Downfall

Downfall, a 2016 horror title, presents a demanding workload that scales significantly with both resolution and visual presets. For the combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT, the benchmark data shows a clear performance hierarchy. The sweet spot for a high-refresh experience is at 1080p with High settings, achieving 133.1 FPS, while the most visually demanding Ultra preset at 4K drops to a playable but less fluid 39.8 FPS. This pairing is capable, ranking in the top 61.4% of all tested combos, but its performance is heavily dependent on the chosen settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for a 60 FPS experience?

A: The data shows that 1440p with High settings delivers 96.9 FPS, and even the demanding 4K resolution with High settings achieves 61.1 FPS. For a consistent 60+ FPS target, 4K at High is the most demanding configuration that still meets this goal.

Q: How much performance is gained by lowering settings from Ultra to Low?

A: At 1080p, the average frame rate increases from 83.5 FPS on Ultra to 201.8 FPS on Low, a substantial 141.7% performance uplift. This gap narrows at higher resolutions, with the 4K Low preset (87.8 FPS) being 120.6% faster than the 4K Ultra preset (39.8 FPS).

Q: Is the Core i5-9400 a bottleneck for this GPU in Downfall?

A: The data suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. The frame rate drops by 55.0% when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings (133.1 to 61.1 FPS), which indicates scaling that is heavily dependent on the GPU's rendering load.

Q: How does the RX 6650 XT compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score of 29024 is virtually identical to the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, with a delta of 0%. It is also only 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 470 and 0.5% ahead of the Intel Arc A370M, though it trails the RX Vega M GH by 0.6%.

Q: What is the raw compute capability of this GPU configuration?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT features a boost clock of 2635 MHz and a game clock of 2410 MHz. This allows for an FP32 performance of 10.79 TFLOPS, with a texture fill rate of 337.3 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 168.6 GPixel/s.

Q: What is the impact of the CPU's core configuration on this game?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has 6 cores and 6 threads. In synthetic tests, it scores 7969 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1125 in single-core. Its average benchmark score of 2305 places it in the 50th percentile of all CPUs, indicating a mid-range level of processing power.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data clearly indicates that the High preset offers the best balance between visual fidelity and performance for this hardware combination. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 133.1 FPS, which is 39.6% faster than the 83.5 FPS achieved on Ultra. This allows for a significantly smoother experience on high-refresh-rate monitors without a major sacrifice in visual quality.

For users with 1440p displays, the High preset is equally compelling, delivering 96.9 FPS. This is a highly playable frame rate for a horror game, ensuring responsive gameplay while maintaining a high level of detail. The Medium preset at 1440p offers a slight performance boost to 114.8 FPS, but the visual jump from Medium to High is generally more impactful than the frame rate difference.

At 4K, the choice becomes more critical. The High preset at 61.1 FPS is the only way to achieve a stable 60 FPS experience. The Medium preset at 73.2 FPS also provides a playable experience, but the drop to Ultra at 39.8 FPS is too severe to recommend for smooth gameplay. Therefore, the data suggests High or Medium for 4K, with High being the optimal choice for those who can tolerate a near-60 FPS target.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 133.1 FPS at 1080p to 96.9 FPS at 1440p, a 27.2% decrease. Moving from 1440p to 4K (3840x2160) sees a further drop to 61.1 FPS, a 36.9% decrease from the 1440p figure and a 54.1% decrease overall from 1080p.

This pattern indicates that the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is the primary component handling the increased pixel workload. The frame rate scaling is not linear with pixel count, suggesting that memory bandwidth and raw fill rate are being stressed at higher resolutions. The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 280.3 GB/s, which appears sufficient for 4K at High settings but becomes a limiting factor when aiming for the Ultra preset.

The difference between Low and Ultra presets also widens at higher resolutions. At 1080p, Low is 141.7% faster than Ultra, while at 4K, Low is 120.6% faster. This suggests that the CPU can feed the GPU adequately at all resolutions, and the performance gap is almost entirely due to the GPU's rendering workload. The Core i5-9400's 6 cores and 6 threads are not the primary constraint in this title.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers a wide range of performance. The Low preset achieves an average of 201.8 FPS, while Medium reaches 161.5 FPS. High settings produce 133.1 FPS, and the Ultra preset results in 83.5 FPS. This wide spread gives users significant control over the experience, from maximum frame rates to maximum visual detail.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down accordingly. Low settings average 145.2 FPS, Medium averages 114.8 FPS, and High averages 96.9 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 62.0 FPS, which is still a playable frame rate but begins to show the strain of higher resolution rendering.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. The Low preset averages 87.8 FPS, making it a viable option for high-refresh 4K gaming. Medium averages 73.2 FPS, and High averages 61.1 FPS, which is right at the threshold for a smooth 60 FPS experience. The Ultra preset falls to 39.8 FPS, which is not recommended for fluid gameplay.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is the dominant component in this pairing. Its performance characteristics, including a boost clock of 2635 MHz and a game clock of 2410 MHz, directly drive the frame rates in Downfall. The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 280.3 GB/s bandwidth is a key asset, allowing the card to handle the data demands of 4K textures without excessive stuttering.

The card's raw throughput, measured at 10.79 TFLOPS FP32 and a texture rate of 337.3 GTexel/s, explains its strong performance at lower resolutions. The data shows that at 1080p, the card can push well over 200 FPS on Low settings, showcasing its raw power. The bottleneck appears when the resolution increases and the pixel fill rate of 168.6 GPixel/s becomes more critical, which is why Ultra settings at 4K see such a significant drop.

The GPU's synthetic benchmark scores reinforce its position. With an average benchmark score of 29024, it sits in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, scores 29011 with a 0% delta, indicating they are performance equivalents in general compute. This places the RX 6650 XT as a solid mid-range to upper-mid-range performer, which aligns with the observed gameplay data.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 provides a stable foundation for the RX 6650 XT. With 6 cores and 6 threads, it offers enough processing power to keep the GPU fed at most settings. Its boost clock of 4.10 GHz and base clock of 2.90 GHz are sufficient for this 2016 horror title, which is not known for being heavily CPU-bound.

The CPU's synthetic performance, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and a single-core score of 1125, indicates a capable processor. Its average benchmark score of 2305 places it at the 50th percentile, meaning it is an average performer compared to all other CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i3-10305, scores 2300 with a delta of 0.2%, showing that the i5-9400 is slightly faster.

In the context of Downfall, the CPU's role is secondary. The data shows that the frame rate is heavily influenced by the GPU, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops when increasing resolution. The CPU's 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support are more than adequate for this workload. The 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth ensures data can be fed to the GPU without creating a significant bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT achieves a rank of 1069 out of 1741 tested combos in Downfall. This places it in the top 61.4% of all configurations, indicating a performance level that is above the median but not at the top tier.

This ranking suggests that while the individual components are competent, the pairing is not optimized for extreme performance in this specific title. The RX 6650 XT is a strong GPU, but its 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus may hold it back at the highest settings compared to more powerful cards with larger memory interfaces. The Core i5-9400, with its 6 threads, is also a limiting factor in some modern titles, though less so in Downfall.

The rank implies that users of this combo can expect a solid experience at 1080p and 1440p, with the ability to play at 4K on medium to high settings. The data confirms that this is a balanced mid-range setup, capable of delivering high frame rates in less demanding scenarios but requiring careful settings management to maintain smooth performance in the game's most demanding configurations.