Lockdown Protocol

# Lockdown Protocol with Intel Core Ultra 5 245 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

The pairing of Intel's Core Ultra 5 245 with NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 D in Lockdown Protocol produces a fascinating dataset that reveals how a high-end GPU can be constrained by a mid-range CPU at lower resolutions. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets show a system that delivers exceptional performance at 4K, but the scaling patterns hint at CPU limitations emerging as resolution drops. This analysis digs into the measured FPS rows, the combo's ranking among 2,828 tested configurations, and what the component specifications reveal about the bottlenecks in this particular FPS title.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in Lockdown Protocol among tested configurations?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 paired with the RTX 5090 D ranks 10th out of 2,828 tested combos in this game. That places it in the top 0.35% of all tested systems, which is an elite position, though notably not the top spot despite featuring one of the most powerful consumer GPUs available.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The Core Ultra 5 245 has an average benchmark score of 48,995, which is 0.4% lower than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49,196) and 0.5% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49,228). It edges out the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H by 0.6% and the Core i5-14600K by 0.8%. These deltas are all within a narrow 1.2% band, indicating the CPU sits at the 90th percentile versus all CPUs, but with headroom above and below in its immediate peer group.

Q: What is the best measured average FPS at 1080p for this combo, and at which settings?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 360 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The Medium preset delivers 285 FPS average, High produces 249 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 187 FPS average. The jump from Low to Medium costs 75 FPS, while the step from High to Ultra costs 62 FPS.

Q: How much VRAM does the RTX 5090 D have, and does Lockdown Protocol appear to stress it?

A: The GPU features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus with 1.79 TB/s bandwidth. The FPS data shows no signs of VRAM exhaustion—performance scales smoothly across settings without the precipitous drops that would indicate memory capacity issues. Even at 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 88 remains playable, suggesting the 32 GB pool provides ample headroom for this title's requirements.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking versus all GPUs, and how does its average benchmark score compare to rivals?

A: The RTX 5090 D sits at the 92nd percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 77,712. It leads the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT by 1.1% (76,904) but trails the Radeon RX 6850M XT by 1.6% (78,940) and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB by 2.1% (79,396). The narrow margins around 1-2% suggest these are closely matched in synthetic workloads, despite the 5090 D's massive specifications.

Q: Which resolution shows the smallest performance gap between Low and Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160, the gap between Low (190 FPS) and Ultra (88 FPS) is 102 FPS, which is a 46% reduction. At 2560x1440, the gap is 158 FPS (295 to 137), a 54% drop. At 1920x1080, the gap is 173 FPS (360 to 187), a 48% reduction. The 4K resolution shows the smallest absolute drop, while 1440p shows the steepest percentage decline.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide clear guidance for optimal settings at each resolution, balancing visual quality against frame rate headroom. At 1920x1080, all presets produce triple-digit averages, but the High preset at 249 FPS average stands out as the sweet spot—it delivers 62 FPS more than Ultra while maintaining the visual quality uplift over Medium's 285 FPS (which is only 36 FPS higher). For competitive play where frame rate matters most, Low at 360 FPS average is the obvious choice, but the diminishing returns from High to Low (111 FPS gain) may not justify the visual sacrifice for most players.

Moving to 2560x1440, the High preset at 183 FPS average offers the best balance. The Medium preset at 209 FPS is 26 FPS faster, but the visual fidelity loss is typically noticeable in an FPS title. Ultra at 137 FPS is still smooth, but the 46 FPS penalty over High makes it less attractive unless image quality is paramount. Low at 295 FPS is exceptionally fast and could benefit esports-focused players, but the gap from High to Low (112 FPS) comes at significant visual cost.

At 3840x2160, the analysis shifts. High at 118 FPS average is the recommended starting point—it clears the 100 FPS threshold comfortably. Medium at 135 FPS is 17 FPS faster and might be preferable for players who prioritize frame rate over minor visual details. Ultra at 88 FPS is borderline for high-refresh displays but remains playable; the 30 FPS drop from High to Ultra is substantial. Low at 190 FPS shows the GPU's raw capability when unburdened, but at 4K, the visual downgrade to Low is typically severe enough that the frame rate gain doesn't compensate. The data suggests High at 4K as the default, with Medium as an alternative for those chasing higher refresh rates.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1080p to 4K reveals critical information about which component limits performance. At High settings, the averages tell a clear story: 249 FPS at 1080p drops to 183 FPS at 1440p (a 27% reduction), then further to 118 FPS at 4K (a 36% reduction from 1440p). The scaling is not linear—the 1440p to 4K step costs more proportionally than the 1080p to 1440p step—which is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, but the absolute numbers remain high throughout.

At Low settings, the pattern intensifies: 360 FPS at 1080p falls to 295 FPS at 1440p (an 18% drop), then to 190 FPS at 4K (a 36% drop). The relatively modest decline from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings hints that the CPU may be limiting performance at 1080p—the Core Ultra 5 245, with its 14 cores and 14 threads, appears to cap the frame rate around 360 FPS regardless of how much GPU headroom exists. The RTX 5090 D, with its 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 compute, is far from saturated at 1080p Low.

The Medium preset data includes min and max FPS values, offering additional insight. At 1080p, the range is 243 to 328 FPS; at 1440p, 178 to 241 FPS; at 4K, 115 to 155 FPS. The delta between min and max grows from 85 FPS at 1080p to 63 FPS at 1440p and 40 FPS at 4K. This tightening range at higher resolutions indicates the frame pacing becomes more consistent when the GPU is more heavily loaded, reinforcing the theory that CPU-related frame time variability is more pronounced at lower resolutions.

