32GB RAM Recommended

[BitMaster]

When I start F/A18 SINGLE player, Instant Mission, Freeflight...I am at 14GB used right at start.

 

 

For MP like BF or 104th, dont try with 16GB unless you want a bad experience.

 

 

32GB +32Gb swap is a reliable combo, others may work too but this we know does work under pressure

[Horns]

I don't find DCS ever uses more than 16GB RAM

 

That has been my experience too, which is why I asked, but I'm only occasionally in a mission made by myself or someone else.

 

I frequently see DCS utilizing more over 20GB of RAM. If you play in decent sized multiplayer groups 32GB is almost a must(I saw a huge leap in performance when I went to 32). I currently run 64GB and don't regret that at all.

 

Thanks, that's the information I needed. Now to figure out whether to get a whole new memory kit, or buy another 16GB like my current and cross my fingers they play nice with each other...

 

Its easy to answer your own question. Set up a Sp map, take off and monitor RAM and VRam usage. Then add loads of Ai units and fly the same task, again monitor RAM and VRam usage. You will have your answer.

 

That's a really good point, doing that will tell me whether I need to upgrade immediately or if I can wait until I do multiplayer things. Thanks :)

 

When I start F/A18 SINGLE player, Instant Mission, Freeflight...I am at 14GB used right at start.

 

 

For MP like BF or 104th, dont try with 16GB unless you want a bad experience.

 

 

32GB +32Gb swap is a reliable combo, others may work too but this we know does work under pressure

 

That gives me a specific setup I can use successfully, that's awesome, ta.

 

Thanks for all the answers. I accept I need at least 32GB before entering multiplayer or complex single player, and a test I can run to see if it's necessary before that. Thanks for all the knowledge, cheers :smartass:

[Headwarp]

If you're in the U.S. Newegg has a 30 day return policy on ram kits. If you can find the exact model of ram you're using it's worth a shot imo. Just ordered another 16GB myself.

[captflyby]

I noticed the recommended system requirements for "high" graphics settings specifies 32GB for heavy missions. I have three questions:

 

1. Is that sensitive to any particular levels of resolution (eg 1440p or above) or anti-aliasing

(eg MSAA 2x+)?

 

2. What qualifies a mission as 'heavy'?

 

3. Is this spec for single player as well as multiplayer?

 

Thanks

 

 

I think of "high" load in different ways:

 

1. The "system" load - AI, # of players, SP vs MP, and similar things.

2. The "graphics" load - usually people think of this in "FPS"

_______________________

 

Some games make use of Multi-core CPUs, others do not.

Some games are optimized for ram memory (system) usage, some are not.

Some games are optimized for vram memory (graphics) usage, some are not.

_______________________

 

System load:

 

DCS is not optimized for system ram usage or for graphics usage.

Very few games are. There is such a wide variety of platforms that run the same game.

 

DCS runs on two threads: One for system, one for sound.

Graphics fed from GPU through CPU via one (1) channel. Therefore the CPU is your bottleneck.

 

______________________

 

I7 Intel 4800K 4 core/32 GB RAM DDR3/Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11 GB DDR3

 

No DCS running:

 

CPU usage - 6% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 6.5 GB in use 25.4 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 1.2 GB in use 8.8 GB available

 

DCS Single Player:

 

CPU usage - 38% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 13.3 GB in use 18.6 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 5.6 GB in use 5.4 GB available

 

DCS Multiplayer:

 

CPU usage - 37% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 14.8 GB in use 17.2 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 9.1 GB in use 1.9 GB available

 

_________________________

 

What can you do:

 

16 GB of ram. DDR5 if you can. Faster the ram is recommended.

 

Biggest CPU you can afford. I7 (non-hyper threaded) DCS does not use hyper threading. The faster the CPU, the faster the graphics transfer rate, up to a point.

 

Then SSD hard drive. (Many times faster than older technology drives.)

(Technical note: 2 SSDs raided together give me about 20-30% faster that a single, larger SSD. Go figure.)

 

Now your card. 1080 Ti is plenty. 2080 Ti has very little improvement in FPS for DCS. Other games may show a great improvement.

 

__________________________

 

Results:

 

In flat screen 4k:

I get 150+ FPS

 

In VR, no matter what I do:

I get 45 FPS.

There is something I obviously have not learned about VR yet.

 

 

For DCS, single or multiplayer:

 

 

You should not need more than 4 cores.

You will not benefit from more than 32 GIG at this present time.

You will benefit with an SSD hard drive.

You will benefit with the largest non hyper threaded CPU you can get. I7.

 

You will not benefit from a hyper threaded CPU, like I9.

60 FPS is vision's threshold of reality.

1080 Ti will give you 150 fps+. No need for a bigger card at this time.

 

 

__________________________

 

Hope it can help you.

[Donut]

I think of "high" load in different ways:

 

1. The "system" load - AI, # of players, SP vs MP, and similar things.

2. The "graphics" load - usually people think of this in "FPS"

_______________________

 

Some games make use of Multi-core CPUs, others do not.

