Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core i5-14600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is a strong mid-range combination for Lockdown Protocol, a 2024-released FPS title. Measured data shows this combo achieves fully playable frame rates across all tested resolutions and presets, with the only exception being Ultra settings at 4K. The combo ranks 843rd out of 3714 tested combinations, placing it in the top 23% of all configurations evaluated for this game. This ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component becomes a consistent bottleneck, though the scaling patterns across resolutions reveal how each part contributes differently depending on the workload.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 843 out of 3714 tested combinations places it comfortably in the upper quartile of all hardware pairings tested for Lockdown Protocol. This position indicates that the i5-14600KF and RTX 4070 together deliver well above the median experience, but there is still headroom above this pairing in the database. The CPU alone sits in the 90th percentile against all CPUs tested across the entire benchmark suite, with an average benchmark score of 49394. Its nearest rivals in aggregate CPU performance are the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, which scores 49228 (a 0.3% difference), the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G at 49196 (0.4% higher), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 at 48995 (0.8% higher). The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 scores 49796, which is 0.8% above the i5-14600KF. These tight margins mean that swapping to any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical CPU-bound behavior in Lockdown Protocol.

On the GPU side, the RTX 4070 sits in the 81st percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 37648. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Tesla P4 at 37628 (0.1% lower), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 at 37507 (0.4% lower), and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 at 37157 (1.3% lower). The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, which is 1.3% higher than the RTX 4070. These deltas are small in aggregate terms, but in gaming the RTX 4070’s architecture and driver support typically matter more than raw compute scores. The combo rank itself reflects how both parts interact specifically in Lockdown Protocol, not just their standalone scores. Given that the game’s measured FPS data shows performance scaling smoothly from 1080p to 4K, the 843rd rank out of 3714 suggests this pairing is well above average but not elite — there are many combos with faster GPUs or CPUs that will push higher frame rates, especially at lower resolutions where CPU headroom becomes more relevant.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS data across resolutions and presets reveals how the CPU and GPU divide responsibilities in Lockdown Protocol. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces 262.6 FPS, which is an extremely high frame rate that indicates the GPU is not the limiting factor — the CPU is feeding frames fast enough to saturate most displays. Moving to Medium at 1080p drops to 185.2 FPS, High yields 161 FPS, and Ultra still delivers 121.4 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 77.4 FPS, while the step from Medium to High costs 24.2 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 39.6 FPS. These diminishing returns suggest that at 1080p, the GPU has enough headroom that even Ultra settings remain well above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the pattern shifts. Low settings produce 193.5 FPS, Medium drops to 138.3 FPS, High gives 117.9 FPS, and Ultra still holds at 88.6 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 1440p is 55.2 FPS, which is larger than the equivalent 1080p gap of 77.4 FPS but still shows the GPU handling the increased pixel count. The difference between 1080p Low (262.6 FPS) and 1440p Low (193.5 FPS) is 69.1 FPS, representing a 26.3% reduction in frame rate when pixel count increases by roughly 78%. This nonlinear drop indicates that the GPU is becoming more significant at 1440p, but the CPU still has enough single-thread performance to keep frame rates very high.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the dominant factor. Low settings yield 120.8 FPS, Medium drops to 88.1 FPS, High gives 74.9 FPS, and Ultra falls to 55.7 FPS — the only preset across all resolutions that fails to clear the 60 FPS threshold. The scaling from 1440p Low (193.5 FPS) to 4K Low (120.8 FPS) is a 72.7 FPS drop, which is a 37.6% reduction. From 1440p Ultra (88.6 FPS) to 4K Ultra (55.7 FPS), the drop is 32.9 FPS, a 37.1% reduction. This consistent percentage drop across presets when moving from 1440p to 4K strongly indicates that the RTX 4070’s rendering throughput is the primary constraint at 4K. The CPU’s role at 4K is diminished because the GPU takes longer to render each frame, giving the CPU ample time to prepare the next one.

Comparing presets within each resolution clarifies the CPU/GPU split further. At 1080p, moving from Low to Ultra costs 141.2 FPS (from 262.6 to 121.4), a 53.8% reduction. At 1440p, the same preset step costs 104.9 FPS (from 193.5 to 88.6), a 54.2% reduction. At 4K, Low to Ultra costs 65.1 FPS (from 120.8 to 55.7), a 53.9% reduction. The near-identical percentage reductions across resolutions suggest that the performance cost of each preset level is consistent, and that the GPU is scaling its workload proportionally. However, the absolute frame rates at 1080p are so high (even Ultra exceeds 120 FPS) that the CPU must be delivering excellent per-core performance — the i5-14600KF’s boost clock of 5.30 GHz and its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4594 support this interpretation. At 4K Ultra, the 55.7 FPS result is just below the 60 FPS threshold, showing that the GPU’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for most settings but not for the most demanding preset at that resolution.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Lockdown Protocol at 4K with High settings?

A: Yes. Measured data shows 74.9 FPS at 3840x2160 with High settings, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The verdictByResolution lists High, Low, and Medium as playable at 4K, with High being the best playable setting at that resolution.

Q: What is the highest preset that maintains 60 FPS at 1440p?

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce 88.6 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold. All four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are listed as playable at 1440p, with Ultra being the best setting.

Q: Does the RTX 4070 bottleneck the i5-14600KF at 1080p?

