@Freesync/G-Sync monitor owners. Do you limit your Framerate?

[Hans Power]

So, up until now I had a normal 60Hz monitor which I used with V-Sync on which meant that my GPU rarely ran under maximum load. Now I upgraded to an MSI MAG274 Freesync Premium monitor and I gotta say - Freesync is flatout amazing! Everything is soooo smooth - I honestly had no idea on what I was missing out on till I had it. However - with that I run pretty much every game at an open framerate and that means - 100% GPU load for most of the games I play. The GPU (MSI RTX 2070 Armor) is also overclocked (+190Mhz GPU, +600Mhz Memory, 114% Power Limit). Temps get as high as 78°C (at least during this time of year) which should be fine. Still, I wonder, do you guys let every game run free or do you tend to limit framerate to preserve the Graphics card?

[Chris Pratt]

The only game I capped was Diablo 3, because I was getting 200 FPS on a 144Hz display, and it's, well, Diablo 3 - I don't need 200 FPS. I mostly play AAA single player games where the focus is on visuals, and I run Ultra with ray tracing, when available, on a 3440x1440 ultrawide, so 60 FPS is pretty much as high as I'm going. The adaptive sync is still great though because it helps to smooth out frame rate dips and spikes. Like in Control, I get 55-70 FPS depending on the area and what's going on, but it feels like a smooth 60 FPS.

[Sorenson]

I don't think running your card at 100% is going to hurt it, but if you're worried you can reduce the overclock a bit and restore the power limit. For me, I don't overclock my 3070 at all because, from my experience, overclocking over factory OC only gets like 2-5 fps more. With freesync I don't really care between 55fps or 60 fps if its a heavy game. For reference, I use a 3440x1440 monitor so my GPU does get pushed pretty hard. 

[Sarra]

I cap at 140FPS. I never hit it, except in menus.

 

Maybe when I get a new GPU...

 

Tearing is apparent at higher refresh rates in games. It's not like getting 150 FPS on a 60hz display, but it's still noticeable.

[dilpickle]

You don't need to worry about stressing your card. That's what it is made for.

 

But you probably want to limit your framerate for best results with Gsync. Read this:

 

https://blurbusters.com/gsync/gsync101-input-lag-tests-and-settings/

[typographie]

I'll occasionally cap my framerate to 144 FPS (my refresh rate) when I find a game where I exceed it. I'm not sure why, but going over 144 tends to introduce some stutter sometimes. It's a worse experience, and I'm just converting fossil fuels into heat at that point, so I may as well cap it.

 

I don't think you need to worry about your graphics card's lifespan by running it at 100%, though. As long as its temperature and voltage are safe, letting it run at max capacity shouldn't make any real difference to its lifespan. As long as you're benefiting from it, let it run.