• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 12:46
CEST 18:46
KST 01:46
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
Code S Season 2 (2026): RO4 and Finals Preview12TL.net Map Contest #22 - Voting & Ladder Map Selection6Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO8 Preview5[ASL21] Finals Preview: Two Legacies21Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO12 Preview2
Community News
[BSL22] Non-Korean Championship from 13 to 28 June2Weekly Cups (May 25-31): Clem doubles, 2v2 circuit heads toward finale0StarCraft II 5.0.16 PTR Patch Notes may 26th151Weekly Cups (May 18-24): MaxPax wins doubles0Crank Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League6
StarCraft 2
General
TL Poll: How do you feel about the 5.0.16 PTR balance changes? Oliveira Would Have Returned If EWC Continued TL.net Map Contest #22 - Voting & Ladder Map Selection Code S Season 2 (2026): RO4 and Finals Preview What kind of tool would you be interested in?
Tourneys
GSL Code S Season 2 (2026) Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament WardiTV Mondays Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule ! Crank Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League
Strategy
[G] Having the right mentality to improve
Custom Maps
[D]RTS in all its shapes and glory <3
External Content
The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 529 Opportunities Unleashed Mutation # 528 Infection Detected Welcome to the External Content forum
Brood War
General
25 Years Since Brood War Patch 1.08 BW General Discussion BW animated web series: seeking contributors FlaSh's ASL S21 Finals Review BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/
Tourneys
[BSL22] Grand Finals - Sunday 21:00 CEST [ASL21] Grand Finals [Megathread] Daily Proleagues Escore Tournament StarCraft Season 2
Strategy
Any training maps people recommend? Why doesn't anyone use restoration? Muta micro map competition [G] Hydra ZvZ: An Introduction
Other Games
General Games
Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread PC Games Sales Thread Nintendo Switch Thread ZeroSpace Megathread Summer Games Done Quick 2026!
Dota 2
Looking for a Dota Mentor Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Vanilla Mini Mafia
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread Trading/Investing Thread Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine YouTube Thread Russo-Ukrainian War Thread
Fan Clubs
The herO Fan Club!
Media & Entertainment
[Req][Books] Good Fantasy/SciFi books [TV/BOOK] *SPOILERS* Game of Thrones Discussion Movie Discussion! [Manga] One Piece
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread McBoner: A hockey love story Formula 1 Discussion TeamLiquid Health and Fitness Initiative For 2023
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread Facing Challenges in Mobile App Development
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
An Exploration of th…
waywardstrategy
I'm an arrogant trash talke…
FlaShFTW
Gauntlet SC2: A Retrospectiv…
Ctone23
Esportsmanship: How to NOT B…
TrAiDoS
Why RTS gamers make better f…
gosubay
ASL S21 English Commentary…
namkraft
StarCraft improvement
iopq
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 7597 users

Ultra vs. Low settings

Forum Index > SC2 General
Post a Reply
1 2 Next All
Twinweapon
Profile Joined April 2010
United States90 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-05-08 20:36:48
May 08 2010 20:19 GMT
#1
I have a 2 computers one with 2 -Radeon 5970 video cards and another with a GTX 260 Nvidia video card so I have two(Well actually 3) high performance cards.

Now depending on your video card and other variables you may have different results, but here are mine.

I decided to test the difference in quality and if they can somehow affect animations and other things from low to ultra settings(Testing the difference between the extremes) and here is what info I have gotten.

Low settings(lower detail- have to point out the obv)

-Never lagged once
-Creep pulse gone
-Edges around cloaked units harder to see
-Zerg burrow move impossible to see
-less distractions from details
-some blurry areas on screen for some random reason( Around rocks primarily)

Ultra settings( Higher detail- have to point out the obv)

-Periodic lag on GTX card after playing for hour+
-Cloaked units are much easier to see because of extremely detailed edges( observer primarily)
-Underground movement from zerg has a weird rumbling above the ground making it easier to see
-no blurred areas
-Underground burrow movement under creep completely invisible
-Creep pulses(possibly distracting)

That is all I have found so much, but expect to find more as I have player only 5 games apiece on each setting. (When I mean setting I mean all of them on low and all of them on ultra)

I will have more as time goes by. Hope it is helpful somewhat.

Edit: If I get the time I will posts on the other settings. I am also try to determine what settings contribute to each game changing factor.

