Possible Solution to Stutter

Windows 7, 16GB Ram and SSD (tested both, ssd and hdd) I had stuttering.

Windows 10, 32GB Ram and 1TB SSD and no stuttering at all.

Preload Radius was max'd out in both setups.

In a perfect world, the best place would be neither of these 2 you mentioned but another drive.

 

 

 

Best bet is to have one on EACH of them as the OS tends to choose the best one for the time being.

 

 

I had them on C, D E, F then on all of them, some HDD some SSD, now it's a dedicated SSD for swap...and it all worked w/o ever giving me problems.

 

 

The only problem you will have is if you have none or a too small one.

 

 

I almost always have 20-21GB swap, so 16GB would not be enough, I have it preset as a fixed size of 32GB.

What's the point on having all of these huge pagefile on all the hardisk on your sistem?

Currently I have:

1 SSD NVME Samsung 970 evo 500gb which contains OS and DCS as the only game on it, pagefile is managed automatically by windows 10 and is aroung 5gb

1 SSD SATA 6.0 Samsung 850 evo 500gb which contains only other games such as ARMA3 and all my steam games

3 Mechanical HDD ( 1 TB + 2X250GB)

Running with 32gb of fast DDR4 , when running the DCS max ram consumption is about 9-10 gb, so I have more than 20 gb free ram AVAILABLE.

Also there is no point of running games and OS on 2 separtes SSD besides the fact that in case you need to format the games would be on another drive without needing to reinstall/re-download them.

I've tried to run DCS and Windows 10 on separete SSD to check if there was any difference and there is 0 difference at all.

Now, as my OS SSD is my fastest SSD being an NVME 970EVO , i have both windows and DCS on it and no difference at all.

With 32gb of ram is absolutely pointless to have 32gb of pagefile, I also tried setting 32gb of page file on my SSD and there is no difference at all in terms of performance compared to page file size managed by windows.

In conclusion : i switched from a i7 7700k@4.8 ghz to an i7 8700k@5.0 ghz , same RAM ( Gskill 3200mhz, same asus 1080ti strix), changed the PSU to a newer SEASONIC focus pro 750w platinum, changed the CASE to a brand new one Frtactal design R6.

With the i7 7700k I was able to run the game perfectly smooth at 60fps with absolutely ZERO stuttering, with the 8700k , same settings, same OS win10 build, all drivers up to date, chipset, nvme drivers, usb, etc etc.. I have a lot of stuttering.

I've tried processo lasso, changed affinity, disbled hyperthrreading, etc etc and still stuttering even at 60 fps....

and by the way, DCS has no optimization at all, it is the only game which I am forced to run at 60fps with a 3000 euro computer game, all the other games runs perfectly smooth at 120-165 fps......

My RAM usage is in MP anywhere from 14-18GB and I constantly have 20-21GB swap. I have no stutter and never had, my fps go anywhere from 45-144Hz Gsynced, I have no need to run at fixed 60 fps whatsoever.

I have run DCS stutterfree on i7's from 2600k to 6700k, 7700k and now 8700k.

All were or still are overclocked towards 5G, tho I think 4.5+/- is plenty for QHD and HIGH LoD.

I am NOT using fixed size PageFiles on C+D+E+F, you misunderstood. I had PF in many different combinations, like "All drives System controlled", Only C", "Only HDD's" and now it's on it's own SSD with a fixed size of 32GB. I repeat, my PF is constantly 20-21GB in MP with my LoD settings.

Something odd must be wrong on your end I just dunno what it could be, by specs it should run like hell

I have :

1 SDD for C partition, 256 GB

1 x SSD for games, 1TB

1 SSD for backup, 512 GB <----THIS ONE

1 x HDD 3 TB for pictures, music, etc.

Right now, I have 16 gb of PageFile, on C partition

There you go, in a perfect world ;)...and make it 32GB as lower and upper limit, aka fixed size

@Goa: maybe a stupid hint, but are you running DCS with the Intel Turbo Boost Max 3.0 app set to Enabled?

With my new i9, setting it to disabled solved stuttering.

