Evolve

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a high-performance experience in Evolve, placing the combination in the top percentile of tested systems. This analysis breaks down the measured frame rates, component roles, and settings behavior using the provided data.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of scaling from 1080p to 4K across all settings presets. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 335 FPS at 1920x1080 to 225 FPS at 2560x1440, representing a substantial reduction, and then further declines to 128 FPS at 3840x2160. This progression indicates a significant shift in the workload from the CPU to the GPU as pixel count increases.

Medium settings show a similar trend, with average FPS decreasing from 260 at 1080p to 174 at 1440p and finally to 99 at 4K. The High preset follows the same trajectory: 204 FPS at 1080p, 137 FPS at 1440p, and 78 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings produce the lowest absolute frame rates but maintain the scaling pattern, dropping from 141 FPS at 1080p to 95 FPS at 1440p and 54 FPS at 4K.

The scaling behavior suggests that at 1080p, the system is partially limited by CPU performance, as evidenced by the extremely high frame rates exceeding 300 FPS at Low settings. The Core i7-12700K's strong single-thread performance, indicated by its 3dmark single thread score of 1043 and geekbench singlecore score of 2308, allows the system to push beyond typical GPU limits at lower resolutions. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor, with the RTX 4080's capabilities determining the final output. The drop from 335 FPS at 1080p Low to 128 FPS at 4K Low represents a 61.8% reduction in frame rate, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. This substantial memory configuration is well-suited for Evolve, a game that benefits from high-resolution textures and detailed environments. The GPU's boost clock of 2505 MHz and base clock of 2205 MHz contribute to its processing throughput, with the shader units numbering 9728 across 304 texture mapping units and 112 render output units.

The RTX 4080's benchmark results place it at the 86th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54247. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, scores 54209, showing a minimal delta of 0.1% in favor of the RTX 4080. This near-identical performance suggests that the two cards are effectively interchangeable in real-world gaming scenarios. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X trails by 1.1%, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB lags by 2.6%.

In Evolve specifically, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 54 indicates a demanding workload that fully engages the GPU's resources. The measured frame times at 4K Medium show a range from 84 FPS minimum to 114 FPS maximum, with an average of 99 FPS, demonstrating consistent performance under load. The RTX 4080's 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power and 761.5 GTexel/s texture rate are more than adequate for this title, but the data shows that resolution and preset selection have a more significant impact on performance than the GPU's raw capabilities alone.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 achieves a combo rank of 222 out of 3700 tested combinations in Evolve. This places the pairing in the top 6% of all tested systems, indicating excellent overall performance for this title. The rank reflects the synergy between the CPU and GPU, where neither component acts as a significant bottleneck at typical gaming resolutions.

The CPU's own benchmark performance shows it at the 84th percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 35287. Its nearest rivals are closely matched: the Intel Core i5-13600T scores 35305 (0.1% higher), the Intel Core i7-12700KF scores 35365 (0.2% higher), and the Intel Core i7-13700T scores 35403 (0.3% higher). This tight clustering indicates that the i7-12700K is positioned among a group of similarly performing processors, and any differences in gaming performance would be minimal.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 86th places it slightly higher than the CPU's 84th percentile, suggesting that the graphics card contributes more to the overall combo rank than the processor. However, the measured FPS data shows that both components are well-balanced, as the system achieves high frame rates across all settings and resolutions without any single component showing signs of severe limitation.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings is 137 FPS, indicating smooth gameplay performance for most users.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 compare to its nearest rival in overall benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4080 has an average benchmark score of 54247, while the RTX 4080 SUPER scores 54209, showing a delta of 0.1% in favor of the 4080.

*Q: What is the combo rank for this CPU and GPU pairing in Evolve?*

A: The combination ranks 222nd out of 3700 tested combos, placing it in the top 6% of all systems tested for this game.

Q: What is the maximum measured FPS at 1080p across all settings?

A: The highest average FPS is 335 at 1920x1080 with Low settings, while the maximum frame rate recorded is 299 FPS at Medium settings.

Q: How many cores and threads does the Core i7-12700K have?

A: The processor features 12 cores and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth of the RTX 4080?

