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cs16-freq-refresh-rate/en.md
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| 1 | +--- | |
| 2 | +title: "Fixing Your Refresh Rate (-freq 144) in CS 1.6" | |
| 3 | +excerpt: "Why CS 1.6 runs your 144 Hz or 165 Hz monitor at 60 Hz, how to force the real rate with the -freq launch option, and how to stop v-sync from capping your frames." | |
| 4 | +category: "client" | |
| 5 | +tags: "refresh-rate, display" | |
| 6 | +image: "" | |
| 7 | +read_time: "7 min read" | |
| 8 | +--- | |
| 9 | +<p>You bought a 144 Hz monitor, but CS 1.6 feels no smoother than it did at 60 Hz. That is because the old GoldSrc engine does not automatically pick your display's highest refresh rate — it commonly falls back to 60 Hz on the fullscreen mode switch, so the game only ever shows 60 unique frames a second no matter how high your FPS climbs. The fix is one launch parameter plus a couple of cvars, and it applies equally to 120, 144, 165 and 240 Hz panels.</p><h2>1. Confirm what you are actually getting</h2><p>Before changing anything, verify the problem. Join any server, open the console with <code>~</code>, and turn on the net graph:</p><pre>net_graph 3</pre><p>The bottom line shows your current FPS. If your monitor is 144 Hz but the frame time feels capped and motion tears or stutters, the game is almost certainly running the desktop mode at 60 Hz. You can also check Windows: <strong>Settings > System > Display > Advanced display</strong> reports the refresh rate the game window is using once CS is in the foreground.</p><h2>2. Set the -freq launch option</h2><p>Right-click Counter-Strike in your Steam library, choose <strong>Properties</strong>, and in <strong>Launch Options</strong> add the frequency you want, matching your monitor exactly:</p><pre>-freq 144</pre><p>Use <code>-freq 165</code>, <code>-freq 240</code> or whatever your panel's rated maximum is. Do not request a rate the monitor cannot do — asking for 144 on a 60 Hz screen either does nothing or drops you back to a safe mode. While you are in launch options, it is worth pinning your resolution too so the mode switch is unambiguous:</p><pre>-freq 144 -w 1920 -h 1080</pre><p>These pair naturally with the rest of your startup flags; see <a href="/tutorials/cs16-best-launch-options">the best launch options guide</a> for the full set.</p><h2>3. Raise fps_max above your refresh rate</h2><p>A high refresh rate is wasted if the engine caps frames below it. The default <code>fps_max</code> is low, so set it comfortably above your Hz in your config or console:</p><pre>fps_max 300</pre><p>You want FPS to sit well above the refresh rate at all times so every screen refresh has a fresh frame ready. On a 144 Hz monitor, a stable 300 FPS gives the smoothest result. Put this in your <a href="/tutorials/cs16-config-cfg-guide">config.cfg</a> so it survives restarts.</p><h2>4. Turn off v-sync</h2><p>Vertical sync locks your frame output to the monitor and reintroduces input latency — the opposite of what a high-refresh panel is for. Disable it in the engine:</p><pre>gl_vsync 0</pre><p>Then disable it again at the driver level so the driver does not override the game. In the NVIDIA Control Panel or AMD software, set Vertical Sync to <strong>Off</strong> for hl.exe. The <a href="/tutorials/cs16-nvidia-settings">NVIDIA settings guide</a> covers this and the low-latency options that pair with it.</p><h2>5. Set the Windows desktop refresh rate too</h2><p>The game inherits the desktop mode on some driver versions, so set the desktop itself to the full rate. On Windows, <strong>Advanced display > Choose a refresh rate</strong> and pick 144 Hz. If the desktop is stuck at 60, the game will be too, and no launch option overrides a display that is physically wired at a lower rate — check that you are using a DisplayPort or high-bandwidth HDMI cable, since a marginal cable silently forces 60 Hz.