Constant Stuttering Frequence since 30th of May update

[ejbhimself]

vor 5 Stunden schrieb Flanker35M:

S!

And again some more testing. So the culprit for "hacksaw" effect was indeed the VSync(in game). If using GPU setting = no hacksaw. But still had the spikes of the green graph(simulation). So as a last resort turned off Full Screen, ALL stutters and spiking gone! Smooth as butter again and could even up my settings a bit without performance loss. A happy camper!

what exactly has your solution bee? just opting for windowed mode? i obviously want to replicate, if possible. first and foremost, congratulations for getting a solution, and happy flying!

[Dangerzone]

12 hours ago, Flanker35M said:

S!

And again some more testing. So the culprit for "hacksaw" effect was indeed the VSync(in game). If using GPU setting = no hacksaw. But still had the spikes of the green graph(simulation). So as a last resort turned off Full Screen, ALL stutters and spiking gone! Smooth as butter again and could even up my settings a bit without performance loss. A happy camper!

Can you please expand on this for the rest of us. Are you saying you had VSync on in DCS, and turned it off? (And have it nowhere now)? 

Are you also saying that turning off Full Screen fixed all your stutters. 

And lastly - can you clarify if you're running 2D or VR? Thanks. 

[YoYo]

The only solution can be a fix from ED. Otherwise it's a placebo. The problem is that currently DCS loads all modules, not just the one you're using as it was before 4 patches earlier. So how on earth would changing v-sync (which by the way doesn't affect VR) prevent any stuttering? The current problem that appears is also sometimes there and sometimes not. So you should test your solution for at least a few days to see if it reappears or not. Of course, there may be some individual cases that are related to your own hardware configuration and software settings. Someone may have an eco power management mode or a CPU that is parking. These things may possibly affect performance as well.

[Flanker35M]

S!

So to elaborate my problem. I ran the sim on a RX6950XT and it was a smooth solid 100fps experience. I used the in-game fps limiter set to 105fps as my monitor is a 100Hz one. And used in game VSync, not forcing it thru drivers. So it ran very fine and dandy. Now I have installed a RX9070XT and expected it to run easily at same graphics settings etc. But the latest patches either broke the game or DCS does not like 9070XT. I believe it was the first option.

I enabled the in-game FPS/performance window to see what was going on. I got high spikes of the green graph(simulation) and that caused FPS drops and outright pauses and stuttering. And when flying low the frametime graph(white) looked like a hacksaw and you could see how it stuttered and lagged. When flying higher the problem was not there except the green graph still spiking at variable intervals.

 So what I did was to got thru a process of elimination ie. going through graphical settings one by one and noting which one caused or remedied the issues. And after a lot of rear end numbing instant action flying over the same spot of the Channel map it became clear that the hacksaw effect was caused by in-game VSync. If using GPU driver VSync the issue was stll there but less. So when frametime graph(white) was ok I focused on the simulation spikes(green). No setting whatsoever helped this except turning off Full screen. That removed the spiking and pauses.

So now I am running windowed mode without VSync and limited FPS to 240 in game thru the own limiter. Everything runs smooth and tearing is non-existent or minimal while frame time is under 10ms. No spiking or hacksaw, just smooth and consistent performance. Hope this helped. And running 2D.

Edited June 7 by Flanker35M

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

12 hours ago, YoYo said:

The only solution can be a fix from ED. Otherwise it's a placebo.

Pretty much this. These last few patches introduced the first framerate/frametime problems I experienced in a long time, so at first I blamed windows update, but no other games has any issues so it definitely is caused by ED. I tried a whole list of different settings but nothing changes the headache-inducing stuttering. The only thing we can do is hope for a hotfix soon...

[Raven434th]

try this ...with AMD cards...If i have anti lag enabled in adrenaline software settings...I get stutter...when I disable it ,it's smooth as glass.

Edited June 7 by Raven434th

[mrsylvestre]

Another report of returning stutter here. I had a very smooth experience for months before, both in 2D and VR stable 72 fps. Trouble started with the DCS version that increased the CPU load in the main menu for no reason. This has been fixed by ED since, but there is now a lot of stuttering in game (like one every 2 seconds), very disturbing once you have been accustomed to a fluid experience. It is worse at low level but it is also very visible in WWII dogfights at any altitude, where a bandit that is being chased appears to stutter too. It happens both on my daily driver windows 10 PC and also on a fresh system with only Windows 11, the display driver, Virtual Desktop and DCS installed. Both systems started to behave badly after the same DCS updates. I also note occasional sound issues (mostly at the start of missions) in VR that I don't recall ever noticing before.

I just spent the day trying the usual fixes (windows game mode on/off, limiting frame rate in the game or not, limiting frame rate in the driver or not, vsync, no vsync, full screen or windowed, disable full screen optimisations for the executable or not) to no avail.

My feeling is that there is something fishy with DCS multitasking at this point. The damning evidence is that going low on settings for the graphics and lowering the resolution does not make the stutter disappear. I see no solution other than to revert to an earlier version of DCS World, again.

