Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2 presents a fascinating case study in bottleneck behavior when pairing a mid-range 10-core processor with the flagship RTX 4090. The measured frame rates across resolutions reveal a system that is exceptionally fast but also highly sensitive to settings, with the data showing a clear shift in workload between the CPU and GPU as resolution scales. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS from the FACT PACK, interpreting what the numbers mean for competitive play and system balancing.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate deltas between 1080p and 4K tell a compelling story about where the performance ceiling lies. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 742.7 FPS, which drops to 492.3 FPS at 1440p Low, and further to 274.5 FPS at 4K Low. That is a 36.5% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 44.2% reduction from 1440p to 4K. This pattern indicates that at lower resolutions, the Intel Core i5-14400F is the limiting factor; the GPU has ample headroom, and the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads are working at their limit to feed frames.

Conversely, at Ultra settings, the scaling is much steeper. The 1080p Ultra result is 360 FPS, dropping to 239.9 FPS at 1440p Ultra (-33.4%), and then to 132.2 FPS at 4K Ultra (-44.9%). The 4K Ultra figure is less than half of the 1080p Low figure, showing that the RTX 4090 becomes the primary constraint when pixel throughput and shader complexity increase. The data suggests that the transition point is around Medium settings at 1440p, where the balance between CPU and GPU load appears most even.

The deltaPct between the 1080p Low and 4K Ultra is a massive 82.2% drop in FPS. This wide spread indicates that the system is not perfectly balanced; it is heavily CPU-bound at low settings and heavily GPU-bound at high settings. For a game like Counter-Strike 2, where high refresh rates are often prioritized, the data implies that players will see diminishing returns from lowering settings at 1440p and above, as the GPU starts to become the deciding factor.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest measured average is 742.7 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How much faster is the 1080p Low preset compared to 4K Ultra?

A: The 1080p Low preset delivers 742.7 FPS, which is 610.5 FPS higher than the 4K Ultra result of 132.2 FPS, representing a 5.6x performance difference.

Q: Does the RTX 4090 bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data suggests yes. The FPS jump from 1080p High (463.3 FPS) to 1080p Low (742.7 FPS) is 60.3%, indicating that the CPU is preventing the GPU from reaching its full potential at lower graphical loads.

Q: What is the best resolution for maximizing frame rate in this dataset?

A: 1920x1080 is the best resolution for maximum FPS, with all four settings presets at that resolution exceeding 360 FPS. The 1440p Low preset (492.3 FPS) is the closest competitor, but still significantly lower.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 42nd out of 1632 tested combinations, placing it in the top 2.6% of all configurations.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more influential on the final frame rate?

A: The data indicates both are influential, but at different settings. At Low presets, the CPU is the limiting factor (evidenced by the 742.7 FPS vs 274.5 FPS difference between 1080p and 4K), while at Ultra presets, the GPU becomes the primary constraint (evidenced by the 360 FPS vs 132.2 FPS difference).

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache are critical for Counter-Strike 2, which relies heavily on single-threaded performance for game logic and physics. The CPU’s benchmark scores support this: a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3093 and a multi-core score of 21914, placing it at the 88th percentile among all CPUs.

In the measured FPS data, the CPU’s role is most apparent at 1080p. The difference between Low (742.7 FPS) and High (463.3 FPS) settings at 1080p is 279.4 FPS, a 60.3% gap. This is not a GPU limitation; the RTX 4090 is more than capable of rendering these frames. Instead, it shows that the CPU’s thread scheduling and cache efficiency are the binding constraints when the GPU has spare capacity. The processor’s boost clock of 4.70 GHz is likely hitting its thermal and power limits (65W TDP) when trying to maintain such high frame rates.

The data also shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at 4K Ultra, where the 132.2 FPS result is far below the CPU’s potential. This suggests that for players using lower resolutions to gain competitive advantages, the i5-14400F is a strong but not unlimited partner. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-12800H, has a nearly identical average benchmark score (32513 vs 32508), reinforcing that this CPU’s performance is consistent with other high-end mobile and desktop parts.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide clear guidance on preset selection. For players prioritizing maximum frame rate at 1080p, the Low preset is the obvious choice, delivering 742.7 FPS. However, this comes at a cost to visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 1080p still yields 622.3 FPS, a 16.2% reduction from Low, but likely offers a significantly better visual experience for spotting enemies. The High preset at 1080p (463.3 FPS) is a reasonable middle ground, still exceeding 400 FPS.

