Minecraft

Minecraft on this Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination shows a classic scaling pattern, where the performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep but not catastrophic, indicating a balance between CPU and GPU demands that shifts as resolution increases. The data shows that at 1080p, the system is heavily CPU-bound, while at 4K, the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor, yet even at the highest resolution, the frame rates remain highly playable for a sandbox title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and consistent scaling pattern across the three tested resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system produces an average of 389 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at Low settings, the average drops to 246 FPS, a reduction of approximately 37%. Pushing further to 3840x2160 at Low settings, the average falls to 128 FPS, which is about 67% lower than the 1080p figure. This steep decline at 4K indicates that the rendering load is increasing faster than the GPU’s capabilities, even though the CPU remains strong.

The Medium settings row provides the most complete picture, as it includes min and max FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the average is 308 FPS with a minimum of 262 FPS and a maximum of 355 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 195 FPS, with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 224 FPS. Finally, at 4K Medium, the average is 102 FPS, with a minimum of 86 FPS and a maximum of 117 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a 37% reduction in average FPS, while from 1440p to 4K, the reduction is 48%. This suggests that the GPU is becoming progressively more strained as pixel count increases.

For High settings, the pattern continues. At 1080p High, the average is 245 FPS. At 1440p High, it drops to 154 FPS, a 37% decrease. At 4K High, the average is 81 FPS, which is a 47% drop from 1440p. This demonstrates that the RTX 2060 SUPER has a performance ceiling that is approached rapidly when resolution increases, particularly beyond 1440p. The data indicates that the limiting component at 1080p is the CPU, as the frame rates are extremely high and likely not fully utilizing the GPU’s potential. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as the frame rates drop to levels that would be more typical for a mid-range card.

The Ultra settings row shows the most dramatic scaling. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 153 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it falls to 97 FPS, a 37% reduction. At 4K Ultra, the average is 50 FPS, a 48% drop from 1440p. This indicates that Ultra settings introduce effects that are particularly demanding on the GPU, and the 4K Ultra result of 50 FPS is the only scenario in the entire dataset that approaches a potentially less smooth experience. Overall, the scaling pattern suggests that for this combination, 1080p and 1440p are the sweet spots, while 4K is playable but requires careful settings management.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the best experience per the data is achieved at Medium settings across all resolutions. This preset offers a balanced combination of visual quality and performance. At 1080p Medium, the system delivers an average of 308 FPS, which is more than sufficient for any display. At 1440p Medium, the average of 195 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS ensures smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. At 4K Medium, the average of 102 FPS with a minimum of 86 FPS remains comfortably above the threshold for smooth play, making this the highest resolution at which the combination can maintain a consistent experience.

High settings are also a viable option, particularly for users with 1080p or 1440p displays. At 1080p High, the average of 245 FPS is still exceptionally high, and at 1440p High, the average of 154 FPS is excellent. However, at 4K High, the average drops to 81 FPS, which is playable but shows a more significant performance hit compared to Medium. The data suggests that High settings are a good choice for those prioritizing visual fidelity over the absolute highest frame rates, but Medium provides a more robust safety margin.

Ultra settings are not recommended for this combination, especially at higher resolutions. At 1080p Ultra, the average of 153 FPS is acceptable, but at 1440p Ultra, the average falls to 97 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it drops to 50 FPS. The 4K Ultra result, with no min or max FPS data, indicates a potentially variable experience that could dip below smooth thresholds. The data clearly shows that Ultra settings push the GPU beyond its comfortable operating range at 1440p and 4K. For the best overall experience, Medium settings are the clear winner, offering a significant performance buffer over High and Ultra while still delivering a visually rich Minecraft experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Medium settings is 308, with a minimum of 262 FPS and a maximum of 355 FPS.

Q: How does the performance at 4K Ultra compare to 4K Medium?

A: At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 50, while at 4K Medium, the average is 102 FPS. This represents a 51% reduction in average frame rate when switching from Medium to Ultra at 4K.

Q: Is the system more CPU-bound or GPU-bound at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the system is CPU-bound at 1080p, as the frame rates are exceptionally high (389 FPS at Low, 245 FPS at High), which indicates the GPU is capable of rendering frames faster than the CPU can issue draw calls.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded in the entire dataset?

A: The lowest average FPS is 50, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings.

Q: Does the RTX 2060 SUPER have enough VRAM for Minecraft at 4K?

