Evolve

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER presents a stark illustration of GPU-bound performance in Evolve. The data shows a classic bottleneck scenario where the 12-core, 24-thread processor provides ample headroom, while the 6 GB graphics card dictates the frame rate ceiling across all tested resolutions. This combination ranks 1513 out of 1695 tested combos, placing it in the lower percentile of system configurations for this title, a direct consequence of the graphics card's position as the limiting factor.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is severe and clearly demonstrates that the GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary constraint. At the "High" preset, average frame rates fall from 73.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 47.6 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 27.2 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 63% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K, a pattern consistent with a GPU that is overwhelmed by the pixel count at higher resolutions.

The scaling behavior is more revealing at the "Low" preset, where the CPU has more room to operate. Here, the average frame rate at 1080p is 126.5 FPS, dropping to 85.2 FPS at 1440p and 45.5 FPS at 4K. The fact that the 1080p result reaches triple digits suggests the Ryzen 9 9900X is fully capable of feeding the GPU, but the rapid decline at higher resolutions indicates the graphics card's fill rate and memory bandwidth are exhausted. The 4K "Low" result of 45.5 FPS is only 36% of the 1080p result, underscoring that even at the lowest graphical settings, the GPU cannot maintain a fluid experience at 4K.

The scaling between "Medium" and "High" presets further confirms this. At 1440p, the difference between "Medium" (64.6 FPS) and "High" (47.6 FPS) is a 17 FPS drop, while at 1080p the same preset change costs 20.4 FPS. This shows that the performance penalty for increasing settings is consistent and significant, regardless of resolution, which is the signature of a GPU that is working at its absolute limit. The data suggests that for a smooth experience, users must prioritize either resolution or graphical fidelity, but cannot have both with this hardware configuration.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with a TU116 chip, featuring 1408 shading units and 48 ROPs. Its memory configuration of 6 GB GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s, which is a critical metric for this game. The benchmark results indicate that the GPU's memory subsystem is a bottleneck at higher resolutions and settings, as the 6 GB capacity is likely saturated by the game's textures and geometry at 4K "Ultra", where the average FPS drops to a mere 22.3.

The GPU's clock speeds are modest by modern standards, with a base clock of 1530 MHz and a boost clock of 1785 MHz. These clocks, combined with the 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power, are insufficient for the demands of Evolve at high resolutions. The data shows that even at 1080p "Ultra", the card can only manage 50.2 FPS, indicating that the graphical workload of the game is substantial. The pixel rate of 85.68 GPixel/s and texture rate of 157.1 GTexel/s are the theoretical limits that the measured results fall short of, confirming a real-world performance ceiling that is significantly below the card's peak capabilities in this title.

The GPU's percentile rank of 55 against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 14286, places it in the mid-range tier. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11, which scores a near-identical 14314 (a delta of -0.2%), and the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics at 14315. This close grouping in synthetic benchmarks suggests that while the GTX 1660 SUPER is not a low-end part, it is firmly in the middle of the performance pack, and the Evolve results reflect this position. The card's memory clock of 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) is a key factor, as the 336.0 GB/s bandwidth is insufficient to prevent frame rate drops when the resolution increases and the demand for texture data grows.

FAQ

*Q: Is this system capable of running Evolve at 60 FPS on a 1080p monitor?*

A: Yes, at 1080p with "High" settings, the average FPS is 73.7. The "Medium" preset also exceeds 60 FPS with an average of 94.1. However, the "Ultra" preset at 1080p falls short with an average of 50.2 FPS.

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the system consistently achieves playable frame rates above 60 FPS across multiple presets. At 2560x1440, only the "Low" preset (85.2 FPS) and "Medium" preset (64.6 FPS) reach this threshold, while "High" (47.6 FPS) and "Ultra" (32.9 FPS) do not.

Q: How does the "Ultra" preset compare to "High" at 1440p?

A: The "Ultra" preset at 2560x1440 yields an average of 32.9 FPS, which is 14.7 FPS lower than the "High" preset's 47.6 FPS. This is a significant performance penalty of approximately 31% for the increased graphical fidelity.

Q: Does the Ryzen 9 9900X compensate for the GPU's limitations?

A: No. While the CPU is highly capable, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 46438 and a 94th percentile ranking, the benchmark results show the GPU is the bottleneck. The frame rates are consistently low at high resolutions, regardless of the CPU's processing power, indicating the graphics card cannot keep up.

