Minecraft

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER delivers a playable Minecraft experience, but the data reveals a system that shifts between CPU and GPU limits depending on the resolution and settings. At 1080p, the combo is heavily CPU-bound, producing frame rates that exceed the refresh rates of most monitors. At 4K, the GTX 1660 SUPER becomes the clear bottleneck, particularly on Ultra settings where the average frame rate drops below the 60 FPS threshold. This analysis uses the measured FPS data to break down where this combination excels and where it struggles.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a pronounced performance drop as resolution increases, which is typical for a game like Minecraft with its variable render distances and effects. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 300 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 189 FPS, and at 4K it falls further to 99 FPS. This scaling pattern indicates that at lower resolutions, the CPU's single-thread performance is the limiting factor, as the GTX 1660 SUPER is capable of pushing far more frames than the processor can feed it. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is 111 FPS, while the gap between 1440p and 4K is 90 FPS, showing a fairly linear decline that points to the GPU starting to take over as the primary constraint.

The High settings row reinforces this trend. At 1080p, the average is 189 FPS. At 1440p, it is 119 FPS, a drop of 70 FPS. At 4K, it falls to 62 FPS, which is exactly at the threshold for smooth gameplay on a 60Hz display. The step from 1440p to 4K represents a 48% reduction in frame rate, suggesting that the GPU is now the dominant bottleneck. The GTX 1660 SUPER's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus width are being pushed hard at 4K, and the data shows that High settings are the edge of playability at that resolution.

Ultra settings provide the clearest illustration of GPU limitation. The frame rates at Ultra are 118 FPS at 1080p, 74 FPS at 1440p, and 39 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is the only measured configuration that falls below 40 FPS, indicating that the combination of high pixel count and demanding effects overwhelms the GPU. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is a 67% reduction in average FPS, which is a steeper drop than at Low settings (67% vs. 67% — actually 300 to 99 is a 67% drop, and 118 to 39 is a 67% drop). This consistency suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor across all settings once the resolution reaches 4K, but the margin of playability narrows significantly with higher settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. In Minecraft, which is notoriously single-thread bound for its main game loop, the boost clock is the more critical specification. The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2085 and Passmark single-thread score of 4516 indicate strong per-core performance, which explains why the combo can reach 300 FPS at 1080p Low. The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions, as the frame rates are high enough to suggest headroom remains.

However, the CPU's role becomes more nuanced at higher settings. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 118 FPS, which is still high but significantly lower than the 300 FPS at Low. This suggests that the Ultra settings introduce additional CPU overhead, likely from increased entity counts, render distance, and simulation complexity, which are all single-thread dependent. The fact that the frame rate drops from 300 to 118 FPS at the same resolution indicates that the CPU is doing more work per frame, even though the GPU is also under heavier load. The combo's rank of 949 out of 1176 tested combinations places it in the lower half of all systems, which is expected given the GPU's age and the CPU's mid-range positioning.

The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache likely help with Minecraft's world data handling, but the measured data cannot isolate this effect. What the data does show is that the CPU is capable of sustaining high frame rates in less demanding scenarios, but it cannot overcome the GPU's limitations at 4K. The Ultra 5 235's 65W TDP and 14 threads provide adequate multi-core performance for background tasks, but for Minecraft's core gameplay, the 5.00 GHz boost clock is the primary driver of the high FPS numbers seen at 1080p.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Minecraft at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but only at Low and Medium settings. The measured data shows 99 FPS at 4K Low and 78 FPS at 4K Medium, with a minimum of 67 FPS on Medium. High settings drop to 62 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 39 FPS, which is not smooth.

Q: What is the best resolution for maximizing frame rate?

A: At 1080p, the combo achieves 300 FPS on Low and 238 FPS on Medium, with Medium having a minimum of 202 FPS. This is the resolution where the system is most CPU-bound and delivers the highest headroom for competitive or high-refresh-rate play.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its nearest rivals in this setup?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 12986, placing it just 0.4% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile and the AMD Radeon RX 580, and 0.9% ahead of the AMD Radeon 740M. It is 0.7% behind the NVIDIA Tesla M2090.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck at 1440p Medium?

A: The 1440p Medium result shows an average of 150 FPS with a minimum of 127 FPS. Given that the 1080p Medium result is 238 FPS, the drop to 150 FPS at 1440p indicates the GPU is now the limiting factor, as the pixel fill rate demand increases.

Q: What is the highest setting that maintains a stable 60+ FPS average?

