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Edited by Frost on 2/21/11 2:18 PM (PST)
The Starcraft II Performance Guide For Macs - Updated 08/18/2010
Table of Contents 1. Introduction - 1-A. Current Conditions - 1-B. Things To Know Before Changing Any Settings 2. The Settings - 2-B. iMac - 2-B. Macbook Pro - 2-C. Macbook, Macbook Air, & Intel-based Mac Mini 3. The Changelog - 3-A. Upcoming Revisions - 3-B. Past Changes Introduction Hello and welcome to the Starcraft 2 Performance Guide for Macs. My name is Frost, but most of you existing Blizzard fans on the Mac will recognize me as Stoneblade/Vedeyndal, author of the WoW Performance Guide For Macs over on the WoW Mac Tech Forums. As such, the two guides are very similar. (alright, they're almost identical… I'm lazy.) This guide is designed to help you get the most out of your Mac while running Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty, as well as keep you updated on known widespread performance issues. This guide WILL be updated and refreshed as the game evolves and gets patched. 1-A. Current Conditions Right now, Mac OS X 10.6.4 has a severe graphic driver bug on nVidia hardware. However, an OS X graphics update has been released via the OS X Software Update tool. Be sure to grab it if you want the game to run more smoothly. I personally recommend capping the frame rate of Starcraft 2 so your computer doesn't overwork itself, wasting resources on the shaders, leaking all of the VRAM and overheating itself in the process. See below in "Things to Know Before Changing Any Settings" for more information on how to do this. Current Mac System Requirements: Mac Minimum System Requirements - Mac OS X 10.5.8, 10.6.2 or newer - Intel Processor - NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT or ATI Radeon X1600 or better - 12 GB available HD space - 2 GB Ram - DVD-ROM drive - Broadband Internet connection - 1024X720 minimum display resolution Mac Recommended System Requirements: - Intel Core 2 Duo processor - 4 GB system RAM - NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT or ATI Radeon HD 4670 or better Note that as of right now, ATI Radeon is by far the better vendor to go with over nVidia if you have a choice. nVidia's graphics drivers on OS X tend to be of poor quality and have sub-par performance. 1-B. Things To Know Before Changing Any Settings For the sake of keeping the actual settings section of this guide clean and easy to read, I'm going to list most all of the innate, machine unspecific requirements here. For starters, if you're running Leopard, most machines will indeed see a minor increase in performance upgrading to Snow Leopard. Second, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't have the latest software for your chosen OS. This software fixes bugs, enhances your security, and improves the overall stability of your computer. It's free and it's simple to get. To get the latest possible software for your Mac's version of OS X, go to the Apple icon on the top left corner of your desktop, click the "Software Update" option from the list, and then download everything on the list that pops up. 10.5 Leopard users should be at 10.5.8, and 10.6 Snow Leopard users should be at 10.6.4. Note however that as mentioned above, there are bugs in the nVidia drivers under 10.6.4. Remaining at 10.6.3 is your best option right now if you're using an nVidia graphics card. You can check to see what version you're running by clicking on the Apple icon in the top left corner of your desktop, and then clicking the "About This Mac" option on the drop-down list. Limiting the in-game frame rate to 30 or 40fps will help keep your Mac cool and prevent overheating. The Macbook Pros especially tend to run a little bit hot being in that nice tiny form factor. To limit the frame rate, type in and save the following into the Variables text file: frameratecap=60 frameratecapGlue=60 “60" being the value of whatever number you want to cap it at. You will find the Variables text file under: “/Macintosh HD/Users/TheUserYouInstalledSC2Under/Library/Application Support/Blizzard/StarCraft II/Variables.txt" To see the current frame rate while playing the game, hold down Control+Option, and tap the F key. The Settings It should be noted that some settings like Texture Quality will have two settings side by side. The settings depend on how much VRAM your video card has, 256MB, 512MB, or 1GB. Also note that some settings, such as Lighting, are subsets of other settings, like Shaders. So depending on the parent settings, certain options for the child setting such as High and Ultra won't even show up as an option until the parent setting is set to High or Ultra to enable it on the child setting. From this point on, this guide will assume the following: 1. You have at LEAST 2GB of RAM in your computer, 6GB+ is preferred. 2. You have all of the latest updates for your version of OS X. 3. You are not trying to run the game on an unsupported video card. 2-A. The iMac Mid 2010 Core i5/i7 iMac with ATI 5750 Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: High Lighting: Ultra Shadows: Ultra Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: Ultra Post-Processing: High Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 60fps. Recommend lowering resolution to 1920x1080 on the 27” iMac. Mid 2010 Core i3/i5 iMac with ATI 5670 Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: High/Ultra Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: High Lighting: Ultra Shadows: Ultra Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 60fps. Late 2009 Core i5/i7 iMac with ATI 4850 Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium/High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: High Lighting: Medium Shadows: Medium Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 60fps. Late 2009 Core 2 Duo iMac with ATI 4670 Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium/High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: High Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 60fps. Early 2009 Core 2 Duo iMac with ATI 4850 Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium/High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: High Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 60fps. 2009 iMac with nVidia 9400m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Low Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Low Lighting: Low Shadows: Low Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Off Models: High Unit Portraits: 2D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated graphics. Late 2008 iMac with 256MB or 512MB nVidia 8800 GS Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: High Reflections: Off Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 40fps. 2-B. The Macbook Pro Mid 2010 15/17-inch Core i5/i7 Macbook Pro with 256MB or 512MB nVidia GT330M Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: High Terrain: High Reflections: On Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 50fps. Mid 2010 13-inch Macbook Pro with GT320M Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. 