Graphics problems

[Jeffers2112]

I've been having some strange graphics problems with Elite.
I've had the display freeze, although the game is still running, because I still get normal sound effects going on.
I sometimes get a system error from Direct3D saying it cannot lock a buffer.
The suggested possible causes are the PC being below the minimum specs for running the game or driver issues.
Well my PC has been running Elite fine for ages, and I've seen the problem on different graphics driver versions, so I don't think that is the issue.
I have been running a pair of GTX 660s in SLI mode while I saved up for an upgrade.
This problem is an odd one, and I'm using it as a excuse to splash out on a new graphics card.
I will be picking up an MSI GeForce GTX 1070 Gaming X 8GB card on Monday...
I'll just tell the wife that I had to have a new card because of a fault.... that's mostly true.

[Cmdr Kharma]

Hah....

I done exactly the same to get this 970......

I whacked everything up to ultra and called the Mrs in and said look.....

I can't possibly play with this.......Look at it.......

[TorTorden]

Hah....

I done exactly the same to get this 970......

I whacked everything up to ultra and called the Mrs in and said look.....

I can't possibly play with this.......Look at it.......

If that doesn't work, set the multiplier to 2x or higher and turn the whole thing into a <2fps slideshow

[Cmdr Kharma]

I set it at 1.5.......

[Jeffers2112]

Got my 1070 installed, and generally everything is looking good.
I have got one strange issue, which looks to be down to my system, although I'm not sure what's causing it....
I've been doing some running around in my SRV, all fine with 60FPS and then it drops to 30-something, with a bit of stuttering.
Strange thing is that if I alt-tab out of Elite and back again it goes back up to 60. Any ideas?

[Relix Typhon]

Any ideas?

The Elite engine isn't very well optimised

I never said it was a good idea

[Cometborne]

I had exactly the same issues on a 980ti that had been performing just fine for months before - graphics freezing, sounds continue, game continues, etc. Or the buffer lock error message. These problems started after I had switched from limited frame rate to vsync. After switching vsync back off and using the frame rate limit again, the problems went away as quickly as they started.