Frametime Spikes

[icei30y]

Hello guys!

A year ago I built a PC (U can see the components below), and I have frametime spikes in all games, even just in windows. I went down the rabbithole and tried everything, and I'm starting to give up and I don't know who can I turn to. I understand that modern games can stutter but I don't think every game should. The list of what I tried already would be long as hell, so if u guys have an idea what should I try please feel free to reply and I will tell you that I tried that or not and if not I will let u know it fixed my problem or it still present.

 

I get stutters on:

Black ops 6

Mafia (1) Definitive edition

Insurgency Sandstorm

Spider-Man Miles Morales

Need for Speed Unbound

RuneScape Dragonwilds

Dead by Daylight

Sometimes even in CS2 and Valorant and also in OSU

 

My build:

MSI B650 MAG Tomahawk Wifi

Ryzen 7800X3D (I even type here the cooler which is a Dark Rock Pro 5)

4080 Super

Corsair 2x16GB 6000Mhz CL30

Corsair RM850x Shift

WD SN850X 1TB

WD SN850X 4TB

Im playing on 1440p 165hz with GSYNC. I would appriciate any idea.

 

Example of the spikes:

https://streamable.com/1763fj

 

[strange13930]

38 minutes ago, icei30y said:

Hello guys!

A year ago I built a PC (U can see the components below), and I have frametime spikes in all games, even just in windows. I went down the rabbithole and tried everything, and I'm starting to give up and I don't know who can I turn to. I understand that modern games can stutter but I don't think every game should. The list of what I tried already would be long as hell, so if u guys have an idea what should I try please feel free to reply and I will tell you that I tried that or not and if not I will let u know it fixed my problem or it still present.

 

I get stutters on:

Black ops 6

Mafia (1) Definitive edition

Insurgency Sandstorm

Spider-Man Miles Morales

Need for Speed Unbound

RuneScape Dragonwilds

Dead by Daylight

Sometimes even in CS2 and Valorant and also in OSU

 

My build:

MSI B650 MAG Tomahawk Wifi

Ryzen 7800X3D (I even type here the cooler which is a Dark Rock Pro 5)

4080 Super

Corsair 2x16GB 6000Mhz CL30

Corsair RM850x Shift

WD SN850X 1TB

WD SN850X 4TB

Im playing on 1440p 165hz with GSYNC. I would appriciate any idea.

 

Example of the spikes:

https://streamable.com/1763fj

 

are your gpu and chipset drivers up to date? did you try DDu or rolling back drivers?

[nano_705]

By spikes/stutters, do you mean the occasional slight dips to 156 FPS or so from 162 FPS max in your gameplay? I don't think that is justified as spikes because I think the gameplay in the clip is pretty smooth.

 

However, there are some things you can try to fix this problem:

- Update your GPU drivers. If you just upgraded it from an older GPU, you should reinstall Windows or use DDU to remove the old drivers and then install new ones.

- If you have PBO enabled, you should disable it and try the "stock" settings for your CPU. You have a great CPU cooler, you shouldn't worry too much about undervolting (if you already did).

- Try turning off EXPO for your RAM, too. Run them at stock speed to see if the stutters go away. If they really do, try enabling EXPO again but with lower speeds.

 

I hope these help. I used to have stutters in regular Windows uses when I set my PBO at -30. I tested it with prime95 for hours before deciding to keep it, but the stutters got worse over a small period of time, so I set it to -25, and it's been great so far.

 

[icei30y]

9 hours ago, strange13930 said:

are your gpu and chipset drivers up to date? did you try DDu or rolling back drivers?

Thank you for your reply! Yes everything is up to date, I even tried DDU and go back an earlier (566.36) and the newest driver with minimal setup (driver, hdmi audio, physx) through NVCleanstall. It didn't work out unfortunately

[icei30y]

9 hours ago, nano_705 said:

By spikes/stutters, do you mean the occasional slight dips to 156 FPS or so from 162 FPS max in your gameplay? I don't think that is justified as spikes because I think the gameplay in the clip is pretty smooth.

 

However, there are some things you can try to fix this problem:

- Update your GPU drivers. If you just upgraded it from an older GPU, you should reinstall Windows or use DDU to remove the old drivers and then install new ones.

- If you have PBO enabled, you should disable it and try the "stock" settings for your CPU. You have a great CPU cooler, you shouldn't worry too much about undervolting (if you already did).

- Try turning off EXPO for your RAM, too. Run them at stock speed to see if the stutters go away. If they really do, try enabling EXPO again but with lower speeds.

 

I hope these help. I used to have stutters in regular Windows uses when I set my PBO at -30. I tested it with prime95 for hours before deciding to keep it, but the stutters got worse over a small period of time, so I set it to -25, and it's been great so far.

