No longer getting 60 fps

[Cetol]

Hey there.

Around half a year ago, I was able to get a constant 60 fps while playing various games, but now I'm lucky to get 50 on some games. For example, Mario Kart Wii, I used to get 60 fps, but now I drop to 50 fps at the starting line and it eventually speeds up to 52-54
Sort of the same with SSB: Brawl. I used to get a constant 60 fps, but now I drop down to around 54-56 on certain levels.

I can't think of what could be wrong. None of my hardware has changed (no over/underclocking either) I always keep my drivers as up-to-date as possible. I update Dolphin to the latest version each time I play. All background applications are closed when using Dolphin. I've tried various settings that are supposed to be the best from forum posts here, but nothing has worked.

Is there anything I can try? Or is more information needed to diagnose this?

Thanks for your time.

[linkinworm]

updating dolphin isnt always the best idea, use builds you know work best for games, if you must, have a dolphin build for each game for max compatability and speed per game.

[Shonumi]

Generally, Dolphin cuts less corners with each revision, getting more accurate in it's emulation, and subsequently demanding more from the same hardware. This is not always the case, as some changes have no affect on performance at all, or will speed up emulation to an extent. As part of a larger trend, however, newer revs run "slower" than older ones. To get the exact same performance you had half a year ago, use the same rev.