Counter-Strike 2

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Counter-Strike 2 with the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 reveals a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern, but with an important twist at the low end. Dropping from 4K to 1440p at High settings improves average FPS from 70.8 to 118.3, a 67% jump. Going further down to 1080p at High yields 182.3 FPS, which is 157% above the 4K result. This steep scaling curve is the signature of a system where the GPU is the primary limiter at higher resolutions, as the rendering load decreases proportionally with pixel count.

However, the Low settings results tell a different story. At 4K Low, the combo produces 110.4 FPS. At 1440p Low, it reaches 191.4 FPS. At 1080p Low, it hits 292 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 1080p is 52.6%, which is still substantial but less dramatic than the High preset's 54.1% jump between the same resolutions. This suggests that at Low settings, the CPU begins to exert a more noticeable influence, though it never fully bottlenecks the GPU. The fact that 1080p Low nearly triples the 4K High result (292 vs 70.8) underscores how resolution and settings compound to create a wide performance envelope.

The Ultra preset shows the most constrained scaling. From 4K Ultra's 50.6 FPS to 1440p Ultra's 95.1 FPS is an 88% improvement, and 1080p Ultra reaches 141.5 FPS, a 180% gain over 4K. This indicates that Ultra settings place the heaviest load on the RTX 2060, making it the clear bottleneck. The GPU's 6 GB of VRAM and 192-bit memory bus are likely strained by the combination of high resolution and maximum detail levels, which is why the scaling remains so pronounced even at lower resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F brings 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.70 GHz. This is a Raptor Lake Refresh part on the Intel Socket 1700 platform, built on a 10 nm process. In Counter-Strike 2, which is known for relying on single-thread performance for game logic and physics, the CPU's 4.70 GHz boost clock and strong single-core Cinebench R23 score of 3093 provide a solid foundation. The CPU's percentile ranking of 88 among all tested CPUs indicates it outperforms the vast majority of alternatives, which helps explain why it can drive over 290 FPS at 1080p Low without becoming the limiting factor.

The data shows that at 1080p Low, the CPU is still capable of feeding the GPU enough frames to reach 292 FPS average. This is a strong indicator that the i5-14400F is not the primary constraint in this configuration for most scenarios. The CPU's 20 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support (DDR4 or DDR5) contribute to its ability to maintain high frame rates in a competitive shooter where consistent frame delivery matters more than peak throughput. The Passmark multi-thread score of 25783 and single-thread score of 3723 further corroborate that this CPU has ample headroom for esports titles.

However, the CPU's role becomes more visible when comparing settings. At 4K Ultra, the FPS drops to 50.6, which is far below what the CPU alone could produce. This confirms that the RTX 2060 is the bottleneck at high settings. But at 1080p Low, the GPU's lighter load allows the CPU to demonstrate its full potential, resulting in a 292 FPS average. The i5-14400F's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-12800H (delta 0%) and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (delta 0.2%), showing it trades blows with mobile and desktop parts in synthetic benchmarks, yet in this game, its high clock speed gives it an edge in frame pacing.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Counter-Strike 2?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 292, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Does the combo maintain playable frame rates at 4K?

A: Yes, at 4K High the average FPS is 70.8, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. At 4K Ultra it drops to 50.6, which may be less smooth for competitive play.

Q: How much performance is lost going from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 182.3 at 1080p High to 70.8 at 4K High, representing a 61% reduction in frame rate.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck at 1080p Low?

A: The data indicates the GPU is still the main limiter, but the CPU's influence grows. The 292 FPS at 1080p Low is high enough that the i5-14400F is not fully saturated.

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

A: This combo ranks 1343 out of 1632 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle tier for this game.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 16074, with the AMD Radeon RX 7600S being 0.5% faster and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 being 1.7% faster in synthetic tests.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1440p delivers 163.7 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate of most standard monitors and provides a meaningful upgrade over Low settings. Moving to High at 1440p yields 118.3 FPS, still smooth for most players, but the jump from Medium to High costs 27.7% of the frame rate. At 1080p, Medium is the sweet spot at 245.9 FPS, while High drops to 182.3 and Ultra falls to 141.5. Given that Counter-Strike 2 is a competitive shooter where frame rate consistency matters, the data suggests that Medium at 1080p or 1440p offers the most headroom for maintaining high FPS during intense firefights.

