Games Started To Stutter/Hitch/Frame Dropping

[loof1s]

It was not even a few months ago where my computer was able to play games such as Overwatch, Apex, and Valorant with 165 fps, my monitor refresh rate, and everything was going smoothly. My computer would be essentially COMPLETELY silent when idling on my desktop or if I was watcing a youtube video. Just starting last month, I noticed that my computer's out take fan was really loud for some reason and I put up with it for the month. I thought that maybe I downloaded a virus or something because this happened a few times. I download a virus and it make my games stutter, so like those times, I reset my PC in hopes of clearing up the data and wiping out the virus. I spent a few hours today setting up my PC again to how it was, and downloading games. I redownloaded Overwatch 2 and Apex Legends, the maain games that had a noticable drop of in frames froms a range of 60-140 constantly. I thought things would be better, but it is not. I looked at NZXT cam and saw that my CPU temperature was REALLY high, like 80-99 degress high, and I don't understand why becasue it would just be idling on my desktop and the load on the CPU is not even 30%, granted I do have wallpaper engine going on. I really think the reason why my games are doing so bad is because of my CPU, but I don't understand because it was working fine not too long ago.

 

PC Specs:

Intel Core i7 10700k

MSI Geforce RTX 2070 Super

Z490-A PRO

G.Skill F4-3200C16-8GTZR DD4 (x2)

CT1000P1 SSD8

 

I got this PC 2 and a half years ago in June of 2020. It was a was an NZXT BLD prebuilt pc with the H510i case, a case in which I recently found out that was bad at airflow. I am really lost on what to do because all of these parts worked together flawlessly for the majority of these past 2 years. I would GREATLY appreciate any help.

[bmx6454]

those cpu temps are definitely an issue imo. what cooler is it? if it's an aio, it may have failed, or somehow the mounting came loose would be my guess, also  check the fan/pump speed to make sure it's still reporting as running.

[loof1s]

Hi, sorry for the late response, I posted this at 5am pst so i went to sleep after. Anyway, I have a NZXT KrakenM22, the one with the infinity mirror thingy. I don’t think the mounting has come lose at all. Some more information, I have not cleaned my PC’s dust filter for the fans, because I don’t know how to. Maybe the has something to do with the high temps, but i really doubt it’s the main reason causing the huge spike in temps as i can see how little dust build up there is. The dust on the filters are like surface level, no dust bunnies.

[LogicalDrm]

On 1/5/2023 at 10:02 PM, loof1s said:

Hi, sorry for the late response, I posted this at 5am pst so i went to sleep after. Anyway, I have a NZXT KrakenM22, the one with the infinity mirror thingy. I don’t think the mounting has come lose at all.

High temps are still mostly cooling issue, so as basic troubleshooting step you should remount the cooler. Also check that all fan cables are connected. Do you have software for controlling the fans?

 

On 1/5/2023 at 10:02 PM, loof1s said:

Some more information, I have not cleaned my PC’s dust filter for the fans, because I don’t know how to.

Look up case manual online or watch review/unboxing. Most filters are either behind door or can be slid out.

 

On 1/5/2023 at 10:02 PM, loof1s said:

 

Maybe the has something to do with the high temps, but i really doubt it’s the main reason causing the huge spike in temps as i can see how little dust build up there is. The dust on the filters are like surface level, no dust bunnies.

If this is temperature issue, then remounting cooler and/or reseting fan control will fix things. If it's not,

 

Do you have automatic driver updates? That can cause issues as some driver software may enable extra auto-OC. Or otherwise mess setups.

 

Last thing. It's not normal to get virus every other month. Even if you are just using Windows Defender. To redeem that issue, look at your own Internet/media consuming habits.

[loof1s]

Thanks for everyone who responded to my post, I really appreciate it. I cleaned up the dust trays and took off/put back on the cooler on the cpu. This actually fixed my problems which kinda of surprised me. My guess at what happened was that as time went on, the thermal paste ran thin, causing the cpu and cooler to separate. And since they weren't touching, the cooler felt the heat around the cpu which would cause the high fan speed and noise. 

 

My new problem however, is that when I start up my PC, even though I just turned it on from scratch, and the cpu temps could be in the 60-70 degree range, or while I am watching a video on chrome, my fans keep on going pretty loudly every so often.

 

[LogicalDrm]

On 1/24/2023 at 5:45 AM, loof1s said:

My guess at what happened was that as time went on, the thermal paste ran thin, causing the cpu and cooler to separate. And since they weren't touching, the cooler felt the heat around the cpu which would cause the high fan speed and noise. 

Unless you used cheapest possible thing from Aliexpress, that's not a thing. Basic paste on coolers is fine to use for several years before it needs to be changed for "expiring". More likely is screws left bit too loose.

 

On 1/24/2023 at 5:45 AM, loof1s said:

My new problem however, is that when I start up my PC, even though I just turned it on from scratch, and the cpu temps could be in the 60-70 degree range, or while I am watching a video on chrome, my fans keep on going pretty loudly every so often.

Change thermal paste... You are supposed to do that if you remount the cooler for best performance.