F1 2021: PC graphics performance benchmark review

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Game Frametime Analysis

Game Frametime Analysis GPU and CPU

The charts below show you graphics anomalies like stutters and glitches in a plotted chart: frame time and pacing measurements. 

Frame time
in milliseconds
FPS
8.3 120
15 66
20 50
25 40
30 33
50 20
70 14
  • FPS mostly measures performance, the number of frames rendered per passing second.
  • Frametime AKA Frame Experience recordings mostly measure and expose anomalies - here, we look at how long it takes to render one frame. Measure that chronologically, and you can see anomalies like peaks and dips in a plotted chart, indicating something could be off. 

We have a detailed article (read here) on the methodology behind it all. Basically, the time it takes to render one frame can be monitored and tagged with a number; this is latency. One frame can take, say, 17 ms. Higher latency can indicate a slow framerate, and weird latency spikes indicate a stutter, jitter, twitches; basically, anomalies that are visible on your monitor. These measurements show anomalies like small glitches and stutters that you can sometimes (and please do read that well, sometimes) see on screen. Below I'd like to run through a couple of titles with you. Bear in mind that Average FPS often matters more than frame time measurements. 

Please understand that a lower frame time is a higher FPS, so for these charts, lower = better. Huge spikes would be stutters, thick lines would be bad frame pacing, and the graduate streamlining is framerate variation.  As you might have observed, we're experimenting a bit with our charts and methodology. Below the game at Ultra HD, with image quality settings as used throughout this review.

For our test run, we'll fire off a 30-second scene at 3840x2160 pixels in both DX12 and DX12+Raytracing. We opt to use the Radeon RX 6800 XT paired and matched with the GeForce RTX 3080. The first being faster in DX12, the latter in DX12+Raytracing. So that should be an interesting observation. 

Once you see visual peaks at 40ms, you're in stutter territory. 


6800-shading

Above Radeon RX 6800 - DX12 (shading/rasterizer) performance

6800-rt

Above Radeon RX 6800 - DX12 (+raytracing) performance

Rtx3080-shading

Above GeForce RTX 3080 - DX12 (shading/rasterizer) performance

Rtx3080-raytracing

Above GeForce RTX 3080 - DX12 (+raytracing) performance

Compare-shading

It's almost vexatious to see how well both cards perform, so we'll close in even further at the highest measured frametime in ms, above DX12 frame times for 6800 XT (red) and 3080 (green). You can see extremely similar frame pacing and time behavior, the green bar is positioned higher and thus slightly slower (higher frame times - lower FPS). 

Compare-ray

Once we flick on Raytracing (no DLSS) the picture reverses like a paradoxical plot, the 3080 takes the lead, making sense as RTX 3000 offers better raytracing performance. But again very similar frame pacing overall. Let me note that this plot is at a max of 25ms where we normally plot at 40 or 60ms. Both cards do behave a bit more troublesome with Raytracing enabled. 

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