Evolve

# Evolve — Intel Core i7-12700KF + AMD Radeon RX 9060

The Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 produces a fascinating dataset for Evolve, a 2015 FPS title that scales dramatically across resolutions and presets. The measured frames per second reveal a system where the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU's substantial thread count and clock speeds keep low-resolution performance exceptionally high. With a combo rank of 1664 out of 2872 tested combinations, this pairing sits near the lower-middle of the database, yet the raw numbers tell a story of a system that can handle competitive play at 1080p and still deliver playable experiences at 4K with adjusted settings.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a steep performance curve as resolution increases, which strongly indicates that the AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the limiting component in this setup. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 176 FPS, but dropping to 1440p Low yields 118 FPS — a 33% reduction. Moving to 4K Low further drops performance to 67 FPS, which is another 43% decline from the 1440p figure. This pattern of diminishing returns at higher resolutions is classic GPU-bound behavior, as the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K while the CPU workload remains relatively constant.

The High preset tells a similar story: 107 FPS at 1080p, 72 FPS at 1440p, and 41 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p here is a 32.7% drop, while 1440p to 4K sees a 43.1% decline. These percentages are remarkably consistent with the Low preset's scaling, suggesting that the resolution impact is uniform regardless of graphical complexity. The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic falloff — 74 FPS at 1080p, 50 FPS at 1440p, and just 28 FPS at 4K — but the relative drops follow the same proportional pattern.

What's particularly telling is that the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low (176 FPS) and Ultra (74 FPS) is 102 FPS. At 1440p, that gap narrows to 68 FPS (118 vs 50). At 4K, the spread is just 39 FPS (67 vs 28). This compression of the settings range at 4K reinforces that the GPU's pixel throughput is the primary constraint — when the render resolution is massive, the settings overhead becomes less impactful relative to the raw fill rate demand.

For a game from 2015, the RX 9060's 8 GB of VRAM and 128-bit memory bus appear adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K numbers suggest the 288.0 GB/s bandwidth is being saturated. The fact that Medium settings at 4K produce 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS — versus 41 FPS average on High — indicates that even modest setting reductions can recover meaningful performance at the highest resolution, but the ceiling is firmly set by the GPU architecture.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1664 out of 2872 test combinations places this pairing in the 58th percentile of all tested setups for Evolve specifically. This is a noteworthy discrepancy from the individual component rankings — the CPU sits at the 85th percentile among all processors, and the GPU at the 59th percentile among all graphics cards. The combo's performance relative to other pairings suggests that Evolve's engine is not fully utilizing the i7-12700KF's capabilities, or that the game's demands are heavily weighted toward the GPU side.

The CPU's benchmark scores provide context for why this ranking might be lower than expected. The i7-12700KF posts a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 28838 and a single-core score of 4071, placing it just 0.1% behind the Intel Core i7-13700T and 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i5-13600T in average benchmark score. Yet in Evolve, the 1080p Low result of 176 FPS suggests the CPU is not a limiting factor — the game simply doesn't need 20 threads or 5.00 GHz boost clocks to maintain high frame rates.

The GPU's nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (0.7% faster average score) and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 (1% faster). Given the RX 9060's 59th percentile ranking among all GPUs, the Evolve results align with expectations for a mid-range graphics card. The 4K Ultra result of 28 FPS is particularly poor, and even the 4K Medium average of 52 FPS is borderline for smooth gameplay. This suggests that for Evolve specifically, the combo is better suited to 1080p or 1440p gaming, where it can leverage the CPU's strength to push well beyond 100 FPS on most presets.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Evolve at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The data shows 67 FPS average at 4K Low and 52 FPS at 4K Medium, while 4K High drops to 41 FPS and 4K Ultra falls to 28 FPS. For smooth 4K gameplay, Medium settings appear to be the practical ceiling, though the 44 FPS minimum at Medium indicates some stutter potential.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in Evolve at 1080p?

A: The i7-12700KF's 12 cores and 20 threads appear more than sufficient for Evolve. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 176 FPS, and 1080p Medium hits 137 FPS with a 116 FPS minimum. The CPU's 5.00 GHz boost clock and strong single-thread performance (4071 in Cinebench R23) likely keep the game from being CPU-bound at this resolution.

Q: What is the best resolution-to-settings ratio for this combo?

A: Based on the measured data, 1440p Medium at 92 FPS with a 78 FPS minimum offers the best balance of visual quality and smoothness. For higher refresh rate displays, 1080p High at 107 FPS provides excellent fluidity. 4K should be reserved for Low or Medium settings if 60 FPS is the target.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its closest GPU rivals in overall benchmarks?

A: The RX 9060's average benchmark score is 16014, placing it 0.7% behind the RTX 3060 Ti, 1% ahead of the Radeon R9 370X, and 1% ahead of the RX 7700. Its 59th percentile ranking among all GPUs reflects a mid-pack position, which aligns with the Evolve results showing solid 1080p performance but struggling at 4K Ultra.

Q: Is the 8 GB VRAM on the RX 9060 sufficient for Evolve?

A: The measured FPS data suggests yes for most settings. At 4K Medium, the combo achieves 52 FPS with a 44 FPS minimum, indicating the GPU isn't hitting a VRAM wall that would cause severe frame drops. The 128-bit memory bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth appear adequate for this 2015 title, though the steep 4K Ultra drop to 28 FPS hints at bandwidth limitations.

Q: Why does the combo rank lower than the individual component percentiles suggest?