The implication is clear: this combo is GPU-bound at 4K, balanced at 1440p, and CPU-bound at 1080p in lockstep with the game's engine behavior. The 5.10 GHz boost clock of the Core Ultra 5 245 provides solid single-thread performance, but the 14-thread configuration without hyperthreading may limit parallel task handling in a way that caps raw frame generation at low resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

Ranking 10th out of 2,828 tested combos places this system in the 99.6th percentile of all configurations tested in Lockdown Protocol. This is an exceptional result, but the ranking invites scrutiny: why does a system with the RTX 5090 D—a GPU at the 92nd percentile with 32 GB of GDDR7 and a 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate—not rank first? The answer lies in the CPU.

The Core Ultra 5 245's average benchmark score of 48,995 places it at the 90th percentile, but its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49,228, 0.5% faster) and the Core i5-14600K (48,618, 0.8% slower). The 245 is competitive within its peer group, yet the top-ranked combos in Lockdown Protocol likely pair the same GPU with higher-tier CPUs that can feed frames faster at 1080p and 1440p. The 360 FPS ceiling at 1080p Low, while extraordinarily high, may still be below what a flagship CPU could achieve with this GPU.

The combo's rank of 10 out of 2,828 means it outperforms 2,818 other configurations, which includes systems with lesser GPUs and potentially some with the RTX 5090 D paired with stronger CPUs. The 4K performance (118 FPS at High) is likely where this combo shines relative to its rank, as the GPU becomes the dominant factor and the CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache prove sufficient.

GPU Role

The RTX 5090 D is a massive GPU: 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivering 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, with 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, 176 ROPs, 170 RT cores, and 680 tensor cores. Its 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 423.6 GPixel/s pixel rate translate directly to the measured frame rates in Lockdown Protocol. The GPU's 2,017 MHz base and 2,407 MHz boost clocks are relatively modest for a flagship, but the sheer scale of the architecture compensates.

In this game, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. At 4K High, the 118 FPS average demonstrates the 5090 D's ability to handle the pixel count of 3840x2160—roughly 8.3 million pixels per frame—while maintaining high fidelity. The 4K Ultra result of 88 FPS, while the lowest measured, still exceeds what most GPUs could achieve at that preset. The GPU's 176 ROPs and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate are critical for the fill-rate demands of Ultra settings, which typically increase texture detail, shadow resolution, and post-processing effects.

The memory subsystem deserves attention. The 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is more than sufficient for Lockdown Protocol's needs, as evidenced by the absence of stutter or frame drops that would appear if the GPU were starved for data. The 32 GB capacity is overkill for this title, likely explaining why performance scales linearly with settings rather than hitting a memory wall. The GPU's 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average score of 77,712, is respectable, though the nearest rivals—including mobile and datacenter parts—show that synthetic benchmarks don't always translate directly to gaming performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured averages reveal a system with extraordinary headroom. Low settings produce 360 FPS, Medium 285 FPS (min 243, max 328), High 249 FPS, and Ultra 187 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 173 FPS spread, with each step costing approximately 50-75 FPS. The Medium preset's min-max range of 85 FPS indicates some frame time variability, but the 243 FPS minimum remains far above display refresh rates for most monitors.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 295 FPS (Low), 209 FPS (Medium, min 178, max 241), 183 FPS (High), and 137 FPS (Ultra). The Medium range narrows to 63 FPS, suggesting more consistent frame pacing at this resolution. The gap between Low and Ultra is 158 FPS, slightly narrower than at 1080p. Each settings step costs between 26 and 86 FPS, with the Low-to-Medium jump being the largest.

At 3840x2160, the averages drop to 190 FPS (Low), 135 FPS (Medium, min 115, max 155), 118 FPS (High), and 88 FPS (Ultra). The Medium range tightens further to 40 FPS, indicating the GPU is now the primary bottleneck and frame delivery is more consistent. The 102 FPS spread between Low and Ultra is the smallest across all resolutions. Notably, 4K Low at 190 FPS still outperforms 1080p Ultra at 187 FPS, underscoring the GPU's raw power and the CPU's limiting role at lower resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC with 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die. It has 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache, with a 3.50 GHz base clock and 5.10 GHz boost clock. Its 65 W TDP is remarkably low for a desktop CPU with this core count, and it supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel configuration delivering 102.4 GB/s bandwidth.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's influence is most visible at 1080p. The 360 FPS ceiling at Low settings suggests that the processor's 14 threads—without hyperthreading—reach a limit in feeding the GPU draw calls and game logic updates. The 5.10 GHz boost clock provides excellent single-thread performance (evidenced by the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4,648), but the game's engine may not scale perfectly across all 14 cores. The Passmark multithread score of 38,706 and physics score of 2,569 indicate solid parallel performance, yet the frame rate caps imply a per-thread bottleneck.

At 4K, the CPU's role diminishes. The 88 FPS at Ultra and 118 FPS at High are primarily GPU-limited, as the resolution increases the per-frame render cost while the CPU's workload remains relatively constant. The 24 MB L3 cache is adequate for game data, though not exceptional—higher-tier CPUs with larger caches might reduce memory latency in CPU-bound scenarios. The 102.4 GB/s memory bandwidth is sufficient for this game, as the FPS data does not show the erratic drops that would indicate memory starvation.

The CPU's 90th percentile ranking and average score of 48,995 place it in a tight cluster with rivals. The 0.4% delta to the Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G and 0.5% to the Ryzen 9 7900 are negligible in synthetic tests, but in Lockdown Protocol at 1080p, these small differences could translate to meaningful FPS gaps if the game is sensitive to single-thread performance. The data suggests that while the Core Ultra 5 245 is a capable partner for the RTX 5090 D, it leaves some performance on the table at lower resolutions—a trade-off that becomes irrelevant at 4K, where this combo delivers exceptional results across all settings.