At 1440p, the situation changes. The Low preset (492.3 FPS) remains the fastest, but the Medium preset (411.2 FPS) is only 16.5% slower while providing better image quality. The High preset at 1440p (305.6 FPS) is still above 300 FPS, making it viable for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Ultra preset at 1440p (239.9 FPS) is the least recommended, as the performance drop is steep for marginal visual gains.

For 4K, the data strongly suggests avoiding Ultra settings. The 132.2 FPS result is playable but not competitive for high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset at 4K (229.7 FPS) offers a much better balance, while High (171.8 FPS) is still usable. The best experience per the measured rows appears to be 1440p Medium, which balances the CPU and GPU loads effectively, providing 411.2 FPS without overburdening either component.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s ranking of 42nd out of 1632 tested combinations places it in the 97.4th percentile of all configurations tested for Counter-Strike 2. This is an exceptionally strong result, especially considering the CPU is not a top-tier flagship model. The RTX 4090, which ranks in the 91st percentile among all GPUs, is clearly the dominant component in this pairing, but the i5-14400F holds its own.

The fact that this combo is in the top 2.6% of all tested configurations suggests that the 10-core CPU is not significantly holding back the GPU in most scenarios. The delta between this CPU and its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645, is only 0.2%, indicating that the CPU choice is not the deciding factor in the overall ranking. Instead, the GPU’s massive compute power (82.58 TFLOPS FP32) and 24 GB of VRAM are the primary drivers of this high rank.

However, the ranking also reveals a nuance: while the combo is excellent overall, it is not the absolute best. The 41 combos ranked above it likely feature more powerful CPUs (such as the Core i9 or Ryzen 9 series) that can better feed the RTX 4090 at 1080p Low settings. The data implies that for players seeking the absolute maximum FPS, a stronger CPU would be the next upgrade path, but for most users, this combo represents an elite level of performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete FPS table from the FACT PACK is as follows:

• 3840x2160 (4K): High 171.8 FPS, Low 274.5 FPS, Medium 229.7 FPS, Ultra 132.2 FPS.
• 2560x1440 (1440p): High 305.6 FPS, Low 492.3 FPS, Medium 411.2 FPS, Ultra 239.9 FPS.
• 1920x1080 (1080p): High 463.3 FPS, Low 742.7 FPS, Medium 622.3 FPS, Ultra 360 FPS.

The pattern is consistent: at each resolution, Low is the fastest, followed by Medium, then High, and finally Ultra. The deltas between Low and Ultra are substantial: at 1080p, the gap is 382.7 FPS (742.7 vs 360); at 1440p, the gap is 252.4 FPS (492.3 vs 239.9); and at 4K, the gap is 142.3 FPS (274.5 vs 132.2). This shows that the performance penalty for Ultra settings grows proportionally as resolution decreases, because the CPU becomes more of a bottleneck at lower resolutions.

The data also shows that the 1440p Low result (492.3 FPS) is higher than the 1080p Ultra result (360 FPS). This is counterintuitive but explained by the fact that Ultra settings at 1080p increase CPU load (due to more draw calls and physics calculations) while Low settings at 1440p shift more work to the GPU, which has ample headroom. This highlights the importance of balancing settings rather than just lowering resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is an absolute powerhouse, featuring 16384 shading units, 128 RT cores, and 512 tensor cores. Its 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s, which is more than sufficient for Counter-Strike 2’s textures and assets. The GPU’s boost clock of 2520 MHz and 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 performance are the key metrics for this game’s rendering workload.

In the measured data, the GPU’s role becomes dominant at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, the 132.2 FPS result is a clear indication that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU has more than enough power to handle the game logic at that frame rate. The GPU’s pixel rate of 443.5 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,290.2 GTexel/s are being pushed to their limits at 4K Ultra, which explains the steep drop from the 4K Medium result of 229.7 FPS.

Interestingly, the GPU’s performance at 1080p Low (742.7 FPS) is far below its theoretical maximum, confirming that the CPU is the bottleneck in that scenario. The RTX 4090’s closest rival, the NVIDIA Tesla T4, has a deltaPct of -0.4% in average benchmark score, but this is a compute-oriented card, not a gaming GPU. The data shows that the RTX 4090 is designed for extreme resolutions and ray tracing, and in Counter-Strike 2, it excels at 4K Medium and High, where it can leverage its massive compute resources without being starved by the CPU.