Barony

# Barony with AMD Ryzen 5 5500 + AMD Radeon RX 9060

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 delivers a thoroughly playable Barony experience across all tested resolutions, with the data showing a clear progression from 144 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 48 FPS at 4K Ultra. This combination ranks 1704th out of 2935 tested combos in this game, placing it in the upper-middle tier of systems. The measured results indicate that this pairing is well-balanced for high-refresh 1080p and 1440p gaming, while 4K requires settings compromises to maintain smooth framerates.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial but follows a predictable pattern that highlights where the bottleneck shifts. At Low settings, the average framerate falls from 315 FPS at 1080p to 199 FPS at 1440p (a 36.8% reduction) and then to 104 FPS at 4K (a 47.7% reduction from 1440p). This steep decline at 4K indicates the GPU is becoming the limiting factor as pixel count quadruples. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a 116 FPS loss, while moving from 1440p to 4K costs another 95 FPS — the resolution increase from 2.07 million pixels to 8.29 million pixels demands significantly more from the Radeon RX 9060's 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus.

At Ultra settings, the pattern is even more pronounced. The system delivers 144 FPS at 1080p, drops to 91 FPS at 1440p (a 36.8% reduction), and then falls to 48 FPS at 4K (a 47.3% reduction). This consistent percentage-based scaling across settings suggests that the GPU's compute throughput, not memory bandwidth, is the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The 288.0 GB/s bandwidth and 21.43 TFLOPS FP32 performance are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but 4K Ultra pushes the Radeon RX 9060 beyond its comfortable operating range.

The Medium preset shows the most complete data with min and max FPS recorded. At 1080p, the system averages 235 FPS with a minimum of 199 FPS and maximum of 270 FPS. At 1440p, the average drops to 148 FPS with a minimum of 126 FPS and maximum of 170 FPS. At 4K, the average falls to 77 FPS with a minimum of 66 FPS and maximum of 89 FPS. The minimum FPS values suggest that even at 4K Medium, the system rarely dips below 66 FPS, which remains playable for most users. The gap between average and minimum FPS widens slightly at higher resolutions, indicating more frame-time variance as the GPU works harder.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060, built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 44 chip, provides the graphical horsepower for these results. Its boost clock of 2990 MHz and game clock of 2400 MHz are aggressive for a 132 W TDP part, allowing it to maintain high throughput in a roguelike title like Barony that doesn't require heavy geometry workloads. The 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 191.4 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 334.9 GTexel/s, which explains why the card excels at lower resolutions where these rates can be fully utilized.

The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. In Barony, this configuration appears adequate for 1080p and 1440p across all settings, as evidenced by the high average framerates. However, the 4K results tell a different story — the Ultra preset at 4K drops to 48 FPS, likely due to both memory capacity pressure and bandwidth limitations. The fact that 4K Low still achieves 104 FPS suggests the memory subsystem isn't completely overwhelmed, but the GPU's raw compute is stretched at higher settings.

The Radeon RX 9060's benchmark scores place it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16014. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, scores 16129, representing a 0.7% performance advantage for the NVIDIA card. The AMD Radeon RX 7700 sits just behind at 15852, which is 1% slower than the RX 9060. These close margins indicate that the RX 9060 is a solid mid-range performer, and the Barony results reflect this positioning — strong at mainstream resolutions, but not a 4K powerhouse.

FAQ

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Barony?

A: Yes, but with compromises. The data shows 4K High delivers 66 FPS average, 4K Medium hits 77 FPS, and 4K Low reaches 104 FPS. Only 4K Ultra falls below 60 FPS at 48 FPS average.

Q: What is the best resolution for high-refresh-rate monitors?

A: At 1080p, the system averages 144 FPS on Ultra, 201 FPS on High, 235 FPS on Medium, and 315 FPS on Low. At 1440p, Ultra drops to 91 FPS, but High maintains 127 FPS, making 1440p High the sweet spot for 120Hz+ displays.

Q: How does the Radeon RX 9060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 9060 scores 16014 in average benchmarks, placing it 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129), 1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7700 (15852), and 2.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15679).

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 5500 holding back performance in this game?

A: The data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at most settings. The Ryzen 5 5500's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16429 and single-core score of 2319 are sufficient to feed the GPU at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the high framerates. Only at 4K Ultra does the GPU clearly become the limiting factor.

