Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti delivers a playable but heavily GPU-bound experience in Minimum, a 2014 Third-Person Shooter. At 1080p, the combo easily clears 60 FPS on every preset, but 4K Ultra drops to 33 FPS, revealing that the GTX 1080 Ti is the primary constraint once resolution climbs. This pairing ranks 1615th out of 2939 tested combos, placing it in the 55th percentile of all configurations, a mid-pack result that reflects the GPU’s age more than the CPU’s capability.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep performance cliff as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 192 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 124 FPS, a 35.4% reduction, and 4K Low further reduces it to 67 FPS, a 46% drop from 1440p. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-limited scenario: the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K, but the FPS does not halve proportionally because the GTX 1080 Ti’s 11 GB GDDR5X memory and 484.4 GB/s bandwidth help mitigate some of the load.

The High preset tells a similar story. At 1080p High, the combo averages 124 FPS. At 1440p High, it falls to 80 FPS (a 35.5% decrease), and at 4K High it reaches just 43 FPS (a 46.3% drop from 1440p). The consistent ~35% drop from 1080p to 1440p and ~46% drop from 1440p to 4K across Low and High settings indicates that the GPU’s shading units (3584) and texture units (224) are saturated well before the CPU becomes a factor. The Ryzen 5 5500X3D’s 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.00 GHz, are more than sufficient to feed frames at these rates.

Ultra settings exacerbate the scaling. At 1080p Ultra, the combo hits 94 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 61 FPS (a 35.1% reduction), and at 4K Ultra, it collapses to 33 FPS (a 45.9% drop from 1440p). The Ultra preset’s demands on the GTX 1080 Ti’s 88 ROPs and 11.34 TFLOPS FP32 performance become obvious; the card’s pixel rate of 139.2 GPixel/s is simply insufficient for 4K Ultra in this title. The data suggests that the limiting component at 4K is unequivocally the GPU, as the CPU’s Passmark single-thread score of 2941 and multithread score of 20363 are far above what a 2014 shooter requires.

The Medium preset provides the only complete min/max data in the pack, which offers additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the combo averages 147 FPS with a minimum of 125 and maximum of 169. At 1440p Medium, the average falls to 95 FPS (min 81, max 109), and at 4K Medium, it drops to 51 FPS (min 43, max 59). The minimum FPS values at 4K Medium (43) and 1440p Medium (81) are notably close to the average FPS of the High preset at those resolutions, suggesting that the GPU’s frame pacing becomes less consistent as resolution climbs. The gap between min and max FPS widens from 44 frames at 1080p Medium (125 min, 169 max) to just 16 frames at 4K Medium (43 min, 59 max), indicating that the GTX 1080 Ti is hitting a hard performance ceiling rather than experiencing sporadic dips.

How This Combo Ranks

The data places this specific CPU-GPU combination at rank 1615 out of 2939 tested combos in Minimum. This rank puts it squarely in the middle of the database, which is surprising given the GPU’s age. The GTX 1080 Ti, released in 2017, has a passmark_g3d score of 18600 and an average benchmark score of 15548, placing it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, however, is much newer, released in 2025, with a passmark_multithread score of 20363 and a percentile rank of 85 among all CPUs. This mismatch explains the mid-pack ranking: the CPU is capable of driving much higher frame rates, but the GPU holds the combo back.

Comparing to the nearest rival combos in the CPU’s benchmark data, the Ryzen 5 5500X3D’s average score of 37018 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F (36945, delta 0.2%) and the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 (36938, delta 0.2%). It is slightly behind the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (37093, delta -0.2%) and the Intel Core i9-12900T (37112, delta -0.3%). These deltas are all within 0.3%, meaning that swapping the 5500X3D for any of these rivals would produce virtually identical performance in a GPU-bound scenario. The combo’s rank of 1615 is therefore much more a function of the GTX 1080 Ti’s placement than the CPU’s.

On the GPU side, the GTX 1080 Ti’s average benchmark score of 15548 sits close to the AMD Radeon R9 M380 (15521, delta 0.2%) and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15679, delta -0.8%). It is slightly ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (15290, delta 1.7%) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (15283, delta 1.7%). These narrow deltas indicate that the GTX 1080 Ti is aging but still competitive with mid-range cards from later generations. However, in Minimum, the game’s 2014 release date means it was designed for hardware from that era, and the GTX 1080 Ti’s 11 GB VRAM is more than enough for any texture load the game can throw at it.

