Best settings for dolphin emulator
Dolphin is probably one of the best known emulators ever created; it is recognized for its flexibility, its constant development over time and its high compatibility. Today, it is one of the most reliable and effective emulators for breaking the walls between different operating and gaming systems.
Every big thing has a story, and as with Dolphin, it all started when it was first released in 2003 on Windows OS to allow users to play GameCube and Wii video games on their computers. The road was not easy and Dolphin accepted the criticisms, but continued to develop the software every day better. It slowly took over and was later introduced on other computer operating systems like Linux, macOS, on Android in 2013, and recently in December 2019, on iOS mobile devices.
It became open source software in the early years and has grown steadily. It has improved and continues to improve to this day. The open source aspect allowed the developers to study and improve the software.
Even though Dolphin has become a very popular emulator, the system is still not perfect, but then there is nothing like that, is there? Some users have found solutions to improve their experience, just a few tweaks to the settings, and you’re good to go. It may or may not work with others, but you can try them out to find out.
Dolphin on Windows
Running Dolphin or even other emulators on low-end computers can be a real challenge. An expert may need to understand the causes of the problems, but most of the time it depends on the properties and hardware limitations of the unit.
Did you know there are things you can do to improve Dolphin’s performance on a low-end Windows PC? We’ll give you a few simple tips and tricks on how to fix slowdown / delay issues, which could be a temporary or permanent fix depending on how your system or the game itself responds
Let’s jump in!
Best settings for Dolphin Emulator
To get started, be sure to use the latest / stable version of the Dolphin software, so you don’t miss any new updates.
For development versions, make sure it is installed:
Visual C ++ 64 bit redistributable for Visual Studio 2019
Other requirements:
WinRar or similar software to decompress Dolphin development versions and downloaded games)
If you are not sure what you have, please go to Dolphin.org
Setting 1
- Run Dolphin> Click Graphics> Fill each tab with these values:
General tab
- Backend: Direct3D 11
- Adapter: Intel HD Graphics
- Aspect ratio: stretch to window
- Display FPS: Yes
- Render to main window: Yes
Improvements
- Internal storage: native / automatic
- Anti aliasing: None
- Anisotropic aliasing: 1x
- EFB copy to scale: Yes
Hacks
- Skip EFB access from processor: Yes
- Ignore format changes: Yes
- Store EFB copies in texture only: Yes
- Store XFB copies in texture only: Yes
- Skip presentation of duplicate images: Yes
- Quick depth calculation: Yes
- Deactivate the delimitation zone: Yes
- Texture cache accuracy: “fast”
Advanced
- ONLY “Full screen without border” is checked
- Leave everything else as is
- Close the screen
- Click on Config
General
- Enable dual-core acceleration: Yes
- Activate cheats: Yes
- Speed limit: 100%
- Automatic update settings: once a month (optional)
- Enable usage statistics report: Yes
Interface
- Always hide the mouse cursor: yes
- Leave everything else as is or change the theme as desired
audio
- Leave everything as is
- Configure it only if you have problems with audio
Paths
GameCube
- Slot A: memory card
- Leave everything as is
Wii
- Use PAL60 mode: Yes
- Aspect ratio: 16: 9
- Leave everything else as is
Advanced
- Processor emulation engine: JIT recompiler
- Activate replacement of the emulated processor clock: Yes
- Set to: 50%
-To close-
Try to open a game and check. We used the same parameters. Notice the FPS in the upper right corner of your screen, this will generally improve the fluidity of movements in the game. These parameters are intended to improve Dolphin’s performance by modifying certain graphic aspects which have a significant impact on the output of the game.
In addition to the parameters changed above, please don’t change other values unless you really know what you’re doing, read the descriptions when you hover over a parameter to understand it.
Parameters inspired by: Dolphin settings for low-end PC / laptop
Setting 2
- Run Dolphin> click Graphic
General
- Backend: Direct3D 12
- Adapter: IntelR) HD Graphics or whatever your GPU
- V-Sync: Yes
- Use full screen: Yes
- Display FPS: Yes
- Windows automatic size adjustment: Yes
- Shader compilation: Synchronous (default)
Improvements
- Internal resolution: 2x native (1280x 1056) for 720p
- Anti aliasing: None
- Anisotropic filtering: 16x
- Disable copy filter: Yes
- Widescreen Hack: Yes
- Force 24 bit color: Yes
- Arbitrary Mipmap detection: Yes
- Stereoscopy: leave as is
Hacks
- Store EFB copies in texture only: Yes
- Ignore format changes: Yes
- Texture cache accuracy: fast
- Store XFB copies in texture only: Yes
- Top rounding: Yes
- Save the texture cache in the state: Yes
Advanced
- Multithreading backend: Yes
- Enable progressive scan: Yes
Note: leave the other options unchecked unless they have been set by default
Test these settings like the first and see if it improves. If you think these are not the settings for you, check out the next option
Source: Low-end PC settings for the Dolphin Wii emulator
Parameters 3
Run Dolphin> Go To Config
General
- Activate Dual Core: Yes
- Activate cheats
- Speed limit: 110%
Close and go to Graphic
General
- Backend: Direct3D 11
- Adapter: depending on your graphics card
- Aspect ratio: Strength 4: 3
- Use full screen: Yes
- Display FPS: Yes
This last parameter is much simpler than the others but also gives good performance and corrects offsets, better than the default parameters. Recommended for lighter games.
In conclusion:
In addition to having a low-end PC, the weight of the game itself also has an impact on the performance of the game. Some games may require some simple adjustments, while others may require advanced modifications.
Another thing that could help you run Dolphin Smoother on a low-end PC is to stop other processes while you are playing. Go to your task manager and finish the tasks you are not using or simply close the other windows.
We hope this article has helped you improve the performance of Dolphin Emulator on your low-end Windows PC, if you haven’t tried them yet, do so and let us know the result. Also, if you know of other settings, let us know in the comments below and we will try them out.