Evolve

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER pairing presents a fascinating case study in bottleneck dynamics for the 2015 FPS title Evolve. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings reveal a system where the GPU's workload scales dramatically with pixel count, while the CPU's six-core, twelve-thread configuration provides a robust foundation that rarely becomes the primary constraint. This analysis interprets the benchmark data to identify where the performance ceiling lies and how users can optimize their experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and unequivocal, pointing directly at the GTX 1660 SUPER as the limiting component at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 124 FPS at 1920x1080 to 83.8 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 32.4%. Pushing further to 3840x2160 yields just 47.1 FPS, meaning the 4K result is only 38% of the 1080p performance. This pattern is consistent across all quality presets, with the Ultra preset dropping from 52.1 FPS at 1080p to 34.3 FPS at 1440p and ultimately to 21.6 FPS at 4K.

The data implies a classic GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. The GTX 1660 SUPER's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are being saturated as pixel count increases. The scaling between 1440p and 4K is particularly punishing, with the High preset losing 22.4 FPS (from 50.2 to 27.8). This suggests that the GPU's shading units—1,408 in total—and its 48 ROPs are overwhelmed by the 4K pixel workload. Conversely, the relatively modest drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings (124 to 83.8 FPS) indicates that the CPU can still feed frames quickly enough, but the GPU's fill rate becomes the wall. The benchmark results clearly show that 4K gaming is not viable for smooth play, while 1440p offers a playable but compromised experience on higher presets.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Ryzen 5 3600 and GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1493 out of 1695 tested combos in Evolve, placing it in the lower 12th percentile of all system configurations. This rank is surprisingly low given the individual component scores, suggesting that the game's engine may not scale well with this particular hardware pairing or that the GPU is a significant drag on the overall ranking. The GPU's average benchmark score of 14286 places it in the 55th percentile among all GPUs, while the CPU's average score of 18129 puts it in the 76th percentile.

The discrepancy between the component's individual standings and the combo's low rank indicates a potential mismatch. The CPU is a strong performer, sitting just 0.1% below the Intel Core i5-11400 (18150 avg score) and 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (18101), making it a highly competitive processor. The GPU, however, is closer to its rivals: it is only 0.2% above the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14314) and 0.7% below the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT (14389). The data suggests that while the CPU has headroom, the GPU's performance in Evolve specifically drags the combo down, making it a system that is better suited for less demanding titles or lower graphical settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 offers the most balanced experience, delivering an average of 97.9 FPS. This is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay and represents a significant 25.7% increase over the High preset's 76.1 FPS. The Low preset at 1080p pushes the frame rate to 124 FPS, but the visual compromise may not be worth the extra 26.1 FPS for most users. At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only viable option for competitive play, yielding 83.8 FPS; the Medium preset drops to 61.4 FPS, which is acceptable but less fluid. The High preset at 1440p produces 50.2 FPS, which is borderline for a fast-paced FPS.

For users prioritizing visual fidelity, the High preset at 1080p is the highest quality setting that maintains an average above 60 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 52.1 FPS, which is a noticeable step down in smoothness. At 4K, no preset achieves a playable frame rate, with the Low preset being the highest at 47.1 FPS. The data strongly suggests that 1080p Medium is the "sweet spot," providing a high frame rate without the performance penalty of High or Ultra, while 1440p should be reserved for Low settings only.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete FPS dataset reveals a clear hierarchy across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are: Low 124 FPS, Medium 97.9 FPS, High 76.1 FPS, and Ultra 52.1 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 71.9 FPS, demonstrating a massive performance swing based on quality settings. At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 83.8 FPS, Medium 61.4 FPS, High 50.2 FPS, and Ultra 34.3 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at each setting is consistent, ranging from a 32.4% reduction at Low to a 34.2% reduction at Ultra.

At 3840x2160, the numbers become marginal: Low 47.1 FPS, Medium 39.5 FPS, High 27.8 FPS, and Ultra 21.6 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that this resolution is not suitable for this combo. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is even more severe; for instance, the High preset loses 22.4 FPS (44.6% reduction), while the Low preset loses 36.7 FPS (43.8% reduction). This data confirms that the GTX 1660 SUPER's capabilities are exhausted at 4K, and even at 1440p, only the lowest settings provide a consistently smooth experience.

GPU Role

The GTX 1660 SUPER, built on the Turing architecture with a 12 nm process, has a base clock of 1530 MHz and a boost clock of 1785 MHz. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus delivers 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is a critical factor in Evolve's texture-heavy environments. The benchmark results show that the GPU's 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is insufficient for high-resolution gaming, as evidenced by the steep FPS drops. The card's 1408 shading units and 88 TMUs handle the game's geometry and textures, but the 48 ROPs become a bottleneck at 4K, limiting pixel fill rate to 85.68 GPixel/s.

The GPU's performance in Evolve is aligned with its 55th percentile ranking among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 14286 is just 0.2% below the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 and 0.5% below the AMD Radeon Vega 11, indicating that it is a mid-range performer. The 12 nm process and 6,600 million transistors suggest a mature design, but the card's end-of-life status means it lacks the modern features of newer GPUs. The data shows that the GPU's memory bandwidth is adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K results are hampered by the combination of lower clock speeds and a relatively narrow memory bus.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, provides a solid foundation for Evolve. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.20 GHz, combined with 32 MB of shared L3 cache, ensure that the CPU can keep up with the GPU at lower resolutions. The CPU's strong benchmark scores—15,045 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 2,124 in single-core—indicate that it is not the limiting factor in this pairing. The data supports this, as the FPS drops are far more pronounced when increasing resolution (a GPU task) than when increasing settings at a fixed resolution.

At 1080p, the CPU's performance is sufficient to drive the GPU to its maximum output, with the Low preset achieving 124 FPS. The CPU's 76th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average score of 18129, places it well above the GPU's 55th percentile. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-11400, has a nearly identical average score of 18150, just 0.1% higher, confirming the Ryzen 5 3600's competitiveness. However, the CPU's 12 threads are not fully utilized in Evolve, which is an older title optimized for fewer cores. This means the CPU has headroom that is not being used, making the GPU the clear performance bottleneck in most scenarios.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Evolve?*

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where all settings are at least playable, with the Low preset achieving 124 FPS and the Ultra preset achieving 52.1 FPS. 2560x1440 is only viable on Low settings, which yields 83.8 FPS.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its closest rivals?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 14286, which is 0.2% below the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14314) and 0.7% below the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT (14389). It performs similarly to these mid-range GPUs.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 3600 a strong CPU for this game?

A: Yes, the CPU has a 76th percentile ranking and an average score of 18129, placing it just 0.1% below the Intel Core i5-11400 and 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS. Its 6 cores and 12 threads provide ample processing power.

Q: Why is the 4K performance so poor?

A: The 4K results show the GPU is overwhelmed, with the Ultra preset averaging only 21.6 FPS. The GTX 1660 SUPER's 6 GB of memory and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the pixel workload at 3840x2160.

Q: What settings should I use for a smooth 60+ FPS experience?

A: At 1080p, the Medium preset delivers 97.9 FPS, which is the highest quality setting above 60 FPS. The High preset drops to 76.1 FPS, still above 60, but the Medium preset offers a better balance of visual quality and performance.

*Q: How does this combo rank overall in Evolve?*

A: The combo ranks 1493 out of 1695 tested combinations, placing it in the lower 12th percentile. This is lower than expected given the individual component scores, indicating the GPU limits the system's overall performance in this specific game.