Inside

# Inside CPU/GPU Performance Analysis

The AMD Ryzen 5 7400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 delivers a playable but inconsistent experience in Inside, a Puzzle Platformer from 2016. The combo ranks 2631st out of 2887 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 9% of all systems, which is surprisingly low for a game this old. The CPU is a modern 6-core, 12-thread Zen 4 part on the AMD Socket AM5 platform, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. It uses the 5 nm process from TSMC, has 32 MB of shared L3 cache, and supports DDR5 memory with 83.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU, meanwhile, is a much older Polaris 20 chip from 2017, built on 14 nm with GCN 4.0 architecture. It has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The fundamental mismatch is clear: the CPU is capable of far more than the GPU can deliver, and the measured FPS numbers confirm this at every resolution.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 5 7400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor with a 65 W TDP. Its benchmark scores place it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32750. In Cinebench R23, it scores 21765 multi-core and 3072 single-core, which are strong numbers for gaming. The nearest rival in aggregate score is the Intel Core i5-14600T, which sits just 0.1% behind, followed by the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H at 0.2% behind, and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H at 0.2% ahead. The AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 trails by 0.3%. In practical terms, the 7400F is essentially tied with these parts, meaning any performance difference in Inside is not CPU-driven.

For a game like Inside, which is a 2D puzzle platformer with relatively simple physics and logic, the CPU workload is light. The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the system reaches 150 FPS average, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. At 1080p Ultra, it drops to 71 FPS, and at 1440p Ultra, it falls to 51 FPS. The pattern is telling: as resolution and settings increase, the frame rate drops proportionally, which points to the GPU being the limiting factor. The CPU has more than enough headroom to feed the GPU at all settings, and its 12 threads handle the game's background tasks without issue. The L3 cache of 32 MB is ample for a game of this scope, and the DDR5 memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s is far beyond what Inside requires. If you were to pair this CPU with a much stronger GPU, you would likely see significantly higher frame rates, but with the RX 580, the CPU is never the bottleneck.

FAQ

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 7400F strong enough for this game?

A: Yes. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21765 and single-core score of 3072 place it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (150 FPS) shows the CPU is not limiting performance; the GPU is.

Q: Why does the frame rate drop so much from 1080p to 4K?

A: At 1080p Low, the system averages 150 FPS, but at 4K Low it drops to 68 FPS. This indicates the RX 580's rendering capacity is being exhausted at higher resolutions. The GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for the game, but its raw compute power (6.175 TFLOPS FP32) is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p?

A: Medium settings at 1080p provide 120 FPS average with a minimum of 102 FPS and maximum of 138 FPS. This gives a smooth experience well above the 60 FPS threshold. High settings drop to 75 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K?

A: Barely. At 4K Medium, the system averages 54 FPS with a minimum of 46 FPS, which is borderline playable. At 4K High, it drops to 34 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 32 FPS. For a stable 60 FPS at 4K, you would need to use Low settings, which average 68 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RX 580's average benchmark score is 12928, which is 0.1% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, 0.4% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER, 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon 740M, and 0.6% ahead of the AMD FirePro W5100. It sits in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 7400F a good match for the RX 580?

A: In terms of balance, the CPU is far more capable than the GPU. The CPU ranks in the 83rd percentile, while the GPU ranks in the 53rd percentile. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the bottleneck at all settings, so the CPU is effectively wasted in this configuration for Inside.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, which is a clear sign that the GPU is the limiting component. At Low settings, the system goes from 150 FPS at 1080p to 108 FPS at 1440p, a 28% drop, and then to 68 FPS at 4K, a 55% drop from 1440p. At Medium settings, the progression is 120 FPS at 1080p, 86 FPS at 1440p, and 54 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are similar: 28% from 1080p to 1440p, and 37% from 1440p to 4K. This is a textbook GPU-limited scaling pattern, where the frame rate decreases roughly in proportion to the increase in pixel count.

