Inside

# Inside — AMD Ryzen 9 7900X + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER

This combination of AMD's 12-core Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA's GTX 1660 SUPER produces a benchmark profile that is heavily tilted toward GPU limitation in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer. The measured data shows a system that delivers playable frame rates at all tested resolutions, but with a clear ceiling imposed by the graphics card rather than the processor.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 108 at 1080p to 78 at 1440p, then to 49 at 4K. That represents a 55% reduction in average FPS when moving from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is nearly linear with pixel count, which indicates the GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary limiting component across all resolutions.

Low settings show an even steeper absolute drop: 216 FPS at 1080p falls to 156 at 1440p and then to 98 at 4K. The 4K figure is less than half of the 1080p result, confirming that the GPU's pixel throughput becomes the bottleneck as resolution increases. Medium settings follow the same pattern, with 173 FPS at 1080p, 125 at 1440p, and 78 at 4K.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically at higher resolutions. At 1080p, Ultra produces 103 FPS versus 216 FPS on Low — a 113 FPS difference. At 4K, Ultra drops to 47 FPS while Low maintains 98 FPS, a 51 FPS difference. This compression of the settings range at 4K suggests that the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth are saturated regardless of quality level when pixel count is maximal.

Notably, the 4K Ultra result of 47 FPS is the only measured configuration that falls below the 60 FPS threshold. All other tested settings at every resolution maintain averages above 60 FPS, with the majority exceeding 100 FPS.

GPU Role

The GTX 1660 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock of 1785 MHz drives 1408 shading units, 88 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The card's FP32 throughput is rated at 5.027 TFLOPS, which is modest by modern standards but sufficient for a 2D-side-scrolling puzzle platformer.

The 6 GB VRAM capacity is never stressed by Inside, as the game's visual complexity is limited to silhouetted environments and simple particle effects. The memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s appears adequate for the game's texture streaming needs, as evidenced by the consistent frame time behavior at Medium settings where min FPS values are recorded. At 1080p Medium, the card delivers 173 average FPS with a minimum of 147 and maximum of 199, showing tight frame pacing.

The GPU's 48 ROPs and 85.68 GPixel/s pixel rate become the limiting factor at 4K resolution. The 49 FPS average at High settings and 47 FPS at Ultra both hover near the pixel fill boundary for this card. The fact that Low settings at 4K produce 98 FPS — double the Ultra result — indicates that pixel shader work, not fill rate alone, contributes to the bottleneck.

In synthetic benchmarks, this GPU scores 12699 in Passmark G3D and 52490 in Geekbench OpenCL, placing it at the 53rd percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile with a 0.4% higher average score, and the RX 580 sits just 0.4% behind. These close margins suggest the GTX 1660 SUPER is a mid-pack performer, which aligns with its measured behavior in Inside.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 9 7900X provides 12 cores and 24 threads on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its 64 MB of shared L3 cache and 83.2 GB/s memory bandwidth on DDR5 are far beyond what Inside requires. The game's CPU demands are minimal, as evidenced by the consistent frame rates across all settings at each resolution.

The processor's synthetic scores reinforce its capability: Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 29300, while single-core hits 2016.5. Geekbench scores are 19267 multicore and 2617 single-core. These figures place the 7900X at the 91st percentile among all CPUs, with nearest rivals including the EPYC 7313P (0.2% higher) and Xeon Phi 7290 (0.3% lower).

In Inside, the CPU's 12 cores are largely idle, as the game's logic and physics are simple enough to run on a few threads. The measured FPS at Low settings — 216 at 1080p — likely approaches the game engine's internal frame rate cap or the GPU's raw throughput limit, not a CPU constraint. The jump from Low to Medium at 1080p reduces the average by only 43 FPS, whereas the jump from Medium to High reduces it by 65 FPS, indicating that GPU shader complexity is the dominant scaling factor.

The 7900X's single-thread performance, measured at 1093 in 3DMark single-thread and 2016.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core, ensures that even the least optimized game logic will not create a CPU-side bottleneck. The processor's 5.60 GHz boost clock provides ample headroom for any per-frame calculations Inside performs.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific CPU-GPU pairing ranks 3166 out of 3716 tested combinations in Inside, placing it in the bottom 15% of all configurations. This low ranking is surprising given the playable frame rates, but it reflects the fact that most tested combos likely pair the Ryzen 9 7900X with a more powerful GPU than the GTX 1660 SUPER.

The ranking indicates that the 7900X is significantly overqualified for the GTX 1660 SUPER in this game. Most combos ranked above this one will feature either a higher-end GPU or a more balanced pairing. The 7900X's 91st percentile CPU standing is wasted when paired with a 53rd percentile GPU in a game that is not CPU-intensive.

