Question Something is wrong with my hardware, but I don't know if it's the CPU or GPU ?

[TorQueMoD]

Hey all,
I updated my GPU just under 2 years ago now (Zotac RTX 4070ti) on 2023-04-28, and I bought the CPU last year on 2024-04-20 (i5-13600K). I'm leaning towards the issue being the CPU as I'm experiencing slowdown no matter what programs I run (netflix stutters while scrolling, and even programs that don't require a GPU are truly slow) and because this gen is known for it's problems, but most of the time I am running 3Ds Max, or Unreal Engine, and I do see graphical anomalies as well, though for the most part it seems like rendering is fine, my system just hitches when doing things that I would imagine would be more CPU intensive like unwrapping 3D models, or importing into Unreal.

I've updated the bios several times (about to go get the latest release and install it now), but it hasn't made a difference so far, and this stuttering and slowdown is something I've been experiencing for a while now. In fact, the reason I bought the CPU was because I thought the stuttering was happening due to too many NVME drives connected to my old motherboard (I only had 1 m.2 slot, so I bought PCIE expansions, so I decided to buy a motherboard that supports 4 NVME drives (I'm running 3) so maybe it is really my GPU that's the problem because it's the only component that was in both systems. I just finished restoring a clean install of Windows that I created with Macrium Reflect, but the issue remains which tells me it's likely not software. I've also done the usual of updating drivers etc. to no avail.

The problem is this is happening at the worst possible time when I've got 3 weeks left to make a deadline on a project that I've been working on since December, and it's for an actual life-changing event (my game project has been gifted a $25k USD spot in a brand new showcase that's happening in April and I have until mid March to finish the trailer).

I'm not really certain what I can do to determine the cause of the issue. I can run benchmarks I suppose to test the GPU, but what do you do for a CPU?

Any help is greatly appreciated!

 

[Lutfij]

I updated my GPU just under 2 years ago now (Zotac RTX 4070ti) on 2023-04-28, and I bought the CPU last year on 2024-04-20 (i5-13600K).
When posting a thread of troubleshooting nature, it's customary to include your full system's specs. Please list the specs to your build like so:
CPU:
CPU cooler:
Motherboard:
Ram:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:
Monitor:
include the age of the PSU apart from it's make and model. BIOS version for your motherboard at this moment of time.

I've updated the bios several times (about to go get the latest release and install it now), but it hasn't made a difference so far
Did you go into BIOS and see if your power plans have changed? Asus motherboards needed a couple of tweaks before you were out of the woods(per se).

I just finished restoring a clean install of Windows that I created with Macrium Reflect, but the issue remains which tells me it's likely not software. I've also done the usual of updating drivers etc. to no avail.
Instead of migrating from a cloned OS/drive, I'd backup all mission critical data, recreate the bootable ISB installer, disconnect all drives except for the one you wish to install the OS onto, then install the OS in offline mode. While in offline mode, install all relevant drivers in an elevated command, i.e, Right click installer>Run as Administrator.

Moved thread from Components section to Systems section.

 

[DaleH]

Hey all,
I updated my GPU just under 2 years ago now (Zotac RTX 4070ti) on 2023-04-28, and I bought the CPU last year on 2024-04-20 (i5-13600K). I'm leaning towards the issue being the CPU as I'm experiencing slowdown no matter what programs I run (netflix stutters while scrolling, and even programs that don't require a GPU are truly slow) and because this gen is known for it's problems, but most of the time I am running 3Ds Max, or Unreal Engine, and I do see graphical anomalies as well, though for the most part it seems like rendering is fine, my system just hitches when doing things that I would imagine would be more CPU intensive like unwrapping 3D models, or importing into Unreal.

I've updated the bios several times (about to go get the latest release and install it now), but it hasn't made a difference so far, and this stuttering and slowdown is something I've been experiencing for a while now. In fact, the reason I bought the CPU was because I thought the stuttering was happening due to too many NVME drives connected to my old motherboard (I only had 1 m.2 slot, so I bought PCIE expansions, so I decided to buy a motherboard that supports 4 NVME drives (I'm running 3) so maybe it is really my GPU that's the problem because it's the only component that was in both systems. I just finished restoring a clean install of Windows that I created with Macrium Reflect, but the issue remains which tells me it's likely not software. I've also done the usual of updating drivers etc. to no avail.

The problem is this is happening at the worst possible time when I've got 3 weeks left to make a deadline on a project that I've been working on since December, and it's for an actual life-changing event (my game project has been gifted a $25k USD spot in a brand new showcase that's happening in April and I have until mid March to finish the trailer).

