Counter-Strike 2

The combination of an Intel Core i5-10400F and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 in Counter-Strike 2 produces a wide range of frame rates depending on resolution and quality preset. The measured data covers 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160 across Low, Medium, High, and Ultra settings, providing a clear picture of how this pairing scales. This analysis walks through the resolution scaling, the roles of the CPU and GPU, the combo's overall rank, and recommended settings based on the measured rows.

Resolution Scaling

At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 508.8 on Low to 341.6 on Ultra. At 2560x1440, the range is 442.9 on Low to 230.6 on Ultra. At 3840x2160, the range is 263.3 on Low to 129.6 on Ultra. The High preset illustrates the scaling clearly: it delivers 426.6 FPS at 1080p, 294.4 FPS at 1440p, and 161.8 FPS at 4K. The Low preset shows a similar pattern, with 508.8 FPS at 1080p, 442.9 FPS at 1440p, and 263.3 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial at every quality level, indicating that the GPU becomes increasingly stressed as resolution rises.

The data also reveals that the gap between Low and Ultra is not uniform across resolutions. At 1080p, Low yields 508.8 FPS and Ultra yields 341.6 FPS; at 4K, Low yields 263.3 FPS and Ultra yields 129.6 FPS. The larger spread at lower resolutions suggests that the CPU may be limiting performance when the GPU has less work to do. At 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 508.8 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's practical ceiling for this game, while the RTX 5080 has ample headroom. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the primary constraint, and the frame rate drops accordingly. This interpretation is consistent with the measured numbers: the 4K Low result of 263.3 FPS is still high, but the 1080p Low result of 508.8 FPS shows that the CPU can push far beyond what the GPU can sustain at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. It features 12 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration. Its benchmark scores reflect a solid mid-range CPU: Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 10297, single-core 1453; Geekbench multicore is 5783, single-core 1454; Passmark multithread is 12115. The CPU's average benchmark score is 14168, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7552 (14115, 0.4% higher) and the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277, 0.8% lower). This places the i5-10400F within a narrow performance band, slightly above the EPYC and slightly below the Ryzen 3.

In Counter-Strike 2, the CPU's single-thread performance is particularly relevant. The Geekbench single-core score of 1454 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1453 indicate strong per-core capability, which is important for a game that often relies on a few threads. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (508.8) and 1080p Medium (474.5) suggests that the CPU can sustain very high frame rates when the GPU is not the bottleneck. The 6-core, 12-thread configuration also provides enough parallelism for background tasks, but the game's performance is likely driven more by the single-thread results than by the multi-thread scores. The CPU's 12 MB L3 cache and DDR4 support are adequate for this title, and the data shows no obvious CPU-related stutter or frame rate collapse at any resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a high-end GPU with 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 2295 MHz and boost clock is 2617 MHz, with 10752 shading units. The GPU's benchmark scores are strong: Passmark G3D is 36565, Geekbench OpenCL is 264461, and Geekbench Vulkan is 257942. Its average benchmark score is 59188, placing it in the 89th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Arc A570M (58239, 1.6% higher) and the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60326, 1.9% lower). The RTX 5080 has a launch MSRP of 999 USD.

In Counter-Strike 2, the GPU's high memory bandwidth and large frame buffer are well-suited for high-resolution rendering. The measured FPS at 4K Medium is 221.6, and at 4K High it is 161.8, showing that the GPU can handle 4K with playable frame rates even on demanding presets. At 1080p, the GPU is not the limiting factor; the frame rates are consistently above 340 FPS even on Ultra, and the CPU appears to be the constraint. The GPU's 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, and the 960.0 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and memory access are not bottlenecks. The data indicates that the RTX 5080 is capable of far higher output than the CPU can feed at lower resolutions, but it still delivers excellent performance at 4K.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the i5-10400F and RTX 5080 ranks 132nd out of 1632 tested combos in Counter-Strike 2. That places it in the top 8% of all configurations tested, which is a strong result given that the CPU is a mid-range part from 2020 and the GPU is a flagship from 2025. The CPU's 73rd percentile and GPU's 89th percentile individually are consistent with the combo's overall rank. The data shows that this pairing outperforms the vast majority of tested combinations, and the high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p are particularly notable. The rank reflects the synergy between the two components: the CPU is sufficient to avoid severe bottlenecks at lower resolutions, while the GPU provides the raw power needed for high refresh rates and 4K playability.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS values provide a clear basis for choosing a preset. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver above 300 FPS: Low 508.8, Medium 474.5, High 426.6, Ultra 341.6. For competitive play, Low offers the highest frame rate, but High still exceeds 400 FPS, making it a viable choice for players who want better visuals without sacrificing performance. At 2560x1440, Low yields 442.9, Medium 393.3, High 294.4, and Ultra 230.6. Medium or High are reasonable choices here, as they maintain frame rates above 290 FPS while improving image quality over Low. At 3840x2160, Low gives 263.3, Medium 221.6, High 161.8, and Ultra 129.6. For 4K, Medium provides the best balance, offering 221.6 FPS, which is significantly higher than High's 161.8 and Ultra's 129.6, while still being a step up from Low in visual fidelity. Players with high-refresh 4K displays may prefer Low for maximum frame rate, but Medium is the recommended preset for a blend of quality and performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p Low?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings is 508.8.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival?

A: The i5-10400F has an average benchmark score of 14168, which is 0.4% higher than the AMD EPYC 7552 and 0.8% lower than the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C.

Q: What is the GPU's memory configuration?

A: The RTX 5080 has 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, with a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s.

Q: What is the combo's rank among tested configurations?

A: This combination ranks 132nd out of 1632 tested combos in Counter-Strike 2.

Q: What is the measured FPS at 4K Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 129.6.