All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

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matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 09:00

Hi,

Coming here as I'm desperate for help, will pay someone if they're able to help me. I feel I've tried everything.

Had this problem for 4+ years now (since using high refresh rate monitors), I still can't find a fix.

Gsync + Vsync is on. If I turn either off, all games stutters like mad constantly. I've tried capping frames in NVCP, no luck.

The reason I bring it up, I've now reached a point where I've replaced every single component on my pc (just bought a 4070ti) and it's still here.

Current specs/info:
Ryzen 3700x (have also tried a 3600 and 5800x, including on a b550 board)
MSI B450 Tomahawk (Tried all BIOS versions)
8GBx2 3600 RAM (used to have 3000mts ram, no different, tried multiple slots etc)
4070ti Gigabyte Eagle (previously used an MSI 2070 Gaming Z, same issue)
Samsung 850 EVO, Crucial 2TB, 4TB HDD, 2TB HDD, 1TB SSD. (have tried games on all drives, all are on at least 30% remaining space)
Acer XV282 4k 144hz Monitor (also tried an LG 32" 1440p 144hz, and a 34" Iiyama 144hz as well, same thing)

I've used MSI Afterburner to check thermals, usage etc, everything is fine. GPU reaches 55c on my new one, old 2070 reached 68 ish.
CPU reaches 60-70 when gaming. PC clean with no dust.
The bit that throws me off is when Dota is at 144fps locked, it's fine, but if it drops even a couple of fps, it breaks.
I've tried every setting under gsync, vsync, fast sync, nothing at all, all same issue.
The gsync logo comes up in game showing it's working, and it works on the nvidia pendulum test also.

Only things left I haven't tried (that I can think of) would be an intel mobo/cpu. AMD GPU, Gsync Ultimate Monitor.
I've replaced everything, tried different SSDs and multiple HDDs. Only thing I can think of software wise would be to install Windows on a completely new drive?
I've tried different mains plugs as well in case it's power related.
Tried using a controller as well, no luck.

I don't know if my issue with dota is different to my other games, but here are 2 screenshots from CapFrameX running dota 2:
https://imgur.com/a/SD96y2X

One graph is just sat at 144fps using vsync presumably, the other is with reflex on, lowering the fps to 138.

Anything I can try, let me know.

Update: Here is a Youtube Video I've put together, using my phone's slo mo function:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kp9UMP_ZPZ0
I took 3 videos, 1 at 90fps locked, 138fps locked (due to Nvidia Reflex) and the last one at 144fps locked.
I can definitely see the uneven stuttering from the first 2 videos in comparison. I've just no idea why.
Last edited by matkinson on 07 Feb 2023, 14:57, edited 1 time in total.

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jorimt
Posts: 2481
Joined: 04 Nov 2016, 10:44
Location: USA

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by jorimt » 07 Feb 2023, 10:40

matkinson wrote:
07 Feb 2023, 09:00
I don't know if my issue with dota is different to my other games, but here are 2 screenshots from CapFrameX running dota 2:
https://imgur.com/a/SD96y2X

One graph is just sat at 144fps using vsync presumably, the other is with reflex on, lowering the fps to 138.
Your capped scenario looks within norm, your uncapped scenario does not. It's like a sawtooth pattern.

That said, you have both graphs zoomed into the 0-10ms level, which are tiny, tiny spikes. 50ms+ are typically the more noticeable instances, and are still within expected tolerances if they're occasional, depending on the game.

Anyway, if you're not seeing the uncapped scenario in any game but Dota, it's probably a game-specific issue.
(jorimt: /jor-uhm-tee/)
Author: Blur Busters "G-SYNC 101" Series

Displays: ASUS PG27AQN, LG 48CX VR: Beyond, Quest 3, Reverb G2, Index OS: Windows 11 Pro Case: Fractal Design Torrent PSU: Seasonic PRIME TX-1000 MB: ASUS Z790 Hero CPU: Intel i9-13900k w/Noctua NH-U12A GPU: GIGABYTE RTX 4090 GAMING OC RAM: 32GB G.SKILL Trident Z5 DDR5 6400MHz CL32 SSDs: 2TB WD_BLACK SN850 (OS), 4TB WD_BLACK SN850X (Games) Keyboards: Wooting 60HE, Logitech G915 TKL Mice: Razer Viper Mini SE, Razer Viper 8kHz Sound: Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2 (speakers/amp/DAC), AFUL Performer 8 (IEMs)

matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 10:52

Dota is the most obvious example, I see it in every 3d game though.

Battlefield is another strong example, however that doesn't show anything obvious on a frametime graph.

Here are some youtube examples showing what I see in other games:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUD_opu ... &index=133
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYUSmVen1aY&t=4s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym0FQR1bgjM&t=5s

Could it be related to dodgy power? I keep seeing threads possibly related, but with no conclusion.
I live in the UK (where you'd like to think power would be decent), but I have had a ground loop issue before (currently have an isolator in the system which helps) along with an issue that's seemingly disappeared where my monitor would turn off when my subwoofer went into standby or turned back on.

matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 13:16

I've also moved my computer and monitor to a different location today and still have the issue. So doesn't seem to be electricity or some sort of magnetic issue?

