Fortnite

The pairing of an Intel Core i5-9400 with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D in Fortnite presents a stark illustration of bottleneck dynamics. The data shows a system where the GPU is operating far below its potential at lower resolutions, with the processor limiting frame rates. This analysis examines the measured FPS across resolutions and settings to quantify exactly where the balance of power lies and what it means for playability.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drops from 1080p to 4K reveal a classic shift in system limitation. At 1080p with Low settings, the system produces 290 FPS, but at 4K with the same settings, it falls to 175 FPS. This is a drop of 115 FPS, or approximately 39.7%, when moving from 1080p to 2160p. This scaling is far less aggressive than what a pure GPU-bound scenario would typically show, indicating that the CPU is holding back performance at the lower resolution.

At High settings, the scaling curve is different. The 1080p result is 232 FPS, which drops to 181 FPS at 1440p and then to 96 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K here is larger, at roughly 58.6%. This steeper decline suggests that as the graphical load increases, the system begins to shift toward being more GPU-limited, though the CPU still exerts a significant influence at 1080p.

The Medium settings data provides the most detailed picture due to the presence of min and max FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the average is 255 FPS, with a minimum of 216 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 219 FPS, with a minimum of 186 FPS. Finally, at 4K Medium, the average is 123 FPS, with a minimum of 105 FPS. The fact that the minimum FPS at 4K Medium (105 FPS) is higher than the average FPS at 4K Ultra (63 FPS) shows that settings have a more profound impact on performance than resolution alone in this configuration.

The Ultra preset tells a similar story. At 1080p, the system manages 188 FPS, which is still very high. However, this drops to 120 FPS at 1440p and plummets to 63 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is the only data point that falls below the 100 FPS threshold, highlighting that this combination is only stressed to its limit at the highest resolution and quality settings. The data suggests that the CPU is the primary limiting factor at 1080p and 1440p, while the GPU becomes the bottleneck at 4K, particularly with the Ultra preset.

GPU Role

The RTX 5090 D is a massive piece of hardware, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process from TSMC. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. In the context of this game, this memory configuration is exceptionally over-provisioned. Fortnite is not a game known for requiring massive amounts of VRAM, so the 32 GB frame buffer is unlikely to be a limiting factor in any of the measured scenarios.

The GPU's clock speeds are listed with a base of 2017 MHz and a boost of 2407 MHz. The memory operates at 1750 MHz, which is 28 Gbps effective. These clocks are consistent with a high-end card, but their impact is masked by the CPU bottleneck in lower resolution tests. The GPU's raw compute potential is reflected in its benchmark scores, including a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14326 and a Passmark G3D score of 44065.

Looking at the GPU's performance percentile, it ranks in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database, based on average benchmark score, are the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, which is 1.1% faster, and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, which is 1.6% slower. This places the RTX 5090 D in a high-performance tier, but the measured Fortnite results do not reflect this dominance because of the system's other components.

The GPU's role becomes more apparent as resolution and settings increase. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 63 FPS, a figure that is likely near the GPU's limit for this game. The fact that the 4K High preset yields 96 FPS, while the 4K Medium yields 123 FPS, shows that the GPU is responsive to settings changes at this resolution. This is in contrast to 1080p, where the FPS difference between Low (290) and Ultra (188) is smaller in relative terms, suggesting the CPU is preventing the GPU from flexing its full muscle. The data indicates that the GPU is only fully utilized in the most demanding configurations.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. For a 1080p display, the Low preset at 290 FPS is the highest average score, making it the best choice for competitive play where maximum frame rate is paramount. The Medium preset at 255 FPS is also exceptional and offers a better balance of visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 188 FPS is still highly playable and provides the best visual experience without sacrificing competitive viability.

At 1440p, the Low preset delivers 250 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Medium preset at 219 FPS is a strong recommendation for most users, as it provides a significant visual upgrade over Low while maintaining a frame rate well above 200 FPS. The High preset at 181 FPS is also a valid option for those prioritizing image quality. The Ultra preset at 120 FPS is the best-looking option and remains perfectly smooth for standard 60Hz displays or even 120Hz displays, offering a good experience for those who prefer visual fidelity.

The 4K resolution is where choices become more critical. The Low preset at 175 FPS is the only way to achieve a frame rate suitable for high-refresh-rate 4K gaming. The Medium preset at 123 FPS is a solid choice for a standard 120Hz 4K panel, providing a good balance. The High preset at 96 FPS is smooth but falls short of the 120 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 63 FPS is the most visually impressive but is only recommended for players who prioritize graphics over frame rate and are comfortable with a 60Hz experience.

The data suggests that the Medium preset offers the most consistent and balanced experience across all resolutions. It is the only preset with recorded min/max FPS data, showing a stable range at each resolution. For example, at 1080p Medium, the range is 216 to 293 FPS, and at 4K Medium, it is 105 to 142 FPS. This consistency makes Medium a reliable choice for a broad spectrum of players, from competitive gamers at 1080p to visual enthusiasts at 4K.

