Counter-Strike 2

# Counter-Strike 2: Intel Core i5-14400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080

The combination of the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers exceptional performance in Counter-Strike 2, placing this pairing at rank 237 out of 3,719 tested combos (top 6% of all configurations). The data shows a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at lower resolutions, with the CPU's 10 cores and 4.70 GHz boost clock proving more than sufficient to feed the RTX 4080's massive frame output. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 674 FPS average, while even the most demanding 4K Ultra preset maintains a playable 120 FPS. The critical insight from the measured results is that Counter-Strike 2 scales dramatically with resolution, and the RTX 4080's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory ensures no VRAM-related bottlenecks appear at any tested configuration.

Resolution Scaling

Frame rates drop sharply as resolution increases, but the pattern reveals a system that transitions from CPU-limited at 1080p to GPU-limited at 4K. At 1080p High, the average FPS is 418, while 1440p High drops to 277 FPS (-33.7%), and 4K High falls to 155 FPS (-62.9% from 1080p). This steep decline indicates that the RTX 4080 is the primary constraint at higher resolutions, while the i5-14400F's single-core performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,055) is sufficient to avoid bottlenecking at 1080p.

The Low preset shows the most extreme scaling: 674 FPS at 1080p, 446 FPS at 1440p (-33.8%), and 249 FPS at 4K (-63.1%). These near-identical percentage drops across presets suggest that resolution scaling is consistent regardless of graphical load. The Medium preset, which is the only one with min/max FPS data, shows 560 FPS average at 1080p with a minimum of 476 FPS, 371 FPS at 1440p with a minimum of 315 FPS, and 207 FPS at 4K with a minimum of 176 FPS. The min-to-max spread of roughly 30% across resolutions indicates stable frame delivery without severe stuttering.

Ultra settings produce the lowest frame rates at every resolution: 325 FPS at 1080p, 215 FPS at 1440p, and 120 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 120 FPS is notable because it represents the only sub-144 FPS result in the entire dataset, suggesting that competitive players should avoid Ultra at 4K. The data demonstrates that resolution scaling is nearly linear in percentage terms, with each step from 1080p to 1440p to 4K costing roughly one-third of the frame rate, which points to the RTX 4080's pixel throughput capabilities (280.6 GPixel/s) as the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this CPU-GPU combo in Counter-Strike 2?

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 674, achieved at 1080p with Low settings. This result indicates that the i5-14400F and RTX 4080 combination can push frame rates well beyond what most high-refresh monitors can display at competitive settings.

Q: Can this system maintain 144 FPS at 4K?

A: Only with Low settings (249 FPS average) or Medium settings (207 FPS average). At High settings the average drops to 155 FPS, which still exceeds 144 FPS, but Ultra settings fall to 120 FPS average, below the 144 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the i5-14400F compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The i5-14400F has an average benchmark score of 32,279, which places it 0.1% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (32,233), 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i9-11900 (32,226), 0.5% ahead of the Intel Core i7-12800H (32,121), and 0.2% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (32,354). This puts the CPU in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs.

Q: What is the performance difference between the RTX 4080 and its closest rival?

A: The RTX 4080 has an average benchmark score of 54,247, which is 0.1% ahead of the RTX 4080 SUPER (54,209), 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54,828), 2.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698), and 2.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757). The GPU sits in the 86th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Does the Medium preset provide consistent frame pacing?

A: Yes. The Medium preset is the only one with min/max data, showing a 476 FPS minimum at 1080p, 315 FPS minimum at 1440p, and 176 FPS minimum at 4K. The spread between minimum and maximum FPS is roughly 30% at each resolution, indicating stable performance without major frame drops.

Q: Is this combo better suited for 1440p or 4K gaming in Counter-Strike 2?

A: The data suggests 1440p is the sweet spot. At 1440p High, the system delivers 277 FPS, which is 79% higher than the 155 FPS at 4K High. Even at 1440p Ultra, the 215 FPS average comfortably exceeds the 4K High result while providing higher visual fidelity than Medium settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F's 10 cores (6 performance + 4 efficiency) and 16 threads provide ample parallel processing for Counter-Strike 2's engine, which traditionally favors strong single-core performance. The CPU's boost clock of 4.70 GHz and base clock of 2.50 GHz give it a wide operating range, and its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,055 demonstrates the kind of high-frequency responsiveness that competitive FPS titles require. The 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core help reduce memory latency, which is critical for maintaining high frame rates in fast-paced scenarios.

The i5-14400F's position in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32,279, places it in strong company. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U, scores 32,233 (0.1% behind), while the Intel Core i9-11900 scores 32,226 (0.2% behind). This tight grouping around the 32,200-32,350 score range suggests that the i5-14400F delivers performance comparable to higher-tier processors from previous generations. The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21,645 and Geekbench multi-core score of 11,268, which support the system's ability to handle background tasks while gaming.

