MAME HLSL CRT SCANLINE EMULATION PRESETS

[nesrulz]

Which settings you use for CAVE games?

[tzakiel]

Can someone tell me where I can download a complete HLSL folder including aperture png and white png? MAMEui doesn't have these png files in the folder, but mame.ini settings is asking for them.

[cools]

mamedev.org

[tzakiel]

mamedev.org

Don't see HLSL download on there... where?

[cools]

It's part of the standard package, which anyone using MAME should install as a matter of course.

[tzakiel]

OK I just did that, and the HLSL folder still doesn't include aperture.png and white.png. Maybe those have been phased out? It only includes .fx files.

[cmoses]

OK I just did that, and the HLSL folder still doesn't include aperture.png and white.png. Maybe those have been phased out? It only includes .fx files.

Aperture.png and white.png are not in the HLSL folder they are in the Artwork folder.

[cools]

They should be placed in the artwork folder.

[tzakiel]

That's because those files are not part of HLSL, it doesn't use them.

EDIT: ok, i figured it out. I didn't have aperture.png in my artwork folder, either... I added it and now HLSL looks different. So it does use it but it's not from the hlsl folder. Odd. Got it.

From HLSL settings in mame.ini:

hlsl_enable 1
hlslpath HLSL
hlsl_prescale_x 0
hlsl_prescale_y 0
hlsl_preset -1
hlsl_write
hlsl_snap_width 2560
hlsl_snap_height 1600
shadow_mask_alpha 0.200000
shadow_mask_texture aperture.png
shadow_mask_x_count 320
shadow_mask_y_count 240
shadow_mask_usize 0.09375
shadow_mask_vsize 0.109375
curvature 0.0
pincushion 0.02
scanline_alpha 1.00
scanline_size 1.00
scanline_height 0.7
scanline_bright_scale 1.1
scanline_bright_offset 0.60
scanline_jitter 0.05
defocus 1.000000,0.000000
converge_x -0.100000,0.000000,0.100000
converge_y 0.100000,0.000000,-0.100000
radial_converge_x 1.300000,0.000000,-1.300000
radial_converge_y -0.300000,0.000000,0.300000
red_ratio 1.000000,0.000000,0.000000
grn_ratio 0.000000,1.000000,0.000000
blu_ratio 0.000000,0.000000,1.000000
saturation 1.05
offset 0.0,0.0,0.0
scale .75,.75,.75
power 1.0,1.0,1.0
floor 0.01,0.01,0.01
phosphor_life 0.1,0.1,0.1
yiq_enable 0
yiq_cc 3.597545
yiq_a 0.500000
yiq_b 0.500000
yiq_o 0.000000
yiq_p 1.000000
yiq_n 1.000000
yiq_y 6.000000
yiq_i 1.200000
yiq_q 0.600000
yiq_scan_time 52.599998
yiq_phase_count 2

[arcadeswede]

I use a Dell 4:3 19" LCD monitor with a native resolution of 1280x1024. HLSL doesn't work at all with this monitor. I don't see any scanlines etc. I tried a monitor at work which has 1080 resolution and it all worked.

What should I change to make hlsl work on my 1280x1024 monitor that's in my cab?

[cmoses]

I use a Dell 4:3 19" LCD monitor with a native resolution of 1280x1024. HLSL doesn't work at all with this monitor. I don't see any scanlines etc. I tried a monitor at work which has 1080 resolution and it all worked.

What should I change to make hlsl work on my 1280x1024 monitor that's in my cab?

First off your Dell 19" monitor is not 4:3 aspect ratio, it is 5:4. If you divide 4 by 3 you get 1.33. If you divide 5 by 4 you get 1.25. If you divide 1280 by 1024 you get 1.25, so it is a 5:4 monitor. The aspect ratio of your monitor has no effect on HLSL working or not so that isn't an issue. I have a Dell 19" 1280x1024 monitor that I use often for testing and HLSL works fine.

My guess is that on your computer at home you might not have DirectX 9.0c installed. HLSL will not work without it. So make sure you have it installed. If it is installed then post your HLSL section on your mame.ini file.

[tzakiel]

I use a Dell 4:3 19" LCD monitor

First off your Dell 19" monitor is not 4:3 aspect ratio, it is 5:4. If you divide 4 by 3 you get 1.33. If you divide 5 by 4 you get 1.25.

I think the poor guy just meant "not widescreen" People have been taught to think in 4:3 or 16:9

[arcadeswede]

Yeah, you guys are right. Forgot to mention that I'm a noob

Oh, crap! Of course. I read about the directX somewhere here but I forgot about it when I arrived to the last page on this thread. I'll have a go and will come back with the result.

Thanks guys! Saved my day

[arcadeswede]

Alright, I downloaded the DirectX 9.0 and got it to work. Everything looks great!
But it's not playable since my CPU is hitting the roof. It's a Intel Core 2 Duo 3.0Ghz and 4 GB RAM.

Metal Slug is going: Ma-ma-ma-ma-chi-chi-chi-chi-n-n-n-n-gun-gun-gun

UPDATE: I turned down the prescale option from 7 to 5 and it's working without any problems.

[Nocta]

[...] The next release of INI creator will be the last. (and maybe one more after that to correct any issues)
If you have any game that you want supported, please mention its name now.

Hi NUeda, if you can support the different Cave games in your last INI, that would be just great!

Thanks a lot man for the amazing work you've done so far and please let us know of your journey through Retroarch!

