Evolve

Evolve, a 2015 FPS, presents a demanding load for the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 combination, with benchmark results showing a clear dependency on resolution and graphics settings. The measured data indicates a system that is capable of smooth 1080p gameplay but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K, with the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The combination ranks in the 20th percentile of tested configurations, highlighting that while it performs adequately at lower resolutions, it is not optimized for high-end 4K experiences in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K reveals a significant performance drop, underscoring the GPU's limitations under heavy load. At 1080p High settings, the combo delivers an average of 91.1 FPS, which drops to 58.3 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of approximately 36%. Moving to 4K High yields only 33.1 FPS, meaning the jump from 1440p to 4K costs another 43% of performance. This steep decline indicates that the Radeon RX 6600 is the limiting component at higher resolutions, as the scaling is far more aggressive than what a CPU-bound scenario would produce.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the system is partially balanced, but the GPU begins to saturate as pixel count increases. For instance, at Low settings, the frame rate drops from 148.3 FPS at 1080p to 100.1 FPS at 1440p, then to 56.1 FPS at 4K. This pattern shows that even with reduced graphical load, the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources are insufficient for 4K, resulting in a 62% performance loss from 1080p to 4K. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly punishing, with an average drop of 43% across all settings, confirming that the RX 6600's 128-bit memory bus and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are not enough for 4K gaming in Evolve.

The frame rate data also reveals that the CPU, with its 6 cores and 6 threads, does not become a major constraint until the GPU load is lowered. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 148.3 FPS, suggesting the Core i5-9400 can feed the GPU adequately. However, at 4K Ultra, the frame rate plummets to 25.3 FPS, a 83% reduction from 1080p Ultra's 62.6 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and intense settings, making the resolution scaling behavior a clear indicator of a GPU-bound system in the high-resolution range.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600, with its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, plays a decisive role in Evolve's performance. The GPU's 1792 shading units and 64 ROPs are tasked with rendering the game's environments, and the benchmark results show that memory capacity is not the issue, but rather the raw throughput. At 1080p Medium, the card delivers 112.2 FPS, which is strong, but at 4K Medium, it falls to 44.3 FPS, a 61% drop. This suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth is a limiting factor, as the higher resolution demands more data per frame, overwhelming the 128-bit bus.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 1626 MHz and a boost of 2491 MHz, provide a solid foundation for 1080p gaming. The "game" clock of 2044 MHz is indicative of typical sustained performance, and the data shows that at 1440p High, the card can still manage 58.3 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for Evolve even at 4K Ultra, as the game does not appear to exceed this capacity, but the performance at 25.3 FPS at that setting indicates that the compute units are the bottleneck, not memory allocation.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 69 versus all GPUs suggests it is a mid-range part, and the nearest rival data shows it is closely matched with the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (0.2% slower) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (0.5% faster). In Evolve, this translates to performance that is adequate for 1440p Medium, but the card's 132 W TDP and dual-slot design are not sufficient for 4K Ultra, where the 25.3 FPS result is well below the 60 FPS target. The benchmark results indicate that the RX 6600 is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p with adjusted settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frames, the optimal balance of visual quality and performance is achieved at 1440p Medium, which delivers 73.5 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for a fast-paced FPS, and the jump from High to Medium at this resolution is only a 21% improvement, suggesting that the High preset at 58.3 FPS is also viable for those prioritizing visuals. At 1080p, the High preset at 91.1 FPS is the best choice, as it provides a smooth experience without the need to drop to Medium (112.2 FPS) or Low (148.3 FPS), which offer diminishing returns in visual fidelity.

For users with 4K displays, the data strongly recommends against the Ultra preset, which yields only 25.3 FPS. The Low preset at 4K produces 56.1 FPS, which is the only 4K setting that approaches playability, but it requires significant graphical sacrifices. The Medium preset at 4K at 44.3 FPS is a middle ground, but it is still below the 60 FPS threshold. Therefore, the recommendation is to use 1440p Medium as the default, as it offers the best combination of frame rate and visual quality, with 1080p High as an alternative for those who prefer higher detail.

The data shows that the Ultra preset is not suitable for this combo at any resolution, with 1080p Ultra at 62.6 FPS being the only instance where it is close to playable. However, the 20% performance hit from High to Ultra at 1080p is not justified by the marginal visual improvements in Evolve. Thus, the measured rows indicate that gamers should prioritize Medium or High presets, avoiding Ultra unless they are willing to accept frame rates below 30 FPS at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best performance. Low settings produce 148.3 FPS, Medium yields 112.2 FPS, High provides 91.1 FPS, and Ultra drops to 62.6 FPS. These numbers show a clear scaling pattern, with a 58% reduction from Low to Ultra, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiter even at 1080p. The 1080p High result is particularly notable, as it exceeds the 60 FPS target, making it the recommended setting for most users.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance degrades predictably. Low settings achieve 100.1 FPS, which is still smooth, but Medium falls to 73.5 FPS, High to 58.3 FPS, and Ultra to 42 FPS. The drop from 1080p High to 1440p High is 36%, confirming the resolution scaling trend. The 1440p Medium result of 73.5 FPS is the sweet spot, as it maintains a high frame rate while offering better visual fidelity than Low.

