Dave The Diver

# Dave The Diver — Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

The combination of the Intel Core i7-13700K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces extraordinary frame rates in Dave The Diver, with the data showing this pairing ranks 18th out of 2,867 tested combos in this game. The measured results reveal a system that never dips below 164 FPS at any resolution or preset, indicating that this hardware pairing is overwhelmingly capable of handling the game's demands. The performance landscape across the three tested resolutions tells a clear story about where the bottleneck lies, how the settings scale, and what users can expect from this specific configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how this combo responds to increasing resolution demands, with the 1080p results suggesting that the CPU becomes the limiting factor at lower resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces 457 FPS, while the High preset at the same resolution delivers 368 FPS. When moving to 2560x1440, the Low setting drops to 371 FPS, and at 3840x2160, the Low preset yields 248 FPS. The scaling from 1080p Low to 1440p Low represents a decrease of 86 FPS, while the jump from 1440p Low to 4K Low costs another 123 FPS. This pattern indicates that at 1080p, the frame rate is likely being constrained by the CPU's ability to feed the GPU, as the RTX 5090 D's raw compute power is not being fully utilized at that resolution.

The drop from 1080p High (368 FPS) to 1440p High (277 FPS) represents a 24.7% reduction, while the transition from 1440p High to 4K High (186 FPS) costs another 32.9% of performance. These percentage drops are relatively consistent, suggesting that the GPU is becoming the primary bottleneck as resolution increases, but the CPU is still contributing meaningfully to the overall frame rate. The 4K Ultra preset produces 164 FPS, which is still exceptionally high for a game at that resolution, and the scaling from 4K Medium (208 FPS) to 4K Ultra (164 FPS) shows a 21.2% performance cost for the highest quality settings.

What is most telling about the resolution scaling is the relationship between the Low and Ultra presets at each resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low (457 FPS) and Ultra (325 FPS) is 132 FPS, while at 1440p that gap narrows to 126 FPS, and at 4K it shrinks further to 84 FPS. This compression of the settings gap at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is becoming more heavily loaded, which reduces the relative impact of graphical settings. The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is the limiting component, while at 4K, the GPU is clearly the primary constraint, with the CPU's 16 cores and 24 threads providing ample headroom for the game's processing demands.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo in Dave The Diver?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 457 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This represents the absolute ceiling for this hardware pairing in the tested configurations.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra experience compare to the 1080p Low experience?

A: The 4K Ultra preset produces 164 FPS average, which is 293 FPS lower than the 1080p Low result of 457 FPS. However, 164 FPS at 4K Ultra still represents a highly playable experience, and the visual quality difference between these two presets is substantial.

Q: What is the only measured configuration that includes minimum and maximum frame data?

A: The Medium preset at each resolution includes min and max FPS data. At 1920x1080 Medium, the range is 351 to 474 FPS; at 2560x1440 Medium, it is 264 to 357 FPS; and at 3840x2160 Medium, it is 177 to 239 FPS.

Q: How does the combo's rank in this game compare to the total number of tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 18th out of 2,867 tested combinations in Dave The Diver, placing it in the top 0.6% of all tested hardware pairings for this game.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset produces 277 FPS while Ultra produces 245 FPS, representing a 32 FPS difference. This is a relatively small gap, suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional visual effects have a modest performance cost at this resolution.

Q: Does the data show any configuration where the frame rate drops below 164 FPS?

A: No. The lowest measured average frame rate across all resolutions and presets is 164 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. Every other configuration produces higher average frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 18 out of 2,867 tested combinations in Dave The Diver places it in the 99.4th percentile of all tested hardware pairings. This is an exceptionally strong showing, indicating that the Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers performance that is among the very best measured for this game. The ranking reflects the combination's ability to maintain high frame rates even at demanding 4K resolutions with Ultra settings, which is a significant achievement given the game's requirements.

When considering the individual components' benchmark standings, the CPU's average benchmark score of 46,881 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU's average benchmark score of 77,712 puts it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 with an average score of 46,971 and a delta of -0.2%, meaning the i7-13700K is essentially tied with that processor. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 also sits very close with a score of 47,022 and a -0.3% delta. On the GPU side, the nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT at 76,904 with a 1.1% delta, while the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT is 1.6% ahead at 78,940.

