Best PC configuration for best AOD performance ?

[KostasL]

I was wondering what the best PC configuration might be in order to enjoy the best AOD gaming...without lagging, controlling multiple countries from a single PC, etc.

What might be the best processor for maximum performance ?
What is the maximum RAM, AOD can use ?
Does the Hard Disk affect AOD gaming ?
Is a good Graphic Card important ?

If anybody knows, please post reply !

 

[bosman]

I'm not an expert, but considering the fact, that AoD is running with 32-bit process, You actually don't get much benefits from 64-bit OS/processor. Also multicore CPU is not very profitable in this case. I guess, that rather high timing and big amount of cache memory (L1/L2/L3) gives better boost.

AoD process can use as much RAM as an OS allows. IIRC in 32-bit os it's 1GB and in 64-bit 2GB (so here is the biggest advantage of 64-bit platform).
Even though the more you have, the better.

HDD is not important at playing, but using for instance an SSD would shorten loading time (of the game and scenarios)/saving time significantly.

As for Graphics Card - even the currently poorest integral or dedicated GPU is able to handle this game just excellently.

 

[Pang Bingxun]

Speed and latency of RAM and the performance of the best cpu core would seem to be the main determinants. A higher clockrate of the used core would likely have advantages.

AoD process can use as much RAM as an OS allows. IIRC in 32-bit os it's 1GB and in 64-bit 2GB (so here is the biggest advantage of 64-bit platform).

Why would a 64-bit OS limit to 2 GB? I see no rationale behind this. It seems more likely that 32 bit OS limits to 2 GB and because AoD is compiled in 32 bit it can only use the same amount on a 64 bit OS. I am not an expert, though.

 

[Denniss]

Standard memory uage of AoD should be at ~600 MiB, in latewar with lots of units it may be a tad higher but I can't remember having seen 700 or even 800 MiB of RAM used.
AoD is single-Core so on multicore CPU it may be faster if you restrict it to use only one core (via taskmanager). You'll notice some speedups from an SSD on initial loading (due to the myriad of small files), maybe on saving aswell but I believe the data collection pror to saving takes longer than the saving itself as a todays HDD should have no problem to save 30MiB within a second.

 

[bosman]

Why would a 64-bit OS limit to 2 GB? I see no rationale behind this. It seems more likely that 32 bit OS limits to 2 GB and because AoD is compiled in 32 bit it can only use the same amount on a 64 bit OS. I am not an expert, though.

I might be wrong, but i'm pretty sure i read somewhere that a process compiled in 32-bit mode might use more RAM on 64-bit OS, than on 32-bit. On the other hand in some (or many) cases 32-bit processes run faster on 32-bit OS, because no emulation is needed, which can slightly decrease performance.

@Denniss
Have You tried assigning specific core to AoD's process ? If so, what are the results ?

 

[Denniss]

A non-optimized 32Bit process may use up to 2 GiB RAM regardless os OS architecture, a large-adress-aware 32Bit process may use up to 3GiB on a 32Bit OS, probably the same on a 64Bit OS (not sure here)

I have actually not made large comparisons between standard and one-core limit. It may be good difference if the CPU has a turbo mode and gets the AoD core bumped in clockrate.

 

[Titan79]

You'll notice some speedups from an SSD on initial loading (due to the myriad of small files), maybe on saving aswell but I believe the data collection pror to saving takes longer than the saving itself as a todays HDD should have no problem to save 30MiB within a second.

While it's true that I've recently updated my OS (XP->7), CPU and disk, I think that the main difference in my faster loading/saving times lies mainly in the SSD.

Before, it took me some 10 seconds, maybe more, to end the save process; now it's around 2, 3 secs at the longest.

Loading - both the main game and then a save game - has also dramatically improved.

 

[Pang Bingxun]

Before, it took me some 10 seconds, maybe more, to end the save process; now it's around 2, 3 secs at the longest.

Sometimes creating a savegame takes me minutes, usually after a lot of time and a lot of ingame calculations passed since starting the AoD.exe. If the exe just started it goes way faster. And that all is using a SSD.

 

[Titan79]

Sometimes creating a savegame takes me minutes, usually after a lot of time and a lot of ingame calculations passed since starting the AoD.exe. If the exe just started it goes way faster. And that all is using a SSD.

Really? Then it has also much to do with the CPU (and also Win7 which seems to me to be quite faster than Xp, but I guess you're running the former one as well, so that must not be it).

 

[Pang Bingxun]

Really?

Yes. It is worst when many years in game have passed in a handsoff game using nofog etc. For example from 1936 to Danzig or from Danzig to Barbarossa.

Then it has also much to do with the CPU (and also Win7 which seems to me to be quite faster than Xp, but I guess you're running the former one as well, so that must not be it).

The AMD Phenom II X4 940 @ 3 Ghz seems not likely to be the problem. Especially it would would not explain why saving goes way faster after AoD.exe has started little time before. 4 GB Ram at Win XP 32 bit seems not likely to be the source either.

 

[bosman]

Yes. It is worst when many years in game have passed in a handsoff game using nofog etc. For example from 1936 to Danzig or from Danzig to Barbarossa.
The AMD Phenom II X4 940 @ 3 Ghz seems not likely to be the problem. Especially it would would not explain why saving goes way faster after AoD.exe has started little time before. 4 GB Ram at Win XP 32 bit seems not likely to be the source either.

Increasing processed data from savegames is not only problem compared to all the data from dynamic variables, used when playing AoD. It may seem that the speed of the game is strictly related to savegame dump content, but if you play new game from 1936 to let's say 1942, then AoD will significantly slow down, but if you save, exit, run AoD again and load that savegame, it will run a little faster.

 

[Pang Bingxun]

It seems my problem was not strictly software related. Yesterday i replaced my SSD with a model 6 years more advanced. That did make a huge difference, now i have no problem. The old SSD was not a general problem, sequetial writing as measered with the AS SSD Benchmrk was high. But writing of 4k blocks was very very slow.

 

[Titan79]

It seems my problem was not strictly software related. Yesterday i replaced my SSD with a model 6 years more advanced. That did make a huge difference, now i have no problem. The old SSD was not a general problem, sequetial writing as measered with the AS SSD Benchmrk was high. But writing of 4k blocks was very very slow.

...aaaah, then the SSD actually mattered, just as in my case. Good to know and glad for you!

 

[KostasL]

I'm not an expert, but considering the fact, that AoD is running with 32-bit process, You actually don't get much benefits from 64-bit OS/processor. Also multicore CPU is not very profitable in this case.

I was wondering...if it is possible an update of AoD so that it will be running with 64-bit OS/processor and get advantage of multicore CPU !

Just how difficult is this ? Is it possible to see such an upgrade in a future patch ?

 

[Pang Bingxun]

Using 64 bit is done rather easy, but helps not very much. Utilizing multicore is far more sophisticated, but could before of some signicance if done "properly".