Fortnite

# Fortnite with Intel Core i9-14900K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080

The combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a broad performance envelope in Fortnite, spanning from highly playable frame rates at 4K to extremely high refresh-rate territory at 1080p. Measured results show that the system's behavior is heavily influenced by resolution and quality preset, with the GPU becoming the primary constraint at higher resolutions while the CPU's strong single-thread performance supports very high frame rates at lower resolutions. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS data, the role of each component, and how this pairing ranks among other tested combos.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, which is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at higher pixel counts. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 432 FPS on average. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 275 FPS, a reduction of 36.3%. At 4K Low, the average falls to 145 FPS, which is 66.4% below the 1080p Low figure. This scaling indicates that at Low settings, the GPU is still able to push very high frame counts, but the pixel throughput demand at 4K begins to limit output.

At Medium settings, the same trend holds. 1080p Medium averages 304 FPS, 1440p Medium averages 194 FPS (36.2% lower), and 4K Medium averages 102 FPS (66.4% lower). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and Medium suggests that the performance scaling is primarily driven by resolution, not by settings-induced bottlenecks. At High settings, the numbers are 236 FPS at 1080p, 150 FPS at 1440p (36.4% lower), and 79 FPS at 4K (66.5% lower). Again, the relative drop from 1080p to 1440p to 4K remains remarkably stable, hovering around 36% and then 66% respectively.

Ultra settings show a slightly different pattern. 1080p Ultra averages 156 FPS, 1440p Ultra averages 99 FPS (36.5% lower), and 4K Ultra averages 52 FPS (66.7% lower). The percentage reductions are nearly identical to the other presets, reinforcing that resolution scaling is the dominant factor. However, the absolute frame rates at 4K Ultra are low enough that the GPU is clearly the limiting component, as the CPU's capability is unlikely to be the constraint at 52 FPS.

The consistent scaling across all presets indicates that the RTX 4080 is the primary bottleneck at 4K, while at 1080p the system is likely more balanced. The fact that 1080p Low reaches 432 FPS suggests that even the i9-14900K, with its high boost clock of 6.00 GHz, is able to feed the GPU sufficiently at lower resolutions, but the GPU's raw pixel throughput becomes the ceiling as resolution climbs.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 9728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output units. The GPU's boost clock is rated at 2505 MHz, with a base clock of 2205 MHz. Memory is 16 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus, providing 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's pixel rate is 280.6 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 761.5 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is listed at 48.74 TFLOPS.

In Fortnite, the GPU's role is most evident in the resolution scaling described above. At 4K, even with Low settings, the average FPS of 145 indicates that the GPU is being pushed hard. The 16 GB VRAM is ample for Fortnite's textures and geometry at any preset, so memory capacity is not a limiting factor. The memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s is sufficient to feed the GPU's shader units at high resolutions, but the sheer number of pixels at 4K (3840x2160) requires substantial fill rate.

The RTX 4080's benchmark scores provide context for its overall capability. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 6567. Its Geekbench OpenCL score is 214739, and its Vulkan score is 263779. The Passmark G3D score is 34457, with a G2D score of 1239. These scores place the GPU in the 86th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54247. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, scores 54209, which is 0.1% higher. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54828 (1.1% higher), the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55698 (2.6% higher), and the AMD Radeon 8060S scores 55757 (2.7% higher). These deltaPct values show that the RTX 4080 is competitive but slightly behind several alternatives in synthetic benchmarks, though Fortnite's engine may respond differently.

At 1080p Low, the 432 FPS result indicates that the GPU is not the bottleneck; the CPU's ability to issue draw calls and physics calculations becomes more relevant. However, at 4K Ultra, the 52 FPS average is a clear sign that the GPU is fully saturated. The RTX 4080's 76 RT cores and 304 tensor cores are not directly stressed in Fortnite's standard rendering, but the CUDA cores (9728) are heavily utilized. The GPU's 320 W TDP and triple-slot design suggest it is a high-power part, but the measured FPS data does not include power consumption figures.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a 24-core, 32-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake-R architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, and it has 16 PCIe Gen 5 lanes. Its TDP is rated at 125 W, and it was released on 2023-10-16 with a launch MSRP of $589.

In Fortnite, the CPU's role is most apparent at lower resolutions where frame rates exceed 300 FPS. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 432 FPS, which is far beyond what most displays can show but demonstrates the CPU's ability to keep the GPU fed. The i9-14900K's single-thread performance is critical here. Its Cinebench R23 single-core score is 2262.5, and its Geekbench single-core score is 2655. The Passmark single-thread score is 4697. These scores indicate strong per-core performance, which Fortnite's game engine relies on for game logic and physics.

Multi-threaded performance is also exceptional, with Cinebench R23 multi-core scoring 39399.5 and Geekbench multi-core scoring 21697. The Passmark multithread score is 58674. These figures place the CPU in the 95th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 79097. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-14900KF, scores 79371 (0.3% higher), while the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus scores 79574 (0.6% higher). The AMD EPYC 7413 scores 80041 (1.2% higher), and the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 scores 77740 (1.7% lower). The deltaPct values show the i9-14900K is within a small margin of its closest competitors.

