Lockdown Protocol

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D sits at the heart of this combo, and its specifications make it an unusually strong foundation for a GPU-bound title like Lockdown Protocol. The chip uses 8 cores and 16 threads in the Zen 5 (Granite Ridge) architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 4 nm process. Its base clock is 4.70 GHz and the boost clock reaches 5.20 GHz, with a 120 W TDP. The cache layout is where this processor differentiates itself: 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache. That large L3 pool matters for an action-heavy FPS, where level geometry, entity state, and hit detection data can be reused frequently across threads.

In synthetic multi-threaded benchmarks, the 9800X3D posts a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23230 and a Geekbench multicore score of 18696. Its 3DMark 16-thread score is 10081, while the max-thread score sits at 10067 — nearly identical, which suggests the chip scales efficiently when all cores are engaged. The single-thread performance is also strong: Cinebench R23 single-core at 2080, Geekbench single-core at 2964, and a Passmark single-thread score of 4430. These numbers indicate that the CPU can feed frames quickly even when a single thread is the bottleneck, which is often the case in physics-heavy FPS scenes.

However, in this specific game, the measured FPS data tells a different story. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 200 FPS average. At 1080p Ultra, it drops to 93 FPS. The CPU has the headroom to push far beyond what the GPU can deliver at higher settings. The chip's percentile rank among all CPUs is 87, placing it well above the median. Its nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS (0.4% ahead), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 (0.7% behind), and the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 (0.8% behind). This CPU is not the limiting factor in Lockdown Protocol at any resolution tested — the GPU takes over that role as settings increase.

The 9800X3D supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration with 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth, and it uses the AMD Socket AM5 platform. It also includes integrated Radeon Graphics, though the discrete RX 7700 renders all frames in this test. The chip has 24 PCIe Gen 5 lanes (CPU only), which provides ample bandwidth for the GPU. For a game like Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's job is to maintain consistent frame pacing during chaotic firefights. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 2394 and 4-thread score of 4669 suggest strong low-thread performance, which helps when the game's main thread is stressed. The Passmark physics score of 4083 indicates robust real-time physics throughput, relevant for a game with destructible or interactive environments.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Radeon RX 7700 holds combo rank 1275 out of 2828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. That places it in the upper-middle portion of the database — not a top-tier pairing, but respectably above the median. The percentile position reflects that this GPU, while competent, does not rival the flagship cards that dominate the top ranks. The CPU is far more capable than the GPU, so the combo rank is essentially dictated by the graphics card's performance ceiling.

To contextualize the GPU's contribution: the RX 7700's average benchmark score is 15852, with a percentile rank of 58 among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon R9 370X (0.1% behind), the AMD Radeon RX 9060 (1% ahead), and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (1.1% ahead). These are not high-end competitors. The combo rank being 1275 of 2828 means roughly 55% of tested combos outperform it, which is consistent with a mid-range GPU paired with a high-end CPU. If you were to swap in a stronger GPU, this same CPU would likely climb hundreds of positions.

The measured FPS across settings and resolutions reinforces this view. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 200 FPS, which is firmly in high-refresh territory. At 1440p Low, it still manages 147 FPS. These are strong numbers that show the CPU is not holding back. But at 4K Ultra, the same combo drops to 44 FPS, which is below playable for most competitive FPS players. The rank of 1275 reflects this reality: the combo is versatile enough for 1080p and 1440p gaming but struggles at 4K with maximum settings. The data indicates that the GPU is the constraining component in this pairing, and the combo rank would improve significantly with a more powerful graphics card.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases. At 1080p Low, the combo averages 200 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 147 FPS — a 26.5% reduction. At 4K Low, the average falls to 95 FPS, another 35.4% drop from 1440p. These percentage declines are typical of a GPU that is being pushed harder at higher pixel counts. The CPU has ample headroom at all resolutions, so the FPS loss tracks almost entirely with the graphics card's rendering workload.

The Medium preset tells a similar story. At 1080p Medium, the combo averages 142 FPS with a minimum of 121 and maximum of 163. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 104 FPS (min 88, max 120), a 26.8% reduction. At 4K Medium, the average falls further to 67 FPS (min 57, max 77), a 35.6% drop from 1440p. The consistency of these percentages — roughly 26-27% from 1080p to 1440p and 35-36% from 1440p to 4K — strongly indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor. A CPU-bound scenario would show much smaller FPS differences across resolutions because the CPU workload per frame stays roughly constant.

High settings show the same trend. 1080p High runs at 124 FPS, 1440p High at 91 FPS (26.6% lower), and 4K High at 59 FPS (35.2% lower than 1440p). Ultra settings compress the absolute numbers but preserve the pattern: 1080p Ultra at 93 FPS, 1440p Ultra at 68 FPS (26.9% lower), and 4K Ultra at 44 FPS (35.3% lower). The near-identical scaling percentages across all four presets confirm that resolution, not settings complexity, drives the FPS decline. This is textbook GPU-bound behavior.

The practical takeaway is that the RX 7700's rendering throughput scales predictably with pixel count. If you are targeting 1440p, the combo delivers playable FPS on High (91 FPS) and even Medium (104 FPS) with headroom for high-refresh monitors. At 4K, only Low settings (95 FPS) remain comfortable, while Medium (67 FPS) is borderline and Ultra (44 FPS) is not suitable for fast-paced FPS action. The CPU's performance is effectively constant across these tests — it is never the bottleneck, as evidenced by the uniform FPS scaling.

FAQ

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 9800X3D overkill for the RX 7700 in Lockdown Protocol?

A: Yes. The CPU's average benchmark score (39768) far exceeds the GPU's (15852). In this game, the FPS scales almost entirely with GPU load across resolutions, indicating the CPU is never the limiting factor. A less powerful CPU would likely deliver identical FPS in most scenarios.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Lockdown Protocol?

