Performance isn't fully utilizing the GPU during gameplay.
Performance isn't fully utilizing the GPU during gameplay.
Hello, I recently installed a new PC and noticed the GPU isn't consistently at full capacity. In games, it usually hovers between 30% to 60-70%, while in BeamNG-Drive it stays around 50-60% with about 100-120fps. Sometimes it spikes to 80-90% and then jumps to 170-200fps before dropping back down to 60%. Most of my games perform well at 50-60% usage, though I still want the full potential I paid for. Could be a setting that changes based on performance—sometimes hitting 100% and then dropping. I’m playing at 1080p, 240Hz, all games set to high or ultra. Specs include an RTX 4070 Ti, Ryzen 5 7600X, 850W PSU, 32GB RAM, M.2 SSD, WD Black, etc.
avoid assuming a GPU needs to operate at full capacity. Test the FireStrike benchmark on Steam to observe real performance results.
I've tested flight simulator and achieved 30-50 fps when my GPU wasn't at full capacity. I noticed FPS jumped significantly as the GPU usage rose from 30-50% to 70-80%. I also tried GTA 5 fiveM and reached 90-110 fps on high/ultra settings. When others post benchmarks with similar specs on YouTube, their GPU stays at 90% usage.
I completed Speedway and Time Spy and received these outcomes. It's good that it didn't lag too much, but still, during gameplay it doesn't feel like I'm using a 4070 TI. For instance, with Microsoft Flight Simulator I experienced poor performance—around 40-60fps, far below the expected 120+. I wasn't playing flight sim, just testing it, but it bothers me that it doesn't perform as it should, suggesting something significant is affecting its behavior.
I believe you should explore alternatives to standard CPU-heavy simulators. I'm currently developing examples for both GPU-intensive and CPU-bound Flight Simulator testing. On the left, Cyberpunk at 4K with DLSS+FG shows balanced frame time and GPU usage. The GPU runs at full capacity without the CPU slowing it down. On the right, Half-Life 2 in 1080p (windowed) highlights a significant drop in GPU busy time compared to frame time. Notice how little the GPU is doing while waiting. This extreme case helps emphasize the issue. You can replicate similar analysis using Intel PresentMon—more on that here: https://www.techspot.com/article/2723-intel-presentmon/
Explore Flight Simulator in 4K native on one side and 1080p on the other. Observe the consistent Frame Time and GPU Busy time on the first version, while the 1080p version shows a clearer difference between Frame Time and GPU Busy time. GPU usage is also displayed differently now, dropping from 99%. PresentMon offers great insights for this kind of analysis. https://www.techspot.com/article/2723-intel-presentmon/
This means not all games run at full power constantly; performance depends on the situation. Your test results indicate the system is functioning properly and delivering what you expect. You might want to adjust your frame rate if you're not satisfied with the speed. Keep in mind, PC performance can differ across programs.
Your GPU and CPU performance fluctuates often. If your GPU stays below 97-100%, the issue likely lies with your CPU restricting frames per second or you've set a FPS cap in game or driver settings. V-Sync functions similarly as an FPS restriction tied to your monitor's refresh rate. Yes, your CPU can be limited even when it's not heavily used—many games are designed for single-threaded operation. If one of your cores is fully occupied while others sit idle, you're still CPU-bound despite low utilization. So far, the only game I'm aware of that effectively uses all multicore processors (6+ cores) is Cyberpunk after its 2.0 update. Most titles mainly operate on just one or two threads.