Well, I received information from Acer website that it is actually encouranged to download latest drivers from Intel/Nvidia. I'm currently downloading TS4 (new pack coming which I'm excited about). I'll see if I get tearing there aswell. Then we know for sure that it is a driver issue. I'll also try reinstalling TS3. Just in case I messed up the .sgr files.
Hopefully the Acer drivers fix the problem
You dont have to reinstall. Just reset game is fine on TS3. when you reset the sims 3 file it's like a clean install
No you don't need to reinstall sims 3 . When you pull the sims 3 folder and generate a new one that resets the game as if it were a new install. You will have the original sgr files back
Will clicking 'Repair' in Origin under TS3 game settings do the same thing?
EDIT: OK, I restored my graphic drivers to factory settings and tried the game that way. I still got screen tearing playing 60fps. So, I think it's not about the drivers. Later tonight after DLing Parenthood I'll check the TS4 to see how it runs.
No repair is to repair origin and has nothing to do with repairing the actual game.
Let us know how the sims 4 is running. If everything is running fine , you can try reinstalling the sims 3. After installing the base game I would test it before you start adding eps.
Sgr files are located in the program Files, not the Sims 3 folder via documents. Unfortunately a folder reset won't bring the originals back... But you would know if you messed up the files. Did you have this screen tearing issue before trying to get your card recognized?
"Repair game" through Origin scans game files comparing them to the server files looking for anything out of place repairing them if needed. Doesn't hurt to try.
@phoebebebe13 I tested TS4 and it ran smoothly. No screen tearing whatsoever. What I did notice is that CPU heat went up as far as 82 degrees Celsius and Motherboard flashed even 90 degrees for a second. GPU remained solid 50-60 degrees. Is it something to be concerned about?
@Simasaurus09 'Repair Game' option actually did reset the sgr files restoring them back to default. I had the screen tearing even before messing with sgr files.
But I managed to get my fps to 60 and with this setting I have minimal screen tearing. I guess I have to be happy with that. My biggest concern right now is that I noticed after installing Speccy how high the temperatures rise when playing TS3 and TS4. Perhaps lowering the graphics (playing on Ultra right now) might help with this issue?
@Animaag The sims 4 is seriously CPU heavy . Yes it heats up the CPU. I would report this issue to @SimGuruNick . If he does not respond here send him a pm and tell him whats going on. This issue has been going on a long time. I have this issue on my laptop with the sims 4. My sims 3 does not heat up the CPU and plays fine.
Is your CPU heating up on other games? It might be your laptop and a cooling issue
as far as the sims 3, if that is the only game giving you screen tearing and reset game is not fixing the issue, I would try reinstalling the base game and testing it before adding eps. Dont change the sgr files. Add the game to Nvidia control panel and see how it plays. If your still having issues use Nvidia inspector and test the base game again.
That's good (sgr files) and it makes sense now that I think about it.
Didn't you say your gpu and cpu reach about 50-55 degree Celsius after 30 minutes? That's normal. Temperatures will rise when under load vs idle. You should check HWMonitor instead of speccy.
I'll try your suggestions @phoebebebe13 Thank you! I'll let you know how this turns out.
PS. About the heating - I think that there might be something wrong with my heating. I just played The Sims 2 for an hour and my motherboard heat went up to 70 and CPU was somewhere between 60-70 degrees. Is this normal for such an old game? Also - no screen tear there.
@Animaag Your very welcome. Laptops are made to withstand more heat. 60 to 70 is OK on CPU . The sims 2 is not as powerful of a game as 3 and 4. The sims 4 is more CPU heavy than the sims 3. The sims 3 only requires a 2.4 ghz processor and does not matter how many cores. The sims 4 requires an i5 quad core on desktop or better so on laptop you need an i7 quad core on laptop to be as powerful as desktop hardware
If your hitting in the mid 80's up to 90 C on CPU with other games that is high. Does your laptop fell hot? With my laptop on the sims 4 my fans race and the laptop is hot to the touch. My temps are high only on the sims 4. The sims 4 is the only game that does this. I have binge gaming the sims 3 on my laptop for hours and never had a heating issue. This is why with my circumstance I know the sims 4 is causing it. We have ran other tests too on desktop. Desktop will not feel this issue as much as laptop but desktop CPU on the sims 4 will run higher than normal on usage. We figured out the more powerful the CPU the more the sims 4 will use that CPU.
I have i7-6700HQ CPU @ 2.60GHz (8 CPUs) according to dxdiag. I don't know if that's enough to play TS4 with Ultra settings. When I play TS3 and 4 my game cools itself constantly and it is hot to the touch.
Do you have any suggestions I should take to play TS4 without the worry that it will overheat and damage my laptop?
That processor is a new quad core i7 skylake processor and enough to run the sims 3 and 4.
Is it only the sims 3 and 4 that get your CPU that hot or does it also get that hot with other more powerful game? If its only the sims 3 and 4 I do wonder if origin is somehow involved in this issue. We could never figure out if it was origin or the sims 4 running the CPU high. As I mentioned the sims 3 does not heat up my laptop but I don't play the sims 3 with origin.
Having a laptop cooler would be a good idea. Coolermaster makes good cooling pads. If your CPU is getting close to 90 on all games I would have Acer check out that laptop. If you have only had it 6 months you should have a warranty. You may need thermal paste or your laptop professionally cleaned.
I think buying a cooling pad might be a good idea. I used to have one but it stopped working, unfortunately.
I have done some more testing. I made a complete PC factory restore, my graphic drivers are from the manufacturer and I reinstalled The Sims 3 base game. What I discovered now is that I only get screen tearing when trying to limit my FPS. When playing with v-sync and triple buffering on I'll get about 150fps but no screen tear. How weird is that? It doesn't make any sense at all.
