{"id":388,"date":"2022-03-21T16:26:03","date_gmt":"2022-03-21T16:26:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-698089-2344727.cloudwaysapps.com\/2022\/03\/21\/what-is-anti-aliasing\/"},"modified":"2023-06-28T07:13:19","modified_gmt":"2023-06-28T07:13:19","slug":"what-is-anti-aliasing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/what-is-anti-aliasing\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Anti-Aliasing?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-76b927f elementor-widget elementor-widget-theme-post-content\" data-id=\"76b927f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"theme-post-content.default\">\n<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n<p>If you are a gamer, anti-aliasing is a term that you have surely encountered.<\/p>\n<p>If you have seen the term buried deep in your game settings or graphics card properties, it is important to know that anti-aliasing is a noteworthy feature that can make a huge difference to the quality of the visual you experience in-game.<\/p>\n<p>Learning about the basics of anti-aliasing, what it does, and the different varieties of the feature can allow you to choose the right settings for your games for maximum performance and visual detail.<\/p>\n<p>Here, we discuss the most important characteristics of anti-aliasing that you need to know.<\/p>\n<div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"no_bullets\">\n<p class=\"toc_title\">Table of Contents <span class=\"toc_toggle\">[<a href=\"#\">hide<\/a>]<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"toc_list\">\n<li><a href=\"#What_Does_Anti-Aliasing_Do\">What Does Anti-Aliasing Do?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#Types_of_Anti-Aliasing\">Types of Anti-Aliasing<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#Which_Anti-Aliasing_Techniques_Should_You_Use\">Which Anti-Aliasing Techniques Should You Use?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#Improving_Your_Gaming_Experience\">Improving Your Gaming Experience<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span id=\"What_Does_Anti-Aliasing_Do\"><strong>What Does Anti-Aliasing Do?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Before we can delve into anti-aliasing and what it does, it is important to understand what aliasing is and how it manifests visually on your screen.<\/p>\n<p>The smallest of the image you see on your computer display or TV is the pixel.<\/p>\n<p>While displays have steadily moved towards higher resolutions that feature millions of pixels, a pixel in itself has a rectangular shape.<\/p>\n<p>This means that every time something round-shaped is rendered on the screen, it is going to have some jagged edges and corners due to the rectangular shape of the pixels in those regions.<\/p>\n<p>If an image contains either horizontal or vertical straight lines, it is easy for the lines to line up with the edges of rectangular pixels.<\/p>\n<p>However, most objects rendered on the screen, especially in games or other graphics applications, are bound to have diagonals and curves.<\/p>\n<p>When these images are rasterized through the use of pixels, these jagged edges are bound to happen.<\/p>\n<p>This is where anti-aliasing comes in. The broad umbrella term \u201canti-aliasing\u201d actually refers to a variety of methods or techniques, all of which aim to reduce these jagged edges and smooth things out.<\/p>\n<p>The major differences in these different methods lie in the specific way that the edges are handled and the processing power it requires to achieve the desired results.<\/p>\n<p>Needless to say, the quality of the results can also be different using different techniques.<\/p>\n<p>With different anti-aliasing techniques, the jagged transition between pixels that represent a curve or a diagonal is made less jagged using blurring or blending.<\/p>\n<p>This gives it a softer, less defined appearance and makes the visual more realistic as it prevents the jaggedness of the edges from standing out.<\/p>\n<p>Anti-aliasing has been an integral part of graphics card features and the gaming industry for well over a decade now.<\/p>\n<p>However, over time, many different kinds of anti-aliasing have been developed and implemented, each with its own pros and cons.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Types_of_Anti-Aliasing\"><strong>Types of Anti-Aliasing<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of anti-aliasing that you can implement. The first involves spatial processing or pre-processing the image before it is finally rendered.<\/p>\n<p>The second involves post-processing or making changes to the image after it has been rendered.<\/p>\n<p>Currently, there are many forms of anti-aliasing that have been integrated in modern graphics cards and implemented in popular games.<\/p>\n<p>Let us explore some of the most important ones.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>MSAA or Multi-Sample Anti-Aliasing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>This is one of the most preferred modes of anti-aliasing in the market because of the results it can achieve without putting too much load on the system.<\/p>\n<p>It implements a fine balance between visual fidelity and graphics performance.<\/p>\n<p>The way MSAA works involves differentiating between polygons and textures rendered by the GPU.<\/p>\n<p>Usually, the polygon is drawn first denoting the outline of an object being rendered.<\/p>\n<p>Then the polygon is filled with the texture to complete the rendering.<\/p>\n<p>MSAA deals only with the polygons and does not affect the texture in any way.<\/p>\n<p>MSAA smooths out the edges of the polygons by using multiple samples of two or more pixels that are side-by-side to enhance image fidelity.<\/p>\n<p>The more samples it uses, the better the results. However, the load on the system also increases proportionally.<\/p>\n<p>This is why you are usually able to choose between two, four, or eight samples in the MSAA settings in your games.<\/p>\n<p>Under this technique, you can also find CSAA (Coverage Sampling Anti-Aliasing) and EQAA (Enhanced Quality Anti-Aliasing), developed by Nvidia and AMD respectively.<\/p>\n<p>These manufacturer-specific MSAA implementations further cut down on resource use while delivering balanced results.<\/p>\n<p>In both methods, the system intelligently determines the exact polygons that need smoothing and only smooths out those polygons.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>SSAA or Super-Sampling Anti-Aliasing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>This is one of the very first methods of anti-aliasing to be available to consumers, and also one of the most effective.