FrontBench: using Frontier as a benchmark (Discussion thread)

[Badwolf]

This is technically software I'm distributing, but not the final product you want as I'm not sure of its legal status: you're going to have to do some work. Instructions as below.


FrontBench is the full shareware version of Frontier modified to count frames between two specific places in the intro sequence. A faster computer/memory combination should be smoother and thus able to draw more frames between these two points.

It's not a rigorous benchmark, but it's a decent representation of an AltRAM-supporting game that is heavy on memory access and CPU load. It provides a good visual feedback too. Frontier does not use an FPU.

Please note, Frontier uses the vertical blank to time the intro sequence. The sequence is therefore shorter on 60Hz machines. This will give a frame count ~17% lower than on an otherwise identical configuration running at 50Hz. This needs to be taken into account when comparing results.

Frontier (and FrontBench) requires a 1MB machine.


Some examples I've collected:

Stock 8MHz PAL STE: ~850 frames.

16MHz PAL STE: ~940 frames.
32MHz PAL STE: ~1100 frames [exxos].
16MHz PAL STE + 7MB/s AltRAM: ~1320 frames.

16MHz PAL Mega ST + Hypercache: ~1505 frames [czietz].

Stock Falcon @60Hz VGA mode: ~1650 frames.
Stock Falcon @50Hz RGB mode: ~2070 frames.

50MHz PAL Mega ST+TF536: ~2440 frames [coonsgm].
50MHz PAL H5[STF]+TF536: ~2700 frames [davec].

50MHz DFB1 Falcon + 33MB/s AltRAM @50Hz RGB mode: ~4160 frames.

1) Download the shareware version of Frontier from (for example) https://www.frontierastro.co.uk/Files/files.html

2) Extract frontier.bin from the ST disc image (use mtools or an emulator) and place it in the directory with this script. Rename it to lower case if necessary.

3) Run this script: "python3 frntbnch_patcher.py"

4) If you get no errors, you should have a working program called 'frntbnch.prg' in the same directory as this script.



This script may work, but as not been tested, with an originally owned copy Frontier.prg. Rename it to 'frontier.bin' (lower case) before trying. It won't work with compressed versions (eg. from menus). File size should be 587798 bytes.

There is no error checking here. Work in a temporary directory. Don't lose your original program because of my shitty script!

This script is provided as is for personal educational gratification.

BW


PS: If someone else wishes to go through this process and host the resultant binary, please note I didn't advise you to do this.

IMG_5103.jpeg

[DaveC]

Well this is what my H5+TF536 MAPROM TOS2.06 PAL manages.
Does show what a massive difference the Falcon bus running at 16MHz makes to overall results.

DSC_2165.JPG

[Badwolf]

Well this is what my H5+TF536 MAPROM TOS2.06 PAL manages.
Does show what a massive difference the Falcon bus running at 16MHz makes to overall results.

:thumbup:

Yep. Exxos' 32MHz system bus is the way of the future, alright.

BW

[Badwolf]

Will record any figures I'm DM'd at the GitHub page:

https://github.com/dh219/FrontBench

Let's leave this thread clean, though, please.

Ta,

BW.

[DaveC]

I'd love to see a video of the latest DFB1 Falcon run of the test. The previous one include in one of your videos looks impressive enough as it is to be fair.

[dalek]

Nice! Fingers crossed for an Amiga port in the future - it's the de-facto visual benchmark over there and some numbers (and a red bar ;) ;) ) would be really neat.

[stephen_usher]

Atari TT030, program run from TT-RAM: 2876 frames.

[mrbombermillzy]

Atari TT030, program run from TT-RAM: 2876 frames.

Stephen, what speed CPU does your TT have?

[stephen_usher]

The standard 32MHz 68030.

[exxos]

@Badwolf

[H5] TF536 ST Edition EMUTOS : 3140

[H5] TF536 ST Edition TOS206 : 2827