Another thing I can think of would be to try Linux, it's not something I'm familiar with so would have to look into how to do this as simply as possible.

matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 14:24

Here is a Youtube Video I've made, using my phone's slo mo function:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kp9UMP_ZPZ0

I took 3 videos, 1 at 90fps locked, 138fps locked (due to Nvidia Reflex) and the last one at 144fps locked.
I can definitely see the uneven stuttering from the first 2 videos in comparison. I've just no idea why.

MST
Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jan 2019, 04:35

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by MST » 07 Feb 2023, 14:27

It's normal that games have screen tearing if you don't use vsync (haven't used variable refresh rate yet). But maybe that's not the stuttering that you are referring to.
Stuttering also happens if you have MBR turned on in your monitor and your fps falls below or goes above your refresh rate.
Does your monitor have such a function? It's sometimes called "1ms response time" or just "motion blur reduction" or mbr or whatever.
It's a wonderful tech but needs to be set up right and used in the right conditions.

See if you have such a setting and turn it off and see if you still have the issue.

If you do still have the issue, then just use vsync. What's wrong with vsync? If you can't match refresh rate with your fps, then just lower your refresh rate. I play at 85hz to be able to have MBR turned on (otherwise I have the issue that you have) because I absolutely hate motion blur. And have no such issue as input lag or whatever. But I'm no pro-gamer so, I don't know.

Edit: Yes I just checked your monitor has backlight strobing function. Turn it off, it's most probably your issue. But I advise rather leave it on and keep your vsync on and never let your fps go under your refresh. If you can't, just lower refresh rate. 100hz should be more than enough. Of course, I don't know how your monitor is with crosstalk.

BTW here's how the motion blur looks at different refresh rates, and then compare it to the BFI:
https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/ ... vbmiipruzx
And those motion blur pictures are when you can match the refresh rate with FPS. If I'm not mistaking it doesn't matter that you have 240hz if you only 100 fps, blur will be like 100hz but I might be wrong on this one.

MST
Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jan 2019, 04:35

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by MST » 07 Feb 2023, 15:01

Lol what happened with the original post? Did he delete it? And I think I actually found a solution to his problem.

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jorimt
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Location: USA

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by jorimt » 07 Feb 2023, 15:21

MST wrote:
07 Feb 2023, 15:01
Lol what happened with the original post? Did he delete it? And I think I actually found a solution to his problem.
The first handful of a new user's posts are manually moderated, including edits of existing posts, so I had to re-approve it.
(jorimt: /jor-uhm-tee/)
Author: Blur Busters "G-SYNC 101" Series

Displays: ASUS PG27AQN, LG 48CX VR: Beyond, Quest 3, Reverb G2, Index OS: Windows 11 Pro Case: Fractal Design Torrent PSU: Seasonic PRIME TX-1000 MB: ASUS Z790 Hero CPU: Intel i9-13900k w/Noctua NH-U12A GPU: GIGABYTE RTX 4090 GAMING OC RAM: 32GB G.SKILL Trident Z5 DDR5 6400MHz CL32 SSDs: 2TB WD_BLACK SN850 (OS), 4TB WD_BLACK SN850X (Games) Keyboards: Wooting 60HE, Logitech G915 TKL Mice: Razer Viper Mini SE, Razer Viper 8kHz Sound: Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2 (speakers/amp/DAC), AFUL Performer 8 (IEMs)

matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 16:11

MST wrote:
07 Feb 2023, 15:01
Lol what happened with the original post? Did he delete it? And I think I actually found a solution to his problem.
This is the weird thing, if I turn VSync off completely, I don't get tearing, I've never been able to. I just get the same stutter that I'm already describing.

If I enable VRB (think my old monitor named it MBR) it just amplifies the stutter. Same as my previous monitor, I never understood how anyone could use it...but now realise it's some bizarre problem on my end..

As a test, I set a frame cap in Nvidia Control Panel to 85fps, turned VRB/MBR on, and it was so stuttery, I couldn't even tell what was going on. Completely unplayable.

I then tried a custom resolution via NVCP, set to 85hz, with VRB/MBR on. No different.

I then tried forcing VSync back on using NVCP, no different. (it seemed to play the game above that refresh anyways)

Side Note: Every Blur Busters test seems to pass without any issues. The test that shows video game motion (funnily enough using dota 2), if you change it to any of the bad frame pacing presets, that's what my games look like.
If you watch the youtube video I uploaded, this also points to some dodgy frame pacing? but any data I collect doesn't seem to show it.

matkinson
Posts: 22
Joined: 07 Feb 2023, 08:47

Re: All games stutter below 144fps lock. Will pay for a solution.

Post by matkinson » 07 Feb 2023, 16:22

I just tested TF2 without Vsync on, hits 300 fps, same thing....super stuttery. If I didn't know what I was looking at, I would just assume I was playing at 40fps or something.

If I record a video in super slo-mo, I can see some slight tearing, but can't see it in person. Only stutter. :(

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