Hi,
What happens if you disable ASW and try capping the max frame rate of MSFS to 36 FPS in Nvidia Control Panel? Make sure you then restart the sim. That should produce a smooth result in the headset with 72Hz.
That’s the config I’m running with an i7-10700K and RTX 3070. My headset resolution is 4864 x 2448.
Technically, my PC runs the smoothest (i.e., zero stutters, flickers, performance drops etc) when it’s capped at 32 FPS in Nvidia Control Panel (tested in the densest areas, with demanding aircraft), however, I rarely do that type of flying, so I bumped it up to 36 FPS to get the smooth experience that having 1/2 the refresh rate offers, for most of my flying.
On my setup, I noticed interruptions to my VR experience primarily stemmed from fluctuating frame counts.
For example, theoretically if my PC could output 50 FPS, think of the headset displaying 50 of those frames, but it still needs to fill in the gap because it’s refresh rate is 72. Therefore, it will repeat some of those frames (22) to make up the difference. It does that every second. If the next second, the PC outputs 43 FPS, the headset has to repeat 29 frames, instead of 22, which it did the previous second. That generates stutters, which even ASW has difficulty making up for, especially if the number is fluctuating wildly when flying over dense areas.
The main benefit of capping your FPS, is that it means the computer can reliably generate a stable number of frames, every second, regardless of where you’re flying. That’s where the 36 FPS number comes in. For me, because my PC isn’t as powerful as yours, it’s technically 32 FPS.
The other benefit that capping your FPS can offer is when you can match it to half the refresh rate of the headset. That means the same number of frames is displayed in the headset, twice, every second. Thus making the experience smooth, without necessarily needing ASW.
Ideally, the game would be running at 72 or 90 FPS all the time, in which case it wouldn’t be an issue. However, that’s not possible at the moment, so ideally it’s good to try and aim for half the refresh rate of your headset, and keep that number as stable as you can.
Obviously this approach does reach a point where your brain will notice the repetition of frames every second; think moving very fast, very close to the ground, looking sideways. That’s where having 72, or 90 fps, every second to match the headset refresh rate, comes in. Perhaps DLSS or other sim improvements may offer improved FPS in the future.
Cheers,