</p><h2>Common errors</h2><ul><li><strong>-freq is ignored and the game still runs at 60 Hz</strong> — you are in windowed or borderless mode, where the window inherits the desktop rate. Run true fullscreen, or set the desktop to 144 Hz as in step 5.</li><li><strong>Screen goes black or the monitor shows "out of range"</strong> — you requested a rate the panel cannot do at that resolution. Lower the <code>-freq</code> value or the resolution.</li><li><strong>FPS is high but motion still stutters</strong> — v-sync is on somewhere. Confirm <code>gl_vsync 0</code> and turn it off in the driver as well.</li><li><strong>Refresh resets every launch</strong> — a driver utility or the monitor's own software is forcing a mode. Set the rate in the driver control panel, not just Windows.</li><li><strong>FPS caps at exactly your Hz</strong> — v-sync or a driver frame limiter is active, or <code>fps_max</code> is set to the refresh value. Raise <code>fps_max</code> and disable v-sync.</li></ul><h2>Verification</h2><p>Launch the game, join a server, and read the net graph again:</p><pre>net_graph 3</pre><p>FPS should sit above your monitor's rate and motion should be visibly smoother when you flick the mouse. To confirm the display mode itself, alt-tab and check Windows Advanced display while CS is running — it should report the full 144 Hz (or your rate). If it still reads 60, the mode switch is failing at the OS level, not in the game, and the desktop refresh setting and cable are where to look. Once this is right, tighten your feel further with correct <a href="/tutorials/cs16-best-client-rates">client rates</a>.</p> |
cs16-sensitivity-dpi/en.md
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| 1 | +--- | |
| 2 | +title: "Choosing Sensitivity and DPI for CS 1.6" | |
| 3 | +excerpt: "How mouse DPI, the in-game sensitivity cvar, raw input and Windows pointer settings combine in CS 1.6, and how to pick a value you can actually aim with." | |
| 4 | +category: "client" | |
| 5 | +tags: "mouse, sensitivity" | |
| 6 | +image: "" | |
| 7 | +read_time: "7 min read" | |
| 8 | +--- | |
| 9 | +<p>Aim in CS 1.6 is the product of three numbers that most players never separate: your mouse DPI, the in-game <code>sensitivity</code> cvar, and whatever Windows pointer acceleration is doing behind your back. Get the interaction wrong and the same flick lands differently every round. This walks through what each layer actually does and how to lock down a consistent, repeatable setup.</p> | |
| 10 | + | |
| 11 | +<h2>1. Understand the two multipliers</h2> | |
| 12 | +<p>Your effective turn speed is roughly <strong>DPI × sensitivity</strong>. DPI (counts per inch) is set in your mouse driver or on the mouse itself; <code>sensitivity</code> is the engine multiplier. 400 DPI at <code>sensitivity 2.5</code> and 800 DPI at <code>sensitivity 1.25</code> feel almost identical because the product is the same. Most CS players sit at 400 or 800 DPI and adjust <code>sensitivity</code> from there rather than chasing a high DPI number:</p> | |
| 13 | +<pre>sensitivity 2.5</pre> | |
| 14 | +<p>Type <code>sensitivity</code> in the console with no value to read your current setting. Change it in the console, not just the menu slider, so you get the exact decimal you want.</p> | |
| 15 | + | |
| 16 | +<h2>2. Kill Windows and driver acceleration</h2> | |
| 17 | +<p>Pointer acceleration means the same physical distance produces a different in-game angle depending on how fast you move — fatal for muscle memory. Turn off <strong>Enhance pointer precision</strong> in Windows (Control Panel → Mouse → Pointer Options) and set the pointer speed slider to the middle (6th notch). In your mouse driver, disable any acceleration or angle-snapping feature.</p> | |
| 18 | +<p>CS 1.6 also has its own launch options that stop the engine forcing Windows mouse parameters. Add them to the game's launch options in Steam:</p> | |
| 19 | +<pre>-noforcemparms -noforcemaccel -noforcemspd</pre> | |
| 20 | +<p>These tell the engine not to override your OS mouse settings, which is what you want once you have set them deliberately.</p> | |
| 21 | + | |
