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Stutters with New GPU

Trying an AMD card doesn't make sense when my RTX4070 works great with the same CPU.

And no, trust me the problem isn't obvious.

I have no reason to think it's the Galax card itself.

Let's summarize:
1) System works great with RTX2060
2) System stutters with Galax RTX4070, then the replacement
3) RTX2060 back in system. Stutters gone.
4) Capping FPS (and thus limiting power draw) still stutters. That should rule out the PSU.
5) Clean Windows install
6) fTPM stutter can't be the problem as, again, it didn't stutter with the RTX2060 and he tried it off
7) Different screen tried

*From my point of view, we've pretty much ruled everything out. Some weird issue a BIOS update would fix? I don't see why, but that's all I have at this point.

If you decide to flash the new version of BIOS, be sure to plan for a worst-case. You may need to login to your e-mail on a different computer (Windows made me redo my PIN or something).
It will probably reset your settings so you'll want:
a) UEFI security enabled
b) CSM disabled
c) Fans as you like (I set mine up to reduce noise, but the program I installed "Fan Control" supercedes that once it loads in Windows.)
d) DOCP (XMP) back to default profile
e) ReBAR enabled

And you may get a stupid, confusing note about fTPM security that I muddled through and got working.


NOTHING to do with his problem.
He's swaps in the RTX2060 and it works fine. The games are on an SSD.

I do recommend running Windows on an SSD though. I personally just use a 512GB SSD because I use Macrium Reflect Free to auto-backup my system and I don't want it to be too large. SSD's are pretty cheap now. I'd actually use SATA and save your M.2 slots.
He has tried 2 different 4070s, same issue

One of the first things I tried was to update my BIOS. Meaning I've updated to then the latest version for my board. Is there a chance the latest version fixes this? Doesn't sound like a problem so widespread it might be the case. I don't know.

As I said, at situations like these, I can't help but think the problem is something more... Simple? Maybe? I'm not sure I believe I'm simply lucky enough the powers that be gifted me a problem with such little documentation I (we) need to pioneer the solution.

Everything's well plugged, no artefacts on screen nor crashes, freezes... Gotta be hardware, right? I can always sent the card back to GALAX.
I believe that would be your solution, get money back and switch sides
 
He has tried 2 different 4070s, same issue


I believe that would be your solution, get money back and switch sides
Could be. But it's been a while, not sure I'll be able to get a refund. If I talk real good with them, maybe we can reach an agreement. Not sure. In any case, I didn't really want to change sides to begin with, I bought Nvidia for DLSS, energy efficiency and the price was good.

There's also the change the same thing might happen. Then it would've been in vain.
 
eidaraman1,
I've got an Asus AM4 motherboard.
I've got an RTX4070.
I've got an R7-5700X3D.

Our systems are practically identical but I have no issues. Plus, his RTX2060 worked fine.

Switching to an AMD graphics card for no obvious reason doesn't seem like a good idea.

*Can you TEST the Galax RTX4070 on a friend's system?
(I don't actually know WHY the graphics card would be the issue when I've tried to research. The closest I came was stuff like fTPM stutter and DDR system memory stutter, but that didn't make sense if it worked BEFORE. Honestly, nothing really makes sense so at least if you can swap the card to a DIFFERENT computer you could rule that out. If the card works elsewhere it's something about your HARDWARE that isn't working quite right. Bizarre.)
 
Thing is, only friend I can probably ask lives a birth and a half away. I'll se what I can do.

If anyone has more suggestions, I'm all ears. I'll read them later.
 
'Skimmed the thread.
PSU and/or PSU leads come to mind. Last time I had 'anomalous stutters' on my MI25 and 7900GRE, the 6+2pin power connectors had gotten worn and loose. Manually bending-in the contacts at the cable's plug fixed the issue.
 
after reading this entire thread... only 2 things now ...
one check if it is running at pci-e x16 not 8 or 4 or 2
if thats done the next culprit could be the psu
and last is the motherboard... the thing is 6 years old... since b450 released into the market... but its unlikely in my opinion
 
a) You COULD try the 500W PSU even though it's a bit of a hassle.

