Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

BreadForMen · 2016-03-03 22:36:43

Hello, everyone - I've just installed BL today and have been noticing issues with screen tearing using my AMD Radeon HD6950.

Here's what I've done so far:
- Installed ATIProprietary software using the Debian wiki guide
- Searched around Google for tips/fixes with compton to no avail
- Skimmed through the BL forums (and used search) to no avail
- Read through the compton man page

I consider myself a "newbie" Linux user so I very well could be missing something. Any tips/fixes/workarounds would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-03-04 07:51:23

Try installing the newer compton version from the BunsenLabs jessie-backports repository:

sudo apt install compton/jessie-backports

https://pkg.bunsenlabs.org/debian/pool/main/c/compton/

You may have to add the BunsenLabs backports repository to /etc/apt/sources.list.d/bunsen.list, as described here:
https://pkg.bunsenlabs.org/#jessie-backports

You will have to run `sudo apt update` after changing your sources.

BreadForMen · 2016-03-04 20:16:06

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

-snip-

Thanks for your help.

After running

sudo apt install compton/jessie-backports

I get

compton is already the newest version.

Is there anything else I must do?

xaos52 · 2016-03-04 20:37:09

I presume you haven't got the bunsenlabs jessie-backports repo enabled.
To enable it, run

bl-welcome

from a terminal window.
Answer Y to the first 2 questions (update and upgrade) then answer next questions with your personal preference until you get to the question

Add Bunsenlabs backports, upgrade xfce4-power-manager [Y/n].

Answer Y.

You can skip all remaining questions.

Then run

sudo apt install compton/jessie-backports

again.

BreadForMen · 2016-03-04 21:08:31

xaos52 wrote:

-snip-

Thanks for your time.

I've just ran

bl-welcome

again and followed your instructions, but the script says that I already have the Debian backports added, and skips to the next question. I didn't see anything relating to "upgrade xfce4-power-manager".

Running

sudo apt install compton/jessie-backports

again returns the same message as before:

compton is already the newest version.

After checking "/etc/apt/sources.list.d/bunsen-jessie-backports.list",

deb http://pkg.bunsenlabs.org/debian jessie-backports main

remains as I've added them from when Head_on_a_Stick told me to add them in post #2.

I am very sorry If I am missing something obvious.

EDIT: I seem to have solved my tearing problem by removing the fglrx drivers that I installed from the Debian wiki, and installed the one from AMD's website.

Last edited by BreadForMen (2016-03-04 21:54:19)

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-03-04 21:57:50

Please post the output of:

apt-cache policy compton

I've just installed the newer version in my BL system so I know this should work.

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-03-04 22:05:53

BreadForMen wrote:

removing the fglrx drivers that I installed from the Debian wiki, and installed the one from AMD's website.

You will have to re-install the drivers after kernel upgrades.

The fglrx-driver package includes kernel post-install scripts that do this automatically.

See https://wiki.debian.org/DontBreakDebian … ll_scripts

BreadForMen · 2016-03-04 22:07:42

Ah crap. So I take it that I have to remove the driver that I got from AMD and re-install the open source. Jeez I should've just read more into the process.. Ugh. Learn from mistakes, right? I might just nuke this install and start from scratch because I really haven't installed much software at this point, but I guess we'll see if I can salvage what I have.

BTW: Here is the output from

apt-cache policy compton

compton:
  Installed: 0.1~beta2+82-1
  Candidate: 0.1~beta2+82-1
  Version table:
 *** 0.1~beta2+82-1 0
        100 http://pkg.bunsenlabs.org/debian/ jessie-backports/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     0.1~beta2-1 0
        500 http://httpredir.debian.org/debian/ jessie/main amd64 Packages
        500 http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ jessie/main amd64 Packages

Last edited by BreadForMen (2016-03-04 22:16:23)

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-03-04 22:32:51

BreadForMen wrote:

Ah crap. So I take it that I have to remove the driver that I got from AMD and re-install the open source. Jeez I should've just read more into the process.. Ugh. Learn from mistakes, right? I might just nuke this install and start from scratch because I really haven't installed much software at this point, but I guess we'll see if I can salvage what I have.

No, not at all.

You can leave the driver in if you want but you will have to run the install script again after kernel updates -- you will know when you need to because you will boot to a black screen

BreadForMen wrote:

Here is the output from

apt-cache policy compton

compton:
  Installed: 0.1~beta2+82-1
  Candidate: 0.1~beta2+82-1
  Version table:
 *** 0.1~beta2+82-1 0
        100 http://pkg.bunsenlabs.org/debian/ jessie-backports/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     0.1~beta2-1 0
        500 http://httpredir.debian.org/debian/ jessie/main amd64 Packages
        500 http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ jessie/main amd64 Packages

You are using the backported version -- is there any improvement?

There are command line flags that can be added to compton to increase the aggression of the vsync settings and control tearing better.

