Getting frame rate drops? / lag in EVERYTHING I do, cant find the cause or fix to the problem. Need Help.

So for the past few months Ive been getting frame rate drops (not sure if correct term) in everything. Not just gaming, but browsing, watching videos, everything. When I edit in final cut pro and go for playback it tells me I have frame rate drops, and the music or clip will cut out for just a second or two several times within a ten second interval. When I play a game such as League of Legends or Minecraft the same thing happens, my FPS suddenly plummet and it freezes for just a second or two then resumes. When I watch clips or videos, the exact same thing, it freezes for 1/2 second to 2 seconds. I have awesome connection with my ISP so its not that. I have run every test I can think of, Ive de-fragged my HD, I track RAM, Disk etc.. and they all run fine according tivity monitor and other tests. I did Disk Speed tests, I cleaned out my entire mac of all files I didn't need, I did a "spring cleaning" I rebooted into safe mode and a bunch of other modes I cant name. Im not an expert or anything close to that when it comes to computers, so if someone can give me a solution that would be great.


Also I took it to the Apple store a few months ago to replace the motherboard because the USB ports weren't functioning. When I got it back now that i think about it, thats close to when this problem began. Also my Keyboard lights never work, since I got it back.


Anyways, I get lag in anything I do, even scrolling down sometimes. I also wonder if it could be a graphics card issue? Not sure. Would love feedback! Hopefully something other than "take it into the apple store" 🙂 Thanks!


Processor 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5


Memory 4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3


Graphics Intel HD Graphics 3000 384 MB


Software OS X 10.9.2 (13C64) (Haven't upgraded to Yosemite yet but the problem started before that came out)


Also one last thing of concern is the Data Read / Write under Disk on Activity Monitor


Data Read: 46.15 GB

Data Write: 44.19 GB

Data read / sec: 176 Kb - 1.35 Mb (They fluctuate often)

Data write / sec: 24 - 96.8 Kb (They fluctuate often)


Again not sure if that has anything to do with it, but it doesnt seem normal...

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.2)

Posted on Nov 26, 2014 10:46 PM

Reply
7 replies

Nov 27, 2014 1:47 PM in response to Karchat

Once you get it checked out, I'd also consider adding some RAM - 4 GB RAM is considered to be the absolute minimum for any OS starting with Lion; when I had only 4 GB on mine, I got the beachball, panics, freeze-ups, etc. I doubled the RAM to 8 on my MBP and it works great. Went with 12 GB on my iMac which I use for video editing, burning, etc. and it works well also. Another thing to check is how much empty hard drive space you have.

Nov 28, 2014 10:01 AM in response to Karchat

The 2 places I’ve seen recommended most to buy reliable RAM are below. I have purchased RAM several times from Other World Computing and have always been very satisfied with the product and service. They have on-line instructions on how to replace the RAM. OWC has also tested RAM above what Apple states is the maximum. I now have 6GB installed on a machine supposedly limited to 4 GB.


Crucial


Other World Computing

Dec 2, 2014 6:03 AM in response to babowa

Thank you! Yes Ive been looking into getting new RAM for a while, I found some I like, Im thinking about getting an 8 GB upgrade. I did the scan on crucial.com and one of the compatible RAM upgrade recommendations was "8GB Kit (4GBx2) DDR3 PC3-10600 Unbuffered NON-ECC 1.35V 512Meg x 64".


I don't think my problem is Hard Disk space, I have 203 GB free of 500 GB. I just cleaned out a lot of files and got rid of over 160 GB of data and I didn't notice much of a difference before or after.


Dec 2, 2014 6:05 AM in response to Eric Root

Thank you! I agree, the last time I went to the apple store they recommended upgrading my RAM. Crucial.com was one of the recommendations too! I did the scan and it recommended ""8GB Kit (4GBx2) DDR3 PC3-10600 Unbuffered NON-ECC 1.35V 512Meg x 64". I just need to save up so i can buy it. Hopefully that'll be the fix to my problem!

Dec 2, 2014 6:07 AM in response to Esquared

So I did the test, and no luck. Apparently everything is running fine, I think it is as the others suggested, that I just need to upgrade my RAM. I do a lot of memory intensive projects and Im sure it pushes the limits of what my macbook can actually do. Ill keep yall updated and let you know if the new RAM works, when I get it.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Getting frame rate drops? / lag in EVERYTHING I do, cant find the cause or fix to the problem. Need Help.

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.