Hitman 2

Hitman 2 with the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT presents a classic pairing of a capable, older six-core CPU with a high-end modern GPU. The benchmark results show a system that is heavily influenced by resolution and settings, with the CPU becoming a more significant factor as the workload shifts. The data indicates that this combo is highly capable at 1080p and 1440p, but struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maximum settings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a clear and predictable pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo delivers an average of 125 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same High preset drops the average to 80 FPS, a 36% reduction. Pushing further to 4K at High settings results in an average of 42 FPS, which is a 66% drop from the 1080p figure. This scaling indicates that at 1080p, the system is not fully GPU-bound, allowing the CPU to push more frames, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor as the pixel count increases.

The scaling from Low to Ultra settings at each resolution reinforces this. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is substantial, with an average of 214 FPS at Low versus 92 FPS at Ultra. At 1440p, this gap narrows slightly, with 141 FPS at Low and 59 FPS at Ultra. However, at 4K, the gap becomes more pronounced in relative terms: Low produces 75 FPS, Medium 56 FPS, High 42 FPS, and Ultra drops to 31 FPS. The progression from Medium to High to Ultra at 4K shows a steep decline, with Ultra producing less than half the frame rate of Low. This suggests that the Ultra preset at 4K imposes a heavy load that the RX 6800 XT cannot sustain, likely due to the combination of high resolution and demanding graphical effects.

The data shows that the sweet spot for this combo is at 1440p, where the average FPS stays above 59 even on Ultra. At 4K, the system falls below the 60 FPS threshold on High and Medium settings, making it less suitable for high-refresh-rate monitors at that resolution. The steep drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings (from 125 FPS to 42 FPS) highlights that the RX 6800 XT, while powerful, is not sufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K in this title without significant settings compromises.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT combination ranks 1226 out of 3711 tested combos in Hitman 2. This places it in the 33rd percentile of all tested system configurations, meaning roughly two-thirds of the combos tested by the database achieve better performance in this specific game. This ranking is a direct result of the benchmark data, which shows the combo performing well at lower resolutions but falling behind at 4K.

Given that the RX 6800 XT is a top-tier GPU, the ranking might seem lower than expected. However, the combination's rank is likely dragged down by the CPU. The i5-9400, with a percentile of 47 versus all CPUs, is a mid-range processor from 2018. While it is sufficient for many tasks, it may not be able to feed the GPU fast enough at lower resolutions, and the benchmark results confirm that the system is not achieving the highest possible frame rates. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 214 FPS, which is high, but the CPU’s limitations may prevent it from going even higher, impacting its overall rank against combos with newer, faster CPUs.

Furthermore, the combo's rank in this game is not an indictment of the GPU's raw power, but rather a reflection of the balance between the two components. The RX 6800 XT’s performance is notable, but the i5-9400’s older architecture and lower thread count can create a bottleneck in CPU-intensive scenarios, particularly in a game like Hitman 2, which has complex AI and physics simulations. The rank of 1226 out of 3711 suggests that while this is a functional gaming system, it does not maximize the potential of the GPU in this title, and users would see better performance with a more modern CPU.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the primary driver of frame rates in this combo, especially at higher resolutions. The GPU's specifications include 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 512.0 GB/s. This large memory pool is more than sufficient for Hitman 2, even at 4K, and prevents memory-related stuttering or texture pop-in. The GPU's boost clock of 2250 MHz and game clock of 2015 MHz are high, and the benchmark results show that it is capable of producing very high frame rates when not bottlenecked by the CPU.

The GPU's performance is reflected in its percentile rank of 85 versus all GPUs, indicating it is in the top 15% of all graphics cards. Its average benchmark score of 48477 is substantial, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64. The data shows that the RX 6800 XT is a powerful card, but its performance in Hitman 2 is dependent on the settings. At 1080p Low, it produces 214 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 31 FPS. This demonstrates that the GPU is the main component responsible for the frame rate differences across resolution and settings.

