Lockdown Protocol

# Lockdown Protocol: AMD Ryzen 9 7900X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060

The measured frame rates for this combination reveal a system that is decisively GPU-limited across most of the resolution and settings matrix, with the RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM buffer and Turing architecture acting as the primary constraint. At 1080p High, the combo delivers 90.5 FPS average; at 1440p High it drops to 68.7 FPS; and at 4K High it falls to 43 FPS. The scaling pattern from 1080p to 4K shows a 52.5% performance reduction at High settings, which is a steeper drop than the pure pixel-count increase would suggest, indicating that memory bandwidth and capacity pressures amplify at higher resolutions. While the Ryzen 9 7900X provides ample headroom, the RTX 2060's 336.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 6 GB GDDR6 frame buffer become the binding constraint as resolution climbs.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS deltas across resolutions follow a consistent pattern that clearly isolates the GPU as the limiting component. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 90.5 FPS; stepping to 1440p High reduces this to 68.7 FPS (a 24.1% drop); and at 4K High the average falls to 43 FPS (a 52.5% drop from 1080p). This scaling curve is steeper than what a purely GPU-bound scenario with ample VRAM would produce, suggesting that the 6 GB frame buffer is being saturated at higher resolutions. The Low settings data reinforces this interpretation: 1080p Low reaches 145.1 FPS, 1440p Low drops to 107 FPS (26.3% lower), and 4K Low manages 71.3 FPS (50.9% lower than 1080p). The consistency of the percentage drops across settings — roughly 50% from 1080p to 4K regardless of quality level — indicates that resolution scaling is governed by the GPU's raw throughput and memory subsystem rather than by CPU-side bottlenecks.

The settings-to-settings deltas at each resolution further expose the GPU's limitations. At 4K, moving from Low (71.3 FPS) to Medium (49.7 FPS) costs 30.3% performance, and going from Medium to High (43 FPS) costs another 13.5%. The jump from High to Ultra (31.2 FPS) is a 27.4% reduction, producing a barely playable result. At 1440p, the same progression shows more headroom: Low (107 FPS) to Medium (75.6 FPS) is a 29.3% drop, Medium to High (68.7 FPS) is 9.1%, and High to Ultra (51.4 FPS) is 25.2%. At 1080p, the pattern is similar but with higher absolute values: Low (145.1 FPS) to Medium (102.4 FPS) costs 29.4%, Medium to High (90.5 FPS) is 11.6%, and High to Ultra (66.9 FPS) is 26.1%. The fact that the Medium-to-High step is consistently the smallest penalty across all resolutions suggests that the game's Medium preset already exercises most of the GPU's critical resources, while Ultra settings introduce effects that disproportionately tax the 6 GB VRAM capacity.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X brings 12 cores and 24 threads on the Zen 4 (Raphael) architecture, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock of 4.70 GHz and boost clock of 5.60 GHz, combined with a 64 MB shared L3 cache, position it as a high-end desktop part. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 43,695 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 6,168 in single-core, with a PassMark multi-thread score of 51,406. These figures place it in the 93rd percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 50,556.

In Lockdown Protocol specifically, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU across all tested configurations. The measured FPS data shows no evidence of a CPU bottleneck at any resolution or settings level — the frame rates scale almost entirely with GPU load. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 145.1 FPS, which is well within what a 12-core/24-thread processor with a 5.60 GHz boost can feed to a mid-range GPU. The CPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks — the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 (average score 50,598, delta -0.1%), AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT (50,738, delta -0.4%), Intel Core i7-13850HX (50,827, delta -0.5%), and Intel Core i9-13980HX (50,944, delta -0.8%) — all sit within 0.8% of the 7900X's average score, indicating that any of these processors would likely deliver similar frame rates in this game when paired with an RTX 2060. The benchmark results indicate that the 7900X's 24 threads are more than sufficient for Lockdown Protocol's workload, and the CPU's 83.2 GB/s dual-channel DDR5 memory bandwidth does not appear to constrain the GPU's data feed at any tested setting.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the dominant factor in this combo's performance profile. Built on the Turing architecture (TU106 chip) at TSMC's 12 nm process, it features 1,920 shading units, 30 RT cores, and 240 tensor cores. Its base clock of 1365 MHz and boost clock of 1680 MHz drive a 6 GB GDDR6 frame buffer on a 192-bit bus, yielding 336.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU's compute capabilities include 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 throughput, with a pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s and texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s.

