Author Topic: Fraps lag (Read 3637 times)

Resetti's Replicas · « **on:** August 02, 2011, 08:30:58 AM »

I have the paid version of Fraps, and no matter what framerate I use to record (I've tried a bunch of values between 15 and 60), it always spits out a slow-motion video. I have 20 Gigs of free memory, I record at half-size, 800x600 window, quality set to low. Is there anything else I could be doing?

Alternatively, if anyone could recommend a better recording program, I'm ok with paying for it as long as it's not something ludicrous like $600.

EDIT: Something I hadn't thought of; the problem started occurring after I got a new computer and re-purchased Fraps. It looked to be an upgraded version of what I had before, maybe if I down-grade it will solve the problem. Does anyone know if this is possible?

Badnik96 · « **Reply #1 on:** August 02, 2011, 08:44:19 AM »

Playclaw is pretty good. I dunno how much the full version is but the free version is OK, little lag, no limit (but there is a large bouncing watermark to deal with)

Lupus · « **Reply #2 on:** August 02, 2011, 08:51:11 AM »

Fraps is a terrible recording program, it ruins my framerate and lags the game i'm playing : /

Lupus · « **Reply #3 on:** August 02, 2011, 08:52:50 AM »

Also maybe update you display drivers? Dirt 2 ran in slow motion (literally, 300fps,it was beautiful but ruined the game) when i hadn't updated my drivers.

G.K. · « **Reply #4 on:** August 02, 2011, 11:52:28 AM »

Is it only specific bots?

Resetti's Replicas · « **Reply #5 on:** August 02, 2011, 12:28:49 PM »

It worked fine on my computer, but then my computer died, so my sister gave me her old laptop (exact same model). I purchased Fraps; it looked a little different than before (probably had been upgraded) and now all the videos it spits out are like half-speed.

Specific bots didn't affect the quality in either case, althought I didn't test any bots above 1000kg's

I guess a related question would be, "is there a way to revert Fraps to an older version"?

Skiitzzox220 · « **Reply #6 on:** August 02, 2011, 01:45:27 PM »

The newest version of Fraps was specifically designed to run on high end PC's and laptops so it normally depends on your computers spec

Resetti's Replicas · « **Reply #7 on:** August 02, 2011, 02:19:54 PM »

Ah, now that's interesting to know. I suppose downgrading is the best option for me, seeing as I'm playing an 8-year-old game on a 4-year-old laptop.

Trovaner · « **Reply #8 on:** August 02, 2011, 02:33:15 PM »

FRAPS won't let your FPS run faster than 60 which may be an issue. It works well for games just because it doesn't do any compression while recording. If your problem is slow playback, did you remember to compress it before watching the video (it can cause lower end computers to lag). Otherwise, you may consider manually speeding it up using whatever software you are using for compression.

PlayClaw doesn't limit FPS to 60 so IMO it works better than FRAPS. It also doesn't do any compression so performance is similar (if not better) to FRAPS.I've used the trial before but if I ever choose to record/upload something, I will likely buy the full version of it.

Skiitzzox220 · « **Reply #9 on:** August 02, 2011, 02:42:23 PM »

Fraps normally works better for lets plays and such because of it's balance between game volume and mic volume, so yeah PlayClaw seems like the better option

Resetti's Replicas · « **Reply #10 on:** August 02, 2011, 02:45:19 PM »

Quote from: Trovaner on August 02, 2011, 02:33:15 PM

FRAPS won't let your FPS run faster than 60 which may be an issue. It works well for games just because it doesn't do any compression while recording. If your problem is slow playback, did you remember to compress it before watching the video (it can cause lower end computers to lag). Otherwise, you may consider manually speeding it up using whatever software you are using for compression.

What program should I be using to compress? The problem isn't just slow playback, it's that the game itself slows down to about half speed whenever Fraps is recording.

That Robot is a Spy! · « **Reply #11 on:** August 02, 2011, 03:48:54 PM »

Uninstall Fraps and install an earlier version.

Lupus · « **Reply #12 on:** August 02, 2011, 06:21:24 PM »

With the new fraps recording on shexeh games like Dirt 2 (sorry for using that as an example again) a thirty second video can be over gigabyte (with no compression).
Also what "That Robot is a Spy" said is good advice, the older versions were much more stable on low end computers(perfect for my old computer) .
There are loads of downloads for old versions of fraps.http://fraps.brothersoft.com/fraps2.7.3 , best i could find download wise, dont trust the exe called "integrated" but the fraps.exe works

Edit: found one that lets you choose versions http://www.filehorse.com/download-fraps/381/

Trovaner · « **Reply #13 on:** August 02, 2011, 07:24:40 PM »

Quote from: Sonny_Resetti on August 02, 2011, 02:45:19 PM

Quote from: Trovaner on August 02, 2011, 02:33:15 PM
FRAPS won't let your FPS run faster than 60 which may be an issue. It works well for games just because it doesn't do any compression while recording. If your problem is slow playback, did you remember to compress it before watching the video (it can cause lower end computers to lag). Otherwise, you may consider manually speeding it up using whatever software you are using for compression.
What program should I be using to compress? The problem isn't just slow playback, it's that the game itself slows down to about half speed whenever Fraps is recording.

