Evolve

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 is an older mid-range combination, and the recorded data for Evolve reflects that positioning clearly. The game, a 2015 FPS title, shows a steep performance curve that depends heavily on both the resolution and the graphics preset. The measurements in the database provide a complete picture of where this hardware excels and where it falls short, with the only truly smooth experience appearing at 1080p with medium settings.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160 (4K), no preset achieves the 60 FPS threshold. The best recorded average is 33.4 FPS at Low settings, which is well below the playable mark. High yields 17.3 FPS, Medium drops to 25.9 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 16.8 FPS. Even the lowest settings leave the system struggling, so the data indicates that 4K is not a viable option for this combo, regardless of quality level.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the situation improves but still misses the target. The highest average is 57 FPS at Low settings, which is close to 60 but not enough to clear it. Medium produces 41.3 FPS, High drops to 37.9 FPS, and Ultra falls to 21.9 FPS. None of these presets reach the playable threshold, so the best settings at this resolution are effectively "none," with Low being the closest attempt.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the system finally finds traction. The database lists Low at 87.4 FPS, Medium at 65.5 FPS, High at 53.1 FPS, and Ultra at 35.7 FPS. The most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, with an exact average of 65.5 FPS. This is the sweet spot for this hardware, as High falls below the threshold and Ultra is far behind. The verdict data confirms this: the playable settings at 1080p are Low and Medium, with Medium being the best choice at 65.5 FPS.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded FPS scaling across resolutions reveals a clear division of labor between the Intel Core i5-9400 and the AMD Radeon RX 580. At 1080p, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as the CPU has enough headroom to feed the graphics card. The jump from Low (87.4 FPS) to Medium (65.5 FPS) is a 25% drop, and the further drop to High (53.1 FPS) shows the GPU struggling with increased shading and texture work. The CPU’s six cores and six threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, are sufficient to keep up at this resolution, but the RX 580’s 2304 shading units and 144 texture units hit their limits as settings rise.

Moving to 1440p, the GPU load increases dramatically, and the frame rates drop accordingly. Low at 1440p (57 FPS) is 35% slower than Low at 1080p (87.4 FPS), which points to the GPU being the limiting factor. The CPU’s role diminishes because the GPU is already saturated. The same pattern holds at 4K, where Low (33.4 FPS) is 42% slower than 1440p Low (57 FPS). The RX 580’s 256-bit memory bus and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth are not enough to feed the higher pixel counts, and the GPU compute falls off sharply.

The CPU becomes more relevant at lower resolutions and lower settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 87.4 FPS, which suggests the i5-9400 can push beyond 90 FPS if the GPU allowed it. However, at 1080p Ultra (35.7 FPS), the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the CPU’s performance is not the issue. The data implies that for this game, the RX 580 is the limiting component at all resolutions above 1080p Low, while the i5-9400 is adequate for the CPU side but cannot compensate for the GPU’s shortfalls.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full dataset for this combo shows a consistent pattern of diminishing returns as resolution and settings increase. At 3840x2160, the averages are as follows: Low 33.4 FPS, Medium 25.9 FPS, High 17.3 FPS, and Ultra 16.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 16.6 FPS, which is a 50% reduction, and the step from High to Ultra is minimal (0.5 FPS), indicating that Ultra adds little visual benefit for a significant cost.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 57 FPS, Medium 41.3 FPS, High 37.9 FPS, and Ultra 21.9 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 15.7 FPS, and the drop from High to Ultra is 16 FPS, showing that Ultra is disproportionately expensive. Low at 1440p nearly hits 60 FPS, but the margin is too thin for consistent playability.

