I've recently transitioned from Windows 11 to Linux Mint and had a mostly smooth experience—until I upgraded my GPU to an RX 9060 XT. My setup initially worked fine, but the Mint OS didn't correctly recognize the new graphics card, leading to incorrect refresh rates and issues launching games. I figured out that my kernel needed an update, which I fixed by installing CachyOS. Although that helped for a while, I've faced random desktop freezes, requiring restarts. Now, I've switched to KDE Fedora 43, which performs better regarding freezing but introduces lag when interacting with Steam after playing games. While some games run perfectly, others like Overwatch have high CPU usage and poor frame rates. I'm starting to worry if there's an issue with my expensive GPU. Should I consider going back to Mint, since it worked well before the upgrade? Here are my full specs: Ryzen 5600, RX 9060 XT 16GB, 1TB SSD, 16GB DDR4 RAM, and 850W PSU.
4 Answers
I hear you; it can be frustrating trying to get everything running smoothly on Linux! I had issues too after swapping GPUs. My tip is to purge any old NVIDIA drivers if you had them and reinstall the right ones for your RX card. This approach helped me fix many driver conflicts. Switching distros may help, but I'd suggest fixing the driver issues first. Also, updating the firmware and drivers directly from the manufacturer can do wonders; I faced the same problem, and that solved it for me!
Hey, bummer to hear you’re dealing with all these issues! A good way to stress-test your GPU would be to run multiple benchmarks and see how it performs under load. For the momentary FPS drops, try using GameMode with your games and consider switching to a performance-oriented kernel like lqx or zen. Oh, and double-check your power settings; sometimes, laptops reduce performance when battery levels drop. About the lag when closing games, see if your swap memory is being overused. You can check CPU, disk, and RAM usage on the system monitor. If it's running low, a RAM upgrade could also help since 16GB may be tight for intense gaming.
I totally get your struggle. I’ve tried multiple Linux distros, but I often went back to Windows due to the persistent issues. I did try some more modern options, but even those came with their own headaches. Sometimes it feels like you just can't win! It's a shame because I really enjoy using Linux. What other distros did you check out besides Mint or Fedora?
I had similar struggles when upgrading to an RX 9060XT from a 1050ti. The first thing I'd recommend is updating your kernel through the update manager and MESA using the kisak mesa PPA. You might find that the recent versions of Mint work fine without additional tweaks. Don't forget to check ProtonDB for any game-specific settings that might help! Regarding freezes, those could link back to driver issues or even the HDMI setup with your display. You might want to look into getting a proper monitor if you're using a TV.
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