How to stop Intel i5-13490F frequency drops in Nioh 2?
The default power management on this i5-13490F is a complete disaster; the CPU clock looks like an EKG, jumping wildly between 2.5GHz and 4.8GHz. These instant drops cause a noticeable hitch every few seconds during combat, and it's honestly infuriating. I first tried 'Ultimate Performance' mode in Windows, but my CPU hit 98℃ and throttled hard, locking the clock at 3.0GHz—what a joke. I finally went into the BIOS, nuked C-States and Intel SpeedStep, and set a manual core voltage offset of -0.05V to keep the heat in check. RTSS showed my frame times tightening from 15-45ms to a rock-solid 8-12ms. The only downside is that my idle power draw jumped by 20W, which I only accepted after tweaking my fan curves to stop the noise. Temps are now stable between 68-75℃. I exported the BIOS profile to save these settings, and the power management is finally under control.