At 1920x1080, the averages are: Low 87.4 FPS, Medium 65.5 FPS, High 53.1 FPS, and Ultra 35.7 FPS. This is the only resolution where any preset exceeds 60 FPS, and two presets (Low and Medium) clear the threshold. The step from Medium to High is 12.4 FPS, and the step from High to Ultra is 17.4 FPS, which is the largest single drop in the entire dataset. The min and max FPS values are not recorded in the database, so only the averages are available for analysis.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i5-9400 sits at an average benchmark score of 2254. The closest alternatives are the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (score 2259, delta -0.2%), the Intel Core i3-10305 (score 2264, delta -0.4%), the Intel Core i7-10710U (score 2248, delta 0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (score 2246, delta 0.4%). These deltas are all within 0.4% of the i5-9400, meaning that in CPU-bound scenarios, any of these chips would deliver nearly identical frame rates. The i3-10305 is slightly faster, while the Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 is slightly slower, but the differences are negligible for gaming.

For the GPU, the AMD Radeon RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 12928. The nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER (score 12986, delta -0.4%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (score 12940, delta -0.1%), the AMD Radeon 740M (score 12870, delta 0.5%), and the AMD FirePro W5100 (score 12847, delta 0.6%). The GTX 1660 SUPER is 0.4% faster, which is within the margin of error, so it would perform almost identically in Evolve. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile is also nearly identical, while the Radeon 740M and FirePro W5100 are slightly slower.

In practice, swapping the i5-9400 for an i3-10305 would not change the gaming experience, as the GPU remains the bottleneck. Similarly, replacing the RX 580 with a GTX 1660 SUPER would yield the same FPS at 1080p Medium, because the delta is so small. The data suggests that this combo is a stable, mid-range pairing with no extreme outliers among its nearest competitors.

The Verdict

Can this PC run Evolve? The verdict by resolution is clear. At 3840x2160, there are no playable settings, meaning no preset reaches 60 FPS. The best average is 33.4 FPS at Low, which is far below the threshold. At 2560x1440, the same is true: no playable settings exist, and the closest is Low at 57 FPS, which misses the mark by 3 FPS.

At 1920x1080, the system is playable. The database lists Low (87.4 FPS) and Medium (65.5 FPS) as the only presets that clear 60 FPS. The best settings at this resolution are Medium, with an average of 65.5 FPS. This means the combo can run Evolve smoothly at 1080p, provided the user sticks to Medium quality or lower. High (53.1 FPS) and Ultra (35.7 FPS) are not playable.

The overall picture is that this hardware is a 1080p solution for Evolve. It cannot handle 1440p or 4K at any preset without dropping below 60 FPS. For a game from 2015, this is a modest result, but the data shows that the RX 580’s 8 GB of GDDR5 memory and the i5-9400’s six cores are sufficient for the medium preset at the standard resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database’s tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 ranks 3371 out of 3700 combos for Evolve. This places it in the lower 9% of all tested configurations. The percentile for the CPU is 47 among all CPUs, and the GPU is at the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, so both components are near the middle of their respective ranges. However, their combination for this specific game lands well below average.

The rank suggests that while each component is mid-tier on its own, the pairing does not synergize well for Evolve’s demands. The game appears to be GPU-heavy at higher settings, and the RX 580, despite being a capable 1080p card, cannot push beyond the medium preset. The rank of 3371 out of 3700 is a clear indicator that many other combos, likely with newer GPUs or faster CPUs, achieve much higher frame rates. The data implies that this is a legacy setup that struggles with modern expectations, even for an older title.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest playable setting at 1080p for this combo?

A: Medium is the highest preset that stays at or above 60 FPS, with an average of 65.5 FPS at 1920x1080.

Q: Can this system run Evolve at 1440p?

A: No. At 2560x1440, the best average is 57 FPS at Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. No preset is listed as playable.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest GPU rival?

A: The RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 12928, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER scores 12986, a delta of -0.4%, meaning the GTX 1660 SUPER is slightly faster but effectively identical in performance.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: Low averages 87.4 FPS, while Ultra averages 35.7 FPS, a difference of 51.7 FPS. The drop from High (53.1 FPS) to Ultra is the largest single step in the dataset.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 4K?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. At 3840x2160, Low averages 33.4 FPS and Ultra averages 16.8 FPS, while the CPU’s performance is not the limiting factor at such high pixel counts.

Q: What rank does this combo hold in the database for Evolve?

A: It ranks 3371 out of 3700 tested combos, placing it in the lower 9% of all configurations for this game.