Evolve

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a fascinating split in Evolve: this is a combo that can push well past 300 FPS at 1080p but drops to just over 60 FPS at 4K Ultra. The data indicates a system where the GPU is the primary driver of performance scaling, yet the CPU’s 10-core configuration ensures it never becomes a bottleneck at lower resolutions. This pairing ranks 21st out of 1695 tested combos in this game, placing it in the top 1.2% of all configurations measured.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable pattern: as resolution increases, average frame rates fall significantly. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 319.3 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops that to 261.1 FPS, and at 3840x2160 Low it falls further to 149.4 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Low settings represents a 53.2% reduction in frame rate, which indicates the GPU is working progressively harder to fill those extra pixels.

The High preset tells a similar story. At 1080p High, the system delivers 231.5 FPS. At 1440p High, it manages 155.1 FPS, and at 4K High it drops to 91.9 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 4K High is 60.3%, showing that even with a top-tier GPU like the RTX 5090, 4K resolution demands a significant performance tax. The Ultra preset shows the steepest drop: 159.6 FPS at 1080p, 109.5 FPS at 1440p, and only 60.8 FPS at 4K. That 4K Ultra figure is barely playable for a fast-paced FPS, and the data suggests that this game’s Ultra settings are extremely demanding on the GPU’s shading units and memory bandwidth.

The frame rate deltas between resolutions are consistent across all settings presets, which strongly suggests the CPU is not the limiting factor in these tests. If the i5-13400F were the bottleneck, we would expect the 1080p scores to cluster closer together regardless of graphics settings. Instead, the 1080p range spans from 159.6 FPS at Ultra to 319.3 FPS at Low, a 100% spread that is entirely attributable to GPU workload. The RTX 5090’s 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are clearly being utilized more heavily as resolution climbs.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, running on a 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.50 GHz with a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, and it carries 20 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 3004 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 21279 in multi-core, placing it in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rival is the Intel Core i7-13620H, which scores 25201 on average versus the i5-13400F’s 25236, a delta of just 0.1% — effectively identical performance.

In Evolve, the CPU’s role is mostly about maintaining high frame rates without becoming a bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system hits 319.3 FPS, which is likely near the practical ceiling for this game engine regardless of GPU power. The 16 threads handle the game’s background simulation and AI tasks comfortably, as evidenced by the fact that the frame rate scales almost linearly with GPU load rather than plateauing. The processor’s 65 W TDP is modest, and its 3DMark multi-thread score of 7314 reflects a chip that can handle sustained gaming loads without thermal throttling.

Compared to its closest rivals, the i5-13400F sits in a sweet spot. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D scores 25365 on average, which is 0.5% higher, but that difference is negligible in real-world gaming. The AMD EPYC 9474F and Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 both score within 0.5% as well. What matters here is that the CPU delivers single-thread performance of 960 in 3DMark single-thread and 3634 in Passmark single-thread, which is more than sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 in a game like Evolve that relies on fast draw calls rather than massive multi-threaded physics.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide clear guidance on which preset to use. At 1080p, the Medium preset delivers 291.4 FPS, which is an excellent balance of visual quality and performance. High settings at 1080p still produce 231.5 FPS, so either is viable, but Medium offers a 25.9% frame rate advantage over High for what is likely a minor visual difference. Ultra at 1080p drops to 159.6 FPS, and while that is still smooth, it represents a 45.2% reduction from Medium without a proportional visual gain in most cases.

For 1440p gaming, Medium is the clear winner at 200.1 FPS. High settings at 155.1 FPS are also perfectly playable, but Medium provides 29% more headroom. Ultra at 1440p drops to 109.5 FPS, which is borderline for competitive play. The data suggests that Ultra settings in Evolve are not well optimized for this hardware combination, as the jump from High to Ultra costs 45.4 FPS at 1440p (a 29.3% penalty) and 31.1 FPS at 4K (a 33.8% penalty).

