Lockdown Protocol

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 42nd out of 1,637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. That places this pairing in the top 2.6% of all configurations tested, a strong result for a mid-range CPU paired with a flagship GPU. The combination demonstrates that Lockdown Protocol rewards GPU horsepower heavily, as the RTX 5090 pulls the overall combo ranking far above what the i5-12400's processor-centric benchmarks would suggest on their own.

The i5-12400 sits at the 77th percentile among all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 19,850. Notably, its nearest rivals in synthetic testing include the Intel Core i7-9700 (19,831, a 0.1% delta), the Intel Core i7-8700 (19,894, a -0.2% delta), the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX (19,928, a -0.4% delta), and the Intel Core i5-11600K (19,771, a 0.4% delta). These deltas are all within half a percentage point, meaning the i5-12400 trades blows with older enthusiast chips and even a workstation-class Threadripper in raw compute benchmarks. In a game like Lockdown Protocol, however, the GPU does most of the heavy lifting, which explains why this combo ranks so highly despite the CPU's mid-pack standing.

# GPU Role

The RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing, and the measured FPS data reflects that. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivers 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which is more than enough to feed Lockdown Protocol's texture streaming at any resolution. The GPU's base clock of 2017 MHz and boost clock of 2407 MHz are backed by 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 raster output pipelines. This hardware configuration produces a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s, both of which directly translate to the high frame rates observed in-game.

The RTX 5090's 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores also matter for Lockdown Protocol's visual effects, even if the game doesn't heavily emphasize path tracing. The FP32 compute throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS ensures that any compute-heavy shader work is handled without bottlenecking the CPU. In the benchmark database, the RTX 5090 sits at the 94th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84,306. Its nearest rivals include the RTX 5090 D (84,241, a 0.1% delta), the RTX 5050 Mobile (84,171, a 0.2% delta), the AMD Radeon PRO W6600 (83,209, a 1.3% delta), and the NVIDIA CMP 40HX (85,637, a -1.6% delta). The practical takeaway: this GPU is not the limiting factor in any of the tested configurations below.

# FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-12400 strong enough for the RTX 5090 in Lockdown Protocol?

A: Yes. The data shows the combo ranks 42nd out of 1,637 tested pairs. The i5-12400's six cores and 12 threads, with a 4.40 GHz boost clock, are sufficient to keep the RTX 5090 feeding frames at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the high average FPS figures at those resolutions.

Q: How much VRAM does the RTX 5090 have, and is it enough?

A: The RTX 5090 has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus with 1.79 TB/s bandwidth. This is more than sufficient for Lockdown Protocol at any resolution and settings combination tested, including 4K Ultra where the average FPS is 85.

Q: What is the single-thread performance of the i5-12400?

A: The i5-12400 scores 3,456 in Passmark single-thread testing and 910 in 3DMark single-thread. Its Cinebench R23 single-core score is 2,249. These numbers place it competitively within its nearest rival group, with a 0.1% delta against the i7-9700.

Q: Does the RTX 5090's boost clock change much from base?

A: The base clock is 2017 MHz and the boost clock is 2407 MHz, a 390 MHz increase. This headroom helps maintain high FPS in Lockdown Protocol, particularly when moving from Low to Ultra settings.

Q: How does this combo compare to the RTX 5090 D?

A: The RTX 5090's average benchmark score is 84,306 versus 84,241 for the 5090 D, a 0.1% delta in favor of the standard 5090. In practical terms for Lockdown Protocol, the difference is negligible, and both GPUs would produce nearly identical FPS.

Q: Is the i5-12400's 18 MB of L3 cache a limitation in this game?

A: The data doesn't indicate a cache bottleneck. The combo's 42nd-place ranking out of 1,637 suggests the 18 MB shared L3 cache is adequate for Lockdown Protocol's workload, especially since the GPU handles most of the rendering tasks.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the i5-12400 and RTX 5090 deliver exceptional frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 271.6 FPS, Medium averages 238.9 FPS, High averages 227.2 FPS, and Ultra averages 178 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 93.6 FPS, indicating that the GPU has enough headroom to absorb the extra visual workload without dropping below playable thresholds. Even at Ultra, the 178 FPS average exceeds the refresh rate of most high-end monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the pattern continues but with expected reductions. Low settings average 248.2 FPS, Medium averages 200.8 FPS, High averages 171.5 FPS, and Ultra averages 132.5 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra is 45.5 FPS (from 178 to 132.5), a 25.6% reduction. At Low, the drop is 23.4 FPS (from 271.6 to 248.2), an 8.6% reduction. This suggests that higher settings amplify the resolution penalty, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 5090's 32 GB of VRAM and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth come into play. Low settings average 181.1 FPS, Medium averages 126.5 FPS, High averages 113.6 FPS, and Ultra averages 85 FPS. The Ultra result at 4K is the only configuration below 100 FPS, but 85 FPS remains smooth for a competitive FPS. The delta between 1080p Ultra and 4K Ultra is 93 FPS (from 178 to 85), a 52.2% reduction. At Low, the delta from 1080p to 4K is 90.5 FPS (from 271.6 to 181.1), a 33.3% reduction.

# Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals where the bottleneck lies. At Low settings, the reduction from 1080p to 4K is 33.3% (271.6 to 181.1 FPS). At Ultra, the reduction is 52.2% (178 to 85 FPS). This disproportionate drop at higher settings points to the GPU becoming more stressed as pixel count and visual complexity both increase. The RTX 5090's pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s is being pushed harder at 4K Ultra, but the 85 FPS result still indicates ample headroom for a smooth experience.

The fact that the i5-12400 can maintain 271.6 FPS at 1080p Low suggests the CPU is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the 1080p and 1440p results to cluster more closely together. Instead, the scaling from 1080p to 1440p at Low shows a 23.4 FPS drop, and from 1440p to 4K at Low shows a 67.1 FPS drop (248.2 to 181.1). This progressive decline is characteristic of a GPU-limited scenario. The CPU's 12 threads and 4.40 GHz boost clock are evidently sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 across all tested resolutions and settings.

# CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a six-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.50 GHz and it boosts to 4.40 GHz. The CPU has 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel configuration, and it connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 16 lanes. The processor includes UHD Graphics 730 integrated graphics, though the RTX 5090 makes that irrelevant for gaming.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i5-12400 scores 15,935 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 2,249 in single-core. Its Passmark multithread score is 18,747, with a single-thread score of 3,456. The 3DMark results show 5,873 for 16 threads, 4,745 for 8 threads, 3,012 for 4 threads, 1,692 for 2 threads, and 910 for single-thread. These numbers indicate a balanced processor that handles both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads competently.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo hits 271.6 FPS, which is near the practical ceiling for many displays. The i5-12400's 4.40 GHz boost clock and 18 MB L3 cache are sufficient to prevent CPU-bound frame drops. Even at 4K Ultra, where the GPU is doing the most work, the CPU maintains a minimum frame delivery that allows the RTX 5090 to reach 85 FPS. The combo's 42nd-place ranking out of 1,637 is largely attributable to the GPU, but the i5-12400 does not hold it back in any meaningful way. For a CPU that launched with a $199 MSRP, it delivers a remarkably balanced performance profile in this pairing.