Testing Setup:
Testing Methodology:
Input lag in video recording games is a result of two main things : frame of reference rate and V-Sync execution. On consoles, it normally isn ’ triiodothyronine possible to customize these options, resulting in a static accountant reaction that is set forth by the developer. personal computer gaming doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate adhere to this restriction. In the pursuit examples, Ultra Street Fighter IV is utilized as our choose screen benchmark. Latency is measured after applying versatile configurations detailed in this article. Ultra Street Fighter IV is capped at 60 frames per second gear, so we utilize our Casio Exilim EX-ZR800 to capture footage at 120 frames per second. Our darling Shine 4 keyboard features a unhorse mode that illuminates on each key press. To measure rotational latency, we calculate the sum of frames between the first gear key wardrobe and the beginning action on-screen. The average of ten-spot push button presses is used as our final solution .
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V-Sync OFF:
To achieve the lowest potential control rotational latency, the best choice is to completely disable vertical synchronize. V-Sync is a routine that allows the game to synchronize it ’ s frame rate with the refresh pace of the display. Disabling it removes the frame pace cap, which besides causes massive amounts of screen tearing. The screen tearing exhibited by the lack of V-Sync can be very distracting to most gamers. If reducing stimulation imprison is your elementary concern, then this is your best option. Ultra Street Fighter IV achieves an ultra-low 59ms ( 3.6 frames ) of restrainer latency with all V-Sync options disabled on our Nvidia GPU, and 61ms ( 3.7 frames ) of control reaction time on our AMD Radeon GPU .
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In-Game V-Sync:
Every personal computer game on the market comes shipped with it ’ s own V-Sync option that can be toggled in the shape menu of the game itself. Most of the time, this is the merely option you ’ ll motivation for a smooth feel. however, it may not be the choice with the lowest input lag. The stock V-Sync option in Ultra Street Fighter IV provides a al-qaeda rotational latency of 103ms ( 6.2 frames ) of input lag, which is very like to the PlayStation 3 version that measured 107ms ( 6.4 frames ). Enabling V-Sync synchronizes the game with the review rate of the display to remove screen door tearing, however it besides adds around 2 frames of input signal slowdown in most cases. Enabling V-Sync in-game results in a restrainer latency of 103ms ( 6.2 frames ) on our Nvidia GPU, and 102ms ( 6.1 frames ) on our AMD Radeon GPU. In-game V-Sync under CrossFireX resulted in 103ms ( 6.2 frames ) of input signal lag, though produce indisputable inning pace is set to ON within Catalyst Control Center. Disabling frame pacing results in an highly high stimulation interim of 143ms ( 8.6 frames ), so you decidedly want to avoid that scenario ! 
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Control Panel V-Sync:
If a crippled suffers from poor V-Sync execution, it is potential to force V-Sync through the GPU dominance empanel itself, which may sometimes offer a better experience. Both Nvidia and AMD allow forced V-Sync via dominance empanel, however entirely Nvidia ’ second forced V-Sync option worked in Ultra Street Fighter IV. The game presents slightly higher restrainer latency when forcing V-Sync via the control dialog box, with a restrainer latency of 109ms ( 6.6 frames ). Forcing V-Sync on our GTX 970 SLI apparatus increased remark lag over a curious GPU, bringing the rotational latency up to 114ms ( 6.9 frames ) however, it is possible to reduce rotational latency far by configuring maximum pre-rendered frames ( explained below ) .
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V-Sync + Maximum Pre-Rendered Frames / Flip Queue:
This determine is buried under the “ Manage 3D Settings ” page in the Nvidia control dialog box. maximum pre-rendered frames is a fix that governs the sum of frames the CPU is able to process before handing it off to the GPU. The default rate is set to 3, which typically achieves the best libra between stimulation lag and a smooth image. If you have a peculiarly knock-down GPU, you can reduce this rate in order to achieve significantly lower input signal stave, without any detectable downsides. Setting it to 1 prevents the CPU from processing more frames than it needs to, allowing the GPU to do most of the grunt ferment. In Ultra Street Fighter IV, combining control gore V-Sync with a utmost pre-rendered frames ( 1 ) setting results in 95ms ( 5.7 frames ) of accountant rotational latency, whereas keeping in-game V-Sync enabled with the maximum pre-rendered frames ( 1 ) set resulted in 101ms ( 6.1 frames ) of control reaction time. On AMD Radeon GPUs, this adjust is known as flip queue. You can configure this choice by downloading the RadeonPro application, which allows deeper tweak of your Radeon GPU. Forcing a flip line up set of 1 resulted in an average input imprison of 97ms ( 5.8 frames ). Both AMD Catalyst Control Center and RadeonPro were unable to force V-Sync in Ultra Street Fighter IV. In-game V-Sync was used along with flip queue ( 1 ) arrange within RadeonPro in decree to achieve lower remark lag for our Radeon GPU .Click to enlarge picture 
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Smooth V-Sync (Nvidia SLI Only):
The Smooth V-Sync option is largely overlooked since Nvidia introduced it in 2013, though its importance in a multi-GPU apparatus shouldn ’ t be underestimated. Smooth V-Sync attempts to keep the frame rate at the most sustainable level. If your game constantly fluctuates between 30 and 60 FPS, there is a good gamble that enabling Smooth V-Sync will lock you to 30 FPS throughout your gambling session, in order to provide the most consistent experience. There will be times where you will encounter an area of the game entirely in 30 FPS, then have it switch back to a higher frame of reference rate when nothing is taxing your GPUs. The importance of Smooth V-Sync lies within games your SLI setup completely dominates. Ultra Street Fighter IV can be well maxed out at 4K resolution on our singular GTX 970, so why trouble enabling a junior-grade GPU ? Because Smooth V-Sync allows for dramatic input lag decrease ! Running Ultra Street Fighter IV on our Nvidia GTX 970 SLI frame-up with Smooth V-Sync active resulted in an average stimulation latency of 87ms ( 5.2 frames ), offering the lowest sum of input signal interim when compared to every other Nvidia V-Sync solution ( with the exception of V-Sync OFF and G-SYNC ). 
