Expert Help needed! Random fps drops and sound stuttering

Dutchy-2873 · August 10, 2018, 4:31pm

Hello there!

Situation: I played Overwacht always without problems on this PC. I haven’t changed something.
Suddenly (for some months now) the FPS freezes for like a second and the whole gameplay is ruined. (playing ranked matches)
Also, sometimes it is combined with the terrible stuttering of all the sound! It is horrible. This sound problem occurs far less then the FPS drops.

Sometimes I can play good and after 3 games the fps start freezing.

Normally I plaf @ 69/70 fps steady.
I have read the forum and tried several things.

I updated my drivers
I closed all backgroups programms.
I cleaned my PC with several programs.
I have reset my router and “flushed” the connection on the pc.
I did a speedtest of my connection (see image below)
Let MSI afterburner check my PC while gaming (see images below) Note: I dont overclock. Everything is normal settings.
Because of massive drops in MSI afterburner graphs throughout the whole system I bought a new powerunit that was 750 Watt. (was 600) this didnt help…

Nothing helped.

Now I have tried to do all the things you ask for analyses for 2 games. (it’s difficult because I need to change the ip adress when a new game starts.

Pictures of my internet speedtest connection & MSI afterburner graphs:
I am not allowed to embed the images
Also, I am not allowed to post the links to the images!
I had the put a space in all the links that show up in the testresults or the forum wouldnt allow me to post it.

So I have some very interesting MSI afterburner graph pics for you that show a massive drop of GPU usage and other CPU and Power graphs. (not memory).
Just cant show them.

https://image.ibb.co/hWN0T9/game_1_pijl.png

MY INTERNET CONNECTION SPEEDTEST:
Download: Steady 61,4 Mbps
Upload: Steady 11,4 Mbps
Ping: 11ms

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>GAME 1 WITH FPS DROPS<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

---------------------------------LOOKING GLASS------------------------------:
TRACEROUTE:
traceroute to 178.84.76.222 (178.84.76.222), 15 hops max, 60 byte packets
1 Blizzard Blizzard 0.669 ms 0.688 ms 0.766 ms
2 * * *
3 137.221.66.38 (137.221.66.38) 0.826 ms 0.895 ms 0.975 ms
4 137.221.77.72 (137.221.77.72) 0.713 ms 0.726 ms 0.727 ms
5 137.221.65.19 (137.221.65.19) 7.239 ms 7.251 ms 7.266 ms
6 137.221.79.32 (137.221.79.32) 6.925 ms 6.868 ms 7.161 ms
7 213.46.175.253 (213.46.175.253) 7.782 ms 7.819 ms 7.819 ms
8 * * *
9 nl-ams02a-rc2-lag-23-0.aorta. net (84.116.130.90) 13.134 ms 13.151 ms 13.152 ms
10 asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether61-1.aorta. net (84.116.245.134) 14.584 ms 14.602 ms 14.563 ms
11 178-84-76-222.dynamic.upc.nl (178.84.76.222) 41.475 ms 40.767 ms 40.757 ms

08/08/2018 23:43:33 UTC

PING:
PING 178.84.76.222 (178.84.76.222) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 178.84.76.222: icmp_seq=1 ttl=53 time=25.6 ms
64 bytes from 178.84.76.222: icmp_seq=2 ttl=53 time=25.6 ms
64 bytes from 178.84.76.222: icmp_seq=3 ttl=53 time=26.5 ms
64 bytes from 178.84.76.222: icmp_seq=4 ttl=53 time=22.4 ms

— 178.84.76.222 ping statistics —
4 packets transmitted, 4 received, 0% packet loss, time 2998ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 22.467/25.082/26.555/1.566 ms

08/08/2018 23:43:33 UTC

MTR:
Start: Wed Aug 8 23:43:33 2018 Blizzard 1.|-- Blizzard 0.0% 10 0.5 1.3 0.5 6.0 1.6
2.|-- ??? 100.0 10 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
3.|-- 137.221.66.38 0.0% 10 0.9 0.9 0.8 1.1 0.0
4.|-- 137.221.77.72 0.0% 10 0.7 1.1 0.7 2.4 0.3
5.|-- 137.221.65.19 0.0% 10 7.3 7.2 7.2 7.3 0.0
6.|-- 137.221.79.32 0.0% 10 7.0 7.1 7.0 7.4 0.0
7.|-- 213.46.175.253 0.0% 10 7.8 7.9 7.8 8.1 0.0
8.|-- ??? 100.0 10 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
9.|-- nl-ams02a-rc2-lag-23-0.aorta. net 70.0% 10 13.2 13.2 13.2 13.2 0.0
10.|-- asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether61-1.aorta. net 0.0% 10 14.8 14.7 14.7 14.8 0.0
11.|-- 178-84-76-222.dynamic.upc.nl 0.0% 10 23.4 25.3 22.9 31.7 2.6