A: 1440p offers the best balance. At High settings, it averages 91 FPS; at Medium, 104 FPS. Both are above 60 FPS and suitable for competitive play. 1080p is also excellent (124 FPS at High, 142 FPS at Medium) but does not leverage the GPU's full capacity. 4K is only viable at Low settings (95 FPS).

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

A: The GPU becomes the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The FPS reduction is consistently around 26-27% from 1080p to 1440p and 35-36% from 1440p to 4K across all presets. This uniform scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound workload, not a CPU limitation.

Q: Should I use the Ultra preset with this combo?

A: No, unless you are playing at 1080p on a 60 Hz monitor. At 1080p Ultra, the combo hits 93 FPS, which is playable. But at 1440p Ultra it drops to 68 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it falls to 44 FPS. Medium or High presets provide better frame rates with minimal visual trade-off in a fast-paced FPS.

Q: How does the RX 7700 compare to its closest rivals?

A: The RX 7700's average benchmark score is 15852. It is 0.1% ahead of the Radeon R9 370X, 1% behind the Radeon RX 9060, and 1.1% ahead of the Radeon Pro W5500. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 1.7% higher. These are all close competitors in raw compute terms.

Q: Does the CPU's large cache help in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The 96 MB of shared L3 cache is a defining feature of the 9800X3D, and its synthetic scores are strong (Cinebench R23 multicore 23230, Passmark multithread 40009). However, in this game, the GPU becomes the bottleneck before the CPU's cache can make a measurable difference. The CPU would matter more in CPU-bound titles.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip, fabricated on TSMC's 5 nm process. It packs 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 raster operation units, along with 40 ray tracing cores. The FP32 compute throughput is 25.18 TFLOPS, which places it firmly in the mid-range segment. The card has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is generous for the price tier, and it shows in 4K tests where memory capacity can be a limiting factor on other cards.

Clock speeds are set at a 1900 MHz base, 2041 MHz game clock, and 2459 MHz boost. The memory runs at 2438 MHz with 19.5 Gbps effective speed. Pixel rate is 236.1 GPixel/s and texture rate is 393.4 GTexel/s. The card draws 200 W TDP and requires a 550 W suggested PSU with 2x 8-pin power connectors. It uses PCIe 4.0 x16 and occupies a dual-slot design measuring 267 mm in length. In synthetic tests, the GPU scores 20974 in Passmark G3D, 106028 in Geekbench OpenCL, and 2865 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. The Passmark GPU compute score is 10963.

The GPU's percentile rank is 58 among all GPUs, and its average benchmark score is 15852. Its nearest rivals are marginal: the R9 370X is 0.1% lower, the RX 9060 is 1% higher, and the RTX 3060 Ti is 1.7% higher. This means the RX 7700 is a competent but not exceptional performer in the current landscape. In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU's role is decisive — it determines the FPS at every resolution and preset combination. The measured data shows that the GPU can handle 1080p and 1440p with ease, but 4K pushes it to its limits. At 4K Ultra, the 44 FPS average is below the 60 FPS threshold most players prefer for an FPS.

The 16 GB VRAM is worth noting. At 4K Ultra, the game likely uses a significant portion of that memory, but the card still delivers playable FPS at 4K Low (95 FPS). The bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s is sufficient for the game's texture streaming needs. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) ensures compatibility with modern rendering features. Overall, the RX 7700 is a balanced mid-range card that pairs well with the 9800X3D for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but its performance ceiling is clearly defined by its compute and memory bandwidth.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend heavily on your target resolution and refresh rate. The data provides clear guidance for each scenario.

For 1080p players with a 144 Hz or 165 Hz monitor, the Medium preset is the sweet spot. It averages 142 FPS with a minimum of 121 FPS and maximum of 163 FPS. This keeps frame times consistent and well above the refresh rate of most high-refresh displays. The High preset at 1080p averages 124 FPS, which is also viable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes. The Low preset hits 200 FPS, which is useful for competitive players who prioritize frame rate over visuals, but the visual fidelity loss is significant. The Ultra preset at 93 FPS is playable on a 90 Hz or 120 Hz monitor, but it does not provide the fluidity of Medium.

For 1440p users, the Medium preset is again the recommended choice. It averages 104 FPS with a minimum of 88 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS. This is above 60 FPS with good consistency, making it suitable for both casual and competitive play. The High preset at 1440p averages 91 FPS, which is acceptable if you prefer better visuals and can tolerate occasional dips. The Low preset at 147 FPS is excellent for high-refresh 1440p monitors, but it sacrifices too much visual detail for most players. The Ultra preset at 68 FPS is borderline — it is playable but not ideal for a fast-paced FPS where reaction time matters.

For 4K players, the options are limited. The Low preset averages 95 FPS, which is the only 4K setting that delivers a consistently smooth experience. The Medium preset at 67 FPS is playable but with noticeable frame pacing issues (min 57 FPS). The High preset at 59 FPS is below 60 FPS and will feel less responsive. The Ultra preset at 44 FPS is not recommended for an FPS — it falls too far below the refresh rate threshold needed for competitive play. If you have a 4K display, the Low preset is the only viable choice with this GPU.

The overall best experience for most players is 1440p Medium. It provides 104 FPS average, solid minimums, and a good balance of visual quality and performance. For 1080p players who prioritize frame rate, the Medium preset at 142 FPS is the best compromise. The Ultra presets should be avoided at 1440p and 4K, as the FPS drops below 70, which is too low for an FPS. The data clearly shows that Medium or High settings at 1080p or 1440p maximize the combo's potential without exceeding the GPU's capabilities.