I have disabled Pagefile too

Afaik, Your OS will deploy a new Pagefile if it needs one.

Anyway, having no PageFile demands a VRAM amount that no card has yet.

If you encounter anomalies, make a 32GB swap ;)

My RAM usage is in MP anywhere from 14-18GB and I constantly have 20-21GB swap. I have no stutter and never had, my fps go anywhere from 45-144Hz Gsynced, I have no need to run at fixed 60 fps whatsoever.

 

 

I have run DCS stutterfree on i7's from 2600k to 6700k, 7700k and now 8700k.

All were or still are overclocked towards 5G, tho I think 4.5+/- is plenty for QHD and HIGH LoD.

 

 

I am NOT using fixed size PageFiles on C+D+E+F, you misunderstood. I had PF in many different combinations, like "All drives System controlled", Only C", "Only HDD's" and now it's on it's own SSD with a fixed size of 32GB. I repeat, my PF is constantly 20-21GB in MP with my LoD settings.

 

 

Something odd must be wrong on your end I just dunno what it could be, by specs it should run like hell

this problem is driving me crazy and as you're well aware I am not the only one being affected by the problem, there are dozens of DCS users with high-end machines which cant run DCS is fps are higher tha 60 or lower than 120fps , it is only a trackir related problem becuase on all the othe games which do not use trackir everything is properly synced with Gsync and I have no stutters, and never had stutter as well.

As you I have been running 6600k, 7700k now I have 8700k, with a top-tier world's best VRM motherboard which is the Asrock z370 Taichi.

What OS build are you running?

Where have you connected your trackir device, which port? directly into motherboard ?

I suspect at this stage that it could my monitor which has a defect gsync module......I changed everything but I cant afford as of now a new monitor....

Also I have a very old PS2 keyboard....that's the only hardware I could try to swap but I doubt it's the cause.....

Or could be the ram? but I repeat I have no stutters when not using trackir....if using trackir I am force to cap fps at 60 fps but with the 8700k I have sometime micro-stutters....

My Track-IR is connected to either my Asus Monitor's USB30 hub or to any of the backplate ports, I dont use any USB_desk-hub so to speak.

I am always running the latest Build of 10, now this is: 1803 ( Build 17134.191 )...and I am just downloading and about to install the latest MS patches from this week.

I have a strange feeling this is USB related, just how to determine it precisely is still unknown. I would work the USB part, drivers, ports, devices, etc.. there are many variables that may conflict in some scenarios.

How much different is it when you disable Gsync ?

Try to ask support in Trackir’s official forum.

A similar problem here:

https://forums.naturalpoint.com/viewtopic.php?f=60&t=13991

Maybe NaturalPoint has changed the revision/hardware along the line !?

My Part # is : 252358, purchased early 2015.

I added my comment at NP's Forum.

Let's see if they pick it up.

* it doesnt show up yet, needs verification from admin...my 1st post there...patience ;)

this problem is driving me crazy and as you're well aware I am not the only one being affected by the problem, there are dozens of DCS users with high-end machines which cant run DCS is fps are higher tha 60 or lower than 120fps , it is only a trackir related problem becuase on all the othe games which do not use trackir everything is properly synced with Gsync and I have no stutters, and never had stutter as well.

 

 

As you I have been running 6600k, 7700k now I have 8700k, with a top-tier world's best VRM motherboard which is the Asrock z370 Taichi.

 

 

What OS build are you running?

Where have you connected your trackir device, which port? directly into motherboard ?

 

I suspect at this stage that it could my monitor which has a defect gsync module......I changed everything but I cant afford as of now a new monitor....

 

Also I have a very old PS2 keyboard....that's the only hardware I could try to swap but I doubt it's the cause.....

 

Or could be the ram? but I repeat I have no stutters when not using trackir....if using trackir I am force to cap fps at 60 fps but with the 8700k I have sometime micro-stutters....

