Lockdown Protocol

The data for Lockdown Protocol with the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 reveals a system that is clearly capable but with distinct performance ceilings depending on the resolution. The measured results show a strong pairing for 1080p and 1440p gaming, while 4K pushes the combination to its limits, particularly with higher graphical presets. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, the roles of each component, and how this specific configuration stacks up against the broader test pool.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured frame rates show a predictable decline as resolution increases, but the rate of that decline is highly informative. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 189 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 138.1 FPS, a 26.9% reduction. Continuing to 4K Low yields 90.3 FPS, which is a further 34.6% drop from the 1440p figure. This scaling pattern suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU is becoming the primary bottleneck as pixel count rises.

The trend becomes more pronounced at higher graphical presets. With Ultra settings, the system delivers 85.7 FPS at 1080p, 64.1 FPS at 1440p, and only 40.8 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K at Ultra is a substantial 36.3%, indicating that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are being heavily taxed at this resolution and quality level. The data implies that the CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is likely not the limiting factor until the GPU workload becomes exceptionally heavy.

The fact that the 1080p to 1440p transition at Low settings only costs 26.9% performance, while the 1440p to 4K transition at Ultra costs 36.3%, points to a system where the GPU’s memory bandwidth and capacity are the decisive constraints. The CPU’s high single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1280 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4459, is likely sufficient to feed the GPU at lower resolutions, but the GPU can’t maintain that throughput when the resolution scales up.

FAQ

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

A: The measured average FPS is 115.9 at 1920x1080 with High settings.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest rival in the GPU benchmark database?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 23181. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, has an average score of 23321, which is a deltaPct of -0.6, making the two nearly identical in overall compute performance.

Q: What is the highest measured FPS for this combo in the entire data set?

A: The maximum measured average FPS is 189, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Is this combo better than the Intel Core i5-14500HX in CPU benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700X has an average benchmark score of 36029, while the Intel Core i5-14500HX has an average score of 35940. The deltaPct is 0.2, so the AMD chip is marginally ahead.

Q: How does the CPU’s multi-threaded performance compare to its single-threaded performance?

A: The CPU’s 3DMark 16-thread score is 9824, while the single-thread score is 1280. This indicates strong scaling with thread count, with a ratio of roughly 7.7x for 16 threads versus 1 thread.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 968 out of 1637 tested combinations, placing it in the upper-middle portion of the database.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz. These specs explain the performance cliff seen at 4K Ultra. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is likely insufficient for the high-resolution textures and effects in Lockdown Protocol, causing the system to rely on slower memory spillover, which is reflected in the 40.8 FPS average.

The GPU’s overall benchmark percentile is 66, meaning it outperforms 66% of all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and the Intel Arc B580, with deltaPct values of -0.6 and 0.7 respectively, indicating very close performance parity. In this game, the GPU’s raw compute power, measured at 15.11 TFLOPS FP32, is sufficient for high frame rates at 1080p, but the memory subsystem becomes a limiting factor at 4K. The pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s are adequate for 1440p, but the 4K Ultra results show that the combination of high pixel count and complex shaders overwhelms the memory interface.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the system's performance across all combinations of resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the results are: Low 189 FPS, Medium 131.6 FPS, High 115.9 FPS, and Ultra 85.7 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 57.4 FPS, which is a significant jump, while the step from High to Ultra is 30.2 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS values are: Low 138.1, Medium 102.2, High 86.3, and Ultra 64.1. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High settings shows a drop from 115.9 to 86.3 FPS, a 25.5% reduction. This is a substantial but playable decrease for most users.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more demanding: Low 90.3 FPS, Medium 62.1 FPS, High 56.6 FPS, and Ultra 40.8 FPS. The difference between Medium and High at 4K is only 5.5 FPS, while the difference between High and Ultra is 15.8 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that are disproportionately expensive at 4K, likely related to the VRAM limitations mentioned earlier. The data shows that 4K gaming is only viable with Low settings, where the 90.3 FPS result is acceptable.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Ryzen 7 9700X and RTX 4060 combination achieves a rank of 968 out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the 59th percentile of all tested systems, which is a solid but not top-tier result. The ranking suggests that while this setup is capable of good performance, it is outclassed by a significant number of configurations, likely those with higher-end GPUs.

The CPU’s strong benchmark performance, with an 89th percentile rank against all CPUs, does not translate to a top-tier gaming rank because the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The GPU’s 66th percentile rank is more indicative of the combo’s overall gaming position. This discrepancy highlights that the system is balanced for competitive 1080p and 1440p play but will struggle to compete with high-end 4K rigs. The data implies that this combo is a mid-range contender, best suited for high-refresh-rate gaming at lower resolutions.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a Zen 5 architecture chip with 8 cores and 16 threads, a base clock of 3.80 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. It has a 65W TDP and features 32 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU’s benchmark scores are strong, including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 31588 and a Geekbench single-core score of 3353. These results indicate that the CPU is more than capable of handling the game’s logic and physics.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and process game state. The high single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1280, is crucial for maintaining high frame rates. The data supports this: at 1080p Low, the system achieves 189 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that depends on strong CPU performance. The CPU’s nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14500HX, has a deltaPct of only 0.2, meaning the two CPUs are effectively tied in overall performance. This suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this system; the GPU is the limiting factor as resolution and settings increase.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For users with a 1080p monitor, the High preset at 115.9 FPS offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The step down to Medium saves 15.7 FPS (131.6 vs 115.9), but the visual fidelity loss is likely not worth it. The Ultra preset at 85.7 FPS is still playable but offers diminishing returns over High for a significant 30.2 FPS hit.

At 1440p, the Medium preset at 102.2 FPS provides a smooth experience that takes advantage of the higher resolution. The High preset at 86.3 FPS is also viable for those who prioritize visuals, but Medium offers more headroom for demanding scenes. The Low preset at 138.1 FPS is excellent for competitive play, but the visual downgrade is noticeable.

For 4K, the Low preset at 90.3 FPS is the only truly playable option. The Medium preset at 62.1 FPS is borderline, and the High and Ultra presets at 56.6 and 40.8 FPS respectively are too inconsistent for a smooth experience. The data clearly shows that this combo is not intended for 4K gaming with high fidelity; users should stick to 1080p or 1440p for the best experience.