Random FPS and GPU load drops on MSI GE62 2QF. Help needed.

f-2041

Commendable
Mar 27, 2016
2
0
1,510
I've recently bought an MSI GE62 2QF laptop, equipped with an Nvidia GTX 970M graphics card. Despite having a good average performance while playing games, I experience some deep framerate drops randomly, for about a second, which don't really relate to the game being more demanding in that moment (which usually isn't the case).

I've monitored GPU activity with GPU-Z, and I've realised that when those drops occur, the GPU usage drops abruptly. I've also monitored temperatures, as well as CPU, HDD and memory loads, and everything else looks okay. So I'd say that it's some kind of software/driver problem (or maybe a faulty 970M chip?). It's not a matter of the game, as it happens regardless of which game I am in, and regardless if it is online/offline (I checked this, as the stutter caused by the drops feels like when you're having lag, but it isn't the casue, as it happens in single player games too). It isn't vsync related neither, as it happens without it.

I thought it could be the drivers, but I do have the latest ones (Nvidia, as well as Intel integrated ones), with clean reinstalls, after uninstalling the previous ones with DDU, so I don't really have any idea about what could be causing the issue. The laptop was a FreeDOS one, but I installed Win10 and the CD drivers that came in the box. This thing is happening with that drivers, with the MSI web ones, and even with the most updated ones. However, I am sure it's not normal, as it reveals the drop in GPU usage. Any idea about any possible cause?

I've attached a GPU-Z screenshoot, with monitoring of a CS:GO match. It can be seen how there are some random drops into the 40% GPU load (I've marked one of those). The game has an FPS cap, so it doesn't reach 100% usage, but other games do and the drops are there (always into the 40%, don't know why).

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Hi,

Does this happen as well even the laptop is plugged into it's AC adapter?
- Start by testing your laptop with it connected to its AC adapter, observe it again while you're playing game and see if you'll still see that fluctuation.
- If the same problem will persist change the Nvidia Power Management setting into Adaptive.
- Here's how: http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2615/~/how-do-i-customize-optimus-profiles-and-settings%3F
- If these steps will still not work do another clean install of the graphics card driver. Please use the link below for the guide.
- http://www.tomshardware.com/faq/id-2767677/clean-graphics-driver-install-windows.html
- And if all these will not work I would also suggest reinstalling Windows 10.
 

f-2041

Commendable
Mar 27, 2016
2
0
1,510
Hi, thanks for the reply. Yeah, that screenshot was with the laptop plugged in. I already tried different modes in Nvidia Power Management, and it didn't make a difference. Same with Windows high performance mode. I've done more than one clean reinstall of the drivers, and tried older iterations, as well as a full reinstall of windows 10, and the issue keeped happening.

The last thing I've tried is to monitor hardware in-game using HWiNFO64 and RTSS and that, unexpectedly, significantly reduces the frequency of the drops. I'm wondering if it could be something related to Nvidia Optimus trying to switch to Intel integrated graphics or something. If that's the case, maybe HWiNFO continuously reading the VGA sensors avoids Optimus glitches, but don't have any proof.