Q: What framerate can I expect at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows a 148 FPS average with a minimum of 126 FPS and maximum of 170 FPS at 2560x1440 Medium. This provides a consistently smooth experience with minimal frame drops.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM cause issues in Barony?

A: Based on the available data, 8 GB appears sufficient for all tested settings and resolutions in Barony. The 4K Ultra drop to 48 FPS is more attributable to compute limitations than memory capacity, as 4K High still achieves 66 FPS with the same 8 GB allocation.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its strongest performance. Low settings produce a 315 FPS average, which is the highest measured result in the entire dataset. Medium settings average 235 FPS with a minimum of 199 FPS and maximum of 270 FPS, providing a wide margin above typical 144Hz refresh rates. High settings still manage 201 FPS average, while Ultra settings drop to 144 FPS — exactly matching a 144Hz display's refresh rate. This means even the most demanding preset at 1080p keeps pace with high-refresh monitors.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU's limits. Low settings achieve 199 FPS average, which is still above 165Hz refresh rates. Medium settings average 148 FPS with a minimum of 126 FPS and maximum of 170 FPS, fitting comfortably within 120-165Hz display ranges. High settings deliver 127 FPS average, suitable for 120Hz panels. Ultra settings fall to 91 FPS average, which remains playable but no longer saturates high-refresh displays.

At 3840x2160, the system operates in more modest territory. Low settings produce 104 FPS average, which is smooth for 4K gaming. Medium settings average 77 FPS with a minimum of 66 FPS and maximum of 89 FPS, staying above the 60 FPS playability threshold. High settings drop to 66 FPS average, which is borderline but still acceptable. Ultra settings fall to 48 FPS average, crossing below the 60 FPS threshold and becoming less ideal for fast-paced gameplay. The progression from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a 56 FPS spread, demonstrating the significant impact of settings at this resolution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500, a 6-core 12-thread processor from the 5000 series based on Zen 3 (Cezanne) architecture, provides the computational foundation for this system. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.20 GHz deliver strong single-thread performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2319 and Geekbench single-core score of 1730. These scores indicate the CPU can handle the game logic and physics of Barony without becoming a bottleneck at any tested resolution.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are equally robust, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16429 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 7976. The 16 MB L3 cache and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth (DDR4 dual-channel) provide adequate data throughput for a roguelike title. The Ryzen 5 5500's PassMark multi-thread score of 19330 places it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19593. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 5 430, scores 19617 (0.1% faster), while the Intel Core i5-12500 scores 19668 (0.4% faster). The Intel Core i7-10700F trails slightly at 19499, making it 0.5% slower.

In Barony specifically, the CPU's influence is most apparent at lower resolutions where the GPU has headroom. At 1080p Low, the system hits 315 FPS, which requires the CPU to process frames at a rate of 315 per second. The Ryzen 5 5500's single-thread score of 836 in 3DMark and 3058 in PassMark single-thread suggest it can sustain these frame rates without becoming the limiting factor. However, the data shows diminishing returns at higher resolutions — the GPU takes over as the primary constraint, and the CPU's role becomes less critical.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 144 FPS average is the clear recommendation if you own a 144Hz monitor, as it provides maximum visual quality while exactly matching the refresh rate. If you prefer higher framerates for competitive play, High settings at 201 FPS or Medium at 235 FPS offer substantial headroom above 144Hz. The Low preset at 315 FPS is excessive for most displays but could benefit 240Hz+ monitors, though the visual trade-off is significant.

At 1440p, the High preset at 127 FPS is the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, particularly for 120Hz displays. Medium settings at 148 FPS are preferable for 144Hz monitors, and the minimum of 126 FPS ensures consistent smoothness. Ultra at 91 FPS is acceptable for 60-90Hz displays but leaves performance on the table for higher refresh rates. Low at 199 FPS is viable for 165Hz+ monitors but sacrifices visual quality.

At 4K, the Medium preset at 77 FPS average with a 66 FPS minimum is the optimal choice, providing the best visual quality while maintaining playability above 60 FPS. High settings at 66 FPS are also viable but have no recorded minimum, meaning frame drops could be more concerning. Low at 104 FPS offers the smoothest 4K experience but noticeably reduces visual fidelity. Ultra at 48 FPS is not recommended for general play, as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold and may feel sluggish in action-heavy moments. The data clearly shows that Medium is the sweet spot for 4K on this hardware configuration.