My Pop OS installation is super laggy - any ideas?

Hey everyone,

To set a quick expectation, I'm an absolute Linux noob. I'm comfortable with running commands in CLI and can do basic stuff, but the advanced things I'll learn over time.

I installed Pop_OS on a separate nvme drive in my PC. My PC that I built also has Windows, but that's on a completely different nvme drive. The drive for Linux is dedicated just to Linux only. I chose Pop because I'm a gamer and heard it's the most approachable.

I've noticed that my Pop OS is pretty laggy and slow. When it comes to opening up any windows, opening the Pop shop, etc, it performs bad and frequently I get the "Pop Shop not responding" error on open that prevents me from using it.

Are there any tips to diagnose this or some setting that's buried in CLI that I can run? I've checked all the GUI settings and everything appears to be set correctly. I have the latest most available GPU driver, latest version of Pop, I sudo apt update/upgrade everything on there, and still it lags and is slow.

Is there a possible power management restriction that I need to override?

I'm quite lost so I appreciate the suggestions. I have 0 issues with my windows installation - all games run fine, OS is buttery smooth. I want to switch to Linux but this problem just frustrates me and I can't figure it out by searching online.

Specs:

• CPU - Intel i7 12700K
• GPU - MSI RTX 3080 Gaming Z Trio (10 GB)
• Storage - Samsung 970 M2. nvme (Linux drive), Samsung 980 M2 nvme (Windows drive)
• Memory: Corsair DDR4-3600 (XMP on, set to 3600 Mhz in Bios)
• Mainboard: MSI PRO Z690-A (latest Bios)
• Case: Corsair 5000d airflow
• CPU Cooler: Noctua D15
• Fans: Lian Li 3 front intake, 2 rear exhaust. Fan orientation is correct and speeds are set for positive pressure.

EDIT: Forgot to mention a year ago I had tried out both Ubuntu, and then Pop. I didn't really see much issues with Ubuntu. I've reinstalled Pop on multiple drives (including some standard old SSDs) and the issue persists.