Tiny stuttering problem

[trackmaniac64]

I'm having a very strange problem with Trackmania 2 Stadium. The games runs at a solid 50 fps, but every few seconds (almost randomly) the game has the tiniest stutter. It's as if the display freezes for just a tiny amount, then updates. This occurs both in singleplayer and multiplayer. The stuttering seems to slowly get worse over the longer I play, with the car becoming (almost) undrivable on technical maps after about 3 minutes.

Things I've tried:
Decreasing the game's visual quality settings to the lowest. I get a solid 70 fps, but still with stuttering.
Increasing the game's visual quality to the maximum. I get about 15 fps, but still stuttering.
Hiding opponents in multiplayer with 'O'.
Hiding the HUD with '*'.
Enabling "Display VSync" and "Triple Buffer"
Whatever fullscreen GDI is, I've enabled and disabled it.
Same goes for 'Optimize dynamic geometry', 'enable check lags', and other options in compatibility
CPU/GPU synchro, from Immediate to 3 frames and none.
Lowering the lightmap quality.
Limiting maximum fps to 30.
Updating graphics drivers.

And here's specs for anyone who needs them:
Core 2 Duo 2.2ghz
Nvidia GT240M
4GB ram

Thanks a lot in advance, this issue is making it impossible to drive, especially when the stutter occurs during a turn.

[MrA]

If you are in 'FullScreen Windowed' , try standard FullScreen. I was in 'FullScreen Windowed' because I find it useful, but switching to FullScreen fixed stuttering.

[trackmaniac64]

I'm in normal Fullscreen. I've never tried Fullscreen Windowed. In normal windowed mode, I still have the problem.

The stuttering isn't the sort of 'graphics are too high' stuttering, it's like a very short .1 seconds or so freeze that occurs in between periods of normal playing.

Additionally, the framerate shown in Fraps does not drop noticably when there is a stutter.

[TMarc]

If the stutter is periodic, this is mostly some audio buffer streaming (disk activity), or hardware monitoring tool, or task manager.
Which applications are constantly running, e.g. in the taskbar next to the clock?

[trackmaniac64]

I usually have a music player open, but I tried exiting that already. The only other applications that I almost always have open are a utility for my mouse, Avast, and Steam, which is running the game.

[TMarc]

Try reducing video details like fullscreen resolution, as your system might already be at the limit of its possibilities, and then anythink can lead to short stuttering.

[trackmaniac64]

Just tried it at 640x480, lowest settings, fullscreen.

Stuttering is still there, and it doesn't seem to be any better or worse.

[TMarc]

can you see a drop of the FPS (there is a integrated display in Maniaplanet, ingame you need to press \ or so)?
Other possibility: launch the task manager, look at all processes, sort for cpu load.
Put the window to front while you play ManiaPlanet, and check if any application gets top load while the stuttering occurs.

[trackmaniac64]

With fraps, there is no noticable drop in FPS during a stutter.

In task manager, Maniaplanet uses about 30 percent CPU, and the total CPU load never goes above 60 on lowest settings, yet I still have stutters. Physical memory is around 67 percent, so that's not a problem either.

No other application seems to gets an appreciably high CPU load.

I've tested this on an empty map driving in a circle, so it's probably not related to loading blocks.

[TMarc]

hm.
The loading issue is mostly related to textures or like I already wrote, to audio.

Make sure you have Audio quality set to "normal" only.
You might also try to disable music (set music volume to 0).

One thing that increases by the time is the replay buffer and the skidmarks buffer.
If it is this only, then it should be good again if you select a new map, as soon as you encounter heavy stuttertin, right?

I observe stutters when my CPU is not in normal mode but in low power mode. ManiaPlanet does not load it enough to have it constantly in normal mode, so I need to force it with a utility which was provided by the motherboard manufacturer.

You could check your BIOS settings for the CPU power modes, e.g. if automatic throtteling is enabled.
Also check the Windows system control panel, the power options, perhaps change from balanced to high performance mode there.