Best rigs/specs for playing ESO

mxmestiza · August 2017

Hello all! I'm looking to upgrade to a better computer for a higher quality gaming experience. Currently I experience a good amount of lag especially in trials where FPS drops to 1 for several seconds. That's enough time for me to get killed. I'm thinking my current computer just sucks. What specs should I be looking for, i.e. RAM, graphics card (should I be running 2 graphics cards), etc. in order to minimize lag/stuttering on my end. I see streamers running ESO without any stutter at all. I need to know their secrets! Any help appreciated. Thanks!

Peekachu99 · August 2017

Ryzen 1500X-1700, 16 GB RAM, an M2 drive (cheaper than SSD on average and better performance) and a 1080TI will get your 4K/ 60 on ultra. Game really shines at that spec. But you will still drop to the 20s-30s in Cyrodil zergs and low 40s in Trials. I'm sure you could go without hiccups at 1440p.

Edit: Do NOT run SLI. Waste of money and very few games support it, still. I think most UE 4 games don't use it at all, either. You can force it through the control panel, but you will have microstutter. Besides Nvidia cards have a "fast sync" option now that is excellent for correcting screen-tear.

mxmestiza · August 2017

Awesome, thank you for your input!

thamightyboro · August 2017

Depends on resolution really my budget build copes fine at 1080p only place it gets a bit hiccuppy is when dolmen runs get to 2/3 full groups in size so I just knock the graphics down slightly.

I am planning a new build but not till next year, my leisure funds went on a new yeti sb66 mtb this year

Amd 8400, 8gb ram, old ati 7970, eso installed to a ssd

GrigorijMalahevich · August 2017

1080ti with 7700k and fps drops do not exist.

richo262 · August 2017

Coffee lake is around the corner, leaked benches are very good. Cannon soon after that. Also Nvidia refresh Volta is coming out soon.

Tech is an endless game of waiting mind you. If you need it quick, wait for coffee (very soon, if not already released as I'm writing this) if you can hold off, wait for cannon and volta, not as soon, but some say they might come out this year, or early next.

Intel Cannon and nVidia Volta are a new architecture so the performance increases should be very good, I'm waiting for those for my next rig.

thamightyboro · August 2017

richo262 wrote: »

Coffee lake is around the corner, leaked benches are very good. Cannon soon after that. Also Nvidia refresh Volta is coming out soon.

Tech is an endless game of waiting mind you. If you need it quick, wait for coffee (very soon, if not already released as I'm writing this) if you can hold off, wait for cannon and volta, not as soon, but some say they might come out this year, or early next.

Intel Cannon and nVidia Volta are a new architecture so the performance increases should be very good, I'm waiting for those for my next rig.

Exactly the reason I opted for the mtb this year.

Intel had got lazy basking in their amd dominance ryzen changed that so intel actually have to do something this time around.

Gpus on the other hand though seems like a constant wait of performance and supply due to bitcoin mining. When the build does come around ill probably just go previous gen as no way am I waiting ages and paying a premium for marginally better tech.

Nemesis7884 · August 2017

im playing on 16gb ram (3200); ssd, ryzen 1600x and gtx 1080ti and i get on 4k 60-100 fps

imo if you dont play 4k the most important thing is a good quad core processor with high single core speeds...sure if you want to be more future proof go for 6-8 cores but i'd probably wait for the new intel chips coming out by the end of this year

Rowjoh · August 2017

It's not so much about getting the latest kit - ESO doesn't require a particularly high spec to run and will play smoothly on average rigs.

It's much more important that you have a good broadband connection.

I'm lucky enough to have a high end spec for my job but it wasn't until I upgraded my internet connection that performance significantly improved

Peekachu99 · August 2017

Nemesis7884 wrote: »

im playing on 16gb ram (3200); ssd, ryzen 1600x and gtx 1080ti and i get on 4k 60-100 fps

imo if you dont play 4k the most important thing is a good quad core processor with high single core speeds...sure if you want to be more future proof go for 6-8 cores but i'd probably wait for the new intel chips coming out by the end of this year

Problem with the new chips is that you'll need a new mobo. I went with Ryzen this time since I'll get at least two gens of CPUs out of it, rather than one. I plan on doing an incimental upgrade, too, once the Ryzen successor is announced. So three upgrades really (and a 1080TI successor swap eventually), off one board. PC gaming is only expensive if you buy an Alienware or some other builder's offerings. Otherwise, when you factor in the cost, access to software, and upgrade path, it's cheaper than you think--even for high-spec configurations.

thamightyboro · August 2017

Peekachu99 wrote: »

Nemesis7884 wrote: »

im playing on 16gb ram (3200); ssd, ryzen 1600x and gtx 1080ti and i get on 4k 60-100 fps

imo if you dont play 4k the most important thing is a good quad core processor with high single core speeds...sure if you want to be more future proof go for 6-8 cores but i'd probably wait for the new intel chips coming out by the end of this year

Problem with the new chips is that you'll need a new mobo. I went with Ryzen this time since I'll get at least two gens of CPUs out of it, rather than one. I plan on doing an incimental upgrade, too, once the Ryzen successor is announced. So three upgrades really (and a 1080TI successor swap eventually), off one board. PC gaming is only expensive if you buy an Alienware or some other builder's offerings. Otherwise, when you factor in the cost, access to software, and upgrade path, it's cheaper than you think--even for high-spec configurations.

