As noted, how much RAM you have is the hinge point. If you can cache the game files in RAM then storage speed is irrelevant after the first time you go somewhere. If the game is constantly going back to disk for files you are effectively getting memory for the speed of disk and performance will be horrible.
I have 12GB RAM in my PC and only notice disk activity in game just after a reboot or if I go somewhere new. I put my machine to sleep at night instead of shutting down so that cache stays alive for days. I also only install games on my system so it isn't loaded down with junkware that sucks up RAM.
In my opinion -- only go for the SSD if you've maxed out the RAM in your system since it is papering over not having enough RAM for the task.
/Designs servers for a living.
Disk cache is managed by the OS and doesn't count against the game's memory size limit. The application has no idea the caching is going on -- it just asks for a file and the OS provides the bits. If the app is measuring it, it might notice that reading certain things might be faster than others, but typically it doesn't care.
You can have 64GB RAM, have the entire game data cached, and ESO would gain benefit from it.
So i am a bit surprised by the answers. No one seemed to ask any questions that matters.
If I put a SSD in a 10 year old system does it increase performance? Not really, is booting up a computer a "performance upgrade"??
A lot depends on different factors.
Are you using true 6Gbps SATA 3 links? or are they emulated through the chipset, like old X58's. If its emulated, no, your not gonna see much as far as performance enhancements.
Just buying a SSD doesnt gain a performance boost, unless you have the supporting infrastructure. You MOBO has to play nice just as well. Your processor has to keep up with everything.
If your adding a SSD to a old single core AMD set up, your not gonna see a difference. If your using a prebuilt Walmart cheapy that you upgraded small things like PSU/Graphics card, your not gonna see much of a difference.
If you have a budget build that has decent equipment with in the last 5 years, you probably will see an increase.
I only say this because it may be more cost effective to upgrade something else.
wrlifeboil wrote: »Excellent. But then if you had 64gb of dram and if the entire game was in the system cache, you wouldn't benefit from an ssd, right?
I only say this because it may be more cost effective to upgrade something else.