Evolve

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a combination that is decisively limited by the graphics card at higher resolutions in Evolve, but shows a balanced profile at 1080p where the CPU can stretch its legs. The measured data reveals a system that is highly capable for competitive play at 1440p with adjusted settings, yet struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K with maximum quality presets. This pairing ranks in the 29th percentile of tested combos, indicating that while it is far from the top of the leaderboard, it delivers functional performance for a mid-range setup.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is severe and clearly illustrates where the bottleneck lies. At Ultra settings, the average frame rate falls from 69.6 FPS at 1920x1080 to 44.8 FPS at 2560x1440, and then plummets to 23.4 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 66.4% reduction in performance when moving from 1080p to 4K, which is a classic sign of GPU-bound rendering. The RTX 2060 SUPER is simply overwhelmed by the pixel count at 4K with the Ultra preset.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings. At Low settings, the system achieves 158.6 FPS at 1080p, which drops to 106.4 FPS at 1440p, and further to 63.5 FPS at 4K. Even at the lowest settings, the 4K resolution cuts performance by more than half compared to 1080p, confirming that the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint. The data indicates that the Core i5-11400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, has ample headroom at 4K, as the frame rate is dictated almost entirely by the graphics card's ability to fill pixels.

Interestingly, the scaling from 1440p to 4K is more punishing than from 1080p to 1440p. For High settings, the drop from 94.3 FPS at 1080p to 64.4 FPS at 1440p is a 31.7% reduction, while the drop from 64.4 FPS at 1440p to 35.7 FPS at 4K is a 44.6% reduction. This non-linear scaling suggests that memory bandwidth and fill rate limitations become more pronounced as resolution increases, which is expected for a GPU with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal experience for this combination depends heavily on the target resolution, but the data clearly shows that Ultra settings are only viable at 1080p. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 69.6 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a fast-paced FPS title. Medium settings at 1080p, however, provide a significant boost to 126.3 FPS, offering a 81.5% improvement over Ultra while likely retaining most visual fidelity. This makes Medium the sweet spot for high refresh rate monitors at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the High preset yields 64.4 FPS, which is a comfortable playable frame rate for most users. Dropping to Medium increases this to 85.3 FPS, providing a smoother experience at the cost of some visual effects. Low settings at 1440p push the system to 106.4 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play. Given these numbers, High is the recommended preset for a balanced visual-to-performance ratio at 1440p, with Medium as the go-to choice for those prioritizing frame rate consistency.

For 4K gaming, the data presents a stark picture. The highest playable setting is Low, which achieves 63.5 FPS. Medium drops to 49.9 FPS, High falls to 35.7 FPS, and Ultra is essentially unplayable at 23.4 FPS. Users with a 4K display should stick to Low settings to maintain smooth gameplay, as any increase in quality results in a disproportionate frame rate penalty. The RTX 2060 SUPER is not a 4K-capable card for Evolve beyond minimal settings.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1212 out of 1695 tested combinations for Evolve. This places it in the lower third of all tested systems, but the context is important. The combo is ranked against every possible CPU and GPU pairing in the database, many of which feature far more powerful components. A rank of 1212 indicates that this system will perform adequately for mainstream gaming but will not compete with high-end builds.

The CPU itself sits in the 75th percentile of all processors, showing that the i5-11400F is a strong performer in its own right. However, the GPU is only in the 63rd percentile of all graphics cards, which drags down the overall combo ranking. This suggests that the system is slightly unbalanced, with the CPU having more headroom than the GPU can utilize at higher resolutions. In games like Evolve that are more GPU-intensive, this imbalance becomes apparent, as evidenced by the steep frame rate drops at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a complete picture of this system's capabilities across three resolutions and four quality presets.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers robust performance. Low settings produce an average of 158.6 FPS. Medium settings achieve 126.3 FPS. High settings drop to 94.3 FPS. Ultra settings yield 69.6 FPS. This shows a clear progression where each quality tier costs roughly 20-30% of the frame rate.

At 2560x1440, performance remains solid but the higher pixel count takes its toll. Low settings average 106.4 FPS. Medium settings reach 85.3 FPS. High settings produce 64.4 FPS. Ultra settings fall to 44.8 FPS. The 1440p data indicates that the system can handle high refresh rates at lower settings, but Ultra is only suitable for less demanding scenarios.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates on higher presets. Low settings average 63.5 FPS. Medium settings drop to 49.9 FPS. High settings fall to 35.7 FPS. Ultra settings bottom out at 23.4 FPS. The 4K results clearly show that this combination is not designed for native 4K gaming with quality settings.

FAQ

*Q: Can this combo run Evolve at 4K?*

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which achieves an average of 63.5 FPS. Medium settings drop to 49.9 FPS, and High settings fall to 35.7 FPS, while Ultra is unplayable at 23.4 FPS.

Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming?

A: High settings provide a balanced experience at 64.4 FPS. For smoother gameplay, Medium settings increase the frame rate to 85.3 FPS, while Low settings reach 106.4 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor?

A: The GPU is clearly the bottleneck at resolutions above 1080p. The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a 66.4% drop at Ultra settings, indicating the RTX 2060 SUPER cannot keep up with the pixel count.

Q: How does the CPU rank compared to other processors?

A: The Intel Core i5-11400F is in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17181. It is closely matched with the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, which scores 17189.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The system achieves an average of 126.3 FPS at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which is ideal for high refresh rate monitors.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER a strong GPU in general benchmarks?

A: The GPU is in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 19774. It performs similarly to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, which scores 19706.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F provides a solid foundation for this gaming system. With 6 cores and 12 threads, it offers sufficient multi-threading capability for modern games. The base clock of 2.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.40 GHz ensure that single-threaded performance is strong, which is critical for FPS titles like Evolve. The CPU's benchmark results support this, with a single-thread score of 868 in 3DMark and a cinebench R23 single-core score of 2029.

The CPU's multi-threaded performance is also respectable, as evidenced by a cinebench R23 multicore score of 14372 and a geekbench multicore score of 7579. These numbers place the i5-11400F in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, showing that it is a capable processor for gaming and general productivity. The 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth provide adequate data throughput for gaming workloads.

In Evolve, the CPU's role becomes less critical as resolution increases. At 1080p, the processor has enough headroom to feed the GPU, resulting in high frame rates at lower settings. However, at 4K, the CPU is clearly not the limiting factor, as the frame rates are dictated by the GPU's rendering capabilities. This indicates that the i5-11400F has longevity and could support a future GPU upgrade without becoming a bottleneck.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the defining component in this combination for Evolve. Based on the Turing architecture, this GPU features 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. It operates at a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) across a 256-bit bus. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming but becomes a limiting factor at 4K.

The GPU's benchmark scores indicate it is a mid-range performer, sitting in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs. Its passmark G3D score of 16462 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2011 show that it performs slightly above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, which scores 19706 in the average benchmark metric. The RTX 2060 SUPER's 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is adequate for most games, but Evolve's high-quality presets at 4K push the GPU beyond its limits.

The data shows that the GPU is responsible for the significant frame rate drops at higher resolutions. The 66.4% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings is a clear indicator that the RTX 2060 SUPER lacks the raw pixel throughput for 4K gaming. However, at 1080p and 1440p, the GPU performs admirably, providing playable frame rates at most settings. This makes the RTX 2060 SUPER a suitable choice for 1080p high-refresh-rate gaming and 1440p at medium-to-high settings.