The combo rank of 1615 out of 2939 means that roughly 45% of tested combos perform better. This is a statistically significant finding: it suggests that while this pairing is not a top-tier performer, it is far from the bottom. For a game released in 2014, the combination of a 2025 CPU and a 2017 GPU produces a playable experience at most settings, but the ranking reflects the GPU’s obsolescence relative to modern cards.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti is the defining component in this combo. Its 11 GB of GDDR5X memory on a 352-bit bus provides 484.4 GB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for 4K textures in Minimum. The card’s base clock of 1481 MHz and boost clock of 1582 MHz are modest by modern standards, but its 3584 shading units and 224 texture units give it substantial raw compute. The FP32 performance of 11.34 TFLOPS is the key metric for this game, as Minimum does not utilize ray tracing (the card has no RT cores) or tensor cores.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU’s 88 ROPs are the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the card can push 192 FPS on Low settings, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 4K Low, it drops to 67 FPS, still playable but approaching the limit. The Ultra preset at 4K produces only 33 FPS, which is unplayable for most users. The pixel rate of 139.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 354.4 GTexel/s are the specifications that limit performance at 4K, as the game’s pixel shader workload increases quadratically with resolution.

The GPU’s passmark DirectX 12 score of 66 is notably low compared to its DirectX 11 score of 151, which suggests that Minimum’s 2014 engine likely runs on older DirectX paths. The card’s DirectX 11 score is more relevant here, and it aligns with the observed 1080p performance. The Vulkan score of 40511 and OpenCL score of 67929 indicate that the GPU is capable of modern API use, but the game’s release date means it likely relies on DirectX 11 or earlier.

The GTX 1080 Ti’s 250 W TDP and dual-slot design are not directly relevant to FPS, but they explain why the card can sustain boost clocks under load. The 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connectors and 600 W suggested PSU are typical for a high-end card from 2017. The card’s 16 nm process node and 11,800 million transistors on a 471 mm² die are the architectural foundation for its performance, but the data shows that even with 11 GB of VRAM, the card cannot handle 4K Ultra in this title.

The GPU’s percentile rank of 58 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15548, places it just above the midpoint. This is consistent with the observed 4K performance: the card is capable but not exceptional by 2025 standards. The nearest rival data shows that the Radeon R9 M380 is nearly identical in average score (15521, delta 0.2%), which is surprising given the M380 is a mobile chip, but it indicates that the GTX 1080 Ti’s performance class has been matched by lower-power parts over time.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the best experience for this combo in Minimum is the Medium preset at 1440p. This configuration produces an average of 95 FPS with a minimum of 81 FPS and a maximum of 109 FPS. The minimum FPS of 81 is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, and the average of 95 FPS leaves headroom for demanding scenes. The Medium preset at 1080p is also excellent, averaging 147 FPS with a minimum of 125 FPS, but the visual fidelity gain from 1440p Medium over 1080p Medium is worth the 52 FPS drop, as the minimum FPS remains high.

For users with a 4K display, the Low preset is the only viable option, averaging 67 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 51 FPS, which is borderline playable but may suffer from frame pacing issues, as evidenced by the minimum of 43 FPS. The High preset at 4K averages 43 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS standard, and Ultra at 4K averages 33 FPS, which is unplayable. The data clearly shows that 4K is only feasible with Low settings, and even then, the 67 FPS average is not ideal for fast-paced third-person shooting.

At 1080p, all presets are playable. The Ultra preset averages 94 FPS, which is acceptable, but the Medium preset’s 147 FPS provides a smoother experience with only a modest visual compromise. The High preset at 1080p averages 124 FPS, which is also solid. The Low preset at 1080p produces 192 FPS, which is overkill for most displays and suggests that the CPU is not a limiting factor at this resolution. The data indicates that the GTX 1080 Ti’s 11 GB VRAM is sufficient for all presets, so the decision comes down to resolution and target frame rate.

