Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol, an FPS released on March 11, 2024, presents a demanding workload that heavily taxes the graphics subsystem. The data for the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination reveals a system where the GPU is the primary bottleneck across most settings, though the CPU’s substantial cache and core count ensure the framerate remains stable even when the graphics load is lightened. This analysis breaks down the measured performance across resolutions and settings, interprets the scaling patterns, and contextualizes the hardware’s role.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 160.4 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same settings drops that figure to 117.3 FPS, a reduction of 43.1 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average falls further to 73.1 FPS. This scaling indicates that the rendering load, particularly pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth, is the limiting factor.

The transition from 1080p to 1440p represents a 77.8% increase in pixel count, and the performance drop of roughly 26.9% at Low settings shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER is struggling to maintain the same throughput. The gap between 1440p and 4K is even more pronounced. At 4K, the pixel count doubles again, and the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are heavily taxed. The framerate at 4K High (45.5 FPS) is less than half of the 1080p High figure (100.1 FPS), demonstrating that the GPU’s resources are exhausted well before the CPU’s potential is reached.

This behavior points directly to the graphics card as the limiting component. The CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, but as the resolution climbs, the GPU’s compute units and memory interface become saturated. The data suggests that for 1080p and 1440p gaming, the RTX 2060 SUPER provides a playable experience, but at 4K, the user must significantly lower settings to maintain acceptable frame rates, as evidenced by the jump from 33.8 FPS at Ultra to 73.1 FPS at Low.

FAQ

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER perform at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured data shows an average of 100.1 FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings. This is a smooth, highly playable framerate for a fast-paced FPS.

Q: Is the Ryzen 9 9950X3D a bottleneck in this configuration?

A: Benchmark results indicate the CPU is not the primary constraint. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 160.4 FPS, and the CPU's high multi-threaded scores (e.g., 59,712 in Cinebench R23 multicore) suggest it has ample headroom. The performance drop at higher resolutions is attributed to GPU load.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 4K gaming with this combo?

A: Based on the data, Low settings at 3840x2160 are necessary for a smooth experience, yielding 73.1 FPS. Ultra settings produce only 33.8 FPS, which is below the threshold for competitive play.

Q: How does this GPU compare to its closest rival in raw compute?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 19,774. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, scores 19,706, meaning the RTX 2060 SUPER is only 0.3% faster, making them effectively equivalent in synthetic tests.

Q: Does increasing settings from Low to Medium have a large impact on FPS?

A: Yes, the impact is significant. At 1440p, for example, the average framerate drops from 117.3 FPS on Low to 83.7 FPS on Medium, a decline of 33.6 FPS. This suggests the medium preset introduces effects that heavily load the GPU.

Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU+GPU combo for Lockdown Protocol?

A: The combination ranks 1177 out of 1637 tested combos in this specific game. This places it in the lower-middle tier, indicating that while it is capable, many other hardware pairings deliver higher framerates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the decisive factor in this pairing’s gaming performance. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, it provides a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The GPU’s base clock is 1470 MHz, boosting to 1650 MHz, and it houses 2176 shading units. These specifications, while modest by modern standards, define the performance envelope for this game.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU’s capabilities are directly reflected in the framerates. For instance, the difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p is stark: 117.3 FPS versus 56.7 FPS. This 60.6 FPS gap highlights how the GPU’s shading units and memory bandwidth are saturated by the higher graphical fidelity of the Ultra preset. The card’s 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is the theoretical ceiling for its throughput, and the benchmark results suggest Lockdown Protocol’s Ultra settings push the silicon close to that limit.

The GPU’s performance relative to its peers is also telling. It sits in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs and has an average benchmark score of 19,774. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070, scores 19,680, a delta of only 0.5%. This means the RTX 2060 SUPER is essentially on par with the RTX 2070 in synthetic tests, but in a real-world scenario like Lockdown Protocol, the 8 GB memory capacity could be a limiting factor at 4K, as the data suggests a significant drop-off at that resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER achieves a rank of 1177 out of 1637 tested combinations for Lockdown Protocol. This placement in the 28th percentile of all combos indicates that the system, while functional, is not optimized for high-end performance in this specific title. The ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU’s mid-range standing, as the CPU is a top-tier part.

The CPU itself is a powerhouse, ranking in the 96th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 71,660. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, scores 70,420, a delta of 1.8% in favor of the 9950X3D. However, the GPU’s 63rd percentile ranking and lower average score (19,774) drag the combined system down. The data suggests that the combo’s rank is almost entirely dictated by the graphics card’s performance ceiling, as the CPU’s high scores cannot compensate for the GPU’s limitations in a graphically intensive FPS.

This ranking implies that users with this setup will experience average performance relative to the broader hardware ecosystem. While the CPU ensures that frame times are consistent and the system is responsive, the overall framerate is capped by the RTX 2060 SUPER. For a game like Lockdown Protocol, which appears to be GPU-bound based on the scaling data, the combo’s rank is a reflection of the graphics card’s tier rather than the CPU’s.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge). It features a base clock of 4.30 GHz and a boost clock of 5.70 GHz. Crucially, it has 128 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a significant asset for gaming. Its benchmark scores are exceptional, including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 59,712 and a single-core score of 8,430.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU’s role appears to be that of a stable foundation rather than a performance limiter. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (160.4 FPS) is the highest in the dataset, and the fact that it drops to 73.1 FPS at 4K Low indicates the GPU is the bottleneck. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect the framerate to remain relatively constant across resolutions, which is not the case. The CPU’s high multi-threaded performance (e.g., 70,255 in Passmark multithread) ensures that game logic, physics, and AI processing are handled without introducing stutters, even when the GPU is under heavy load.

The CPU’s 128 MB of L3 cache is likely beneficial for maintaining high minimum frame rates, as it reduces memory latency for frequently accessed data. The data shows that the CPU’s performance headroom is substantial; even at the highest framerates recorded, the processor is not the constraint. This is a classic pairing of a high-end CPU with a mid-range GPU, where the CPU’s capabilities are underutilized in this specific game’s workload.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the system’s capabilities across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers an average of 160.4 FPS on Low, 113.9 FPS on Medium, 100.1 FPS on High, and 76.5 FPS on Ultra. This shows a steady decline as settings increase, with the largest single drop occurring between Low and Medium (46.5 FPS).

At 2560x1440, the averages are 117.3 FPS on Low, 83.7 FPS on Medium, 74.9 FPS on High, and 56.7 FPS on Ultra. The performance is still playable at High settings, but Ultra dips below the 60 FPS threshold. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution is a 60.6 FPS reduction.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain high framerates. The averages are 73.1 FPS on Low, 51.4 FPS on Medium, 45.5 FPS on High, and 33.8 FPS on Ultra. Only the Low preset provides a consistently smooth experience at 4K. The data shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER’s memory bandwidth and compute capacity are insufficient for high-fidelity 4K gaming in this title.

The overall pattern is consistent: the GPU is the performance ceiling. The system is well-suited for 1080p gaming at any setting, capable at 1440p with adjustments, and only viable at 4K with the lowest settings. The CPU’s performance is more than adequate, ensuring that the measured framerates are purely a function of the graphics card’s capabilities.