AA or HDR?

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

I have 2 7800GT's in SLI. Now, playing half-life 2 and all the other games with HDR, I obviosly can't enable AA+HDR. So which one would you choose, the AA or the HDR. I think I would take the AA since the image quality would be greater with that, am I right?

BFG10K · Dec 17, 2005

The only games where you can't enable HDR + AA are the ones that use FP blending (Far Cry, Serious Sam 2 and maybe a few others). HL2 does not use FP blended HDR.

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

I thought any HDR on an Nvidia card could'nt be used with AA. I guess I was wrong.
But for the games that have the HDR or AA, which would you choose.

CP5670 · Dec 17, 2005

I am planning to use AA in Far Cry but HDR in most other games, like SCCT. Far Cry's HDR has some issues with SLI, as there is a minimal performance boost over a single card, and I think AA is more useful in that game than its somewhat buggy HDR anyway.

nitromullet · Dec 17, 2005

I would choose AA over HDR. For the brief period that I played Chaos Theory, that's what I did. I can't stand jaggies.

otispunkmeyer · Dec 17, 2005

AA in FC since that HDR kinda goes OTT.

HDR in Splinter cell for sure
HDR on DoD (and t'other source games that use it)
HDR in serious sam

nRollo · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: wizboy11
I thought any HDR on an Nvidia card could'nt be used with AA. I guess I was wrong.
But for the games that have the HDR or AA, which would you choose.

HL2s HDR is one short level that is more of a tech demo. DoD is 4 levels of WW2 add on to HL2.

The games where you would really have to choose are sort of a moot point, as no card currently offers HDR+AA on EXR HDR. The X1800s may someday.

kylebisme · Dec 17, 2005

The X1800s have offered it since they came out, the problem is that games have to be patched to support it.

McArra · Dec 17, 2005

HDR is much better than AA IMO, I always choose HDR over AA

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

So what makes HDR so much better than AA. (and don't relate to performance)

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

SynthDude2001 · Dec 17, 2005

For games where I have to choose (like FarCry), I'd go with AA since HDR is way too much of a performance hit. Although in reality, I can't even really use AA in FarCry and maintain the framerates I like to see...

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: SynthDude2001
For games where I have to choose (like FarCry), I'd go with AA since HDR is way too much of a performance hit. Although in reality, I can't even really use AA in FarCry and maintain the framerates I like to see...

With 2 7800GT's I really shouldn't have to worry about the performance hit. I still don't have an answer.

So what makes HDR so much better than AA. (and don't relate to performance)

Munky · Dec 17, 2005

I'ts a personal preference. I cant stand jaggies, so I'd chose AA over HDR, while others might prefer HDR. But HL2 (the regular game) does not use HDR anyways, only Lost Coast does, so in that case I'd enable AA.

RussianSensation · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: wizboy11
So what makes HDR so much better than AA. (and don't relate to performance)

You can can simulate AA by simply increasing resolution and solving the jaggies issues for the most part. You cannot substitute HDR at this point with anything. AF is even more important than AA since it substantially increases the quality of textures. In FPS games, where you are moving at fast speeds, you'll never even notice much of the advantages of AA imo, but you'll notice the way the water looks, the way the sun shines, reflections => all which can benefit from HDR.

HDR actually makes things more realistic in cases where you get "blinded" by objects that refract light, etc. AA adds nothing to realism. It simply enhances image quality by reducing jaggies, but does not alter physically (or not what i perceive as physical effect) the way a game looks.

TheRyuu · Dec 17, 2005

The max my monitor can handle is 1280x1024, which is the native resolution (it's an LCD).
I'll have to see for myself I guess when my rig is finally built.

SonicIce · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

Originally posted by: wizboy11
So what makes HDR so much better than AA. (and don't relate to performance)

Click to expand...

You can can simulate AA by simply increasing resolution and solving the jaggies issues for the most part. You cannot substitute HDR at this point with anything. AF is even more important than AA since it substantially increases the quality of textures. In FPS games, where you are moving at fast speeds, you'll never even notice much of the advantages of AA imo, but you'll notice the way the water looks, the way the sun shines, reflections => all which can benefit from HDR.

