Question Not smooth gameplay despite high fps. Ryzen

[NeedleKO]

Hello everyone.

I'm posting here in hopes that someone could have an idea or better yet, experience, solving something similar of an issue im having.

So... I have this build for a while now. Like good half a year. In a span of this half a year, i on and off try to fix an issue i could only describe as not smooth gameplay despite high fps. Not every game i play is affected by this weird sht. Witcher 3 was fine, GTA 5 also, League of Legends is also fine, but when i play fps online shooters like CSGO, Apex Legends, Pubg, and the new one VALORANT, man... When I play them, it feels like it's laggy even though the fps counter reports more than 100fps and the game feels responsive as expected with high fps, but when I move my head around (in the game) it doesn't feel smooth. Also what is super weird is that the more fps i have, the better it feels. So, for example, if i play VALORANT and in some places i have over 200fps, game feels smoother than if there is 140 fps in other places, like action and stuff decreases the smoothness of the gameplay... That doesn't make any sense since i only have 75hz monitor so it should not feel any different when fps is over 75, yet it does. Like what the hell? My rig feels like a laptop that is not meant for gaming and i'm like... forcing it to game, but in reality it should run these games just fine, and it sorta does...fps wise... Temp wise.. but not smoothness wise.
I have no stutters and no noticeable fps drops. My temps are fine. I've monitored everything like 30 times i believe.. CPU is stock. No overclock.
I've run all the tests i could imagine in hopes to find some kind of error or smth that could explain why this is happening, but i've found nothing.

I've messed around with XMP profiles and overclocking ram with ryzen ram calculator and nothing solves the problem completely. I can get it to a place where it goes from feeling lil bit not smooth all the time, to not feeling smooth in chunks, like when i'm just standing in my base in CSGO and walking towards the bomb site, it feels fine, but when the action happens, it starts to feel very weird. It also depends on the map, some feel better, some worse.. Which leads me to wonder if there is any problem with the ram? Since that is the only thing that somrta makes a difference.. I've run prime95 and some other tests (thati cannot remember at the moment) and no erros, everything is fine.

My build:
Ryzen 5 3600
mobo: MSI b 450 gaming plus
GTX 1070ti
hyperx 3200mhz 2x8gb ram

CPu tems under normal gaming load don't exceed 65c
GTX temps are also fine

Here is my user benchmarks test review:

UserBenchmarks: Game 91%, Desk 82%, Work 78%
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 - 90%
GPU: Nvidia GTX 1070-Ti - 96.5%
SSD: Kingston A400 240GB - 88.6%
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 2TB (2018) - 120.8%
RAM: Kingston HyperX DDR4 3200 C18 2x8GB - 84.5%
MBD: MSI B450 GAMING PLUS (MS-7B86)




If i need to be more specific in any regard - please let me know.

If you're reading - thanks.

 

[EndEffeKt_24]

Hmm... tough one. The problem is your very vague feeling of something being off. From your story and the testing you have done so far there seems to be nothing wrong with your rig.
Do you maybe experience artifacts like ghosting or screen tearing that you interprete as "not smooth"?
Maybe try just for once to limit frames to 75, so you match your refreah rate and see if it is better or at least different.

 

[AdemK28]

I literally have the same exact issue! I have a 240hz monitor and can hit well beyond 240fps in cod:mw. Theres something off with it as when I move my screen it feels terrible and not smooth at all. As soon as I disable xmp it feels a lot better. It probably has something to do with tightening timings as lower latency feels more smoother but drops fps significantly. I get a 30+fps drop, but smoother gameplay when xmp is disabled. Enabled XMP I get high fps but overall the game feels rigid and movements are not smooth at all, it's hard to explain.

 

[FoxVoxDK]

What are your Vertical Sync settings(Fast, adaptive, off)? Are you using a G-Sync monitor or compatible?
Higher FPS in general reduces input lag and game response times even if your screen only runs 75Hz.

If you would be so kind as to put a pic of your nvidia settings?

You could try and lock your FPS to 120Hz via nvidias settings as a trial.

 

[NeedleKO]

I literally have the same exact issue! I have a 240hz monitor and can hit well beyond 240fps in cod:mw. Theres something off with it as when I move my screen it feels terrible and not smooth at all. As soon as I disable xmp it feels a lot better. It probably has something to do with tightening timings as lower latency feels more smoother but drops fps significantly. I get a 30+fps drop, but smoother gameplay when xmp is disabled. Enabled XMP I get high fps but overall the game feels rigid and movements are not smooth at all, it's hard to explain.

Ohh man, i feel your pain. Are you on ryzen also?

 

[NeedleKO]

Hmm... tough one. The problem is your very vague feeling of something being off. From your story and the testing you have done so far there seems to be nothing wrong with your rig.
Do you maybe experience artifacts like ghosting or screen tearing that you interprete as "not smooth"?
Maybe try just for once to limit frames to 75, so you match your refreah rate and see if it is better or at least different.

