Minecraft: Java Edition

FAQ

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-9400 compare to its closest rival in average benchmark score?

A: The i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305. Its closest rival, the Intel Core i3-10305, scores 2300, which is a deltaPct of 0.2%. The Intel Core i7-8809G scores 2319, putting it 0.6% ahead of the i5-9400.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all tested graphics cards?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT sits in the 73rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 30097. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, scores 30109 — a deltaPct of 0%.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo at 1920x1080?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 454.8 FPS. This is the highest measured FPS across all tested resolutions and settings for this pairing.

Q: How does the combo rank overall among tested combinations?

A: This combination of Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT ranks 786th out of 1727 tested combos in Minecraft: Java Edition. This places it in the middle of the distribution.

Q: What is the CPU's multi-core performance in Cinebench R23?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 scores 7969 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 1125 in single-core. Its six cores and six threads run at a base clock of 2.90 GHz with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz.

Q: What memory bandwidth does the CPU support?

A: The i5-9400 supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. It has a shared L3 cache of 9 MB, with 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 per core.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT drives the visual output in this pairing, and the measured FPS data shows it scales predictably with settings and resolution. The GPU carries 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1435 MHz, with a boost clock of 2544 MHz and a game clock of 2171 MHz. These specs place the GPU in the 73rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 30097.

The GPU's closest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, scores 30109 — a negligible deltaPct of 0%. This near-identical performance suggests the RX 7700 XT is competitive at its tier. In Passmark G3D, the GPU scores 22547, while its Geekbench OpenCL score reaches 127549 and Vulkan score 132758. For compute workloads, Passmark GPU Compute yields 12912.

At 3840x2160, the GPU produces 107.4 FPS on High settings, which drops to 71.9 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is substantial: 177.4 FPS versus 71.9 FPS. This indicates the GPU handles the higher preset easily but struggles to maintain high framerates at maximum settings and 4K resolution. The 12 GB frame buffer is sufficient for this game's demands, as even at Ultra 4K the memory capacity does not appear to bottleneck performance based on the measured results.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 786th out of 1727 tested combinations in Minecraft: Java Edition. This middle-of-the-pack placement reflects a pairing where the GPU is strong but the CPU is more modest. The i5-9400 sits at the 50th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 2305. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-10305 at 2300 (deltaPct 0.2%), the Intel Core i3-1125G4 at 2299 (deltaPct 0.2%), and the Intel Xeon E-2134 at 2295 (deltaPct 0.4%).

The ranking suggests that while the GPU can deliver high framerates, the CPU's six cores and six threads at 2.90 GHz base and 4.10 GHz boost may limit performance in certain scenarios. However, the measured FPS data shows this combo still achieves impressive results, particularly at lower resolutions. The rank of 786 out of 1727 means roughly 45% of tested combos perform better, but the absolute FPS numbers indicate this is a capable pairing for Minecraft.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 454.8 FPS average, Medium settings yield 416.4 FPS, High settings reach 336.9 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 210 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a reduction of 244.8 FPS, indicating the GPU is the primary driver at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the framerates remain high but show more sensitivity to settings. Low settings average 334.2 FPS, Medium settings hit 266.6 FPS, High settings reach 209.6 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 133.4 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 200.8 FPS. Notably, the 1440p High result (209.6 FPS) is nearly identical to the 1080p Ultra result (210 FPS), suggesting a consistent performance ceiling around that framerate.

At 3840x2160, the GPU begins to show its limits. Low settings average 177.4 FPS, Medium settings reach 137.8 FPS, High settings produce 107.4 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 71.9 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra at 4K is 105.5 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 71.9 FPS is the lowest measured value in the dataset, but it remains playable. The 4K Low result of 177.4 FPS is still higher than the 1440p Ultra result of 133.4 FPS, illustrating how settings impact performance more than resolution in this game.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 provides six cores and six threads, running at a base clock of 2.90 GHz with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This Coffee Lake architecture chip has a TDP of 65 W and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth. Its cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 256 KB of L2 per core, and 9 MB of shared L3 cache.

In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 803 in Cinebench R15 multicore and 113 in single-core. Cinebench R20 results show 3346 multicore and 472 single-core. The Cinebench R23 scores are 7969 multicore and 1125 single-core. These numbers place the CPU at the 50th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 2305.

The CPU's role in this game is evident when examining the measured FPS across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 454.8 FPS, which suggests the GPU is not the bottleneck at these settings. However, the CPU's single-core performance, while adequate, may limit maximum framerates in CPU-bound scenarios. The CPU's nearest rival, the Intel Core i3-10305, scores nearly identically at 2300, confirming the i5-9400's mid-range positioning. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz provides sufficient single-threaded performance for this game's primary rendering thread.

Settings Recommendations

For 3840x2160, the data shows High settings provide the best balance of visual quality and performance, averaging 107.4 FPS. Ultra settings at 4K drop to 71.9 FPS, which is a significant reduction of 35.5 FPS from High. Low settings at 4K reach 177.4 FPS, but the visual compromise may not be worthwhile for the additional 70 FPS over High.

At 2560x1440, Ultra settings deliver 133.4 FPS, which is above the 100 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. High settings at 1440p reach 209.6 FPS, offering a substantial improvement over Ultra while maintaining strong visual fidelity. Medium settings at 266.6 FPS provide even headroom for competitive play. Low settings at 334.2 FPS are excessive for most users.

At 1920x1080, every setting exceeds 210 FPS. Ultra settings average 210 FPS, which is more than sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors. High settings reach 336.9 FPS, Medium hits 416.4 FPS, and Low achieves 454.8 FPS. The data suggests that at 1080p, users can select Ultra and still maintain framerates well above display refresh rates.

The optimal preset depends on resolution. For 4K displays, High is the recommended setting, as it maintains 107.4 FPS while avoiding the 71.9 FPS penalty of Ultra. For 1440p, Ultra at 133.4 FPS is viable, but High at 209.6 FPS offers a more comfortable margin. For 1080p, Ultra at 210 FPS is the best choice, as the performance drop from lower settings is unnecessary given the high baseline framerate. The measured data consistently shows that Ultra settings exact a performance cost of roughly 35-40% compared to High across all resolutions, making High the most balanced preset for this combo.