The GPU's aggregate benchmark performance places it at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16,074. Its nearest rivals — the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (average score 15,996, delta +0.5%), AMD Radeon Pro 5600M (16,351, delta -1.7%), AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (16,351, delta -1.7%), and AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15,786, delta +1.8%) — all fall within a 1.8% band, confirming the RTX 2060 sits in a tightly contested mid-range segment. In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU's 6 GB VRAM capacity is the most likely constraint at 4K Ultra, where the combo manages only 31.2 FPS. The fact that 4K Low achieves 71.3 FPS but 4K High drops to 43 FPS — a 39.7% penalty — suggests that high-quality textures and effects at 4K exceed the comfortable working set of the 192-bit memory interface. The GPU's 12 nm process node and 160 W TDP are consistent with its 2019-era design, and the 1x 8-pin power connector with a suggested 450 W PSU indicates this is a modest power draw relative to modern cards.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 1,338 out of 1,637 tested combinations in Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the bottom 18.3% of all systems tested. This rank reflects the RTX 2060's age and mid-range positioning rather than any deficiency in the Ryzen 9 7900X, which is a top-tier CPU. The combination of a 93rd-percentile CPU with a 58th-percentile GPU creates a significant imbalance: the CPU is capable of far higher frame rates than the GPU can deliver in this game. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system hits 145.1 FPS, which would be competitive with higher-ranked combos, but at 4K Ultra the 31.2 FPS result drags the overall ranking down. The rank of 1,338 suggests that most of the 1,636 other tested combos feature either more powerful GPUs or more balanced pairings. For context, the CPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks would likely produce nearly identical in-game results when paired with the same RTX 2060, since the GPU is the limiting factor. The GPU's nearest rivals — the RX 7600S, Radeon Pro 5600M, Radeon Pro 5700, and Radeon Pro W5500 — would all produce similar frame rates in this game, given their aggregate scores are within 1.8% of the RTX 2060. This suggests that the combo's rank is driven more by the GPU tier than by the specific CPU-GPU pairing.

FAQ

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

A: The average FPS falls from 90.5 at 1080p High to 43 at 4K High, a 52.5% reduction. This steep scaling indicates the RTX 2060's 6 GB VRAM and 336.0 GB/s memory bandwidth become the limiting factors as pixel count increases, rather than the Ryzen 9 7900X's processing power.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this combo?

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck across all tested settings. The Ryzen 9 7900X scores in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs with 12 cores and 24 threads, while the RTX 2060 sits at the 58th percentile of GPUs. The FPS scaling patterns — consistent ~50% drops from 1080p to 4K regardless of settings — confirm GPU limitation.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p gaming with this combo?

A: At 1440p, High settings deliver 68.7 FPS, which is playable. Medium settings yield 75.6 FPS, and Low reaches 107 FPS. Ultra drops to 51.4 FPS, which is the lowest playable option. The data suggests High is the optimal balance for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does this combo compare to systems with similar GPUs?

A: The RTX 2060's nearest rivals — the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (delta +0.5%), Radeon Pro 5600M (delta -1.7%), Radeon Pro 5700 (delta -1.7%), and Radeon Pro W5500 (delta +1.8%) — all have aggregate scores within 1.8% of the RTX 2060, so they would produce nearly identical frame rates in Lockdown Protocol.

Q: Can this system achieve 144 Hz at 1080p?

A: Only at Low settings, where the combo reaches 145.1 FPS. At Medium (102.4 FPS), High (90.5 FPS), and Ultra (66.9 FPS), the average frame rate falls below 144 FPS, so a 144 Hz display would only be fully utilized at the lowest quality preset.

Q: Why is the combo ranked 1,338 out of 1,637?

A: The rank reflects the GPU's mid-range position (58th percentile) combined with the CPU's high-end position (93rd percentile). The imbalance means the RTX 2060 limits performance in most scenarios, particularly at 4K Ultra where it manages only 31.2 FPS, dragging the combo's overall ranking down despite the capable CPU.