Barony

FAQ

Q: How does the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F + AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT combo rank in Barony?

A: This combo ranks 554th out of 2,935 tested combinations, placing it in the top ~19% of all tested systems for this game. That is a strong position, though not elite-tier, given the specific demands of the title.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Barony?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 505 FPS. At 2560x1440 with Low settings, it drops to 319 FPS average, and at 3840x2160 with Low settings, it still delivers 167 FPS average. The data shows the system scales cleanly across all three resolutions.

Q: Which settings preset yields the highest frame rate?

A: The Low preset delivers the highest averages at every resolution: 505 FPS at 1080p, 319 FPS at 1440p, and 167 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset produces the lowest averages: 231 FPS at 1080p, 146 FPS at 1440p, and 76 FPS at 4K.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F has an average benchmark score of 69,996. It is 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69,875), 0.7% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69,515), and 0.9% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700K (69,355). It trails the Intel Core i7-14700KF (70,163) by 0.2%.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 7900 XT has an average benchmark score of 13,745. It is 1.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT (13,543), but 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon 660M (13,812) and NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile (13,821), and 0.9% behind the AMD Radeon RX 570X (13,871). The GPU sits in the 55th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Is the data measured or estimated?

A: The data is marked as measured, meaning the FPS figures come from actual benchmarking runs rather than theoretical projections. This lends confidence to the specific numbers reported across resolutions and settings.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 31 chip, using a 5 nm process from TSMC. It carries 20 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 320-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 800.0 GB/s. The memory clock runs at 2500 MHz (20 Gbps effective), with a base clock of 1387 MHz and a boost clock of 2394 MHz. The game clock is listed at 2025 MHz, which is the sustained clock under gaming loads.

In Barony, the GPU's role is significant but not always the primary bottleneck, as the game is a roguelike with modest visual demands. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 505 FPS average, which is far beyond typical display refresh rates. The pixel rate of 459.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 804.4 GTexel/s indicate the card can handle high fill-rate scenarios, but in this title, the frame rates are so high that the CPU's single-thread performance likely becomes a limiting factor at lower resolutions.

At 4K Ultra, the average drops to 76 FPS, showing that the GPU's 20 GB frame buffer and 800 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient to maintain playable frame rates even at maximum settings. The shift from 1080p Low (505 FPS) to 4K Ultra (76 FPS) represents an 85% reduction in average FPS, which aligns with the increased pixel count and geometry load. The RX 7900 XT's 5376 shading units and 192 ROPs provide ample compute for this title, but the data suggests that at 4K, the GPU starts to feel the pressure of the higher resolution.

The GPU's 55th percentile ranking among all GPUs is modest, but in practice, it delivers triple-digit FPS at 1440p High (204 FPS average) and even 4K High (106 FPS average). The card's end-of-life production status does not affect its current performance in this benchmark. The measured results show that the RX 7900 XT is more than capable of driving Barony at high refresh rates, with the main question being whether the CPU can keep up at lower resolutions where the GPU has headroom.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is an 8-core, 16-thread processor from the 9000 series, based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge). It runs on the AMD Socket AM5 platform with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The processor has a 65 W TDP, which is modest for a desktop part with this core count. It supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, providing 89.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

In Barony, the CPU's role is critical at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 505 FPS average, which is far above what most displays can show. The CPU's single-thread score in PassMark is 4,691, and its multithread score is 36,470. These numbers indicate strong single-core performance, which is essential for a roguelike where game logic and AI calculations often run on a single thread. The 5.50 GHz boost clock is likely the key driver of the high frame rates at 1080p.

The CPU's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB L2 per core help keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing latency. In a game like Barony, where procedural generation and state management can stress cache hierarchies, this configuration appears to work well. The 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms that this is a high-performance part, but the nearest rivals show it is closely matched: 0.2% ahead of the Ryzen 9 7940HX, 0.7% ahead of the Ryzen 9 7950X, and 0.9% ahead of the Core i7-14700K, while trailing the Core i7-14700KF by 0.2%.

At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 76, which is a 72% reduction from the 505 FPS at 1080p Low. This indicates that while the CPU is still feeding the GPU adequately, the GPU's workload at 4K Ultra becomes the primary constraint. The CPU's PassMark data compression score of 421,988 and encryption score of 21,488 suggest strong general-purpose compute, but in gaming, the single-thread performance is what matters most. The measured results show that the 9700F does not bottleneck the RX 7900 XT in Barony at any tested resolution, as the FPS scales consistently with resolution changes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 554th out of 2,935 tested combinations in Barony, which places it in the 81st percentile of all tested systems. This is a strong showing, but not a top-tier ranking. The rank reflects the combined capabilities of the CPU and GPU, and in this specific game, the high CPU single-thread performance appears to compensate for the GPU's modest 55th percentile ranking.

