[GUIDE][PCSX2] How to Setup and Speed Up PCSX2 9.7/9.8
This guide works for both 9.7 and 9.8 as the GUI used for both versions are identical.
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9.../RMPCShori.png
PCSX2 is the leading PS2 emulator, able to run commercial games on today's computers. The version used for this guide is the recent 9.7 beta build, which has many things added changed to make it much more versatile and compatible with mid-range Dual Core systems and higher.
Getting Started
First, make sure that you have the latest DirectX runtime and drivers for you video card:
Code:
http://download.microsoft.com/download/1/7/1/1718CCC4-6315-4D8E-9543-8E28A4E18C4C/dxwebsetup.exe - DirectX Runtime
http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_catalyst.aspx - ATI Drivers
http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us - NVIDIA Drivers
And then download the emulator and bios:
Code:
http://pcsx2.googlecode.com/files/pcsx2-r3113-setup.exe - PCSX2 9.7 Beta
http://pcsx2.googlecode.com/files/pcsx2-0.9.8-r4600-binaries.7z - PCSX2 9.8
http://www.mediafire.com/?mdnnzy2mxt5mwq2 - BIOS (Unzip directly into the PCSX2 folder (Overwrite everything))
Once all this is done, start the emulator to continue and follow the guide.
The Guide
Now that we have our emulator setup, it's time to start configuring it. The settings this guide will show you how to play most games while keeping the emulator stable and without crashes or game glitches.
Plugin Setup
On first boot up, it will request directories to ISOs and the BIOs, for now you can keep these blank and continue on, but make sure you choose a bios (preferably the USA one) before continuing, but the screen that is most important through the sequence is the plugin selection. When it comes to selecting the plugins, make select them as follows:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...CSX2/PS2-8.png
If you are on an AMD CPU, change the Gsdx plugin to the SSE2 version, as SSSE3 and SSE4 versions do not work with any CPU except Intel E and Q model Quads (and ix processors). Once setup as seen, click "Configure" next to the Gsdx plugin to go to the video settings screen:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...1/PCSX2/gs.png
If you think you have a mid range video card, leave it as it is. If you have a video card similar or on par with an ATI 48xx model, you can change the D3D internal res to something higher to get "HD" graphics. If you are using an operating system before Vista/7, click the Renderer box and change it to DirectX 9.
If you want to change control settings, click the Configure button and change the controls as you wish. Once these steps are done, press OK to exit the first-time guide and enter the emulator.
Core Emulator Settings
This part is quite long winded, so I created screenshots for each part to help make this guide quicker to follow. First we open the Configuration menu for the emualtor by going to Config > Emulation Settings. Once done, you will see a screen showing the current processing type the emulator is set to. Make sure it is setup like this:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...CSX2/PS2-1.png
Once this is done, click VUs on the bar at the top to see this screen:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...CSX2/PS2-2.png
Set it up exactly does in the screenshot. As you can see, the recommended options are in bold, this means that if a game crashes or glitches, these options could be the culprit, remember this.
NOTE: SuperVU has always seemed more stable, but if you want speed over compatibilty, change to MicroVU.
Click on the next option on the bar to show the next things we can configure:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...CSX2/PS2-3.png
I say can because there is nothing really to configure, but the PAL frame rate can be change to 60 (as it is in the screenshot) to gain the same speed in games as NTSC ones. If you are okay with the normal speed of PAL games, ignore this and carry on to the next screen.
NOTE: The framerate is locked in PCSX 9.8, but can still be changed by going into PCSX2_vm.ini in the "inis" folder and changing it under "frameratePAL".
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...CSX2/PS2-5.png
This screen is the most important, as this is where things can be cut back to gain speed in games, but could also break them. The settings in this screenshot are very stable and will not cause problems for most games, so change them to match the screenshot. If a game you are trying to run has loading or graphical problems, check back here and try messing around with the different options to see if anything changes. VU Cycle Stealing can sometimes cause weird frame skipping in some games (Kingdom Hearts II and Final Fantasy X-2 which I've seen so far), so if this happens to you just try lowering the cycle stealing.
And last but not least; Game Fixes:
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e9...1/PCSX2/gf.png
You do not need to change anything unless the game you are playing is one of the ones listed on a particular fix. With PCSX2 9.8, game fixes are automatically enabled depending on the game.
Your emulator is now ready!
Loading an ISO
Loading an ISO is easy: all you have to do is go to the CDVD option and click "Iso", then click ISO Selector and browse for your ISO. Any previously loaded ISOs will be selectable in the ISO Selector menu.
The PCSX2 Compatibility Wiki
Code:
http://pcsx2.wikia.com/wiki/PCSX2_Wiki
If you come across games that are running great or full speed, please add to the the PCSX2 wiki, this will help others find out what games work and with what builds. So please take a few seconds to add games if they are working. :)
And that's it, good luck and happy gaming!