In Counter-Strike 2 specifically, the CPU's role becomes apparent when examining the 1080p Low result of 674 FPS. At such high frame rates, the CPU must process game logic, player positions, and network data fast enough to keep the GPU fed. The i5-14400F's 4.70 GHz boost clock and strong single-core performance (PassMark single-thread score of 3,701) appear sufficient for this task, as evidenced by the fact that frame rates at 1080p Low drop to 446 FPS at 1440p (-33.8%) — a percentage drop nearly identical to the 1440p-to-4K transition, implying the GPU becomes the bottleneck only after the resolution increases.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers outstanding performance across all presets. Low settings produce 674 FPS average, Medium settings yield 560 FPS average (with a minimum of 476 FPS and maximum of 644 FPS), High settings reach 418 FPS average, and Ultra settings still manage 325 FPS average. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 51.8% reduction in frame rate, from 674 to 325 FPS, which is a smaller penalty than at higher resolutions, reinforcing that 1080p is CPU-bound territory.

At 2560x1440, frame rates remain exceptionally high. Low settings deliver 446 FPS average, Medium settings produce 371 FPS average (minimum 315 FPS, maximum 426 FPS), High settings reach 277 FPS average, and Ultra settings achieve 215 FPS average. The drop from 1080p to 1440p costs approximately 33-34% of performance at every preset level, which is consistent with the increase in pixel count (2.25x more pixels) but less than the pixel-count ratio would suggest, indicating some headroom remains before full GPU saturation.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4080 becomes the clear limiting factor. Low settings deliver 249 FPS average, Medium settings produce 207 FPS average (minimum 176 FPS, maximum 238 FPS), High settings reach 155 FPS average, and Ultra settings drop to 120 FPS average. The 4K results show a 51.8% reduction from Low to Ultra (249 to 120 FPS), which parallels the 1080p percentage drop but from a lower baseline. The Medium preset at 4K, with its 176 FPS minimum, remains competitive for high-refresh 4K monitors, while the High preset's 155 FPS average is still viable for 144 Hz displays.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process, brings substantial graphics horsepower to Counter-Strike 2. Its 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus provides 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth, ensuring that texture streaming and high-resolution rendering never hit memory bottlenecks — the data confirms this, as even 4K Ultra (which would stress VRAM in other titles) delivers 120 FPS without min-FPS data suggesting frame drops. The GPU's boost clock of 2505 MHz and base clock of 2205 MHz, combined with 9,728 shading units and 112 ROPs, deliver the pixel throughput (280.6 GPixel/s) and texture rate (761.5 GTexel/s) needed for high-resolution competitive play.

The RTX 4080's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54,247, places it just ahead of the RTX 4080 SUPER (54,209, 0.1% behind). The GPU's nearest rivals in the data — the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54,828, 1.1% behind the 4080), AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698, 2.6% behind), and AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757, 2.7% behind) — all score within 3% of the RTX 4080, but the NVIDIA card's specific strengths in Counter-Strike 2 are evident from the measured FPS results.

At 1080p Low, the RTX 4080 produces 674 FPS, which is a 61.6% increase over the 4K Low result of 249 FPS. This scaling behavior shows that the GPU's 48.74 TFLOPS FP32 compute capability is more than adequate for the game's rendering demands at lower resolutions, where the CPU's output becomes the limiting factor. At 4K Ultra, the RTX 4080's 120 FPS result indicates that even the most demanding settings in Counter-Strike 2 cannot fully stress this GPU, as the 4K Ultra frame rate is still higher than many systems achieve at 1080p in other titles.

Settings Recommendations

For competitive play at maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 1080p (674 FPS) or 1440p (446 FPS) offers the highest possible responsiveness, with the 1440p option providing a resolution advantage at the cost of 33.8% frame rate. Players with 240 Hz monitors at 1440p will find the Low preset (446 FPS) more than sufficient, while those at 1080p with 360 Hz displays can take advantage of the 674 FPS result.

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset is the standout choice. At 1440p, it delivers 371 FPS average with a 315 FPS minimum, providing a comfortable margin above 240 Hz refresh rates while maintaining higher graphical fidelity than Low. The Medium preset at 4K (207 FPS average, 176 FPS minimum) also exceeds 144 Hz thresholds, making it the recommended choice for 4K gamers who want both quality and speed.

High settings are viable but less optimal for competitive play. At 1080p (418 FPS) and 1440p (277 FPS), High settings still exceed 240 FPS, but the 33.8% frame rate penalty compared to Medium (560 to 371 FPS at 1440p) may not justify the visual improvements for players prioritizing responsiveness. At 4K, High settings (155 FPS) fall below the Medium preset's 207 FPS, making Medium the superior choice at that resolution.

Ultra settings should be reserved for non-competitive play or content creation. The 120 FPS at 4K Ultra is the only result below 144 FPS in the entire dataset, and the 325 FPS at 1080p Ultra represents a 51.8% reduction from Low settings. For players who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate, Ultra at 1440p (215 FPS) offers a compelling compromise, but the data clearly shows that Medium or High presets provide better frame rate headroom without significant visual degradation in fast-paced gameplay.