Some games are optimized for ram memory (system) usage, some are not.

Some games are optimized for vram memory (graphics) usage, some are not.

_______________________

 

System load:

 

DCS is not optimized for system ram usage or for graphics usage.

Very few games are. There is such a wide variety of platforms that run the same game.

 

DCS runs on two threads: One for system, one for sound.

Graphics fed from GPU through CPU via one (1) channel. Therefore the CPU is your bottleneck.

 

______________________

 

I7 Intel 4800K 4 core/32 GB RAM DDR3/Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11 GB DDR3

 

No DCS running:

 

CPU usage - 6% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 6.5 GB in use 25.4 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 1.2 GB in use 8.8 GB available

 

DCS Single Player:

 

CPU usage - 38% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 13.3 GB in use 18.6 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 5.6 GB in use 5.4 GB available

 

DCS Multiplayer:

 

CPU usage - 37% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 14.8 GB in use 17.2 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 9.1 GB in use 1.9 GB available

 

_________________________

 

What can you do:

 

16 GB of ram. DDR5 if you can. Faster the ram is recommended.

 

Biggest CPU you can afford. I7 (non-hyper threaded) DCS does not use hyper threading. The faster the CPU, the faster the graphics transfer rate, up to a point.

 

Then SSD hard drive. (Many times faster than older technology drives.)

(Technical note: 2 SSDs raided together give me about 20-30% faster that a single, larger SSD. Go figure.)

 

Now your card. 1080 Ti is plenty. 2080 Ti has very little improvement in FPS for DCS. Other games may show a great improvement.

 

__________________________

 

Results:

 

In flat screen 4k:

I get 150+ FPS

 

In VR, no matter what I do:

I get 45 FPS.

There is something I obviously have not learned about VR yet.

 

 

For DCS, single or multiplayer:

 

 

You should not need more than 4 cores.

You will not benefit from more than 32 GIG at this present time.

You will benefit with an SSD hard drive.

You will benefit with the largest non hyper threaded CPU you can get. I7.

 

You will not benefit from a hyper threaded CPU, like I9.

60 FPS is vision's threshold of reality.

1080 Ti will give you 150 fps+. No need for a bigger card at this time.

 

 

__________________________

 

Hope it can help you.

 

Great and informative write up! However, you mention 150+FPS...under what conditions do you achieve this and what are your in-game settings?

 

I have a 4.6GHz CPU, and 1080 Ti and my FPS varies greatly. Over open water or desert my FPS can go into the 140's but in dense areas my FPS can drop into the 60's. If I use the "High" Preset in settings, my FPS will drop into the 50's at times so I have to customize the settings a bit to achieve FPS over 60.

Edited November 17, 2018 by =BJM=

[Mustang]

When I start F/A18 SINGLE player, Instant Mission, Freeflight...I am at 14GB used right at start.

 

 

For MP like BF or 104th, dont try with 16GB unless you want a bad experience.

 

 

32GB +32Gb swap is a reliable combo, others may work too but this we know does work under pressure

 

16gb here with 32gb swapfile, zero problems in any 104th missions.

[Horns]

I think of "high" load in different ways:

 

1. The "system" load - AI, # of players, SP vs MP, and similar things.

2. The "graphics" load - usually people think of this in "FPS"

_______________________

 

Some games make use of Multi-core CPUs, others do not.

Some games are optimized for ram memory (system) usage, some are not.

Some games are optimized for vram memory (graphics) usage, some are not.

_______________________

 

System load:

 

DCS is not optimized for system ram usage or for graphics usage.

Very few games are. There is such a wide variety of platforms that run the same game.

 

DCS runs on two threads: One for system, one for sound.

Graphics fed from GPU through CPU via one (1) channel. Therefore the CPU is your bottleneck.

 

______________________

 

I7 Intel 4800K 4 core/32 GB RAM DDR3/Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11 GB DDR3

 

No DCS running:

 

CPU usage - 6% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 6.5 GB in use 25.4 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 1.2 GB in use 8.8 GB available

 

DCS Single Player:

 

CPU usage - 38% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 13.3 GB in use 18.6 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 5.6 GB in use 5.4 GB available

 

DCS Multiplayer:

 

CPU usage - 37% 4 cores 8 logical processors

RAM usage - 14.8 GB in use 17.2 GB available 32 GB total

GPU usage - 9.1 GB in use 1.9 GB available

 

_________________________

 

What can you do:

 

16 GB of ram. DDR5 if you can. Faster the ram is recommended.

 

Biggest CPU you can afford. I7 (non-hyper threaded) DCS does not use hyper threading. The faster the CPU, the faster the graphics transfer rate, up to a point.

 

Then SSD hard drive. (Many times faster than older technology drives.)

(Technical note: 2 SSDs raided together give me about 20-30% faster that a single, larger SSD. Go figure.)

 

Now your card. 1080 Ti is plenty. 2080 Ti has very little improvement in FPS for DCS. Other games may show a great improvement.

