Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol pairs a six-core Intel Core i5-9400 with an AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT, a combination that lands in the middle of the pack for this FPS title. The data shows a system that can handle 1080p and 1440p gaming comfortably, but it struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K on higher settings. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, what it means for your build, and how to get the most out of this specific hardware pairing.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a Coffee Lake Refresh desktop processor with 6 cores and 6 threads, running at a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. It relies on a 9 MB shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. This is a locked multiplier chip on the Intel Socket 1151 platform, and its benchmark scores place it at the 50th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is a mid-range performer.

In the context of Lockdown Protocol, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The i5-9400's 6 threads are a limiting factor when aiming for very high frame rates, as the data shows the 1080p Low preset hits 157.3 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s practical ceiling. The processor’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and single-core score of 1125 show it has enough grunt to avoid bottlenecking the GPU at 1440p and 4K, where the graphics card becomes the primary constraint. The nearest rivals for this CPU, such as the Intel Core i3-10305 (0.2% faster) and Intel Core i7-8809G (0.6% slower), have nearly identical average benchmark scores, meaning that the i5-9400 is not a performance outlier but rather a solid, expected performer for its class.

The fact that the i5-9400 is end-of-life and lacks hyper-threading means that in CPU-intensive scenes, you might see frame dips, but the measured average FPS suggests that for this game, the 6-core/6-thread design is adequate for most settings. The GPU is the dominant component in this pairing, and the CPU rarely needs to work at its absolute limit except when trying to push beyond 150 FPS at lower resolutions.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain a 60 FPS average?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers an average of 74 FPS, and the Medium preset yields 82.8 FPS. Both are above the 60 FPS threshold. At 3840x2160, only the Low preset clears 60 FPS with an average of 75.8 FPS, while Medium and High drop to 54.7 and 44.4 FPS, respectively.

Q: How much faster is the RX 5700 XT compared to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT has an average benchmark score of 24731, which is 0.3% higher than the Intel Arc A350M (score 24647) and 0.6% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile (score 24592). It is 0.1% slower than the NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile (score 24763).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 157.3. This high frame rate suggests that the CPU’s 6 threads are likely the limiting component, as the GPU has more headroom to render frames than the processor can issue. The gap between Low (157.3 FPS) and Ultra (74 FPS) at 1080p is 83.3 FPS, showing that the GPU workload scales significantly with settings.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 118 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 51.9 FPS. This represents a 66.1 FPS drop, or roughly a 56% reduction in average frame rate, when moving from the lowest to the highest quality settings.

Q: Does the RX 5700 XT support modern API features needed for this game?

A: The GPU supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. This means it is fully capable of running Lockdown Protocol with its required API features, though the game’s specific implementation is not detailed in the data.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested systems?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 + AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT combination is ranked 1253 out of 1637 tested combos for Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database (roughly the 23rd percentile of tested combinations).

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT is ranked 1253 out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This puts the pairing in the lower half of the benchmark database, which might surprise some given the GPU’s individual performance. The Radeon RX 5700 XT alone sits at the 68th percentile of all GPUs, while the CPU sits at the 50th percentile, so the combo’s rank is dragged down by the older processor.

The data suggests that the combo’s rank is heavily influenced by the CPU’s limitations. While the GPU is a capable mid-range part, the i5-9400’s 6 threads and lack of multi-threading hold back performance in a game that likely benefits from more modern processors. The nearest GPU rivals, such as the NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile (0.1% faster) and Intel Arc A350M (0.3% faster), would likely produce similar in-game results when paired with the same CPU, but a stronger CPU would push the RX 5700 XT higher in the rankings. In short, this combo is a balanced but aging pairing; it’s not a top-tier setup, but it delivers playable frame rates at mainstream resolutions, as evidenced by the measured FPS data.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers the highest frame rates. The Low preset averages 157.3 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play. The Medium preset drops to 109.3 FPS, while High averages 95.4 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with an average of 74 FPS, which is still smooth for most users but shows a significant cost for maxing out settings. The spread from Low to Ultra is 83.3 FPS, indicating that the GPU is being taxed heavily by the higher presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains solid but starts to show the GPU’s limits. The Low preset averages 118 FPS, which is still well above 60 FPS. Medium averages 82.8 FPS, and High averages 74 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 51.9 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and may cause noticeable stutter on a 60 Hz monitor. The delta between Low and Ultra here is 66.1 FPS, showing that the higher resolution amplifies the GPU workload.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles with higher settings. The Low preset averages 75.8 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 54.7 FPS, High to 44.4 FPS, and Ultra to 33.8 FPS. These numbers indicate that 4K gaming is only viable with the Low preset. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 42 FPS, which is smaller than at lower resolutions because the GPU is already overburdened at every setting. The data shows a clear trend: the RX 5700 XT has enough power for 1080p and 1440p, but it lacks the bandwidth and compute to handle 4K at high quality.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The FPS scaling across resolutions reveals the bottleneck dynamics of this pairing. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 95.4 at 1080p to 74 at 1440p, a 21.4 FPS decrease, and then to 44.4 at 4K, a 29.6 FPS drop from 1440p. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is 53.5%, which is a significant reduction, but not as severe as the drop from Low settings.

At Low settings, the scaling is more dramatic. The average FPS goes from 157.3 at 1080p to 118 at 1440p (a 39.3 FPS drop) and then to 75.8 at 4K (a 42.2 FPS drop from 1440p). The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 81.5 FPS, or 51.8%. This pattern suggests that at Low settings, the CPU is more involved, as the GPU has less work to do, but the frame rate still scales down with resolution due to the GPU’s rendering load.

The fact that the drop from 1080p to 1440p is relatively consistent (around 25-30% for most settings) indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting component. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would plateau at lower resolutions, but they keep rising as resolution decreases, especially at 1080p. The RX 5700 XT’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the memory capacity and bandwidth become stretched, leading to the lower averages seen in the data.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For a balanced experience, the Medium preset is the sweet spot for this combo. At 1920x1080, it delivers 109.3 FPS, which is smooth for both casual and competitive play. At 2560x1440, Medium averages 82.8 FPS, which is still excellent for a high-refresh monitor. Even at 4K, Medium averages 54.7 FPS, which is close to playable on a 60 Hz display, though you may need to drop to Low for a consistent experience.

If you prioritize frame rate over visuals, the Low preset is the best choice. It delivers 157.3 FPS at 1080p and 118 FPS at 1440p, making it ideal for fast-paced FPS gameplay where responsiveness is key. The Low preset also remains playable at 4K with 75.8 FPS, which is surprising given the GPU’s age.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for this pairing. At 1440p, it drops to 51.9 FPS, and at 4K, it falls to 33.8 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS target. The visual fidelity gains from Ultra over High are marginal, but the performance cost is steep: 22.1 FPS at 1440p and 10.6 FPS at 4K. The High preset is a reasonable middle ground if you want better visuals than Medium, offering 95.4 FPS at 1080p and 74 FPS at 1440p, but it struggles at 4K with 44.4 FPS. For the best overall experience, stick with Medium at 1440p, or drop to Low if you need higher frame rates.