The RX 6800 XT’s role is further defined by its power characteristics. It has a TDP of 300 W and requires a 700 W power supply, but these are just specifications. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is working hard at 4K, but at 1080p, it is not fully utilized due to the CPU bottleneck. The data indicates that the GPU has enough headroom to push higher frame rates at 1080p, but the i5-9400 cannot keep up, capping the performance. This means that in this specific combo, the GPU is the star player, but its full potential is only realized at 1440p and above, where the workload shifts more to the graphics card.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For a 1080p monitor, the High preset offers an excellent balance, delivering an average of 125 FPS. This is smooth and responsive, and the visual quality is high. The Ultra preset at 1080p also performs well at 92 FPS, but the jump from High to Ultra may not be worth the 26% performance hit for the marginal visual gains. For competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays, the Low preset at 214 FPS is viable, but it sacrifices too much visual fidelity for most users.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, providing an average of 106 FPS with a minimum of 90 FPS. This ensures a smooth experience on most 1440p monitors, which typically have a 144Hz refresh rate. The High preset at 80 FPS is also playable, but the Medium setting offers a better balance of performance and image quality. The Ultra preset at 59 FPS is borderline, but it may be acceptable for users who prioritize visuals over frame rate, provided they can tolerate occasional dips below 60 FPS.

For 4K, the data shows that the system struggles to maintain high frame rates. The Low preset at 75 FPS is the only setting that consistently stays above 60 FPS, but it looks poor. The Medium preset at 56 FPS is a compromise, but the average is below the 60 FPS threshold. The High and Ultra presets at 42 FPS and 31 FPS, respectively, are not recommended for a smooth experience. Therefore, for 4K, the best option is to use the Medium preset and accept the lower frame rate, or to reduce the resolution to 1440p for a better experience. Overall, the 1440p Medium setting is the sweet spot for this combo, offering a high frame rate with good visual quality.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Hitman 2 with this CPU and GPU combo?

A: The data shows that 1440p is the best resolution. At 1440p Medium, the combo achieves an average of 106 FPS, which is smooth and responsive. At 4K, the frame rates drop significantly, with High settings producing only 42 FPS on average.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Hitman 2?

A: Yes, but with compromises. At 4K Low, the system averages 75 FPS, but at High and Ultra settings, the average drops to 42 FPS and 31 FPS, respectively. For a consistently smooth experience, the Medium preset at 56 FPS is the highest viable option.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in this game?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has 6 cores and 6 threads, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. The benchmark results show that at 1080p, the frame rates are high, but the CPU can bottleneck the GPU, as evidenced by the large performance gap between 1080p and 1440p.

Q: Is the RX 6800 XT's 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for Hitman 2?

A: Yes, the 16 GB of GDDR6 memory is more than enough for this game. The memory bandwidth of 512.0 GB/s ensures that the game's textures and assets are loaded quickly, and the data shows no indication of memory-related performance issues at any resolution or setting.

Q: What is the performance difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, the High preset averages 80 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 59 FPS. This is a 26% reduction in frame rate for the higher visual quality, which may not be worth it for users who prefer a higher refresh rate.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other systems in this game?

A: The combo ranks 1226 out of 3711 tested combinations. This puts it in the lower half of systems, indicating that while it is capable, there are many other combos that perform better in Hitman 2, likely due to having a more balanced CPU-GPU pairing.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a 6-core, 6-thread processor from the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. It has 9 MB of shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. In this combo, the CPU's role is to feed the RX 6800 XT with data, and the benchmark results show that it is a limiting factor in some scenarios.

The CPU’s performance is measured by its average benchmark score of 2254, which places it in the 47th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500, with which it trades places within a margin of 0.4%. This indicates that the i5-9400 is a solid mid-range processor, but it is not a high-end part. In Hitman 2, this is evident in the frame rate scaling. At 1080p Low, the system produces 214 FPS, but at 1440p Low, it drops to 141 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary bottleneck, as the GPU is not being fully utilized.

The CPU’s impact is most noticeable at lower resolutions and settings. For example, at 1080p Low, the system achieves a very high frame rate, but it is likely capped by the CPU's single-thread performance. At 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's influence diminishes. The data shows that the combo's rank of 1226 out of 3711 is a direct consequence of this CPU limitation. While the RX 6800 XT is a top-15% GPU, the i5-9400's mid-range standing prevents the system from reaching the performance levels of combos with newer, faster processors. This is a classic case of an unbalanced system, where the GPU is held back by the CPU in CPU-bound scenarios, particularly at 1080p.