Question regarding hardware and the loading of thumbnails and patterns

[KawaiiMiyo]

Hi hi,

     Okay I just have a question regarding TS3 and hardware. After all the new expansions I decided to have a new computer built specifically for TS3. I ended up getting a Intel i3 quad core 3.1ghz with 6 gigs of ddr3 ram etc... Anyways it seemed really nice compared to what I had before. I also went ahead and got one of those 8gb flash cards to use as that "ready boost" thing because I heard that helped. Well I'm able to play my game with all the graphic settings at their highest without any lag, and the game runs wonderful for me.

But here's my question. I didn't mind playing with lower graphic settings or small lots. What I did mind was the painful task of creating a Sim when it took ages for all of the thumbnails of clothing categories to load up, and decorating household objects was even worse. Because of the slowness I always set a few colors in "Misc" to color everything which was ugly, but faster than waiting for other categories to load.

My new computer did make things faster with this, and I have been able to take advantage of textures and patterns more since, however it's still not to my liking. Thumbnails still take too long to load, and I want to make it faster. I am wondering what is it I need to upgrade to make this specific part of the game load faster?

I had heard it could be my hard drive, that even though having a lot of ram or a high end processor will make the game run faster, it still has to pull things like the thumbnails from your hard drive, so if you have an old hard drive that part might be slower? Is this true? I got a new hard drive with this computer but I hadn't cared much about it at the time. Is it indeed a hard drive issue or does "MOAR RAM" apply to the loading of thumbnails and textures as well? I always hear things on lag or slowness, but I haven't heard much on loading textures or thumbnails.

[kissing_toast]

It may just be the game, I play with all settings on high too and I have to wait for cas and pattern thumbs to load also. Usually it's not long but it is annoying, especially when you wait, for example, for everyday pants to load, switch to shirts, wait, then go back to pants and have to wait again.

[jezzer]

I'm guessing it clears the cache of loaded thumbnails each time you switch categories, because I get the same thing.  I think each thumbnail loads faster on a better machine, but it still has to reload all of them.  Having lots of cc doesn't help, but I'll be damned if I stick to just EA's stuff.

[wizard_merlin]

In my game it varies, every now and then they load super fast, with no waiting at all, other times, it seems to take a few seconds.  I have noticed that it is worse the first time after I clear the caches before playing.  Once they have been loaded, they seem fine after that, until I decide to delete the caches again.  The longest I have had to wait for the thumbnails is around 5 seconds, and this is rare.  It has been suggested elsewhere that your anti-virus or spy-ware program might be slowing things down by scanning each item as it loads, not sure if it is accurate or not, but something to look at if it is running.  Some of those cheap and free versions often do all sorts of weird things, while others work like a charm, even expensive ones like Norton are known to do bizarre shit.

Thumbnails still take too long to load, and I want to make it faster. I am wondering what is it I need to upgrade to make this specific part of the game load faster?

What do you classify as "too long"?  5 seconds, 30 seconds, 2 minutes, what?  It might be that you are seeing normal loading times and just think a super machine somehow has magical powers, or it could be something else, and given everyone has a different definition of what "too long" means, times would help.

I had heard it could be my hard drive, that even though having a lot of ram or a high end processor will make the game run faster, it still has to pull things like the thumbnails from your hard drive, so if you have an old hard drive that part might be slower? Is this true? I got a new hard drive with this computer but I hadn't cared much about it at the time. Is it indeed a hard drive issue or does "MOAR RAM" apply to the loading of thumbnails and textures as well? I always hear things on lag or slowness, but I haven't heard much on loading textures or thumbnails.

A new HDD doesn't mean it is fast, or good.  Many places when building computers now use the so-called "green" drives, which use slightly less power, spin slower and have slower read/write speeds, all in the name or protecting the environment.

[KawaiiMiyo]

What do you classify as "too long"?  5 seconds, 30 seconds, 2 minutes, what?  It might be that you are seeing normal loading times and just think a super machine somehow has magical powers, or it could be something else, and given everyone has a different definition of what "too long" means, times would help.

For larger categories such as geometric or themed it could take about 20-30 seconds to load each time, woods take about 10 seconds.... smaller categories like misc take about 3-6 seconds depending on how many colors I have there. When I'm browsing outfits with disableClothingFilter active it can take about 1-2 minutes to load everything. None of that is too horrible... but when you're creating several sims or decorating a new house from scratch it all adds up and can be horribly time consuming.

A new HDD doesn't mean it is fast, or good.  Many places when building computers now use the so-called "green" drives, which use slightly less power, spin slower and have slower read/write speeds, all in the name or protecting the environment.

This is why I was wondering if I should upgrade my hard drive and look for something better. That is the one thing I didn't pay attention to with this new computer. Though for what it's worth, the one I got is a 1TB SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive 64MB 7200RPM. I don't know how decent that is though. And also I haven't considered antivirus programs scanning files as they load... I have been leaving it running in the background, I'll switch it off and see if that helps.

