A beautiful environment or fast-paced action scene in a video game can be ruined by a poorly-timed stutter.
That being said, sometimes stuttering can be fixed in your PC’s BIOS.
Let’s find out how.
What Is the BIOS?
The basic input/output system (BIOS) is a program that your PC runs when it is powered on.
It is important to note that the BIOS resides on a physical chip on your motherboard.
This is referred to as a ROM chip or BIOS chip.
Most modern BIOS also allow you to fine-tune some of your PC parameters.
This includes overclocking, power management, fan management, and more.
Before moving on, learnhow to enter the BIOS of your Windows PCif you’re not familiar yet.
We go into more detail in our explanation ofwhy you need XMP to run RAM at full speed.
We used Corsair’s Vengeance RGB Pro RAM with an Intel i9 9900k CPU as a reference.
This is because the motherboard is running the RAM at the default frequency of its generation.
When we enabled XMP, the frequency jumped dramatically.
This is because XMP loads profiles that are saved on your RAM.
To fix this, try enabling XMP in your BIOS and see if your stuttering persists.
It should be noted that AMD has its own XMP alternative that functions the same.
On ASUS motherboards, this setting is called Direct Overclock Profile (DOCP).
RAM Timings
RAM timings are given in a series of numbers and vary from one RAM to another.
These numbers indicate the number of clock cycles it takes the RAM to perform an operation.
The tighter your timings, the faster your RAM can do this.
However, when RAM timings are set incorrectly it can result in system instability.
For example, the default timings for Corsair’s Vengeance RGB Pro RAM are 18-22-22-42.
The ASUS PRIME Z390-A Pro motherboard we used for this example set the RAM timings to 22-15-15-36.
These timings are significantly tighter than the RAM’s rated timings.
The result was a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) shortly after loading into Windows 11.
That being said, incorrect timings don’t always cause a PC to crash.
If your RAM timings are just barely too tight, you will run into less noticeable issues like stuttering.
The opposite is also true.
So what’s the solution?
In most cases, XMP will load a RAM’s rated timings.
If this doesn’t fix your stuttering, you will have to manually adjust your RAM timings.
These can usually be found on the box your RAM came in.
Alternatively, we recommend installingCPU-Z, which will show you exactly what timings your RAM is currently using.
However, not every PC comes with a TPM installed.
These platforms perform the same tasks as a TPM without requiring additional PC hardware.
While both solutions function similarly, fTPM has been known to cause stuttering on AM4 Ryzen systems.
AMD’s fTPM is stored in the motherboard’s BIOS chip.
AMD has since issued a fix for this issue that requires you toupdate your BIOS.
It is important to note that stutters caused my fTPM also interfere with audio.
If you own a Ryzen system and are experiencing similar symptoms, try updating your BIOS.
If the issue persists, AMD’s suggested workaround involves disabling fTPM in your BIOS.
They play an important part in deciding how your PC interacts with its hardware and vice versa.
However, they aren’t the only potential fixes out there!
Keep digging and you just may find your solution.