The fact that this combo ranks 18th overall, despite the CPU being in the 89th percentile rather than the absolute top tier, suggests that Dave The Diver is not heavily CPU-bound in most scenarios. The GPU's 92nd percentile standing combined with the CPU's strong multi-threaded performance creates a balanced pairing that excels in this game. The rank of 18 out of 2,867 also indicates that there are only 17 other combos that outperform this configuration, which is a remarkably small number given the vast range of possible hardware combinations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the resolution with the highest frame rates, the data shows the following averages: Low settings produce 457 FPS, Medium produces 412 FPS, High produces 368 FPS, and Ultra produces 325 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution has a recorded minimum of 351 FPS and a maximum of 474 FPS, giving a range of 123 FPS during the measured session. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p represents a 28.9% performance reduction, which is the largest relative drop across the three resolutions.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high: Low produces 371 FPS, Medium produces 310 FPS, High produces 277 FPS, and Ultra produces 245 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p shows a minimum of 264 FPS and a maximum of 357 FPS, with a 93 FPS range. The Low-to-Ultra drop at 1440p is 34.0%, which is slightly larger than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is beginning to feel the effects of the higher pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the most demanding resolution, the frame rates are still impressively high: Low produces 248 FPS, Medium produces 208 FPS, High produces 186 FPS, and Ultra produces 164 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K has a minimum of 177 FPS and a maximum of 239 FPS, with a 62 FPS range. The Low-to-Ultra drop at 4K is 33.9%, which is nearly identical to the 1440p drop, suggesting that the GPU is consistently the limiting factor at these higher resolutions.

The Medium preset's min/max data provides insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the minimum of 351 FPS is still higher than the Ultra preset's average at that resolution, while at 4K, the minimum of 177 FPS is above the High preset's average of 186 FPS. This indicates that even during demanding scenes, the combo maintains frame rates that are competitive with lower-quality presets.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that the Ultra preset at 1440p provides the best balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 245 FPS that is still far above the threshold for smooth gameplay. At this resolution, the Ultra preset produces 245 FPS, which is only 32 FPS lower than the High preset's 277 FPS, making the visual quality upgrade well worth the modest performance cost. The 1440p Ultra configuration offers 245 FPS, which is 81 FPS higher than the 4K High preset's 186 FPS, while providing similar visual fidelity due to the higher pixel density at 1440p.

For users who prioritize maximum visual fidelity, the 4K Ultra preset at 164 FPS is still exceptionally playable and represents the best-looking configuration in the measured data. The 164 FPS average at 4K Ultra exceeds the refresh rate of most displays, meaning that users with high-refresh-rate 4K monitors will be able to take full advantage of their hardware. The 4K Medium preset at 208 FPS offers a compelling middle ground, providing a 44 FPS improvement over Ultra while maintaining excellent visual quality.

At 1080p, the Ultra preset's 325 FPS is the recommended choice for users with very high-refresh-rate monitors, as it provides the best visual experience while still delivering frame rates that exceed what most displays can show. The 1080p Ultra configuration produces 325 FPS, which is 132 FPS lower than Low settings but offers substantially better visual quality. Given that even the most demanding 4K Ultra configuration produces 164 FPS, there is no scenario where users need to compromise on quality to achieve playable frame rates with this combo.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K features 16 cores and 24 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This configuration provides substantial multi-threaded processing power, as evidenced by the Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 30,745 and the 3DMark max threads score of 12,412. The CPU's single-thread performance is also strong, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1,136 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,116, which is important for games that rely heavily on single-threaded performance.

The data suggests that the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p resolution, where frame rates reach up to 457 FPS. At this resolution, the GPU is not fully utilized, and the CPU's ability to process game logic and issue draw calls becomes the bottleneck. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 10,717 indicates strong multi-threaded capability, while the 2-thread score of 2,262 shows that even with just two threads, the CPU can deliver solid performance. The 8-thread score of 8,193 and 4-thread score of 4,469 demonstrate that the CPU scales well across different thread counts.

The CPU's 30 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample fast memory for game data, while the 10 nm process node and 125 W TDP indicate efficient power usage. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46,881, places it in the upper tier of processors. The nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, scores 46,971, which is only 0.2% higher, indicating that the i7-13700K is essentially performance-equivalent to that processor in synthetic benchmarks. The PassMark multi-thread score of 45,887 and single-thread score of 4,333 further confirm the CPU's balanced performance profile.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. The GPU's base clock is 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz, and its 21,760 shading units deliver an FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS. The 680 texture mapping units and 176 raster output processors provide texture and pixel rates of 1,636.8 GTexel/s and 423.6 GPixel/s, respectively. This massive compute capability is reflected in the GPU's 92nd percentile ranking, with an average benchmark score of 77,712.

The GPU's role in this game becomes increasingly important as resolution increases. At 4K, the frame rates drop to 164-248 FPS depending on settings, with the GPU clearly being the primary bottleneck. The 4K Ultra preset's 164 FPS represents the GPU being pushed to its limits, while the 1080p Low preset's 457 FPS suggests the GPU is not being fully utilized at lower resolutions. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 376,915 indicate strong DirectX 12 and Vulkan performance, which is relevant for a game like Dave The Diver.

The nearest GPU rivals in benchmarks include the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT at 76,904 (1.1% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT at 78,940 (1.6% higher), and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB at 79,605 (2.4% higher). These deltas are small, suggesting that the RTX 5090 D is closely matched with these competitors in synthetic tests, though the actual in-game performance may differ. The 32 GB VRAM capacity ensures that memory is never a limiting factor in this game, even at 4K Ultra settings, and the 1.79 TB/s bandwidth provides ample data throughput for texture streaming and rendering operations.