Should the Mac Studio M2 Max GPU run at 100% in gaming?

Spent a couple hours speaking with 3 levels of Apple tech support. They each confirmed that when running most "heavy" video games, the Activity Monitor, etc. GPU readouts will show a constant 85-100% processor usage, but that is not a problem and doesn't indicate that the GPU is out of processing capability.

The question they could not answer is how can you measure/monitor when/if the GPU is over-pressured (since it will always show a "normal" 100% usage in a "game"). While you can in Activity Monitor view a graph of GPU History, it is a flat line of a maxed out bar graph (which, I'm told, is not an issue nor indicative of overloading the GPU in these Studio models). The numerical readout also doesn't seem to evaluate whether there is too much pressure on the GPU (according to the 3 tech support people). iStat also doesn't have any real detail other than the processor is at 90-100%, whilst the cpu and RAM is under little pressure.

I did come across a small Python tool that provides a bit more detailed view of computer performance in a graphic view in Terminal (called macmon). In the X-Plane newest betas eventually constantly crashing due to cummulative GPU problems in flight, that utility will show very, very low CPU use by both efficiency and performance cores, low RAM use, no temp or power issues, but it does show GPU at 95-100% processor usage (which, according to Apple techs, is normal and okay).

Interestingly, macmon does read out the GPU's processor percentage but also at what MHz (and it is normally quite low). None of the 3 tech people could answer whether seeing an ever-increasing MHz reading for the GPU would indicate a building GPU "overload", thus explaining the eventual accumulating GPU overload and CTD in the new XP betas.

Now the question becomes: How can a person monitor actual GPU possible pressure/overload if the GPU usage readout is okay/normal at 100% in a video "game" app? Are there any other tools/diagnostics out there that can watch for an overloaded/pressured GPU situation in a Mac Studio? As we all know, back with the Intel Macs with standard video cards, it was easy. Watch the video card's processor and VRAM usage and easy to spot an overloaded/pressured GPU. But with the new ARM units, even 3 Apple tech people (each at a higher level of support) couldn't answer that question.

Hopefully someone knows how to do this???

I'm guessing that you perhaps didn't read the thread carefully, or perhaps didn't understand what the issue is. I have over the last few decades done beta testing for several companies (including Apple). The question in this thread is how with the new ARM Mac computers with combined RAM and an Apple GPU (no longer outsourced GPU cards) do we measure excess GPU pressure?

Apple tech support yesterday confirmed that with a video game it is normal for the standard GPU processor metrics to show 100% usage. This is not the same as with standard video cards that we used for many years with Intel Macs. Thus, for developers of graphics intensive apps like X-Plane, how can they tell when the Mac Studio GPU is getting overloaded? Does the total shared RAM usage increase? Does the MHz for the GPU start to significantly increase? I'm assuming that there must be a metric that can be retrieved to indicate the GPU is about to break.

I'm not discussing nor asking about "normal" use of a release app. This is a discussion of beta testing where the graphics are overloading and causing the app to CTD. We are trying to monitor the Mac Studio GPU to see if it is indeed over stressed or strictly a code bug.

The oddity that neither I nor the X-Plane/Laminar tech support can figure out is that the Studio CPU readouts show very low usage (no real pressure) with plenty of RAM available (using only about a max 30-36 for everything running out of 64GB). At scenery load, the XP Log shows after loading: "Texture usage is 2.35 gb out of 42.50 gb available. Memory headroom is 41.24 gb". And, yes, normally the FPS reading within the game/XP would show GPU stress by decreasing. In this case with their new betas in test right now (unlike all prior versions), the FPS stays at near max (40-60fps on a Studio Display that has a max of 60), and the CPU is not under any pressure.

However, if scenery is not getting "flushed" correctly as a flight proceeds and the XP GPU timing readout data shows an ever-increasing and ramping up, massively spiking GPU times with an eventual (not immediate) CTD, it appears to show some type of graphics eventual overload.

Thus the issue of how to get any other readouts/diagnostics for the Studio GPU stress, other than the processor usage (which may show 100% under "normal" conditions).

And the reason for posting this here instead of (actually, in addition to) the XP forums is that there are not a lot of mac users on that forum, especially with any technical background. Mostly windoze users. Hoping that someone over here might know of any data measurements/diagnostics that might show what I'm looking for — something other than just the processor use. Not trying to fix their code, just finding out what the total GPU stress is prior to the CTD that might help them identify their problem.

But given that 3 levels of tech support at Apple didn't know of any diagnostics to get the answer to measuring GPU stress (other than processor usage), I'm guessing it's not a well-know thing. But after doing trouble shooting for clients with Apple products for 40 years now, I'm used to there being more questions than answers.

Appreciate all the input. Might stumble across something yet!

Absolutely agree. Sadly, most of their devs nowadays are windoze and somewhat (not totally) anti-Mac or more so just dismissive of Mac. A bit too many of the support people simply respond by telling Mac users to go buy a windoze box. ;-D Thus hard to get them motivated to dig into mac-only issues. Too often it's a "Macs aren't made for gaming!" attitude. Thankfully they still produce for all 3 OS's but it's an awful lot easier to get them to dig into a windoze problem than mac. Plus there are a lot fewer mac power users who push the XP software to the limits (and thus find bugs/limitations).

Just have to try to keep on trying!