Q: What is the performance difference between "Low" and "Ultra" at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the "Low" preset achieves an average of 45.5 FPS, while the "Ultra" preset drops to 22.3 FPS. This is a 23.2 FPS difference, meaning the "Ultra" preset delivers less than half the frame rate of the "Low" preset, making it largely unplayable.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1513 out of 1695 tested combos for Evolve. This suggests that while the hardware is functional, the pairing is not optimized for this game's demands, likely due to the GPU's mid-range standing.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this hardware is found at 1920x1080 with the "High" preset, which delivers a smooth 73.7 FPS average. This provides a solid balance between visual quality and performance, ensuring the game remains responsive. The "Medium" preset at 1080p is also viable, with a 94.1 FPS average, offering a more competitive frame rate for those who prefer higher refresh rates, though with reduced visual detail.

For users with 1440p monitors, the "Medium" preset at 2560x1440 is the only recommended choice, producing a 64.6 FPS average. The "High" preset at this resolution drops to 47.6 FPS, which may be acceptable for slower-paced gameplay but falls below the 60 FPS threshold for fluid motion. The "Low" preset at 1440p is a functional alternative for maximizing frame rate, achieving 85.2 FPS, but sacrifices significant visual fidelity.

The "Ultra" preset is not recommended at any resolution. At 1080p it only manages 50.2 FPS, and at 1440p it drops to 32.9 FPS. At 4K, all presets are severely compromised, with "Low" being the only playable option at 45.5 FPS, though this still falls below the ideal 60 FPS target. The data indicates that the system is best suited for 1080p gaming, or 1440p with adjusted settings, and is not appropriate for 4K gaming in Evolve.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured results provide a comprehensive view of the system's performance across all settings and resolutions.

At 1920x1080, the "Low" preset delivers the highest average FPS at 126.5. The "Medium" preset follows with 94.1 FPS, and "High" produces 73.7 FPS. The "Ultra" preset is the most demanding, yielding an average of 50.2 FPS. This shows a clear scaling pattern where each increase in settings costs roughly 20 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the "Low" preset averages 85.2 FPS, which is a significant drop from the 1080p result. The "Medium" preset achieves 64.6 FPS, and "High" drops to 47.6 FPS. The "Ultra" preset is the weakest here, with an average of 32.9 FPS. The performance penalty for moving from 1080p to 1440p is substantial, ranging from a 29.4 FPS drop at "Low" to a 17.3 FPS drop at "Ultra".

At 3840x2160, the results are consistently low. The "Low" preset averages 45.5 FPS, while "Medium" drops to 38 FPS. The "High" preset yields 27.2 FPS, and "Ultra" falls to 22.3 FPS. The gap between "Low" and "Ultra" at 4K is 23.2 FPS, and even the best-case scenario at this resolution fails to reach 60 FPS, confirming that 4K gaming is not viable with this GPU.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X is an exceptionally powerful processor that is not the limiting factor in this configuration. With 12 cores and 24 threads based on the Zen 5 architecture, it offers a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its benchmark scores are impressive, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 46438 and a single-core score of 6555, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. The processor's average benchmark score of 54450 is nearly four times that of the GPU's 14286, highlighting the disparity in performance capability.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D, which scores 54681 (a delta of -0.4%), and the Intel Core i7-14700F, which scores 54097 (a delta of 0.7%). These close scores indicate that the 9900X is at the top of its class for compute tasks. However, in Evolve, this processing power is largely underutilized. The fact that frame rates drop dramatically at higher resolutions, regardless of the CPU's capability, proves that the game's performance is governed by the GPU's ability to render frames, not the CPU's ability to calculate game logic.

The CPU's 64 MB of shared L3 cache and DDR5 memory support with 89.6 GB/s bandwidth are more than sufficient for gaming workloads. The data suggests that in this specific game, the Ryzen 9 9900X provides a stable platform that never introduces a CPU-side bottleneck, allowing the GPU to operate at its maximum potential. However, that maximum potential is low, meaning the CPU's strength cannot overcome the GPU's weaknesses in this title.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1513 out of 1695 tested combos in Evolve. This places the system in the bottom 11% of all configurations tested, a poor result that underscores the mismatch between the high-end CPU and the mid-range GPU. The rank is a direct consequence of the GPU's performance ceiling, as the measured frame rates are consistently low, particularly at higher resolutions.

The GPU's own benchmark standing reinforces this. With a percentile rank of 55 and an average score of 14286, the GTX 1660 SUPER is a median performer. Its nearest rivals, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 and Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics, have nearly identical scores, showing that this GPU is not a high-end part. The CPU, by contrast, is in the 94th percentile, meaning the system's overall ranking is dragged down entirely by the graphics card.

The data indicates that for Evolve, this combo is a poor fit. The CPU has far more power than the game requires, while the GPU lacks the necessary memory bandwidth and compute power to deliver high frame rates. The result is a system that can handle 1080p gaming reasonably well at medium-to-high settings but fails to provide a satisfactory experience at higher resolutions or maximum settings. The rank of 1513 out of 1695 serves as a clear warning that this hardware pairing is not optimized for this specific title.