Why is my gpu utilization so low?

[Parzival120]

Hey, so I recently upgraded my system and I have noticed low gpu utilization. I upgraded my graphics card from an rtx 3050 to an rtx 3060 ti. I actually have both of the graphics cards in my computer right now because I do a lot of Blender and I needed both of them for faster render times. However, when I play games (all games played at 1080p, max graphics) my gpu utilization is very low. For example, in Halo: The Master Chief Collection my gpu utilization is at 30% and I’m getting around 150 FPS with frame drops (on the 3060 ti). In Fortnite I get around 25-30 fps at 15-20% utilization (on the 3050. It wouldn’t let me choose which gpu). So basically across the board in all games, my gpu utilization is low. The only app that gets 100% gpu utilization is Blender on both gpu’s. My cpu, (Amd ryzen 5 5600x, precision boost overdrive enabled 4.40- 4.60ghz average) has a utilization of about 20% at 60C. So what gives? My gpu temperatures are also good at 70C. Is it a cpu bottleneck because of both of the gpus’s? Is it a motherboard bottleneck because of the filled pcie slots? What is it? (Note, all gpu drivers and windows are up to date)Here are my system specs.
Asus tuf gaming b550 plus wifi
Amd ryzen 5 5600x precision boost overdrive enabled.
2x8gb 3200mhz ddr4 ram
Western digital sn550 1tb
Western digital sn750 1tb
Zotac rtx 3060 ti twin edge oc
Gigabyte rtx 3050 windforce oc 
Seasonic focus gm 750W 80+ gold

[andrewmp6]

At 1080p the load will be pushed more cpu then gpu,So it don't matter what card you use the load is going to be more cpu because its 1080p.Now if you move up to 1440p or higher then you will see your gpu being fully used.Earlier i was playing gta5 at 1440p my cpu was 2% load while the gpu was in the 90% or higher load.

 

[OnionRings]

So you have SLI running? Whats the utilization on the 3050? Im not an expert on SLI but is it possible your PC is just maxing out the 3050 and then using only some of the 3060? I know SLI has been very funky and never really did work right. 

 

I would take the 50 out for now, put the 60 in the main slot and test it out make sure its good and not a damaged card first, rule that out. 

[Parzival120]

1 minute ago, OnionRings said:

So you have SLI running? Whats the utilization on the 3050? Im not an expert on SLI but is it possible your PC is just maxing out the 3050 and then using only some of the 3060? I know SLI has been very funky and never really did work right. 

 

I would take the 50 out for now, put the 60 in the main slot and test it out make sure it’s good and not a damaged card first, rule that out. 

When I’m playing a game on my 3060 ti its utilization is 0%. And my rtx 3060 ti is in the primary slot, I moved the 3050 to the secondary slot

[Crunchy Dragon]

5 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

I upgraded my graphics card from an rtx 3050 to an rtx 3060 ti. I actually have both of the graphics cards in my computer right now because I do a lot of Blender and I needed both of them for faster render times.

This is most likely your issue. Take out the 3050, and you'll likely see normal performance out of your 3060Ti, at the cost of a hit to your Blender time.

 

Otherwise, if you really need the render times, you should be able to configure which GPU to use for which applications in the Nvidia Control Panel. Running multiple GPUs for gaming is generally more hassle than it's worth, especially since SLI has been largely ignored by both Nvidia and game developers for the past 8 years or so. Especially if you have 2 nonidentical GPUs.

[Parzival120]

Just now, Crunchy Dragon said:

This is most likely your issue. Take out the 3050, and you'll likely see normal performance out of your 3060Ti, at the cost of a hit to your Blender time.

 

Otherwise, if you really need the render times, you should be able to configure which GPU to use for which applications in the Nvidia Control Panel. Running multiple GPUs for gaming is generally more hassle than it's worth, especially since SLI has been largely ignored by both Nvidia and game developers for the past 8 years or so. Especially if you have 2 nonidentical GPUs.

I have tried configuring which gpu to use in Nvidia control panel to no luck, I don’t know why it doesn’t work. And technically I’m not running SLI because I don’t have an NVlink or a similar connector, to my knowledge I can only use both gpus in blender, not gaming.

[Crunchy Dragon]

6 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

I have tried configuring which gpu to use in Nvidia control panel to no luck, I don’t know why it doesn’t work.

Might be because Nvidia only lets you choose the "high performance Nvidia processor" in the control panel for 3D applications. In this case, that would select both of your GPUs, then it's up to Windows and your game to decide which one it actually wants to use. Good job, Nvidia.

