For the next benchmark we used
the DirectX 9 based Aquamark 3. We ran through the
benchmark
at a setting of 640x480x32 with both audio enabled and
disabled. Let's see how much of an impact on
performance enabling audio had on
the game's frame rates.
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Aquamark 3 |
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CPU Utilization in
3D |
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In both cases
there is a small drop in frame rate when audio is
enabled, but in each case we're only looking at a 2%
decrease. When it comes right down to
it, even the most discerning eye will not notice such a
degradation in performance while playing a game.
Besides who wants to play a game without sound?
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Comanche 4 |
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More
In-Game Action |
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Using Comanche 4
we again ran a set of benchmarks at 640x480 with and without
audio enabled. We can see above that the MAD DOG sound card required a little more processing power to
reproduce the sounds in Comanche, as there is a 5% decrease in performance
here. The NVIDIA SoundStorm, on the other hand, caused
only a 3% decrease in performance when audio was enabled.
To wrap things up we ran the card
through a round of Quake
3 and Serious Sam.
Quake 3, Serious Sam & The Ratings
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