Need help troubleshooting the source of in game lag (non-internet lag).

[Perscitus]

Cliff note version:

• Game is lagging, specifically FFXIV
  
• I updated the videocard driver, enabled DX11, and used razor cortex to try and help. (seemed to at first, but a few days later the lag returned.)
  
• This is a fresh install of windows, I have AV running and have checked for infections, none found.
  
• I've turned the AV while playing to see if it contributed. Did the same with other applications... No fixed it.
  
• waiting for next move...
  

 

 

My system specs:

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge @ 3.3GHz

ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3

Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB 256-Bit GDDR5

G.SKILL Sniper Series (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900)

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB

Samsung 840 EVO MZ-7TE250BW 2.5" 250GB SATA 6Gb/s (SSD)

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R1

Samsung SH-S183L

Antec Nine Hundred

Silverstone SST-ST75ZF 750W

 

 

Notes on system specs:

PSU is from (8/2007)

cpu, mobo, & memory are from (12/2011)

Video card is from (12/2014)

SSD is from (12/2014 but didn't take out of box till 6/2015)

Windows 7 64bit is on SSD, FFXIV is also on SSD

 

 

 

Detailed version:

I have been getting significant issues with lag recently in games I play. It seems to be primarily in FFXIV, but since I mostly play that game it is hard to compare against others fairly. A few hours of LOL seemed to run without any issue though. I have played FFXIV while pinging the local hub for my ISP and google.com (at the same time). During that time the game lagged heavily while the pings remained steady. This along with other players not experiencing the lag issues leads me to believe it is on the hardware or software/driver end.

 

I have taken the following steps to correct the issue, but haven't had a perminent fix yet. Initally the game was running on DX9c (I didn't realize I had to enable DX11), I have done that and run it on DX11 since. My videocard driver has been updated to the most recent update. I also have tried installing razor cortex and running the game with that to help improve the problem, and for a few days it seemed to do the trick... But then the lag came back. I continue to confirm it is only me having the problem and that it isn't an internet issue. 

 

My computer is running a fresh install of windows 7, I recently (problem happened next day after install) installed the OS to my new SSD. So this is a fresh windows with Anti-Virus running and I have scanned to confirm. I also have played the game with no extra applications running in background, both with Anti-Virus on and off. Nothing is correcting the lag.

 

Where should I go from here? I would like to diagnose the source of the problem but not sure what's next. Looking for recommendations.

[bp9801]

Does the lag happen in offline games or mainly just online? How fast is your Internet connection? Wired or wireless?

[Perscitus]

I only really play online so there is no offline sample.. I have fios with a very stable connection. I think it was 60Mbps up and down from speedtest when I ran it a week ago. I don't think it is lag from network problems, my connections seem OK. In-game lag will be awful but I'll be pinging steady to multiple locations.

[bp9801]

Did you grab the performance fix for the SSD? The Magician download from here.

 

Maybe try an offline game, just to better figure out what may be causing the lag.

 

Are you overclocked any and are the clocks stable?

[ir_cow]

Well MMOs depend a lot on ping and can create "lag" like instances if the repsonse is low. Maybe a Nic that is like Killer or whatever each company calls it. The "boosts" function to prioritize games and lower ping. Just a thought.

[Bubbaxm2]

Do you play on any specific server? Like can you try and connect to another server to see of the problem persists? I see this quite often in FPS games where the connection between someone and the server may have a bad hop and cause lag in game. Although you said the problem just started after a fresh install so I would likely lean towards something within your system also.

 

Also with the fresh install did you go in and change the power saving options to make sure that windows isn't throttling you cpu back? While it should kick back up when the need is there, I have seen instances where it just wasn't fast enough and would cause a bit of lag, especially in an mmo.

[Perscitus]

Did you grab the performance fix for the SSD? The Magician download from here.

 

Maybe try an offline game, just to better figure out what may be causing the lag.

 

Are you overclocked any and are the clocks stable?

I actually forgot to grab that after the reinstall. I'll pick it up and see if it helps any.

 

 

Do you play on any specific server? Like can you try and connect to another server to see of the problem persists? I see this quite often in FPS games where the connection between someone and the server may have a bad hop and cause lag in game. Although you said the problem just started after a fresh install so I would likely lean towards something within your system also.

 

Also with the fresh install did you go in and change the power saving options to make sure that windows isn't throttling you cpu back? While it should kick back up when the need is there, I have seen instances where it just wasn't fast enough and would cause a bit of lag, especially in an mmo.

 It would be too much to play on another server, the lag occurs mostly during dungeons so I would have to spend a bunch of hours leveling to get to the point of being able to enter them on the other server. I can only use other games for testing the connection, but then that adds another variable... so can't really test if it is strictly the game.

 

Also, I mentioned it happened after a fresh install.. but it was an issue before the install as well. I added my SSD and installed the game to it, played for about a week, then the problems were annoying me and I decided to wipe everything and start from scratch. The problems resurfaced when I resumed playing on the fresh install.

[Perscitus]

SSD is optimized with magician. Unfortunately, the problem persists... In game, I messed with graphics and noticed that the lagging was consistent despite the quality level, maximum or minimum.

[Perscitus]

Do you play on any specific server? Like can you try and connect to another server to see of the problem persists? I see this quite often in FPS games where the connection between someone and the server may have a bad hop and cause lag in game. Although you said the problem just started after a fresh install so I would likely lean towards something within your system also.

 

Also with the fresh install did you go in and change the power saving options to make sure that windows isn't throttling you cpu back? While it should kick back up when the need is there, I have seen instances where it just wasn't fast enough and would cause a bit of lag, especially in an mmo.

 

I have looked into this idea... It might be the problem. I ran command prompt, did a "netstat -bn" to get the game server IP. Ran a tracert on it and had two points timeout... Let a ping -t run for 5min... 15% loss. That right there tells me my route to the server is terrible. I wouldn't expect NJ to IA to be so bad. Is there a way to get around this routing problem or am I screwed?