A: The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory. The data shows that at 4K Medium, the average FPS is 102, indicating that the 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for this game at this resolution and settings level.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p Low, the average FPS is 246, while at 1440p High, the average is 154 FPS. This is a 37% reduction in average FPS when moving from Low to High settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS dataset provides a detailed view of performance across all resolution and settings combinations. At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates its highest performance. With Low settings, the average FPS is 389. With Medium settings, the average is 308, with a minimum of 262 FPS and a maximum of 355 FPS. High settings yield an average of 245 FPS, and Ultra settings produce an average of 153 FPS. The 1080p results show a clear hierarchy, with Low being the fastest and Ultra being the slowest, but even Ultra maintains a very high frame rate.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong. Low settings average 246 FPS. Medium settings average 195 FPS, with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 224 FPS. High settings average 154 FPS, and Ultra settings average 97 FPS. The 1440p results show a more pronounced impact from settings changes, with Ultra dipping below 100 FPS, which is still smooth but indicates the GPU is working harder.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly. Low settings average 128 FPS. Medium settings average 102 FPS, with a minimum of 86 FPS and a maximum of 117 FPS. High settings average 81 FPS, and Ultra settings average 50 FPS. The 4K results show that this resolution is the most demanding, and the Ultra setting at 50 FPS is the only scenario that might cause noticeable stutter in fast-paced scenes. The data reveals a consistent pattern: each increase in resolution or settings tier reduces the average FPS by a significant margin, with the most substantial drops occurring when moving from 1440p to 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. Its base clock is 1470 MHz, with a boost clock of 1650 MHz. The GPU features 2176 shading units, 136 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units. The data shows that this GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings. The benchmark results indicate that the RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 18093, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, with a score of 18159 (a delta of -0.4%), and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700, with a score of 18189 (a delta of -0.5%).

The GPU’s role in Minecraft is evident from the scaling data. At 1080p, the frame rates are extremely high, suggesting the GPU is not fully utilized. However, as resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth become more critical, and the GPU’s performance ceiling is reached. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for Minecraft, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at 4K Medium. The GPU’s 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is adequate for this game, but the data shows that Ultra settings at 4K push it to its limits, resulting in a 50 FPS average. The RTX 2060 SUPER’s performance in this title is consistent with its overall standing, being a solid mid-range card that can handle Minecraft at high frame rates in most scenarios, but struggles with the most demanding settings at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. It has a 24 MB L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s. The CPU’s benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648. Its average benchmark score is 48995, placing it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, with an average score of 49196 (a delta of -0.4%), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, with a score of 49228 (a delta of -0.5%).

The CPU’s role in Minecraft is primarily in single-threaded performance, which is critical for the game’s main game loop and world generation. The Core Ultra 5 245’s strong single-core performance, as indicated by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648, is a key factor in the high frame rates observed at 1080p. At 1080p Low, the average FPS of 389 suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with a massive number of frames per second. Even at 1080p Ultra, the average of 153 FPS shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at this resolution. However, as resolution increases, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, and the CPU’s performance becomes less relevant to the final frame rate.

The data indicates that the Core Ultra 5 245 provides ample processing power for Minecraft, ensuring that the GPU is the primary constraint in most scenarios. The CPU’s high single-thread performance and 14 cores make it well-suited for a game that can utilize multiple threads for chunk loading and entity updates. The measured FPS at 1440p and 4K, where the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, confirms that the CPU has headroom to spare. This combination of a strong CPU and a mid-range GPU results in a system that is well-balanced for Minecraft, with the CPU ensuring high frame rates at lower resolutions and the GPU being the determining factor at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 793rd out of 1176 tested combos for Minecraft. This places it in the middle-to-lower portion of the rankings, indicating that while it is a capable system, there are many other combinations that deliver higher performance in this game. The rank of 793 out of 1176 suggests that this combo is not at the top of the performance hierarchy, but it is also not near the bottom. The data shows that the system is capable of producing very high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but the RTX 2060 SUPER’s mid-range standing, as indicated by its 62nd percentile ranking, holds back the overall combo ranking.

The combo’s rank is influenced by the GPU’s performance ceiling. The RTX 2060 SUPER’s average benchmark score of 18093 is significantly lower than what more powerful GPUs would achieve, and this is reflected in the 4K Ultra result of 50 FPS. The CPU’s strong performance, with a 90th percentile ranking, helps boost the combo’s standing, but it cannot fully compensate for the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions. In the context of all 1176 tested combos, this system is positioned as a solid mid-range option. It excels at 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver frame rates well above the smoothness threshold, but it falls behind more powerful combinations at 4K with demanding settings. The data indicates that users with this combo should prioritize 1080p or 1440p gaming with Medium to High settings to get the best experience, as the 4K Ultra scenario is the only one that dips below 60 FPS.