It all comes down to personal preference and what you plan to do besides compress your video. Some people use Windows Movie Maker but IMO, if you plan to do anything besides compression, your better off using something else. I usually do my video editing in Linux so I doubt your interested in what I usually use.

Here's a list of Windows Video Editors that seem to get the job done well:

Adobe Premiere (proprietary) - Excellent professional software with very little competition (Elements: $100; Pro: $800)
Sony Vegas (proprietary) - Another professional level video editor ($600)
Debugmode Wax (freeware) - Works well for most users and is compatible with many other program filters/plugins (free)
Avidemux (GPL) - I'm personally not too fond of this one but many people swear by it (free)
VirtualDub/VirtualDubMod (GPL) - Both are pretty feature rich but the learning curve might be an issue (both are free)
Lightworks (proprietary but soon to have an open source license) - I haven't personally used this but it looks very promising (free)

FRAPS will always limit your game to 60FPS regardless of your settings. Due to this, you may experience unnecessary lag when recording. However, you will always experience a slowdown in performance when recording (with or without FRAPS as your recorder).

Ways of increasing in game performance while recording:

A pretty good rule of thumb for FPS is that if you drop below 20FPS, your eyes will see a noticeable delay (that is why we usually set the FPS to 30). For FRAPS, we usually recommend recording in 'half size' and at 25-30 FPS
Setting the game's screen size to smaller dimensions will reduce the amount of data being processed (resolution will take a hit though so be weary of this)
Don't run your screen recorder while in fullscreen. Fullscreen is terribly inefficient even when you aren't recording
If you aren't going to be using in game sounds, don't bother recording them (on the recorder end)
Turn off Music, Sound Effects, and/or Announcer if they are not getting recorded (on the game end)
Consider turning graphics down to Medium or even Low
Turn off any unnecessary background processes before recording. Remember to re-enable your virus protection and firewall if you turned them off before recording
Remove unnecessary programs and files
Scan and remove viruses, malware, spyware, and adware
Defrag your computer
Update sound and video drivers
Look into increasing your virtual memory (Control Panel>Performance and Maintenance>Adjust Visual Effects>Advanced>[Virtual Memory]Change>System managed size [for all drives])
If you really want to go to the extremes, turn off Window's Visual Effects (Control Panel>Performance and Maintenance>Adjust Visual Effects>Adjust for best performance)
Another extreme would be to turn off your desktop icons (Right-Click>Arrange Icons By>Show Desktop Icons)

Skiitzzox220 · « **Reply #14 on:** August 02, 2011, 07:31:03 PM »

You could also try Gamebooster, it shuts off any background programs that aren't needed

Lupus · « **Reply #15 on:** August 03, 2011, 06:27:39 AM »

Trovaner deserves his title.Follow the steps he gave.

Resetti's Replicas · « **Reply #16 on:** August 09, 2011, 07:44:51 PM »

Does anyone know a reliable sourcewhere I can get the full version of Fraps 2.7? I tried Brothersoft, but it's the demo version. Normally I'd have reservations about pirating software, but I got sold a lemon, they owe me a working version

To clarify: the game itself goes all slow-motion when I'm recording with Fraps, not just the palyback. I'm recording on low-quaily, 640x800 (the smallest from the menu) non-fullscreen, soiund off, 20 gigs of free memory.

This never happened when I had Fraps 2.7 on my old computer.

I'm just about ready to take my computer to a field and re-enact that sledgehammer scene from Office Space (Probably will once I get a new computer)

Skiitzzox220 · « **Reply #17 on:** August 09, 2011, 07:51:49 PM »

You could probably find it if you use Torrents, I know you can get 2.9.2 and some others that way (not encouraging just making a point)

Resetti's Replicas · « **Reply #18 on:** August 09, 2011, 10:28:25 PM »

I read somewhere that you could imporve output by adjusting your graphics car, but when I ran dxdiag, it wouldn't let me change the settings.

My graphics card is an ATI Radeon Xpress 1150 set to display 1280 x 800. Could that be the cause of the problem?

Alternatively, if anyone knows of any other good screen recording programs (if paid then with a money-back guarantee) that would be cool too. I tried ZDSoft earlier today and it lagged just as badly. I'm starting to wonder if my computer is the real problem.

Skiitzzox220 · « **Reply #19 on:** August 10, 2011, 06:52:14 AM »

It could very well just be the specs of your computer. Fraps, ZDsoft etc don't work with me either, I normally just play games in windowed mode and use camtasia studio as that tends to work for me.