Dolphin on a Laptop?

dobrev_dqd · 10-13-2012, 08:43 AM #1

Hi, guys I recently bought a nice laptop. It's Lenovo y580 with gtx 660m, ivy bridge i7 3610, 4gb ram(nice for me ofc). It runs most pc games like dream, even crysis got playable in 1080p Smile

. But the Dolphin is really demanding(the games i mean). Gamecube games run like a dream, but the Wii ones not that good. Framerate drops from 60 to 55,45,even under 30 sometimes( in SMG,SMG2 and others). So I was thinking is this config good enough for a nice gaming experience with dolphin? Is it worth to buy a wiimote and nunchuck for this laptop? I mean it sounds cool, but I am not sure if this laptop is THE machine for Dolphin.

nintendo_nerd · 10-13-2012, 09:07 AM #2

Are the options "Lock threads to core" and "enable dual core" checked in the settings?

**pauldacheez** · (This post was last modified: 10-13-2012, 09:43 AM by pauldacheez.)

The laptop ain't a bad laptop at all - SMG's just a really demanding game, especially with LLE audio which it requires to not crash at certain points. You'd need a good desktop CPU (preferably overclocked) to run SMG at full speed with LLE.

**Axxer** · 10-13-2012, 09:46 AM #4

First, understand that running PC games well in no way indicates that Dolphin will run well or vice versa.

Onto your issue: although that is an excellent laptop, it won't cut it for some games (like SMG) because the CPU is simply too slow. No laptop can currently run SMG full speed with LLE audio.

You need a desktop like mine to run SMG full speed.

dobrev_dqd · (This post was last modified: 10-13-2012, 10:10 AM by dobrev_dqd.)

(10-13-2012, 09:07 AM)nintendo_nerd Wrote: Are the options "Lock threads to core" and "enable dual core" checked in the settings?

Lock threads to core wasn't , the other is was. Now they both are. Does it speeds the emulation? I thought i did everything there is to make it smooth. And hows ur y570 running the Dolphin? It should be a bit slower than mine? Some tips Smile

?

(10-13-2012, 09:41 AM)pauldacheez Wrote: The laptop ain't a bad laptop at all - SMG's just a really demanding game, especially with LLE audio which it requires to not crash at certain points. You'd need a good desktop CPU (preferably overclocked) to run SMG at full speed with LLE.

So it's not good enough even for 640x400 and 1x IR? And what about the overall experience with Dolphin on this laptop? Is it worth the wiimote and nunchuck or just stick to the classic controller games with my 3rd party gamepad?

**Axxer** · 10-13-2012, 10:09 AM #6

IR shouldnt have anything to do with speed in your slow speed. You GPU is fine, but your CPU is too slow. You should be able to use even 4x IR and not see the speed change for games like SMG.

**DefenderX** · 10-13-2012, 07:41 PM #7

The CPU is not too slow, it's pretty powerful for a notebook. But some games require even more CPU power, e.g. Mario Galaxy, The Last Story, Xenoblade, etc.

dobrev_dqd · 10-13-2012, 08:57 PM #8

(10-13-2012, 07:41 PM)DefenderX Wrote: The CPU is not too slow, it's pretty powerful for a notebook. But some games require even more CPU power, e.g. Mario Galaxy, The Last Story, Xenoblade, etc.

Okaay, so this means that so far I tested the dolphin on some of the most demanding games (SMG, Smack down vs raw 2012 which was unplayable btw even on 320 x 200 res Big Grin

). Do you think other games will be running better than those? And still no one said anything bout the wiimote. Is the laptop worth the additional hardware? And does the RAM memory plays a big role in the emulation(mine is 4gb which I think isn't as much as I would like it be)?

**LordVador** · 10-13-2012, 09:42 PM #9

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: Do you think other games will be running better than those?

List other games you plan to play

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: And still no one said anything bout the wiimote. Is the laptop worth the additional hardware?

Emulated Wiimote isn't always a good deal. Better use a real one

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: does the RAM memory plays a big role in the emulation

No

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: mine is 4gb which I think isn't as much as I would like it be

It's fair enough

dobrev_dqd · 10-14-2012, 12:41 AM **#10**

(10-13-2012, 09:42 PM)LordVador Wrote:
(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: Do you think other games will be running better than those?

List other games you plan to play

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: And still no one said anything bout the wiimote. Is the laptop worth the additional hardware?

Emulated Wiimote isn't always a good deal. Better use a real one

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: does the RAM memory plays a big role in the emulation

No

(10-13-2012, 08:57 PM)dobrev_dqd Wrote: mine is 4gb which I think isn't as much as I would like it be

It's fair enough

Any of those classic nintendo games, no multiplatform games. Also Dead Space: Extraction,Xenoblade,The Last Story, Mario Bros Wii, Donkey Kong returns, Twilight Princes (cause it got widescreen, gamecube ver doesn't),Skyward Sword and pretty much all the mario games Smile

. Do you think i will be able to get gaming experience closer to the real Wii thing if I get nunchuck+wiimote. Does they work properly? Any issues if i get a cheap ones(3rd party)?