Forum Discussion

Meka868

Seasoned Adventurer

3 days ago

Solved

Constant Micro Stutter after Breach S28 Split 2 Update

My Hardware:

- MSI Pro B850M-P

- R7 9700x

- RTX 3070

- 1tb Nvme Gen 4

- 32gb @6000mhz using EXPO profile in bios

- Playing Wired with Realtek PCIe 5Gbe Family Controller driver version 10.79.50.1003 downloaded from MSI

Since the Breach season 28 split 2 update I have been experiencing this persistent micro stutter in Apex. Microsoft Event Viewer is showing a spam of "Microsoft-Windows-Kernel-EventTracing" EventID 2 errors anytime I'm playing and only when I'm playing Apex specifically. After many hours of internet searches I learned that this might be Easy Anti-Cheat pinging my Ethernet constantly causing the stutter.

Solutions suggest uninstalling the Realtek drivers and using the old version 9.1.412.2015 Microsoft installs from 2015.

This actually fixes my issue, the problem is that next day when I boot up my PC Microsoft then automatically re-installs a newer version 10.78.50.822 driver and the micro stutter returns when playing Apex.

The thing is though, I was not experiencing this issue before the Breach S28 Split 2 update, so something had to have changed with Apex and/or EAC.

I tried using the driver version 10.79.50 from Realtek's site, tried disabling the driver's power saving settings, tried using the NoPowerSavings version 10.79.20 as well, nothing works but the old generic version 9.1.412 from Microsoft.

I don't like that every time I want to play Apex I have to uninstall my Ethernet driver, restart my PC, wait for the old driver to install to then play, but that is where I am and that is what I will do for now.

I'm hoping that this brings some level of awareness to Respawn and EA about this issue because it is ONLY happening with Apex. I dont play any other Easy Anti-Cheat games so I can't say if it really is Apex or EAC specifically. I also play Marvel Rivals and I don't experience any of these kind of issues on that game.

This post is really also just for anyone else having the same issue to know what might possibly be the cause and how to fix it, even if temporarily, in order to at least be able to play without problems.

freezing

lag

Meka868
12 hours ago
Update: AMD Chipset Driver version 8.02.18.557 seems to be the point of failure causing my issue stated above.
I installed the old AMD Chipset Driver version 7.12.04.858 from MSI and testing it with all different Realtek Ethernet Driver versions, I am not experiencing any of the constant micro stutter while in game.
I noticed that the micro stutter still happens every so often, but it is so rare that it does not affect my gameplay to the point where I can't engage in fights. It might happen once and then I won't notice it again during the match. I tested this for two nights and I was able to enjoy and play Apex without severe micro stuttering.
I don't know if my issue will return, but if this information helps anyone else at least I've put it out there.

4 Replies

EA_Mako
Community Manager
9 hours ago
Bios updates are a bit of a nuclear option to be sure, given the potential harm if you're not 100% sure of what you're doing or run into any unfortunate complications while the update is taking place.

While they can be a pain as well, rolling back drivers tends to be a much safer option to try in comparison as you're well aware.

We do see these types of posts and solutions tend to come up in searches even months or years later, much appreciated and take care!
Meka868
Seasoned Adventurer
10 hours ago
No problem, you're welcome, I've been trying to solve the issue for a while and I had almost given up trying to find a permanent solution.
Part of my attempts at fixing it was even updating my mb bios, but even that did not seem to work and was only the ethernet driver rollback in device manager helped with the stuttering. Of course, I did not like that as a workaround.
I hope my eventual solution helps someone else, because in my internet searches, a lot of people were experiencing the same micro stuttering.
EA_Mako
Community Manager
12 hours ago
Thanks for dropping back in with the update on what helped clear this up for you Meka868!

Glad to hear rolling back to an earlier driver has helped get rid of the stuttering.
Meka868
Seasoned Adventurer
12 hours ago
Update: AMD Chipset Driver version 8.02.18.557 seems to be the point of failure causing my issue stated above.
I installed the old AMD Chipset Driver version 7.12.04.858 from MSI and testing it with all different Realtek Ethernet Driver versions, I am not experiencing any of the constant micro stutter while in game.
I noticed that the micro stutter still happens every so often, but it is so rare that it does not affect my gameplay to the point where I can't engage in fights. It might happen once and then I won't notice it again during the match. I tested this for two nights and I was able to enjoy and play Apex without severe micro stuttering.
I don't know if my issue will return, but if this information helps anyone else at least I've put it out there.