The rank of 554 out of 2,935 means that 2,381 combos are slower, while 553 are faster. This puts the system in the upper tier, likely due to the CPU's strong single-thread performance (4,691 PassMark single-thread score) and the GPU's ample frame buffer and bandwidth. The CPU's 94th percentile ranking is notably higher than the GPU's 55th percentile, suggesting that the CPU is the stronger component in this pairing for Barony.

In practical terms, this rank means the combo can handle Barony at very high frame rates across all resolutions. The lowest average FPS recorded is 76 at 4K Ultra, which is still above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The highest average is 505 FPS at 1080p Low, which is far beyond what any current display can show. The rank reflects that this system is overkill for Barony at lower settings, but appropriately matched at 4K Ultra where the GPU starts to become the limiting factor.

The combo's rank is also interesting when considering the GPU's nearest rivals. The RX 7900 XT is 1.5% ahead of the RX 9070 XT in average benchmark score, yet the 9070 XT is a newer part. In Barony, the measured FPS shows that the 7900 XT is not the bottleneck at 1080p, but at 4K Ultra, the average of 76 FPS suggests that a stronger GPU could push higher. However, the rank of 554 out of 2,935 indicates that the pairing is well-balanced for this game, as the CPU's performance is sufficient to feed the GPU at all settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average is 505 FPS. Medium settings yield 376 FPS average, with a minimum of 319 FPS and a maximum of 432 FPS. High settings produce 323 FPS average, and Ultra settings drop to 231 FPS average. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 54% reduction in average FPS, which is consistent with the increased graphical workload.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a clear step down from 1080p. Low settings produce 319 FPS average, Medium settings yield 237 FPS average (minimum 202, maximum 273), High settings give 204 FPS average, and Ultra settings produce 146 FPS average. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 37%, which reflects the increased pixel count. At 1440p Ultra, the average of 146 FPS is still well above 60 FPS, indicating smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are lower but still playable. Low settings produce 167 FPS average, Medium settings yield 124 FPS average (minimum 105, maximum 143), High settings give 106 FPS average, and Ultra settings produce 76 FPS average. The drop from 1440p Low to 4K Low is 48%, showing the significant impact of 4K resolution. At 4K Ultra, the 76 FPS average is above the 60 FPS threshold, but the margin is thinner than at lower resolutions.

The data reveals consistent scaling: at each resolution, the difference between Low and Ultra is roughly 50-55% of the Low value. At 1080p, the range is 505 to 231 FPS; at 1440p, it is 319 to 146 FPS; and at 4K, it is 167 to 76 FPS. The minimum FPS values are only recorded for Medium settings, where the 1080p minimum is 319 FPS, the 1440p minimum is 202 FPS, and the 4K minimum is 105 FPS. These minimums show that even the lowest recorded frame rates are well above playable levels.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the High preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for most users. At 1080p High, the average is 323 FPS, which is far beyond any display's refresh rate. At 1440p High, the average is 204 FPS, still very high. At 4K High, the average is 106 FPS, which is above 60 FPS and suitable for high-refresh-rate 4K displays. The High preset provides a significant visual improvement over Low and Medium while maintaining frame rates that are unlikely to be a bottleneck.

For users with 60 Hz displays, the Ultra preset is viable at 1080p (231 FPS average) and 1440p (146 FPS average), but at 4K, the 76 FPS average is only slightly above 60 FPS, leaving little headroom for demanding scenes. The Medium preset is a middle ground, with 376 FPS at 1080p, 237 FPS at 1440p, and 124 FPS at 4K. The minimum FPS values for Medium settings (319 at 1080p, 202 at 1440p, and 105 at 4K) are all high enough to prevent noticeable stuttering.

The Low preset is only recommended for competitive play where maximum frame rates are the priority. At 1080p Low, the 505 FPS average is the highest recorded, but the visual quality is significantly reduced. At 1440p Low, the 319 FPS average is still very high, and at 4K Low, the 167 FPS average is above 144 Hz refresh rates. The data shows that the combo is so powerful for Barony that even the Low preset delivers excessive frame rates for most use cases.

For the best experience per the measured rows, the High preset at 1440p (204 FPS average) is the sweet spot: it provides high visual quality, a frame rate that exceeds almost all displays, and leaves enough GPU headroom to avoid any frame drops. At 4K, the High preset (106 FPS average) is the recommended choice for users with 4K displays, as it offers a significant improvement over Medium (124 FPS average) with only an 18 FPS reduction in average frame rate, while Ultra (76 FPS average) sacrifices too much performance for marginal visual gains.