Downfall

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 produces a distinctly GPU-bound experience in Downfall, but only at higher resolutions and settings. Benchmark results show that moving from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 at High settings reduces the average frame rate from 290.6 FPS to 135 FPS, a drop of roughly 54%. This steep decline indicates that the graphics card is doing the heavy lifting, as the performance cost scales directly with pixel count.

At 1920x1080, the frame rates are exceptionally high across all settings, ranging from 332.8 FPS at Low to 187.8 FPS at Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 145 FPS, which shows that the RTX 4090 has ample headroom even when the CPU is tasked with feeding it frames. Moving to 2560x1440, the pattern continues, with Low hitting 297.4 FPS and Ultra dropping to 136.1 FPS. The 4K results are where the GPU finally starts to show its limits, as Ultra dips to 82.6 FPS, a figure that is still playable but significantly lower than the lower-resolution counterparts.

The data suggests that the limiting component shifts depending on the workload. At 1080p, the Core i5-11400F with its 6 cores and 12 threads is likely the bottleneck, given that the RTX 4090 is capable of far higher frame rates than the CPU can deliver. At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary constraint, as the pixel throughput demands exceed what the processor can compensate for. This is a classic sign of a balanced pairing at high resolutions, but a CPU-limited scenario at lower ones.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, confirming that Downfall is heavily dependent on render resolution. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 332.8 at 1920x1080 to 198 at 3840x2160, a reduction of 134.8 FPS or approximately 40%. At Medium settings, the drop is from 313.1 to 159.3 FPS, a 49% decrease. High settings see a decline from 290.6 to 135 FPS, and Ultra falls from 187.8 to 82.6 FPS, a 56% reduction.

These numbers indicate that the RTX 4090’s raw compute power is being taxed more heavily as resolution increases, while the CPU’s role diminishes. The fact that the percentage drop is larger at Ultra settings (56%) compared to Low (40%) suggests that the higher preset introduces more GPU-intensive effects, such as advanced shading and post-processing, which scale poorly with pixel count. At 1080p, the CPU’s 6-core, 12-thread configuration with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz is sufficient to keep up with the GPU’s output, but as resolution climbs, the GPU’s frame time increases, allowing the CPU to stay ahead.

For users targeting high refresh rates, the data shows that 1080p and 1440p are the sweet spots, with even Ultra settings exceeding 136 FPS. At 4K, only Low and Medium settings break the 150 FPS barrier, while High and Ultra fall below 135 FPS. The measured results suggest that 4K is best reserved for visually demanding scenarios where frame rates above 60 FPS are acceptable, rather than competitive play.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver above 187 FPS, so the choice comes down to visual fidelity versus raw speed. Ultra provides 187.8 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay, and the jump from Medium to Ultra costs only 125.3 FPS, a relatively small penalty for the visual upgrade.

At 2560x1440, High settings at 210.7 FPS strike the best balance, offering a significant improvement over Medium’s 259.5 FPS in terms of visual quality while still maintaining a frame rate well above the 144 Hz threshold. Ultra at 136.1 FPS is playable but may not satisfy users with high-refresh-rate monitors, as it drops below the 144 FPS mark. For 4K, Medium at 159.3 FPS is the recommended preset, as it provides a smooth experience without the steep cost of High or Ultra, which fall to 135 and 82.6 FPS respectively.

The data indicates that Low settings are rarely necessary, as even the most demanding preset at 4K stays above 80 FPS. For competitive play or maximum frame rates, Low at 1080p offers 332.8 FPS, but the visual compromise is substantial. The measured results suggest that High settings at 1440p or Medium at 4K provide the best experience per the data, balancing frame rate and graphical quality without pushing the GPU to its limits.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combo in Downfall?*

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 at High settings delivers 210.7 FPS, which is the ideal balance of resolution and frame rate. At 1920x1080, all settings exceed 187 FPS, but 1440p offers a sharper image without a significant performance penalty.

Q: Does the Core i5-11400F bottleneck the RTX 4090 in this game?