A: The CPU's 85th percentile and GPU's 59th percentile combine to a 58th percentile combo rank in Evolve specifically. This discrepancy likely reflects that Evolve is more GPU-dependent than CPU-dependent, so the i7-12700KF's significant processing power doesn't translate to proportional FPS gains. The game's age and engine limitations may also cap the benefit of modern hardware.

Settings Recommendations

For this combo, the sweet spot in the measured data is clearly 1440p Medium, which delivers 92 FPS average with a 78 FPS minimum and 105 FPS maximum. This preset provides a smooth experience that exceeds typical 60 FPS targets while maintaining reasonable visual quality. The 1440p Medium result represents only a 22% drop from 1440p Low (118 FPS), suggesting that the Medium preset is a relatively efficient upgrade in visual fidelity without a proportional performance penalty.

At 1080p, High settings at 107 FPS are the recommended choice for competitive play, as this preset offers a substantial visual upgrade over Medium (137 FPS) while still maintaining a frame rate well above 100 FPS. The 1080p Ultra preset at 74 FPS is playable but sacrifices the high-refresh-rate advantage that the i7-12700KF's strong single-thread performance enables. For players with 144 Hz displays, 1080p Low at 176 FPS is the only preset that fully saturates high refresh rates, though the visual compromise may not be worth it for most.

4K gaming with this combo requires careful preset selection. The 4K Medium result of 52 FPS is the only 4K preset that approaches the 60 FPS threshold, and its 44 FPS minimum suggests occasional dips below comfortable playability. The 4K Low preset at 67 FPS is the safest option for 4K, offering a 29% performance improvement over Medium while accepting reduced visual effects. The 4K High (41 FPS) and 4K Ultra (28 FPS) presets are not recommended for serious play, as the frame rates fall below the threshold where most players perceive smooth motion.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest performance across all presets. Low settings produce 176 FPS average, Medium achieves 137 FPS with a 116 FPS minimum and 157 FPS maximum, High reaches 107 FPS, and Ultra drops to 74 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 58% reduction in average FPS, yet even the lowest 1080p result is comfortably above 60 FPS.

The 2560x1440 results show a clear step down. Low settings yield 118 FPS, Medium provides 92 FPS with a 78 FPS minimum and 105 FPS maximum, High achieves 72 FPS, and Ultra falls to 50 FPS. The 1440p Low to Ultra spread (68 FPS) is narrower than at 1080p (102 FPS), indicating that the GPU's pixel throughput is starting to constrain performance.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are pronounced. Low settings average 67 FPS, Medium manages 52 FPS with a 44 FPS minimum and 60 FPS maximum, High drops to 41 FPS, and Ultra falls to 28 FPS. The 4K results show that only Low and Medium presets achieve frame rates that could be considered playable, and even those exhibit minimums that suggest occasional hiccups.

The Medium preset is the only setting where min and max FPS data was recorded across all three resolutions. This reveals that the frame time consistency degrades with resolution — the 1080p Medium range of 116-157 FPS (35% spread) narrows to 78-105 FPS at 1440p (35% spread) and 44-60 FPS at 4K (36% spread). The relative consistency is maintained, but the absolute variance becomes more noticeable at lower frame rates.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF brings substantial processing power to this combo, featuring 12 cores and 20 threads with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. Its Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process, includes a 25 MB shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core. The CPU's benchmark scores demonstrate its capability: Cinebench R23 multicore of 28838, single-core of 4071, and Geekbench multicore of 14367.

In Evolve, the CPU's role appears largely supportive rather than performance-limiting. The 1080p Low result of 176 FPS suggests the game's engine can leverage the i7-12700KF's strong single-thread performance (3dmark single-thread score of 1043) to maintain high frame rates without bottlenecking. The 5.00 GHz boost clock is particularly beneficial for a game from 2015, which likely relies on fewer threads and higher clock speeds for its main game logic.

The CPU's 85th percentile ranking among all processors places it well above the GPU's 59th percentile, creating an imbalance that becomes apparent at higher resolutions. At 4K, the CPU's 25 MB shared L3 cache and 20 threads provide ample headroom, but the GPU cannot keep up with the pixel demands. The passmark multithread score of 34092 and 3dmark max threads score of 9983 indicate that even heavily threaded workloads would not strain this CPU, yet Evolve's age means it likely doesn't utilize more than a few cores effectively.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the primary driver of the performance characteristics observed in this data. Its Navi 44 chip, built on TSMC's 4 nm process with 29,700 million transistors, features 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1700 MHz, a game clock of 2400 MHz, and a boost clock of 2990 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivering 288.0 GB/s bandwidth.

The GPU's 59th percentile ranking among all graphics cards is reflected in the Evolve results, particularly at higher resolutions. The 4K Ultra result of 28 FPS indicates that the 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory interface are insufficient for maximum settings at 4K, even for a 2015 game. The pixel rate of 191.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 334.9 GTexel/s provide context for why 4K performance degrades so severely — the GPU simply cannot process the 8.3 million pixels per frame at 4K with high graphical fidelity.

The RX 9060's compute capabilities, including 21.43 TFLOPS FP32 performance and DirectX 12 Ultimate support, are more than sufficient for Evolve's DirectX 12 rendering path. The passmark G3D score of 17631 and 3dmark Steel Nomad score of 3322 place it in the mid-range tier, aligning with the observation that 1080p and 1440p performance is strong, but 4K requires reduced settings. The GPU's 132 W TDP and PCIe 5.0 x16 interface suggest it is designed for mainstream systems, and its performance in Evolve matches that positioning — capable but not top-tier.