HDR actually makes things more realistic in cases where you get "blinded" by objects that refract light, etc. AA adds nothing to realism. It simply enhances image quality by reducing jaggies, but does not alter physically (or not what i perceive as physical effect) the way a game looks.

It's the other way around, AA simulates higher resolution

. I agree, AF is a bigger improvement than AA. AA does make things more realistic, though (there are no jaggies in real life). But HDR is an even bigger improvement.

xtknight · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: SonicIce
It's the other way around, AA simulates higher resolution . I agree, AF is a bigger improvement than AA. AA does make things more realistic, though (there are no jaggies in real life). But HDR is an even bigger improvement.

What he said was correct. AF increases the perceived quality of the textures by doing more filtering passes on them. FSAA/SSAA/TRSSAA/AAA can improve the perceived quality of textures because it AAs the whole screen (or most in the case of TRMSAA/adaptive). MSAA will just affect the edges. TRMSAA will selectively AA textures and edges.

Oh, I'd take HDR bloom+radiance mapping over AA any day.

a4000tdh · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: wizboy11
So what makes HDR so much better than AA. (and don't relate to performance)

run FarCry's first level using HDR 7 at 1920x1200 then u'll know

a4000tdh · Dec 17, 2005

in my opinion once you get up to a high resolution jaggies are not really noticable during running/gunning/exploring and are not noticable on round objects even with no AA on high res

BFG10K · Dec 17, 2005

But for the games that have the HDR or AA, which would you choose.

Probably AA.

as no card currently offers HDR+AA on EXR HDR.

The R5xx series offers it right now.

SonicIce · Dec 17, 2005

Originally posted by: xtknight

Originally posted by: SonicIce
It's the other way around, AA simulates higher resolution . I agree, AF is a bigger improvement than AA. AA does make things more realistic, though (there are no jaggies in real life). But HDR is an even bigger improvement.

Click to expand...

What he said was correct. AF increases the perceived quality of the textures by doing more filtering passes on them. FSAA/SSAA/TRSSAA/AAA can improve the perceived quality of textures because it AAs the whole screen (or most in the case of TRMSAA/adaptive). MSAA will just affect the edges. TRMSAA will selectively AA textures and edges.

Oh, I'd take HDR bloom+radiance mapping over AA any day.

Using AA on the whole screen? It doesn't just loose sharpness?

xtknight · Dec 18, 2005

Originally posted by: SonicIce
Using AA on the whole screen? It doesn't just loose sharpness?

Nothing is really losing sharpness...

With SSAA, the whole scene is actually rendered at a bigger resolution in the frame buffer, then scaled down by the GPU to the requested resolution by blending adjacent pixels. The blending causes the perceived smoothness. For example, in HL2, a black telephone line over a blue sky would consist of ((black+blue)/2) around it, or something to that extent. That's what makes it look smoother. MSAA does this just to lines, and SSAA does it to the whole screen at once. Adaptive/transparent AA selectively choose things to AA.

Munky · Dec 18, 2005

Originally posted by: SonicIce

Originally posted by: xtknight

Originally posted by: SonicIce
It's the other way around, AA simulates higher resolution . I agree, AF is a bigger improvement than AA. AA does make things more realistic, though (there are no jaggies in real life). But HDR is an even bigger improvement.

Click to expand...

What he said was correct. AF increases the perceived quality of the textures by doing more filtering passes on them. FSAA/SSAA/TRSSAA/AAA can improve the perceived quality of textures because it AAs the whole screen (or most in the case of TRMSAA/adaptive). MSAA will just affect the edges. TRMSAA will selectively AA textures and edges.

Oh, I'd take HDR bloom+radiance mapping over AA any day.

Click to expand...

Using AA on the whole screen? It doesn't just loose sharpness?

On old Nv cards the quincunx method did blur the whole screen, but in modern cards AA effectively smoothes out the edges of polygons without making anything blurry.

xtknight · Dec 18, 2005

You can actually still use 2xQ on a 7800GT with the normal control panel. I think the Quincunx overdoes it though.

What exactly does Quincunx do? IIRC it did one AA early in the stage and another later or something?!

AA or HDR?

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