Quick and easy technical question

[Project_Mayhem]

Recently, whenever I try to play games, they run fine for a period of time, until what I can only describe as an irregular stuttering occurs at short intervals. It started during Mass Effect 2, so I assumed it was just that game, but upon playing older games, the same thing happened.

I'm in the process of updating the driver for my graphics card, but I'm just checking if anyone's got any other advice.

[psilontech]

Sounds like you have an overheating issue.

Open up your case, clean out the dust and make sure all of your fans are working correctly.

Are you overclocking?

[Project_Mayhem]

Overclocking? I use the computer a lot if that's what you mean

[Siosilvar]

Overclocking? I use the computer a lot if that's what you mean

That'd be a "no". Overclocking is essentially running the computer at what it's actually capable of, not what it was built for.

[Darth Mario]

Overclocking? I use the computer a lot if that's what you mean

That is not what he means. :smalltongue: :smallbiggrin:

In some games, Multicore Rendering is on by default. This can cause some serious stutter problems if you don't turn it off. Try looking for that in your video settings.

[Emlyn]

I'd put money on it being a heating issue, specifically with your graphics card. As mentioned, open your case and clean out the dust but also check to make sure nothing is blocking the fan on the graphics card (such as another card)

[Project_Mayhem]

Uh ... wow.

It turns out that there was some graphics card in my dust.

Seriously - I found dust bunnies.

I'm surprised it was working at all to be honest. Thanks for the advice :smallsmile:

[Dragonus45]

Yea, you should invest in a can of compressed air and inside of your pc with it every so often.

[Triaxx]

Waste of money, just use a vacuum hose on it.

[factotum]

Waste of money, just use a vacuum hose on it.

Not generally a good idea. Firstly, the airflow from a vacuum cleaner is very powerful and could cause smaller fans to overspeed and destroy their bearings. Secondly, the flow of dust and air into the plastic nozzle generates static electricity, which is one thing you really don't want to be introducing to delicate integrated circuits like your CPU and GPU!

[Domochevsky]

Not generally a good idea. Firstly, the airflow from a vacuum cleaner is very powerful and could cause smaller fans to overspeed and destroy their bearings. Secondly, the flow of dust and air into the plastic nozzle generates static electricity, which is one thing you really don't want to be introducing to delicate integrated circuits like your CPU and GPU!

Overspeed a fan that on average spins at about 2000 RPM? :smallconfused:
The plastic may be an issue though, yes. You can work around that by just taking that piece off and use the metal pipe as is. Just make sure the computer is turned off during all this. :smallsmile:

[tyckspoon]

It's actually really easy to overspeed a fan- you can do it by spinning it around with your finger if you shove it too hard.

Don't use a standard vacuum on your computer. If you don't want to pay for a consumable can of air, you can get a small static-free electronics vacuum for ~20 dollars.

[Dashwood]

If you have Windows Vista, or Windows 7: DO NOT USE "SLEEP" MODE FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME! I have used the sleep function to quickly turn on the computer, and if it uses only sleep mode for a few days, it will overheat and stutter. A little after that, my computer begins to shut itself on and off to stop from overheating and damaging the system.

Don't leave your computer running all the time!

[Domochevsky]

It's actually really easy to overspeed a fan- you can do it by spinning it around with your finger if you shove it too hard.

Don't use a standard vacuum on your computer. If you don't want to pay for a consumable can of air, you can get a small static-free electronics vacuum for ~20 dollars.

Hard enough for ~33 rounds per second? I find that unlikely. :smallconfused: (And wouldn't a can of air do the same then?)

[factotum]

Hard enough for ~33 rounds per second? I find that unlikely. :smallconfused: (And wouldn't a can of air do the same then?)

The airflow from a vacuum cleaner is considerably stronger than what you'll get from a can of air, and if the fan is very small (such as the fans that you find on the motherboard chipsets sometimes) the airflow can easy spin it up faster than it's designed to go. In any case, the static is probably the greater issue--you might find you save the £8 or whatever that the can of air would cost you, only to find you've fried your £200 CPU. I know which I think is better value for money!

[Iskandar]

If you have Windows Vista, or Windows 7: DO NOT USE "SLEEP" MODE FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME! I have used the sleep function to quickly turn on the computer, and if it uses only sleep mode for a few days, it will overheat and stutter. A little after that, my computer begins to shut itself on and off to stop from overheating and damaging the system.

Don't leave your computer running all the time!

Odd. I leave my computer running all the time with no problems. Outside of reboots required by updates, this computer has run nearly 24/7 for 5 years with no problems.

In general terms, as long as your cooling is adequate, there is no real reason to turn a computer off outside of saving energy or to do maintenance.

[Triaxx]

I call foul. I vacuum out the computer once every three months to keep out the dust and hair and this one is 5 years old and still running fine.

[factotum]

I call foul. I vacuum out the computer once every three months to keep out the dust and hair and this one is 5 years old and still running fine.

Then you're just very, very lucky. Static electricity is a known killer of integrated circuits, you don't have to take my word for it!