Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT delivers a highly capable 1080p and 1440p experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. The benchmark data shows a configuration where the GPU is the primary driver of performance at higher resolutions, while the aging six-core CPU begins to emerge as a limiting factor only at the lowest settings and 1080p. This combination ranks in the 736th position out of 1733 tested combos, placing it in the upper portion of the database.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and predictable pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, but the rate of that degradation is heavily influenced by the graphics settings. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 233.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 152.9 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 34.6%. Moving to 4K at Low settings yields 82.7 FPS, which is a further 45.9% drop from the 1440p result. This steep decline indicates that the RX 7700 XT's rendering workload is scaling directly with pixel count, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario.

At Medium settings, the scaling is similar but with a lower starting point. The average FPS falls from 177.5 at 1080p to 114.4 at 1440p (a 35.5% reduction), and then to 64.5 at 4K (a 43.6% reduction from 1440p). The consistent percentage drops across Low and Medium settings suggest that the GPU's compute and memory subsystems are being utilized in a linear fashion, with no unexpected bottlenecks appearing. The RX 7700 XT's 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth appear sufficient to handle the texture and geometry loads at these settings.

The High settings curve shows a slightly different slope. The transition from 1080p (149.1 FPS) to 1440p (98.9 FPS) represents a 33.7% decrease, but the move to 4K (51.2 FPS) is a 48.2% drop. The larger percentage loss at 4K High suggests that the game is beginning to demand more from the GPU's shading units and ROPs, pushing the card closer to its limits. The Ultra preset amplifies this trend further, with a 35.8% drop from 1080p (115.1 FPS) to 1440p (73.9 FPS), and a substantial 48.7% drop from 1440p to 4K (37.9 FPS).

The data shows that the RX 7700 XT is not fully saturating the CPU at 4K, as the FPS loss is almost entirely attributable to the increased pixel workload. However, at 1080p Low, the 233.7 FPS result suggests the CPU is likely the limiting factor, as the frame rate is high enough that the six cores and twelve threads of the Ryzen 5 2600, with a boost clock of 3.90 GHz, may not be able to feed the GPU fast enough. The scaling from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is a larger relative drop than the other settings, which supports this theory.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS for this combination at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 115.1 FPS.

Q: How does the performance at 1440p compare to 1080p at High settings?

A: At 2560x1440 High, the average FPS is 98.9, which is a 33.7% reduction from the 149.1 FPS achieved at 1920x1080 High.

Q: Is the RX 7700 XT able to achieve a playable frame rate at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, at 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 37.9 at Ultra settings to 82.7 at Low settings, so playability depends heavily on the chosen quality preset.

Q: What is the best performance result recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS in the dataset is 233.7 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 2600 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 5 2600 has an average benchmark score of 19616, which is 0.6% higher than the AMD Ryzen 5 7530U and 0.7% higher than the Intel Core i7-10700F.

Q: What is the GPU's synthetic benchmark standing relative to its peers?

A: The Radeon RX 7700 XT has an average benchmark score of 30097, which places it essentially on par with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, which has a score of 30109 and a deltaPct of 0.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is a six-core, twelve-thread processor based on the Zen architecture, specifically the Zen+ (Pinnacle Ridge) iteration, manufactured on a 12 nm process. With a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 3.90 GHz, it offers a solid foundation for gaming. Its synthetic benchmark scores show a multi-threaded strength, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11186 and a Passmark multi-thread score of 13160. Single-thread performance is comparatively modest, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1579, which is often more critical for frame pacing in older games.

In Minimum, the CPU's role becomes apparent through the FPS data. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 233.7 FPS. This high frame rate, combined with the relatively low graphical workload, suggests that the CPU's single-thread performance is the primary constraint preventing even higher FPS. The 12 threads do help in maintaining the frame rate, but the game's engine appears to rely heavily on one or two cores. The data shows that the Ryzen 5 2600 holds its own, but it is clear that the GPU is waiting for the CPU at these lower resolutions.

When the resolution is increased to 4K, the CPU workload remains relatively constant while the GPU workload skyrockets. The FPS drops to 82.7 at Low settings, which is a substantial reduction. This indicates that the CPU is no longer the bottleneck; the GPU is now the limiting component. The Ryzen 5 2600's performance is sufficient to keep up with the RX 7700 XT's rendering at 4K, as the FPS is still respectable for a game from 2014. The processor's 16 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 46.9 GB/s bandwidth provide adequate data feeding for the GPU.

The CPU's overall percentile rank of 77 among all tested CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 19616, place it in a competitive position. It is within 0.7% of the Intel Core i7-10700F and 0.6% of the AMD Ryzen 5 7530U. This suggests that the Ryzen 5 2600 is not a weak link in this configuration, but rather a competent mid-range processor that can deliver high frame rates in less demanding titles like Minimum when paired with a powerful GPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this combination provides a detailed view of performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 233.7 at Low to 115.1 at Ultra. The Medium setting delivers 177.5 FPS, and High yields 149.1 FPS. The progression shows a 49.3% reduction in FPS from Low to Ultra, which is a significant but expected cost for the higher visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS scales down accordingly. The Low setting produces 152.9 FPS, which is a 34.6% reduction from the 1080p Low result. Medium delivers 114.4 FPS, High produces 98.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 73.9 FPS. The relative performance gap between settings at 1440p is narrower than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a factor.

At 3840x2160, the performance is more demanding. The Low setting averages 82.7 FPS, which is still a smooth experience for most displays. Medium settings yield 64.5 FPS, and High settings produce 51.2 FPS. The Ultra preset brings the average down to 37.9 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold that many consider ideal, but it is still playable for a slower-paced title. The data shows a clear monotonic decrease in FPS with both increasing resolution and increasing quality settings, with no anomalies or unexpected spikes in the data.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT combination is ranked 736th out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum. This places it in the 42.5th percentile of all combinations in the database, meaning it outperforms more than half of all tested systems. This is a strong result for a CPU from 2018 paired with a GPU from 2023, showing that the older processor does not significantly hamper the newer graphics card in this specific game.

The GPU's performance is a major contributor to this ranking. The RX 7700 XT has an average benchmark score of 30097 and is in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, which has nearly identical synthetic performance with a deltaPct of 0. This indicates that the GPU is a high-performing part in its own right. The CPU, while older, is still a competent performer, sitting in the 77th percentile of all CPUs. The combination of a high-performing GPU and a decent CPU results in a system that is well-balanced for this 2014 title, which is not heavily CPU-dependent.

The ranking of 736 suggests that while this setup is capable, there are many other combinations that achieve higher frame rates, likely featuring more modern CPUs with higher single-thread performance or even more powerful GPUs. However, the data shows that for the vast majority of users, this pairing offers a very good experience, particularly at 1080p and 1440p. The rank is a holistic measure, and the measured FPS data confirms that this combo is a solid choice for playing Minimum at high frame rates and resolutions.