08/08/2018 23:43:33 UTC

----------------------------------PATHPING------------------------------------

Tracing route to 5.42.172.97 over a maximum of 30 hops

0 DESKTOP-879K5CB.home [192.168.178.101]
1 192.168.178.1
2 f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
3 212.142.3.13
4 asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]
5 * * *
Computing statistics for 100 seconds…
Source to Here This Node/Link
Hop RTT Lost/Sent = Pct Lost/Sent = Pct Address
0 DESKTOP-879K5CB.home [192.168.178.101]
0/ 100 = 0% |
1 1ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% 192.168.178.1
0/ 100 = 0% |
2 11ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
0/ 100 = 0% |
3 12ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% 212.142.3.13
0/ 100 = 0% |
4 14ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]

Trace complete.

---------------------------------- TRACERT ---------------------------
Tracing route to 5.42.172.97 over a maximum of 30 hops

1 1 ms 1 ms 1 ms 192.168.178.1
2 8 ms 12 ms 12 ms f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
3 15 ms 12 ms 17 ms 212.142.3.13
4 14 ms 16 ms 11 ms asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]
5 * * * Request timed out.
6 21 ms 14 ms 14 ms nl-ams14a-ri1-ae5-0.aorta. net [84.116.135.34]
7 12 ms 15 ms 13 ms 213.46.182.198
8 32 ms 22 ms 15 ms ae1-br02-eqam1.blizzardonline. net [137.221.78.35]
9 * * * Request timed out.
10 * * * Request timed out.
11 * * * Request timed out.
12 * * * Request timed out.
13 * * * Request timed out.
14 * * * Request timed out.
15 * * * Request timed out.
16 * * * Request timed out.
17 * * * Request timed out.
18 * * * Request timed out.
19 * * * Request timed out.
20 * * * Request timed out.
21 * * * Request timed out.
22 * * * Request timed out.
23 * * * Request timed out.
24 * * * Request timed out.
25 * * * Request timed out.
26 * * * Request timed out.
27 * * * Request timed out.
28 * * * Request timed out.
29 * * * Request timed out.
30 * * * Request timed out.

Trace complete.

------------------------------WINMTR------------------------------
|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| WinMTR statistics |

|------------------------------------------------|------|------|------|------|------|------|

| 192.168.178.1 - 1 | 1364 | 1363 | 0 | 1 | 90 | 1 |

| f166001.upc-f.chello.nl - 0 | 1368 | 1368 | 7 | 12 | 121 | 11 |

| 212.142.3.13 - 0 | 1367 | 1367 | 8 | 14 | 126 | 18 |

|asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net - 0 | 1367 | 1367 | 10 | 15 | 97 | 14 |

| nl-ams02a-rc2-lag-60-1.aorta. net - 100 | 275 | 1 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |

| nl-ams14a-ri1-ae5-0.aorta. net - 0 | 1368 | 1368 | 10 | 16 | 131 | 24 |

| 213.46.182.198 - 0 | 1367 | 1367 | 9 | 15 | 140 | 15 |

| ae1-br02-eqam1.blizzardonline. net - 0 | 1367 | 1367 | 11 | 22 | 161 | 20 |

| No response from host - 100 | 274 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

|________________________________________________|______|______|______|______|______|______|

WinMTR v0.92 GPL V2 by Appnor MSP - Fully Managed Hosting & Cloud Provider

>>>>>>>>>>>>>GAME 2 WITH FPS DROPS & MASSIVE STUTTERING<<<<<<<<<<<

----------------------------WINMTR-------------------

|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| WinMTR statistics |

|------------------------------------------------|------|------|------|------|------|------|

| 192.168.178.1 - 1 | 962 | 959 | 0 | 1 | 53 | 1 |

| f166001.upc-f.chello.nl - 0 | 973 | 973 | 7 | 12 | 98 | 17 |

| 212.142.3.13 - 0 | 973 | 973 | 8 | 13 | 97 | 10 |

|asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net - 0 | 973 | 973 | 10 | 15 | 120 | 14 |

| No response from host - 100 | 196 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

| nl-ams14a-ri1-ae5-0.aorta. net - 0 | 973 | 973 | 10 | 17 | 102 | 23 |

| 213.46.182.198 - 0 | 973 | 973 | 10 | 16 | 122 | 11 |

| ae1-br02-eqam1.blizzardonline. net - 1 | 959 | 957 | 0 | 39 | 2773 | 17 |

| No response from host - 100 | 196 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

|________________________________________________|______|______|______|______|______|______|