| 22 | +<h2>3. Prefer raw input</h2> | |
| 23 | +<p>Updated CS 1.6 builds expose raw input, which reads the mouse directly and bypasses the Windows pointer pipeline entirely:</p> | |
| 24 | +<pre>m_rawinput 1 | |
| 25 | +m_filter 0</pre> | |
| 26 | +<p><code>m_rawinput 1</code> is the single best setting for consistency — with it on, the Windows slider and acceleration no longer affect the game at all. Keep <code>m_filter 0</code>; filtering averages recent mouse samples and adds a smeared, floaty feel. Leave <code>m_customaccel 0</code> (in-engine acceleration off).</p> | |
| 27 | + | |
| 28 | +<h2>4. Set your zoom ratio for the AWP</h2> | |
| 29 | +<p>Scoped weapons use a separate multiplier so that a scoped flick is not wildly faster than a hip-fire one:</p> | |
| 30 | +<pre>zoom_sensitivity_ratio 1.0</pre> | |
| 31 | +<p>At <code>1.0</code> the zoomed sensitivity is scaled to feel proportional to your normal sensitivity. Lower it (for example <code>0.8</code>) if scoped aim feels twitchy. This does not change your normal <code>sensitivity</code>, only how the scope behaves.</p> | |
| 32 | + | |
| 33 | +<h2>5. Pick a value with the 360 test</h2> | |
| 34 | +<p>Rather than copy a pro's number, measure your own. Clear space on the desk, put the crosshair on a fixed point, and see how many centimetres of mouse movement it takes to spin a full 360 degrees. Lower sensitivity = more centimetres = more arm aim and precision; higher = less desk space but harder to hold steady. A common range is 25–45 cm per 360 for aim-heavy play. Adjust <code>sensitivity</code> until the distance feels natural, then <strong>stop changing it</strong> — consistency beats the perfect number.</p> | |
| 35 | + | |
| 36 | +<h2>Troubleshooting</h2> | |
| 37 | +<ul> | |
| 38 | +<li><strong>Aim feels different after an update or on a new PC</strong> — Windows acceleration came back on, or <code>m_rawinput</code> reset to 0. Re-check both. A migrated config does not carry your Windows settings.</li> | |
| 39 | +<li><strong>Cursor is fine in menus but aim is inconsistent in-game</strong> — acceleration is active. Confirm <code>m_rawinput 1</code> and the three launch options above.</li> | |
| 40 | +<li><strong>Sensitivity slider snaps to a rounded value</strong> — the menu rounds; set the exact decimal in the console instead and it sticks.</li> | |
| 41 | +<li><strong>Scoped aim is way too fast or slow</strong> — that is <code>zoom_sensitivity_ratio</code>, not <code>sensitivity</code>. Tune it separately.</li> | |
| 42 | +<li><strong>Settings reset every launch</strong> — your <code>config.cfg</code> is read-only or being overwritten. See the note below on making settings persist.</li> | |
| 43 | +</ul> | |
| 44 | + | |
| 45 | +<h2>Make it persist</h2> | |
| 46 | +<p>Put your mouse block in <code>userconfig.cfg</code> in the <code>cstrike/</code> folder so a game update or a server's forced cvars cannot lose it permanently:</p> | |
| 47 | +<pre>// cstrike/userconfig.cfg | |
| 48 | +sensitivity 2.5 | |
| 49 | +zoom_sensitivity_ratio 1.0 | |
| 50 | +m_rawinput 1 | |
| 51 | +m_filter 0</pre> | |
| 52 | +<p>Then bind a key or type <code>exec userconfig.cfg</code> to reload it. If your whole config keeps resetting, that is a separate issue covered in <a href="/tutorials/cs16-verify-game-files">verifying game files</a>, since a corrupt install can refuse to save settings.</p> | |
| 53 | + | |
| 54 | +<h2>Verification</h2> | |
| 55 | +<p>Open the console (<code>~</code>) and read the values back:</p> | |
| 56 | +<pre>sensitivity | |
| 57 | +m_rawinput | |
| 58 | +zoom_sensitivity_ratio</pre> | |
| 59 | +<p>Each should echo exactly what you set. Then do the 360 test twice with a fixed desk mark — if both spins land on the same spot, acceleration is truly off and your aim will be repeatable. Once the mouse is dialled in, a matching static crosshair helps you see exactly where shots land; see <a href="/tutorials/cs16-static-crosshair">the static crosshair guide</a>.</p> | |
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