Power draw when gaming would be in the neighborhood of 300W. It SHOULD be fine even with spikes. Could the current 650W be experienceing 12V droop that's causing issues with the RTX4070? Unlikely, but there's not much we can test. If it still stutters, then put back the 650W PSU.

b) MEMTEST86 - run a full pass just for peace of mind your DDR4 has no errors (put on USB stick, boot into BIOS and select it as boot device)

c) SSD - I suggest you get an SSD for Windows. Not to troubleshoot per say, but because it's a good idea. If you do that, then TEMPORARILY remove the other drives PRIOR to doing a clean install of W10 (or W11) on the new SSD. TEST for stuttering in a game that should NOT stutter. Maybe run Unigine Heaven benchmark which should run smoothly. Why remove those drives? Because hardware that's UNLIKELY to be an issue is IMPOSSIBLE to be an issue if not attached.

(I've seen weird, weird issues get resolved because a piece of unlikely hardware like a storage drive or USB device was messing things up)

Other:
"check PCIe x16"
Open NVidia Control Panel-> System Information-> BUS
(should say PCIe x16 Gen3)

*I won't be back for a while. The issue feels like it should be hardware. Odd that the RTX2060 worked. Maybe PSU, motherboard or DDR4. Baffling.
 
I don't see it mentioned, but what does various monitoring programs report during the stutters, say GPUz?

What speed is your RAM currently at?
 
It's obviously a graphics card issue since when swapping out the card it goes away -- so something about the 4070 doesn't play nice with the system - grab an AMD card and if that solves the problem there you go. FSR is way better than it used to be and now you have frame gen and XESS also available in many titles DLSS is not as big of a selling point as it once was.
 
FSR is way better than it used to be
Still worse than DLSS from 4 years ago. Unbearable in many titles. ESPECIALLY AT 1080P. And the circus method (1080p → (upscaling: DLSS Performance) 2160p → 1080p (downsampling) for example) isn't always a good idea.

If OP gets a confirmation this GPU works fine in other systems then it's bonkers to swap a GPU.

And I second the OS installation on an SSD. If it doesn't fix the original issue it'll make it much less time consuming at least.
 
'Skimmed the thread.
PSU and/or PSU leads come to mind. Last time I had 'anomalous stutters' on my MI25 and 7900GRE, the 6+2pin power connectors had gotten worn and loose. Manually bending-in the contacts at the cable's plug fixed the issue.
I haven't tried it yet but I guess I'll test the PSU. Not like there's much else, right?

after reading this entire thread... only 2 things now ...
one check if it is running at pci-e x16 not 8 or 4 or 2
if thats done the next culprit could be the psu
and last is the motherboard... the thing is 6 years old... since b450 released into the market... but its unlikely in my opinion
I can confirm it's running at PCie x16. GPU-Z says so.

I'll test the PSU and pray that it's that and not the motherboard, but as I said, as far as telling signs of malfunction go, I've seen none.

a) You COULD try the 500W PSU even though it's a bit of a hassle.

Power draw when gaming would be in the neighborhood of 300W. It SHOULD be fine even with spikes. Could the current 650W be experienceing 12V droop that's causing issues with the RTX4070? Unlikely, but there's not much we can test. If it still stutters, then put back the 650W PSU.

b) MEMTEST86 - run a full pass just for peace of mind your DDR4 has no errors (put on USB stick, boot into BIOS and select it as boot device)

c) SSD - I suggest you get an SSD for Windows. Not to troubleshoot per say, but because it's a good idea. If you do that, then TEMPORARILY remove the other drives PRIOR to doing a clean install of W10 (or W11) on the new SSD. TEST for stuttering in a game that should NOT stutter. Maybe run Unigine Heaven benchmark which should run smoothly. Why remove those drives? Because hardware that's UNLIKELY to be an issue is IMPOSSIBLE to be an issue if not attached.