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Windowed V-Sync:
It is possible to completely bypass control control panel and in-game V-Sync options to utilize Windows ’ native V-Sync execution, which is besides triple-buffered. By running the game in a window or borderless window, Windows handles the erect synchronism, which can lead to smoother gameplay and lower input slowdown. Make certain you disable V-Sync in all early areas before doing thus. Running Ultra Street Fighter IV in a windowpane reduces stimulation lag over both in-game and stock operate gore V-Sync, with a control latency of 98ms ( 5.9 frames ) on our Nvidia GPU, significantly higher than AMD Radeon ’ s 81ms ( 4.9 frames ) of reaction time under the lapp scenario. It ’ s besides possible to utilize windowed V-Sync in both SLI and CrossFireX setups. On Nvidia ’ s SLI frame-up, we measured 95ms ( 5.7 frames ) of control rotational latency, which is still higher than CrossFireX ’ mho measured latency of 87ms ( 5.2 frames ). Utilizing Windows ’ built in V-Sync may not always be smooth sailing however, and can sometimes cause stuttering that is absent when running the game in fullscreen mood.
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Direct3D Overrider:
Direct3D Overrider is a popular application that has been used for many years as a way to force V-Sync and triple cushion into DirectX games. Games that tend to fluctuate frame rates with standard V-Sync can appear much smoother when allowing Direct3D Overrider to handle this tax. Ultra Street Fighter IV presented varying results depending on which modes were utilized. Using only Direct3D Overrider ’ s V-Sync option resulted in 115ms ( 6.9 frames ) of rotational latency on our Nvidia GPU, and 106ms ( 6.4 frames ) on our Radeon GPU. Enabling triple buffering on top of Direct3D Overrider ’ s V-Sync resulted in 120ms ( 7.2 frames ) of latency on our Nvidia GPU, and 109ms ( 6.5 frames ) on our Radeon GPU. 
G-SYNC & FreeSync (Adaptive Sync):
It gets even better. In 2013, Nvidia announced a dispatch V-Sync substitution known as G-SYNC. G-SYNC provides the benefits of V-Sync ’ s tear-free trope, without the bumble and stimulation interim associated with traditional V-Sync. The engineering allows the display to directly communicate with the GPU, bypassing the ruleset of traditional V-Sync entirely. soon after, AMD announced its own variable refresh rate technology known as Adaptive-Sync/FreeSync. The only catch to these technologies is the necessity of a newer display tailored for your particular GPU. I managed to test the benefits of both G-SYNC and Adaptive-Sync, and the results are merely incredible. 
Bypassing all other forms of V-Sync, enabling G-SYNC within Nvidia ’ s control control panel resulted in an enormous reduction of input stave. In most cases, connecting your Nvidia GeForce GPU to a G-SYNC proctor will automatically enable G-SYNC, though this put can be enabled manually and tailored to specific games via the control jury. After connecting the GTX 970 to our Acer XB240H G-SYNC monitor, we measured a ridiculously-low input stave rate of 60ms ( 3.6 frames ), which is basically identical to V-Sync OFF ! This is significantly lower than even the lowest recorded values from our V-Sync tests above. Nvidia besides allows SLI users to partake in the G-SYNC ceremony. Running Ultra Street Fighter IV with G-SYNC active on our SLI frame-up resulted in a slenderly higher reaction time measurement of 63ms ( 3.8 frames ). What if you bleed crimson ? AMD Radeon users shouldn ’ metric ton worry, as these benefits are portray on FreeSync monitors a well ! We hooked up our AMD Radeon GPU to our glazed new BenQ XL2730Z FreeSync monitor, and measured an equally-low 59ms ( 3.6 frames ) of remark stave with FreeSync enabled via Catalyst Control Center. unfortunately, AMD doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate let CrossFireX and FreeSync to be enabled in concert. AMD is scheduled to launch a driver update to enable this functionality in the future. This technology has proven to be a real game changer since its origin, and it ’ s great to see the benefits across a wide variety show of games .