A: At 4K, High settings average 62 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS line. At 1440p, Ultra averages 74 FPS, and at 1080p, Ultra averages 118 FPS. The data suggests that 4K High is the maximum playable setting, but 1440p Ultra provides more headroom.

Q: How does the Ultra 5 235 compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score of 46062, which is 0.1% ahead of the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, 0.2% ahead of the AMD EPYC 4364P and AMD EPYC 7303, and 0.1% behind the Intel Core i9-13900HX.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for the best experience with this combo. For 1080p users, the Medium preset is the sweet spot. It delivers an average of 238 FPS with a minimum of 202 FPS, which is well above the 144Hz refresh rate that many monitors use. The jump from Low to Medium is only a 62 FPS reduction (300 to 238 FPS), but the visual improvement from Low to Medium is significant in Minecraft, adding more detailed textures and lighting effects. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 118 FPS, which is still playable, but the marginal visual gains over Medium do not justify losing 120 FPS of headroom.

For 1440p, the Medium preset again provides the best balance. At 150 FPS average with a minimum of 127 FPS, it offers a smooth experience on any standard 1440p monitor. The High preset at 119 FPS is also viable if you prefer slightly better visuals, but the Ultra preset at 74 FPS is starting to approach the range where frame pacing issues can become noticeable. The data shows that 1440p Medium is the recommended choice for a stable, high-refresh experience.

At 4K, the options are more constrained. The Low preset at 99 FPS is the only setting that provides significant headroom above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 78 FPS is acceptable for a 60Hz display, and the High preset at 62 FPS is borderline. The Ultra preset at 39 FPS is not recommended for any gameplay that requires responsiveness. For 4K users, the Medium preset is the best compromise, offering 78 FPS average with a minimum of 67 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a visual upgrade over Low. If you prioritize maximum visual fidelity and can tolerate occasional dips, High is playable, but the data suggests Medium is the safer bet.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 949th out of 1176 tested combos in Minecraft. This places the system in the 19th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 81% of other combos perform better. This ranking is not surprising given the hardware mix. The CPU itself is a capable mid-range part, sitting at the 89th percentile among all CPUs, but the GPU is a much older component, sitting at the 53rd percentile among all GPUs. The pairing of a modern CPU with an end-of-life GPU from 2019 creates an imbalance where the CPU has significant headroom that the GPU cannot utilize, particularly at higher resolutions.

The combo's rank is heavily influenced by the GPU's performance ceiling. In Minecraft, which can be CPU-bound at low resolutions, the GTX 1660 SUPER's 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 1408 shading units are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but the GPU struggles at 4K. The rank of 949 indicates that most other combos, likely those with newer mid-range GPUs or higher-end cards, will achieve better 4K performance. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p or 1440p gaming, where the CPU can push the frame rates high enough to mask the GPU's age.

The CPU's benchmark performance is competitive with its immediate rivals. The Ultra 5 235's average score of 46062 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and the Intel Core i9-13900HX, with deltas of 0.1% or less. This means the CPU is not the limiting factor in the combo's ranking. The GPU, however, is only 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 580 in raw benchmark scores, which shows the GTX 1660 SUPER's age. The ranking reflects the GPU's inability to scale past 4K Medium settings, and users should expect to play at 1440p or lower for the best experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 300 FPS. The Medium preset reaches 238 FPS average, with a minimum of 202 FPS and a maximum of 273 FPS. The High preset delivers 189 FPS average, and the Ultra preset drops to 118 FPS average. The 1080p results show a clear CPU-bound scenario at Low and Medium, where the frame rates are limited by the processor's single-thread performance rather than the GPU.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 189 FPS. The Medium preset averages 150 FPS, with a minimum of 127 FPS and a maximum of 172 FPS. The High preset averages 119 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 74 FPS. The 1440p results show a more balanced system, where the GPU begins to assert its influence, but the CPU still provides enough headroom for high frame rates at lower settings. The Medium preset's minimum of 127 FPS indicates that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays well above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 99 FPS. The Medium preset averages 78 FPS, with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 90 FPS. The High preset averages 62 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 39 FPS. The 4K results are GPU-bound across all settings. The Minimum FPS at Medium is 67 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold, but the average is 78 FPS. The Ultra preset's 39 FPS average is the only measured result that falls below 40 FPS, making it unsuitable for smooth gameplay. The data shows that 4K playable settings are limited to Low, Medium, and marginally High, with the GPU's 6 GB memory capacity and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth being the primary constraints.