Is there a reason why RetroArch cores are slower than their standalone counterparts (Snes9x core, Mupen64 core, PPSSPP core, Reicast / Flycast core…)? In these days I am testing RetroArch on a low end Android device (one of those chinese console for retrogaming) and the difference in speed is very noticeable… I am using the same settings in both the RetroArch core and the standalone emulator but still the framerate is a lot worse in the RetroArch cores (and yes, in the RetroArch settings I disabled “rewind” and other things which could have a impact on performances). A RetroArch core (updated to its latest version and configured with the same exact settings) isn’t supposed to have the same performance of the standalone emulator?
There are a lot of variables at play. If you get better performance with something else, use it.
I used Retroarch with FBN, psp, mame, snes, psx rearmed cores for years on my old Galaxy Note 3 and i actually felt it was faster than standalone ppsspp, mame4droid, epsxe in most games.
Be sure to have Retroarch properly configured in term of performance, as some settings (like latency, shader settings) can make the games very responsive/smooth/pretty, though more demanding.