That and many parts hold excellent resale value so unless your going at the very very top end you never lose that much money, even better if your prepared to use used parts in the first place.

fred4 · August 2017

I wish I knew a definite answer for this one too. I am currently using an (ancient, but very high-end in it's day) Q9650 processor with a 20% overclock, paired with a fairly modern GTX970 graphics card. My observations are:

(1) 8GB RAM is an absolute minimum for the 64-bit client. As soon as the PC does anything else, like Windows updates, you can run out of memory or swap to disk. I would recommend going for 16GB.

(2) I run my games from an SSD. Doing so definitely helps with load times, for example district transitions in Imperial City. I believe I am sometimes able to overtake people, because of this.

(3) All Direct X versions up to DX11, which is all that's currently supported by ESO, limit processors to a single thread for scheduling graphics calls. I also suspect (but am not sure) that ESO limits itself to a single thread for dealing with player and NPC movement. Were I to choose a CPU for gaming, I would go for a high-end Intel CPU, since they still have the highest single-threaded performance. Basically an i7-7700K quad core, not a higher core-count part, and not Ryzen, at this point.

(4) At merely Full HD resolution, I suspect a single high-end card isn't really stretched. I would stick with nVidia, right now, since their cards seem to have significantly lower power consumption, and thus heat / noise, than AMDs offerings.

My current frame rates aren't great. Between 40 and 50 at most. 20 or above in IC and PvE, which I feel is the minimum for the game to be playable. I rarely do trials, as I'm a PvPer. In Cyrodiil frame rates can drop as low as 10, and this is a problem. What I'm not sure about is whether the CPU is truly holding me back or the Internet / ZOS servers.

mxmestiza · August 2017

Thank you all so much! I'm a layperson when it comes to tech. Based on what you guys said and some googling I should go for something along the lines of a machine with intel i7 7700 quad core, 16gb, and 1080ti graphics card. A machine like this should be able to handle 2 monitors right (one for game, one for internet/discord) plus keep a steady 60 fps with high graphics setting?

thamightyboro · August 2017

fred4 wrote: »

I wish I knew a definite answer for this one too. I am currently using an (ancient, but very high-end in it's day) Q9650 processor with a 20% overclock, paired with a fairly modern GTX970 graphics card. My observations are:

(1) 8GB RAM is an absolute minimum for the 64-bit client. As soon as the PC does anything else, like Windows updates, you can run out of memory or swap to disk. I would recommend going for 16GB.

(2) I run my games from an SSD. Doing so definitely helps with load times, for example district transitions in Imperial City. I believe I am sometimes able to overtake people, because of this.

(3) All Direct X versions up to DX11, which is all that's currently supported by ESO, limit processors to a single thread for scheduling graphics calls. I also suspect (but am not sure) that ESO limits itself to a single thread for dealing with player and NPC movement. Were I to choose a CPU for gaming, I would go for a high-end Intel CPU, since they still have the highest single-threaded performance. Basically an i7-7700K quad core, not a higher core-count part, and not Ryzen, at this point.

(4) At merely Full HD resolution, I suspect a single high-end card isn't really stretched. I would stick with nVidia, right now, since their cards seem to have significantly lower power consumption, and thus heat / noise, than AMDs offerings.

My current frame rates aren't great. Between 40 and 50 at most. 20 or above in IC and PvE, which I feel is the minimum for the game to be playable. I rarely do trials, as I'm a PvPer. In Cyrodiil frame rates can drop as low as 10, and this is a problem. What I'm not sure about is whether the CPU is truly holding me back or the Internet / ZOS servers.

Id definately say the cpu is a bottleneck as you say amazing in its day but that day was almost a decade ago now (2008)

I went from the same processor to a 2500k a few year back only a board and cpu upgrade and made a lot of difference.

thamightyboro · August 2017

mxmestiza wrote: »

Thank you all so much! I'm a layperson when it comes to tech. Based on what you guys said and some googling I should go for something along the lines of a machine with intel i7 7700 quad core, 16gb, and 1080ti graphics card. A machine like this should be able to handle 2 monitors right (one for game, one for internet/discord) plus keep a steady 60 fps with high graphics setting?

Easily id dare say even drop down from the 1080 as they are still grossly overpriced at over £500 in the uk a 1070 can be had for 320ish and a 1060 which would also more than suffice for everything up to 4k for £200.

Truthbe told unless your playing the very latest most demanding games at 4k then you wouldnt notice the difference between a 1080 and a 1060.