At 4K Ultra, the CPU is less stressed because the GPU limits frame rates to 52 FPS. However, at 1080p Low, the CPU's 6.00 GHz boost clock allows for rapid frame generation. The 24 cores and 32 threads are more than sufficient for Fortnite, which typically uses fewer threads, but the high single-thread clock is the key factor. The CPU's 36 MB of L3 cache helps with data locality, and the 2 MB per-core L2 reduces memory latency.

The CPU's memory support for DDR5 (dual-channel) provides high bandwidth, though the specific memory bandwidth figure is not listed in the data. The integrated UHD Graphics 770 is present but not relevant for gaming with a discrete GPU. The CPU's production status is "Active," and it uses the Intel Socket 1700.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend on the target refresh rate and resolution. For 4K, the Medium preset provides an average of 102 FPS with a minimum of 87 FPS and a maximum of 118 FPS. This is the only 4K preset with min/max data, and it offers a playable experience for most users. High at 4K averages 79 FPS, which is still smooth but may dip below 60 FPS in heavy scenes. Low at 4K averages 145 FPS, which is excellent for 4K, but the visual quality trade-off may not be worth it for many players. Ultra at 4K averages 52 FPS, which is at the edge of playability and likely not recommended for competitive play.

At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 223 FPS. This provides a high-refresh-rate experience with good visual fidelity. High at 1440p averages 150 FPS, which is also strong. Low at 1440p reaches 275 FPS, which is ideal for 240 Hz monitors. Ultra at 1440p averages 99 FPS, which is smooth but not as high as the other presets.

At 1080p, the Medium preset averages 304 FPS with a minimum of 259 FPS and a maximum of 350 FPS. This is well above 240 Hz, making it suitable for the fastest gaming monitors. High at 1080p averages 236 FPS, which still exceeds 144 Hz. Low at 1080p reaches 432 FPS, which is extreme but may introduce CPU-bound inconsistencies. Ultra at 1080p averages 156 FPS, which is solid for 144 Hz displays.

The data suggests that Medium settings offer the best balance of frame rate and visual quality across all resolutions, as it is the only preset with min/max FPS data, indicating stable performance. For competitive play, Low at 1080p or 1440p provides the highest frame rates, but the visual downgrade may hinder target acquisition. For casual play, High at 1440p or 4K Medium are strong choices.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 231 out of 3700 tested combos in Fortnite, placing it in the top 6.2% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the system's ability to deliver high frame rates across a range of settings, though it is not at the absolute top tier, which likely includes more powerful GPUs like the RTX 4090 or newer RTX 50-series cards.

The rank is primarily driven by the GPU's performance, as the CPU is already among the fastest available. The RTX 4080's 86th percentile among GPUs, combined with the i9-14900K's 95th percentile among CPUs, creates a balanced system that excels at high resolutions. The combo's rank of 231 suggests that there are 230 other combinations that outperform it in Fortnite, but these are likely to be systems with higher-end GPUs or slightly faster CPUs.

The deltaPct values for the CPU's rivals show that the i9-14900K is within 1.2% of the AMD EPYC 7413 and within 0.6% of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, but these are not typical gaming CPUs. The GPU's rivals are closer in performance, with the RTX 4080 SUPER being just 0.1% faster on average. This indicates that swapping to a RTX 4080 SUPER would yield a minimal improvement in Fortnite, while a move to a higher-tier GPU could meaningfully improve the rank.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data is presented in 12 rows, covering four resolutions and four settings presets each. At 3840x2160 (4K), the averages are: Low 145 FPS, Medium 102 FPS (min 87, max 118), High 79 FPS, and Ultra 52 FPS. At 2560x1440 (1440p), the averages are: Low 275 FPS, Medium 194 FPS (min 165, max 223), High 150 FPS, and Ultra 99 FPS. At 1920x1080 (1080p), the averages are: Low 432 FPS, Medium 304 FPS (min 259, max 350), High 236 FPS, and Ultra 156 FPS.

The Medium settings are the only ones with min and max FPS values, providing a range of stability. At 4K Medium, the range is 87 to 118 FPS, a spread of 31 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the range is 165 to 223 FPS, a spread of 58 FPS. At 1080p Medium, the range is 259 to 350 FPS, a spread of 91 FPS. As resolution decreases, the frame time variance increases in absolute terms, but the percentage variation (relative to the average) is roughly similar, around 30-35% of the average.

The performance gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution is significant. At 4K, Low (145 FPS) is 2.79 times faster than Ultra (52 FPS). At 1440p, Low (275 FPS) is 2.78 times faster than Ultra (99 FPS). At 1080p, Low (432 FPS) is 2.77 times faster than Ultra (156 FPS). This consistent ratio indicates that the settings presets scale similarly across resolutions, likely due to the same visual features being toggled.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Low settings?

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings is 432.

Q: Which settings preset at 4K provides the highest average FPS?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset provides the highest average FPS at 145.

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

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 54209, which is 0.1% higher than the RTX 4080's 54247.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1440p Medium?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the minimum FPS is 165.

Q: How many cores does the Intel Core i9-14900K have?

A: The Intel Core i9-14900K has 24 cores and 32 threads.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested configurations in Fortnite?

A: This combo ranks 231 out of 3700 tested combos, placing it in the top 6.2%.