[Rene Coulon]

11 hours ago, mrsylvestre said:

Another report of returning stutter here. I had a very smooth experience for months before, both in 2D and VR stable 72 fps. Trouble started with the DCS version that increased the CPU load in the main menu for no reason. This has been fixed by ED since, but there is now a lot of stuttering in game (like one every 2 seconds), very disturbing once you have been accustomed to a fluid experience. It is worse at low level but it is also very visible in WWII dogfights at any altitude, where a bandit that is being chased appears to stutter too. It happens both on my daily driver windows 10 PC and also on a fresh system with only Windows 11, the display driver, Virtual Desktop and DCS installed. Both systems started to behave badly after the same DCS updates. I also note occasional sound issues (mostly at the start of missions) in VR that I don't recall ever noticing before.

I just spent the day trying the usual fixes (windows game mode on/off, limiting frame rate in the game or not, limiting frame rate in the driver or not, vsync, no vsync, full screen or windowed, disable full screen optimisations for the executable or not) to no avail.

My feeling is that there is something fishy with DCS multitasking at this point. The damning evidence is that going low on settings for the graphics and lowering the resolution does not make the stutter disappear. I see no solution other than to revert to an earlier version of DCS World, again.

Its super frustrating that we are here again......I agree, the last 2 "Updates "...have definately caused a new stutter.

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

14 hours ago, Raven434th said:

try this ...with AMD cards...If i have anti lag enabled in adrenaline software settings...I get stutter...when I disable it ,it's smooth as glass.

Glad this worked for you, but this is general advice (same counts for nVidia btw) that doesn't really have anything to do with this particular issue.
Anti-lag and Reflex have their uses but mindlessly turning them on for everything and then forgetting about it is a bad idea. There are videos on YT explaining how that tech works (Gamers Nexus has one I believe) for those who want to know *why* it can lead to worse performance. In Nvidia's case there's even a tooltip warning users that turning it on potentially leads to worse framerates and can introduce stuttering.

[BIGNEWY]

please be sure you are posting your dcs log, dxdiag and a track replay if possible so we can try to diagnose why it is happening for some people and not others. 

thank you 

On 6/3/2025 at 5:59 PM, Flanker35M said:

S!

This is how DCS looks with it´s built in metrics after latest updates. Before it ran buttersmooth. To test this one just go to Fw190A or any plane of that matter, select The Channel, Free flight and fly over the city at the coast looking to either side from cockpit.

 

 

dcs.log 272.13 kB · 6 downloads

Hi,

I dont see anything obvious in your log 

Advice
 
Verify that this is configured correctly in Windows:
Game Mode disabled,
Hardware accelerated GPU scheduling disabled

Tuning Tips
 
Consider using TAA instead of MSAA.,
If you have FPS issues, try turning off VSYNC in graphics settings

On 6/4/2025 at 8:16 PM, Flanker35M said:

S!

Some more stuttering. I got rid of the "hacksaw" effect by not using VSync, but limited FPS within game. Not really keen to fly before this is solved  Track and log attached.

dcs.log 272.84 kB · 7 downloads LastMissionTrack.trk 6.88 MB · 4 downloads

Can you also try using TAA instead of MSAA and let me know if it helps 

thanks 

[BIGNEWY]

On 6/5/2025 at 6:54 PM, dutchili said:

no stutters, but crashes that are not mentioned in the dcs.log.
Here is an example. After about 20 minutes of flying, the video froze, sound continued for a minute, then a full system reboot. Not an incident.

dcs.log 200.67 kB · 7 downloads

DxDiag.txt 100.67 kB · 6 downloads

Custom Mods
Civil Aircraft Mod,SMAO 2.0,DCS-SRS,Military Aircraft Mod,Tacview,Hercules ver 6.8.2,SAMSitesAssetPackBeta19

The Integrity Check failed
Delete all unofficial mods and do a repair of DCS.

Verify that this is configured correctly in Windows:
Game Mode disabled,
Hardware accelerated GPU scheduling disabled,
Core Isolation disabled

Make sure the gpu driver is up to date, there was an issue with the version you have. 

Disable tackview just to check its not creating a problem. 

Windows Error Reporting (WER)
Your system crashes with Bluescreens.
The following kernel-events have been detected:
DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION
Remove any overclocking (including XMP).,
Run SFC and DISM to check your Windows.,
Check for any updates of your BIOS or chipset drivers.,
Application Errors
InstalledPackagesAgent.exe: c0000005 (InstalledPackagesAgent.exe)
DeviceSetting.exe: was hung for 63.99s and killed

[dutchili]

Things seem better with NVidia driver 576.66

 

(no need to blame mod's that are known good)

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

This is what I normally see when I open the in-game frametime counter (first image):
 

Second and third is what I am seeing now...

