Evolve

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 produces a split personality in Evolve. The CPU is a modern, high-end part, while the GPU is a legacy component from a previous generation. The benchmark data shows a system where the graphics card consistently dictates performance ceilings, but the processor ensures that frame pacing remains stable enough to avoid severe bottlenecks. This combination ranks 1452 out of 1695 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower 14% of tested systems, a direct reflection of the GPU's age relative to the game's demands.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge). It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, backed by 32 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU demonstrates strong single-thread performance with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1253 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3603. Multi-threaded results are equally robust: the Cinebench R23 multi-core score reaches 25525, while Geekbench multi-core finishes at 15182.

For Evolve, a 2015 FPS title, the CPU’s role is primarily about maintaining a high minimum frame rate and avoiding draw-call bottlenecks. The data shows the CPU is far from being the limiting factor at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low settings, the system produces 129.6 FPS, a figure that demands strong per-core throughput. The 9600X’s boost clock of 5.40 GHz and its 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs (with an average benchmark score of 28246) indicate that it provides more than enough headroom for this game’s engine. Compared to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 9600X is effectively tied with the Intel Core i5-13490F (0.3% ahead) and the AMD Ryzen 5 230 (0.3% ahead), while trailing the AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS by 0.4% and the Intel Core i5-14500T by 0.5%. These sub-1% deltas confirm that the CPU is not a differentiator in this pairing; its performance is adequate to feed the GTX 1070 in all tested scenarios.

The CPU’s memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s over dual-channel DDR5 also supports the GPU’s frame buffer requests without introducing latency penalties. In the context of Evolve, which does not heavily tax modern multi-core processors, the 9600X’s 12 threads remain largely underutilized. The PassMark multi-thread score of 30027 and PassMark physics score of 2012 further corroborate that the processor can handle the game’s physics and AI computations without breaking a sweat. The data suggests that the CPU’s contribution is to ensure that the GPU is never starved of data, allowing the GTX 1070 to operate at its maximum potential. However, because the GPU is the older component, the CPU’s strengths are essentially wasted in this configuration, as frame rates are capped by the graphics card’s rendering capabilities rather than by processing power.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is built on the Pascal architecture (GP104 chip) using a 16 nm process. It features 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU’s base clock is 1506 MHz with a boost clock of 1683 MHz, and it offers 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. Its raw compute capability is rated at 6.463 TFLOPS FP32. In synthetic benchmarks, the GTX 1070 scores 13498 in PassMark G3D and 47490 in Geekbench OpenCL, with an average benchmark score of 12331. It holds a 51st percentile ranking among all GPUs, placing it squarely in the middle of the pack.

In Evolve, the GTX 1070’s performance is the dominant factor. At 1080p Ultra settings, the system manages 55 FPS, which drops to 18.8 FPS at 4K Ultra. This steep decline is directly attributable to the GPU’s memory bandwidth and shading capacity. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for the game’s textures, but the 256.3 GB/s bandwidth becomes a bottleneck at higher resolutions and quality settings. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro K4200 (0.7% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 880M (1.3% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER (1.4% behind), and the NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm (1.7% behind). These margins show that the GTX 1070 is clustered with mid-range and older workstation parts, reinforcing its status as a dated gaming card.

The GPU’s DirectX 12 benchmark score of 48 (PassMark) is notably weak, and its DirectX 11 score of 100 is only average. Since Evolve was released in 2015, it likely relies on DirectX 11 features, which the GTX 1070 handles with moderate efficiency. The pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s are the physical limits that determine the frame rates observed. At 1080p Low, the GPU produces 129.6 FPS, but this is an outlier where the CPU is doing most of the work; as settings increase, the GPU’s fillrate and shader throughput become the deciding factors. The data clearly shows that the GTX 1070 is the constraint in this combo, as the CPU’s performance remains constant while FPS scales inversely with GPU workload.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS across resolutions and settings provides a clear picture of where the bottleneck lies. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 129.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low, the frame rate drops to 87.7 FPS, a 32.3% reduction. At 4K Low, the average FPS falls to 50.2, representing a 61.3% drop from 1080p. This pattern is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario, where increasing pixel count directly reduces the fillrate headroom.

