GPU usage is suddenly dropping for no apparent reason, low FPS and stuttering

[Wizzam]

About a week ago I noticed that my frames in most of the games I play are lower than usual, and there has been a lot more stuttering

So I decided to run some tests using RivaTuner and noticed that the only difference between the stats now and back when it was running normally is that the GPU usage is dipping around 70%, compared to a consistent 99% previously. Sometimes it even goes to 40% and just kills the framerate.

So this leads me to believe that the problem is with the GPU.

I'm not sure what could be causing this. I did some Windows updates recently and installed MS security essentials, also updated my GPU driver. That's about it in terms of software. I uninstalled all the recently installed Win updates and SE and that did not fix it.

Also tried rolling back to previous GPU driver version, no help

Does anyone know what the problem could be? I'd appreciate some help here

Thanks

These are my specs:
Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory (mine is at 2133 MHz)
Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card
Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case
EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply
Acer GN246HL 144Hz 24.0" Monitor
Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

 

[Mahiro]

have you tried running a stress test for the GPU to see if it can still hit 99%

 

[Wizzam]

That's the problem, the GPU seems to be underperforming for no apparent reason, it only hits 99 when I try to stress it with high quality graphics

 

[Mahiro]

That's the problem, the GPU seems to be underperforming for no apparent reason, it only hits 99 when I try to stress it with high quality graphics

check all of your hardware utilization while the game is running - CPU, RAM etc. if they hit 100% then it could be bottle necking your GPU. I doubt it because you have a newish i5 but still would not hurt to check .
you could also uninstall graphics drivers and reinstall them.

 

[Wizzam]

Nothing is hitting 100%, reinstalled drivers a bunch of times but nothing

 

[Mahiro]

Nothing is hitting 100%, reinstalled drivers a bunch of times but nothing

One thing you could do to make sure it is not windows or software related is go into command prompt and typing sfc/scannow after you do this you could also scan your hdd with this https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee872425.aspx

 

[Luka_31]

I had the same problems but with an AMD card. Check your power settings in windows and set them to high performance, than go to the nvidia control panel and disable the power saving features so that your core clocks are always at full speed (it's called Power Play on AMD cards). That worked for me, good luck.