For reference, my system specs:

• AMD FX-6300 Six-Core Processor (3.5GHz)


• 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 800MHz


• AMD Radeon R7 240 2GB DDR3


• 465GB TOSHIBA DT01ACA050 (SATA)

Yes, I know: my GPU isn't the greatest but it could certainly be far worse! That said, I've been trying to find a fix for shadows that persistently "flicker / strobe / stutter" when rendered in anything less than Ultra settings. Annoyingly so, it seems links are forbidden so you'll have to copy/paste part of the link to a YouTube video for an example of the exact issue I am experiencing (not my video, FYI); simply add this to the end of the YouTube URL:

/watch?v=yXgF_IDpFNI

I've seen a number of rumored fixes using fSunShadowUpdateTime and fSunUpdateThreshold? but this fix makes shadows unsightly altogether (perhaps because of the values used). A single Google search turns up thousands of complaints about "flickering shadows" and it appears that Bethesda has done nothing to address the matter in five years so at this point, I'm quite lost. The game is playable at a steady 35-60 FPS on Medium-High settings but the shadow issues are simply unbearable.

I want to note as well that I'm not interested in mods as I've seen a number of complaints about ads and other bugs with an FPS mod known as "HAB". I'm guessing that means I'm stuck making adjustments via Skyrim.ini and SkyrimPrefs.ini but I'd like to find a fix that is more recent and actually stable, rather than something that will only obliterate my frames or turn the game into an 8-bit peep show.

Thanks!

Shadows are a problem theres no two ways about it unless you turn everything up very high and then framerates take a hit as a result. There are various threads if you search that claim to improves this and that with varying degrees of success they might fix one thing but break something else in my experience.

One other thing you could try is a shadows-only preset for ENB if you feel up for it

I have a similar card. Try tweaking the fShadowBiasScale in the Prefs ini. You can also add it to the Skyrim.ini.

Try anything from 0.4 to 1.

Yep, that's sun update alright. Every in game hour the sun adjusts its position, and the enormous shadow it casts adjusts accordingly. Here are the sun update values recommended by the STEP wiki:

fSunShadowUpdateTime=0.25
fSunUpdateThreshold=1.5

These values speed up the transitioning process so that the banding you see it less noticeable.

http://wiki.step-project.com/Guide:Skyrim_Configuration_Settings