A: The GPU provides 716.8 GB/s of memory bandwidth through its 256-bit bus and 16 GB of GDDR6X memory.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K, based on the Alder Lake architecture, brings 12 cores and 20 threads to the system, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This processor, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process, supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory and features 25 MB of shared L3 cache. Its launch MSRP was $409, positioning it as a high-end desktop processor.

In Evolve, the CPU's role is most apparent at lower resolutions where frame rates are exceptionally high. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 335 FPS, a figure that likely approaches the limits of what the CPU can feed to the GPU. The processor's single-thread performance, as measured by its cinebench r23 singlecore score of 1850.5 and 3dmark single thread score of 1043, is critical for maintaining high frame rates in a game that may not fully utilize all available cores.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are also substantial, with a cinebench r23 multicore score of 19784 and a passmark multithread score of 34404. These scores suggest that the processor can handle background tasks and game logic without impacting frame rates. The 3dmark 16 threads score of 9276 and max threads score of 9979 indicate strong scaling across cores, which is beneficial for games that leverage multiple threads for physics or AI calculations.

At higher resolutions, the CPU's influence diminishes as the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The data shows that frame rates at 4K are significantly lower than at 1080p across all settings, which is consistent with GPU-bound performance. The CPU's percentile ranking of 84th among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 35287, confirms its position as a capable gaming processor that does not bottleneck the RTX 4080 in most scenarios.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on which settings preset offers the best experience in Evolve with this hardware combination. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver playable frame rates, with High settings achieving 204 FPS and Medium reaching 260 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 141 FPS, which is still well above typical display refresh rates, but the reduction from High is substantial.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset offers an average of 174 FPS with a minimum of 148 FPS and maximum of 200 FPS, providing a smooth experience with good visual fidelity. High settings at this resolution achieve 137 FPS, which is also excellent for most displays. Ultra at 1440p drops to 95 FPS, which may be acceptable but represents a significant compromise in frame rate for additional visual quality.

For 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the most balanced option, delivering 99 FPS average with a range of 84 to 114 FPS. High settings at 4K achieve 78 FPS, which falls below the threshold for high-refresh-rate displays but remains playable. Ultra at 4K drops to 54 FPS, which may be too low for smooth gameplay on standard displays. Low settings at 4K provide 128 FPS, but the visual quality trade-off is likely too severe for most users.

Based on the data, Medium settings at any resolution provide the best balance between visual quality and performance. At 1440p, Medium delivers 174 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays. At 4K, Medium's 99 FPS average ensures smooth gameplay while maintaining reasonable visual fidelity. The High preset is also viable at 1080p and 1440p, but the step down from Medium to High at 4K results in a 21 FPS reduction, making Medium the recommended choice for 4K gaming.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for this combination in Evolve is as follows:

1920x1080:

• Low: 335 FPS average
• Medium: 260 FPS average, 221 FPS minimum, 299 FPS maximum
• High: 204 FPS average
• Ultra: 141 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 225 FPS average
• Medium: 174 FPS average, 148 FPS minimum, 200 FPS maximum
• High: 137 FPS average
• Ultra: 95 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 128 FPS average
• Medium: 99 FPS average, 84 FPS minimum, 114 FPS maximum
• High: 78 FPS average
• Ultra: 54 FPS average

The Medium preset is the only setting tier that includes minimum and maximum frame rate measurements across all resolutions, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the system maintains a tight range of 221 to 299 FPS, indicating minimal stuttering or frame drops. At 1440p Medium, the range expands to 148 to 200 FPS, while at 4K Medium, it ranges from 84 to 114 FPS. These ranges suggest that frame pacing remains consistent even as the workload increases, which is a positive indicator for smooth gameplay.

The progression from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows the expected relationship between visual quality and performance. At 1080p, the jump from Low to Ultra reduces the average FPS by 194 frames, from 335 to 141. At 1440p, the same progression reduces performance from 225 to 95 FPS, a difference of 130 frames. At 4K, the gap narrows to 74 frames, from 128 FPS at Low to 54 FPS at Ultra. This narrowing gap at higher resolutions confirms that the GPU becomes more dominant in limiting performance as pixel count increases, with the CPU's influence diminishing accordingly.