You have tried process lasso? Just set it to performance mode in the tray and right click on the running DCS and try. CPU affinity --> Always-->single threaded performance. I'm guessing you have, just checking...:) Like Bitmaster, I've never had this stutter problem and I also run g-sync 144Hz. You could even try bumping Tir to it's very own core/thread...? The other time I saw this problem, they were running the disk driver that came with Tir, you are using the latest driver, just checking.;)

You have tried process lasso? Just set it to performance mode in the tray and right click on the running DCS and try. CPU affinity --> Always-->single threaded performance. I'm guessing you have, just checking...:) Like Bitmaster, I've never had this stutter problem and I also run g-sync 144Hz. You could even try bumping Tir to it's very own core/thread...? The other time I saw this problem, they were running the disk driver that came with Tir, you are using the latest driver, just checking.;)

hi mate,

I've tried process lasso, changed affiity to single threaded perofrmance, set it to performance mode etc etc , tried all combination.

I've also changed trackir.exe prioriry to realtime, high use,above normal use, also changed trackir.exe affinity to single core,changed affinity etc etc, always the same ....

I've been trying to solve this since a year and half....with no results.

@Goa: maybe a stupid hint, but are you running DCS with the Intel Turbo Boost Max 3.0 app set to Enabled?

 

With my new i9, setting it to disabled solved stuttering.

 

I have disabled Pagefile too

hi Automan, i dont have turbo boost max 3.0 installed on my machine.

@Goa - I had the same AsRock Z370 Taichi motherboard as you and had to return it due to issues with trackIR and the board's USB 3.0. I think TrackIR has issues with the drivers being used for USB 3.0 on the Taichi. With trackIR plugged into the USB 3.0 ports my system would hang during restarts and BSOD. Since the Taichi has no onboard USB 2.0 ports I had to get a USB expansion board and that seemed to resolve the issue. I still returned it because two the SATA ports didn't work.

I ended up replacing it with a Asus Maximus X Hero and I have no problems with my TIR. I'm not sure if this is causing your trouble but it's worth mentioning. Natural Point actually has something about USB 3.0 compatibility issues on their support site:

https://help.naturalpoint.com/kb/articles/compatibility-notices-for-usb-3-0

@Goa - I had the same AsRock Z370 Taichi motherboard as you and had to return it due to issues with trackIR and the board's USB 3.0. I think TrackIR has issues with the drivers being used for USB 3.0 on the Taichi. With trackIR plugged into the USB 3.0 ports my system would hang during restarts and BSOD. Since the Taichi has no onboard USB 2.0 ports I had to get a USB expansion board and that seemed to resolve the issue. I still returned it because two the SATA ports didn't work.

 

I ended up replacing it with a Asus Maximus X Hero and I have no problems with my TIR. I'm not sure if this is causing your trouble but it's worth mentioning. Natural Point actually has something about USB 3.0 compatibility issues on their support site:

 

https://help.naturalpoint.com/kb/articles/compatibility-notices-for-usb-3-0

hi bandit thanks for your kind reply,

my previous motherboard was an Asus rog maximis VIII hero which had usb 2.0 ports and I was having the same issue : trackir was stuttering above 60 fps so I was forced to cap fps at 60.

As for the z370 taichi it has indeed 2.0 usb port , it has usb 2.0 header where I connected by usb expansion slot so trackir is plugged into the usb 2.0 port.

Well I am not facing bsod nor any kind of problem , the sata ports share pcie lanes with M2 slots so that's the reason some of your sata ports were not working.

Btw could you please tell me if you're using a gsync monitor in your spec?'

hi bandit thanks for your kind reply,

my previous motherboard was an Asus rog maximis VIII hero which had usb 2.0 ports and I was having the same issue : trackir was stuttering above 60 fps so I was forced to cap fps at 60.

 

As for the z370 taichi it has indeed 2.0 usb port , it has usb 2.0 header where I connected by usb expansion slot so trackir is plugged into the usb 2.0 port.

 

Well I am not facing bsod nor any kind of problem , the sata ports share pcie lanes with M2 slots so that's the reason some of your sata ports were not working.

 

 

Btw could you please tell me if you're using a gsync monitor in your spec?'

I'm using the LG 32GK850B 144Hz G-Sync monitor. Before that I had the Asus PG279Q. I've done a ton of testing with this and I also experience micro stuttering at 144hz with no FPS cap.

