Windows Aero vs Basic

[dirtyjohn_lv]

I was having some issues today with my main server, most likely the Titan X causing it. I kept getting the "Switch to Basic Theme, low performance" message in Windows. Rebooted server and switch to a basic theme, started Arena and would only get 65fps with 2 videos as opposed to the normal 90-100fps I get when Aero is turned on.

Why would this affect the performance of Arena when it is GPU based?
Task Manager shows nearly 1GB of memory for Arena being used, GPU-Z shows only 800MB of video memory used at 40% GPU load.

I think part of the problem is the crap drivers NVIDIA has for the Titan X, have not really found a set yet that doesn't have issues

[Joris]

From what I understand, Aero tries to take control of a lot of things which it just should stay out of. It overrides how your app handles window transparency and uses multiple monitors.

For instance, on some AMD and Matrox cards, turning on Aero will make the transparent part of your preview windows actually transparent. So if you're previewing a clip with alpha, you'll see your desktop underneath it. Because Aero thinks we're trying to do some fancy glass overlay tricks.

I find it's usually best to get rid of it as soon as possible.

[dirtyjohn_lv]

Oddly enough, I've always had Aero turned on. I never had problems like this until I installed the Titan X, maybe because it's so new and they are still working on drivers. May be time to upgrade to Win10