Why do higher DLLS quality levels hammer the CPU so much harder (in VR and maybe also in general)?

Oh OK, thanks for the summary.

The thing is, I don’t believe the numbers I’m seeing are wrong at all, as they line up exactly with the perceived fps/smoothness.

Oh and I tested without DLSS in 2D and going from lowest to highest resolution also affects mainthread, though not as dramatically as with DLSS and in VR.