It's almost like a shimmer instead of a stutter when looking around the cockpit. Its hard to describe but I suspect some people are more sensitive to it then others. If I lock FPS at 60 in the graphics.lua trackir is very SMOOTH. Locked at 60 fps my 1080TI runs around 75%. Unlocked it runs around 98-100%. I do get the occasional stutter where fps drop but I haven't been able to pin this down to anything yet. When it happens there is no drop CPU or GPU utilization.

You are right, the Taichi does have a usb 2.0 header like most motherboards. It just doesn't include the 2.0 expansion board. I had to purchase one of those separately. Also, the SATA ports that didn't work were the ASMedia ones (SATA3_A1, SATA3_A2). Those don't get disabled by the M2 slot being occupied. Sometimes it would detect the drive and sometimes it wouldn't. I probably just had a faulty board, but I've used Asus boards for years and never had any

trouble so decided to go back.

Here's my full PC specs:

Asus ROG Maximus X Hero

Intel i7-8700K (No OC yet)

G.Skill Trident Z 32GB DDR4-3200

Samsung 960 EVO 500GB NVMe (OS + DCS World)

Crucial 525GB SSD

Samsung 840 EVO 500GB SSD

Crucial M4 256GB SSD (pagefile)

EVGA GTX 1080TI FTW3

LG 32GK850B 32-inch 144hz G-Sync Monitor

Bandit648, i have the same issue

I tried different settings, PageFile, but could not fix it

I'm using the LG 32GK850B 144Hz G-Sync monitor. Before that I had the Asus PG279Q. I've done a ton of testing with this and I also experience micro stuttering at 144hz with no FPS cap.

It's almost like a shimmer instead of a stutter when looking around the cockpit. Its hard to describe but I suspect some people are more sensitive to it then others. If I lock FPS at 60 in the graphics.lua trackir is very SMOOTH. Locked at 60 fps my 1080TI runs around 75%. Unlocked it runs around 98-100%. I do get the occasional stutter where fps drop but I haven't been able to pin this down to anything yet. When it happens there is no drop CPU or GPU utilization.

 

LG 32GK850B 32-inch 144hz G-Sync Monitor

Exactly its more shimmering than stuttering, when looking around in the cockpit the frames are still good, there is no CPU or GPU usage drop, but there is no fluidty.

This a video I've made not long time ago

So bandit, with yout new motherboard and the new monitor , are you still running the game with lock fps at 60?

Those occasional stutters every two minutes or so are caused when using the left (custom) weather page. Try setting up dynamic weather (right side) and those hicups are gone. At least for me. Think it is related to the clouds. Most of the time it is hard to get a cloudy or heavy overcast sky with the dynamic weather option.

I slowly get the feeling that the left weather options which one can customize with clouds, rain, etc. are using a different engine so to speak. It's maybe like plane goes to point A, weather will be like that here, hicup ! Maybe it is just the clouds causing those random hicups ...

Those occasional stutters every two minutes or so are caused when using the left (custom) weather page. Try setting up dynamic weather (right side) and those hicups are gone. At least for me. Think it is related to the clouds. Most of the time it is hard to get a cloudy or heavy overcast sky with the dynamic weather option.

I slowly get the feeling that the left weather options which one can customize with clouds, rain, etc. are using a different engine so to speak. It's maybe like plane goes to point A, weather will be like that here, hicup ! Maybe it is just the clouds causing those random hicups ...

sorry where is this "weather" option in DCS??

it is in the mission editor, left side there are tabs. think it is the third from top. when you click it you have the option of default or dynamic weather. just use dynamic weather and put two or three systems in it. try and report back

I can confirm what RIVER says above. I switched to the Dynamic Weather and stutters are finaly gone. Thank to you River for sharing your findings :)

Cool :-)) Now we just have to create a heavy cloudy sky just with dynamic weather. I mostly get some clouds or full overcast sky.

And I will try the default aka left non dynamic weather option with NO wind and NO clouds. NO turbulences NADA. If we get hicups and short freezes there it is maybe not related to the cloud system.

Anyone a clue where to report this to the devs so they can have a look at it ?