Relative to other pairings with the same GPU, this combo benefits from the 7900X's high single-thread performance, which prevents any CPU-related frame drops. However, the GPU's 53rd percentile ranking means that most modern mid-range and high-end GPUs would outperform this combination in Inside, pushing the combo rank higher.

The 3716 total combos include many with much weaker CPUs and stronger GPUs, which would rank higher in a GPU-bound game. This highlights the mismatch in this pairing: the CPU contributes almost nothing to the game's performance, while the GPU determines the majority of the frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the GTX 1660 SUPER delivers strong results across all settings. Low settings average 216 FPS, Medium averages 173 FPS with a minimum of 147 and maximum of 199, High averages 108 FPS, and Ultra averages 103 FPS. All configurations exceed 100 FPS, making 1080p an excellent experience on this hardware.

At 2560x1440, performance remains fluid but drops noticeably. Low settings average 156 FPS, Medium averages 125 FPS with a minimum of 106 and maximum of 143, High averages 78 FPS, and Ultra averages 74 FPS. The 1440p High and Ultra results are still above 60 FPS, providing smooth gameplay without compromise.

At 3840x2160, the GPU begins to struggle at higher quality presets. Low settings average 98 FPS, which remains playable. Medium averages 78 FPS with a minimum of 66 and maximum of 90, showing acceptable frame times. High averages 49 FPS, and Ultra averages 47 FPS — both below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth motion.

The Medium settings at each resolution are the only rows with complete min/max data. At 1080p Medium, the 147 FPS minimum represents a 15% drop from the 173 average, indicating occasional frame dips. At 1440p Medium, the 106 FPS minimum is a 15% drop from the 125 average. At 4K Medium, the 66 FPS minimum is a 15% drop from the 78 average. This consistent 15% variance suggests the game's frame pacing is stable regardless of resolution.

FAQ

*Q: Is this combination capable of running Inside at 4K?*

A: Yes, but only at Low or Medium settings. Low averages 98 FPS and Medium averages 78 FPS at 4K. High and Ultra settings drop to 49 FPS and 47 FPS respectively, which fall below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What resolution provides the best experience with this hardware?

A: 1920x1080 with any settings is excellent, as even Ultra averages 103 FPS. At 1440p, High settings at 78 FPS offer a good balance, while 4K requires Low or Medium settings to stay above 60 FPS.

Q: Does the Ryzen 9 7900X bottleneck the GTX 1660 SUPER in this game?

A: No. The CPU's single-thread performance is far beyond what Inside requires. The GPU is the limiting component at all resolutions, as shown by the significant FPS drops when increasing resolution or settings.

Q: How does this GPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER scores 12986 in Passmark G3D. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 0.4% higher, the RX 580 scores 0.4% higher, and the Radeon 740M scores 0.9% higher. The Tesla M2090 scores 0.7% lower.

Q: What is the frame time consistency at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 147 FPS is 15% below the 173 average. At 1440p Medium, the 106 FPS minimum is 15% below the 125 average. At 4K Medium, the 66 FPS minimum is 15% below the 78 average.

Q: Why does this combo rank low among all tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 3166 out of 3716 because the Ryzen 9 7900X's substantial CPU power is paired with a mid-range GPU. In a GPU-bound game like Inside, most combos with stronger GPUs rank higher regardless of their CPU.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the data strongly favors 1920x1080 with High or Ultra settings. Both presets deliver over 100 FPS average, with Ultra at 103 FPS and High at 108 FPS. The difference between them is only 5 FPS, so Ultra is recommended for maximum visual quality without sacrificing smoothness.

At 2560x1440, High settings at 78 FPS provide a good balance between visual fidelity and performance. Ultra at 74 FPS is nearly identical and acceptable, but the extra quality is minimal for a 4 FPS cost. Medium at 125 FPS is ideal for players who prioritize frame rate over visual detail.

At 3840x2160, Medium settings at 78 FPS are the clear choice. The 66 FPS minimum ensures the experience stays above the 60 FPS threshold. Low settings at 98 FPS offer even more headroom but sacrifice visual quality. High and Ultra should be avoided at 4K, as their sub-50 FPS averages will produce noticeable stutter.

The Medium preset provides the most consistent frame pacing across all resolutions, as it is the only tested setting with complete min and max data. This suggests the game engine is best optimized for Medium quality, making it the safest recommendation for users who want predictable performance. For maximum visual quality, Ultra at 1080p or High at 1440p are both excellent choices that maintain high frame rates.