(I've seen weird, weird issues get resolved because a piece of unlikely hardware like a storage drive or USB device was messing things up)

Other:
"check PCIe x16"
Open NVidia Control Panel-> System Information-> BUS
(should say PCIe x16 Gen3)

*I won't be back for a while. The issue feels like it should be hardware. Odd that the RTX2060 worked. Maybe PSU, motherboard or DDR4. Baffling.
I'll do it, I'll test my old PSU to see if something changes. Nothing to lose.


Suppose I'll do this MEMTEST too.


As last resort I'll see about getting the system to the SSD.

Also, I can confirm is at x16 Gen 3. No problems there.

I don't see it mentioned, but what does various monitoring programs report during the stutters, say GPUz?

What speed is your RAM currently at?

The memory clock varies a bit, but more so on the bigger stutter than the one frame stutters.


RAM's at 3200MHz under D.O.C.P

It's obviously a graphics card issue since when swapping out the card it goes away -- so something about the 4070 doesn't play nice with the system - grab an AMD card and if that solves the problem there you go. FSR is way better than it used to be and now you have frame gen and XESS also available in many titles DLSS is not as big of a selling point as it once was.
As I said to the other guy, I'll need to either know someone who has one or enough doubloons to get one myself. I have none. The GPU + CPU already sucked the budget to themselves.

Plus I don't really want to change sides since I've bought NVIDIA specifically because of DLSS, power efficiency and the good price on the GPU.

Still worse than DLSS from 4 years ago. Unbearable in many titles. ESPECIALLY AT 1080P. And the circus method (1080p → (upscaling: DLSS Performance) 2160p → 1080p (downsampling) for example) isn't always a good idea.

If OP gets a confirmation this GPU works fine in other systems then it's bonkers to swap a GPU.

And I second the OS installation on an SSD. If it doesn't fix the original issue it'll make it much less time consuming at least.
Agreed. I'm very particular about the quality of Upscalling, and having experienced FSR, until it catches up to DLSS, it ain't it.

If everything else fails, I'll get the system on the SSD to see it anything changes.
 
The memory clock varies a bit, but more so on the bigger stutter than the one frame stutters.


RAM's at 3200MHz under D.O.C.P

So no indication the GPU speed or power draw fluctuates at all, or the CPU speed fluctuating?
 
Pci-e Riser cable?
 
It's obviously a graphics card issue since when swapping out the card it goes away -- so something about the 4070 doesn't play nice with the system - grab an AMD card and if that solves the problem there you go. FSR is way better than it used to be and now you have frame gen and XESS also available in many titles DLSS is not as big of a selling point as it once was.
User can always sell the card. But i believe some combinations don't play well with eachother, that happened to me in 2002, Asus P4S8X with a All In Wonder Radeon 9700 Pro, it took several things in bios, even a beta bios. I switched to MSI K7N2 Delta-L and everything ran great out of the box without adjusting anything.
 
So no indication the GPU speed or power draw fluctuates at all, or the CPU speed fluctuating?
Honestly none that I can see. I even enabled the clocks, power but nothing stands out to me. Most stay locked.

Pci-e Riser cable?
No sir.

User can always sell the card. But i believe some combinations don't play well with eachother, that happened to me in 2002, Asus P4S8X with a All In Wonder Radeon 9700 Pro, it took several things in bios, even a beta bios. I switched to MSI K7N2 Delta-L and everything ran great out of the box without adjusting anything.
As last last last resort, yeah, I could sell it.

And my motherboard, well, it isn't exactly new, I keep thinking it might be causing the problem. At this point, I believe I'm just trying to pin the solution to something simple like changing motherboards.
 
I’ve read only the first page of this thread and then decided to write something.

To me an HDD with OS or even game installation is too old and slow for a system like this in 2024. An NVMe 3.0 drive is like 20 times faster than HDDs, read, write and seek times

I would try to determine OS drive usage (% and write/read avg/high speeds) with both cards (2060/4070).
Also the usage of page file and virtual memory with both cards again.

