Magpie

Project Overview

Magpie Experimental is maintained by SAOG0721 as an experimental fork of the Magpie window scaler, focused on bringing DLSS, XeSS, FSR, and RTX Video effects to any window. It captures the full image of a target window, runs it through a user-configured effect group, and shows the result fullscreen or in a window without any integration from the source application. The current version is v0.6.12, with the main package targeting Windows x64.

Item	Value
Platform	Windows x64
Version	v0.6.12
Graphics API	DirectX 11
Effect folders	31
License	GPLv3

Any window can get upscaling and frame generation, as long as you accept it is post-processing rather than native engine integration.

Key Features

• Spatial upscaling: Lanczos, FSR, Bicubic, Jinc and other MagpieFX effects enlarge a window while adjusting clarity and detail
• Temporal super resolution: DLSS SR, FSR 2/3/4, and XeSS SR reconstruct frames from captured images and estimated motion
• AI image controls: DLSSNR adjusts tone, structure, shadow, reflection, and glow at the same resolution in SDR
• Video enhancement: RTX Video upscales and denoises low-resolution or compressed video
• Frame generation: DLSSFG, XeSSFG, FSR3FG, and NVIDIA VFG insert intermediate frames between real ones
• Effect groups: combine effects in a chosen order with saved parameters and scaling settings, using built-in or custom groups
• Parameter panel: edit effects live while viewing the result with automatic saving, Live or Restart labels, and double-click reset on sliders
• Frame sync: a Front Edge Sync switch and a 15–360 FPS target slider in steps of 1 pace input frames for frame generation
• Comparison and monitoring: original versus processed comparison, per-effect timings, frame-rate monitoring, screenshots, and custom shortcuts

Effects and Groups

• MagpieFX format: effects are described as HLSL shaders, with parameters and scaling stored in the effect group configuration
• Built-in presets: presets/ScalingModes-v0.6.5-experimental.json provides DLSSFG, XeSSFG, and DLSSNR scaling modes
• Effect catalog: src/Effects holds 31 effect folders covering Anime4K, CuNNy, FSRCNNX, NNEDI3, and xBRZ
• HDR conversion: the built-in effect guide documents HDR conversion and frame-generation chains
• Optional backends: proprietary SDK backends are disabled by default in source builds and require separately supplied SDKs

Interface and Operation

• Main window: pick an effect group and a target window, then use the shortcut shown on Home to enable effects
• Toolbar: comparison, per-effect timings, frame rate, screenshots, and parameter editing sit in one strip
• Parameter window: remembers its position and size and stays visible when the capture area changes
• Shortcuts: screenshot, comparison, and toggle actions can all be rebound
• Log folder: the recent-issue card on Home points to logs when something goes wrong

Target Audience

• Retro game players
• Upscaling enthusiasts
• Video window viewers
• GPU tinkerers
• 4K display owners

Quick Start

1. Download Magpie-Experimental-x64.zip from Releases and extract it to a new folder
2. Make sure no older Magpie instance is running, then start Magpie.exe
3. Choose an effect group on Home and select the target window
4. Press the shortcut shown on Home to turn effects on
5. Open the toolbar parameter panel and adjust effects while following the Live or Restart labels
6. For frame generation, enable Front Edge Sync and cap the target at 60 or 120 FPS

System Requirements

Item	Requirement
OS	Windows 10 v2004 or later, 64-bit
GPU	DirectX 11 capable; AI effects need newer hardware and drivers
Runtime	Some effects require separately supplied SDKs and runtimes
Installation	Extract and run, no installer

Notes

• Not native integration: only the full window image is available, without engine motion vectors, depth, or exposure, so results differ from in-game DLSS/FSR/XeSS
• One FG effect: use a single frame-generation effect per group and never stack it with another frame-generation system
• UI side effects: processing also affects text and interface elements, and temporal effects can leave ghosting
• Latency cost: Front Edge Sync paces frames and its waits can increase input latency
• Hardware dependency: experimental effects depend on the GPU, driver, runtime components, and effect combination