I'm a paid streamer who multitasks between poorly optimized indie horror games and some AAA titles on platforms like TikTok and Twitch. I use several programs like OBS, TikTok Live Studio, Tikfinity, streamer.bot, and voicemod for live streaming, along with Adobe Premiere Pro 2019 for video editing. Currently, I have an RTX 5080, and I'm able to run games on max settings at 60fps or higher.
However, while streaming, my CPU usage often hovers around 70%. When alerts or certain sources trigger in OBS, my CPU spikes to 85-100%, causing stuttering issues that frustrate my viewers, especially when they ask if the alerts are working. I've already removed some of the heavier alerts to mitigate this, but I'm still anxious about maintaining a smooth stream experience. I've realized that pulling alerts from my HDD was a mistake, and I'm correcting that.
I'm wondering if upgrading from my Ryzen 5900X to the 9950X3D would help with my CPU load issues during streams. Also, I use Adobe Premiere for 4K video editing and would like to know if upgrading my CPU would reduce my encoding times, or will I be limited by the software's capabilities? I know there's an option for GPU acceleration, but it doesn't work well with 5000 series GPUs. Since upgrading from the RTX 3090 to the 5080, it feels like my CPU is doing all the heavy lifting, leading to those annoying 100% load spikes. Any insights would be greatly appreciated!
2 Answers
Have you considered running two separate setups? The current trend is to use one PC for gaming and another solely for streaming. This separates the workload and can really help with performance since the gaming PC won't compete for resources with your streaming software.
Upgrading to the 9950X3D should definitely help with your CPU load when streaming. I've recently upgraded from a 5900X to a 9800X3D, and I've noticed a significant reduction in CPU usage while streaming—about 20-30% less. The newer games often max out 8 cores on Ryzen 5000, so the 9950X3D will have better handling of that workload.
That’s a solid drop! Did you notice this improvement immediately, or did it take some tweaking?
That sounds great, but space is a big issue for me right now. I wish I could manage everything from just one PC!