At High settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The system runs at 80.1 FPS at 1080p, 54.3 FPS at 1440p, and 32.4 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is 59.6%, showing that the GTX 1070 struggles to maintain playable frame rates at higher resolutions. Ultra settings amplify this issue: 55 FPS at 1080p, 36.3 FPS at 1440p, and 18.8 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is below the threshold for smooth gameplay, indicating that the GPU is completely saturated.

The data suggests that the limiting component is unequivocally the GPU. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, as the processor’s workload does not scale with pixel count. Instead, the FPS drops by roughly half from 1080p to 4K, which is the expected behavior for a graphics card that is running out of memory bandwidth and shading power. The medium settings tell a similar story: 102 FPS at 1080p, 66.6 FPS at 1440p, and 37.2 FPS at 4K. The consistency of the scaling across all quality presets confirms that the Ryzen 5 9600X is not the limiting factor. The CPU maintains its performance ceiling, while the GTX 1070’s rendering capabilities define the maximum achievable FPS at each resolution.

FAQ

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 9600X compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-13490F?

A: The Ryzen 5 9600X has an average benchmark score of 28246, which is 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i5-13490F’s score of 28173. This difference is negligible, meaning the two CPUs offer statistically similar performance in synthetic workloads.

*Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo can achieve in Evolve?*

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 129.6, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. At the same resolution with High settings, the frame rate drops to 80.1 FPS, and at Ultra it falls to 55 FPS.

*Q: Is the GTX 1070’s 8 GB VRAM sufficient for 4K gaming in Evolve?*

A: The 8 GB VRAM is not the primary issue; the bottleneck is the GPU’s processing power. At 4K Ultra, the combo produces only 18.8 FPS, which is unplayable. Even at 4K Low, the frame rate is 50.2 FPS, indicating that the GPU’s compute capabilities are insufficient for smooth 4K gameplay.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 rank among all GPUs based on benchmark scores?

A: The GTX 1070 holds a 51st percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12331. This places it in the middle of the performance distribution, indicating that it is an average performer by modern standards.

Q: What does the combo’s rank of 1452 out of 1695 combos indicate?

A: This rank signifies that the combo performs worse than approximately 85.7% of all tested combinations in Evolve. This is primarily due to the GTX 1070’s age, as the CPU is a high-end part that does not contribute to the low ranking.

Q: At which resolution and settings does the combo become unplayable?

A: The frame rate drops below 30 FPS at 4K Ultra (18.8 FPS) and 4K High (32.4 FPS). For a smooth experience, users should stick to 1080p or 1440p with Medium or High settings, where the FPS ranges from 66.6 to 102 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 1452 out of 1695 tested combinations in Evolve. This places the system in the bottom 14.3% of all tested configs, a position that is almost entirely attributable to the GPU. The Ryzen 5 9600X is a top-tier processor with an 85th percentile ranking among CPUs and an average benchmark score of 28246. It outperforms or matches its nearest rivals within a 0.5% margin. In contrast, the GTX 1070’s 51st percentile ranking among GPUs and average score of 12331 drags the overall combo performance down.

The rank difference is stark when considering the components individually. The CPU is capable of driving much higher frame rates, as evidenced by the 129.6 FPS result at 1080p Low, which is likely CPU-limited. However, the GPU’s inability to maintain that performance at higher settings or resolutions caps the system’s overall capability. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the FPS plummets to 18.8, a figure that is 85.5% lower than the 1080p Low result. This severe drop is a hallmark of a GPU-bound system where the graphics card is the primary constraint.

Compared to other combos in the database, this pairing is near the bottom. The rank of 1452 out of 1695 suggests that most other tested combinations, even those with older CPUs, achieve better performance in Evolve because they pair them with more capable GPUs. The Ryzen 5 9600X’s potential is wasted in this configuration, as the GTX 1070 cannot utilize the CPU’s full throughput. For users considering this combo, the data indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield the most significant performance gains, while the CPU would remain relevant for future upgrades. The benchmark results confirm that the GTX 1070 is the bottleneck, and the combo’s low rank reflects this imbalance.