Evolve

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER holds the 190th position out of 2,872 tested combos for Evolve. This places the configuration in the top 6.6% of all tested systems, indicating a high-performing combination that should handle the game's demands with substantial headroom. The combo's percentile ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component is a severe bottleneck for this particular title.

Benchmark data shows this is a well-matched duo. The CPU's average benchmark score of 93,785 places it at the 96th percentile among all processors tested, while the GPU's average score of 54,209 sits at the 86th percentile among all graphics cards. The gap between these percentiles suggests the CPU has more relative compute headroom than the GPU, which is typical for a high-refresh-rate FPS title like Evolve where the graphics card often becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

When compared to the nearest rival combos in the database, this pairing shows remarkable consistency. The CPU's closest competitor, the Intel Xeon 6520P, posts an average score of 93,786 — a 0% delta. The AMD EPYC 4564P trails by 1.5% with a score of 95,183, while the AMD EPYC 9175F and AMD EPYC 4565P are 1.9% and 2.1% behind, respectively, with scores of 95,615 and 95,764. On the GPU side, the RTX 4080 SUPER's nearest rival is the standard RTX 4080 with a score of 54,247 and a -0.1% delta, indicating the SUPER variant offers only a marginal synthetic advantage. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X comes in at -1.1% with 54,828, while the Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB and Radeon 8060S trail at -2.7% and -2.8% respectively.

GPU Role

The RTX 4080 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture using TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring the AD103 chip with 45,900 million transistors on a 379 mm² die. The GPU operates with a base clock of 2295 MHz and a boost clock of 2550 MHz, with memory running at 1438 MHz (effective 23 Gbps). These clock speeds are substantial, but the real story lies in the memory subsystem: 16 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus delivers 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. For Evolve, a game originally released in 2015, this bandwidth is more than sufficient to feed the rendering pipeline at any resolution tested.

The GPU's compute resources include 10,240 shading units, 320 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output units. The RTX 4080 SUPER also carries 80 RT cores and 320 tensor cores, though Evolve's age means ray tracing and DLSS features are likely not significant factors in its performance profile. The raw throughput figures — 52.22 TFLOPS FP32 and 816.0 GTexel/s texture rate — indicate a GPU that can push pixels extremely fast, which aligns with the measured frame rates.

Benchmark results show the GPU's DirectX 12 performance score of 134 in Passmark, which is notably lower than its DirectX 11 score of 301 and DirectX 10 score of 193. This pattern is unsurprising for a game released in 2015, as Evolve was built primarily around DirectX 11-era rendering. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 34,245 and compute score of 19,822 reflect strong overall performance, but the game's actual frame rates will depend on how well the engine leverages the hardware.

In Evolve, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. The measured FPS data shows the GPU handling 4K Ultra at 54 FPS average, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many players target. At 1080p Low, the GPU pushes 333 FPS, indicating that at lower settings and resolutions, the graphics card is far from being the limiting factor. The VRAM capacity of 16 GB is generous for Evolve, which was designed when 4 GB was considered high-end, so memory pressure is unlikely to be a concern at any tested configuration.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh codename, manufactured on TSMC's 3 nm process. It carries 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration provides strong single-thread performance, which is critical for Evolve's game logic and physics, while the 24 cores offer ample multi-threaded headroom for background tasks.

The CPU's benchmark results demonstrate its capabilities. In Cinebench R23, it scores 44,253 in multi-core and 2,439 in single-core, while Cinebench R20 shows 24,461 multi-core and 3,453 single-core. Passmark results include a multi-thread score of 68,574 and a single-thread score of 5,068. The CPU's average benchmark score of 93,785 places it at the 96th percentile among all processors, with its closest rival being the Intel Xeon 6520P at 93,786 — effectively identical performance. The AMD EPYC 4564P trails by 1.5%, and the EPYC 9175F and 4565P are 1.9% and 2.1% behind respectively.

For Evolve, the CPU's role is most significant at lower resolutions and settings where the GPU has less work to do. The measured data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 333 FPS average, which suggests the CPU can keep up with even extremely high frame rates. The processor's boost clock of 5.50 GHz provides the single-thread speed needed for Evolve's AI and game simulation, while the 125 W TDP indicates the cooling requirements are manageable with a capable air or liquid cooler.

The CPU's memory support for DDR5 with dual-channel configuration and 115.2 GB/s bandwidth ensures the memory subsystem does not become a bottleneck. The PCIe Gen 5 interface with 20 CPU lanes provides ample bandwidth for the GPU and storage devices. For a 2015-era game like Evolve, the CPU's modern architecture is likely overkill, but the high boost clock ensures that even the most demanding frame-time spikes are handled smoothly.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four quality settings: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers 333 FPS average on Low, 258 FPS average on Medium (with a minimum of 220 FPS and maximum of 297 FPS), 203 FPS average on High, and 140 FPS average on Ultra. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the system is heavily GPU-limited at lower settings, with the CPU capable of sustaining frame rates far beyond what most displays can show.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show the expected scaling. Low settings produce 224 FPS average, Medium delivers 173 FPS average (with a minimum of 147 FPS and maximum of 199 FPS), High achieves 136 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 94 FPS average. The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a performance drop of approximately 33% at Low settings, 33% at Medium, 33% at High, and 33% at Ultra, showing consistent scaling across quality levels.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. Low settings yield 127 FPS average, Medium delivers 99 FPS average (with a minimum of 84 FPS and maximum of 113 FPS), High achieves 77 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 54 FPS average. The 4K Ultra result is particularly notable as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold, which may impact gameplay smoothness for competitive players. The Medium setting at 4K, with its 84 FPS minimum, provides a more comfortable margin above the 60 FPS target.

