Instant On and Frame Rate Issues

sweendogie · May 26, 2015

Recently I've been having a problem while playing Destiny. Every time I play I would see a drop in frame rate. I knew it wasn't my internet connection so I did a hard reset and the problem was fixed. After turning my xbox off and back on the problem would
come back. My instant on has never worked right so I decided to turn it off and see if it fixed my problem and it did. Every time I turn my xbox on now the frame rate is fine. Figured I would post this here incase anyone else is having a simlar issue.

:)

Justabill37 · May 26, 2015

Netflix and Amazon Lovefilm - Choppy Framerate

Amazon instant video has serious frame rate issues, Sound is fine, but the video studders. It worked great until Sunday Afternoon , march 23.

AndreFromPT · May 26, 2015

Screen Tearing and Frame Rate Issues

Do you guys have screen tearing and frame rate issues when navigating on the map menu? in Marakarth and some other places 2...

And the frame rate isn't smooth..

Jaymo1978 · May 26, 2015

Hi Sween! Let me just ask a couple of clarifying questions - is Destiny the only game in which you're noticing a framerate drop? Also, when you use your Xbox, how many different things are you doing with it before shutting down (for example, just a game,
then shutting down again, or play a game, watch some videos, watch TV, play another game, etc.?)

The reason I ask that last question is, in Instant On mode, one of the issues people tend to see is that when they use their system over time, as they use games and apps, things start responding more slowly, and in most cases the reason is because the system
is keeping a list of all of these recent programs in its memory, for purposes of quick-resume. If you press the Home button on the controller to back out of a game and return to the dashboard, and then immediately start another game, that other program is
technically still on standby in the background (kind of like minimizing a program on your computer vs. clicking the X to close it.)

If you notice that you might be doing that, try an experiment. Put your system back in Instant On mode, and then play a game. But THIS time, when you back out to the home screen, highlight the large window (current game) and press Menu --> Quit. This should
free up the memory being used by that game/app. THEN, shut down, start back up, and try a game and see if it plays any more smoothly.

The fact that a full shut down (hard boot) fixes this, and that you don't encounter it when the system is not in Instant On mode makes me think this might be the issue, because when the system goes into Standby or Hard Boots, it basically clears the memory
every time, as opposed to Instant On, which keeps that memory in use.

If that DOESN'T apply to you or doesn't seem to work, then that's a puzzle! Let me know, and we'll see if we can troubleshoot some more!

CapnPhoton · May 26, 2015

I would just like to add that a hard reset can help, but it is not a full shutdown and restart. Look for a moment at Windows. If you were just to press the power button every time until it shuts off, eventually Windows would have major issues and have to
be reinstalled. This is because it does not go through a full shutdown unloading files, and putting things in their place so to speak. The same is true for your Xbox. Mine goes through the normal shutdown and restart (not hard reset) each day and I very rarely
have issues.

Jaymo1978 · Oct 31, 2018

I should clarify when I say full shutdown, I mean a fully powered-down state with the orange light on the power brick.

Cap, are you referring to Instant On mode? In that case you're right, a shutdown doesn't fully power down. But if you're in Standby mode, a normal "Console Off" will put you in the same power state as holding power for 8 seconds, as the power brick will
go to an orange light. (This can be triggered by holding the Xbox button on the controller and choosing "Console Off," or by tapping the power logo on the console IF you're in Standby. Otherwise, you have to hold the Xbox Logo for 8 seconds.)

Jaymo1978

I should clarify when I say full shutdown, I mean a fully powered-down state with the orange light on the power brick.

Cap, are you referring to Instant On mode? In that case you're right, a shutdown doesn't fully power down. But if you're in Standby mode, a normal "Console Off" will put you in the same power state as holding power for 8 seconds, as the power brick will
go to an orange light. (This can be triggered by holding the Xbox button on the controller and choosing "Console Off," or by tapping the power logo on the console IF you're in Standby. Otherwise, you have to hold the Xbox Logo for 8 seconds.)

CapnPhoton

I would just like to add that a hard reset can help, but it is not a full shutdown and restart. Look for a moment at Windows. If you were just to press the power button every time until it shuts off, eventually Windows would have major issues and have to
be reinstalled. This is because it does not go through a full shutdown unloading files, and putting things in their place so to speak. The same is true for your Xbox. Mine goes through the normal shutdown and restart (not hard reset) each day and I very rarely
have issues.

Jaymo1978

Hi Sween! Let me just ask a couple of clarifying questions - is Destiny the only game in which you're noticing a framerate drop? Also, when you use your Xbox, how many different things are you doing with it before shutting down (for example, just a game,
then shutting down again, or play a game, watch some videos, watch TV, play another game, etc.?)

The reason I ask that last question is, in Instant On mode, one of the issues people tend to see is that when they use their system over time, as they use games and apps, things start responding more slowly, and in most cases the reason is because the system
is keeping a list of all of these recent programs in its memory, for purposes of quick-resume. If you press the Home button on the controller to back out of a game and return to the dashboard, and then immediately start another game, that other program is
technically still on standby in the background (kind of like minimizing a program on your computer vs. clicking the X to close it.)

If you notice that you might be doing that, try an experiment. Put your system back in Instant On mode, and then play a game. But THIS time, when you back out to the home screen, highlight the large window (current game) and press Menu --> Quit. This should
free up the memory being used by that game/app. THEN, shut down, start back up, and try a game and see if it plays any more smoothly.

The fact that a full shut down (hard boot) fixes this, and that you don't encounter it when the system is not in Instant On mode makes me think this might be the issue, because when the system goes into Standby or Hard Boots, it basically clears the memory
every time, as opposed to Instant On, which keeps that memory in use.

If that DOESN'T apply to you or doesn't seem to work, then that's a puzzle! Let me know, and we'll see if we can troubleshoot some more!

Justabill37

Amazon instant video has serious frame rate issues, Sound is fine, but the video studders. It worked great until Sunday Afternoon , march 23.

HypnoticCoqui

@Sly Jon: No, man. It's not just that I'm giving the game a pass because I'm used to it. The frame rate is consistent, and very playable. It seems to be around 30 fps most of the time. It dips severely during cutscenes, and also sometimes when there's
a lot happening. But the thing is, it doesn't stutter. Motion remains predictable and feels fluid even when the fps dips. Do you get me? What makes a game unplayable is repeated momentary freezing, aka hitching. That happens when the fps drops to near
zero, then bounces back over and over--which is a problem with many games, but NOT this one, at least not for me.

Instant On and Frame Rate Issues