ok. i have been using QTP3 for quite some time now with out a bad performance hit, but I am just confused. with all the texture re placers out there, like BOMRET's and Corepc vibrant textures, and miknmel1's improved trees and flora and other improvements, RAEVWD, all natural, AWLS, its kinda overwhelming. What does the community use here? what combination of the above mods (or others not listed) do others use?

which one of these conflict with the other? does one look better? does one complement another one? What about improved water mods? oye, too many different questions to ask in one of the mods threads, hence the post here.

While this hasn't been updated in a while I still find it completely relevant: http://devnull.sweetdanger.net/obliviontextureoverhaul.html

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1079481-the-toughest-choice/page__p__15717228__fromsearch__1&#entry15717228 thread should help you. Three pages of answers to exactly your questions.

gothemasticator

http://sites.google.com/site/oblivionpoinfo/lists/mybainlist <-- I use all of those that you mentioned minus RAEVWD along with 40 or 60 others

My personal choice after having tried all (?) there is:

http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=30368 as overall replacer. I found the Brumbek Normal Maps/CorePC's Vibrant Textures too bright and vibrant for my taste. Mtgr is darker, lusher and looks more realistic to me. But I also use parts of QTP3R - the parts that retexture Aylied Ruins, Fort Ruins and Architecture. But if you're a noob I advice you stick to only one of the three big overhauls.
I also use http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=9208, http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=9080 and Mikels Improved Trees, Doors Flora etc and let them overwrite Mtgr.

ah, ty petrus octavianus. not a nub. every spring I reinstall oblivion and gather a bunch of mods that I like. this is just the latest set up. as a FCOM user I am no stranger to complexity, but just looking at all the visual mods at http://devnull.sweet...reoverhaul.html

which I was aware of, confused the hell out of me. and i thought I saw a thread like that one! thanks, I looked for it but couldn't find it.

thanks everyone, I know how it can get answering redundant questions.