2009 Unibody Macbook Pro with 256MB or 512MB nVidia 9600M GT Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium/High Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. 2009 13-inch Unibody Macbook Pro with nVidia 9400m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Low Lighting: Low Shadows: Low Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: High Post-Processing: Low Physics: Off Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. Late 2008 Macbook Pro with 256MB or 512MB nVidia 8600M GT Graphics Card Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: High Post-Processing: Medium Physics: High Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. 2-C. The Macbook, Macbook Air, and Mac Mini Mid 2010 Macbook with GT320m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: Low Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. Mid 2010 Mac Mini with GT320m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Medium Lighting: Low Shadows: Medium Terrain: Low Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. Late 2009 Polycarbonate Unibody Macbook with nVidia 9400m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Low Lighting: Low Shadows: Low Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. Late 2009 Mac Mini with nVidia 9400m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Medium Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Low Lighting: Low Shadows: Low Terrain: Medium Reflections: Off Effects: Medium Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: High Unit Portraits: 3D Movies: High Definition Notes: Expect an average of 30fps. Integrated Graphics. 2009 Macbook Air with nVidia 9400m Integrated Graphics Textures: Texture Quality: Low Graphics: Graphics Quality: Custom Shaders: Low Lighting: Low Shadows: Low Terrain: Low Reflections: Off Effects: Low Post-Processing: Low Physics: Low Models: Low Unit Portraits: 2D Movies: Low Definition Notes: Expect an average of 15fps. Integrated Graphics. The Changelog 3-A. Upcoming Planned Revisions - Tweaked settings as Blizzard improves Shaders and Shadow performance. - Updates for new Mac models 3-B. Past Changes - 08/18/2010 - Edited settings accordingly to the fixed drivers. - 07/30/2010: Fixed a few typos and errors. - 07/29/2010: Wrote Performance Guide 1.0. |
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Bump for sticky.
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thks for your guide hope soon they fix this problem with Nvidia drives
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Great guide.
OP, might want to add changing unit portraits to 2D (saves me 1-5 FPS). |
Also i think the macbook unibody late 2009 can handle mid shaders and shadows whatcha think? It could if the shaders were working properly. I have access to this machine and the framerate kind of takes a dive with Medium shaders due to the nVidia driver issues in 10.6.4. |
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Also guys, if you want to try this out, the windows version performs much faster (in case you didn't know). I have a 24 inch iMac with a 3.06 GHZ C2D, and radeon 4850 graphics. In windows, I am able to set all settings to ultra, save for textures, which I set to high, and I am getting 32 FPS+, with 23 FPS being the lowest FPS rate. Some people do not consider this livable, but on OSX, I was getting a much lower FPS count with the same settings.
Also, if you guys wanna try this out on windows, there is a tool called GPUtool that overclocks your GPU's proc and memory. I know you guys don't believe that overclocking a GPU in a mac is safe, but I have been running SC2 on my mobility radeon overclocked without problems for days. The iMacs come with mobility cards that are clocked below their desktop counterparts. If you clock it up to desktop speeds, your GPU technically shouldn't have a problem with the overclock, unless you live in a really hot place. This boosts performance by a bit. Do this at your own risk however. You are responsible for your computer if it catches fire. |
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This is a nice guide but with The 9600GT 256MB i like have shaders on med and Terrain on med
and rest on low. i get around 30-40ish. IMO shaders is the most important as it makes it look much better on med then low then the others because the others dont seem to do a whole lot. |
Mid 2010 15/17-inch Core i5/i7 Macbook Pro with 256MB or 512MB nVidia GT330M Graphics Card I have this one. When I mouse over, it says the texture relies on vRam and I have 512 so why set it to 256 (I think thats it)? Also is higher fps better or worst? And reflections is recommend to be off by default. I'm curious how you got this recommendations because the game recommends different options. |
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Edited by Frost on 7/30/10 4:01 AM (PDT)
I have this one. When I mouse over, it says the texture relies on vRam and I have 512 so why set it to 256 (I think thats it)? Also is higher fps better or worst? And reflections is recommend to be off by default. I'm curious how you got this recommendations because the game recommends different options. Because that model is my primary computer. Trial and error my friend. The Texture Quality does rely on VRAM, but the current shader bug completely eats through VRAM like butter. When playing multiple 4vs4 games, especially as protoss where the pylon grid chops up the game while selected, setting the Texture Quality to anything higher than medium crashes the game within 5 mins flat. All of the above settings were tested and averaged on 3vs3 based matches both over B.Net and against the CPU. Again, as stated multiple times in the main post, as soon as the driver and shader bugs are ironed out, I'll revamp the settings to reflect what the hardware is truly capable of. Until then, the settings need to be worked around memory leaks and crashes on certain systems. |
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Edited by Vader on 8/11/10 6:18 AM (PDT)
Great guide! this is what Mac folks need.
I only have one possible correction for you. I don't believe you can lower shadows below your current texture setting. Meaning, I have textures set at Med, however I have no Low setting for shadows and the only options are Med and High. I tried to adjust this via the variables.txt but it will not change. |
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I find there are strange combinations that show up when you select different options (probably coupled with different video cards). They seem to be tied together as one setting effects another.
My shadows are at low and my textures are at Medium. I can understand some people having different results if the above are true. |
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Edited by DarkSifu on 7/30/10 7:19 AM (PDT)
Are you assuming people are running SC2 with the max resolution for their monitor with all these settings? I have a late 2009 iMac 21.5 C2D ATI and the game recommended a resolution significantly lower than native. Though it does seem to handle up to 1600x900 ok, I see framerate drops if I go to 1920.
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