A: No, not at any preset. At 1920x1080, even Ultra settings deliver 121.4 FPS, which is well above 60 FPS. Low settings reach 262.6 FPS, indicating the CPU can feed frames fast enough and the GPU has headroom. The data does not show a CPU bottleneck because all 1080p presets exceed 120 FPS.

Q: How does the i5-14600KF compare to the AMD Ryzen 9 7900?

A: The Ryzen 9 7900 has an average benchmark score of 49228, which is 0.3% lower than the i5-14600KF’s 49394. In practical terms, these CPUs perform nearly identically in aggregate tests, so you would not expect a meaningful difference in Lockdown Protocol frame rates between them.

Q: Is 4K Ultra playable with this combo?

A: No. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the measured average FPS is 55.7, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold. The verdictByResolution excludes Ultra from playable settings at 4K, listing only High, Low, and Medium as playable.

Q: What GPU is closest in performance to the RTX 4070?

A: Based on average benchmark scores, the NVIDIA Tesla P4 is the closest rival with a score of 37628, just 0.1% lower than the RTX 4070’s 37648. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is 0.4% lower at 37507, while the RTX 4080 Mobile is 1.3% higher at 38135.

The Verdict

This PC can run Lockdown Protocol successfully at all three tested resolutions, provided you choose appropriate settings. At 1920x1080, every preset from Low to Ultra clears the 60 FPS threshold, with Ultra delivering 121.4 FPS and Low reaching 262.6 FPS. This means you can max out the game at 1080p without any concern about playability. At 2560x1440, the same holds true — all four presets are playable, with Ultra at 88.6 FPS and Low at 193.5 FPS. The 1440p experience is strong enough for high-refresh-rate monitors, as even Ultra stays above 85 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes slightly. High settings produce 74.9 FPS, Medium gives 88.1 FPS, and Low achieves 120.8 FPS — all playable. Ultra, however, drops to 55.7 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and therefore not considered playable by the benchmark’s criteria. The verdictByResolution confirms that High is the best playable setting at 4K, with an average FPS of 74.9. If you own a 4K display, you can run the game at High settings and still have 15 FPS of headroom above the playability threshold. For competitive play where higher frame rates matter, 1080p or 1440p with Ultra settings would be the better choice, as both stay well above 85 FPS.

The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1440p gaming, where it can run Ultra settings at 88.6 FPS, or 1080p gaming, where it exceeds 120 FPS even at Ultra. At 4K, you must compromise by dropping from Ultra to High, which costs 18.9 FPS but brings you from below 60 to nearly 75 FPS. The i5-14600KF’s strong single-core performance and the RTX 4070’s balanced rendering capability make this a versatile pairing that handles the game smoothly at most settings.

Similar Performance Alternatives

If you are considering hardware that would behave similarly to this combo, the nearest rivals for each component provide useful reference points. On the CPU side, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 has an average score of 49228, which is only 0.3% lower than the i5-14600KF’s 49394. In Lockdown Protocol, this difference would translate to a negligible FPS change — likely less than 1 FPS in most scenes. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G scores 49196 (0.4% lower) and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 scores 48995 (0.8% lower). These CPUs would all produce nearly identical CPU-bound performance in this game, so you could swap between them without noticing a practical difference. The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 scores 49796, which is 0.8% higher — again, a margin that would not meaningfully alter frame rates.

On the GPU side, the NVIDIA Tesla P4 has an average score of 37628, just 0.1% below the RTX 4070’s 37648. However, the Tesla P4 is a data-center-oriented card, so its gaming drivers and feature set may differ from the GeForce RTX 4070. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507 (0.4% lower) and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 scores 37157 (1.3% lower). The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135 (1.3% higher), which is the closest rival above the RTX 4070. If you were to pair any of these GPUs with any of the CPUs listed above, the resulting combo would likely land within a few FPS of the measured results for the i5-14600KF + RTX 4070 combination. For example, using a Ryzen 9 7900 instead of the i5-14600KF would not change the 4K Ultra result of 55.7 FPS in any meaningful way, since the GPU is the limiting factor at that resolution. Similarly, swapping to an RTX 4080 Mobile might add roughly 1-2 FPS at 4K Ultra, but that would still leave it below the 60 FPS threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

For each resolution, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is listed below, along with the exact measured average FPS.

1920x1080: Ultra settings deliver 121.4 FPS. This is the highest preset available, and it clears the 60 FPS threshold by a wide margin. There is no need to compromise on visual quality at 1080p, as even the most demanding preset leaves 61.4 FPS of headroom.

2560x1440: Ultra settings produce 88.6 FPS. This preset also clears the 60 FPS threshold comfortably, with 28.6 FPS of headroom. You can run the game at maximum quality at 1440p without any playability concerns, and the frame rate is high enough for most high-refresh-rate monitors.

3840x2160: High settings achieve 74.9 FPS. This is the best playable preset at 4K, as Ultra drops to 55.7 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset provides 14.9 FPS of headroom, making it a safe choice for 4K gaming. If you prefer higher frame rates at 4K, Medium settings yield 88.1 FPS and Low settings reach 120.8 FPS, but High is the highest preset that remains playable by the benchmark’s definition.

These settings represent the maximum visual quality you can enable while staying at or above 60 FPS. The data shows that the i5-14600KF + RTX 4070 combo is most capable at 1080p and 1440p, where it can run the game at maximum settings with high frame rates. At 4K, you will need to dial back from Ultra to High, but the resulting 74.9 FPS is still a smooth experience for a fast-paced FPS title.