Arquimediano · 2016-03-05 00:20:44

I had tearing problems on my laptop and my PC (Intel Celeron N2840 and Intel Celeron J1900 respectively). It was solved by adding these lines at the top of the compositor config file:

backend = "glx";
paint-on-overlay = true;
glx-no-stencil = true;
glx-no-rebind-pixmap = true;
vsync = "opengl-swc";

It is also necessary to comment the default "paint-on-overlay" line in such file.

More info: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2144468

I hope it is useful for you.

Last edited by Arquimediano (2016-03-05 00:45:07)

BreadForMen · 2016-03-05 19:43:35

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

You are using the backported version -- is there any improvement?
There are command line flags that can be added to compton to increase the aggression of the vsync settings and control tearing better.

No improvement so far. I've looked into the command line flags and all seemed to not help at all/make window contents "stuck" (not refreshing).

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-03-05 19:44:39

Arquimediano wrote:

I had tearing problems on my laptop and my PC (Intel Celeron N2840 and Intel Celeron J1900 respectively). It was solved by adding these lines at the top of the compositor config file:
backend = "glx";
paint-on-overlay = true;
glx-no-stencil = true;
glx-no-rebind-pixmap = true;
vsync = "opengl-swc"; 
It is also necessary to comment the default "paint-on-overlay" line in such file.

^ I think this is the correct solution.

It's the same as what I was going to suggest.

EDIT: For my Intel Haswell hardware, backend = "glx"; & vsync = "opengl-mswc"; with no other added options work best and I know @nobody doesn't like paint-on-overlay (again, with Haswell hardware) so YMMV.

Last edited by Head_on_a_Stick (2016-03-05 19:47:09)

Arquimediano · 2016-03-05 20:04:12

^ Oh, really? I will give it a try in case this way is also better for Bay Trail.

Last edited by Arquimediano (2016-03-05 20:08:55)

tpprynn · 2016-04-03 06:01:22

Do xorg.conf files not help with Compton then? I was intending to replicate my laptop's' setup today on my desktop PC. I had Ubuntu Gnome 15.10 on that until recently with the open source drivers and this for a xorg.conf, and had no tearing for the first time in my eight years with Linux. Pardon me if my input here is naive but I hadn't had the oportunity to gush about the solution before...

Section "Device"
Identifier "Radeon"
Driver "radeon"
Option "TearFree" "on"
EndSection
Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
EndSection
Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
Device "Configured Video Device"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Modes "1920x1080"
EndSubSection
EndSection

(Obviously the Modes bit is a bit too specific.)

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-04-03 09:42:34

tpprynn wrote:

Do xorg.conf files not help with Compton then?

At the moment, I use the built-in tear-free option in the intel(4) driver rather than compton to control vsync. [1]

man intel wrote:

enabling TearFree requires more memory and is slower (reduced throughput) and introduces a small amount of output latency, but it should not impact input latency [...] Note that this replicates what the compositing manager should be doing, however TearFree will redirect the compositor updates (and those of fullscreen games) directly on to the scanout thus incurring no additional overhead in the composited case.

Both compton and intel(4) seem to do an equally good job at preventing tearing on my HD4600 but there seems little point having both running, certainly there is no noticable improvement from doing so.

Is "TearFree" an undocumented option of the radeon(4) driver?

I can't find it in the man page

[1] I have a fullscreen kodi session on TTY2 with no window manager or DE running so compton wouldn't work.

AndyMender · 2016-04-05 07:23:30

^ 'TearFree' is a semi-documented option. It's not in the manpages of either radeon or intel drivers oddly enough.

Besides TreeFree there is a number of additional properties that can be adjusted in the xorg.conf file, per manual pages, and that are intended to solve screen tearing problems. I would take a look at those, should TearFree fail .

Head_on_a_Stick · 2016-04-05 07:30:31

AndyMender wrote:

'TearFree' is a semi-documented option. It's not in the manpages of either radeon or intel drivers oddly enough.

The jessie version of the Intel driver does not support that option, sadly.

I use the version from jessie-backports, which does -- see intel(4)

Joe90 · 2016-10-01 10:46:54

backend = "glx";
vsync = "opengl-swc";

These two lines fixed tearing in videos on my Dell Inspiron 9300 with Mobility Radeon X300

Thanks

#1 2016-03-03 22:36:43

Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#2 2016-03-04 07:51:23

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#3 2016-03-04 20:16:06

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#4 2016-03-04 20:37:09

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#5 2016-03-04 21:08:31

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#6 2016-03-04 21:57:50

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#7 2016-03-04 22:05:53

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#8 2016-03-04 22:07:42

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#9 2016-03-04 22:32:51

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#10 2016-03-05 00:20:44

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#11 2016-03-05 19:43:35

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#12 2016-03-05 19:44:39

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#13 2016-03-05 20:04:12

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#14 2016-04-03 06:01:22

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#15 2016-04-03 09:42:34

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#16 2016-04-05 07:23:30

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#17 2016-04-05 07:30:31

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

#18 2016-10-01 10:46:54

Re: Screen Tearing Issues on AMD/ATI HD6950

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