Lockdown Protocol

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers a compelling, though CPU-bound, experience in Lockdown Protocol. Measured data shows this combination ranks 307th out of 2,828 tested combos, placing it in the top 11% of all configurations. The RTX 5090 D, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, provides immense headroom, but the Zen 2 processor from 2019 becomes the limiting factor at lower resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Lockdown Protocol with this combo?

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 at Ultra settings provides an average of 137 FPS, while 3840x2160 at High settings yields 118 FPS. For the highest fidelity without sacrificing smoothness, 2560x1440 on Ultra offers a balanced experience, as it maintains a high frame rate while utilizing more of the GPU's capability.

Q: How much faster is the RTX 5090 D compared to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77,712. This places it 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76,904) and 1.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (78,940). The data indicates it is also 2.1% behind the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (79,396) and 2.4% behind the Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (79,605).

Q: Does the Ryzen 7 3700X bottleneck the RTX 5090 D in this game?

A: Yes, particularly at lower settings. At 1920x1080 Low, the average FPS is 209, but at 2560x1440 Low it is 188, and at 3840x2160 Low it is 163. This scaling pattern suggests that as resolution increases and the GPU workload grows, the frame rate drops significantly, indicating the CPU is limiting performance at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully taxed.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160 resolution, the difference is substantial. Low settings produce an average of 163 FPS, while Ultra settings drop to 88 FPS. This represents a 75 FPS difference, or roughly 46% lower performance on Ultra compared to Low, showing the heavy graphical load of the Ultra preset.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 3700X compare to its nearest rival in CPU benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 3700X has an average benchmark score of 34,260. This is 0.1% higher than the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 (34,222) and the AMD EPYC 4244P (34,220), but 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i5-13450HX (34,333) and 0.5% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H (34,083).

Q: Is the 32 GB VRAM on the RTX 5090 D necessary for Lockdown Protocol?

A: The game's performance data does not indicate VRAM capacity as a limiting factor. The RTX 5090 D's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory is far beyond what is typically required for a competitive FPS, and the measured FPS figures suggest that the bottleneck lies elsewhere, primarily with the CPU.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant force in this pairing, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process. Its specifications are formidable: 21,760 shading units, 170 RT cores, and 680 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2017 MHz and boosts up to 2407 MHz, with memory running at an effective 28 Gbps. This hardware configuration yields a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s.

In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU's role is to render the game at the target resolution and settings. The measured data shows that the RTX 5090 D is capable of pushing very high frame rates. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, it achieves an average of 209 FPS. The performance scales predictably with resolution and settings: at 2560x1440 High, it delivers 158 FPS, and at 3840x2160 High, it drops to 118 FPS. These numbers demonstrate that the GPU has ample compute power to handle the game's rendering demands.

However, the GPU's immense potential is often untapped due to the CPU's limitations. The fact that the RTX 5090 D scores in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712, confirms its top-tier status. Yet, in game, the frame rate differences between Low and Ultra settings at the same resolution reveal that the GPU is not always the primary constraint. The 32 GB of GDDR7 memory with a 512-bit bus provides 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, ensuring that memory bandwidth is never a bottleneck even at 4K Ultra settings.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 307th out of 2,828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the top 10.9% of all configurations tested. While the rank is respectable, it is significantly lower than what the GPU alone would suggest, given that the RTX 5090 D sits in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs.

The discrepancy between the GPU's synthetic rank and the combo's in-game rank highlights the influence of the CPU. The Ryzen 7 3700X, while a capable processor from 2019, is now an older design. Its average benchmark score of 34,260 places it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, which is a solid showing. However, in a game like Lockdown Protocol, which likely has CPU-intensive physics and game logic, the older Zen 2 architecture can struggle to feed the RTX 5090 D enough data to keep it fully occupied.

The data suggests that the combo ranks well because the GPU is so powerful that even with a slower CPU, it can produce high frame rates. At 1080p Low, the 209 FPS average would be considered excellent. The rank of 307 out of 2,828 reflects the GPU's raw power, but the performance ceiling is clearly set by the processor, as evidenced by the relatively small performance gains when lowering settings at 1080p compared to what the GPU could theoretically deliver.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the user's priority: maximum visual fidelity or maximum frame rate. For competitive play where high refresh rates are critical, the 1920x1080 Low preset delivers the highest average FPS at 209. This setting ensures the smoothest experience, minimizing input lag.

For a balance between visual quality and performance, the 2560x1440 High preset offers an average of 158 FPS. This resolution provides a sharper image than 1080p while still maintaining a frame rate that is well above the 144 Hz threshold commonly used by gaming monitors. The High preset at 1440p uses more of the GPU's capability than 1080p Low, resulting in a better overall visual experience.

At 3840x2160, the High preset is the recommended choice, delivering 118 FPS. While the Ultra preset at 4K drops to 88 FPS, which is still playable, the High preset offers a smoother experience. The data shows that the Medium preset at 4K yields 135 FPS, which is also a good option, but High is preferable if the GPU can handle it. The Ultra preset at any resolution provides diminishing returns in frame rate, making High the sweet spot for this hardware combination.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are consistently high. Low settings produce an average of 209 FPS, which is the highest recorded for this combo. Medium settings yield 184 FPS, with a minimum of 156 FPS and a maximum of 211 FPS. High settings drop to 175 FPS, and Ultra settings settle at 158 FPS. This shows a 51 FPS swing between Low and Ultra at 1080p.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but shows more variation. Low settings average 188 FPS, Medium settings average 166 FPS (with a min of 141 and max of 190), High settings average 158 FPS, and Ultra settings average 137 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 51 FPS, mirroring the 1080p difference. The minimum FPS recorded on Medium at 1440p is 141, indicating that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays high.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is finally taxed more heavily, but the CPU still plays a role. Low settings average 163 FPS, Medium settings average 135 FPS (with a min of 115 and max of 155), High settings average 118 FPS, and Ultra settings average 88 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 75 FPS, which is the largest delta across all resolutions. This suggests that at 4K Ultra, the GPU is working much harder, and the CPU bottleneck becomes less pronounced.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 2 architecture, codenamed Matisse. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. The processor features a 32 MB L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus, providing 51.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth. This is a solid mid-range CPU from 2019, and its synthetic benchmarks show it is still competitive.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's role is to handle game logic, physics, and draw calls. The measured FPS data shows that the CPU is a significant bottleneck, especially at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 209, which is only 21 FPS higher than at 1440p Low (188 FPS). If the GPU were the only constraint, the 1080p score would be much higher relative to 1440p. The fact that it is not indicates that the CPU is limiting the frame rate at 1080p.

The Ryzen 7 3700X's benchmark scores support this conclusion. Its multicore performance is strong, as evidenced by a Cinebench R15 multicore score of 2092 and a Passmark multithread score of 22,458. However, its single-thread performance is more modest, with a Geekbench single-core score of 1593 and a Passmark single-thread score of 2656. In a game like Lockdown Protocol, which often relies on a few primary threads, this single-thread performance is crucial. The data suggests that the CPU's single-thread speed is what prevents the RTX 5090 D from reaching its full potential at lower resolutions.

The CPU's 84th percentile ranking among all processors indicates it is a capable chip, but it is clearly outclassed by the GPU in this pairing. The 307th combo rank out of 2,828 is a direct result of this imbalance. While the RTX 5090 D is a top-tier GPU, the Ryzen 7 3700X holds it back from achieving the frame rates that the GPU alone could deliver, particularly at 1080p and 1440p.