A 1060 with the rest of the spec would roast eso on max settings at up to 1440p you would be paying a lot more for more.performance that you just arent going to notice.

Even the future proofing argument doesnt fly as your 1060 would see you a few gens then you just buy the equivelant new gen that would outperform a 1080 and likely would have still cost less than a 1080.

Bitcoin mining has killed the top tier grsphics cards for everyone but those with more money than sense

Depending what monitors you use then a 1060 with the spare cash on a great monitor would net a better visual performance gain.

Peekachu99 · August 2017

If you're wanting a 1080, which are still overpriced, get a 1080TI for the extra $100 and like 30% or more performance increase. Makes no sense to pick up the former. You can even cut money off the CPU if you're strictly budgeting. Even an i5 punches above what many modern games require (far more GPU resource intensive given console port guidelines).

Or as another poster suggested, a 1060 or Vega would be fine too, for resolutions under 4K.

Orjix · August 2017

Mine:
I5-6600k
Nvidia GTX 1060 (6gb)
16 gb ram
Gigabyte MB
WD blue 1 tb HDD
Boot drive a 240 Samsung evo SSD (not sure of this will affect performance)
Windows 10
1920x1080 display

I get 100 FPS nearly all the time unless I'm lagging (internet)

fred4 · August 2017

Peekachu99 wrote: »

many modern games

Many modern games, or MMOs? I have the impression the latter tend to be more CPU bound than graphics bound. While ESO is pretty, it is quite bare compared to Skyrim, or even Oblivion. Where are the forests in Cyrodiil?

Players, NPCs and special effects bog down the game. It could be network and server related, but my working theory is that the CPU can also be the bottleneck. I certainly experienced this problem in villages of Dragon Age Inquisition, where there were many NPCs.

freespirit · August 2017

mxmestiza wrote: »

Thank you all so much! I'm a layperson when it comes to tech. Based on what you guys said and some googling I should go for something along the lines of a machine with intel i7 7700 quad core, 16gb, and 1080ti graphics card. A machine like this should be able to handle 2 monitors right (one for game, one for internet/discord) plus keep a steady 60 fps with high graphics setting?

Like you I am a layperson however what you list above is almost exactly what I run, only difference is I have 32gb Ram, it runs ESO flawlessly.

Presently I'm having some horrible internet issues and as a consequence I run a game in the background as well as ESO and Discord. The game I run in the background isn't an online game as such BUT needs internet to actually load in the first place.

Therefore when my internet goes down ....... which atm it does several times a day...... I can play the second game because it's already running.

So I have 2 power hungry games, discord, often Word, frequently multiple web pages etc etc all running at once on a similar set up to above.

victoriana-blue · August 2017

I totally agree that the 1080 is more than you need. If you can afford it, that's awesome! But the game runs beautifully on a 1060 6GB, very few fps drops (except some related to my poor connection).

(That said, Nvidia disabled SLI support on the 1050 & 1060, so when it's time to upgrade you'll need to replace the card instead of add a card.)

Peekachu99 · August 2017

fred4 wrote: »

Peekachu99 wrote: »

many modern games

Many modern games, or MMOs? I have the impression the latter tend to be more CPU bound than graphics bound. While ESO is pretty, it is quite bare compared to Skyrim, or even Oblivion. Where are the forests in Cyrodiil?

Players, NPCs and special effects bog down the game. It could be network and server related, but my working theory is that the CPU can also be the bottleneck. I certainly experienced this problem in villages of Dragon Age Inquisition, where there were many NPCs.

You really don't need anything higher than a 1500X (quad core) or the Intel equivalent for the current and past crop of games (Ashes of the Singularity and other noteable exceptions, obviously). That's what I'm running now for 4K/60/ultra. I'm sure the next gen of consoles/ PC games will enforce stricter requirements, but they're not there now.

And MMORPGs are resource hogs, and always hit a bottleneck, which may not even be on your hardware's end. Most will always have an FPS dip at 4K, somewhere, usually when a mass of players and data exchanges are involved. Still, I've never gone below 25 (and that's rare), even in Cyro zergs and sieges.

ESO isn't that bare, either, with full grass and max distance. I know DSIII, Wolfenstein and Prey off the top of my head can go all the way at 4K without dipping, too, so you're set for single player/ light multiplayer games with a similar rig to the one I described.

Whatelse73b14_ESO · August 2017

I have an Alienware Aurora that I bought in 2010? Windows 10, i7 Core 930 CPU 2.80 GHz (Quad Core) with DX11, 16 Gigs of RAM, a GTX 770 (I added that a couple years ago because my original card died.) 64-bit OS with a 1920x1080 resolution monitor.

I have my graphic settings up pretty high and have no issues, other than occasionally in settings with lots of people like when there's a festival.

In essence, I'm using a 7 year old computer to play ESO that I got as a "mid-grade" gaming desktop and it plays ESO just fine. So, with technology these days I'm sure you'll be fine with most computers you get or put together yourself.

Good luck.