HD7970 capped at 60FPS, not VSYNC

[Aquinus]

Certain methods of VSync will require that the frame render exactly when it is supposed to, so if it goes longer you run into an issue where the computer waits for the next frame at that rate. If you look carefully the frame rates you are getting stuck with look something like this:

60fps, 30fps, 20fps, 15fps, 12fps, and 10fps

Notice that how all of the rame rates are ratios of your maximum frame rate.
1/1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6.

This really sounds like frame rate. Here is the explination on stackexchange.

Originally Posted by StackExchange

While it certainly could be an enforced cap by design (dynamic shadows are "expensive"), this sounds like it could be vsync as well.

Basically (and inaccurately), there is a frame which you see, and a frame which is drawn on. When the drawn one is complete, the contents are passed to the screen for you to see while a new frame is drawn.

In the "olden" days, video was drawn line by line at the upper corner and moving to the lower corner and then there was a delay when the "cursor" reset to the upper corner. The reset happens during a "wait state" (aka swap interval, vertical sync command etc) and the frame would be swapped during this very brief window.

vsync ON means wait for this to swap frames. You get FPS capped at the refresh rate of the monitor, a very stable picture, but fast movement feels choppy.

vsync OFF means don't wait. You get FPS capped at the computer's ability to render it, but you get frames being swapped out while the image is partially rendered (aka "tearing"), but fast movement feels smoother.

With vsync on, if you can't meet or exceed the refresh rate, then the hardware has to pause and wait for the next cycle. This means you wait 2 frames-worth of time to swap. In games, this tends to happen in extended bursts because large amounts of staffage, explosions, etc. taxes hardware. The result is the FPS appears to drop from locked 60 to locked 30.

Plenty of psuedo-technical info here, but that's the gist of it.

Last time I noticed this on my own rig, CCC was forcing VSync on.

[Meatloaf]

Originally Posted by Frag Maniac

VSync isn't limited to specific frame rates like 60, 30, etc. I often times get a varying amount between 55 and 60 with VSync on.

And btw, many have said the AMD Cleanup Utility doesn't in fact uninstall the AMD CAP profiles. They are separately installed files you need to manually remove via Programs and Features.

I get the feeling this has to be something software related. I don't see how a GPU itself could limit you to 60 FPS.

I've never installed any CAP profiles and it has done this over multiple Win7 installs. I agree it has to be software related but I don't know what and that is what I'm seeking.

Originally Posted by Conflict0s

What are you using to view your frame rate?

I use Fraps. Mechwarrior online and LoL also have their own OSD that confirm what Fraps is reading.

Originally Posted by X4K4

i got an HD 4870 at 1920x1080 playing at 130-230 fps and average 144 at lol, LOL (all max out) not that u can see an diferences above 60 but are big numbers :P
as regarding LoL go ingame and change the video settings remove vsync and put the frames at benchmark that should do the trick

My old card was a 4870x2 and I would see no cap in my FPS.

Originally Posted by Aquinus

Certain methods of VSync will require that the frame render exactly when it is supposed to, so if it goes longer you run into an issue where the computer waits for the next frame at that rate. If you look carefully the frame rates you are getting stuck with look something like this:

60fps, 30fps, 20fps, 15fps, 12fps, and 10fps

Notice that how all of the rame rates are ratios of your maximum frame rate.
1/1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6.

This really sounds like frame rate. Here is the explination on stackexchange.



Last time I noticed this on my own rig, CCC was forcing VSync on.

I've double and triple checked. It isn't enabled in CCC. It is set to always off.

[Meatloaf]

Originally Posted by Outback Bronze

Id say its the monitor or tv your using. I sometimes have this same weird issue. I bought a new 60" lcd tv for my htpc and ive got a lp7850 in there and for sum weird reason crysis would cap at 24fps. This never happened on my old tv so i must have a compatiblity issue there somewhere. Did it happen with your old video card? If your got a spare monitor or tv try that and see what happens.

It never did this before on my 4870x2. Only hardware change was from that to the 7970.

[Aquinus]

Originally Posted by Meatloaf

I've double and triple checked. It isn't enabled in CCC. It is set to always off.

How about the games that you're playing? Having it enabled in the game but forced off might introduce framerate caps.

[erocker]

Have you tried using a different display?

I'm quite baffled with this.

[Meatloaf]

Originally Posted by Aquinus

How about the games that you're playing? Having it enabled in the game but forced off might introduce framerate caps.

I've checked and double checked that as well. All are set to off.

[Aquinus]

Originally Posted by Meatloaf

I've checked and double checked that as well. All are set to off.

What are you using to monitor framerate? Also, are your power settings are set to "Performance" and not "Balanced" or "Power Saver"?

[drdeathx]

when you run a benchmark program, does it cap at 60?

[The Mac]

for those of you saying vsync can display fractional FPS under 60fps, It absolutely postivively cannot.

In order to maintain sync with the monitor it MUST drop to 30fps (the next lowest frame rate thats an even quotient of 60). It basically displays the same frame twice.

DYNAMIC VSYNC is the only form of vsync that can. This turns off vsync if it cannot maintain 60fps.

AMD does not support d-vsync (without radeon pro), so that out of the equation.

[TheMailMan78]

Are you using HDMI or DVI?