WinMTR v0.92 GPL V2 by Appnor MSP - Fully Managed Hosting & Cloud Provider

---------------------------------PATHPING-----------------------------

Tracing route to 5.42.173.139 over a maximum of 30 hops

0 DESKTOP-879K5CB.home [192.168.178.101]
1 192.168.178.1
2 f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
3 212.142.3.13
4 asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]
5 * * *
Computing statistics for 100 seconds…
Source to Here This Node/Link
Hop RTT Lost/Sent = Pct Lost/Sent = Pct Address
0 DESKTOP-879K5CB.home [192.168.178.101]
0/ 100 = 0% |
1 1ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% 192.168.178.1
0/ 100 = 0% |
2 12ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
0/ 100 = 0% |
3 12ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% 212.142.3.13
0/ 100 = 0% |
4 13ms 0/ 100 = 0% 0/ 100 = 0% asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]

Trace complete.

------------------------------------TRACERT------------------------------

Tracing route to 5.42.173.139 over a maximum of 30 hops

1 1 ms <1 ms 1 ms 192.168.178.1
2 24 ms 13 ms 11 ms f166001.upc-f.chello.nl [80.56.166.1]
3 9 ms 20 ms 9 ms 212.142.3.13
4 15 ms 27 ms 20 ms asd-tr0021-cr101-bundle-ether108-1.aorta. net [84.116.244.9]
5 * * * Request timed out.
6 21 ms 19 ms 13 ms nl-ams14a-ri1-ae5-0.aorta. net [84.116.135.34]
7 14 ms 17 ms 11 ms 213.46.182.198
8 23 ms 14 ms 19 ms ae1-br02-eqam1.blizzardonline. net [137.221.78.35]
9 * * * Request timed out.
10 * * * Request timed out.
11 * * * Request timed out.
12 * * * Request timed out.
13 * * * Request timed out.
14 * * * Request timed out.
15 * * * Request timed out.
16 * * * Request timed out.
17 * * * Request timed out.
18 * * * Request timed out.
19 * * * Request timed out.
20 * * * Request timed out.
21 * * * Request timed out.
22 * * * Request timed out.
23 * * * Request timed out.
24 * * * Request timed out.
25 * * * Request timed out.
26 * * * Request timed out.
27 * * * Request timed out.
28 * * * Request timed out.
29 * * * Request timed out.
30 * * * Request timed out.

Trace complete.

I have no idea what the results mean or how they have to look.
I hope that you can help me because the fun of this game is almost gone for me

EDIT: added my DXdiag:

Time of this report: 8/11/2018, 00:06:17
Operating System: Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (10.0, Build 17134) (17134.rs4_release.180410-1804)
System Manufacturer: MSI
System Model: MS-7673
BIOS: BIOS Date: 10/04/11 16:18:46 Ver: 04.06.04 (type: BIOS)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-2310 CPU @ 2.90GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.9GHz
Memory: 8192MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 8164MB RAM
Page File: 7026MB used, 9840MB available
DirectX Version: DirectX 12
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070
Manufacturer: NVIDIA
Chip type: GeForce GTX 1070
DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
Device Type: Full Device (POST)

chuu-21670 · August 10, 2018, 5:18pm

This happens to me too, but because of my horrible hardware and dusty fans. Maybe you should look at cleaning your fans too? Idk really, but just wanted to say this happens to me too. I play at 25 fps usually but it sometimes drops to 5 fps and the sounds stutter horribly.

TheExodus-2760 · August 10, 2018, 6:24pm

Sounds like either a low-power power profile, or thermal issues. Make sure you have the power profile set to high performance, and that you have adequate cooling. Check the heatsinks and fans for the video card especially.

Dutchy-2873 · August 10, 2018, 10:06pm

Thanx for the replies, I also thought it was the power because of the drops in the whole system. Thats why I installed a new 750 watt powerunit.

I cleaned the whole pc (it wasnt even that dirty) (it is important tho ). And MSI afterburner shows steady tempertures.
I changed WIN10 powersetting to let everything work at its best.