HWiNFO64 sensors mode is your friend for all the above.

I’ve stop using HDDs like 10years ago. Today they are only good for cheap very large storage space that the system never access it for anything essential.
 
I’ve read only the first page of this thread and then decided to write something.

To me an HDD with OS or even game installation is too old and slow for a system like this in 2024. An NVMe 3.0 drive is like 20 times faster than HDDs, read, write and seek times

I would try to determine OS drive usage (% and write/read avg/high speeds) with both cards (2060/4070).
Also the usage of page file and virtual memory with both cards again.

HWiNFO64 sensors mode is your friend for all the above.

I’ve stop using HDDs like 10years ago. Today they are only good for cheap very large storage space that the system never access it for anything essential.
I've since changed both upgraded to Windows 11 & put it on an NVME. As far as the 4070 goes, no change, but the good news is that GALAX themselves offered to do receive the card and do a live testing with me. So, I'll take that up and report back.

Though, I've noticed something, when playing Battlefield V with my 2060 like I used to, from time to time, the game freezes for a moment before resuming. Any idea of what that might be?
 
I've since changed both upgraded to Windows 11 & put it on an NVME. As far as the 4070 goes, no change, but the good news is that GALAX themselves offered to do receive the card and do a live testing with me. So, I'll take that up and report back.

Though, I've noticed something, when playing Battlefield V with my 2060 like I used to, from time to time, the game freezes for a moment before resuming. Any idea of what that might be?
Ok, but didnt you test-use 2x4070s?
 
100% your PSU. It isn't providing enough wattage to the GPU and while these new gpu's use on average low power, their spikes are extremely high, which can cause a stutter every time they happen.

Nvidia's TDP are utter scam, their cards intentionally report lower power draw, they actually have very high spikes and that is why most even require a 12pin PSU.

Nvidia lies and cheats about their wattage, to appear better than AMD, in reality their gpu's have extremely high spikes. That is why you'd see Nvidia recommending a 700W PSU for a 250w GPU, because in reality that GPU is consuming as much as 500W in occasional spikes.
 
try windows 11 24H2 just for the shits and giggles of it, with up to date drivers chipset and gpu

and see if that fixes your issue.
 
Whats your load temperatures?
 
100% your PSU. It isn't providing enough wattage to the GPU and while these new gpu's use on average low power, their spikes are extremely high, which can cause a stutter every time they happen.

Nvidia's TDP are utter scam, their cards intentionally report lower power draw, they actually have very high spikes and that is why most even require a 12pin PSU.

Nvidia lies and cheats about their wattage, to appear better than AMD, in reality their gpu's have extremely high spikes. That is why you'd see Nvidia recommending a 700W PSU for a 250w GPU, because in reality that GPU is consuming as much as 500W in occasional spikes.
Got myself a new 850W GOLD PSU late last year and I can now confirm it's not the case. For a moment I believed that was it. After all, compared to all my setup, in terms of quality, the PSU wasn't up to par. But yeah, unfortunately, it isn't it.

I only have one option remaining: Motherboard.

If it's not it either, I might as well get a exorcist or something.

Whats your load temperatures?
GPU never even goes past 60ºC

The CPU hovers around that ballpark.

I'm posting this as an UPDATE on the situation.

Since November 2024 when I wrote all this, I got myself a new 850W GOLD PSU from XPG and I can safely say power supply isn't the issue.

Also got a new third 4070, guess what? Same thing. Granted I see no other option (if not for accepting I'm really lucky enough to get three bad cards in a roll) I'll look into a new motherboard.

If anyone having read this whole thread has any idea what could be the problem a motherboard problem, I'll appreciate the suggestion.

"What if you buy another motherboard and it still doesn't work?"

I don't know. I really don't. I'll call an exorcist or something. Technology sure knows how to be a pain in the soul.
 
You replaced all the spinning rust with SATA SSD or nvme correct? Many modern games require an SSD now.

And yes, it may be time to make an offering to the Omnissiah, brother.
 
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