Will-my-pc-run-Arma3? What cpu/gpu to get? What settings? What system specifications?

[nicklomas 3]

Hi all, ive not played Arma since 2013 and i'm buying a new laptop soon. Any recomendations to get the most out of the game?

[Horus 83]

Just wait for new Ryzen laptops https://www.guru3d.com/news-story/first-benchmarks-show-amd-ryzen-7-4800hs-to-be-faster-than-ryzen-7-2700x-and-core-i7-9700k.html

[opus132 3]

Is that single threaded performance though? 

 

Holding out for desktop Ryzen myself. I hope they'll beat intel for good in single core performance. Seems like even with the best intel CPU out there it's still hard to get this game to 60 FPS on ultra on that YYAB test. If AMD gives us something better finally it would be amazing. 

[oldbear 390]

@ opus132 : of course not a single threaded performance.

Whatever the qualities of the Ryzen 2, because of their inability to increase in frequency they will not "beat" the Intel processors.
From my point of view, with Arma3, the search for 60 FPS with Ultra settings is a aimless race. What is important is to play smoothly in the 40/50 FPS area in high graphic quality, and any R5 / R7 3000 can offer that if associated with an average graphics card [GTX 1660 level ] and a SSD hosting Windows and Arma3.

Edited February 15, 2020 by oldbear
English is not my mother tongue, but you already got that

[Reezo 45]

I agree that in Arma 3 (as with any other game, in my modest opinion) pushing for higher and higher FPS is pretty much useless if you don't maintain a high average and/or suffer from dips/stutters/slowdowns. Being efficient and effective with the latter especially is a nightmare and can hinder your game experience, making you look somewhere else than Arma 3. Once it happens a couple times that you start a nice op only to find yourself in a town or busier area and "feel" the sluggishness, all your pulse is kinda ruined.

 

It's also true that if you optimize, tweak and OC for better performance, you will get pretty much all three: higher fps, higher average, less dips. But it's not always like this.. as some tweaks are more effective at lower dips than others, for example, without granting you too much in higher fps peaks.

 

All in all, the faster you can get everything, the better.. but that's pretty much old news. Lucky for us all the new systems work pretty well for Arma 3 if you can take your head away from the fps battle and enjoy gaming (I know being a geek myself sometimes both things can be fun ;)).

[JustEric 1]

Time for a new computer.  I would like to run DCS Flight sim, ARMA 3, Microsoft Flight sim 2020 on the computer.  I might want to get VR goggles and or use a big monitor(s) or TV.  

I am not looking to break the bank on the latest and greatest.  I would like a computer that will be able to play the games great though.  Maybe last years new stuff is this years bargain.  

 

Does anyone have suggestions on any already built computers? 

 

Does anyone have suggestions on all the components to put a computer together with?  Can you save much by building one yourself?

 

Thanks!

Eric  

[HartofARMA 6]

Hi all, 

 

My question is very similar to that of "Just Eric" above, but more in terms of building components as my computer has aged a fair bit since my late OFP to early ARMA days.  Does anyone have a recommended updated 2020 gaming rig build, almost exclusively to be used for ARMA 3? This is the most system demanding game I play.  I'm probably looking to sink around $1500 and buying parts through NEWEGG/AMAZON.  

 

Try not to laugh... but I am currently playing ARMA 3 on my 2008 computer build and having some success on the lowest settings getting at an absolute maximum ~30 FPS.  I enjoy playing single player with lots of AI units and even with the  "ALiVE Mod" virtual profiling I understandably drop to very low FPS inside towns and around just a few AI squads.... time for an upgrade!

 

Current Specs: 
OS: Windows 7
CPU: AMD Phenom(tm) II X3 720 Processor, 2.8GHz, 3 Core(s)
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4800 Series (2808MB total Memory), (Display Mode 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
RAM: 4GB DDR3

 

I'd greatly appreciate any input, Thank you!

[oldbear 390]

Hi all ,and welcome 😎

 

First, a plan for a "Minimum Recommendable",  budget build based on my own tests.

• CPU : Ryzen R5 1600 AF [Ryzen 2000 @ lower frequency]
• MoBo :  B450
• RAM : 16 Go (2x8Go) 3000 MHz
• GPU : RX 580
• SSD : SATA 500 Go (Windows+Arma3)

 

2nd a plan for a "Recommendable",  mid-range build based on my own tests.*

• CPU : Ryzen R5 3600X
• MoBo :  B450/X470 [Ryzen 3000 Ready -updated BIOS]
• RAM : 16 Go (2x8Go) 3200 MHz
• GPU :GTX 1660 Super
• SSD : SATA 500 Go (Windows+Arma3)

 

Finally a project for a medium high configuration (with more than Arma3 in mind)

• CPU : Ryzen R7 3700X
• MoBo :  B450/X470 [Ryzen 3000 Ready -updated BIOS] or RX 570
• RAM : 16 Go (2x8Go) 3200 MHz
• GPU : RTX 2070 Super
• SSD : SATA 500 Go (Windows+Arma3)

 

With Arma : Operation ArrowHead, I went on to build my own PCs.
Yes, it is possible to save money by building your own rigs with patience, a taste for meticulous DIY ... and some skill 😉
You should know that you can make mistakes, especially at the beginning and that this will come at a price.
Finally the assembly is accompanied by the adjustment and the parameter setting which is another kind of practice

 

* note : you can get a look at the results of my R5 2600 and R5 3600X tests on the CanardPC forums (in French of course but with screenshots)

[HartofARMA 6]

Oldbear, 

 

Thank you very much for response!  I have gone into this thread some more as well as elsewhere on reddit, PC forums, steam etc.  Things that I now understand especially is that single core CPU performance is huge in ARMA and the AMD Ryzen chips are a good way to go.  I was very impressed by the AMD Ryzen 7 3800x in terms of comparisons to INTEL (bang vs. buck) and I don't think that I want to mess around with overclocking.  Before you responded, I had been playing around with the PC Part Picker Website... not sure if the link will work below but this is what I came up with.  Am I completely off base here?  If anything I feel like I am low price wise from my budget on the graphics card....