The data reveals that the Medium preset consistently provides the most balanced experience, with minimum frame rates that stay well above playable thresholds across all resolutions. Only the 4K Medium configuration shows a minimum of 84 FPS, which is still respectable for a game like Evolve where fast-paced action benefits from higher frame rates.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440, the combo delivers 136 FPS average on High settings, which provides an excellent balance of visual quality and frame rate. At 1080p, High settings yield 203 FPS, but this exceeds most monitors' refresh rates, making the extra performance less impactful.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER's average benchmark score of 54,209 is just 0.1% lower than the standard RTX 4080's score of 54,247. This indicates the SUPER variant offers negligible synthetic performance gains over the base model.

Q: Can this combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: No. The measured data shows 54 FPS average at 3840x2160 Ultra settings. To maintain 60 FPS at 4K, players should use High settings, which achieve 77 FPS average, or Medium settings, which deliver 99 FPS average.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread performance relative to its multi-thread performance?

A: The CPU scores 5,068 in Passmark single-thread and 68,574 in multi-thread, showing strong performance in both metrics. Its Cinebench R23 scores are 2,439 single-core and 44,253 multi-core, indicating a balanced design suitable for both gaming and productivity workloads.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 333 FPS, which suggests the CPU is capable of sustaining very high frame rates. However, at 1080p Ultra, the frame rate drops to 140 FPS, indicating the GPU becomes the limiting factor as visual quality increases.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus scores 93,785 on average, which is identical to the Intel Xeon 6520P's 93,786 (0% delta). The AMD EPYC 4564P is 1.5% behind, and the EPYC 9175F and 4565P trail by 1.9% and 2.1% respectively.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best overall experience across all three resolutions. At 1080p, Medium delivers 258 FPS average with a minimum of 220 FPS, providing a massive frame rate buffer that ensures smooth gameplay even during intense combat sequences. The jump from Low to Medium costs approximately 23% of performance (from 333 FPS to 258 FPS) but likely provides a significant visual improvement in texture quality and effects.

At 1440p, Medium achieves 173 FPS average with a minimum of 147 FPS, which remains well above the threshold for high-refresh-rate displays. The visual quality improvement from Low to Medium at this resolution is worthwhile, as the performance cost is similar to 1080p. For players with 144Hz displays, Medium at 1440p provides frame rates that fully utilize the refresh rate.

At 4K, Medium delivers 99 FPS average with a minimum of 84 FPS, which is the only preset that maintains a minimum above 60 FPS while providing enhanced visual quality. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 54 FPS average, which may cause noticeable stuttering in fast-paced scenarios. High at 4K provides 77 FPS average, which is playable but offers less headroom for frame-time spikes than Medium.

The data suggests that for competitive play, the Low preset at 1080p or 1440p is the optimal choice, providing 333 FPS and 224 FPS respectively. These frame rates minimize input latency and ensure the most responsive gameplay experience. For a balance of visual fidelity and performance, the Medium preset at 1440p is the recommended configuration, as it provides 173 FPS average while maintaining a minimum of 147 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important characteristics about this combo's performance in Evolve. At Low settings, the frame rate drops from 333 FPS at 1080p to 224 FPS at 1440p and 127 FPS at 4K. This represents a 33% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and an additional 43% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling pattern suggests that at Low settings, the GPU is the primary limiting factor, as the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K while the frame rate drops by roughly 62%.

At Medium settings, the scaling is similar: 258 FPS at 1080p, 173 FPS at 1440p, and 99 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 33%, and from 1440p to 4K is 43%. This consistent scaling across Low and Medium settings indicates that the GPU is handling the increased pixel workload efficiently, with no unexpected bottlenecks emerging at higher resolutions.

The High and Ultra presets show slightly different scaling patterns. High goes from 203 FPS at 1080p to 136 FPS at 1440p (33% drop) and 77 FPS at 4K (43% drop from 1440p). Ultra follows the same pattern: 140 FPS at 1080p, 94 FPS at 1440p (33% drop), and 54 FPS at 4K (43% drop from 1440p). The consistent 33% and 43% scaling across all presets strongly indicates that the GPU is the limiting component throughout the resolution range.

The CPU's role in this scaling is minimal, as the frame rate reductions align closely with the increase in pixel count. At 1080p Low, the 333 FPS result shows the CPU can sustain extremely high frame rates, but as resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows proportionally, and the frame rate drops accordingly. The data supports the conclusion that for Evolve, this combo is GPU-bound at all tested resolutions and settings, with the CPU providing sufficient headroom to avoid becoming a bottleneck even at the lowest settings and highest frame rates.