Page 1 of 1

Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Sun Dec 08, 2013 3:57 pm
by GameTipsAndMore Blog
I realize this has been asked in the past and I thought it was not possible a few years ago, but it appears that these days DXTORY and FRAPS can both record SweetFX/InjectSMAA.
I understand that SweetFx and InjectSMAA are using post-processing filters (sub-pixel morphological anti-aliasing, done somewhat after game rendering is done on the videocard) to get rid of the 'jaggies' - but if DXTORY and FRAPS (arguably Bandicam's two biggest competitors) can do it: why can't Bandicam? :?:
I would prefer to use Bandicam for some of the features it has, if it were possible in the future

C'mon Bandicam, get in the arena and fightfightfight /flasheslights :lol:

Re: Recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA (like Fraps and Dxtory)?

Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2013 2:56 pm
by Bandicam Company
Hi,

If DXTORY and FRAPS support SweetFx and InjectSMAA, we will try to support it.

Thank you for letting us know.

Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2013 4:59 pm
by GameTipsAndMore Blog
Hi,

If DXTORY and FRAPS support SweetFx and InjectSMAA, we will try to support it.

Thank you for letting us know.
You're most welcome. I didn't believe it as well when reading about it, so recently I got around to doing some tests... here is a small sample of my findings (I may make a longer article at my blog for this):

Sonic All-Stars Racing Transformed
+ FRAPS recorded SweetFX/InjectSMAA (when started after the game is running)
- DXTORY did not seem able to record SweetFX/InjectSMAA (dxtory overlay flashes onscreen but then disappears and does not record)

Just Cause 2
- FRAPS did not seem to record SweetFX/InjectSMAA (if started at anytime, appears to disable SweetFX)
+ DXTORY recorded SweetFX/InjectSMAA (Steam Overlay/In-game function must be disabled)

Left4Dead2
--did not seem to run with SweetFx at all (crashed)

Max Payne 3
--did not seem to run with SweetFX at all (crashed)

Hitman: Absolution (with Boulator's Sweetfx Injector)
- FRAPS did not seem to record SweetFX/InjectSMAA (if started before the game it crashes Hitman Absolution, if started after the game it appears to disable SweetFX)
+ DXTORY recorded SweetFX/InjectSMAA

GTAIV (Grand Theft Auto IV)
+ FRAPS can capture SweetFX fine
- DXTORY did not seem able to record SweetFX/InjectSMAA (dxtory overlay flashes onscreen but then disappears and does not record)


As you can see, after doing my own tests, it seems to vary from game to game. It also seems to vary between systems as, on other forums, some people are reporting having problems and some people are reporting recording without problem.

Perhaps it is not something that FRAPS or DXTORY can "just do and works", it may be a specific combination of drivers/game engine/injector dll's that may allow it to happen or block it (or just crash a game) at times. I found that if one version of the injector didn't work, another version did, or another compiled version (instead of using say, CeeJay.dk's version of the injector, Boulator's version/compilation of the injector would work or vice versa). There seems to be too many factors in play to get SweetFX/InjectSMAA to work reliably, everytime.

In light of this, I understand if Bandicam is not able to have this functionality at this time. It may in fact create more problems for users, as the injectors themselves are not consistent in functionality, nor are the game recording programs (sometimes FRAPS would record SweetFX, other times it would not but DXTORY would and vice versa). Whether you are working on it or not, good luck and I am sure people will still enjoy using Bandicam, as it already does much more than this one thing. 8-)

Edit:
Added more games from tests

Re: Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2013 7:10 pm
by Dfactor
I'd like to know what's the difference between these post-processing filters and usual / forced AA.
Is it the performance?

Re: Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2013 8:57 pm
by GameTipsAndMore Blog
I'd like to know what's the difference between these post-processing filters and usual / forced AA.
Is it the performance?
Mainly yes, that and the "look" of the output. These post-render (after the videocard has calculated the image to be shown on the screen) ways of filtering can be thought of more like an 'estimate' or an 'approximation' approach to getting rid of aliasing.

In simple terms, they don't calculate edges based on the polygons/shapes that make up the screen, they look at the near-final output and treat it like it was one big flat image or picture, then they use algorithms and estimations to guess at what is an edge of something and what isn't (where aliasing may be occurring). It's a fast approximation of edges and aliasing - NVIDIA even called their iteration of it Fast Approximate Anti Aliasing (FXAA), when it came out after AMD/ATi's implementation of MLAA (Morphological Anti Aliasing).

http://media.bestofmicro.com/E/8/266192 ... omparo.gif
Image
Comparison by Don Woligroski, From: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/rad ... 776-4.html


The problem is, since the filters are just analyzing and guessing at what is an edge and what isn't (using formulas like differences in color and contrast, etc), some things get caught in the crossfire, like text. Text on the screen, usually with hard edges and contrast changes (to make it more readable) are detected as having an 'edge' and the filter will attempt to smooth that out, resulting in rounded or blurry text. It also tends to blur the image 'overall', as it sometimes sees texture grain, cracks and other high-contrast changes on the screen as a possible 'edge' and smoothes out some of these small details, well, everywhere. Some people don't mind this side-effect of 'everything getting blurred slightly' and some hate it with all of their being.

The main thing I think though, is yes, speed. As an example, if a game runs without any AA at 40fps, and it runs with 'Normal MSAA' (say 4xMSAA) at 20fps, it could run FXAA/MLAA/SMAA at 38fps.

http://media.bestofmicro.com/D/1/266149 ... cal-aa.png
Image
Testing by Don Woligroski, From: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/rad ... 776-4.html


Couple that with the effects that can be produced by injectors such as SweetFX, where you can add other filters, like color changes, bloom/HDR effects, contrast/grain enhancement and more, and now you get an idea of why people are drawn to SweetFX/SMAA and these filters - they are just for fun, but they can add a lot to the experience and personalization of a game (some want more color, some want more darkness/gritty-ness) - all at very little performance cost.

Re: Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:25 am
by Dfactor
I see. Well, I was familiar with FXAA as I've already seen/experienced it's light impact on performance (also did see what it does to 2D surfaces). As I can force FXAA I don't see myself using injectors, but it's nice to know that they also adjust bloom/HDR and other things (similar to ENB Series). Also pretty sure that Bandicam does capture forced FXAA.

Re: Support recording of SweetFX/InjectSMAA?

Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 6:33 pm
by ciceros
Fraps currently supports SweetFX with Battlefield 4. I expect Bandicam supports the combination soon. :lol: