# Frame Rate Cap?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frame-rate-cap/158765>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 3, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frame-rate-cap/158765 "2003-03-03T16:38:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ZomZom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zomzom/32/5620_2.png) [@ZomZom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZomZom)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frame-rate-cap/158765/1 "2003-03-03T16:38:17Z")

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Is there a way to cap my frame rate when playing PC games? For instance, lock in the frame rate at 30 FPS so that I don’t perceive stuttering when it drops momentarily to 35 from 55. A steady 30 the entire time would be preferable I think. I’d at least like to try.

If I turn on Vsync I can limit the frame rate to the refresh rate, but the refresh rate is often higher than the lock I’d like to impose.

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**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2003, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frame-rate-cap/158765/2 "2003-03-03T19:51:44Z")

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Check your game manual and internet documentation. I know Half-Life has a way to do this in the console, but I don’t recal the exact command at the moment. Other games with a console (QuakeIII, UT2003, Battlefield1942, ect) might have similar commands.  
As for games that don’t have a console, I can’t help you there.

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**Author:** ![Alereon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@Alereon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alereon)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2003, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frame-rate-cap/158765/3 "2003-03-03T21:53:28Z")

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I don’t see how this would make you percieve less stuttering. Even without the contrast, low framerate is still low framerate, and a better solution to trying to cap your framerate is to lower the resolution, turn down visual quality, or upgrade your computer.

That said, I don’t know of a universal way to cap your framerate. On Half-Life based games (Counter-Strike, for example), the fps\_max command will do it.