If I have an object looking exactly like I want it to using modifiers, is there any reason why I should "apply" the modifiers before rendering, or any other considerations? More specifically, is viewport speed, render time and/or memory affected by whether modifiers are applied or not?
My educated guess is that it takes less processing power to calculate and display an object with Array and Sub-D-Surf modifiers than it takes to display the same object with those modifiers applied because each individual face would have to be calculated as opposed to a lesser number of instances of the already calculated less complicated object as a whole. (Sorry, that's a mouthful of a sentence.)
I am making tires using various modifiers on just a sliver of the actual tire. Now that I am ready to duplicate it to four tires, I am wondering if I should duplicate the entire tire rig/hierarchy, including "emptys" for rotation objects, (or add another couple of array modifiers), or if I should "apply" it all, then duplicate the finished tire to four.
Thanks for your help! -Ben