BGFX or D3D9Ex

[Housemusic]

Hi all,

I read GrooveMame's documentation up and down but still don't understand which video mode to use: BGFX or D3D9Ex.

My Setup:
Windows 10 64bit / Core i5-4690s / Radeon HD4350
Currently using an LCD Monitor 1980x1020p but will change to 15kHz CRT in future

Groove Mame documentation recommends to use D3D9Ex:
Groovy MAME: Installation and quick configuration

The advantage of Direct 3-D 9 Ex over Direct 3-D 9 is that, unlike with the latter, there's no need to enable frame delay in order to force the frame latency to the minimum allowed by the driver and therefore avoid the dreaded frame queues present in the ATI video drivers when Direct 3-D is used, which add a lag of 2-3 frames.

But with SwitchRes 016alpha1 support for D3D9Ex has been dropped because it can be replaced by BGFX. With SwitchRes 016alpha4 D3D9Ex was re-added again:
GroovyMAME 0.200 - Switchres v0.017i

What's new in SwitchRes v0.016 alpha 4 (December 2016)
- Full implementation of dynamic mode switching on the BGFX renderer (D3D11 backend)
- Re-added D3D9Ex support, now as a separate build.
What's new in SwitchRes v0.016 alpha 1 (August 2016)
- Dropped Direct3D 9ex support. LCD owners who used -video d3d9ex in order to enjoy reduced latency are suggested to move to -video bgfx, which now implements the same latency reduction method (SetMaximumFrameLatency)

I don't quite understand why has it been re-added. I thought BGFX fully replaces the functionality and performance of D3D9Ex?

And what would you recommend to use with my setup?

[Calamity]

I don't quite understand why has it been re-added. I thought BGFX fully replaces the functionality and performance of D3D9Ex?

It was readded because after some tests it turned out D3D9ex still had the lowest latency. Hopefully in the future we can dedicate some efforts to make the BGFX backend match D3D9ex on that regard.

[Housemusic]

Thanks Calamity, understood. Then I'll go with D3D9Ex until I hear from you that BGFX has matched or gets better in that matter.

Thanks for all your great work you do for this community.

[PL1]

Might be time to run those BGFX and D3D9Ex latency tests again.   

MAME 0.201

It’s the end of another month, and time for your scheduled MAME release, with more of everything we know you love.  In a last-minute update, we slipped in a major performance for bgfx video output.  It’s particularly noticeable when using cropped artwork, and there’s no longer a big performance penalty for bringing up the menu over the emulation on macOS.

Scott