For a balanced experience, the Medium preset at 1440p is the sweet spot. The minimum FPS of 81 ensures no noticeable stutter, and the average of 95 FPS is smooth on most 1440p monitors with variable refresh rates. If the user prioritizes frame rate over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1440p averages 124 FPS and would be suitable for competitive play. The Ultra preset at 1440p averages 61 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold but may dip below in heavy scenes, making it a risky choice.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides exact figures for all combinations of resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 192 FPS, High averages 124 FPS, Medium averages 147 FPS (with min 125 and max 169), and Ultra averages 94 FPS. The Medium preset’s min/max range of 44 frames is the widest of any 1080p setting, indicating some scene-dependent variability, but the minimum of 125 FPS is still very high.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 124 FPS, High averages 80 FPS, Medium averages 95 FPS (min 81, max 109), and Ultra averages 61 FPS. The Medium preset’s min/max range narrows to 28 frames, showing that the GPU is becoming more consistently loaded. The Ultra preset’s 61 FPS average is notable because it is exactly at the 60 FPS threshold, meaning any minor scene complexity could push it below playable levels.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 67 FPS, High averages 43 FPS, Medium averages 51 FPS (min 43, max 59), and Ultra averages 33 FPS. The Medium preset’s min/max range of 16 frames is the tightest of all measured configurations, suggesting that the GPU is operating at its absolute limit. The maximum of 59 FPS at 4K Medium is below the 60 FPS threshold, confirming that this resolution is not ideal for this combo. The Ultra preset’s 33 FPS average is barely playable and would likely cause frustration in a shooter.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across presets: Low drops from 192 to 124 (a 35.4% reduction), High from 124 to 80 (35.5%), Medium from 147 to 95 (35.4%), and Ultra from 94 to 61 (35.1%). This uniformity indicates that the GPU is the sole bottleneck, as the CPU’s workload does not change with resolution. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is also consistent: Low drops from 124 to 67 (46.0%), High from 80 to 43 (46.3%), Medium from 95 to 51 (46.3%), and Ultra from 61 to 33 (45.9%). The slightly larger percentage drop from 1440p to 4K compared to 1080p to 1440p reflects the quadratic increase in pixel count and the GPU’s diminishing returns at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D plays a supporting role in this combo, but its specifications ensure it is not the bottleneck. With 6 cores and 12 threads from the Zen 3 architecture (Vermeer codename), the CPU has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. The 96 MB of shared L3 cache is the standout feature, providing a massive pool of fast memory for game data. The CPU’s Passmark single-thread score of 2941 and multithread score of 20363 indicate strong performance for a 2014 game, which typically relies on only a few threads.

The CPU’s percentile rank of 85 among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 37018, places it in the top 15% of processors. This is far higher than the GPU’s 58th percentile, confirming that the GPU is the limiting component. The nearest rival data shows that the Ryzen 5 5600F (avg score 36945, delta 0.2%) and Intel Core Ultra 5 225 (avg score 36938, delta 0.2%) are essentially tied, while the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (37093, delta -0.2%) and Intel Core i9-12900T (37112, delta -0.3%) are marginally ahead. These differences are negligible in gaming, as the game’s frame rates are determined by the GPU.

The CPU’s memory support for DDR4 with dual-channel and 51.2 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for the GTX 1080 Ti’s 484.4 GB/s memory bandwidth, meaning the CPU can feed the GPU without starving it. The 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes provide ample bandwidth for the GPU, although the GTX 1080 Ti uses PCIe 3.0 x16, which is backward compatible. The CPU’s 105 W TDP and 7 nm process node (TSMC) make it efficient, but this does not affect gaming performance.

In Minimum, the CPU’s role is to process game logic, physics, and draw calls. The Passmark physics score of 2282 and floating-point math score of 34511 indicate that the CPU can handle these tasks easily. The data compression score of 230392 and encryption score of 13967 are irrelevant to gaming but show the CPU’s general compute capability. The fact that 1080p Low produces 192 FPS without the CPU becoming a bottleneck is direct evidence that the Ryzen 5 5500X3D has ample headroom. Even at 1080p Ultra, which produces 94 FPS, the CPU is not limiting, as the GPU’s 88 ROPs are the constraint.

The CPU’s L3 cache of 96 MB is the key differentiator from non-3D V-Cache models, and it likely helps maintain consistent frame times in scenes with large amounts of game data. However, the measured data does not isolate CPU vs. GPU time, so this benefit is inferred from the CPU’s high percentile rank and the observed GPU-limited scaling. The 12 threads are more than sufficient for a 2014 game, which typically uses 4-8 threads at most. The CPU’s release date of 2025 means it has modern features like PCIe Gen 4, but the game does not utilize these, so the CPU’s advantage is purely in raw compute power.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in benchmark scores all have deltaPct values within 0.3%, meaning that if the GTX 1080 Ti were paired with any of them, the in-game FPS would be virtually identical. This reinforces the conclusion that the CPU is not a factor in Minimum’s performance. The combo’s rank of 1615 out of 2939 is therefore entirely attributable to the GPU’s mid-pack standing. The CPU could easily support a more powerful GPU, such as one with a higher passmark_g3d score, and the FPS would scale accordingly until the game’s engine limits are reached.