Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol pairs a 24-core Intel Core i9-14900K with an AMD Radeon RX 570, a combination that places in the 1583rd position out of 1637 tested combos in this game. The benchmark data shows a system where the CPU’s high-end compute capabilities are consistently constrained by the GPU’s 2017-era Polaris architecture, resulting in frame rates that range from playable at 1080p Low to nearly static at 4K Ultra. The measured rows indicate that the experience is heavily dependent on resolution and preset, with the GPU serving as the primary bottleneck across all tested configurations.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this system?

A: The best measured experience is at 1920x1080 with Low settings, delivering 77.2 FPS average. This is the only configuration in the data that exceeds 60 FPS, making it the clear choice for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Core i9-14900K has an average benchmark score of 79824, which is 0.7% ahead of both the Intel Core i9-14900KF and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, and 0.9% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K. It trails the AMD EPYC 7413 by 0.3%.

Q: What is the GPU’s standing relative to other graphics cards?

A: The Radeon RX 570 sits at the 74th percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 30158 places it 0.2% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, 0.6% ahead of the NVIDIA Tesla M60, and 0.8% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile.

Q: Does the CPU’s integrated graphics affect the gaming results?

A: The Core i9-14900K includes UHD Graphics 770, but the measured FPS data comes from the discrete Radeon RX 570. The integrated graphics are not a factor in these benchmark results.

Q: What memory and PCIe capabilities does this CPU bring to the platform?

A: The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, and provides PCIe Gen 5 with 16 lanes for the CPU. ECC memory is also supported.

Q: How does the GPU’s memory bandwidth compare to its pixel throughput?

A: The RX 570 has a 256-bit memory bus with 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth and GDDR5 memory clocked at 1750 MHz. Its pixel rate is 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate is 159.2 GTexel/s.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear hierarchy for settings optimization. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 77.2 FPS average, which is the only row exceeding 60 FPS across all tested configurations. Medium drops to 54.1 FPS, High to 48.9 FPS, and Ultra to 36.6 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 23.1 FPS, representing a significant loss for modest visual gains.

At 2560x1440, the pattern continues with Low at 55.4 FPS, Medium at 40.1 FPS, High at 34.5 FPS, and Ultra at 23.9 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly below playable thresholds: Low achieves 34.7 FPS, Medium 23.6 FPS, High 22.9 FPS, and Ultra 20 FPS. The data suggests that 4K is not viable for this combination, as even the lowest preset fails to reach 35 FPS.

For the best experience per the measured rows, 1920x1080 Low is the recommended preset. It provides a 39.4% improvement over the next best configuration (1440p Low at 55.4 FPS) and is the only settings row where the frame rate approaches the 75 Hz class of monitors. Users prioritizing visual fidelity over frame rate could consider 1080p Medium at 54.1 FPS, but the data indicates that Low is the sweet spot for this pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination ranks 1583rd out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the bottom 3.3% of all configurations. This low ranking is consistent with the measured FPS data, which shows sub-60 FPS results in 11 of 12 tested rows. The only row exceeding 60 FPS is 1080p Low at 77.2 FPS.

The rank reflects the GPU’s age and position in the market. The RX 570 sits at the 74th percentile of all GPUs, which indicates it outperforms most cards in synthetic benchmarks, yet the game’s demands at higher resolutions overwhelm its 4 GB GDDR5 memory. The CPU, by contrast, ranks in the 97th percentile of all CPUs, demonstrating that the processor is not the limiting factor in this pairing. The delta between the CPU’s high percentile and the combo’s low rank highlights a severe bottleneck imbalance.

Compared to other tested combos, this system is suited for 1080p gaming at lower presets. The 1440p results, while lower, still offer playable frame rates at Low and Medium presets, suggesting that users with 1440p displays can operate with reduced settings. The 4K results are uniformly below 35 FPS, making them unsuitable for competitive play.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the data shows a narrow band of results across presets. Low settings produce 34.7 FPS average, which is the best 4K result. Medium yields 23.6 FPS, High 22.9 FPS, and Ultra 20 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 14.7 FPS, indicating that the GPU is the primary constraint at this resolution, as preset changes have limited impact on the already-low frame rates.

The 2560x1440 results show a wider range. Low achieves 55.4 FPS, providing a near-playable experience. Medium drops to 40.1 FPS, High to 34.5 FPS, and Ultra to 23.9 FPS. The transition from Low to Medium costs 15.3 FPS, which is the largest single-step drop in this resolution. This suggests that Medium introduces rendering effects that heavily tax the RX 570’s 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 compute.

At 1920x1080, the data reveals the only configuration above 60 FPS: Low at 77.2 FPS. Medium achieves 54.1 FPS, High 48.9 FPS, and Ultra 36.6 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 23.1 FPS, the largest preset penalty in the entire dataset. This indicates that the 1080p Low preset is the only setting where the GPU is not the dominant bottleneck, allowing the CPU’s compute resources to push frame rates higher.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is built on the Polaris 20 chip with GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It contains 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, with a transistor density of 24.6M per mm². The GPU operates at a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective).

The 4 GB GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is the likely cause of the steep frame rate drops at higher resolutions and presets. The pixel rate is 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate is 159.2 GTexel/s, with 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. FP32 performance is rated at 5.095 TFLOPS, with FP16 at the same 5.095 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio).

The GPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are notable for their modern architectures. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 scores 0.2% lower, yet delivers vastly different real-world performance in newer titles. The RX 570’s 74th percentile ranking reflects its position as an end-of-life product, with a launch MSRP of 169 USD. The data shows that the GPU’s 4 GB memory is insufficient for Ultra presets at 1440p and above, where frame rates fall below 24 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K provides 24 cores and 32 threads with a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz. It is built on Raptor Lake architecture with a 10 nm process node, featuring 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, with ECC memory support.

The CPU’s synthetic benchmark scores are strong across the board. Cinebench R23 multi-core reaches 49872, with single-core at 7040. Geekbench multi-core scores 20370 and single-core 3064. PassMark multi-thread hits 58674, while single-thread is 4697. These results place the CPU in the 97th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 79824.

The nearest rivals show close performance parity. The AMD EPYC 7413 scores 0.3% higher, while the Intel Core i9-14900KF, Core Ultra 7 265KF, and Core Ultra 7 265K all score 0.7% to 0.9% lower. The CPU’s boost clock of 6.00 GHz is the key differentiator in single-threaded tasks, which is reflected in the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7040. However, the measured FPS data shows that the CPU’s capabilities are largely unused in Lockdown Protocol, as the GPU limits frame rates in all but the 1080p Low preset. The CPU’s 125 W TDP and support for PCIe Gen 5 with 16 lanes indicate a platform with headroom, but the RX 570’s PCIe 3.0 x16 interface and 150 W TDP cap the system’s overall performance.