 

6 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

to my knowledge I can only use both gpus in blender, not gaming.

Right, but that doesn't mean Windows or your game will automatically choose the GPU you want(as shown by your weird utilization charts).

 

There's an idea from back in the day about only plugging your monitor into the GPU you want to game on. It's something that stuck around from the SLI days where you had to plug your monitor into the top or "master" GPU. It's worth trying that, and having nothing plugged into your 3050. Not sure if it'll work, but if it does, I guess there's that.

 

Otherwise I'd just eat the hit to your Blender speed and yank out the 3050.

[Parzival120]

1 minute ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

Might be because Nvidia only lets you choose the "high performance Nvidia processor" in the control panel for 3D applications. In this case, that would select both of your GPUs, then it's up to Windows and your game to decide which one it actually wants to use. Good job, Nvidia.

 

Right, but that doesn't mean Windows or your game will automatically choose the GPU you want(as shown by your weird utilization charts).

 

There's an idea from back in the day about only plugging your monitor into the GPU you want to game on. It's something that stuck around from the SLI days where you had to plug your monitor into the top or "master" GPU. It's worth trying that, and having nothing plugged into your 3050. Not sure if it'll work, but if it does, I guess there's that.

 

Otherwise I'd just eat the hit to your Blender speed and yank out the 3050.

Both of my monitors are plugged into my 3060 ti, nothing is plugged into my 3050.

[Crunchy Dragon]

3 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

Both of my monitors are plugged into my 3060 ti, nothing is plugged into my 3050.

In that case, there's probably nothing else you can do other than pull out the 3050.

[Parzival120]

4 minutes ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

In that case, there's probably nothing else you can do other than pull out the 3050.

Ok, I’ll probably take it out later this week and run tests. One quick side note I forgot to mention though. When I run the 3dmark demo on the 3060 ti, it has a utilization of 100% but it scores 100 points less than the average:

[OnionRings]

28 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

Ok, I’ll probably take it out later this week and run tests. One quick side note I forgot to mention though. When I run the 3dmark demo on the 3060 ti, it has a utilization of 100% but it scores 100 points less than the average:

Thats probably just silicone lottery, as nit all cards are equal. 

[191x7]

What are you using to monitor the usage?

It might be showing the usage of the GPU that isn't used.

[Parzival120]

7 hours ago, 191x7 said:

What are you using to monitor the usage?

It might be showing the usage of the GPU that isn't used.

Task manager and msi afterburner

[Illusionillage]

Did u install the Nvidia drivers

[Illusionillage]

Just now, Illusionillage said:

Did u install the Nvidia drivers

Where do u have your HDMI/display port connected to

[Parzival120]

17 hours ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

Might be because Nvidia only lets you choose the "high performance Nvidia processor" in the control panel for 3D applications. In this case, that would select both of your GPUs, then it's up to Windows and your game to decide which one it actually wants to use. Good job, Nvidia.

 

Right, but that doesn't mean Windows or your game will automatically choose the GPU you want(as shown by your weird utilization charts).

 

There's an idea from back in the day about only plugging your monitor into the GPU you want to game on. It's something that stuck around from the SLI days where you had to plug your monitor into the top or "master" GPU. It's worth trying that, and having nothing plugged into your 3050. Not sure if it'll work, but if it does, I guess there's that.

 

Otherwise I'd just eat the hit to your Blender speed and yank out the 3050.

Hey, follow up on this conversation. I have not yet removed my rtx 3050 but I noticed something really weird. I booted up portal rtx because I know that game stresses gpus really hard, but this is the weird thing. On max settings, at 1080p, NO dlss I was getting 20fps. But task manager was reporting 5% gpu utilization??? The 3050 had a utilization of 0%. What’s going on???

[Crunchy Dragon]

17 hours ago, OnionRings said:

Thats probably just silicone lottery, as nit all cards are equal. 

A lot of people overclock as well, so scores are skewed due to that, bringing the average higher. A normal card at stock will perform lower than the same card with an overclock, but that doesn't mean the stock card is underperforming.

 

27 minutes ago, Parzival120 said:

Hey, follow up on this conversation. I have not yet removed my rtx 3050 but I noticed something really weird. I booted up portal rtx because I know that game stresses gpus really hard, but this is the weird thing. On max settings, at 1080p, NO dlss I was getting 20fps. But task manager was reporting 5% gpu utilization??? The 3050 had a utilization of 0%. What’s going on???

Probably Windows and the game trying and failing to figure out how to run properly.