A: Yes, particularly at lower resolutions. At 1080p, frame rates range from 187.8 to 332.8 FPS, which are likely CPU-limited given the GPU’s capabilities. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as frame rates drop to 82.6 FPS at Ultra.

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo?

A: The highest measured average is 332.8 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest is 82.6 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: How does the RTX 4090 compare to its nearest rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4090 has an average benchmark score of 66473, placing it 0.4% ahead of the NVIDIA Tesla T4, 0.5% behind the NVIDIA Tesla P40, and 0.9% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56.

Q: Is the RTX 4090 worth pairing with a budget CPU like the i5-11400F?

A: The data suggests that the combination works well at higher resolutions, where the GPU is the primary bottleneck. At 1080p, the CPU limits performance, but at 1440p and 4K, the RTX 4090’s power is fully utilized.

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

A: This specific pairing ranks 90th out of 1741 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the top 5% of all configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest average FPS is 187.8 at Ultra settings, while Low reaches 332.8, Medium hits 313.1, and High achieves 290.6. The progression shows a 145 FPS difference between Low and Ultra, indicating that the GPU has significant headroom at this resolution. Moving to 2560x1440, Low delivers 297.4 FPS, Medium 259.5, High 210.7, and Ultra 136.1. The gap between Low and Ultra widens to 161.3 FPS, suggesting that the GPU is starting to feel the load of higher pixel counts.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates drop sharply: Low averages 198 FPS, Medium 159.3, High 135, and Ultra 82.6. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 115.4 FPS, which is smaller than at 1440p, indicating that the GPU’s shading units and memory bandwidth are becoming the limiting factor. The RTX 4090’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth are sufficient for all presets, but the 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is taxed heavily at Ultra 4K.

The data shows a consistent pattern: as resolution increases, the frame rate drops by roughly 50% between Low and Ultra, regardless of the starting point. At 1080p, the CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads are likely the bottleneck, as the GPU is capable of producing even higher frame rates. At 4K, the GPU’s pixel rate of 443.5 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,290.2 GTexel/s are more relevant, and the results reflect that.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination ranks 90th out of 1741 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the top 5.2% of all configurations. This is a strong showing, given that the CPU is a mid-range part from 2021, while the GPU is a flagship from 2022. The rank reflects the GPU’s dominance in this game, as the RTX 4090’s average benchmark score of 66473 puts it in the 91st percentile of all GPUs.

Compared to the CPU’s nearest rivals, the i5-11400F has an average score of 17181, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U (17189), Intel Core i7-1260P (17212), and Intel Core Ultra 7 164U (17215). The deltaPct values are within 0.2% of each other, indicating that the CPU’s performance is not a differentiator in this pairing. Instead, the GPU’s high score is what drives the combo’s rank.

The RTX 4090’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla T4 (66733, -0.4% delta), NVIDIA Tesla P40 (66127, +0.5% delta), and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 (67097, -0.9% delta). These are all professional or workstation cards, which highlights the RTX 4090’s positioning as a top-tier consumer GPU. The combo’s rank of 90 suggests that while the CPU is not a performance leader, it does not significantly hamper the GPU in this specific game, especially at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Rocket Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel’s 14 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with 12 MB of shared L3 cache. In Downfall, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, and the data shows that it is sufficient for most scenarios.

At 1080p, the CPU is likely the limiting factor, as frame rates above 300 FPS are achieved at Low settings, but the GPU could theoretically push higher. The CPU’s single-thread performance, as measured by a 3dmark single-thread score of 868 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2029, is adequate for the game’s demands. The multi-thread performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 14372, ensures that background tasks do not cause stutters.

The CPU’s 65 W TDP and 14 nm process node mean it is not a power-hungry part, but it does limit the maximum frame rates at lower resolutions. At 1440p and above, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU’s performance is no longer the primary constraint. The benchmark results indicate that the i5-11400F is a capable partner for the RTX 4090 in Downfall, but users targeting the highest possible frame rates at 1080p may see gains from a more powerful CPU. The data shows that the combo’s rank of 90 out of 1741 is respectable, and the CPU’s 75th percentile ranking among all CPUs suggests it is above average for this workload.