Question about the recent lighting update

HappySimmer3

I have Sims 4 installed on a MSI gaming laptop with an Intel Core i7-3630QM 2.4-3.4 GHz, 12GB DDR3 SDRAM, 750 GB 7200 rpm Hard Drive, and a GeForce GTX 675M,GDDR5 2GB Graphics card.

This laptop is about 4 years old and obviously the GPU is not the latest model.

After I updated the game to the patch with the lighting update, I opened Nvidia GeForce Experience and looked at the TS4 profile and my lighting settings were all automatically set on low. I was able to change them to high when I went in-game so I could see the new lighting effects, but the fans kicked on and were so loud they sounded like a jet engine so I turned the lighting settings back down.

I tried to do a search for info on the minimum graphics cards required for the new lighting update but haven't found much discussion about it. I am just wondering if there is something I can do to get this card to work better with the lighting update or am I just out of luck due to it being dated.

Thanks!

Nichaedemus

Hi,

Have you enabled V-Sync from the NVidia control panel and are you running the game in exclusive fullscreen mode?

Colton147147

Your laptop should still be fine for the Sims 4.
http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/774696/updated-supported-graphics-card-list-the-sims-4-edition/p1

Notifying...
@chesterbigbird
@phoebebebe13

DeKay

I have a 960m and it happened to me as well. Geforce set it to low but I changed it to very high and the fans started moving fast (actually I noticed the fans working hard after yesterday's patch, not the lighting one).

HappySimmer3

Hi. I always play in full screen and vsync is set to use the 3D application setting. Should I change it to 'on'?

Nichaedemus

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

Hi. I always play in full screen and vsync is set to use the 3D application setting. Should I change it to 'on'?

Yes, and see if it makes a difference in reducing the fan noise.

HappySimmer3

OK I'll try that, thanks.

HappySimmer3

@DeKay sorry it's happening to you too, but nice to know it isn't just me!

@Colton147147 that's what I thought too, but that list was created before the new lighting went into effect so I guess you never know!

DeKay

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

@DeKay sorry it's happening to you too, but nice to know it isn't just me!

Colton147147 that's what I thought too, but that list was created before the new lighting went into effect so I guess you never know!

Could you try to turn the Nvidia v-sync on and test it out for me? XD I hate turning the Nvidia v-sync on cuz I get screen tearing which is weird cuz v-sync is supposed to prevent screen tearing. Haha.

HappySimmer3

I did that, but now I had to update Origin and then the TS4 patch! So it might be tomorrow before I can post results because it's getting really late where I live (or really early, depending one one's perspective). When it's done patching I will probably just go to bed!

Oh dear. Well, I decided to go ahead and start up the game and changed the lighting from medium (where I had set it last) to high but the game has to be restarted for it to go into effect. I'm afraid I will have to pick this back up in the morning.

DeKay

@HappySimmer3:

Ah okay. Thanks in advance for testing it out. I'm like the laziest person ever. Maybe I should try it now as well. LOL.

DeKay

Just tested it out. My laptop fans are still working a lot even with Nvidia V-sync on. The good news is that there's no more screen tearing like it used to be last time. But either way, it doesn't really do much difference.
Maybe you can test it out and see if it works for you.

HappySimmer3

@DeKay I played a short while this morning with the settings on high after turning V-Sync on and the fans did not go crazy. I didn't get any tearing or any other strange effects, but didn't really see much of the lighting changes, either. So I turned the setting to Very High and I'm about to open the game up to see what happens next. Stay tuned.

Nearia35

I have an older laptop as well that has a GT 650M, and it didn't even bat an eye at the lighting update. Although I also usually have the game running in a window and not full screen, I do have my settings all on Ultra.

Have you considered the possibility of it being something physically affecting the laptop - I.E. are the vents clear of dust and debris? Have you ever had the laptop re-pasted? The thermal paste that attaches the processor/GPU to the heatsinks gets old and brittle and stops functioning after a while - if it's never been done, after ~4 years I'd say it's definitely time. I had mine done recently and it made a huge difference in how hard the fans have to work.

HappySimmer3

Thanks for the feedback! I'll look into that since no, it has not been re-pasted.

