Barony

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 paired with the Intel Core i5-9400 delivers a performance profile in Barony that is heavily dictated by the graphics preset selected, with the data showing a clear progression from a playable 4K experience to extremely high refresh rate 1080p gameplay. The measured results indicate that this combination ranks 1154th out of 1702 recorded combos for this title, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the field, yet the absolute frame rates suggest that the game’s roguelike nature allows for smooth play across most settings. The RX 7600’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and the i5-9400’s six cores create a balanced platform where the bottleneck shifts depending on resolution, as evidenced by the scaling patterns in the measured FPS rows.

FAQ

Q: What is the best performing settings preset at 1080p for this combo?

A: The Low preset yields the highest average frame rate at 1920x1080, reaching 290.5 FPS, which is 56% higher than the High preset’s 186 FPS. This indicates that lower graphical loads allow the CPU and GPU to push frame rates well beyond standard display refresh rates.

Q: How does the RX 7600 compare to its nearest rival in raw benchmark scores?

A: The RX 7600 has an average benchmark score of 20258, which is 0.6% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT’s score of 20146. Conversely, it trails the Intel Arc B570 by 1.5%, as that card posts an average score of 20556.

Q: Is the Core i5-9400 a limiting factor at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the frame rates scale significantly with settings, from 45.9 FPS on Ultra to 97.4 FPS on Low. This wide gap suggests the GPU is the primary constraint at this resolution, as the CPU’s workload relative to pixel output diminishes.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers 138.1 FPS, while High drops to 115.6 FPS, a reduction of 19.5%. This shows that the High preset adds a noticeable graphical load without a proportional decrease in playability.

Q: Does the GPU’s memory bandwidth support high refresh rates in this game?

A: The RX 7600’s 288.0 GB/s bandwidth and 128-bit bus provide 18 Gbps effective memory speed, which appears adequate for the measured 216.3 FPS at 1080p Medium. The data does not show any memory-related stutters, as minimum FPS values are not recorded in the pack.

Q: How does the CPU’s multi-core score relate to its gaming performance here?

A: The i5-9400’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 places it at the 50th percentile among all CPUs. In Barony, this processing power is sufficient to drive over 290 FPS at 1080p Low, suggesting that the game is not heavily threaded or that six cores are ample for this workload.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data reveals that the Ultra preset provides the most visually demanding experience but comes with significant performance costs across all resolutions. At 1920x1080, Ultra yields 131.8 FPS, which is still highly playable, but the drop to 83.4 FPS at 2560x1440 and 45.9 FPS at 3840x2160 makes it less viable for higher resolutions. For the best balance between visual fidelity and frame rate, the High preset appears optimal: it delivers 186 FPS at 1080p, 115.6 FPS at 1440p, and 60.2 FPS at 4K. This preset maintains a consistent 60 FPS floor even at the highest tested resolution, making it the safest choice for a smooth experience.

The Medium preset offers a substantial performance boost over High, with 216.3 FPS at 1080p and 138.1 FPS at 1440p, but it only achieves 68.8 FPS at 4K. Given that Barony is a roguelike where reaction time matters but graphical detail is secondary, the Medium preset at 1440p provides an excellent balance, exceeding 120 FPS while retaining moderate visual quality. The Low preset, while delivering the highest frame rates (290.5 FPS at 1080p, 183.5 FPS at 1440p, 97.4 FPS at 4K), sacrifices too much visual information for a game that relies on environmental readability. Benchmark results indicate that High at 1440p offers the best compromise for most users, as it stays above 100 FPS while preserving the game’s art style.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear trend: the GPU becomes the limiting component as resolution increases, while the CPU’s influence wanes. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 290.5 FPS, but this drops to 183.5 FPS at 1440p (a 36.8% reduction) and then to 97.4 FPS at 4K (a 46.9% further reduction from 1440p). This scaling pattern suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is partially holding back the GPU, as the RX 7600 is capable of higher frame rates than the i5-9400 can feed. As resolution climbs, the GPU’s pixel throughput becomes the bottleneck, and the frame rate drops align more closely with the increase in pixel count.

For the High preset, the scaling is less dramatic but still pronounced: 186 FPS at 1080p, 115.6 FPS at 1440p (a 37.8% drop), and 60.2 FPS at 4K (a 47.9% drop). The similar percentage reductions across Low and High indicate that the game’s settings do not dramatically alter the balance between CPU and GPU load; rather, resolution is the dominant factor. The 4K Ultra result of 45.9 FPS is the only measured point below 60 FPS, confirming that this combo is not suited for maximum settings at 4K. The data shows that 1440p is the sweet spot for this pairing, as it maintains frame rates above 80 FPS even on Ultra while still leveraging the GPU’s capabilities.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings is playable, with Low leading at 290.5 FPS, followed by Medium at 216.3 FPS, High at 186 FPS, and Ultra at 131.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 158.7 FPS, demonstrating that the graphical preset has a substantial impact on performance even at the lowest resolution. For competitive play or high refresh rate monitors, the Medium preset at 216.3 FPS provides a strong balance, while Ultra still exceeds 120 FPS for those prioritizing visuals.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same ordering persists: Low at 183.5 FPS, Medium at 138.1 FPS, High at 115.6 FPS, and Ultra at 83.4 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 37% across all settings, indicating a consistent scaling factor. At this resolution, even the Ultra preset remains above 80 FPS, making 1440p a viable option for all settings without needing to compromise on visual quality.

At 3840x2160, the picture changes significantly. Low still achieves 97.4 FPS, which is smooth, but Medium drops to 68.8 FPS, High to 60.2 FPS, and Ultra falls to 45.9 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that fails to reach a playable 60 FPS threshold, making it unsuitable for serious gameplay. The data indicates that High at 4K just barely hits 60 FPS, suggesting that users with 4K displays should stick to Medium or lower for consistent performance.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600, with its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, provides 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is a critical factor for the high frame rates observed in Barony. The GPU’s boost clock of 2655 MHz and game clock of 2250 MHz contribute to its 21.75 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, allowing it to handle the game’s particle effects and procedural generation without issue. The 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs ensure that pixel fill rates remain high, as evidenced by the 169.9 GPixel/s pixel rate.

The RX 7600’s benchmark scores place it at the 63rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 20258. Its nearest rival, the RX 7600 XT, is only 0.6% faster, while the RTX 3070 Mobile is 1.3% slower, indicating that this GPU is well-positioned for mainstream gaming. In Barony, the GPU’s role becomes dominant at 4K, where the measured FPS drops to as low as 45.9 on Ultra, showing that the card’s 8 GB memory and 128-bit bus are sufficient for this title but not overkill. The 18 Gbps effective memory speed helps maintain bandwidth at higher resolutions, but the data suggests that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K Ultra.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 provides six cores and six threads with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, based on the Coffee Lake architecture. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 places it at the 50th percentile, and it sits within 0.6% of rivals like the Core i3-10305 and Core i3-1125G4, showing that it is an average performer by modern standards. The 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for feeding the GPU in Barony.

At 1080p Low, the CPU’s limitations become apparent, as the frame rate of 290.5 FPS suggests that the i5-9400 is near its ceiling for this game’s single-threaded performance. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz is crucial here, as the game likely relies on high single-core speeds rather than multi-threading. As resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the CPU’s role diminishes, and the frame rates are increasingly dictated by the GPU’s pixel throughput. The data shows that the i5-9400 is not a bottleneck at 4K, where the GPU drops to 45.9 FPS on Ultra, but it does cap performance at lower resolutions, preventing the RX 7600 from reaching its full potential in this title.