[wirm]

These settings are great. When I update my Hlsl settings using mame -CC to create it my mame runs almost unplayable. I have a i5 2500 with 4 gigs of ram. But i'm running off the onboard graphics card. Do I need to opt in and buy a dedicated graphics card to us Hlsl? Thought mame didn't use the graphics card? And if so what can I use as far as best bang for buck. I don't want to spend too much on it but I want it run smoothly and not be the bottle neck of my system at all.

Thanks!

[Fudoh]

I'm planning on getting an i5 Brix Pro with Iris graphics. It's not yet available over here, but should be sometime soon.

(EDIT: this was a reply to blizzz's question about HLSL performance on smaller GPUs)

[blizzz]

(EDIT: this was a reply to blizzz's question about HLSL performance on smaller GPUs)

Just for reference again: My question was about the minimum GPU requirement for HLSL, mainly, is the Gigabyte Brix fast enough for HLSL and RetroArch (with bsnes core).
The Brix has an AMD HD8510G which is quite a bit faster than an Intel HD4000 (which is too slow). The dealbreaker is the AMD A8-5545M CPU with 4x 1.70GHz. That's just too slow for bsnes. When the CPU in these low end boxes is too slow for proper emulation, it doesn't make much sense to discuss the GPU. That's why I deleted it.

The Brix Pro costs as much as a decent PC, which is more than I would pay just for emulation. For that price I would rather choose a slightly bigger case that is fast enough for Steam games. A good board with a current i3 and a GTX 650Ti Boost costs 300€ vs 500€+ for the Brix Pro.

BUT, if you really want a small device for high quality emulation, then the Brix Pro seems to be a good choice.

[Fudoh]

of course any decent - self compiled - system makes more sense, but I simply find the Brix Pro to be quite sexy, especially the i5 version in red/black.

[wirm]

I Order the EVGA GeForce GT 630 2048MB GDDR3 GPU from amazon. Think that will fix the Hlsl super lag? I am using the onboard Graphics now.

[Fudoh]

I think you're misinterpreting the concept of "lag".

[blizzz]

I guess he means lag as in low fps. The i5-2500 has a HD2000 graphics chips, which is quite a bit slower than the HD4000 that I tested without success a while ago. (The i5-2500K has a HD3000, but that doesn't change much)

The GT 630 is only a bit faster than the HD4000. It might not work, or it might just barely work with that card.

[LRa]

Been playing around with Retroarch, pretty nice shaders I must say.

Has anyone had success with ps1 games? (can't only get .cue files to work and not .ccd)

[wirm]

Thanks blizzz. I guess I'll have to just see what happens. Amazon has a great return policy anyway. So what are my options? Can I get away with just updating my GPU? Sounds like I need something more beefy possibly? Any suggestions without busting the bank? Again all games play at 100% without the Hlsl on. Even 3d games.

[blizzz]

The Sandybridge i5/i7 processors are really good for games, no need to upgrade that. It's always hard to recommend a GPU, because it massively depends on your local prices and what you expect. I've got a GTX 650 Ti Boost in my HTPC. It cost me ~100€ and can play even stuff like Dirt3 or Borderlands 2 without problems. But the price for that card is now a lot higher here (~140€). A good low end recommendation now might be the AMD R7-260X for ~100€, which is a tad slower than the GTX 650 Ti Boost. Or the GTX 650 Ti (non-boost) if you prefer NVIDIA.

I can't really recommend anything cheaper. But you should check out the GT 630 first. The GDDR3 RAM might make it fast enough for HLSL. Although according to the EVGA homepage the card only has slow DDR3 RAM. :/

I would love to see some GPU benchmarks for HLSL shaders. But I guess there aren't many people who have a wide variety of GPUs at home and enough time to test it.

[wirm]

I should be getting the 630 tomorrow. This rig is strickly for my cab so I wont be running anything else but emulators from hyperspin. Mostly mame but also nes, snes, 64, neo geo etc. Al this fuss for the those damn scanline smh. I'll see what it does and report back. There are a couple of versions of the 630. Here are the specs:

EVGA GeForce GT 630
Part Number: 02G-P3-2639-KR

810MHz Base Clock
1622MHz Boost Clock
12.9GT/s Texture Fill Rate
2048MB DDR3 Memory
1400MHz Memory Clock
22.4GB/s Memory Bandwidth

[blizzz]

The GDDR3 RAM might make it fast enough for HLSL.

Ok, forget that. I just had a look at the GDDR3 bandwidth and it's the same as DDR3, so it doesn't matter. (GDDR5 has ~3 times the bandwidth)

I'll see what it does and report back

Unlock the framerate and see how high it goes to benchmark.

[wirm]

Here's another 630 option. Would this have been better? Half the memory but its the DDR5 and more bandwidth.

EVGA GeForce GT 630 Dual Slot
Part Number: 01G-P3-2632-KR

810MHz GPU Clock
12.9GT/s Texture Fill Rate
1024MB GDDR5 Memory
3200MHz Memory Clock
51.2GB/s Memory Bandwidth

Also, how do you unlock the frame rate? I just know how to display it.

Thanks!

[blizzz]

Edit your mame.ini to unlock the framerate. throttle, waitvsync, syncrefresh should be set to 0. There might be be more settings, but I don't have mame on this PC to check.

Yes, a graphics cards with faster memory is generally better than one with more memory. Especially slower cards don't need more than 1GB RAM. You only need 2GB or more for demanding games, but any graphics card that's fast enough for these uses GDDR5 anyway. But I don't even know if the memory bandwidth affects HLSL performance at all.

[wirm]

Darn. They were the same price. I also read a lot about the determining factor being that the card supports shader 3.0 and up. These 630 cards support 5.0. I'm guessing my onboard graphics doesn't.