I started the game after changing the settings to Very High in the lighting and I am not getting any high fan speeds still so apparently setting the V-Sync to ON in Nvidia Experience did the trick for me. Still haven't seen any spectacular lighting effects but that's probably just due to not being the right time of day to see those, or else perhaps the house my sim lives in is not at an ideal location.

It was definitely odd though, that all settings were automatically set to High or Very High in Nvidia Experience except the lighting. I don't know what was up with that.

Thanks everyone for the comments and suggestions!

DeKay

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

Thanks for the feedback! I'll look into that since no, it has not been re-pasted.

I started the game after changing the settings to Very High in the lighting and I am not getting any high fan speeds still so apparently setting the V-Sync to ON in Nvidia Experience did the trick for me. Still haven't seen any spectacular lighting effects but that's probably just due to not being the right time of day to see those, or else perhaps the house my sim lives in is not at an ideal location.

It was definitely odd though, that all settings were automatically set to High or Very High in Nvidia Experience except the lighting. I don't know what was up with that.

Thanks everyone for the comments and suggestions!

That's good to hear. Maybe I'll give it another go today. Turning the Nvidia v-sync on only worked for me for around 15 minutes before the fans go crazy again.

HappySimmer3

@DeKay are you using a desktop or a laptop? NVM - I reread your post and you said it was a 960m, which is a laptop, right? Which processor do you have? I'm curious because I am hoping to upgrade my PC in a few months and am looking at the 960 or 970 (if I can afford it).

DeKay

@HappySimmer3
It's the i7-4720HQ. I want to get the Skylake one tho.

HappySimmer3

Yeah, that's the one I want, too.

I don't have much going on in my game, so maybe the fans are a response to your processor working hard?

I ended up saving and quitting after I tested the last time because I have no idea what to do with these sims and trying to maneuver around the screen makes my arm hurt. It's STILL a huge pain for me, trying to get this in-game camera to move around the lot or 'hood. I feel like it's a constant struggle and that makes me not want to even play anymore.

But that probably goes in a different thread.

DeKay

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

Yeah, that's the one I want, too.

I don't have much going on in my game, so maybe the fans are a response to your processor working hard?

I ended up saving and quitting after I tested the last time because I have no idea what to do with these sims and trying to maneuver around the screen makes my arm hurt. It's STILL a huge pain for me, trying to get this in-game camera to move around the lot or 'hood. I feel like it's a constant struggle and that makes me not want to even play anymore.

But that probably goes in a different thread.

Yeah, the fans are kinda random tho. Sometimes they go loud even on a small lot and sometimes it's fine on a huge lot for about 15 minutes and then they go loud again. *scratches head* I wonder if it has something to do with the sunlight. I should really take note of these things. XD

Haha, you should go to game options and change the camera to Sims 3 camera mode.

HappySimmer3

@DeKay I'm pretty sure I did change to the TS3 camera mode. It's still difficult to use IMO.

I have a pretty awesome laptop cooler made by Zalman so I know that helps in keeping my laptop cooler but if your fans are randomly kicking on then that's kind of annoying. Does this happen with other games or is it just The Sims?

DeKay

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

@DeKay I'm pretty sure I did change to the TS3 camera mode. It's still difficult to use IMO.

I have a pretty awesome laptop cooler made by Zalman so I know that helps in keeping my laptop cooler but if your fans are randomly kicking on then that's kind of annoying. Does this happen with other games or is it just The Sims?

I use a laptop cooler as well. I don't have any other games to test with but I did some playing around with TS4 and find that the fans kick in really hard when I go to Build mode. I will be bringing my laptop to the shop after 16th July cuz I have my internship right now and don't have the time. They usually do some servicing like changing the thermal paste and such.

HappySimmer3

@DeKay I hope that improves the performance for you. I know it can get worrisome when those fans are turning on a lot, especially with a laptop which is more difficult to keep cool than a desktop. Good luck to you, and I hope you've enjoyed your internship as well.

DeKay

HappySimmer3 wrote: »

@DeKay I hope that improves the performance for you. I know it can get worrisome when those fans are turning on a lot, especially with a laptop which is more difficult to keep cool than a desktop. Good luck to you, and I hope you've enjoyed your internship as well.

Thank you so much. You're so nice.

HappySimmer3

Thanks right back, and you're nice too!