Also the computer with the two Radeon 5970 cards has the same amount of ram as my other computer (9gb ddr3), i7 3.33 GHtz processor(other i7 2.73), both have windows 7 prem home, and both have Asus motherboards which in general are good imo. 1200 watt power supply, liquid cooled both, and the rest I forget off the top of my head.
MindRush
Profile Joined April 2010
Romania916 Posts
May 08 2010 20:23 GMT
#2
what about the RAM, CPU, OS, HDD speed ? all of those are the same in both computers ?
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
heishe
Profile Blog Joined June 2009
Germany2284 Posts
May 08 2010 20:23 GMT
#3
SC2 is very CPU-reliant. From an ATI 48xx card or similar Geforce card you can run everything on ULTRA as long as you have a very good cpu.
If you value your soul, never look into the eye of a horse. Your soul will forever be lost in the void of the horse.
ccdnl
Profile Joined April 2010
United States611 Posts
May 08 2010 20:24 GMT
#4
Hi Twinweapon, this is quite useful indeed! But would you considering finding the differences for middle settings too? Some circumstances where this would be very useful is if someone[me] had a computer that can run medium[but low is much more smooth] and definitely not ultra. That is all, and appreciate you sharing your findings.
civil cervixes || Kang Min Fan || I like TLO, TLO= German, I like Germans..?
Lemure
Profile Joined March 2010
189 Posts
May 08 2010 22:02 GMT
#5
Is there a specific setting like shaders that determine how easy it is to see a cloaked unit?
T.O.P. *
Profile Blog Joined January 2009
Hong Kong4685 Posts
May 08 2010 22:10 GMT
#6
Screenshots would be more helpful. I wish someone would make a guide that evaluates what each video settings does.
Oracle comes in, Scvs go down, never a miscommunication.
ghermination
Profile Blog Joined April 2008
United States2851 Posts
May 08 2010 22:12 GMT
#7
Another really annoying thing about low settings is there is no death animations. All of your units are just disappearing whenever you're in a battle. Really scary sometimes when you're fighting 3 or 4 siege tanks and you see 2 dozen stalkers just dissapear.
U Gotta Skate.
Iceleet
Profile Joined January 2010
Israel46 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-05-08 22:18:53
May 08 2010 22:17 GMT
#8
Every time I play this map I barely can see shit in this map in the fog for some reason x_x (I'm running my settings on lowest and windowed mode so I can't change the gamma in game).

I'm not sure if it's just me but I hope they fix it
[image loading]
Derp the Herp in you.
PanzerDragoon
Profile Joined March 2010
United States822 Posts
May 08 2010 22:58 GMT
#9
so this is the shader setting?
GenesisX
Profile Blog Joined February 2010
Canada4267 Posts
May 08 2010 23:00 GMT
#10
On May 09 2010 07:17 Iceleet wrote:
Every time I play this map I barely can see shit in this map in the fog for some reason x_x (I'm running my settings on lowest and windowed mode so I can't change the gamma in game).

I'm not sure if it's just me but I hope they fix it
+ Show Spoiler +
[image loading]



Can't you turn your brightness / gamma (or w/e) up?
133 221 333 123 111
SirNeb
Profile Blog Joined April 2008
United States243 Posts
May 09 2010 03:01 GMT
#11
it would be nice to know what settings allows an easier view of the cloaking/burrowing units w/ low settings.
Chaoz
Profile Joined March 2010
United States507 Posts
May 09 2010 03:32 GMT
#12
On May 09 2010 07:17 Iceleet wrote:
Every time I play this map I barely can see shit in this map in the fog for some reason x_x (I'm running my settings on lowest and windowed mode so I can't change the gamma in game).

I'm not sure if it's just me but I hope they fix it
[image loading]


I hate the incineration maps. The first time I played it, it was so dark I didn't even know where the ramp was. I spent a few good moments wandering around my base just to know where to wall my buildings.
biology]major
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
United States2253 Posts
May 09 2010 03:35 GMT
#13
lol 2 5970s, u pretty much overkilled sc like a 100 times. Dont you have to cap ur frames cus it gets too high?
and also i think 2 5970s is a large waste of money...
Question.?
AyeH
Profile Blog Joined March 2010
United States534 Posts
May 09 2010 03:41 GMT
#14
On May 09 2010 12:35 biology]major wrote:
lol 2 5970s, u pretty much overkilled sc like a 100 times. Dont you have to cap ur frames cus it gets too high?
and also i think 2 5970s is a large waste of money...


if he can afford two 5970s, it's not a huge waste of money. people like him keep the economy going. :D
Is it in you?
writer22816
Profile Blog Joined September 2008
United States5775 Posts
May 09 2010 03:47 GMT
#15
So is it better to have SC2 on Low or Ultra for competitive gaming? Hopefully it's the former so that I don't have to upgrade
8/4/12 never forget, never forgive.
semantics
Profile Blog Joined November 2009
10040 Posts
May 09 2010 03:50 GMT
#16
On May 09 2010 07:17 Iceleet wrote:
Every time I play this map I barely can see shit in this map in the fog for some reason x_x (I'm running my settings on lowest and windowed mode so I can't change the gamma in game).

