Evolve

The Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 pairing delivers a wide performance envelope in Evolve, ranging from a highly playable 85.9 FPS at 1080p Ultra to a demanding 34.6 FPS at 4K Ultra. The data shows a system where the GPU is the primary scaling factor, with the CPU's substantial headroom ensuring that frame rates are dictated almost entirely by resolution and graphics settings.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured rows, 2560x1440 offers the best balance. At High settings, it delivers 80.8 FPS, which is comfortably above the 1080p High result of 119.8 FPS while maintaining a smooth experience, and it avoids the steep performance drop seen at 3840x2160.

Q: How much faster is Low settings compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: The difference is substantial. At 1920x1080, Low settings produce an average of 202.9 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 85.9 FPS. This represents a performance increase of roughly 136% when moving from Ultra to Low.

Q: Is the RTX 5060 a bottleneck at 4K?

A: Yes, the data strongly suggests the GPU is the limiting factor at 3840x2160. Even at Low settings, the average FPS is 77.5, which is lower than the 1080p High result. The GPU's 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are challenged by the higher resolution.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking compared to all other CPUs?

A: The Intel Core i9-14900K scores in the 97th percentile of all CPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i9-14900KF and Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, show a deltaPct of 0.7%, indicating the 14900K is essentially at the top of the performance curve.

Q: What is the average FPS difference between Medium and High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium settings yield 101.4 FPS, while High settings yield 80.8 FPS. This shows that Medium is about 25.5% faster than High at this resolution, making it a strong choice for higher refresh rate monitors.

Q: Does the RTX 5060's benchmark score place it near any specific competitor?

A: The RTX 5060 has an average benchmark score of 30109, which places it in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT with a deltaPct of 0%, indicating near-identical average performance in synthetic tests.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process and packs 3840 shading units. Its memory configuration is a defining feature: 8 GB of GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 2280 MHz, boosting to 2497 MHz. In Evolve, these specifications translate into a clear performance hierarchy based on settings.

The benchmark results show that the GPU's VRAM and bandwidth are the primary constraints at higher resolutions. The measured FPS drops are consistent with a GPU that is working harder to manage texture data and frame buffers. At 1080p, the RTX 5060 has ample resources, allowing it to push frame rates well above 100 FPS on most presets. However, the gap between Low and Ultra settings narrows as resolution increases, indicating that the GPU's compute and memory throughput are being saturated.

The GPU's 19.18 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is a theoretical peak, but the real-world data shows its practical limits. For instance, the drop from Medium (158.7 FPS) to High (119.8 FPS) at 1080p is a 24.5% reduction, highlighting the cost of higher-quality textures and effects. At 4K, the Ultra preset's 34.6 FPS result suggests that the 8 GB frame buffer is insufficient for the highest detail settings, leading to a sub-60 FPS experience that is not ideal for a fast-paced FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly identifies the GPU as the limiting component. At 1080p High, the system averages 119.8 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 80.8 FPS, a 32.6% decrease. Scaling further to 4K High, the average falls to 47.7 FPS, a 41% drop from the 1440p figure. This pattern shows a consistent, steep decline that is characteristic of GPU-bound workloads.

The scaling is even more dramatic on the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system hits 202.9 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 135.9 FPS, and at 4K Low, it reaches 77.5 FPS. The 4K Low result is higher than the 4K High result, but the relative drop from 1080p is significant. This suggests that while the CPU (Intel Core i9-14900K) has the headroom to support high frame rates, the RTX 5060 cannot maintain proportional performance as pixel count increases.

The data indicates that the 14900K is not a limiting factor in this game. The CPU's high boost clock of 6.00 GHz and 24 cores provide more than enough processing power for the game's logic. The frame rate scaling is entirely consistent with GPU-bound behavior, where the RTX 5060's rendering throughput and memory bandwidth are the bottlenecks, especially at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 5060 delivers strong results across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 202.9 FPS, Medium produces 158.7 FPS, and High produces 119.8 FPS. The Ultra preset, while demanding, still manages a smooth 85.9 FPS. These numbers indicate that for 1080p gaming, the GPU has significant headroom, and users can prioritize visual quality without sacrificing playability.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains solid but shows the expected decline. Low settings average 135.9 FPS, Medium averages 101.4 FPS, and High averages 80.8 FPS. Ultra settings dip to 55.7 FPS, which is playable but below the 60 FPS threshold that many gamers prefer for a fast-paced FPS. The results suggest that High is the sweet spot for 1440p, offering a good balance of visual fidelity and frame rate.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become apparent. Low settings average 77.5 FPS, Medium averages 58.3 FPS, and High averages 47.7 FPS. The Ultra preset falls to 34.6 FPS, which is not suitable for competitive play. The data clearly shows that 4K is only viable on lower settings, and even then, the frame rates are lower than what a high-refresh-rate monitor would prefer.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a 24-core, 32-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz, with a 36 MB shared L3 cache. Its benchmark scores are exceptional; for example, it achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 49872 and a single-core score of 7040. This places it in the 97th percentile of all CPUs.

In Evolve, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with data and handle game logic. The measured FPS data shows that the 14900K is never the bottleneck. Even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is least stressed, the system achieves 202.9 FPS, a figure that is well within the CPU's capability. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, show a deltaPct of 0.7%, meaning the 14900K is effectively tied with the fastest consumer processors available.

The high single-core performance (Passmark single-thread score of 4697) is particularly important for a game like Evolve, which relies on a single main thread for game logic. The 6.00 GHz boost clock ensures that this thread is processed as quickly as possible, preventing any CPU-induced frame pacing issues. The data confirms that the 14900K provides a stable foundation, allowing the RTX 5060's performance to be the sole determinant of frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience on this hardware, the measured data points to specific presets depending on the target resolution. At 1080p, the High preset (119.8 FPS) is recommended for a smooth and visually rich experience. Ultra (85.9 FPS) is also viable if visual fidelity is the priority, but the drop to below 120 FPS may be noticeable on high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset (158.7 FPS) is the best choice for competitive play where maximum frame rates are needed.

At 1440p, the High preset (80.8 FPS) is the recommended balance. It provides a smooth frame rate that is suitable for most monitors, and the visual quality is high. The Medium preset (101.4 FPS) is a better option for those with 144Hz or higher refresh rate monitors, as it offers a significant frame rate boost. The Ultra preset (55.7 FPS) is not recommended due to its sub-60 FPS average.

At 4K, the data suggests that users should stick to the Low preset (77.5 FPS) for a playable experience. The Medium preset (58.3 FPS) is borderline, and the High (47.7 FPS) and Ultra (34.6 FPS) presets are too demanding for the RTX 5060. Given the system's overall capabilities, 1440p is the ideal resolution for this pairing, as it allows for high-quality settings without compromising on frame rate. The performance gap between Medium and High at 1440p (101.4 vs 80.8 FPS) is substantial, so users should choose based on their preference for frame rate versus visual detail.