FAQ

Q: Why is the 1080p Low FPS so high, but the 4K Ultra FPS so low?

A: The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 290 FPS, which is likely limited by the Intel Core i5-9400's six cores and six threads. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 63 FPS, indicating that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D becomes the limiting factor as the graphical load increases significantly.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D being fully utilized in this system?

A: Based on the benchmark results, the GPU is only fully utilized at 4K with higher settings. The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K is not linear, with a 39.7% drop at Low settings and a 58.6% drop at High settings, suggesting that the CPU prevents the GPU from reaching its full potential at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p 144Hz monitor?

A: For a 1440p 144Hz display, the Medium preset at 219 FPS is the best option from the data, as it exceeds the refresh rate target while providing a good balance of visual quality. The Low preset at 250 FPS is also viable for competitive play, while the High preset at 181 FPS is sufficient for a 144Hz display.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254, placing it in the 47th percentile. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, has a score of 2259, which is 0.2% higher. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 has a score of 2246, which is 0.4% lower, showing that the i5-9400 is in a very tight performance cluster.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming smoothly?

A: The data shows that 4K gaming is possible, but not at all settings. The Low preset at 175 FPS and Medium preset at 123 FPS are both smooth experiences. The High preset at 96 FPS is playable, but the Ultra preset at 63 FPS is the only configuration that dips below the 60 FPS standard.

Q: What are the recorded minimum FPS values for the Medium preset?

A: The measured FPS data includes min and max values only for the Medium preset. At 1080p, the minimum is 216 FPS, at 1440p it is 186 FPS, and at 4K it is 105 FPS. These values show the system's consistency, with the minimums remaining high enough for fluid gameplay.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 6629 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 935 points in single-core. These scores place the processor in the 47th percentile of all CPUs, indicating a mid-range standing. Its average benchmark score is 2254, which is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, including the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 with a score of 2259 and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 with a score of 2246.

The CPU's role in Fortnite is critical, as the game can be demanding on the processor, especially in crowded battle royale scenarios. The measured FPS data strongly suggests that the i5-9400 is the bottleneck at 1080p. For instance, the difference between 1080p Low (290 FPS) and 4K Low (175 FPS) is a drop of 115 FPS. If the CPU were not a limiting factor, this drop would be much more significant, as the GPU would have to render four times the pixels. The fact that the FPS only drops by roughly 40% indicates that the CPU is capping the frame rate at lower resolutions.

The six cores and six threads are a specification that is becoming less common, but it is sufficient for Fortnite's engine. The CPU's boost clock of 4.10 GHz is reasonably high, which helps with single-threaded performance, but the lack of hyper-threading may limit its ability to handle background tasks or highly complex game scenes. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the system produces 63 FPS, which is likely a combination of both CPU and GPU limitations, but the CPU's influence is lessened here.

The nearest rivals to this CPU all have similar benchmark scores, with deltas of less than 0.5%. This means that in a CPU-limited scenario, swapping the i5-9400 for an Intel Core i3-10305 or an AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 would likely yield very similar performance. The data indicates that while the CPU is a limiting factor in this configuration, it is not a weak one; it is capable of delivering high frame rates, just not as high as the GPU could theoretically produce at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across twelve different configurations. Starting at 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers the highest average FPS at 290. The Medium preset follows at 255 FPS, with a recorded minimum of 216 FPS and a maximum of 293 FPS. The High preset achieves 232 FPS, and the Ultra preset produces 188 FPS. This shows a clear hierarchy where each step up in settings costs a significant number of frames, but even the Ultra preset is highly playable.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset again leads with 250 FPS. The Medium preset is next at 219 FPS, with a minimum of 186 FPS and a maximum of 252 FPS. The High preset delivers 181 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 120 FPS. The data shows that the scaling from 1080p to 1440p is not uniform across settings. For Low, the drop is 40 FPS, for Medium it is 36 FPS, for High it is 51 FPS, and for Ultra it is 68 FPS. This indicates that the Ultra preset is more sensitive to resolution increases, suggesting it is placing a heavier load on the GPU.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are more pronounced. The Low preset is the only option that remains above 170 FPS, with an average of 175 FPS. The Medium preset follows at 123 FPS, with a minimum of 105 FPS and a maximum of 142 FPS. The High preset produces 96 FPS, and the Ultra preset falls to 63 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 112 FPS, which is a massive gap that underscores the importance of settings selection at this resolution.

The data also reveals the impact of the CPU bottleneck. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 102 FPS. At 4K, this same difference is 112 FPS. This relatively small change in the delta suggests that the CPU is consistently limiting the maximum achievable FPS, even as the GPU load increases. The minimum FPS values for the Medium preset show a similar pattern, with a 216 FPS minimum at 1080p, an 186 FPS minimum at 1440p, and a 105 FPS minimum at 4K. This consistency in performance scaling confirms that the system's behavior is predictable and that the bottleneck shifts gradually from the CPU to the GPU as resolution increases.