Rift CV1 - Stuttering issue that is constantly getting worse and worse

[dtard]

UPDATE:

For archival purposes and for anyone looking for solutions to issues like this in the future, I'm just going to record here what I've done since my initial post. My game is now running quite smoothly, but unfortunately because I did not do this with anything resembling a scientific method, it probably won't end up being any help to anyone else.

So basically today I did a major cleaning and rework of my computer. The things I changed that may be a factor in my improved performance are as follows:
- Cleaning all the dust and shit out of my computer, fans, GPU, etc. This one is big and it's free. The only change between when I used to play beat saber without lag and my lag issues was how dusty and dirty the inside of my PC case was.
- Added separate PCIE USB 3.0 Card. I honestly don't think this helped as much as I was hoping it was because my main issue was my headset's USB connection, which cannot be plugged into this card. still may have helped.
- Replacing my stock intel CPU cooler with a much better CPU cooler, although I haven't changed clock speed or anything else.
- Replacing my PSU with a higher-wattage PSU. My computer has had issues stemming from power since I built it because my old PSU output barely enough power to keep everything running I guess. This cost me a nice ass Samsung SSD. My word of advice is get a PSU that's one or two hundred watts higher than what you expect your build to be pulling.
- Adding two extra case fans so I have higher air flow through my machine. 

Updates to beat saber itself could have also improved performance.

Original Post:
What's up everyone,

I have basically been having major stuttering issues in most if not all games I play on my Rift, and I feel like it wasn't originally like this and that the problem is getting worse and worse as time goes on. 

Yesterday it was happening once or twice every minute. Today it's happening every five seconds. I have been hunting around online and I have tried every single potential fix I can possibly fine, nothing has helped. I'm hoping someone in here can help me diagnose it and solve it. At this point, beat saber is unplayable and that is basically the only game I play and it's also a lot of my exercise regimen. I really need help with this and it would be greatly appreciated if anyone had any input.

I've tried (in no particular order):
-Stopping any other software that is running on my computer.
-Changing USB Ports/Sets being used
-Underclocking my GPU
-Public beta software branch
-changing VRmode to Oculus, SteamVR, OpenVR
-Graphics setting ingame to lowest possible
-Turning off overlays, etc.

EDIT: Observations and more stuff I have tried
Just to clarify, the behavior I'm seeing is this: Essentially, every 5 to 10 seconds, the framerate will drop to 0 for a quarter of a second or so and then jump to the new updated position. The game time continues to run but on my end my view does not update and my hits do not register.

Observations: While Ingame I have observed that my GPU and CPU are nowhere near maxed out when these issues occurring, and they are not jumping or dropping to zero when the stutters occur. This tells me that is not an issue with my computer hardware, and has to be an issue with the oculus software/hardware or with the games that I am playing. The fact that it is happening no matter the game has me believeing it is directly oculus related.

The two things I haven't tried yet are this:
-Getting a secondary USB card for my computer. I have one of my sensors on my front case USB 3.0 ports in an attempt to lessen the power load. I'm still receiving an issue where my headset itself is showing that it's on USB 2.0. Honestly, I didn't ever see this issue before the stuttering started occurring, and nothing changed in terms of my USB configuration when this became a problem. However I've been told that it shouldn't cause an issue anyway. I'm not sure.
-Rolling back GPU drivers.

Specs:
Oculus Rift CV1
GTX970-i5-4690k

Thanks

[Fazz]

Why did you download software to under clock your Graphics card? What Graphics card is this and why don't you try these two things. First download the latest driver for your graphics card and install it, or reinstall it if you already have the latest one installed. If that doesn't work try doing a repair on the Oculus software. I think you still do it like this (link below). If this fails make sure your sensors are being picked up in the Oculus settings. Maybe also try cleaning any dirt on your sensors if there's any there

https://support.oculus.com/248898085828772/

[dtard]

I attempted to underclock my GPU because sometimes if GPU power draw is too high it can cause GPU performance to have a stuttering effect where the GPU clock speed/power draw drops to zero intermittently causing a stuttering effect ingame. After looking into this issue further this is not the case for me personally and the GPU underclock is unnecessary. As for drivers, this issue has persisted through 2 or 3 driver updates, and I just now attempted a driver update/reinstall and the issue still persists.

As for an Oculus repair, I am currently performing this and will update this comment with the results. Thank you RedRizla for the input.

EDIT: After performing a repair on my oculus software, from a quick test the stuttering seems much more manageable albeit still present, it is happening much less frequently and it is somewhat less severe when it occurs. This is a lot better, but it still seems like it is occurring more than when I initially purchased it. The next issue I'm really going to dig into is USB port use. While I was playing I saw that not only my headset, but my sensors were randomly flipping between USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 during the game (going from green to yellow in the oculus devices tab), so I'm going to try and figure out if I can improve that somehow next. 

It would still be awesome to get more input on this. Thanks!

[YoLolo69]

Did you try to open task manager sorted by CPU time and watch if an unknown application grab cpu power intermittently? I'm asking as I already saw such behavior with some malware like bitcoin miners, creating same consequences. You will have to launch a VR app or games, and for example remove your headset to switch on your desktop, keeping your finger or some other things in your headset to trigger the proximity sensor.

[parsecn]

I presume when doing a repair of Oculus software, it had you run through sensor setup again at launch? If not, consider doing your setup again so that you can confirm all sensors are oriented correctly. Also, make sure that the front of sensors are clean and free of dust. 

I'm blocking Oculus updates and staying on software version 16. There are a rash of issues with v17 and 18. Ymmv. 

Beyond that, definitely consider a 3rd party USB card - I am personally using a Startech 4 port USB 3.1 with dedicated controllers and 4 sensors with zero stuttering or lag. 

I do agree with your hunch/assessment that it's hardware related with your rig. The dedicated card will provide significant breathing room, as a start. 

[ReneLaan]

Well I have the same issue here, every 5 seconds stuttering, dropping of the framerate.
I went back to a restore point in windows to the previous version of oculus Oculus app version 18.0.0.244.517
Besides, this is not the first time with the updates for the Rift, the developers should take a closer look at this

[dtard]

Thanks for all the advice. I'm waiting for a secondary USB PCIE card to arrive. I will also have to take out my psu and put a new one in when that arrives, which seems like a pain in the ass but oh well. As for an update on my play conditions, the lag is back to being constant. I actually get around half of a song's worth of lag-free play before it starts, but after that it goes down the drain again. As for software in the background grabbing resources, I haven't seen that happening as of yet. 

Finally, if I make all the adjustments above and it does not fix the issue, I have access to a much more powerful graphics card (I'm on a 970, have access to a 1080 or 2080), and I will see if that has any effect  at all.

Thanks for the help!

[dtard]

Just an update for anyone who comes across this in the future and has an issue that is similar. I've updated my initial posting above with my changes, currently my game is working quite well.