Lockdown Protocol

The pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D in Lockdown Protocol produces a data set that is defined by extreme headroom. The measured frames per second (FPS) across all resolutions and settings are consistently high, often surpassing the refresh rate capabilities of standard displays. This analysis examines the measured performance rows to determine the optimal settings configuration, contextualizes the combo’s standing among 2,828 tested combinations, and breaks down the specific contributions of the CPU and GPU to the final frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data for this combination in Lockdown Protocol indicates that the "High" preset offers the most balanced experience when prioritizing both visual fidelity and frame rate sustainability. At 3840x2160, the High preset yields an average of 118 FPS, which is a substantial 30 FPS improvement over the Medium preset’s 135 FPS average. This positions High as the clear choice for 4K gaming, as it maintains a frame rate comfortably above the 100 FPS threshold while delivering better visual quality than Medium.

For users with high-refresh-rate 1440p monitors, the data suggests that the High preset is also the optimal starting point. The average FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings is 183, providing a significant margin above the 144 Hz refresh rate common in this resolution class. While the Low preset achieves 246 FPS at this resolution, the visual compromise is not justified given the High preset’s already excellent performance. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 137 FPS, which is still playable but begins to approach the refresh rate ceiling of some 144 Hz panels, making High the safer recommendation.

At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 229 FPS. This is only 11 FPS lower than the Medium preset’s 240 FPS average, and the visual uplift from High settings is typically more noticeable than the 11 FPS difference. The Low preset’s 273 FPS average demonstrates the CPU and GPU combination’s ability to push extreme frame rates, but this is only relevant for users with 240 Hz or faster monitors who prioritize competitive advantage over visual quality. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 187 FPS, which is still a strong result but represents a diminishing return over High given the 42 FPS penalty.

The data contains a notable anomaly in the Medium preset’s minimum FPS values. At 1920x1080 Medium, the minimum FPS is 204, while at 2560x1440 Medium, the minimum is 178, and at 3840x2160 Medium, the minimum is 115. These minimums are not present for the High, Low, or Ultra presets, suggesting that the Medium preset may induce specific frame pacing or loading behavior. However, the average FPS for Medium at 1080p (240) is actually higher than High (229), indicating that the average is the more reliable metric for this preset. Given the High preset’s higher minimum FPS potential (implied by its higher average at 4K), High remains the recommended preset across all resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 77th out of 2,828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This placement in the top 2.7% of all tested combinations confirms that this pairing is exceptionally well-suited for this game’s engine. The rank reflects the synergy between the CPU’s 16-core, 32-thread configuration and the GPU’s massive 32 GB frame buffer, which allows for consistent high frame rates even at 4K resolution.

While the combo rank is impressive, it is important to contextualize it against the individual component rankings. The GPU’s percentileVsAllGpus is 92, meaning it outperforms 92% of all tested GPUs in aggregate benchmarks. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus is 91, indicating similar dominance in CPU-bound workloads. The fact that this combination ranks slightly higher (top 2.7%) than either component’s individual percentile suggests that Lockdown Protocol is well-optimized to leverage the strengths of both components simultaneously.

The nearest rival data for the CPU shows that the Ryzen 9 5950X’s average benchmark score of 51,947 is within 0.7% of several competitors. The Intel Core i9-13900F scores 51,730 (0.4% lower), while the Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX scores 52,073 (0.2% higher). This tight clustering indicates that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this configuration—any of these processors would likely produce similar results in Lockdown Protocol given the GPU’s dominance. The GPU’s nearest rivals, such as the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (1.6% higher average score), are mobile or professional parts that do not represent direct desktop competition, underscoring the RTX 5090 D’s unique position in the desktop GPU hierarchy.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the primary driver of the measured FPS results in Lockdown Protocol. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides a 1.79 TB/s memory bandwidth, which is critical for feeding the 170 RT cores and 21,760 shading units at high resolutions. The data shows that the GPU’s performance scales almost linearly with resolution when settings are held constant. For example, moving from 1920x1080 High (229 FPS) to 2560x1440 High (183 FPS) represents a 20% FPS drop, while the pixel count increases by 78%. This suggests that the GPU has sufficient memory bandwidth to handle the increased pixel load without significant frame rate degradation.

The GPU’s boost clock of 2407 MHz, combined with its 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 performance, allows it to maintain high frame rates even at 4K Ultra settings. The measured 88 FPS average at 3840x2160 Ultra is a strong result, but it is the only setting where the frame rate drops below 100 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is still the limiting factor at the highest resolution and settings combination, but it is a limitation only in the most demanding scenario.

The RTX 5090 D’s 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs positions it as a top-tier performer. Its average benchmark score of 77,712 is 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT’s 76,904, though this rival is a mobile part. The GPU’s 44065 Passmark G3D score and 28396 Passmark GPU Compute score further confirm its dominance in both rasterization and compute workloads. In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU’s role is to provide a high baseline frame rate that allows the CPU to keep up without becoming a bottleneck, and the data shows this is achieved across all tested configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS ranges from 187 (Ultra) to 273 (Low). The Medium preset achieves 240 FPS with a minimum of 204 and a maximum of 276, while High averages 229 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 31.5% performance penalty (273 to 187 FPS), which is modest given the substantial visual uplift from Low to Ultra settings. The High preset’s 229 FPS places it between Medium and Ultra, making it the sweet spot for 1080p gaming.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS ranges from 137 (Ultra) to 246 (Low). The High preset delivers 183 FPS, while Medium achieves 209 FPS with a minimum of 178 and a maximum of 241. The performance delta between Low and Ultra is 44.3% (246 to 137 FPS), showing a slightly larger impact from settings changes at this resolution. The High preset’s 183 FPS comfortably exceeds 144 Hz, while Ultra’s 137 FPS is still above 120 Hz, making both viable depending on the user’s refresh rate.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 88 (Ultra) to 190 (Low). The High preset achieves 118 FPS, while Medium delivers 135 FPS with a minimum of 115 and a maximum of 155. The performance delta between Low and Ultra is 53.7% (190 to 88 FPS), indicating that 4K resolution amplifies the impact of settings changes. The High preset’s 118 FPS is the only configuration above 100 FPS at 4K besides Low and Medium, reinforcing the recommendation for High settings at this resolution.

