# [SOLVED] Frequent lag spikes when gaming



## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

Hi, this is my first post here and I would be very grateful if someone could help me with this, because it has been really annoying me recently.

So, the problem I'm having with all games that I have played so far (Just Cause 2, Battlefield 3, Company of Heroes) is that after about an hour or so of playing, (when the fan starts to work a bit harder it seems) I encounter major lag spikes. My FPS will drop from about 60 to 10 and stay there for about 20 seconds, then go back up to 60. This keeps repeating.

My laptop does meet all the specs for these games, and I don't run them on max settings anyway to increase FPS.

My system specs
Brand: Samsung notebook
Model: NP550P7C-S02UK (Series 5 high performance)
GPU: Nvidia GeForce GT650M 2GB GDDR3 (latest beta drivers)
RAM: 6GB DDR3
CPU: 3rd gen ivy bridge i7-3610QM @ 2.3ghz
HDD: 1TB 5400rpm
Link to full specs

Causes I have ruled out

Antivirus software
Preinstalled crap causing problems (I did a fresh install of Windows)
Random programs hogging CPU/memory usage
Drivers (I updated to the beta verde drivers today)
Overheating caused by dust clogs (laptop is a few weeks old)
Graphics settings (I've adjusted everything according to guides)

I'm running out of ideas on how to solve this :S Oh and here are the GPU and CPU temps when idle and under heavy load gaming:

GPU - Idle - 40 degrees celsius
Load - 80

CPU - Idle - 45
Load - 80

I haven't made any changes to the hardware.

Thanks!


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

Hello phototronic, welcome to TSF!

This really does sound like a temperature problems (as you said, it tends to happen when the fan works harder), and I know you said it wasn't due to overheating, but I'd still like to see the temperatures for myself to make a conclusion about it.

So can you please download HWMonitor from my signature? Have it running and take a screenshot of it when you experience the lag and post it here.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

I've just downloaded it, and as soon as an update for Battlefield 3 installs, I'll post the screenshot.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

I return with a screenshot. This was after about 20 minutes of playing:









EDIT: when the CPU and GPU are idling, the temperatures are far less as I said, at about 40 degrees celsius.


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

Your cores seem a bit high which could be the problem. Unfortunately since you have a laptop there's no (easy) fix to this if it is in fact the issue.

Does this happen on lower settings?


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## aareleb (Nov 20, 2011)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

Is your laptop on a flat surface? If you have it sitting on your lap or a bed the clothing or blankets will block the CPU vents this will over heat the CPU.
You also can try a Laptop cooling fan. Other then that what Zerdus said is correct this is not an easy fix on a laptop.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*



Zerdus said:


> Your cores seem a bit high which could be the problem. Unfortunately since you have a laptop there's no (easy) fix to this if it is in fact the issue.
> 
> Does this happen on lower settings?


Yes, this happens on all settings on all games. However, and perhaps this could be important: *it doesn't happen in Portal 2*. I played this for a long time to see what would happen and I don't seem to get the same lag.

Something else that I should mention is that *I'm outputting the laptop display via HDMI to a monitor* (I'm not running higher than the recommended resolution for the card though. I'm also only using one display obviously). I can go to test this now, but from the limited time I've played on the laptop screen itself, and not the monitor, I didn't experience the lag spikes, but that's probably down to not playing for long enough.

Overall, this had led me to believe that it may be a software issue, but I'm not sure. The hard drive is quite slow also, I don't know whether that may contribute to it (but I have defragged it).

EDIT: when I said all settings, what I did was change the graphics settings to lowest once the lag started (didn't restart the game or anything), and it continued.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*



aareleb said:


> Is your laptop on a flat surface? If you have it sitting on your lap or a bed the clothing or blankets will block the CPU vents this will over heat the CPU.
> You also can try a Laptop cooling fan. Other then that what Zerdus said is correct this is not an easy fix on a laptop.


It's currently on a flat wooden desk. To improve airflow, I attached rubber feet to the base of the laptop and moved the fan side away from any obstructions. However, I know wood is a better insulator of heat than metal, so would investing in a metal desk be a good idea? 

I considered buying a laptop cooling fan but from reviews I have read in the past, they seem to make a minimal difference unless your laptop really is on the edge of shutting down due to overheating.


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## Zerdus (Sep 6, 2009)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*

Try turning graphics settings to the lowest possible as soon as you start playing instead of only when the lag occurs and see what happens.

About the cooling, investing in a metal desk could be a good idea but that by itself wouldn't really change the heat significantly.

Make sure that the room your laptop is in is well ventilated or air conditioned so that the room temperature doesn't negatively effect the temperature of your laptop.

Also, you could try putting the laptop on a surface that isn't wood and play the game for a while and see if that makes a difference. If it does, getting a metal desk may be a good idea.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*



Zerdus said:


> Try turning graphics settings to the lowest possible as soon as you start playing instead of only when the lag occurs and see what happens.
> 
> About the cooling, investing in a metal desk could be a good idea but that by itself wouldn't really change the heat significantly.
> 
> ...


I tried running the graphics on low but the lag still occurs. I think it probably is as a result of the CPU and GPU reaching too high temperatures, because the CPU temperature even got all the way up to 90 degrees celsius after a longer period of play. Rather than buying a desk, I thought I would buy just a laptop stand with a built in fan like this:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Antec-NOTEBOOK-COOLER-200-Notebook/dp/B001GMR6T4

Although that one is particularly expensive :/ I also gave this one a look:
ZM-NC2500 Plus Notebook cooler


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## SkyStormKuja (Apr 6, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*



> I considered buying a laptop cooling fan but from reviews I have read in the past, they seem to make a minimal difference unless your laptop really is on the edge of shutting down due to overheating.


Well, actually, my laptop has vicious framerate drops as well when it gets hot, but when I use a laptop cooling stand, it drops the temperature significantly, and also reduces the lag considerably. I would recommend it to anyone that play graphics heavy games on a laptop.

Edit : 


> Rather than buying a desk, I thought I would buy just a laptop stand with a built in fan like this:
> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Antec-NOTEBO.../dp/B001GMR6T4


That one is similar to the one I use, and really makes a difference.


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## phototronic (Jun 19, 2012)

*Re: Frequent lag spikes when gaming*



SkyStormKuja said:


> Well, actually, my laptop has vicious framerate drops as well when it gets hot, but when I use a laptop cooling stand, it drops the temperature significantly, and also reduces the lag considerably. I would recommend it to anyone that play graphics heavy games on a laptop.
> 
> Edit :
> 
> That one is similar to the one I use, and really makes a difference.


Thanks for the advice! I may as well mark this thread as solved now, because I have decided to buy a Zalman Laptop Cooler which received good reviews and was not too expensive. After thinking about the problem a bit more I'm fairly confident that it is the temperature that is causing the lag, so thanks everyone for your input


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## gape1964 (Dec 6, 2012)

I solved the problem :-

I have this laptop and had problems with Far Cry 3 throttling.
To fix it I removed the battery ( dont ask why !! lol ) and changed the system cooling policy to ACTIVE in processor power management
this kicks the fan in if it gets hot rather than slowing the processor down .
the default is to slow the processor down first before the fan kicks in !!

it worked for me as i can play FC3 on high setting for hours now where I used to get FPS down to 10 withing 20 mins


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