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Forums > Home› Support› PC Gameplay Bug Reports

Slow to load loading screens

kamikazi2142kamikazi2142 Member Posts: 52 Arc User
edited May 2014 in PC Gameplay Bug Reports
I have setup a separate HDD for STO to load from hoping that it would solve this loading problem, which it doesn't.

The screen is the loading screen for loading into ANYWHERE, sometimes it is its usual split second loading time, and others its spends nearly a whole minute loading the first 2 or 3 percent, then rips through the remainder.

I installed STO on a separate drive located in my trayless drive mount adapter that fits in my 5.25" expansion bay, this enables me to view an independent activity light for the drive...

Results of this test:
When the game loads into new areas normally (split second load screen) the HDD activity light is on for the whole split second loading...
When the game decides to take FOREVER to load, there is no activity on the drive until the game starts to actually load.

Conclusion:
STO has a bug that prevents it from loading new areas immediately from disk, as if it is searching the RAM for the data, this happened before when it was installed to the Primary C drive. Happened more so on a RAID 0 array, and happens just the same as if installed normally as on separate drives.

Configuration:
Standard Installation: Original location when took notice of the problem.
RAID 0 Configuration: same issues
Separate Drive setup: same issues, loaded faster than RAID 0

SIDE NOTE:
I noticed that RAID 0 seems to break the startup of the game, several times the game would crash on the "Legacy of Romulus" splash screen. Never happened on single drive setups.

Speculation:
Could the game be waiting for a parse from server to engage in loading the data? Could the game be "forgetting" directory locations? Could there be a memory leak causing the game to hang when in loading screens while it clears the memory to load the new zone?

System setup:
AMD FX-8320 OC:4.2Ghz (perfectly overclocked ask for scores in 3DMark for proof)
16GB AMD Radeon Memory Gamer Series DDR3-2133 (Proper AMP settings)
ASUS Crosshair V Formula-Z (volt bumps where necessary)
HIS Radeon HD 7850 IceQ X Turbo OC (2 in CrossfireX mode)
Corsair AX1200i 1200Watt power supply
7 1TB HDD (Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm single platter drives)
1 BD-ROM drive

After disabling HPET Clock in BIOS disk loading is faster, but the issue is still there, also, HPET Clock being disabled i am able to run 8x AA at 60 average FPS, even while recording with Fraps.

I have squeezed all i can out of this build, without using extreme custom cooling methods, performance is not a problem, i am more than certain this problem is within the game code itself.
Post edited by kamikazi2142 on

Comments

  • stoutesstoutes Member Posts: 4,219 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    kamikazi2142 wrote: »
    Conclusion:
    STO has a bug that prevents it from loading new areas immediately from disk, as if it is searching the RAM for the data
    Base models, gfx and sounds are stored in this games Piggs files. But since it's an MMO, your client needs to load in your coordinates and other players inside maps. Your STO client is connected to the server. The lower your bandwith the longer these loading screens may take (not taking Foundry maps in consideration atm).
    maxvitor wrote: »
    Nerf is OP, plz nerf
    That's quite the paradox, how could you nerf nerf when the nerf is nerfed. But how would the nerf be nerfed when the nerf is nerfed? This allows the nerf not to be nerfed since the nerf is nerfed? But if the nerf isn't nerfed, it could still nerf nerfs. But as soon as the nerf is nerfed, the nerf power is lost. So paradoxally it the nerf nerf lost its nerf, while it's still nerfed, which cannot be because the nerf was unable to nerf.

    I call it, the Stoutes paradox.
  • mightybobcncmightybobcnc Member Posts: 3,354 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    Which location are you trying to load into? If it's not a persistent zone like ESD and there are 0 other players in that location (such as fleet bases, star cluster missions, foundry missions, etc.) then the server itself has to spin up a new instance of that map before you can load into it which results in longer loading screens as the server loads it first, then your local client loads it.
    Joined January 2009
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  • edgecrysgeredgecrysger Member Posts: 2,740 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    kamikazi2142 wrote: »
    I have setup a separate HDD for STO to load from hoping that it would solve this loading problem, which it doesn't.

    The screen is the loading screen for loading into ANYWHERE, sometimes it is its usual split second loading time, and others its spends nearly a whole minute loading the first 2 or 3 percent, then rips through the remainder.

    It is a problem of STO, not yours. Happens to everybody, me included.

    The game is just not optimized, so, sometimes some screens will take even 40 seconds - 1 minute to load no matter how much graphically loaded is the screen you are loading. Even some screens that one day takes 3 seconds to load, other day will take 40 seconds, and so on.

    So, dont touch anything else.. lol, it is a problem of STO, since ages ago.
  • th3xr34p3rth3xr34p3r Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    Launcher options > turn off patching on demand and patch up the game entirely.