The data reveals that the Medium preset consistently shows minimum FPS values (115 at 4K, 178 at 1440p, 204 at 1080p), while High, Low, and Ultra do not report minimums. This suggests the Medium preset may have less consistent frame pacing, making High a more stable choice despite its lower average FPS at 1080p and 1440p.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured FPS data, 2560x1440 with High settings provides the best balance, delivering 183 FPS average. This resolution avoids the 118 FPS ceiling of 4K High while still offering significantly better visual quality than 1080p, where the 229 FPS High preset exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 88 FPS, which is 30 FPS lower than the High preset’s 118 FPS average. This 25.4% performance penalty is substantial, and the visual difference between High and Ultra is often less noticeable than the frame rate drop suggests.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: No. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 273 FPS average, and even Ultra reaches 187 FPS. The CPU’s single-thread performance (944 in 3dmark single-thread) is sufficient to feed the GPU, as evidenced by the high frame rates across all settings.

Q: Does the Medium preset offer any advantage over High?

A: The Medium preset has higher average FPS than High at all resolutions (240 vs 229 at 1080p, 209 vs 183 at 1440p, 135 vs 118 at 4K). However, the Medium preset shows minimum FPS values that may indicate less stable frame pacing, making High the more reliable choice despite the lower average.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations?

A: This pairing ranks 77th out of 2,828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the top 2.7% of all configurations. This is consistent with the GPU’s 92nd percentile and CPU’s 91st percentile rankings among their respective components.

Q: What is the maximum FPS achievable with this combo?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 273 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The highest measured maximum FPS is 276, observed at 1920x1080 with Medium settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X provides the computational foundation for the measured FPS results, though its role is secondary to the GPU at most settings. The CPU’s 16 cores and 32 threads, based on the Zen 3 architecture, deliver strong multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 26,017 and Passmark multithread score of 45,424. However, Lockdown Protocol is primarily GPU-bound at the tested resolutions, as indicated by the FPS scaling patterns.

The CPU’s single-thread performance is adequate for the game’s engine, with a 3dmark single-thread score of 944 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2,083. The boost clock of 4.90 GHz ensures that the CPU can keep up with the GPU’s frame generation at 1080p, where the FPS is highest. At 1920x1080 Low, the 273 FPS average demonstrates that the CPU is not a limiting factor, as this frame rate would require strong per-core performance to process game logic and draw calls.

The CPU’s nearest rivals show that its performance is competitive but not exceptional. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX scores 0.2% higher, while the Intel Core i9-13900F scores 0.4% lower. This tight clustering means that the Ryzen 9 5950X’s 91st percentile ranking is more a function of its multi-threaded capabilities than its single-thread performance. In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU’s 64 MB of L3 cache likely helps maintain consistent frame times by reducing memory latency, though the data does not directly measure this effect.

At 4K resolution, the CPU’s role diminishes further. The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings (229 to 118 FPS) is primarily due to the GPU’s increased pixel workload, not CPU limitations. The CPU’s 105W TDP and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (51.2 GB/s bandwidth) are sufficient for this game, as the measured FPS does not show any resolution-dependent CPU bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound game. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 229 at 1080p to 183 at 1440p (20.1% decrease) and then to 118 at 4K (35.5% decrease from 1440p). This scaling is less steep than the pure pixel count increase would suggest, indicating that the RTX 5090 D’s 1.79 TB/s memory bandwidth helps mitigate the resolution penalty.

At Low settings, the scaling is similar: 273 FPS at 1080p, 246 FPS at 1440p (9.9% decrease), and 190 FPS at 4K (22.8% decrease from 1440p). This shows that Low settings are less sensitive to resolution increases, as the GPU’s shading units are less stressed, allowing memory bandwidth to play a larger role. The 4K Low result of 190 FPS is particularly notable, as it demonstrates the combo’s ability to maintain high frame rates even at the highest resolution when settings are reduced.

The Ultra settings show the steepest scaling: 187 FPS at 1080p, 137 FPS at 1440p (26.7% decrease), and 88 FPS at 4K (35.8% decrease from 1440p). This pattern confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor at Ultra settings, as the increased shading and texture work amplify the resolution penalty. The 88 FPS at 4K Ultra is the lowest measured result, but it is still playable for most users.

The scaling data indicates that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p, the CPU’s single-thread performance and the GPU’s rasterization speed are both relevant, as evidenced by the high FPS. At 1440p, the GPU begins to dominate, with the FPS drop roughly proportional to pixel count. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the FPS drops are consistent with the increased pixel workload. The CPU’s 16 cores and 32 threads are never fully utilized in this game, but they provide sufficient headroom to avoid introducing a CPU-side bottleneck even at the lowest settings and resolutions.