I'm guessing it clears the cache of loaded thumbnails each time you switch categories, because I get the same thing.  I think each thumbnail loads faster on a better machine, but it still has to reload all of them.  Having lots of cc doesn't help, but I'll be damned if I stick to just EA's stuff.

I'd believe this, that's the worse part. Recoloring several objects and constantly reloading the same categories over and over when you just had to wait for it on the previous item. It is faster than it was before and  somewhat tolerable on my new computer, I can deal with it, I just wondered if there was something else I can focus on to speed it up.

[jezzer]

If you have a lot of cc, have you tried merging your .package files?  Merging my files sped up my load times considerably.

[wizard_merlin]

This is why I was wondering if I should upgrade my hard drive and look for something better. That is the one thing I didn't pay attention to with this new computer. Though for what it's worth, the one I got is a 1TB SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive 64MB 7200RPM. I don't know how decent that is though. And also I haven't considered antivirus programs scanning files as they load... I have been leaving it running in the background, I'll switch it off and see if that helps.

That's a reasonable HDD as far as speed, the "green" ones usually run around 5400RPM, give or take.  The only thing faster is either a velociraptor drive from WD which spins at 10000 RPM or a SSD which have read/write speeds considerably faster again.

If you have a lot of cc, have you tried merging your .package files?  Merging my files sped up my load times considerably.

If you have alot of CC this might help.  I don't have much CC and haven't seen any need to merge them as my load times are not slow at all, and I have never had anything take 1-2 minutes to load (except maybe the game itself).

[Aftermath]

I'd believe this, that's the worse part. Recoloring several objects and constantly reloading the same categories over and over when you just had to wait for it on the previous item. It is faster than it was before and  somewhat tolerable on my new computer, I can deal with it, I just wondered if there was something else I can focus on to speed it up.

You can easily copy the color of one object to another object by dragging a single box from the mesh mask panel to the object you want to recolor. The object should glow when you drag your box over it. You can also drag the entire panel to the object you want to copy the entire style and not just the color.

That's a reasonable HDD as far as speed, the "green" ones usually run around 5400RPM, give or take.  The only thing faster is either a velociraptor drive from WD which spins at 10000 RPM or a SSD which have read/write speeds considerably faster again.

Although the read/write speeds of a SSD are considerably faster than an average hard drive, SSDs are not cheap with a 512gb going for $1000 and a 1tb going for $4999.

[KawaiiMiyo]

If you have a lot of cc, have you tried merging your .package files?  Merging my files sped up my load times considerably.

The only CC I am using right now are only a select few mods. I've given it up for the most part after this last expansion. There has been enough expansions and store content at this point I think I'm fine going without. Though there are some CC patterns I wouldn't mind having but I haven't wanted to do anything that might increase the thumbnail loading times.

You can also drag the entire panel to the object you want to copy the entire style and not just the color.

I knew about the single colors, I've never tried dragging the entire panel... That would be a huge help

[witch]

I have RAID 0 on 2 x 10,000RPM drives and although there is still a significant lag on loading thumbnails after a cache clear, it is much better after each category has been loaded once. I only have 4GB RAM, but am running Win XP so it is not so resource hungry as Vista or Win 7. I do not run the antivirus while playing. My experience leads me to think the hard drive speed is more important than RAM as far as thumbnails go.

Sims 3 seems to be quite diabolical at fragmenting drives, so make sure you defrag frequently as well.

[snapzit]

I'm pretty much convinced you almost need a super computer to run the game well. I just built a computer after having fried two decent graphics cards in the old one. The computer itself was running at unacceptably high temps (82 degrees C) during the game. At other times, doing more normal computer work, it ran just fine. I was getting BSOD, CTD, and a laggy, jerky game experience. It should have run fine according to the requirement specs, but even a modest amount of CC chopped it up. The Sims 3 is a hardware eater. It seems like it could be used as a benchmark for graphics/performance.

The new computer is ridiculously fast and smooth and runs at around 32 degrees C in game. It has an Intel i7 2600k processor, a fast, huge HDD and a shiny graphics card. It also has five fans and a cooler inside a big case to keep it cool. Everything is set on max resolution. I must say, it is a real pleasure to see the game run as it should without all the stuttering drama and crashes.

*BUT* It was expensive to build. I sure wouldn't want to have to replace it any time soon.

[KawaiiMiyo]

The new computer is ridiculously fast and smooth and runs at around 32 degrees C in game. It has an Intel i7 2600k processor, a fast, huge HDD and a shiny graphics card. It also has five fans and a cooler inside a big case to keep it cool. Everything is set on max resolution. I must say, it is a real pleasure to see the game run as it should without all the stuttering drama and crashes.

How fast do your thumbnails and patterns load with that set up? anywhere near instantly?

