Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

The Intel Core i5-12400 pairs a 6-core, 12-thread Alder Lake design with a 2.50 GHz base clock and a 4.40 GHz boost clock. This configuration sits in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19,850. The data places it in a tight cluster with the Intel Core i7-9700 (19,831, +0.1%), Intel Core i7-8700 (19,894, -0.2%), and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX (19,928, -0.4%), showing that its multi-threaded throughput is essentially on par with those older high-end parts. The i5-12400 also edges out the Intel Core i5-11600K (19,771, +0.4%).

In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the CPU is the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo hits an average of 892.3 FPS, which is only 45.8% higher than the 4K Low result of 364.7 FPS. This massive gap at low settings indicates that the CPU’s single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 910) is being pushed to its limits, and the frame rate scales dramatically as resolution drops. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache and the 10 nm process node are secondary factors, but the clock speed and core efficiency are what drive these high refresh-rate numbers.

CPU Role

The Core i5-12400’s role in this game is defined by its ability to feed frames at high rates. With 6 cores and 12 threads, it has enough parallelism for the game’s engine, but the key metric is the boost clock of 4.40 GHz. The 3dmark_16_threads score of 5,873 and the 3dmark_max_threads score of 5,890 suggest that the CPU scales well with load, but the 3dmark_2_threads score of 1,692 and single-thread score of 910 are more relevant for CS:GO’s typical thread usage. The benchmark data shows a clear pattern: at 1080p Low, the average FPS of 892.3 is more than double the 4K Ultra result of 225.6 FPS, a 295% difference. This indicates that at low settings and low resolutions, the CPU is the limiting component, as the GPU is not being fully utilized.

The nearest rivals data reinforces this. The i5-12400’s average score of 19,850 is virtually identical to the Intel Core i7-9700’s 19,831, with a delta of just 0.1%. In a game like CS:GO, which is sensitive to core clocks and cache, this means the i5-12400 should deliver comparable frame rates to that older i7. The data also shows a slight edge over the Intel Core i5-11600K (0.4%), which is notable because that chip has a higher boost clock, but the Alder Lake architecture’s efficiency compensates. The CPU’s 65W TDP is a modest power envelope, but the benchmark results show it can sustain high performance without thermal throttling in this title.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, with its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, provides a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The GPU’s boost clock of 2475 MHz and base clock of 1920 MHz are relatively high, but the data suggests that in CS:GO, the GPU is not the primary constraint at lower resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 225.6, which is still high, but this is where the GPU starts to matter more. The GPU’s percentile rank is 81, with an average benchmark score of 37,283, and its nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (37,507, -0.6%). This indicates that the RTX 4070’s raw compute (29.15 TFLOPS FP32) is strong, but the game’s engine is more CPU-bound.

The GPU’s role becomes clearer when looking at the 1080p to 4K scaling. At 1080p High, the combo hits 658.6 FPS, while at 4K High it drops to 268.7 FPS, a 59% reduction. This 2.4x resolution increase (from 1080p to 4K) causes a 2.4x drop in FPS, which suggests the GPU is scaling as expected with pixel count. However, the fact that the 1080p Low result (892.3 FPS) is 3.9x higher than the 4K Ultra result (225.6 FPS) indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth (504.2 GB/s) is sufficient for most settings, and the CPU is holding back performance at lower resolutions. The GPU’s 200W TDP and 12 GB VRAM are ample for this game, which does not appear to be VRAM-limited based on the measured rows.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy for settings. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 892.3 FPS, which is the highest result in the entire dataset. The Medium preset drops to 760.4 FPS, High to 658.6 FPS, and Ultra to 559.1 FPS. All of these are far above the 240Hz refresh rate that competitive players might target, so the best experience per the measured rows is the Low preset at 1080p, as it maximizes frame rate for competitive advantage. The data shows a 33.4% difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p (from 892.3 to 559.1 FPS), which is significant for a game where frame timing matters.

At 1440p, the Low preset again leads with 612.7 FPS, followed by Medium (524.3 FPS), High (450 FPS), and Ultra (383.8 FPS). The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 37.4% at this resolution, but Low remains the best choice for maximum FPS. The 4K results show a similar pattern: Low (364.7 FPS), Medium (309.9 FPS), High (268.7 FPS), and Ultra (225.6 FPS). For players with high-refresh-rate monitors (240Hz or higher), the Low preset is the only option that consistently exceeds 240 FPS at 4K, with a 61.6% margin over the Ultra preset. The data suggests that the Low preset is the best experience for competitive play at all resolutions, as it provides the highest average FPS and avoids any potential frame drops.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo can achieve in CS:GO?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 892.3 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is the peak performance in the dataset, indicating the CPU is the limiting factor at this resolution.

Q: How does the Core i5-12400 compare to the Intel Core i7-9700 in overall CPU benchmarks?

A: The i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 19,850, which is 0.1% higher than the i7-9700’s 19,831. This places them as near-identical performers in synthetic multi-threaded tests.

Q: Is the RTX 4070’s 12 GB VRAM sufficient for CS:GO at 4K Ultra?

A: Yes, the measured 4K Ultra result is 225.6 FPS, and there is no indication of VRAM limitations in the data. The 12 GB GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are more than adequate for this game.

Q: What is the FPS difference between 1080p Low and 4K Ultra?

A: The 1080p Low result is 892.3 FPS, while the 4K Ultra result is 225.6 FPS. This represents a 295% difference, showing that resolution and settings have a massive impact on performance.

Q: How does the combo’s rank in this game compare to other hardware combinations?

A: The combo ranks 412 out of 1,605 tested combinations, placing it in the top 25.7% of all tested hardware configs for this specific game.

Q: What is the GPU’s percentile rank among all GPUs?

A: The RTX 4070 sits in the 81st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 37,283. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, scores 37,507, which is 0.6% higher.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the balance between CPU and GPU load. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 892.3 at 1080p to 612.7 at 1440p and then to 364.7 at 4K. This represents a 59.0% drop from 1080p to 4K, which is less than the 4x pixel count increase, indicating that the CPU is still the primary bottleneck at Low settings. The CPU’s single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 910) is likely the ceiling, as the GPU has plenty of headroom at these low settings.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is more pronounced: 559.1 FPS at 1080p, 383.8 at 1440p, and 225.6 at 4K. This is a 60.1% drop from 1080p to 4K, but the absolute FPS values are lower, suggesting the GPU is becoming more of a factor. The data shows that the GPU’s pixel rate (158.4 GPixel/s) and texture rate (455.4 GTexel/s) are being taxed more heavily at Ultra settings, but the CPU is still contributing to the frame rate. The 4K Ultra result of 225.6 FPS is 3.9x lower than the 1080p Low result, which highlights that the CPU’s boost clock (4.40 GHz) is the limiting factor in the most CPU-bound scenario. The resolution scaling suggests that for this game, the i5-12400 is the component that determines the maximum achievable FPS, while the RTX 4070 ensures that even at 4K Ultra, the frame rate remains high.