 

Thank you for your reply! I know you can't see it in the video. If I lock my fps lower, for example 120, then again I have the same spikes, even on 60 fps. So it's not just fps drops. If I run uncapped fps which will reach 300+ fps, then I still have these spikes, and during these my fps stays above my refresh rate which is 165 and I still feel them

 

And I forgot to answer your tips so I edit my comment. My GPU drivers are up to date, I did a fresh install for windows too, but nothing works, same on 10/11. I have PBO on auto, but I already tried with the settings off, but the spikes still there. Also I tried turning off expo or changing the speed to the "recommended" 5200mhz, but it still didn't fix it. I had PBO at -30 like you before, now im rocking the stock settings, so should be good like this I think, but sadly no

Edited May 29, 2025 by icei30y
Forgot to provide answer for the tips

[strange13930]

2 hours ago, icei30y said:

Thank you for your reply! Yes everything is up to date, I even tried DDU and go back an earlier (566.36) and the newest driver with minimal setup (driver, hdmi audio, physx) through NVCleanstall. It didn't work out unfortunately

you can try control+shift+windows+b just only do it well idling, it does a quick reset of the drivers.

EDIT: does you gpu have a dual bios switch? if it does you could try the other bios

[icei30y]

42 minutes ago, strange13930 said:

you can try control+shift+windows+b just only do it well idling, it does a quick reset of the drivers.

EDIT: does you gpu have a dual bios switch? if it does you could try the other bios

I did the button combination but nothing changed. Yes I have bios switch. I have a physical one and another option in the msi center, but I don't want bloat on my pc so I didn't download it. A few days ago I switched the physical switch from silent to gaming, but the issue is still persist

[nano_705]

On 5/29/2025 at 5:46 PM, icei30y said:

Thank you for your reply! I know you can't see it in the video. If I lock my fps lower, for example 120, then again I have the same spikes, even on 60 fps. So it's not just fps drops. If I run uncapped fps which will reach 300+ fps, then I still have these spikes, and during these my fps stays above my refresh rate which is 165 and I still feel them

 

And I forgot to answer your tips so I edit my comment. My GPU drivers are up to date, I did a fresh install for windows too, but nothing works, same on 10/11. I have PBO on auto, but I already tried with the settings off, but the spikes still there. Also I tried turning off expo or changing the speed to the "recommended" 5200mhz, but it still didn't fix it. I had PBO at -30 like you before, now im rocking the stock settings, so should be good like this I think, but sadly no

That is unfortunate. Have you tried playing some more demanding games, like Alan Wake, Baldur's Gate 3 or some sort?

 

If you haven't already, try downloading FurMark and run a benchmark or a stress test on your GPU to see if you have the same dips as in the gameplay. My computer used to have severe spikes, like from 120 all the way to 30 FPS severe. I ran FurMark to see what was up, then I realized that the power draw from my GPU were fluctuating, from 320W to only around 20-30W very often. I tried all things I could to find out what the problem was, and long story short, it was my GPU's poor contact/connection with the riser cable.

 

Now, you probably do not have a riser cable, but it would be good to run a stress test on your GPU or the whole system to see if you have the same dips (look out for power draw, clock speed and temperatures), and maybe reseat your GPU.

[icei30y]

10 hours ago, nano_705 said:

That is unfortunate. Have you tried playing some more demanding games, like Alan Wake, Baldur's Gate 3 or some sort?

 

If you haven't already, try downloading FurMark and run a benchmark or a stress test on your GPU to see if you have the same dips as in the gameplay. My computer used to have severe spikes, like from 120 all the way to 30 FPS severe. I ran FurMark to see what was up, then I realized that the power draw from my GPU were fluctuating, from 320W to only around 20-30W very often. I tried all things I could to find out what the problem was, and long story short, it was my GPU's poor contact/connection with the riser cable.

 

Now, you probably do not have a riser cable, but it would be good to run a stress test on your GPU or the whole system to see if you have the same dips (look out for power draw, clock speed and temperatures), and maybe reseat your GPU.

I played cyberpunk before and I think it was fine. Im not familiar with furmark, I just downloaded the second version of it, could you please tell me what settings should I use and things like that?

[nano_705]

4 hours ago, icei30y said:

I played cyberpunk before and I think it was fine. Im not familiar with furmark, I just downloaded the second version of it, could you please tell me what settings should I use and things like that?

You can just run the test "full-screen" with your monitor's resolution, and it's fine. While benchmarking, there will be a graph of information on the left. You can check out temps and power draws and things like that there. Look for anything anomalies. The test runs for only about 5 minutes or so, if I remember correctly.

[icei30y]

4 hours ago, nano_705 said:

You can just run the test "full-screen" with your monitor's resolution, and it's fine. While benchmarking, there will be a graph of information on the left. You can check out temps and power draws and things like that there. Look for anything anomalies. The test runs for only about 5 minutes or so, if I remember correctly.

I alsho have spikes there too. Nothing changed when the spike happened. As I said even windows stutters. Im losing my mind. I tried with unlocked fps also but spikes was still there.