If i cap my fps to 75 through nvidia control panel then i experience screen tearing. Should i play with vsync? Everything is off for now as i've always experienced more issues than benefits..

 

[AdemK28]

I literally have the same exact issue! I have a 240hz monitor and can hit well beyond 240fps in cod:mw. Theres something off with it as when I move my screen it feels terrible and not smooth at all. As soon as I disable xmp it feels a lot better. It probably has something to do with tightening timings as lower latency feels more smoother but drops fps significantly. I get a 30+fps drop when xmp is disabled. Enabled XMP I get high fps but overall the game feels rigid and movements are not smooth at all, it's hard to explain.

What are your Vertical Sync settings(Fast, adaptive, off)? Are you using a G-Sync monitor or compatible?
Higher FPS in general reduces input lag and game response times even if your screen only runs 75Hz.

If you would be so kind as to put a pic of your nvidia settings?

I have the similar problem except i'm using amd gpu.

Ohh man, i feel you. Are you on ryzen also?

Yea man, on Ryzen 7 2700x. It's incredibly annoying and i'm trying everything to fix it.

 

[NeedleKO]

What are your Vertical Sync settings(Fast, adaptive, off)? Are you using a G-Sync monitor or compatible?
Higher FPS in general reduces input lag and game response times even if your screen only runs 75Hz.

If you would be so kind as to put a pic of your nvidia settings?

You could try and lock your FPS to 120Hz via nvidias settings as a trial.

Vsync is off. Having it off actually helps with this laggy feeling. Not home for now and wont be for a few days so i cannot screen now. I have some old ass 75hz monitor.

 

[AdemK28]

Vsync is off. Having it off actually helps with this laggy feeling. Not home for now and wont be for a few days so i cannot screen now. I have some old ass 75hz monitor.

I have a freesync monitor, and I agree as well. Freesync off does feel better actually but in some instances screen tearing can be visible.

 

[FoxVoxDK]

Vsync is off. Having it off actually helps with this laggy feeling. Not home for now and wont be for a few days so i cannot screen now. I have some old ass 75hz monitor.

Roger roger. The "fast" setting is usually the best overall compromise, reduce pre-rendered frames to 0 or 1 & triple buffering Off.

 

[NeedleKO]

I have the similar problem except i'm using amd gpu.

Yea man, on Ryzen 7 2700x. It's incredibly annoying and i'm trying everything to fix it.

I've actually been thinking about switching to intel. i5 9600k has very good price right now and if i check this website and compare both cpus https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-9600K-vs-AMD-Ryzen-5-3600/4031vs4040 you can actually see that intel has 17% lower memory latency.. Idk. I feel kinda fed up with this bs honestly. Price difference is not that huge and if i have to choose between a little bit cheaper rig, but the one that sorta works and a rig that works like it is supposed to be then my choice is clear. It's either that or there is an option to experiment with different ram sticks.. idk what else to do..
My only fear is what if intel will have the same problems xDDD idk.. maybe i'm getting paranoid.

 

[AdemK28]

Hmmm, I have something that you can try. Download Ryzen DRAM calculator from guru3d and download taiphoon burner as well.Both programs are highly trusted so dont worry ab that. Try to get your RAM to run stable on 3200mhz using lower CAS latencies. Also make sure your infinity fabric clock speeds are a 1:1 ratio with your RAM speed. if DDR=3200mhz, your FCLK = (1/2) your ram speed in this case it'll be 1600mhz clock speed for the infinity fabric. Use mobo manual if you dont know where that setting is in bios. You want to synchronize your ram speed along with the cpu in a even 1:1 ratio for full system stability and max performance at that speed. You can easily hit 3600mhz ram speed but you'll need to change the infinity fabric clock to half that value, so 1800mhz=infinity fabric clock/fclk. Also if your using 3200mhz ram and you have samsung b die (can find what die your ram has from taiphoon burner) then your in luck cuz oc on that ram is easy and more flexible. I would try this, but the infinity fabric clock is automatic on my board.

 

[EndEffeKt_24]

I've actually been thinking about switching to intel. i5 9600k has very good price right now and if i check this website and compare both cpus https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-9600K-vs-AMD-Ryzen-5-3600/4031vs4040 you can actually see that intel has 17% lower memory latency.. Idk. I feel kinda fed up with this bs honestly. Price difference is not that huge and if i have to choose between a little bit cheaper rig, but the one that sorta works and a rig that works like it is supposed to be then my choice is clear. It's either that or there is an option to experiment with different ram sticks.. idk what else to do..
My only fear is what if intel will have the same problems xDDD idk.. maybe i'm getting paranoid.

Userbenchmark is not a reputable source. They seem to pull numbers and opinions right out of their hindparts in a lot of instances.
How do you come to the conclusion memory latency is part of your problem?
We are talking nanosecond delays between read and writes on your Ram. 70 vs 60 ns.
This is not your problem.

