Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol places a substantial multi-threaded load on the processor, and the Intel Core i5-12400F’s configuration is well-suited to the task. The chip provides 6 cores and 12 threads, built on the Alder Lake architecture with a 10 nm process. Its base clock of 2.50 GHz can reach a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, which is a meaningful range for handling both the game’s simulation logic and the frame rendering pipeline. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache, supplemented by 1.25 MB of L2 and 80 KB of L1 per core, provides a solid foundation for the data-heavy workloads typical of a modern FPS title. In synthetic benchmarks, the processor demonstrates a clear scaling pattern: a single-thread score of 909 in 3dmark, rising to 1,699 with two threads, 3,067 with four, 4,779 with eight, and peaking at 5,912 with all threads active. This near-linear scaling up to the full core count indicates that the game’s engine can effectively utilize the available parallelism.

The processor’s overall standing is respectable, holding the 77th percentile among all tested CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 19,221 places it in close competition with several other parts. The data shows it is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-8700K, which scores 19,210, a negligible delta of 0.1%. It also sits within a narrow band of the Intel Core i5-1335U (19,167, 0.3% behind) and the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS (19,364, 0.7% ahead). The most significant gap is against the AMD EPYC 7773X, which the i5-12400F leads by 1.3%. This positioning suggests that the CPU is neither a bottleneck nor a standout performer in this title; it delivers consistent, predictable throughput that allows the GPU to operate without significant frame pacing issues.

How This Combo Ranks

When paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT, this configuration achieves a combo rank of 618 out of 1,637 tested combinations in Lockdown Protocol. This places the pairing in the top 38% of all systems evaluated, which is a solid mid-to-upper tier result. The ranking indicates that while this is not an extreme high-end setup, it is well above the median and capable of delivering a strong experience. The combination of a 6-core CPU with a high-bandwidth GPU is a balanced pairing, and the data confirms that neither component is dramatically holding back the other. The rank of 618 suggests that there are many systems with more powerful CPUs or GPUs that achieve higher frame rates, but also a substantial number with weaker components that fall below this mark. In practical terms, this means the combo is positioned to handle the game’s demands without the need for aggressive compromises in settings, though it may not reach the absolute peak frame rates seen in the top-tier configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates reveal a clear and predictable scaling pattern across resolutions, which sheds light on which component is the primary limiter at each setting. At 1080p, the system is heavily CPU-bound, particularly at lower graphical settings. The average FPS at Low settings is 234.6, which drops to 166.7 at Medium and 144.9 at High. This significant variance with settings indicates that the CPU is capable of pushing far more frames than the GPU can render when the load is light. The situation shifts as resolution increases. At 1440p, the Low setting average falls to 169.3, a 27.8% drop from 1080p, while the High setting average drops to 105.5, a 27.2% decrease. At 4K, the scaling becomes even more pronounced: Low averages 113.7, which is 51.5% lower than the 1080p Low result, and High averages 68.8, a 52.5% reduction from the 1080p High average. The pattern is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, where the RX 7800 XT’s rendering capabilities are the limiting factor. The CPU’s role diminishes as pixel count rises, meaning that the i5-12400F is sufficient to feed the GPU at 4K, but the GPU’s throughput dictates the final frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

Examining the exact figures, the system delivers a wide range of performance depending on the resolution and quality preset. Starting at 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 234.6 FPS, which is exceptionally high and indicates a scenario where the CPU is the primary driver. The Medium preset reduces the average to 166.7 FPS, and High further lowers it to 144.9 FPS. The Ultra preset, which places the heaviest load on the GPU, still manages an average of 106.9 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the system can easily exceed the refresh rate of most monitors, even at High settings, making this a very playable configuration for competitive play.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain robust. The Low preset averages 169.3 FPS, which is still very high. Medium drops to 123.4 FPS, and High averages 105.5 FPS. The Ultra preset produces an average of 82.4 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p shows a performance cost of roughly 25-30% across all settings, which aligns with the increased pixel count and the GPU becoming more of a limiting factor. At 1440p High, the system remains well above the 60 FPS threshold, providing a smooth experience for most users.

At 3840x2160, the GPU load is at its maximum. The Low preset averages 113.7 FPS, which is still playable. Medium drops to 76.8 FPS, and High averages 68.8 FPS. The Ultra preset brings the average down to 52.0 FPS, which is a significant reduction and indicates that the RX 7800 XT is struggling to maintain high frame rates at the absolute maximum quality setting. The data shows a clear progression: at 4K, the gap between Low and Ultra is substantial (113.7 vs 52.0 FPS), whereas at 1080p, the gap is smaller in percentage terms (234.6 vs 106.9 FPS). This confirms that the GPU is the primary constraint at 4K, and users seeking higher frame rates at that resolution would need to reduce settings to Medium or Low.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the frame rate behavior observed at higher resolutions. The GPU is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a 5 nm process and features 3,840 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 96 render output units. It also includes 60 ray tracing cores, which are relevant for games that utilize such effects. The chip operates at a base clock of 1,295 MHz, with a game clock of 2,124 MHz and a boost clock of 2,430 MHz. The memory subsystem is a key strength: 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. This large memory pool and high bandwidth are crucial for handling high-resolution textures and complex scenes without stuttering. The GPU’s compute capabilities are substantial, with an FP32 performance of 37.32 TFLOPS and a pixel rate of 233.3 GPixel/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RX 7800 XT holds the 76th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32,619. Its nearest rivals are closely matched: the AMD FirePro S9300 X2 scores 32,540 (0.2% behind), the NVIDIA P104-100 scores 32,747 (0.4% ahead), and the NVIDIA T600 Mobile scores 32,849 (0.7% ahead). The AMD FirePro S10000 scores 32,388, which is 0.7% behind. This tight grouping indicates that the RX 7800 XT is competitively positioned against these parts. The measured FPS data reinforces the GPU’s role: at 4K Ultra, the system averages 52.0 FPS, which is the lowest result in the dataset and clearly GPU-limited. The GPU’s 16 GB VRAM is sufficient for all tested settings, as there is no evidence of memory capacity being a constraint at any resolution. The boost clock of 2,430 MHz and the 2,124 MHz game clock provide the necessary headroom for sustained performance, and the 624.1 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming is not a bottleneck. Overall, the RX 7800 XT is the primary driver of frame rates at 1440p and 4K, while the CPU takes over at 1080p Low and Medium settings.