The CPU's performance is unaffected by resolution, as its workload remains constant regardless of the pixel count. The fact that the FPS at 4K Medium (54 FPS) is lower than the FPS at 1080p Ultra (71 FPS) shows that the GPU's fill rate is the primary constraint. The RX 580's pixel rate of 42.88 GPixel/s and texture rate of 193.0 GTexel/s are modest by modern standards, and the 4K resolution demands significantly more pixel throughput. The data does not include minimum FPS values for most settings, but the Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 46 FPS, which means the experience can dip below 60 FPS during demanding scenes. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 102 FPS, which is comfortably above 60 FPS. This scaling behavior confirms that the CPU is not involved in the performance degradation; it is purely the GPU's rendering capacity that limits higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 150 FPS, which is smooth on any display. Medium settings average 120 FPS, with a minimum of 102 FPS and maximum of 138 FPS, providing a consistent experience. High settings average 75 FPS, which is still above 60 FPS but with less headroom. Ultra settings drop to 71 FPS, which is close to the High preset but slightly lower. The gap between Low and Ultra is 79 FPS, indicating that the GPU's fill rate is the primary constraint as settings increase.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are noticeably lower. Low settings average 108 FPS, which is still very playable. Medium settings average 86 FPS, with a minimum of 73 FPS and maximum of 99 FPS, providing a solid experience. High settings drop to 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and may cause visible stuttering in fast-moving scenes. Ultra settings average 51 FPS, which is marginally playable but not ideal. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 57 FPS, showing that the settings preset has a significant impact on performance.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates. Low settings average 68 FPS, which is just above 60 FPS. Medium settings average 54 FPS, with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 62 FPS, meaning the experience dips below 60 FPS frequently. High settings average 34 FPS, which is not playable for a game that requires precise timing. Ultra settings average 32 FPS, which is equally unplayable. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 36 FPS, but the absolute numbers are too low for a comfortable experience. The Medium preset at 4K is the only setting that comes close to 60 FPS, but the minimum of 46 FPS indicates that it will not be a smooth experience throughout.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is the clear bottleneck in this configuration. It is a Polaris 20 chip from 2017, built on 14 nm with GCN 4.0 architecture, and it is now end-of-life. Its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is adequate for Inside, but its raw compute power is limited. The GPU has 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 raster output units. Its base clock is 1257 MHz, with a boost clock of 1340 MHz, and memory runs at 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective). The FP32 performance is 6.175 TFLOPS, and the pixel rate is 42.88 GPixel/s.

In terms of benchmark scores, the RX 580 ranks in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12928. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, which is 0.1% ahead, followed by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER at 0.4% ahead, the AMD Radeon 740M at 0.5% behind, and the AMD FirePro W5100 at 0.6% behind. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RX 580 scores 1005, which is a low result for modern standards. The PassMark G3D score is 8813, and the G2D score is 769. These numbers reflect a GPU that was mid-range in 2017 and is now far behind current offerings.

For Inside, the GPU's performance is sufficient for 1080p at most settings, but the 4K results are poor. The 8 GB VRAM is not a limiting factor, as the game's textures are not demanding. The memory bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s is also sufficient. The limiting factor is the GPU's fill rate and compute power, which cannot keep up with the increasing pixel count at higher resolutions. The GPU's DirectX 12 support (12_0), Vulkan 1.3, and OpenGL 4.6 are all compatible with the game, so there are no API limitations. The power draw of 185 W is modest, and the suggested PSU of 450 W is reasonable for a system with this CPU.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this system is at 1080p with Medium settings. This preset averages 120 FPS, with a minimum of 102 FPS and maximum of 138 FPS. This provides a smooth, consistent experience that is well above the 60 FPS threshold, and it leaves enough headroom for any demanding scenes. The High preset at 1080p averages 75 FPS, which is also playable, but the minimum FPS is not recorded, so there is some risk of dips. The Ultra preset at 1080p averages 71 FPS, which is similar to High but with no additional benefit in a game like Inside where the visual differences are subtle.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the best choice, averaging 86 FPS with a minimum of 73 FPS and maximum of 99 FPS. This provides a playable experience, but the margin above 60 FPS is smaller than at 1080p. The Low preset at 1440p averages 108 FPS, which is excellent, but the visual quality is reduced. The High and Ultra presets at 1440p are not recommended, as they average 54 FPS and 51 FPS respectively, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and may cause noticeable stuttering.

At 4K, the only viable option is the Low preset, which averages 68 FPS. The Medium preset averages 54 FPS, which is borderline, and the minimum of 46 FPS means it will not be a consistently smooth experience. The High and Ultra presets at 4K are not playable, with averages of 34 FPS and 32 FPS. If you have a 4K display, the recommendation is to play at 4K Low, or drop the resolution to 1440p and use Medium or High settings for a better visual experience. The data clearly shows that this system is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can deliver high frame rates at most settings, and it can handle 1440p at Medium settings with acceptable performance.