 

[NeedleKO]

Userbenchmark is not a reputable source. They seem to pull numbers and opinions right out of their hindparts in a lot of instances.
How do you come to the conclusion memory latency is part of your problem?
We are talking nanosecond delays between read and writes on your Ram. 70 vs 60 ns.
This is not your problem.

The only thing i can tell is that if i tinker with ram xmp profiles, things get somewhat better, but the problem still persists. So basically... If ram is stock: I have constant weird not smooth feeling and less fps. If i try to use xmp or try different oc settings via ryzen ram calculator (safe, fast): things improve, but problem still persists. So now i get these spikes of not smoothness rather than constant smoothens. It also depends on the game.. That leads me to think that it is something to do with the ram. I can be wrong, but what else then if not this?

 

[AdemK28]

Userbenchmark is not a reputable source. They seem to pull numbers and opinions right out of their hindparts in a lot of instances.
How do you come to the conclusion memory latency is part of your problem?
We are talking nanosecond delays between read and writes on your Ram. 70 vs 60 ns.
This is not your problem.

How do you come to that conclusion without reading his RAM timings and latencies? You won't know for sure if it's problem as there is no given information on it. He even said disabling xmp helps with making the game smoother. DRAM timings are a possibility that must be considered and not left aside as there are too many variables for this issue.

 

[AdemK28]

The only thing i can tell is that if i tinker with ram xmp profiles, things get somewhat better, but the problem still persists. So basically... If ram is stock: I have constant weird not smooth feeling and less fps. If i try to use xmp or try different oc settings via ryzen ram calculator (safe, fast): things improve, but problem still persists. So now i get these spikes of not smoothness rather than constant smoothens. It also depends on the game.. That leads me to think that it is something to do with the ram. I can be wrong, but what else then if not this?

Can you send me what the ryzen dram calculator gave you?

 

[NeedleKO]

Can you send me what the ryzen dram calculator gave you?

I'm will not be home for few days, i will do that as soon as i'll be able to.

 

[EndEffeKt_24]

How do you come to that conclusion without reading his RAM timings and latencies? You won't know for sure if it's problem as there is no given information on it. He even said disabling xmp helps with making the game smoother. DRAM timings are a possibility that must be considered and not left aside as there are too many variables for this issue.

I tried to refer to his opinion that the better memory latency on intel would improve the situation. My point might have been not precisely enough. Inherent memory latency and timings are two different subjects. Of course you should check memory configuration, frequency and timings, but I still doubt that this is the culprit.

 

[AdemK28]

I tried to refer to his opinion that the better memory latency on intel would improve the situation. My point might have been not precisely enough. Inherent memory latency and timings are two different subjects. Of course you should check memory configuration, frequency and timings, but I still doubt that this is the culprit.

Thank you for understanding! Reason why RAM could be the issue is because of how picky Ryzen systems are with memory and their infinity fabric usually perform best with an even ratio between the two. There may not be any signs of mem issues, but it's quite noticeable in games especially on Ryzen builds. I did have this issue a couple days ago and easily fixed it by lowering my RAM speeds and adding more ram with loose timings, still had a true 10ns time b/c 3000mhz @ cl15 is the same 10ns as 3200mhz @ cl16. I notice a much better or smoother gameplay at lower latency cuz of IMC has limits beyond 3200mhz. But i'm using an x570 with a cpu that isn't guarenteed to hit beyond 2933 mhz. (gotta get lucky to bounce beyond 3200mhz), so its very possible that It can also be his mobo as well. His mobo may be bottlenecking with the RAM, as the memory controller is hitting the limits or could possibly be forced to go beyond what it can handle causing frame skips. This is why I prefer an x570 for any 3rd gen ryzen b/c its specifically made for them and could possibly fix his issue or use lower speeds for the time being.

 

[gtzfx]

since youre saying you have high fps but sluggish gameplay, i dont think its something wrong with your fps. i think its your mouse. cheap mouse sensor can make you lose control of your aim or movement turning around 180 or 360. what mouse and monitor are you using ? some mice couldnt handle a good pc. try to change to a better quality mouse like g pro hero, g403,xtrfy m4 or model o. turning fast feels more responsive on these mice because they are using a high quality gaming sensor. my pc spec is close like yours r5 3600 , gtx1660ti , 16gb 3200mhz. i was on a cheap g203 mouse before and i always feels something is off or sluggish when turning 180 fast or spraying when fighting enemy on csgo eventhough i have a stable 300fps, after changing to g pro hero it feels way responsive and doesnt feel sluggish/inconsisten when turning or spraying on csgo. btw im using an asus vg248qg 165hz gaming monitor. the only solution using cheap mouse to make the game feels better is lock the fps to my screen refresh rate it feels more consistent but not as good as a high quality mouse with uncap fps its way better. thts the issue that i think i just solve for me i dont think yours it could be other things it could be the same issue as mine i dunno.