[kissing_toast]

I'm not so sure about the needing of a power house to play this game. I have an out of the box pc, it's a Gateway, Intel Core i3 2.93 GHz, 6 Gb of RAM, 1TB HDD. At first I was using only the integrated graphics card, that sucked, couldn't use mirrors at all, once you looked into one the game would crash. But once I upgraded to a  NVIDIA GeForce GT 430, 1024MB DDR3, I run the game at full specs with no problems. Then again 90% of my CC is all the store stuff. IDK

As for the thumbs, I have to wait maybe 5 - 10 seconds depending on the pattern category, my biggest peeve is waiting for the store CAS thumbs to load each and everytime I switch categories.

[jezzer]

I'm running Sims 3 with an out of the box HP Pavilion, dual core processor, 5 Gb RAM, 1 Gb Geforce 9500 GT video card.  I run the game on the highest settings with no slowdown or framerate issues.  I highly recommend you use 3Booter and the FPS Limiter to prevent your video card from overheating, because TS3 is notorious for putting a bigger drain on video cards than it actually needs.

[snapzit]

How fast do your thumbnails and patterns load with that set up? anywhere near instantly?

Pretty much instantly. The only time there is a short wait is when I do a "change outfit" on a Sim. Then it takes about a second or two for the thumbs to load. I've never had to wait in CAS, build or buy modes. Everything is there as soon as they open. I do want to qualify my insane computer. I do some video and photo editing for work and play, and it helps to have a high performance computer. Otherwise, too much time is spent on load screens. It just also happens to be very convenient for playing Sims 3.

My last computer played the game pretty well until it started aging and burning itself out. It was a Gateway FX series Quad Core, 2.4 GHz. The new one is 3.40 GHz. I do think this game is a burden on many computers, and puts additional wear on them. I can hear the fans crank up as I play on the new computer to keep itself cool, and if I check the processor, it is clearly using some hefty power that would not otherwise be needed. I haven't used the new one for a video yet, so I've yet to compare the power usage.

FPS limiter should help prevent card burnout, but the game itself a power sucker.

[Iolanthe]

The new computer is ridiculously fast and smooth and runs at around 32 degrees C in game. It has an Intel i7 2600k processor, a fast, huge HDD and a shiny graphics card. It also has five fans and a cooler inside a big case to keep it cool. Everything is set on max resolution. I must say, it is a real pleasure to see the game run as it should without all the stuttering drama and crashes.

*BUT* It was expensive to build. I sure wouldn't want to have to replace it any time soon.

I've been thinking about building a new laptop on the higher end of things.  I don't suppose you'd be willing to share your specs?

[girlfromverona]

I've been thinking about building a new laptop on the higher end of things.  I don't suppose you'd be willing to share your specs?

I second that request. I'm considering getting a desktop PC to replace my XPS M1730 laptop, which is just not up to the task anymore. I'd love to be able to play TS3 with no lag.

[wizard_merlin]

I've been thinking about building a new laptop on the higher end of things.  I don't suppose you'd be willing to share your specs?

I second that request. I'm considering getting a desktop PC to replace my XPS M1730 laptop, which is just not up to the task anymore. I'd love to be able to play TS3 with no lag.

Anything you buy these days will contain a multicore CPU, you just need to stay above 2.4Ghz which is the listed minimum for the games, the closer to 3.0Ghz you can get the better, and 6GB RAM would be nice, and stay with a separate dedicated graphics card, not an integrated one.

It really depends on your funds and what you're willing to spend, along with whether you are buying something off the shelf or having one custom built.  Custom built may be slightly more expensive, but you will get better bang for your buck.

My current machine has an i7 965 CPU (quad core, 2 threads per core, so it functions as an 8 core CPU, at 3.2 Ghz), 12 GB RAM, an older Nvidia GTX295 (dual Board) Graphics.  There are CPU's, such as the i3 and i5 that provide 2.8 Ghz plus which will perform quite well and be cheaper than the i7 or i9.  It really does depend on your funds, but the better you can go now, the longer it will be before you will need to upgrade again.

I've been thinking about building a new laptop on the higher end of things.  I don't suppose you'd be willing to share your specs?

Laptops are not the idea gaming platforms, even the dedicated gaming laptops can struggle with heat build-up.  If you really do want a laptop, as I said before, look at the minimum, or recommended, game requirements and build as far above that as funding permits, and get a laptop with a high-end dedicated graphics card.  If you look at the Nvidia and ATI websites you can get details about their laptop graphics cards and get something good.

[snapzit]

I've been thinking about building a new laptop on the higher end of things.  I don't suppose you'd be willing to share your specs?

I'll do the basics here, but because of the rules about shilling you'll have to PM me for details. I did include the chip, OS and graphics card specs because I've seen those listed elsewhere on the board with no ill consequences.

i7 2600k, 3.40 GHz CPU, unlocked.
Motherboard with a compatible socket (1155) and newer EFI BIOS.
Cooler with 2 fans
Full-size tower with 5 fans
1 TB hard drive
8 GB DDR3 RAM
After market Nvidia Geforce GTX 560 Ti
Card reader
Fancy sound card
Fancy speakers
24x DVDRW SATA
Windows Professional 64 bit.
850 watt power supply