 

__________________________

 

Results:

 

In flat screen 4k:

I get 150+ FPS

 

In VR, no matter what I do:

I get 45 FPS.

There is something I obviously have not learned about VR yet.

 

 

For DCS, single or multiplayer:

 

 

You should not need more than 4 cores.

You will not benefit from more than 32 GIG at this present time.

You will benefit with an SSD hard drive.

You will benefit with the largest non hyper threaded CPU you can get. I7.

 

You will not benefit from a hyper threaded CPU, like I9.

60 FPS is vision's threshold of reality.

1080 Ti will give you 150 fps+. No need for a bigger card at this time.

 

 

__________________________

 

Hope it can help you.

 

Thanks for going into depth like that, much appreciated

[Reflected]

My setup is in my sig. I get 45 FPS in MP, drops to 30 in SP when lots of planes are around, worst case is 22, but usually stable 45 during an 8 v 8 dogfight over Normandy.

 

Would I benefit from buying another 8G RAM? Or even 16?

[Reflected]

I loaded a busy escort mission with 70 bombers and a dozen fighters, my RAM usage never went above 4-5GB. Then again, my CPU and GPU usage was quite low too, not sure what made me lose 15 FPS, then?

[draconus]

@Reflected: more VRAM/RAM does not give you more FPS unless it's full and swapping occurs - then you have stutters or freezes. Heavy missions (like the one mentioned) will certainly hog cpu time although it can be not shown so easily - example:

 

 

I would also point out that talking about performance (fps, stutters) and vram/ram usage is pointless without one's hardware specs, game settings (texture, res, AA...) and exact mission.

Edited November 21, 2018 by draconus

[Commandosolo]

I went from 16gb of ram @3000mhz to 32gb @3000mhz which made absolutely no difference. Still the same stutters as before.

did you make sure in your asus board in the bios you told it you were running 3200? I had to. It's default was 2133 and it's like that until you change it to 3200. Did it make a difference, I can't really tell but it makes me feel better. I would check that, it might get rid of your stutter.

[Rushx]

Received and installed my 64 GB of Kingston Hyper X DDR 4 2666 ram today.

 

With this ram and installing a Samsung 860 Pro solid state drive over the weekend, my DCS performance has gone up so much it's ridiculous. Smooth 4k gameplay. It feels like I installed a better performing graphics card, even though I didn't. Almost complete elimination of stutters. Load times also cut from 15 minutes to around 1.

 

I played on the Dynamic Caucus server for 6 hours tonight and only had 1 stutter. The server was practically unplayable due to stutters and constant hanging for me before hand. I haven't had issues with being kicked back to the main menu after joining a server yet either. More than happy with these upgrades so far.

 

 

I have 64GB DDR4 and not use page file. Turn off Page file, more speed and smooth gameplay. DCS World high preset use maximum 28 - 30 GB comitted. You have page file slower than not use. DCS World without page file = faster load times and no lag, only player join multiplayer extreme over textured modules like C101!

 

 

SSD average write /day 9000Mb, without page file maximum 2500MB, better SSD life!

 

 

 

Sorry bad english! :)

Edited November 22, 2018 by Rushx

[BitMaster]

I am playing with the idea to toss my stupid RAM and also get me a decent 64GB kit, 3000 or 3200.

 

I still think, RAM VRAM and gasoline cubic inches are impossible to substitute.

[Bulldog_1]

 

Good comparison! :thumbup:

[inexus]

after reading all these comments still can't see anybody who definitively can say if 32gb is worth it.

 

I can see stutter from loading in textures, etc. perhaps it's because of the page file. I don't see DCS take above 10gb on my machine.

[draconus]

after reading all these comments still can't see anybody who definitively can say if 32gb is worth it.

 

I can see stutter from loading in textures, etc. perhaps it's because of the page file. I don't see DCS take above 10gb on my machine.

Because it depends on your vram, settings (textures, c.traffic, v.range, p.radius), map and mission. In MP and/or heavy missions there are many modules and units which have to be loaded easily taking over 20GB of RAM. So if you usually see 10 that's OK... for you.

[BitMaster]

Here's a good read: https://www.tomshardware.com/opinion/32gb-ram-is-my-minimum

 

The important part is the 2 vs 4 rank config, especially for AMD Ryzen machines as stated in more than this article.

 

Maybe you need to cross-read other articles touching this rather mathematical topic with Ranks, bus width and how that all works together.

 

I would not build a machine for DCS with 16GB, that is my strong believe :music_whistling:

[JIMJAM]

My 2 cents..... My nephew who is a hardcore gamer who builds his own computers just hooked me up with very fast 32 gig of ram and then he overclocked and tweaked it. TBO running performance test and on paper its a lot faster. But if I did not pay for it and see him do it I would have never known. I see no difference other than a placebo effect and knowing I have it. That goes for DCS and all my other games and overall surfing the net.

[Oceandar]

32Gb RAM help in loading time and reduce or potentially remove the stuttering particularly in MP where lot of units AI's or human players. .For FPS performance maybe very little difference like 1 or 2.