I didn't change any drivers, driver settings nor anything in BIOS. Windows settings are still the same too.
I did test adding bkg_load_all_plugins = false to autoexec.cfg and bkg_load_signed_plugins = false (in another sesstion, not both of those commands at the same time) but that didn't change anything (not about the stuttering anyway).
Of note is that I see that same stuttering and the CPU BOUND MAIN THREAD on the main menu.

Added info:
- I am not using any mods;
- I ran a slow repair twice;
- I have always set any game folder as exclusions in my AV (Windows Defender).

dcs.log

Edited June 9 by Raven (Elysian Angel)

[Flanker35M]

S!

@BIGNEWY I solved the issue by going Windowed instead of Fullscreen. I do not use MSAA or TAA. Particularly TAA is very problematic on AMD cards as it makes graphics too soft and there are graphical issues on planes, buildings etc. not drawing correctly + ghosting. I can live with a few jaggies and not use AA. As of Game mode and HAGS are both disabled. I do not force any settings thru GPU driver ie. using "Application controlled" for all. BIOS, chipset and GPU drivers are latest WHQL ones.

Edited June 9 by Flanker35M

[Flanker35M]

S!

Issue not solved  Started game and the stuttering and simulation graph spiking was back. Attached logs etc.

DxDiag.txt dcs.log LastMissionTrack.trk

[ejbhimself]

can confirm that it's bound to some sort of terrain-processing issue, or at least an issue regarding the terrain coincides with the issue in question, since i just moved an entire mission with multiple planes and ships right into the ocean in persia in order to avoid having to look at any sort of ground that's not water. the issue isn't there if i start from the carrier and stay over water. the overall performance isn't as good since the last update, so i get lag- and minifreeze problems here and there, but that might be connected to a lot of different problems, dealt with in other threads. the problem i was talking about is terrain-related, to whatever degree, and lines up with what others mentioned.

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

4 hours ago, ejbhimself said:

bound to some sort of terrain-processing issue

That would make sense, as I often get those stutters (see graphs above) when looking down. Funnily enough, I get no stutters when flying inverted, but when I roll back to a normal attitude they start again: the frametime graph shows the green line (simulation) increasing in frame time to match the white line, and I get CPU BOUND MAIN THREAD (red) displayed.

Btw this is still happening after switching to a new PC with fresh Windows installation, so this is not bound to the specific hardware setup I was using.

[rem27]

On 6/9/2025 at 4:05 PM, Raven (Elysian Angel) said:

This is what I normally see when I open the in-game frametime counter (first image):
 

Second and third is what I am seeing now...

I didn't change any drivers, driver settings nor anything in BIOS. Windows settings are still the same too.
I did test adding bkg_load_all_plugins = false to autoexec.cfg and bkg_load_signed_plugins = false (in another sesstion, not both of those commands at the same time) but that didn't change anything (not about the stuttering anyway).
Of note is that I see that same stuttering and the CPU BOUND MAIN THREAD on the main menu.

Added info:
- I am not using any mods;
- I ran a slow repair twice;
- I have always set any game folder as exclusions in my AV (Windows Defender).

dcs.log 158.89 kB · 6 downloads

Exactly the same here. I was having constant 90fps and now it is dropping from 90 to 45 as your second Image.

I notice also that NVIDIA in game fps counter (Nvidia HUD) is showing 5-30 fps in Game

[YoYo]

After 2 weeks of testing, no any issue now with DCS, this entry in autoexec.cfg fixed problems last updates for me:

 

[rem27]

11 hours ago, YoYo said:

After 2 weeks of testing, no any issue now with DCS, this entry in autoexec.cfg fixed problems last updates for me:

 

Thousand thanks YoYo, your advice work perfectly for me.

thank you

cheers

[Flanker35M]

S!

Have tried everything found on forums etc. No help. Still spiking accompanied with FPS dip. Also the built in FPS meter shows main thread flashing red at times etc. I have given up and waiting for future patches.

[ejbhimself]

problem persits after update (although i guess nothing's been attempted, since the team's been silent here). bought the corsair, trainingmissions are pretty much unplayable for this reason.

[ejbhimself]

ed-team: there's been a major decrease of lag today. it's been smooth in ways not seen since the update in question, and i'm checking every day. have you been doing anything, some sort of non-announced mini patch? otherwise, it has to be observed as usual, but it's been playable in a way making it hard to believe that it just happened without anyone touching anything. 

[BIGNEWY]

32 minutes ago, ejbhimself said:

ed-team: there's been a major decrease of lag today. it's been smooth in ways not seen since the update in question, and i'm checking every day. have you been doing anything, some sort of non-announced mini patch? otherwise, it has to be observed as usual, but it's been playable in a way making it hard to believe that it just happened without anyone touching anything. 

Good to hear you have improvement. We have not had any patch or made any changes. 

So what did you change? 

 

[SOLIDKREATE]

This has been happening since the last update for me. If I use the outside view camera to view the skin I just made for mistsakes, it stutters when rotating around. This game itseld is taking a lkarge amount of time to even boot up too. It even takes forever to shut down. 

LOG FILES.zip