Fixing Periodic Emulator Stutter Caused by Refresh-Rate Mismatch
A targeted workflow for cadence judder when emulation speed is correct but source and display refresh rates do not align.
If frame-time spikes recur at a regular interval while CPU/GPU load remains low, compare the core’s actual refresh rate with the display mode. A nominal 60 Hz label can hide fractional rates; PAL content introduces a different cadence entirely.
Enable the emulator’s frame-time graph. Test exclusive/fullscreen and compositor paths, then select a display mode close to the source or use variable refresh within its supported range. Keep V-sync enabled while diagnosing tearing separately. Allow a small documented audio resampling correction rather than forcing the emulated machine to run at the wrong speed.
Disable shader compilation, rewind, and run-ahead temporarily to isolate cadence from workload stalls. Reintroduce them one by one. The success criterion is an even frame-time graph and stable audio, not merely an FPS counter that rounds to 60.