My thought was that the drop in GPU usage, CPU usage and POWER ar not because the power drops and pulls everything down… Maybe its the other way around? That the POWER usage, CPU activity and GPU activity drop because there is a sudden lack of usage demand. The software stalls for a second and the CPU GPU and POWER dont have to do anything?

chuu-21670 · August 11, 2018, 11:21am

Is there a way to clean your fans and stuff without opening it up? I have a Toshiba laptop and it is near impossible to open the fan section. I know it’s dirty (haven’t cleaned since purchase) and it is around 95 degrees when I play Overwatch (max is 97!) Any advice?

TheExodus-2760 · August 11, 2018, 11:29am

Canned compressed air.

TheExodus-2760 · August 11, 2018, 11:53am

Your video card is throttling, most likely because of high temps. 76 is really high, and the on-die temp is even higher. When it’s overheating it shuts down, that’s why it’s clocking down to 0.

Dutchy-2873 · August 13, 2018, 4:53pm

U think 76 is high? (it’s my peak) When I look up the the safe working temperatures for the nvidia GTX 1070:

Nvidia says: Max 94C
And on the interwebzzz everyone says that arround 76 is normal:

> http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/answers/id-3444470/gtx-1070-temperatures.html

Still I am gonna try and adjust the fan/temp settings. Will post results

TheExodus-2760 · August 13, 2018, 5:02pm

My 1080 never runs hotter than ambient+35, and usually at ambient+25.

However, when it says 94C is safe, that temperature is usually not measured at the same point your 76C is measured. The 94C is the junction temperature, and the 76C is likely the temperature of the GPU casing.

Try restricting your framerate to 100fps and run everything at low. That should keep your GPU nice and cool, and if you still have these drops there’s some other issue.

Edit: I just noticed you seem to have locked your fan speed? Your temps are likely higher, and pretty much higher, than 76C at times, but in between temp polls. Unlock those fans.

CAKEsup-11851 · August 14, 2018, 3:58pm

Your CPU is a bit weak for the game.
It could be a bottleneck issue.

Try physically cleaning everything, dirty fans lead to overheats.

TheExodus-2760 · August 14, 2018, 8:37pm

There is absolutely no way he’d have GPU throttling because of a CPU bottleneck. Look at the graph. Core clock goes to 0.

CAKEsup-11851 · August 15, 2018, 3:30pm

No clue then. With the info you provided, if it isnt an overheating or power issue then idk

Dutchy-2873 · August 16, 2018, 10:08pm

Hi peeps!

First of all: Many thanx for your help and looking into my problem.
2 bad Blizzard couldn’t take the time to look into my testing results as I did some effort to produce them.

I THINK I FIXED THE PROBLEM! (for 90%!) I will try to explain:

At first it looked like my GPU was throttling… but the drop went throughout the system.
So was everything dropping because of my GPU not responding for a second?
Or was my GPU dropping because of something else dropping so there was no demand for my GPU for a second?
Or was my powerunit not powerfull enough and was that the cause that everything was dropping?

Time to start changing things one by one and testing:

GPU TEMP:
So I followed the kind advice of TheExodus. First I put a limit on the GPU temp in MSI afterburner. Result: More throttling. Offcourse this was a logical result of my GPU holding back because of the limit.
Advice 2 from TheExodus: Look at my GPU fan speed. So I put it to the test and put in on maximum (what a noise!). I saw the temp drop rappidly but… STIL DROPS!

So I decided it wasnt the temp of my GPU.

Before this I installed a new more powerfull powerunit and put the powerlimit on max… Didnt help at all.

So I dug into the forum and read 1500 posts about simular problems… (good job Blizzard on fixing this issue! )

So what I did…

I changed the WIN 10 perfomance and energy settings.
I changed the setting in the WIN 10 app details for the overwacht app to “high priority”.
When the game is started I change the setting in task manager to HIGH for overwatch.

I think it was bottle necking my CPU! This problem lies with BLIZZARD.
I played this game on this PC on Ultra smooth for a long time. After the update everything went south.

So now it runs MUCH MUCH better. still a tiny hickup somethimes. But is helped a lot!

Hope someone will be helped by this info!

EDIT:
Oh and I will post a new graph about perfomance while gaming.

STILL WANT YOUR ADVICE Because I dont understand the half of it
Maybe you guys see something I dont.

TheExodus-2760 · August 17, 2018, 8:40am

The only thing that makes sense here is that you have one or more background apps that load the cpu and/or hdd like crazy.

If you open the task manager and go to the performance tab, and play in windowed mode, what does the disk and cpu graphs look like when this happens?