I'm not sure if it's just me but I hope they fix it
[image loading]

In SC1 you could never see the map though fog until you revealed it it's why pictures of maps where valuable for memorization of shit.
Lazix
Profile Joined March 2010
Australia378 Posts
May 09 2010 04:06 GMT
#17
I can play ultra settings on about 90fps but I choose to ladder on low because find the units and their team colour stand out more.

Anyone else find this?
Excalibur_Z
Profile Joined October 2002
United States12248 Posts
May 09 2010 04:10 GMT
#18
On May 09 2010 07:10 T.O.P. wrote:
Screenshots would be more helpful. I wish someone would make a guide that evaluates what each video settings does.


Did you not read the Tomshardware article on Starcraft 2? It's full of newbieness but it has screenshots which compare each graphic level and both video card manufacturers. It makes it quite easy to tell the difference between low, medium, high, and ultra. Search the site for Tomshardware and you'll find it.
Moderator
Drk_ItachiX
Profile Joined April 2009
Japan113 Posts
May 09 2010 04:14 GMT
#19
Im perfectly fine on Ultra settings.......I feel the army colors stand out perfectly.
Sulfur
Mortician
Profile Blog Joined December 2008
Bulgaria2332 Posts
May 09 2010 04:14 GMT
#20
On May 09 2010 13:06 Lazix wrote:
I can play ultra settings on about 90fps but I choose to ladder on low because find the units and their team colour stand out more.

Anyone else find this?


I find playing on medium to be the best in terms of spotting units and shit
"If anything, the skill cap in sc2 is higher [than sc1] because there are a lot more things you can do at one given time. " darmousseh
1 2 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
Maestros of the Game
15:00
Playoffs
Classic vs LamboLIVE!
Clem vs Maru
RotterdaM1591
ComeBackTV 1155
IntoTheiNu 1055
TaKeTV 533
IndyStarCraft 182
Ryung 148
Rex143
BRAT_OK 90
3DClanTV 79
EnkiAlexander 72
CosmosSc2 68
LiquipediaDiscussion
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
RotterdaM 1591
IndyStarCraft 182
Ryung 148
Rex 143
BRAT_OK 90
CosmosSc2 68
JuggernautJason61
Livibee 49
StarCraft: Brood War
Calm 5015
Sea 3233
Shuttle 945
ggaemo 342
Hyuk 227
Mini 186
Noble 93
Hyun 70
firebathero 56
Free 46
[ Show more ]
Mong 32
Rock 23
Killer 20
Sacsri 19
IntoTheRainbow 18
GoRush 16
NaDa 15
soO 15
Movie 15
ajuk12(nOOB) 9
JulyZerg 7
Dota 2
qojqva2665
Dendi1391
Counter-Strike
fl0m1895
x6flipin435
Heroes of the Storm
MindelVK11
Other Games
gofns34123
tarik_tv15012
singsing1832
Liquid`RaSZi1454
Grubby1273
FrodaN1103
B2W.Neo776
Beastyqt612
byalli383
ceh9314
ArmadaUGS229
KnowMe137
Hui .99
QueenE77
Trikslyr39
SHIN 10
Organizations
Other Games
BasetradeTV253
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
[ Show 16 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• Kozan
• sooper7s
• Migwel
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• intothetv
• IndyKCrew
StarCraft: Brood War
• HerbMon 29
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
• BSLYoutube
League of Legends
• Nemesis2767
• Jankos1858
• TFBlade824
Other Games
• WagamamaTV408
• Shiphtur131
Upcoming Events
Replay Cast
7h 14m
The PondCast
17h 14m
Maestros of the Game
22h 14m
Serral vs Rogue
herO vs SHIN
OSC
1d 5h
Replay Cast
1d 7h
Maestros of the Game
1d 21h
Replay Cast
2 days
CranKy Ducklings
2 days
uThermal 2v2 Circuit
2 days
Sparkling Tuna Cup
3 days
[ Show More ]
uThermal 2v2 Circuit
3 days
OSC
4 days
Wardi Open
4 days
Replay Cast
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

BSL Season 22
2026 GSL S2
Heroes Pulsing #1

Ongoing

IPSL Spring 2026
KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 2
Acropolis #4
CSCL: Masked Kings S4
YSL S3
Acropolis #4 - GSB
SCTL 2026 Spring
WardiTV Spring 2026
Maestros of the Game 2
uThermal 2v2 2026 Main Event
Murky Cup 2026
IEM Cologne Major 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 2
CS Asia Championships 2026
Asian Champions League 2026
IEM Atlanta 2026
PGL Astana 2026
BLAST Rivals Spring 2026
IEM Rio 2026
PGL Bucharest 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 1
BLAST Open Spring 2026

Upcoming

BSL 22 Non-Korean Championship
CSLAN 4
Blizzard Classic Cup 2026
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
CranK Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League
HSC XXIX
Douyu Cup 2026
Heroes Pulsing #3
Heroes Pulsing #2
Esports World Cup 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer Qual
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.