Analysis of performance drop - Could it be thermal throttling or another factor?
Analysis of performance drop - Could it be thermal throttling or another factor?
Updates! Switching to DX11 resolved the issue entirely. I don’t understand why, but DX12 seems harmful to this machine. Hello! I just purchased an Acer Nitro V 15 with a Ryzen 7 7735HS and an RTX 4060. This device should manage the games I play without problems, and it does for about half an hour. I’m familiar with thermal throttling from my desktop, but what bothers me is that temperatures stay low here. I plan to play Fortnite for 30 minutes with my partner, and the performance drops from a solid 60 (it can reach 120) to under 20 by match end. I’ll also try Helldivers 2, same situation. By the finish line, FPS is erratic on an easy level with few enemies visible. I’ve attempted various fixes—limiting power, boosting fans—but nothing helps. The Nitrosense tool and MSI Afterburner both show temps under 70 during play. I’ve attached a video I recorded today demonstrating the performance drop during a short (chopped and sped-up) Helldivers 2 session, with a Steam overlay visible. It appears normal at first, but quickly becomes frustrating. I’m using the Windows Ultimate Performance profile (added via CMD; someone suggested it might raise throttle limits, but it didn’t). Fans ran at full speed in Nitrosense settings. Am I overheating, or is the laptop’s reporting faulty? Could another factor be at play? I’m aware that thermal paste/pads can wear over time, but this was a brand-new sealed unit. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! Check out the video if you want to see it yourself! Edited August 14, 2025 by Chumphausen Solved
Known for laptops to heat up easily and manage thermal throttling effectively. There are tools available to monitor temperatures and log data when performance drops, though drops do occur. You might check CPU and GPU clock speeds to verify if you're reaching advertised performance. If temperatures rise, the system will reduce speed to prevent overheating and potential damage. hwinfo is a useful resource. Edited August 13, 2025 by thrasher_565
Watch the video and you'll understand what I'm saying. Temperatures rise significantly while CPU/GPU activity remains minimal, yet the frame rate continues to decline.
GPU performance needs to be strong. For optimal gaming, the graphics card should operate at its maximum capacity.
It's really unclear. The GPU has been under heavy use only when I was creating the video.
Just checked HWinfo, played 30 minutes of Fortnite again, and none of my temps hit the high 50s—only SSD reached 65. Still puzzling.
I'll take it later, savoring some games with my partner finally.