[SOLVED] Graphics Performance Suddenly Isn't the Same Anymore

[Yosef Marcera]

I primarily play VALORANT, and my average FPS ranges from 120-280 even while recording at 10,000 Kbps. My graphics settings were all always set to the max since I haven't really encountered any FPS issues until just recently.

Before getting more into the post, my specs are:
Samsung SyncMaster E1920 (1366x768 @ 60Hz)
Intel Core i5 3470 @ 3.6GHz
Sapphire R9 270x 2GB Vapor-X OC
DDR3 8GB (1x8) 1600MHz CL9 RAM
Gigabyte GA-H77-DS3H MOBO
240 GB SSD + 1TB HDD

So it has become a rather healthy habit of mine to frequently restart my pc especially when I'm about to game. Restarting usually is supposed to reset all the processes and functions running that unnecessarily take up performance load on the system, so obviously I wouldn't really have a second thought on doing so. A few days ago, I restarted my pc before opening up the game, I get into the practice range and suddenly my framerate performance was extremely terrible! Even without recording and setting all my graphics to low, it drops down to 40 and sometimes doesn't even go above 90 FPS.

Of course, I tried to fix this by first of all, restarting, which didn't help at all. I updated my drivers and graphics software (AMD) which also didn't change a thing. I resorted to overclocking the GPU via the AMD Radeon Software along with using apps like ParkControl and QuickCPU in case the problem had to do with my CPU, all of which somehow improved the performance to a more playable framerate. Yet, after having done all of this, it still isn’t performing as well as it used to. As of right now it plays around 70-200 FPS (incredibly inconsistent), and sometimes still drops down to 45.

Come to think of it, my power supply recently broke down. It was a Gigabyte P550B 80+ Bronze 550W which was bought back in November 2020 (yeah, still pretty new which is sad). Back then my pc would boot, but wouldn't post; we initially weren't sure what caused it but I already assumed that it was the PSU. I had my father bring my pc to be repaired, I wasn't able to come along since they wouldn't allow those under 18 into the mall due to COVID (I'm 16). I already told him that I assumed that the power supply was the issue. Once he returned, the replaced power supply was a generic 600W. He told me that they claimed it was what was usually used in their gaming rigs, it doesn't convince me but it was already done. I can't really blame my father since it wasn't his fault.

I was thinking maybe my issue right now is being caused by insufficient power being supplied to my components due to the power supply? Although the pc was initially working as intended at first since it came from the shop. I also recently started playing Apex Legends, and according to what I know it is more performance demanding compared to VALORANT, yet the framerate I get on Apex is way more consistent.

I would really appreciate any opinions and possible solutions to my issue. Thanks a lot for taking the time to read, or to even stop by!

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

having a cheap PSU is never a good idea.
you will get inconsistent performance at best, and damage system components at worst.
you should seriously consider getting a higher quality model with a high rating.
don't believe what some PC shop\employee tells you. 90+% of OEM or any pre-built systems have very cheap power supplies installed.

one thing you can try for now to help with GPU\performance issues is to remove all graphics drivers\files and settings using DDU. then reinstall the latest version available directly from AMD.

also reinstalling Windows can help in a lot of instances. it's a pretty common occurrence to have currupt system drivers or random files that can cause issues.