At 3840x2160, the results are marginal. Low settings yield 56.1 FPS, which is the only 4K setting above 50 FPS. Medium produces 44.3 FPS, High drops to 33.1 FPS, and Ultra is unplayable at 25.3 FPS. The 4K High result is 64% lower than 1080p High, illustrating the GPU's inability to handle the pixel count. The measured data shows that 4K gaming with this combo requires Low settings, and even then, the frame rate is not ideal for competitive play.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 combination ranks 1371 out of 1695 tested combos in Evolve, placing it in the bottom 19% of configurations. This ranking reflects the system's struggles at higher resolutions, as the GPU's mid-range performance is not enough to push the game to high frame rates at 4K. The rank is consistent with the GPU's 69th percentile versus all GPUs, indicating that while the GPU is above average, the CPU's older architecture may also contribute to the lower ranking.

Compared to the nearest rival combos, the CPU's benchmark scores show it is closely matched with the Intel Core i3-10305 (0.2% faster) and the Intel Xeon E-2134 (0.4% faster), but slightly slower than the Intel Core i7-8809G (0.6% slower). This suggests that the CPU is not a major differentiator in Evolve, as the game is more GPU-bound. The combo's rank suggests that users with this setup should expect performance in line with mid-range systems, but not competitive with high-end configurations that can achieve 4K Ultra at 60 FPS.

The ranking also indicates that the system is better suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver frame rates above 60 FPS on High settings. The 1371st rank out of 1695 combos is a clear signal that this is not a high-performance pairing for Evolve, and users should manage their expectations for 4K gaming. The data confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU's benchmark percentile of 50 (versus all CPUs) is significantly lower than the GPU's 69th percentile, but the game's engine appears to favor GPU performance.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1080p is the best resolution, with High settings delivering 91.1 FPS. For 1440p, Medium settings at 73.5 FPS are the most playable option, while 4K is not recommended due to frame rates below 60 FPS.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Evolve?

A: The measured results indicate that 4K is only playable at Low settings, which yields 56.1 FPS. Higher settings at 4K produce frame rates below 45 FPS, with Ultra dropping to 25.3 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in Evolve?

A: Benchmark results show the GPU is the primary bottleneck at resolutions above 1080p. The frame rate drops significantly from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the Radeon RX 6600's memory bandwidth and compute power are insufficient for high pixel counts.

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

A: The combo ranks 1371 out of 1695 tested configurations, placing it in the bottom 19%. This is consistent with the GPU's mid-range performance, as the CPU is closely matched with rivals like the Intel Core i3-10305.

Q: What settings should be avoided with this combo?

A: The Ultra preset should be avoided at all resolutions, as it produces the lowest frame rates, including 25.3 FPS at 4K and 42 FPS at 1440p. The performance hit from High to Ultra is not justified by visual gains.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM limit performance in Evolve?

A: The 8 GB memory appears sufficient for Evolve, as the frame rate drops are more consistent with bandwidth limitations rather than memory capacity. The 224.0 GB/s bandwidth is the likely constraint at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400, with its 6 cores and 6 threads, provides a baseline level of performance that is sufficient for Evolve at lower resolutions. The CPU's 2.90 GHz base clock and 4.10 GHz boost clock allow it to handle the game's logic, but benchmark scores show it is not a high-end processor. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 places it in the 50th percentile versus all CPUs, and it is nearly identical to the Intel Core i3-10305, which scores 2300 on average, a 0.2% difference.

At 1080p Low, the system achieves 148.3 FPS, which suggests the CPU can keep up with the GPU's output. However, at 4K Ultra, the frame rate is 25.3 FPS, and the CPU is not the bottleneck in this case, as the GPU is clearly overwhelmed. The CPU's 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support provide adequate data throughput for the game, but the 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth is not a limiting factor in Evolve.

The data indicates that the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU in this game. When comparing to the nearest rivals, the Core i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2305 is within 0.6% of the Intel Core i7-8809G, showing that CPU performance is not a differentiator. In Evolve, the CPU can deliver high frame rates at 1080p, but it cannot compensate for the GPU's weakness at 4K, making the Radeon RX 6600 the definitive factor in this combo's overall ranking.