For players with 4K displays, the choice is starker. High at 4K produces 70.8 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for high-refresh-rate panels. Ultra at 4K is not recommended, as the 50.6 FPS average could lead to noticeable stutter in fast-paced scenarios. The Low preset at 4K provides 110.4 FPS, which is a significant improvement, but the visual trade-offs may be too severe for some. The measured data indicates that this GPU is better suited to 1440p or 1080p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates across all settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 1343 out of 1632 tested combos in Counter-Strike 2. This places it in the 17th percentile of all configurations, meaning roughly 83% of tested systems deliver higher average FPS in this game. The ranking reflects the RTX 2060's age and position in the GPU hierarchy; its Passmark G3D score of 14111 and 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs indicate it is a mid-range part from the Turing generation. The i5-14400F, by contrast, is a strong modern CPU with an 88th percentile ranking, so the bottleneck is clearly the GPU.

The combo's ranking of 1343 out of 1632 is consistent with the measured FPS data. While the CPU can push over 290 FPS at 1080p Low, the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions and settings drag the overall average down. This is a system that can handle competitive esports at lower settings, but it will not compete with higher-end configurations. The nearest GPU rivals, such as the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (1.7% faster) and AMD Radeon RX 7600S (0.5% faster), suggest that the RTX 2060 is in a tightly contested mid-range tier, and the ranking reflects that reality.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers 292 FPS on Low, 245.9 FPS on Medium, 182.3 FPS on High, and 141.5 FPS on Ultra. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 51.5% drop in performance, which is substantial but expected given the increasing GPU load. At 2560x1440, the numbers are 191.4 FPS on Low, 163.7 FPS on Medium, 118.3 FPS on High, and 95.1 FPS on Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra here is 50.3%, similar to the 1080p scaling. At 3840x2160, the figures are 110.4 FPS on Low, 89.2 FPS on Medium, 70.8 FPS on High, and 50.6 FPS on Ultra. The Low-to-Ultra drop is 54.2%, showing that the GPU's workload grows disproportionately at 4K.

The scaling between resolutions at the same setting is also telling. For Low, going from 1080p to 1440p reduces FPS by 34.5%, and from 1440p to 4K by 42.3%. For High, the drops are 35.1% and 40.1%, respectively. This consistency suggests that the RTX 2060's memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s and 6 GB VRAM are the limiting factors, as the frame rate scales predictably with pixel count. The Ultra preset shows the most severe drops, with a 32.8% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a 46.8% reduction from 1440p to 4K, indicating that the GPU's compute resources are maxed out.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is built on the Turing architecture with a TU106 chip, featuring 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. Its base clock of 1365 MHz and boost clock of 1680 MHz, combined with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, provide 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 14111 and 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs place it in the mid-range tier. In Counter-Strike 2, the GPU is the dominant performance limiter at resolutions above 1080p, as evidenced by the steep FPS drops when increasing resolution.

The GPU's 6 GB VRAM is a potential constraint at Ultra settings and 4K, where the frame rate drops to 50.6. The 12 nm process and 10,800 million transistors on a 445 mm² die generate significant heat, but the dual-slot cooler and 160 W TDP are manageable. The RTX 2060's nearest rivals are all AMD parts, with the RX 7600S being 0.5% faster, and the Pro 5700 and Pro 5600M both 1.7% faster in synthetic benchmarks. This tight grouping suggests the RTX 2060 is competitive within its class, but it cannot overcome the fundamental resolution scaling shown in the measured data. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 capability are sufficient for Counter-Strike 2, but the hardware's age limits its ability to maintain high FPS at maximum settings.