framerate target 60fps on 120hz monitor

nelly999 · 23 Jan 2013 at 12:10

hi does anybody know if locking the frame rate to 60fps while the monitor is running at 120hz can create or cause problems, would there be some sort of conflict by forcing the gcard to run slower when its trying to display faster as the desktop is on 120hz or does evga precision lock everything to 60hz when it loads on startup, would it be best to set desktop to 60hz aswell, windows 8 has report very heavy usage of system resources at times which appears to be something to do with the gcard..

geforce 680
i7 3770 iveybridge
16gb ram

thanks

blackoctagon · 23 Jan 2013 at 13:23

It should not cause any problems whatsoever. It's just an awful waste of a 120Hz monitor...the whole point of buying a 120Hz monitor (in my view) is so that you can see frames beyond 60 and up to 120fps. Can I ask why you want to lock your framerate at 60?

In any case, there is no requirement that framerates be as high as the refresh rate. If there was such a requirement, people would need 30Hz monitors to game at 30fps.

I'm not sure why Windows 8 is reporting heavy GPU usage. Is this during a game? If so heavy GPU usage is normal? If not then why ask about fps in the first place? I is confused

nelly999 · 23 Jan 2013 at 23:35

hi there thanks for your reply, i think i am confused aswell and really just wanted to understand it better, my resolution is 1920x1080 120hz and my games are running at 60fps so does that mean my monitor is running at 60hz while in a game, or displaying just half what it can do, i need to keep my pc quiete as my daughter is in our room on a night and my pc can get noisey with the gcard doing more....

nelly999 · 23 Jan 2013 at 23:37

also windows 8 has not sent any reports about usage before but i had 3 warnings about my graphics card from windows...

blackoctagon · 24 Jan 2013 at 14:05

What exact monitor do you have, what cable/connector are you using to hook it up, and does Windows report it as being in 120Hz mode?

If you are monitoring with VSync on and the framerate is not going about 60fps, then this means that your monitor is not in 120Hz mode, or that it is and the game is not recognising it for some reason. Ned more details.

Also, consider moving your computer into a room where your daughter isn't sleeping

dacads · 24 Jan 2013 at 15:06

You could invest in a quiet VGA cooler or soundproof your case

nelly999 · 25 Jan 2013 at 01:35

hi thanks for the replies, its a samsung sa950 and i am using a digital dvi cable and my nvidia control panel is set to 1920x1080p 120hz vsync isnt on but i use evga precision x to lock the framerate to 60fps, my concern was my gcard throwing out 120hz then bieng forced to run at 60fps, can it work ok at 120hz with 60fps, is it just like using half your internet bandwidth for instance instead of all of it, i noticed on skyrim the evga framerate lock wasnt on and it was running at 120fps, we are in a bungalow and dont have a lot of room....

MatsyLR · 25 Jan 2013 at 02:04

Really don't get what you are asking.

You have limited your FPS on purpose to 60 via the EVGA precision x software because you are scared your GPU will die or something by running 120hz?

If your GPU is powerfull enough to drive above 60fps and you have a 120hz monitor, by all means let it strut it's stuff, theres no harm in it.
Yes it will work with it locked at 60fps, but theres no reason to do it if your GPU can handle it.

nelly999 · 25 Jan 2013 at 13:15

thanks for your replies...

MarkA · 25 Jan 2013 at 16:41

If you read the post, the chap is basically trying to cut the noise, without causing issues with his gaming (hence the lock at 60fps).

I can't see there being a problem.

You can monitor system resources using task manager at the time of the incident.

shankly1985 · 21 Oct 2013 at 01:50

blackoctagon said:
It should not cause any problems whatsoever. It's just an awful waste of a 120Hz monitor...the whole point of buying a 120Hz monitor (in my view) is so that you can see frames beyond 60 and up to 120fps. Can I ask why you want to lock your framerate at 60?

In any case, there is no requirement that framerates be as high as the refresh rate. If there was such a requirement, people would need 30Hz monitors to game at 30fps.

I'm not sure why Windows 8 is reporting heavy GPU usage. Is this during a game? If so heavy GPU usage is normal? If not then why ask about fps in the first place? I is confused

Frame rate isn't same as hz, so running a game @60fps @120hz is still much better than 60fps @60hz. 60fps @120hz the display is still refreshing the information twice as much so game will be smoother than 60fps @60hz.

You dont need 120fps to enjoy 120hz display

sorry for bump on the thread.

asim18 · 21 Oct 2013 at 03:58

shankly1985 said:
60fps @120hz the display is still refreshing the information twice as much so game will be smoother than 60fps @60hz.

No, it most certainly will not. Unless there is motion interpolation occurring, which is highly unlikely, it will be exactly the same.

Just because the refresh interval is double, doesn't mean there's any effect on the actual frame stream, it merely means two refresh intervals will be used for each frame.

One thing locking 60fps@120Hz could mitigate is screen tearing. For example if the frame stream is 71 fps it cannot be in phase with the 120Hz therefore there will be a phase shift which increases and decreases with time causing tearing. But, if you lock it at 60, it will automatically be in perfect phase with 120. But modern games have tearing protection algorithms built in anyway which lock frame rates to values divisible into the refresh rate, so again, there is theoretically no difference.

shankly1985 · 21 Oct 2013 at 11:22

asim18 said:
No, it most certainly will not. Unless there is motion interpolation occurring, which is highly unlikely, it will be exactly the same.

Just because the refresh interval is double, doesn't mean there's any effect on the actual frame stream, it merely means two refresh intervals will be used for each frame.

One thing locking 60fps@120Hz could mitigate is screen tearing. For example if the frame stream is 71 fps it cannot be in phase with the 120Hz therefore there will be a phase shift which increases and decreases with time causing tearing. But, if you lock it at 60, it will automatically be in perfect phase with 120. But modern games have tearing protection algorithms built in anyway which lock frame rates to values divisible into the refresh rate, so again, there is theoretically no difference.

Sorry but I have tested this..

I can safely say switching BF3 from 60hz @ 60fps to 60fps @120hz they is a massive difference is smoothness. Sure it would be better running 120fps @120hz but demanding games like Battlefield its not quite possible.

Test for yourself.

Read here - http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18546121

PCM2 · 21 Oct 2013 at 14:19

As Mark Rejhon said on the thread linked to there can be a noticeable latency difference (lower frame delay) on the 120Hz monitor even if you're only feeding it 60fps. This is referring, I assume, to the input lag penalty imposed by the frame delay if you're using Vsync. Do you game using Vsync shankly? I too notice a significant difference in how a 120Hz feels in relation to input regardless of frame rate but I can't stand tearing even on a 120Hz display so tend to enable Vsync (and triple buffering). Obviously when I test monitors I test without Vsync as well, just to clarify.

shankly1985 · 21 Oct 2013 at 15:20

PCM2 said:
As Mark Rejhon said on the thread linked to there can be a noticeable latency difference (lower frame delay) on the 120Hz monitor even if you're only feeding it 60fps. This is referring, I assume, to the input lag penalty imposed by the frame delay if you're using Vsync. Do you game using Vsync shankly? I too notice a significant difference in how a 120Hz feels in relation to input regardless of frame rate but I can't stand tearing even on a 120Hz display so tend to enable Vsync (and triple buffering). Obviously when I test monitors I test without Vsync as well, just to clarify.

Yes I use Vsync all the time hate screen tear