    Slow load times with patching on demand is due to the game streaming in the assets from the server on a need basis and your connection speed to the patch server the first time you load into an instance that needs them or if returning and they have been updated.

    I have STO installed in a dedicated Games WD Black drive with on demand patching disabled and as such have not had any load time issues since turning off that feature and prepatching the game using the Tribble builds.

    I also have Texture loading into RAM enabled since I have more than enough in my build to let it hold the most common data there for quick access (I have tested it on and off and due to not really noticing a difference on my setup left it on).

    On a side note if you are gonna bench with 3DMark in the future you will need to re-enable HPET as it does lock up the system when off and it needs it for the systeminfo portion of the software, have a few other benchmarkers that don't need it like catzilla, unigen valley/heaven and do work fine from my experiance.
    [SIGPIC]Click to visit Subspace-Radio[/SIGPIC]
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  • edgecrysgeredgecrysger Member Posts: 2,740 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    th3xr34p3r wrote: »
    Launcher options > turn off patching on demand and patch up the game entirely.

    Sorry but this has nothing to do with it. It is happenin since eons ago, and having all the files just patched is not a solution not even close lol.

    And no, no options in the options of the game will help to solve this, as i said it is another "bug" really rooted into the game since ages ago.

    There were a few posts in the past with this issue, a lot of people reported it, and it is a fail of the game. There are some screens that, even if you will only find a nebula and a planet on em, will take 40 seconds to load, for uknown reasons.
  • kamikazi2142kamikazi2142 Member Posts: 52 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    Thank you all for the timely replies.

    I did notice a bit more of a loading time improvement after disabling the setting that stores game data in RAM to reduce HDD streaming, since i have separate drives, its no biggie for me.
    Though neither is storing it in the RAM.

    I did not consider the idea of the server having to create a lonely instance just for me. I understand now, since it seems to only take FOREVER loading into lowbie missions, certain bridges, and fleet base sometimes. I have noticed this long wait in PvE queues when there are no players playing currently.

    I recently ran into something far more troubling though...
    My sound glitches, minor pops and clicks at first but sustained battles with many cannons, torpedos and beams... well lets put it this way... i was in the Romulan mission defending romulus from an Elachi invasion fleet, and the sound FX slowely died down to just the environmental ambiance... continued playing, and did the Season 9 Feature episode, the occasional voice, and cannon noise here and there... joined back into the main mission chain for my rommy, and no more sound FX, nothing but ambience. It is something i noticed plagues the new Season 9 Feature Episode, and i know it isn't my sound card as i can hear my teamspeak server just fine, WHILE STO has a stroke with audio.

    I have not had any frame dropping which USED to be related to the audio sampling issue, but now i think that the audio coding (which probably hasn't been changed since 2010 launch) or the audio codec has a glitch that should be looked into, and if there is no glitch, could the sound tags for weapons be perm loaded in memory? along with the narration audio? and the npc speeches, etc etc.

    Apologies for not listing my audio device earlier:
    Corsair Vengeance 2000 Wireless 7.1 Surround sound headset...

    Yes i know its not a true 8 channel headset, it just emulates it using fancy phonics, but it still works, and it sounds great! except after playing an hour of STO where the game becomes a silent movie from shortly after the invention of MOVING PICTURES....

    HAHA, now i have an idea for all this recorded game play with missing audio, granted i'm still talking in it, and the ambiance is still there... oh well, i'll figure something out.

    Thanks in advance.
  • kamikazi2142kamikazi2142 Member Posts: 52 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    th3xr34p3r wrote: »
    Launcher options > turn off patching on demand and patch up the game entirely.

    I have had ODP off since a week after i started playing in November 2011, and when i reinstall the game, the first thing i do upon launching the launcher is turn of ODP. I have the drive space, and the bandwidth...

    Ah bugger... forgot to mention my bandwidth too...
    Well here's a test just now on Speedtest.net:
    3486413546.png
  • tyranthraxisiityranthraxisii Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    The main maps don't really have this problem ever, but the random cluster maps, fleet base, and other lesser visited maps take forever. It has been like this since I started playing STO, but got slightly worse right before, or during the F2P launch period. It is server side, not client side.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=TREQGl54BU8&feature=endscreen
    I thought WoW's forums had angry elitist snobs, but I never could have imagined the level STO forums has.:confused:
  • edgecrysgeredgecrysger Member Posts: 2,740 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    tyranthraxisii wrote: »
    The main maps don't really have this problem ever

    Yup they have also this problem by time to time. But its not really noticeable since that will happen maybe once in 1 or 2 times in a month or so.
  • kamikazi2142kamikazi2142 Member Posts: 52 Arc User
    edited May 2014
    should i just create a new thread for the audio issues or continue this one with a new question?
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