<\/p>\n<p>However, it uses a heavy amount of system resources to deliver results.<\/p>\n<p>In SSAA, the entire image is rendered at a resolution higher than the display.<\/p>\n<p>Then, the image is downsampled to create a clearer, crisper visual.<\/p>\n<p>Since the entire image is processed before being displayed, this can take a toll on resources, especially in games that are rendered in real-time.<\/p>\n<p>This method can also introduce artifacts in images that contain straight, sharp vertical, or horizontal lines.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>FXAA (Fast Approximate Anti-Aliasing) and MLAA (Morphological Anti-Aliasing)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>These techniques are very similar in the way they operate.<\/p>\n<p>Basically, the smoothing occurs at the two-dimensional image level without taking into account the specifics of the actual three-dimensional geometry of the image.<\/p>\n<p>FXAA, developed by Nvidia, and MLAA, developed by AMD, can have small variances in the quality of results.<\/p>\n<p>However, these are both techniques that offer an improvement in visual quality with very little performance impact or hardware usage although the resulting image can become blurrier in both cases.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>SMAA or Subpixel Morphological Anti-Aliasing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>This is an advanced anti-aliasing technique that has quickly gained popularity with manufacturers, developers, and end-users alike.<\/p>\n<p>SMAA uses an intuitive combination of both spatial processing and post-processing to deliver stunning results.<\/p>\n<p>In this method, pixels are smoothed out intelligently with blurring and blending in a manner similar to FXAA and MLAA.<\/p>\n<p>However, SMAA also makes use of intelligent supersampling in order to enhance the whole image.<\/p>\n<p>This represents an excellent increase in anti-aliasing performance, but with less load on the system.<\/p>\n<p>In very little time, it has become one of the most preferred methods of anti-aliasing in the market.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>DLSS or Deep-Learning Super-Sampling<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The new kid on the block is Nvidia\u2019s DLSS, a method that uses detailed deep learning models to intuitively design clearer and sharper images.<\/p>\n<p>These are then rendered and upscaled using the Tensor cores found in Turing and Volta-based Nvidia graphics cards.<\/p>\n<p>This technology is exclusively used by Nvidia and is set to be updated to the <a href=\"https:\/\/pcbuilderz.com\/ray-tracing-and-dlss\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">new DLSS 2.0 standard<\/a> with the launch of the RTX 3000 line of graphics cards.<\/p>\n<p>Apart from these, there are also other types of anti-aliasing that have fallen by the wayside, either due to limited visual improvement or inefficient amounts of load on the system.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Which_Anti-Aliasing_Techniques_Should_You_Use\"><strong>Which Anti-Aliasing Techniques Should You Use?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Ask yourself the following questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>How powerful is your gaming hardware?<\/li>\n<li>What games are you looking to run?<\/li>\n<li>Which anti-aliasing standards are supported in your graphics card?<\/li>\n<li>How much do you value crisper, clearer images over fast performance and higher frame rates?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The right anti-aliasing technique for you would emerge from the answers to these questions.<\/p>\n<p>If you are using lower-tier hardware like older graphics cards or integrated graphics, SMAA and CSAA \/ EQAA can be your best options.<\/p>\n<p>These anti-aliasing methods are tailormade for low-powered hardware.<\/p>\n<p>With these settings, you would be greeted with a noticeable difference in the image quality without having to further sacrifice your frame rates.<\/p>\n<p>If you own mid-range hardware, this is where things can get interesting.<\/p>\n<p>SMAA is still an excellent option at this stage but you can also experiment with running FXAA \/ MLAA.<\/p>\n<p>However, in the case of the latter techniques, you might have to experiment with your settings to arrive at an optimum position where the anti-aliasing produces acceptable results without taking too much of a toll on your hardware.<\/p>\n<p>With relatively modern mid-range hardware, you might also be able to use MSAA with lower sample sizes.<\/p>\n<p>If you have an all-out gaming PC, MSAA would definitely be an option even with higher sample sizes.<\/p>\n<p>You can also experiment with SSAA to arrive at an optimum setting for the best image quality possible. You might need to sacrifice frame rates or minor graphic details.<\/p>\n<p>However, the law of diminishing returns applies here as there would be very little discernible difference between SSAA at 4X and 8X.<\/p>\n<p>No matter what mode of anti-aliasing you use, you should always tweak your settings to arrive at that perfect balance between quality and performance.<\/p>\n<p>Play with your anti-aliasing settings while also adjusting your resolution, texture quality, anisotropic filtering, shadow quality, and view distance to find the best balance.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Improving_Your_Gaming_Experience\"><strong>Improving Your Gaming Experience<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Anti-aliasing is meant to make your experience of graphical content better.<\/p>\n<p>Smoothing jagged edges can always deliver more potent, realistic visuals and in most cases, your use of anti-aliasing would depend on the unique characteristics of individual scenarios.<\/p>\n<p>However, you can always fire up those settings and introduce anti-aliasing to end up with cleaner, crisper visuals that can transform your gaming experience.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you are a gamer, anti-aliasing is a term that you have surely encountered. If you have seen the term buried deep in your game settings or graphics card properties, it is important to know that anti-aliasing is a noteworthy feature that can make a huge difference to the quality of the visual you experience [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=388"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gearlush.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}