Other Methods:
There are a few other methods that can reduce stimulation lag within personal computer games. One of them involves using a frame limiter to set your maximal frames per second below the freshen rate of your expose. You can cap your game at 59 frames per second on a 60hz monitor to reduce remark lag well, however this will more than likely cause some bumble in games that run good at a lock inning rate. Ultra Street Fighter IV requires a steady 60 FPS, and limiting it below this human body rate can cause some issues. Another manner to reduce input latency is by enabling a higher review rate. While Ultra Street Fighter IV is capped at 60 FPS ascribable to its gameplay mechanics, many other genres such as beginning person shooters are able to go above and beyond 60 FPS. Running a game at 120hz or 144hz can reduce input slowdown by over 50 %, angstrom retentive as your hardware is potent enough to handle it ! On top of reduce reaction time, gesture will appear satiny smooth, which can ruin your sensing of 60hz if that ’ s all you ’ re used to !
Nvidia GeForce Input Lag Results (60hz):
Measurements below rounded up to nearest millisecond/frame. All measurements were calculated using Ultra Street Fighter IV as the preferable benchmark. Results may vary by game and hardware used .
| Configuration | Latency (MS) | Latency (Frames) | Test Link |
| V-Sync OFF | 59ms | 3.5 frames | YouTube |
| G-SYNC | 60ms | 3.6 frames | YouTube |
| SLI + G-SYNC | 63ms | 3.8 frames | YouTube |
| Xbox 360 Version | 85ms | 5.1 frames | YouTube |
| SLI + Smooth V-Sync ON (Control Panel) | 87ms | 5.2 frames | YouTube |
| PlayStation 4 Version (1.03) | 89ms | 5.3 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync (Control Panel) + Max Pre-Rendered Frames (1) | 95ms | 5.7 frames | YouTube |
| SLI + Windowed V-Sync | 95ms | 5.7 frames | YouTube |
| Windowed V-Sync | 98ms | 5.9 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (Game) + Max Pre-Rendered Frames (1) | 101ms | 6.1 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (Game) | 103ms | 6.2 frames | YouTube |
| PlayStation 3 Version | 107ms | 6.4 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (Control Panel) | 109ms | 6.5 frames | YouTube |
| SLI + V-Sync ON (Control Panel) | 114ms | 6.8 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (D3DOverrider) | 115ms | 6.9 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON + Triple Buffering (D3DOverrider) | 120ms | 7.2 frames | YouTube |
AMD Radeon Input Lag Results (60hz):
Measurements below rounded up to nearest millisecond/frame. All measurements were calculated using Ultra Street Fighter IV as the prefer benchmark. Results may vary by game and hardware used .
| Configuration | Latency (MS) | Latency (Frames) | Test Link |
| FreeSync (Adaptive-Sync) | 59ms | 3.5 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync OFF | 61ms | 3.7 frames | YouTube |
| Windowed V-Sync | 81ms | 4.9 frames | YouTube |
| Xbox 360 Version | 85ms | 5.1 frames | YouTube |
| CrossFireX Frame Pacing OFF + Windowed V-Sync | 87ms | 5.2 frames | YouTube |
| CrossFireX Frame Pacing ON + Windowed V-Sync | 88ms | 5.3 frames | YouTube |
| PlayStation 4 Version (1.03) | 89ms | 5.3 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (Game) + Flip Queue (1) | 97ms | 5.8 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (Game) | 102ms | 6.1 frames | YouTube |
| CrossFireX Frame Pacing ON + V-Sync ON (Game) | 103ms | 6.2 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON (D3DOverrider) | 106ms | 6.4 frames | YouTube |
| PlayStation 3 Version | 107ms | 6.4 frames | YouTube |
| V-Sync ON + Triple Buffering (D3DOverrider) | 109ms | 6.5 frames | YouTube |
| CrossFireX Frame Pacing OFF + V-Sync ON (Game) | 143ms | 8.6 frames | YouTube |
Conclusion:
There are several ways to change the find of your favored personal computer game by employing the methods detailed above. While the results can vary by bet on, it is significant to try these options if you are unsated with the rotational latency associated with default option settings. One thing is clear, however : the absolute best way to reduce input signal rotational latency while keeping a tear-free image is to acquire a G-SYNC or FreeSync display. For those on a budget, be sure to try the tweaks listed above and report your experiences in the comments below !
