How I fixed my desync (fake scaling)
Posted: 25 Oct 2025, 20:55
My desync started in 2021 when I upgraded my monitor to an Acer XF250Q (240 Hz) and bought a new PC. I’ve been playing CS:GO since 2014, always at 1280×960 stretched. Strangely, the game felt worse on 240 Hz than on my old 75 Hz monitor. Back then I was already posting on forums with titles like “240 Hz feels like 60 Hz”, suspecting that something was wrong with my monitor or configuration. Over the years I kept tweaking my system and upgrading PC components, but I always kept the same monitor. It’s also worth mentioning that I’ve always used AMD GPUs. The game consistently felt different, but never perfect... until I finally found a solution that worked for me.
This topic is not for everyone, as I’m using an AMD GPU. Monitor settings and specs also differ from one model to another. However, I hope this post helps other users, even with different GPUs/monitors by showing where the issue might be.
Recently, I discovered that for years I had fake scaling due to incorrect AMD and monitor settings. How did I realize this? When I launched CS2, sometimes it opened with black bars and only stretched after I clicked the mouse inside the game, and sometimes it opened stretched right away (seemingly at random). The game’s smoothness was always inconsistent, and the spray pattern in CS felt so “bursty” that it was difficult to control. There are plenty videos on Youtube about custom resolution, and in my experience most are incorrect.
How to find and fix the issue
First, here’s my monitor’s standard timing table. To find yours, go to your vendor’s website and check the specs/user manual/documentation. In my case, there's no 1280x960 resolution, which means that my monitor doesn’t provide proper hardware scaling for 1280x960 @240hz:
I tried both GPU and display scaling, and the game always felt off with both and now I understand why.
There are two methods to solve the issue:
1. GPU scaling
2. Display scaling (Custom resolution)
You might say that’s obvious, but the crucial part is getting the settings right on both the GPU and the monitor.
For proper GPU scaling on AMD
AMD settings:
Enable GPU Scaling
Scaling Mode: Full panel
Monitor settings:
Wide Mode: 1:1 or Aspect (this may be named differently on your monitor)
After this, you’ll have proper GPU scaling.
For proper display (monitor) scaling on AMD
AMD settings:
Disable GPU Scaling
Scaling Mode: Preserve aspect ratio
Monitor settings:
Wide Mode: Full (name may vary)
If your monitor doesn’t support 240 Hz at your in-game resolution and you want to use Display scaling, you’ll need to create it using Custom Resolution Utility (CRU). Example for 1280×960:
1. At the top of CRU, select the monitor you play on (active)*.
2. Add the standard resolution 1280×960 (60 Hz) if it’s missing.
3. Open your Extension block; in my setup it’s called CTA-861.
Under CTA-861 → Detailed resolutions, add a custom resolution. There are two approaches to try:
Approach A: Click Add, choose CVT-RB (reduced blanking), enter your custom resolution (e.g., 1280×960), and your monitor’s refresh rate (e.g., 240 Hz). If your native 1080p “240 Hz” actually shows 239.76 Hz, enter that exact value.
Approach B: Under Detailed resolutions, open your native 1080p 240 Hz entry and Copy it. Then click Add, Paste, change the resolution to 1280×960, and press OK.
In the CRU folder, run restart64.exe.
For years, my issue was that I always had incorrect AMD and Monitor settings that lead to incorrect both GPU and Display scaling. I had Wide mode Full when trying to force GPU scaling which forced both GPU and Monitor to stretch the game. Also vice-versa, and never the proper configuration.
Congratulations, you now have correct GPU/display scaling that won’t cause issues. With display scaling, you can still experiment with timings, but be careful and do your own research/testing. After a few games on FACEIT I found out that in my case GPU scaling feels better, probably because I have cheap monitor, but you can try both. Good luck!
This topic is not for everyone, as I’m using an AMD GPU. Monitor settings and specs also differ from one model to another. However, I hope this post helps other users, even with different GPUs/monitors by showing where the issue might be.
Recently, I discovered that for years I had fake scaling due to incorrect AMD and monitor settings. How did I realize this? When I launched CS2, sometimes it opened with black bars and only stretched after I clicked the mouse inside the game, and sometimes it opened stretched right away (seemingly at random). The game’s smoothness was always inconsistent, and the spray pattern in CS felt so “bursty” that it was difficult to control. There are plenty videos on Youtube about custom resolution, and in my experience most are incorrect.
How to find and fix the issue
First, here’s my monitor’s standard timing table. To find yours, go to your vendor’s website and check the specs/user manual/documentation. In my case, there's no 1280x960 resolution, which means that my monitor doesn’t provide proper hardware scaling for 1280x960 @240hz:
- {7E05F0AB-A198-4276-9FC1-3616092F7F28}.png (71.17 KiB) Viewed 1828 times
There are two methods to solve the issue:
1. GPU scaling
2. Display scaling (Custom resolution)
You might say that’s obvious, but the crucial part is getting the settings right on both the GPU and the monitor.
For proper GPU scaling on AMD
AMD settings:
Enable GPU Scaling
Scaling Mode: Full panel
Monitor settings:
Wide Mode: 1:1 or Aspect (this may be named differently on your monitor)
After this, you’ll have proper GPU scaling.
For proper display (monitor) scaling on AMD
AMD settings:
Disable GPU Scaling
Scaling Mode: Preserve aspect ratio
Monitor settings:
Wide Mode: Full (name may vary)
If your monitor doesn’t support 240 Hz at your in-game resolution and you want to use Display scaling, you’ll need to create it using Custom Resolution Utility (CRU). Example for 1280×960:
1. At the top of CRU, select the monitor you play on (active)*.
2. Add the standard resolution 1280×960 (60 Hz) if it’s missing.
3. Open your Extension block; in my setup it’s called CTA-861.
Under CTA-861 → Detailed resolutions, add a custom resolution. There are two approaches to try:
Approach A: Click Add, choose CVT-RB (reduced blanking), enter your custom resolution (e.g., 1280×960), and your monitor’s refresh rate (e.g., 240 Hz). If your native 1080p “240 Hz” actually shows 239.76 Hz, enter that exact value.
Approach B: Under Detailed resolutions, open your native 1080p 240 Hz entry and Copy it. Then click Add, Paste, change the resolution to 1280×960, and press OK.
In the CRU folder, run restart64.exe.
For years, my issue was that I always had incorrect AMD and Monitor settings that lead to incorrect both GPU and Display scaling. I had Wide mode Full when trying to force GPU scaling which forced both GPU and Monitor to stretch the game. Also vice-versa, and never the proper configuration.
Congratulations, you now have correct GPU/display scaling that won’t cause issues. With display scaling, you can still experiment with timings, but be careful and do your own research/testing. After a few games on FACEIT I found out that in my case GPU scaling feels better, probably because I have cheap monitor, but you can try both. Good luck!
