMark software and click Test. Do not work with the computer while performing the test.
Repeat the test several times to make sure the results are almost the same each time. There is no need to record the results exactly every time, without any difference, but if you notice big differences, there is a problem.
You can do this test 2 to 5 times depending on the hardware and the results. The goal is to ensure that the hardware is working properly and that you are getting the right results. 3DMark enhances test accuracy by displaying benchmarks of different configurations of similar hardware. If your benchmark result is close to the average displayed, the test is running correctly and is not a problem. Finally, when you get to the exact benchmark in the artificial test, it’s time to run the real benchmark with the game.
Games are a bit more complicated. Disable V-Sync by going to Settings before starting the test. This option locks the game frame rate on your screen frame rate. If you see any frame rate limiter in the settings, turn it off the same way. Set the game resolution to the native resolution of your screen and select the quality settings according to one of the available options.
You can get the best performance by changing the quality settings, but we suggest using one of the default quality options for testing to get comparable results from your benchmark. At first, most people consider High graphics settings. Next time, lower the graphics setting each time and repeat the test.
After that, you can test at different resolutions. Higher resolutions put more pressure on the graphics card, while lower resolutions rely more on the CPU. The main goal is to understand the power and performance of the graphics card, so prioritize higher resolutions.
Full-screen testing is a better approach. In fact, the closer the situation is to your actual execution of the game, the more accurate the results will be. If you use our suggested games to do benchmarking, you can get help from their default benchmarking tool by entering the settings. If you use other games, benchmarking becomes a little more complicated, which we’ll cover in the next step.
Step 4: Implement manual benchmarking in games
If you want to test a game manually and get a benchmark with it, run one of the frame rate recording software and then press the F1 or F2 button. At this point you need to select the time period you want. It is recommended that you set a time limit of at least 1 minute before the end of the benchmark. You can also increase this amount to 5 minutes, which, of course, is not necessary.
Before starting the benchmark, find the part of the game that is easily repeatable. Make sure that the cutscenes or. Do not get in your way while performing the benchmark. You need the part of the gameplay that incorporates the most elements of the game. For example, if you are playing an open world game, you should not run a benchmark inside a building or indoors. If the game offers a lot of battles, you also have to run a benchmark within a fight.
Perform the test several times during crowded and heavy scenes so that the results match. It’s hard to do such tests perfectly, but you will get much better results if you prevent them from entering inappropriate areas and also pointing the camera at the sky.
Step 5: Record and confirm the benchmark results
How should you record the results? There are many methods, but we suggest using a spreadsheet program. The average frame rate has the highest priority. After that, a 1% lower frame rate is the most important statistic to record and track. This is also called 99th percentile, which is the lowest 1% of your benchmark frame rate.
The lower the gap between the average frame rate and the frame rate by 1%, the more problems and problems your results will face. This criterion shows the stator or drop of the overall game frames during the benchmarking, and thus, reveals a lot of facts about performance. If a game has a high frame rate of 10 seconds and a low frame rate for the next 10 seconds, the average frame rate in this situation is not reliable at all. A lower 1% frame rate is a better way to evaluate such issues.
Finally, it is still better to compare your results with the results in 3DMark to confirm. Record your results as soon as you confirm them. In the future, you can review these results to compare your old and new hardware. If you have any questions about the benchmark and graphics card, ask them so that the Wironal team can answer them as soon as possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
What software do we need for the benchmark?
- For the artificial benchmark case, we recommend 3DMark Time Spy, which is both free and uses the popular gaming API, DirectX 12. 3DMark Fire Strike is another option that uses DirectX 11, of course.
What are the best benchmark games?
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is a relatively expensive option, as Ubisoft has equipped it with built-in benchmarking software. Forza Horizon 4 and Shdow of the Tomb Raider are among the other low-cost benchmarking options. Of course, you can download and run them illegally, which we do not recommend, but in any case, their benchmark results are exactly the same when you buy them.
What is an artificial benchmark and what are its points?
- Synthetic benchmarks are tightly controlled so their results are reproducible and stable. As such, these benchmarks do not specify exactly how your graphics card will perform in real video games.