At 4K, the choice is more constrained. Low settings produce 149.4 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 115.4 FPS and High to 91.9 FPS. Ultra at 60.8 FPS is technically above the 60 FPS threshold but leaves no margin for dips. For a 4K experience, High settings at 91.9 FPS is the recommended target — it provides solid visual fidelity while staying above 90 FPS. If you must use Ultra, be prepared for a frame rate that hovers near 60 FPS, which is not ideal for a fast-paced FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific pairing of the i5-13400F and RTX 5090 achieves a combo rank of 21 out of 1695 tested combinations in Evolve. That places it in the 98.8th percentile of all combos, which is an exceptional result. The ranking reflects that the RTX 5090 is doing the heavy lifting here, as the GPU is in the 94th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 84306. The i5-13400F is in the 82nd percentile of CPUs, which means the CPU is not dragging down the overall combo ranking.

The top 20 combos ahead of this one likely feature higher-end CPUs with faster single-thread performance, but the delta is small given the GPU-bound nature of Evolve at higher resolutions. The fact that this combo ranks 21st despite the CPU being only 82nd percentile suggests that the game is heavily GPU-dependent. If the game were CPU-bound, we would expect the combo ranking to be closer to the CPU’s percentile. The data supports the conclusion that the RTX 5090 is the defining component in this pairing, and the i5-13400F is sufficient to avoid limiting it.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the undisputed star of this combo. Built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process, it packs 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs. Its boost clock of 2407 MHz and FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS make it one of the most powerful consumer GPUs available. The 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for high-resolution textures and effects in Evolve.

The GPU’s benchmark results confirm its dominance: it scores 39650 in Passmark G3D and 380114 in Geekbench OpenCL, placing it in the 94th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the RTX 5090 D, which scores 84241 on average versus the RTX 5090’s 84306, a delta of just 0.1%. The AMD Radeon PRO W6600 scores 83209, which is 1.3% lower, and the NVIDIA CMP 40HX scores 85637, which is 1.6% higher. These rivals are all within a narrow band, but the RTX 5090’s real advantage shows in gaming workloads like Evolve.

In this game, the GPU’s role is to maintain high frame rates across all settings. The 1080p Low result of 319.3 FPS is likely near the engine’s cap, while the 4K Ultra result of 60.8 FPS shows the GPU being pushed to its limits. The 575 W TDP and 950 W suggested PSU indicate this is a power-hungry component, but the performance payoff is clear. The RTX 5090’s 170 RT cores and 680 tensor cores are not directly relevant to Evolve, which launched in 2015 before ray tracing was common, but the raw rasterization power is more than enough for this title.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-13400F a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 in Evolve?

A: No. The data shows that frame rates scale consistently with resolution and settings changes, indicating a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 319.3 FPS, which suggests the CPU can feed the GPU well beyond typical display refresh rates.

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

A: Medium settings at 2560x1440 produce 200.1 FPS, which is the highest frame rate above the 144 Hz threshold. High settings at 155.1 FPS are also viable, but Medium offers 29% more performance for likely minimal visual difference.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K Ultra settings?

A: Yes, but barely. The 4K Ultra result is 60.8 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS playability floor. For a competitive FPS, High settings at 91.9 FPS are a safer choice for maintaining smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the i5-13400F compare to its nearest rival, the i7-13620H?

A: The i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25236, while the i7-13620H scores 25201. The i5 is 0.1% faster, making them effectively identical in performance for this game.

Q: Does the RTX 5090’s 32 GB of VRAM matter for Evolve?

A: The game launched in 2015 and is unlikely to use more than a few GB of VRAM, but the 32 GB allocation ensures no memory-related stuttering even at 4K Ultra, where the GPU’s 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is more critical than capacity.

Q: What is the combo’s overall ranking among all tested systems?

A: This configuration ranks 21st out of 1695 combos tested in Evolve, placing it in the top 1.2% of all systems measured for this game.