I recently built my own PC with a Zotac 5080 Solid Core GPU and a Ryzen 7 9800x 3D processor, paired with 65 GB of DDR5 RAM. However, when I play games, my CPU usage consistently hits 100%. I've tried updating all drivers and Windows, and I've even set the graphics settings to low, but it still hovers between 90-100% throughout gameplay. This often leads to random freezes after about an hour. My CPU temperature is around 60°C, so I don't think overheating is the issue. What could be causing this constant high utilization?
5 Answers
The lower your settings, the more work your CPU has to do, especially at 1080p. If you’re gaming at 1440p on high settings, that could create an imbalance in CPU and GPU workload, leading to a bottleneck, especially in competitive games. What are your settings and resolution?
100% utilization can be normal depending on the game you’re playing. When not running any games, your CPU should idle under 15%. What does yours show when you're not gaming?
When there are no programs running, it’s around 17-20% right now.
Double-check your monitor connections. If they’re plugged into the motherboard instead of the GPU, it might be using integrated graphics, which can cause higher CPU usage.
Both my monitors are connected to the GPU; I confirmed that.
While 60°C is a solid temperature, consider that you might not be considering hotspot temperatures. CPUs might handle 100% usage without issues, but if they throttle due to thermal reasons, that could be your problem. It's worth checking into whether your cooling is sufficient or if the thermal paste needs adjusting.
Do you think reseating the AIO cooler and adding more thermal paste might help?
Lowering your graphics can sometimes put more strain on the CPU since it has to handle more tasks. You might want to cap your FPS to see if that helps. Also, check the task manager to find out which processes are hogging the CPU.
I maxed out the graphics and set the FPS cap to match my monitor’s refresh rate, yet it’s still at 100% utilization.
I’m using a 1440p 240Hz monitor and playing Arc Raiders at max settings, which keeps my CPU at 100% utilization.