Sorry if I'm missing it if this was covered already (this is a long thread!) but are we certain that @Animaag's laptop screen is actually 60 Hz? It's rare for a laptop to have a higher native refresh rate, but this could be one of those -- it sounds like a high end machine in other ways. It might be possible that 150 fps is really where she is supposed to be, or somewhere eles above 60 anyway.
Weird thing just happened. I fiddled with Nvidia Inspector more and set the FPS Limiter to 40fps and not the tearing is gone. Well, I think it's gone... I mean even if it's still there I can't find it. The game started to hm... lag a bit? But atleast no more that awful screen tearing. I'll try to gradually rise the fps and find the perfect balance.
What is bizarre is that I tried limiting the fps to 40 before but then it didn't work. But today the Nvidia Inspector had an update. Perhaps this fixed something? Don't know...
But anyway @Simasaurus09@phoebebebe13@igazor Thank you all so much for your patience and your willingness to help me. You have all been extremely helpful.
To recap: I now have TS3 fps limited to below 60fps and I experience almost no screen tearing (at least it isn't that obvious anymore).
Comments
Hopefully the Acer drivers fix the problem
You dont have to reinstall. Just reset game is fine on TS3. when you reset the sims 3 file it's like a clean install
No you don't need to reinstall sims 3 . When you pull the sims 3 folder and generate a new one that resets the game as if it were a new install. You will have the original sgr files back
EDIT: OK, I restored my graphic drivers to factory settings and tried the game that way. I still got screen tearing playing 60fps. So, I think it's not about the drivers. Later tonight after DLing Parenthood I'll check the TS4 to see how it runs.
Let us know how the sims 4 is running. If everything is running fine , you can try reinstalling the sims 3. After installing the base game I would test it before you start adding eps.
"Repair game" through Origin scans game files comparing them to the server files looking for anything out of place repairing them if needed. Doesn't hurt to try.
Reset folder is different and is done through Documents. It's a quick and easy way to reinstall without the hassle... But in order to retrieve the original sgr files the game will need to be uninstalled through Windows control panel.
http://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/06/tutorial-resetting-the-game-to-factory-settings-without-reinstalling.html
If you made backups of the sgr files like the guide suggest, you can put those back in replacing the edited files.
S3 simblr: http://simplysimming.tumblr.com/
S4 simblr: http://simlogic.tumblr.com/
@Simasaurus09 'Repair Game' option actually did reset the sgr files restoring them back to default. I had the screen tearing even before messing with sgr files.
But I managed to get my fps to 60 and with this setting I have minimal screen tearing. I guess I have to be happy with that. My biggest concern right now is that I noticed after installing Speccy how high the temperatures rise when playing TS3 and TS4. Perhaps lowering the graphics (playing on Ultra right now) might help with this issue?
Is your CPU heating up on other games? It might be your laptop and a cooling issue
as far as the sims 3, if that is the only game giving you screen tearing and reset game is not fixing the issue, I would try reinstalling the base game and testing it before adding eps. Dont change the sgr files. Add the game to Nvidia control panel and see how it plays. If your still having issues use Nvidia inspector and test the base game again.
Didn't you say your gpu and cpu reach about 50-55 degree Celsius after 30 minutes? That's normal. Temperatures will rise when under load vs idle. You should check HWMonitor instead of speccy.
S3 simblr: http://simplysimming.tumblr.com/
S4 simblr: http://simlogic.tumblr.com/
PS. About the heating - I think that there might be something wrong with my heating. I just played The Sims 2 for an hour and my motherboard heat went up to 70 and CPU was somewhere between 60-70 degrees. Is this normal for such an old game? Also - no screen tear there.
If your hitting in the mid 80's up to 90 C on CPU with other games that is high. Does your laptop fell hot? With my laptop on the sims 4 my fans race and the laptop is hot to the touch. My temps are high only on the sims 4. The sims 4 is the only game that does this. I have binge gaming the sims 3 on my laptop for hours and never had a heating issue. This is why with my circumstance I know the sims 4 is causing it. We have ran other tests too on desktop. Desktop will not feel this issue as much as laptop but desktop CPU on the sims 4 will run higher than normal on usage. We figured out the more powerful the CPU the more the sims 4 will use that CPU.
Do you have any suggestions I should take to play TS4 without the worry that it will overheat and damage my laptop?
Is it only the sims 3 and 4 that get your CPU that hot or does it also get that hot with other more powerful game? If its only the sims 3 and 4 I do wonder if origin is somehow involved in this issue. We could never figure out if it was origin or the sims 4 running the CPU high. As I mentioned the sims 3 does not heat up my laptop but I don't play the sims 3 with origin.
Having a laptop cooler would be a good idea. Coolermaster makes good cooling pads. If your CPU is getting close to 90 on all games I would have Acer check out that laptop. If you have only had it 6 months you should have a warranty. You may need thermal paste or your laptop professionally cleaned.
I have done some more testing. I made a complete PC factory restore, my graphic drivers are from the manufacturer and I reinstalled The Sims 3 base game. What I discovered now is that I only get screen tearing when trying to limit my FPS. When playing with v-sync and triple buffering on I'll get about 150fps but no screen tear. How weird is that? It doesn't make any sense at all.
NRaas has moved!
Our new site is at http://nraas.net
NRaas has moved!
Our new site is at http://nraas.net
What is bizarre is that I tried limiting the fps to 40 before but then it didn't work. But today the Nvidia Inspector had an update. Perhaps this fixed something? Don't know...
But anyway @Simasaurus09 @phoebebebe13 @igazor Thank you all so much for your patience and your willingness to help me. You have all been extremely helpful.
To recap: I now have TS3 fps limited to below 60fps and I experience almost no screen tearing (at least it isn't that obvious anymore).
Much love you to all