Vsync off / Uncapped frame rate question

[Eden]

I always wondered this -

If I cap my frames to 60 to avoid tearing and I start dropping frames below 60, will it be the same if I uncap my frame so for example with uncapped frame I'll get 70-80 fps, and when capped I drop from 60 to lets say 55-50, if I start on 70-80 fps, will I then drop to 65-60 or 75-70 or will I still drop below 60 even with the extra frames to start with?

Does having more frames avoid me dropping below 60?

Might be a stupid question

[mimizukari]

If you're dipping to 50-55, that means with v-sync off you'll dip to 50-55, and more often because of heat generation likely. V-Sync caps your frames, makes your system run cooler and is only bad in super twitch-reaction games due to the ms delay.

[Eden]

Ah I thought having excess frames would make me stay above 60 more often

[mimizukari]

Originally posted by Desolate Eden:

Ah I thought having excess frames would make me stay above 60 more often

no, it'll make you go under 60 more often.

[_I_]

depends on the sync mode

adaptive = on when at or above refresh rate, off when below

freesync/gsync = lowers display refresh rate to match output when below

on = displays duplicated frame(s) to fill when not ready with a newer frame
(newer vsync, puts the gpu to idle when a frame is ready before sending it to the display)

off = no sync, all frames will have tear line(s)

fast = olschool vsync, gpu keeps working and will create new frames even if next is ready and not sent yet in case it can make a newer one and drop the old undisplayed frame
(good when you can hit 2x+ refresh rate in fps)

[Autumn_]

Originally posted by Desolate Eden:

I always wondered this -

If I cap my frames to 60 to avoid tearing and I start dropping frames below 60, will it be the same if I uncap my frame so for example with uncapped frame I'll get 70-80 fps, and when capped I drop from 60 to lets say 55-50, if I start on 70-80 fps, will I then drop to 65-60 or 75-70 or will I still drop below 60 even with the extra frames to start with?

Does having more frames avoid me dropping below 60?

Might be a stupid question

You will always have tearing if the frame buffer isn't synced.
If you aren't using Vsync, it isn't synced, thus you will have tearing, regardless of FPS, 1 or 1000, doesn't matter, it's tearing.

What are you using to cap your FPS? I recommend RTSS, it's going to make everything so much smoother, and use CPU level limiter to provide steady frametimes.
It will also reduce load on your GPU, which would prevent drops from happening as frequent as uncapped, because it has room to process the next frame, instead of being pegged at 99%, and waiting for some free processing power.

It depends on your CPU, and you GPU, what scene you're rendering, etc.
But, generally, no, because it's all still random, if your GPU is pushing as many frames as it can, and one frame comes along that's quite hard to process, then your GPU is just hung processing that frame for a little while, you're going to drop FPS while it's processing.
So, no. It won't.

Originally posted by Kurumi Tokisaki:

If you're dipping to 50-55, that means with v-sync off you'll dip to 50-55, and more often because of heat generation likely. V-Sync caps your frames, makes your system run cooler and is only bad in super twitch-reaction games due to the ms delay.

Wrong, it's not heat that is normally the issue that causes FPS drops, it's simply, usage.
Most people, the vast majority, believe it's a GOOD thing to have your GPU at 99%, while that is simply not the case.
You wouldn't want your CPU, RAM, VRAM, or even storage to be at 99%+ would you? So why is your GPU any different? What makes that the special exception to this rule? Nothing, it is just the same as any other hardware when it's fully loaded, it causes issues, namely suttering/hitching, and frametime variance.
Now, if you cap your FPS, using a CPU based limiter, like RTSS, Nvidias or AMDs one that is built into the driver, you're fine. And it does much the same as consoles do, that's how they smoothen out the experience, despite having low FPS.
That's exactly how 24 FPS movies look smooth, perfect frametimes. Otherwise it's a suttery mess.
Heat is only an issue if it's reducing clocks (not boosting / throttling), which, most cards, unless VERY dusty, will perform within acceptable margins, and heat won't be an issue.

Vsync shouldn't be used as an FPS limiter, because while it does limit FPS, it doesn't do it properly - The CPU draws the picture for the GPU, then the GPU colours it in, then is sent to the monitor, and told to wait for the refresh of the monitor, to which it's scanned out from there, then the CPU sends data to the GPU, and is sent to the monitor, waits, and is scanned out, and keeps repeating.
This causes the CPU to send data randomly, and the GPU to colour it in randomly, there is no pacing, this is what creates sutters / unsmooth experiences. The 'limited' FPS is just a side effect of the CPU/GPU waiting to draw another frame for the monitor to display.
(The waiting part is what causes Vsync latency.)
Now, if you use something like RTSS, your CPU is told to WAIT before it captures your inputs, and such, and when the time is right, send it to the GPU, which has plenty of headroom, because of the FPS cap, so it can render the frame in the correct amount of time. Thus giving you an extremely responsive, and smooth experience. And reducing sutters, because there is plenty of headroom for the GPU to process things (if your FPS cap is low enough.)

Though, then you've got tearing, because you're not using Vsync; but you have 2 options from there, using Vsync and RTSS together, which would reduce input latency from Vsync (Because of correct frame pacing, and RTSS telling the CPU to wait), or use Scanline Sync in RTSS, which changes the time the frame is scanned out at, making the tear always in the same place, which you can move to your liking (top of bottom of the screen.)

G-sync/Freesync can stop tearing if the FRAMETIMES/FRAMERATE is smooth, if it's not it's still going to tear.