Archeage

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 combination ranks 1456th out of 1727 tested combos in ArcheAge, placing it in the lower half of the database. This percentile position reflects a system that can handle the game at playable levels in specific scenarios but struggles at higher settings and resolutions. The measured FPS data supports this ranking: the combo delivers a solid 62.2 FPS average at 1080p High, yet this drops to 44.3 FPS at 1080p Ultra and falls below 30 FPS at 4K Ultra. The GTX 1070, despite being positioned at the 51st percentile among all GPUs, cannot overcome the demands of ArcheAge at extreme settings, while the i5-9400 sits at the 50th percentile among CPUs, indicating neither component is a standout performer in this context.

How This Combo Ranks

The 1456th rank out of 1727 combos places this configuration in the 16th percentile of tested systems for ArcheAge. This is a below-average standing, meaning roughly 84% of tested combos outperform it in this specific game. The data suggests this is not a combination optimized for ArcheAge’s engine, which appears to favor higher-end hardware. For context, the GPU’s average benchmark score of 12331 places it near the NVIDIA Quadro K4200 (12241, 0.7% faster) and slightly behind the GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER (12504, 1.4% faster). The CPU’s average score of 2305 is nearly identical to the Intel Core i3-10305 (2300, 0.2% faster) and the Core i3-1125G4 (2299, 0.2% faster), showing the i5-9400 is essentially a mid-pack processor by modern standards. The ranking implies that while the combo can run the game, it does so without headroom for high-refresh monitors or maximum visual fidelity, particularly at higher resolutions where the FPS drops are steepest.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 provides 6 cores and 6 threads, running at a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This Coffee Lake architecture chip, built on a 14 nm process, offers 9 MB of shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth. In ArcheAge, an MMORPG that often involves numerous player characters and AI entities, the CPU’s thread count is a limiting factor. The 6-thread configuration delivers a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and a single-core score of 1125, which are modest figures. The single-core performance is particularly relevant for ArcheAge’s primary game-thread logic, and the 1125 score places the CPU at the 50th percentile overall, meaning half of all CPUs tested score higher. The benchmark results indicate that at 1080p Low, where the GPU is less stressed, the system achieves 108.1 FPS, suggesting the CPU can drive high frame rates when graphical load is minimal. However, the gap between 1080p Low (108.1 FPS) and 1080p High (62.2 FPS) is not purely CPU-bound; it reflects the GPU’s increasing workload. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the Core i3-10305 (0.2% faster) and Xeon E-2134 (0.4% faster), all sit within a narrow performance band, confirming the i5-9400 is an average performer that does not bottleneck the GTX 1070 in most scenarios but also does not boost it.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 features 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. Its Pascal architecture, fabricated on a 16 nm process, includes 1920 shading units and operates at a base clock of 1506 MHz with a boost of 1683 MHz. The GPU’s Passmark G3D score of 13498 and average benchmark score of 12331 place it at the 51st percentile, which is just above the midpoint for all GPUs. In ArcheAge, the GPU is the primary driver of frame rate at higher settings. The measured data shows a clear pattern: at 4K High the combo produces 22.4 FPS, but at 4K Low it reaches 40.5 FPS, a substantial 45% improvement from lowering settings. This indicates the GTX 1070 is heavily stressed at 4K, regardless of settings. At 1440p, the GPU manages 45.8 FPS on High and 70.2 FPS on Low, showing better scaling but still below the 60 FPS threshold on High. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the Quadro K4200 (0.7% faster) and GTX 880M (1.3% slower), which are broadly comparable in raw compute. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for ArcheAge’s textures, but the chip’s raw throughput limits high-resolution performance. The data suggests that at 1080p, the GPU can deliver playable frame rates up to High settings (62.2 FPS), but Ultra (44.3 FPS) pushes it into uncomfortable territory for smooth gameplay.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and setting for this combo in ArcheAge?

A: The data shows 1080p High yields 62.2 FPS, which is the highest frame rate at the High preset. At 1080p Medium, the combo reaches 97.1 FPS, while 1080p Low produces 108.1 FPS. For a balance of quality and smoothness, 1080p High is the recommended setting, as it stays above 60 FPS.

Q: How does this combo perform at 4K resolution?

A: At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 18.6, which is unplayable. At 4K High, it improves to 22.4 FPS, and at 4K Medium it reaches 34.2 FPS. Even at 4K Low, the combo only achieves 40.5 FPS, indicating the GTX 1070 is not capable of delivering smooth frame rates at 4K in ArcheAge.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this system?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system produces 108.1 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target and shows the CPU can handle the game’s logic. The steep drop to 22.4 FPS at 4K High points to the GPU struggling with pixel throughput, not the CPU.

Q: How does the i5-9400 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305, which is 0.2% faster than the Core i3-10305 (2300) and 0.2% faster than the Core i3-1125G4 (2299). It is 0.4% faster than the Xeon E-2134 (2295) and 0.6% slower than the Core i7-8809G (2319). These are all within a 1% performance band.

Q: What FPS can be expected at 1440p with this combo?

A: At 1440p High, the average FPS is 45.8, which is below 60 FPS. At 1440p Medium, it improves to 63.5 FPS, and at 1440p Low, it reaches 70.2 FPS. Ultra at 1440p yields only 28.6 FPS, making it unsuitable for smooth play.

Q: Does setting quality from High to Low improve performance significantly?

A: Yes. At 1080p, the jump from High (62.2 FPS) to Low (108.1 FPS) is a 74% improvement. At 1440p, the jump is from 45.8 to 70.2 FPS (53% faster), and at 4K, it goes from 22.4 to 40.5 FPS (81% faster). This shows the GPU’s performance scales strongly with quality reductions.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance curve as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p High, the combo delivers 62.2 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops this to 45.8 FPS, a 26% reduction. At 4K High, the frame rate falls to 22.4 FPS, which is a 64% reduction from 1080p High. This pattern is consistent with the GTX 1070’s 256-bit memory bus and 256.3 GB/s bandwidth, which become increasingly strained as pixel count rises. The data at Low settings shows the same trend: 1081 FPS at 1080p, 70.2 FPS at 1440p, and 40.5 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K at Low settings is 42%, while the drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low is 35%. This indicates that the GPU’s compute resources, not memory bandwidth alone, are the limiting factor, as the scaling is not linear with pixel count. The 4K Ultra result of 18.6 FPS is particularly telling: it is the lowest score across all tested configurations, showing that the combination of high resolution and maximum settings overwhelms the GPU. In contrast, the CPU’s role is less pronounced at higher resolutions, as the frame rate is increasingly dictated by the GPU’s fill rate and shading power. The data supports a conclusion that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can maintain playable frame rates on High settings, but it lacks the headroom for 1440p or 4K gaming without significant quality compromises.