My controller has started lagging on my PC, so I did some research, and here is how I solve the issue.
The easiest way to reduce controller input lag on PC is to disable Vsync. To turn Vsync off go to Setting > Graphics > Graphic then disable it. You can overclock the controller to reduce the controller lag even further.
If you don’t want to Overclock your controller, then there are still a few tricks that can help you reduce the input of the controller without Overclocking it.
Why low controller input lag is important?
I don’t think I have to tell anybody how irritating input lag can get. It can make any game unplayable.
What is input lag? (I know you already know, but just for the content).
Controller Input lag occurs when there is a delay in what you input on the controller and what get’s registered in-game.
A lower input delay means there is less delay on what you input and what get’s registered in-game.
A low input delay is always ideal in any game, especially multiplayer.
In any multiplayer game we need any advantage we can have on our opponents and even just a 15ms controller lag can put us at a huge disadvantage.
If you love playing a lot of multiplayer games like I do. Then you already know what I’m talking.
What causes input lag on the controller?
Now, that we all know what Input lag is. It’s time to find out what might be causing the issue.
During our 2 weeks of intense research and experiment, we have found that there are many variables in the equation, so can be ‘n’ number of reasons for controller lag on PC.
The above paragraph took me above 15 min to write, which is more than research, so you better like it.
Well, I was just a joke, but long story short. Here are the most common reasons for your controller to lag on PC:
Faulty USB cable
If you have connected your controller using a wired connection, then make sure it’s not faulty. The easiest way to be sure is to use a different cable. If it’s lagging then the cause for delay is something else.
If you need to buy a cable, here’s a USB 3.1 from Anker for $14.99 on amazon.
Faulty Bluetooth adaptor
To connect our controller via Bluetooth, our PC either need to have built-in Bluetooth in your motherboard or a Bluetooth adaptor.
Although having a Faulty adaptor is not that uncommon, but it’s definitely worth noting.
And if you need a Bluetooth adaptor, here’s an amazon choice winner from TP-Link.
Limit your FPS
When it comes to FPS we all love to see crazy high numbers flashing on the screen, especially when our PC is top-tier. But, sometimes it can cause some serious latency issues on your controller.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not asking you to play at 60 FPS, hell that would be boring.
If you are getting 200+ FPS, then limiting it down to 144 won’t affect your game a lot, and if it can solve the issue, then I say it’s totally worth it,
Read the full thread here here
.
High resolution
One of the most common reason for input lag on PC is High resolution, and lowering your resolution to 1080p can help reduce the controller lag.
Higher resolution means higher load on CPU & GPU and it can sometimes slow down your CPU that can lead to controller input delay.
Even if your CPU is capable you should keep your resolution to 1080p especially in multiplayer games.
Should we use a wired or wireless connection?
I know this one seems really obvious to the most of you, We all know that wired connection is faster and more stable.
Well, this is not the case for every controller.
Rocket Science has did some experiment and the results were really surprising.
DS4 (Bluetooth) surprisingly only has a 2.8ms input delay, whereas DuelShock 4 (wired) has a 10ms delay.
You can read the full thread on Reddit here.
But wired connect for every other controller except DS4.
So, should you use a Wired or Wireless connection?
You should go for wired connection, it’s faster for every controller except DS4. But more importantly it’s much more stable, even if you are using DS4.
So, if you are not using DS4 then you should use a USB cable for a faster and stable connection.
For DuelShock 4: Use a wired connection if you are planning on Overclocking, if not then use wireless.
I have explained the reason for that below.
Method 1: Overclock the controller
In this method we are going to overclock the polling rate of the controller to reduce the controller lag.
What is the polling rate? you ask.
The polling rate of a controller is simply how many times the controller reports its position to the PC. A higher polling rate means lower latency, while a lower polling rate means higher latency.
So, it’s highly likely that if your controller is lagging because of the high polling rate. So, to reduce latency we are going to increase it’s polling rate.
To reduce lag we are going to use a software called hidusbf. And yes that’s the name of the software.
Note: Overclocking is not allowed in competitive games, so don’t use it if you take part in competitive, but other than that it’s perfectly fine.
So, with further ado let’s see how to do it.
Step 1: First, download the hidusbf.zip from [here]. And extract it anywhere you like.
Step 2: Click on the “DRIVER” folder.
Step 3: Then click on setup to open the program.
Step 4: By default mice is selected in the “Devices” change it to “All”.
Step 5: The next thing we have to do is to locate the controller. The easiest way is to look at the “Child Name”.
Step 6: Once you find the controller, “click on Install Services”.
Step 7: Once services are installed check in the box, “Filter on Device” and change the Rate from default to 1000.
Step 8: Disconnect and connect your controller,
There you go. Now your controller is overclocked.
If you want to verify whether your controller is overclocked or not. Just reopen the application, and if the rate is 1000 then you have successfully overclocked your controller.
If for some reason you want to reverse the overclock. just uncheck the “Filter on Device” and set the rate to “Default”.
How to reduce controller lag on DuelShock 4?
Connect your DS4 via. Bluetooth.
On DuelShock 4, Bluethooth version has a input delay 2.8ms, whereas USB has a input delay of 10.0ms. So, using a Bluethooth version is much better,
OverClock your controller
Things can become a little complicated if you are planning on Overclocking.
If you Overclock a wired DS4 to 1000 polling rate then it can have the same input lag as the Bluetooth ones.
I simple words an overclocked wired DS4 and DS4 (Bluetooth) roughly have same input lag.
If we are going to get the same input lag, then what is the need of overclocking the controller?
The answer is consistency. Even though Bluetooth version has less input lag, but USB is much more consistency.
So if you overclocking a wired DS4 then you can get around 2.0ms input delay and much more consistency.
Long story short, use a wired connection if you are planning on Overclocking, if not then use wireless.