 

PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/pk3kHB

 

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3800X 3.9 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($339.99 @ B&H) 
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($114.89 @ Amazon) [Comments/research indicate that this should be fine with R7 3000 series]
Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($114.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung 970 Evo 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($87.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB GAMING OC Video Card  ($399.99 @ B&H) 
Case: Fractal Design Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case  ($99.98 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Corsair RMx (2018) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($109.99 @ Newegg) 
Total: $1267.82

 

**Not including windows 10 purchase

 

Thank you!

 

 

 

[Groove_C 267]

@HartofARMA if you still have some $$$ left, you definitely should consider to invest in better RAM, which will further bust Arma performance.

Avoid 3200 MHz 16-18-18 /16-16-16 or 15-15-15.

Buy 3200 MHz 14-14-14-34 from G.Skill. Trident Z or Ripjaws model. They both have same memory chips. The only difference is that Trindent Z look better than Ripjaws. That's it.

[cb65 86]

10 hours ago, Groove_C said:

Buy 3200 MHz 14-14-14-34 fro G.Skill. Trident Z or Ripjaws model. They both have same memory chips. The only difference is that Trindent Z look better than Ripjaws. That's it.

 

Is Corsair 3600 MHz 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) OK ?

Tested Latency 18-19-19-39.

[Groove_C 267]

@cb65 not worth, since 18-19-19-39 is super high latency for 3600 MHz.

If 3600 MHz, then not more than 16-16-16-36.

Otherwise 3200 MHz 14-14-14-34.

[oldbear 390]

@HartofARMA Please, could you tell us about your monitor ? also a 2008 product?

For it would be a shame to upgrade without improving the display.

[HartofARMA 6]

@Groove_C Thanks for the discussion on the RAM, that really helps me understand where I went wrong.  I did even more reading about CAS latency.

 

@oldbear Yep! My monitor is an old DELL from around 2008/2009 - 1080P Max Resolution.  I currently have my computer set up to a new Sony Bavaria TV (Sony BRAVIA X720E) via HDMI and its working well enough.  Ofcourse the old build doesn't make full use of the TV's capability.  I might consider a new monitor soon but I currently don't have the space for a desk but I do for a 55" TV. 

[oldbear 390]

Regarding the best DDR4 kit to use with a Ryzen2, in my opinion, we must continue to base ourselves on what was shown when these processors were released in June 2019 during the AMD E3 Tech Day:

 

 

So DDR4 3200 C14 or DDR4 3600 C16 should do the trick. I will suggest G.Skill Flare 3200 MHz C14 or G.Skill TridentZ NEO 3600 MHz C16.

But you have to keep in mind that the cheaper solution with Corsair Vengeance LPX 3200 MHz C16 works well.

[Groove_C 267]

Haven't paid attention.

Yes, G.Skill Flare X or Trident Z Neo.

Ripjaws V and Trident Z (non-Neo) are for Intel.

[cb65 86]

Isn't Z390 motherboards with an intel i9 9900k cpu supposed to work well with higher latency ram ?

[Tankbuster 1746]

1 hour ago, cb65 said:

Isn't Z390 motherboards with an intel i9 9900k cpu supposed to work well with higher latency ram ?

I've no complaints. I have 16GB HyperX Predator 3333 MHz CL16. I run it in XMP 2 at C15 3333 and got a significant performance increase over running it at C14, or at stock. The latency seems to matter more than the speed.

[cb65 86]

This is a good read on testing the Corsair 3600 MHz 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) Tested Latency 18-19-19-39 by tweak reviews.com if anyone is interested.

 

https://tweakreviews.com/ram/corsair-dominator-platinum-rgb-3600-mhz-

 

Scroll down the page to see the test results.

 

Cheers.

[oldbear 390]

AMD and Intel platforms have always behaved differently according to RAM frequency and timing, but with the AMD Ryzen, the fact that there is a direct link between the frequency of the RAM, its timings, its quality and the internal functioning of the processor accentuates the difference.

[cb65 86]

What SSD should I spend my money on ?

 

Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe SSD 1TB.  $329.00.

Or

Samsung 860 EVO 2.5in SATA SSD 1TB.  $209.00.

[Groove_C 267]

970 Evo

[cb65 86]

23 minutes ago, Groove_C said:

970 Evo

 

The motherboard I've bought has 3 M.2 slots, do you use the very top slot or doesn't it matter ?

First time I will be using M.2 SSD.

[Groove_C 267]

First slot is better, so it's from CPU, not from chipset.

[domokun 515]

4 hours ago, cb65 said:

What SSD should I spend my money on ?

860 Evo.

You just saved $200 and probably won't notice the difference

So spend $200 on a significant upgrade, e.g. GPU, CPU, RAM, screen or even TrackIR.