[Aquinus]

Originally Posted by The Mac

for those of you saying vsync can display fractional FPS under 60fps, It absolutely postivively cannot.

In order to maintain sync with the monitor it MUST drop to 30fps (the next lowest frame rate thats an even quotient of 60). It basically displays the same frame twice.

DYNAMIC VSYNC is the only form of vsync that can. This turns off vsync if it cannot maintain 60fps.

AMD does not support d-vsync (without radeon pro), so that out of the equation.

Not to agree or disagree with you but this isn't the issue at hand. The problem is that his GPU is exhibiting V-Sync characteristics without having V-Sync enabled.

...

Just for s**ts and giggles, maybe throwing a screenshot of your CCC up might show something obvious that we're not thinking of.

[The Mac]

no, it is not.

vsync CANNOT exibit the behavior the OP is describing.

his frame rates are capped/limited.

NOTHING about the OPs post sugests vsync.

op, can you download process explorer, and post a screen shot please?

[LAN_deRf_HA]

Originally Posted by The Mac

no, it is not.

vsync CANNOT exibit the behavior the OP is describing.

his frame rates are capped/limited.

NOTHING about the OPs post sugests vsync.

I haven't seen the behavior you're calling vsync in a long time then. Before adaptive vsync every instance where I used it in a demanding game it would snap down to 40, 30, 20 fps. If that's called dynamic vsync it's the nvidia default and has been for 6 years at least. Can't say for AMD.

[The Mac]

Amd does not have adaptive/dynamic vsync.

Only vanilla vsync.

As you said, vanilla vsync snaps down to the next divisor of 60.

His problem is not doing this, therefore it cannot be Vsync.

[Aquinus]

You know, maybe I'm missing something here but I can go into CCC and force VSync on and run 3DMark 2011 and I can still get frame rates between 30 and 60 fps, it's not like it jumps between the two, at least on my 6870s.

[The Mac]

then something is wrong, that is not what its supposed to do.

AMD does not have dynamic/adaptive vsync, which is what you are describing..

are you using radeon pro and overriding CCC?

or using MSI AB with a 60fps rate limit on?

[Aquinus]

Originally Posted by The Mac

then something is wrong, that is not what its supposed to do.

Well, it's not tearing so it feels like vsync is active. It's not going above 60fps either.

Originally Posted by The Mac

are you using radeon pro and overriding CCC?

No. Radeon Pro is installed but it is not set and it is not running. I'm using CCC to set it.

Originally Posted by The Mac

or using MSI AB with a 60fps rate limit on?

Nope, I don't touch that. Also I run AB when I play games with vsync off to watch the framerate, usage, and temps using the OSD.

Maybe it depends on how the game or driver implements vsync because I've seen plenty of games behave the way you've described it and that is what I knew vsync as. You also have games like Farcry 3 that offers one and two frame vsync. Both of which behave differently depending on drivers and the video card(s).

[The Mac]

yes, ive seen that as well.

Dragonknight Saga, and Assasins Creed comes to mind...

Its the games themselves instituting a frame cap, not vsync.

OP says ALL his games are doing this, not just selected ones.

BTW: RP has a FPS OSD (as well as DX level and usage/temps), if that is the only reason you are using AB, seems extraneous.

[TheMailMan78]

Originally Posted by The Mac

yes, ive seen that as well.

Dragonknight Saga, and Assasins Creed comes to mind...

Its the games themselves instituting a frame cap, not vsync.

OP says ALL his games are doing this, not just selected ones.

BTW: RP has a FPS OSD (as well as DX level and usage/temps), if that is the only reason you are using AB, seems extraneous.

Not all games have caps.

[The Mac]

correct, but OP says ALL his games are capping...

This is his problem

[TheMailMan78]

Originally Posted by The Mac

yes, but OP says all his games are capping...

Which could mean vsync, monitor or cable if he doesn't have any software artificially capping it.

[The Mac]

for the love of pete, ITS NOT VSYNC.

If it was, wouldnt get fractional FPS below 60. only 30, or 20, or 15, or 10.

Its clearly a software issue, if he posts his process explorer screen, we can see whats running.

[TheMailMan78]

Originally Posted by The Mac

for the love of pete, ITS NOT VSYNC.

If it was, wouldnt get fractional FPS below 60. only 30, or 20, or 15, or 10.

Its clearly a software issue, if he posts his process explorer screen, we can see whats running.

That's not true. I turn on Vsync all the time and get 57, 44 etc. FPS. Vsync just caps it at 60FPS to save you from tearing. I bet its a cable issue or a monitor issue IF it isn't an AMD driver problem.

[brandonwh64]

Originally Posted by The Mac

for the love of pete, ITS NOT VSYNC.

If it was, wouldnt get fractional FPS below 60. only 30, or 20, or 15, or 10.

Its clearly a software issue, if he posts his process explorer screen, we can see whats running.

You sure it can not be Vsync?

[The Mac]

no it does not. That is called a framerate cap.

Vsync, by its very nature can only give 60, 30, 20, 15, 10, 5 (for the time being we'll leave 120hz monitors of of this)

only FPS evenly devided into 60. Anything else WOULD NOT BE SYNCED TO THE REFRESH RATE.