I'm not really certain what I can do to determine the cause of the issue. I can run benchmarks I suppose to test the GPU, but what do you do for a CPU?

Any help is greatly appreciated!

When presented with a problem such as this, I would first run performance monitor and task manager before making wild guesses.

 

[TorQueMoD]

I updated my GPU just under 2 years ago now (Zotac RTX 4070ti) on 2023-04-28, and I bought the CPU last year on 2024-04-20 (i5-13600K).
When posting a thread of troubleshooting nature, it's customary to include your full system's specs. Please list the specs to your build like so:
CPU:
CPU cooler:
Motherboard:
Ram:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:
Monitor:
include the age of the PSU apart from it's make and model. BIOS version for your motherboard at this moment of time.

I've updated the bios several times (about to go get the latest release and install it now), but it hasn't made a difference so far
Did you go into BIOS and see if your power plans have changed? Asus motherboards needed a couple of tweaks before you were out of the woods(per se).

I just finished restoring a clean install of Windows that I created with Macrium Reflect, but the issue remains which tells me it's likely not software. I've also done the usual of updating drivers etc. to no avail.
Instead of migrating from a cloned OS/drive, I'd backup all mission critical data, recreate the bootable ISB installer, disconnect all drives except for the one you wish to install the OS onto, then install the OS in offline mode. While in offline mode, install all relevant drivers in an elevated command, i.e, Right click installer>Run as Administrator.

Moved thread from Components section to Systems section.

My apologies, I had been awake for 20+ hours when I posted.

CPU: i5-13600K 3.50 GHz
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120
GPU: Zotac RTX 4070ti
Motherboard: MSI PRO-Z790-A-WIFI-DDR4
Ram: Corsair RGB something something. lol. 64GB
SSD: Crucial NVME 4tb
PSU: brought over from my Alienware that I bought in 2018. If I remember correctly, it's an 800 Watt
OS: Windows 10 pro. Fresh install as of yesterday.
BIOS: 7E07v1F - I flashed it last night after posting.

 

[TorQueMoD]

When presented with a problem such as this, I would first run performance monitor and task manager before making wild guesses.

It's not wild guesses, they're based on experience. I'm not the best with tech and hardware, but I'm not a beginner either. The GPU works fine in the viewport in Unreal and seems to be fine in 3ds max too. HDs are all okay during file transfer, and all of my hardware should be fine in terms of not being bottlenecked in terms of PCIE lanes, having enough PSU power, etc. etc. The slowdowns happen when I'm exporting an FBX file or importing said file into Unreal, or when doing things that would likely be CPU driven. Everything looks fine in performance monitor of Task Manager. CPU is at 2% utilization when idle. Memory is at 59% with Chrome and 8 tabs open. My windows drive is between 0 and 3% utilization. GPU at 3%.

 

[FunWithComputers]

"Instead of migrating from a cloned OS/drive, I'd backup all mission critical data, recreate the bootable ISB installer, disconnect all drives except for the one you wish to install the OS onto, then install the OS in offline mode. While in offline mode, install all relevant drivers in an elevated command, i.e, Right click installer>Run as Administrator."
This ^ looks like a good tip to me.

PSU: brought over from my Alienware that I bought in 2018
- might be time to get a new PSU. Are you 100% certain that there is nothing proprietary about this PSU?
Good luck.

 

[TorQueMoD]

"Instead of migrating from a cloned OS/drive, I'd backup all mission critical data, recreate the bootable ISB installer, disconnect all drives except for the one you wish to install the OS onto, then install the OS in offline mode. While in offline mode, install all relevant drivers in an elevated command, i.e, Right click installer>Run as Administrator."
This ^ looks like a good tip to me.

PSU: brought over from my Alienware that I bought in 2018
- might be time to get a new PSU. Are you 100% certain that there is nothing proprietary about this PSU?
Good luck.

I’ve been running this PSU with this hardware for nearly a year now. If it wasn’t working I’d assume it wouldn’t have worked from the get go.

Urgh! I decided to purchase the cheapest compatible CPU just so that I could confirm whether or not, it’s the issue, but now my system power is on, but the mouse and keyboard don’t and my monitors don’t detect a signal. Nothing could ever just be easy. Lol

 

[TorQueMoD]

Joy ! They say bad luck comes in waves…
Now my system won’t post after installing the new CPU. I tried pulling the cmos battery for 5 mins and it didn’t help. The new CPU is an i3 12100f that is supposed to be compatible with my motherboard. The system powers up, fans are running and ram rgb is on, but my mouse and keyboard won’t light up and monitors won’t display.