Minimum

Minimum, a third-person shooter released in 2014, pairs the AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 in a combination that produces a wide spread of frame rates depending on resolution and quality settings. The measured data reveals a system that is overwhelmingly powerful for this title, with the GPU often operating well below its potential at lower resolutions. This analysis examines the FPS measurements, component roles, and settings to understand the performance characteristics of this specific hardware pairing in this game.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial, but the pattern across the settings presets tells a clear story about which component is the limiting factor. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 373 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 254 FPS, a 32% reduction, and then to 137 FPS at 4K Low, which is another 46% reduction from the 1440p figure. This scaling is steep, indicating that as resolution increases, the GPU is being tasked with more work, which is expected. However, the fact that the 1080p Low score is so high suggests the CPU is the primary bottleneck at that resolution, as the GPU is not being fully utilized.

At Ultra settings, the pattern shifts. The 1080p Ultra average is 193 FPS, which drops to 124 FPS at 1440p Ultra (a 36% reduction) and then to 67 FPS at 4K Ultra (a 46% reduction from 1440p). The percentage drop from 1440p to 4K is nearly identical at both Low and Ultra settings, which is interesting. This suggests that while the absolute frame rates are much lower at Ultra, the scaling efficiency of the GPU is similar across the settings range. The data implies that at 4K, the RTX 4090 is finally the definitive bottleneck, as the resolution demands on the GPU's pixel and texture processing capabilities become the dominant factor, regardless of the preset's complexity.

The difference between the lowest and highest settings at each resolution further illustrates this point. At 1080p, the gap between Low (373 FPS) and Ultra (193 FPS) is 180 FPS, a massive 48% performance hit for higher visual quality. At 4K, the gap between Low (137 FPS) and Ultra (67 FPS) is 70 FPS, which is a 51% reduction. The relative performance cost of Ultra over Low is consistent across resolutions. This implies that the GPU is handling the additional shading and texture work in a linear fashion, and the CPU is capable of feeding it enough data at 4K to maintain that proportional difference. The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU's limit is hit around 373 FPS, and the GPU is not the limiting factor until the resolution is raised significantly.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo in Minimum?

A: The highest average frame rate is 373 FPS, which was measured at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the average FPS at 1440p High compare to the average FPS at 4K High?

A: At 2560x1440 with High settings, the average FPS is 163. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS drops to 88. This represents a 46% decrease in performance when moving from 1440p to 4K.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS recorded at 1080p Medium?

A: At 1920x1080 with Medium settings, the minimum FPS recorded is 256, and the maximum FPS is 347.

Q: Is there a frame rate measurement available for 4K Ultra?

A: Yes, the average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 67. No minimum or maximum FPS values were provided for this specific configuration.

Q: Which settings preset at 1440p provides an average FPS closest to 200?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 provides an average FPS of 194, which is the closest to 200 among the measured presets at that resolution.

Q: Does the data show a larger performance gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p or at 4K?

A: The absolute frame rate gap is larger at 1080p, with a difference of 180 FPS (373 FPS Low vs 193 FPS Ultra). At 4K, the absolute gap is 70 FPS (137 FPS Low vs 67 FPS Ultra). However, the relative percentage drop is quite similar, with a 48% reduction at 1080p and a 51% reduction at 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a formidable piece of hardware, and its specifications suggest it should be more than capable of handling a 2014 title like Minimum. The GPU features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s. This memory configuration is excessive for a game of this era, but it ensures that memory capacity and bandwidth are never a limiting factor, even at 4K Ultra settings. The data supports this, as the frame rates at 4K are still respectable, with an average of 67 FPS at the highest preset.

The GPU's clock speeds are listed with a base clock of 2235 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. These high clock speeds, combined with the 16,384 shading units, contribute to the raw compute power that allows for such high frame rates. The 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance reflects its capability. In this game, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. The data shows that at 1080p, the GPU is likely idling or not fully utilized, as the CPU, with its 96 MB of L3 cache, is able to feed frames at a rate exceeding 300 FPS on lower settings. It is only when the resolution climbs to 4K that the GPU's processing power becomes the primary constraint on performance.

The RTX 4090's performance percentile of 88 among all GPUs and its average benchmark score of 60347 place it in the upper echelon of graphics cards. Its nearest rival, the Intel Arc Pro A60, has an average score of 60326, a negligible 0% delta. This indicates that in general compute tasks, the 4090 is a top-tier performer. In Minimum, the measured FPS at 4K Ultra (67 FPS) shows that even an end-of-life flagship GPU is challenged by the demands of 4K rendering, although the frame rate remains playable. The GPU's 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores are features that are not likely relevant for this specific game, but they contribute to the card's overall architecture and capabilities.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings preset depends heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For players with a 1080p display, the Ultra preset is the best choice for visual fidelity, as it still delivers an average of 193 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate of most standard monitors. The High preset at 1080p offers a slightly higher average of 253 FPS, but the visual improvement from High to Ultra is often significant in games, and the performance cost is manageable. The Medium preset at 1080p, with an average of 301 FPS, is only necessary for those seeking the absolute highest possible frame rates, perhaps for competitive play on a high-refresh-rate display.

At 1440p, the High preset provides an excellent balance, with an average of 163 FPS. This is smooth and responsive for a third-person shooter. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to an average of 124 FPS, which is still very playable and offers the maximum visual quality. The Medium preset at 1440p, with an average of 194 FPS, is a good option for players who prioritize high frame rates over the extra visual effects provided by the High and Ultra presets. The data suggests that for the best experience at 1440p, High is the recommended starting point, as it provides a significant frame rate advantage over Ultra while maintaining high visual standards.

For 4K gaming, the choices are more constrained. The High preset delivers an average of 88 FPS, which is a solid playable experience. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 67 FPS, which is still above the 60 FPS threshold for console-like smoothness but may be less desirable for players with high-refresh-rate 4K monitors. The Medium preset at 4K offers 105 FPS, which is a better balance for competitive play at this resolution. The data indicates that for a 4K display, High is the recommended preset for a balanced experience, as it offers a 31% performance increase over Ultra (88 FPS vs 67 FPS) with likely minimal visual difference in a game from this era.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is ranked 119 out of 2939 tested combos for this game. This places the combo in the top 4% of all tested configurations, which is a very strong showing. This high ranking is expected, given the caliber of the components involved. The CPU is in the 89th percentile compared to all CPUs, and the GPU is in the 88th percentile compared to all GPUs, indicating that both are high-end parts that should perform well in most scenarios.

The ranking of 119 suggests that there are a handful of other combos that perform better in this specific title. These could involve higher-end CPUs or GPUs, or perhaps configurations that are better optimized for the game's engine. However, a rank of 119 out of 2939 means that this combo outperforms the vast majority of systems in the database. The data shows that this is not a combination that struggles in any way; it is a top-tier performer. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H with an average score 0.2% higher, are extremely close in performance, indicating that the 7500X3D is a very competitive chip. The GPU's rivals, like the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M which is 2.5% slower, do not significantly alter the overall ranking.

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:

• Low: 373 average FPS
• Medium: 301 average FPS (minimum 256, maximum 347)
• High: 253 average FPS
• Ultra: 193 average FPS

At 2560x1440:

• Low: 254 average FPS
• Medium: 194 average FPS (minimum 165, maximum 223)
• High: 163 average FPS
• Ultra: 124 average FPS

At 3840x2160:

• Low: 137 average FPS
• Medium: 105 average FPS (minimum 89, maximum 120)
• High: 88 average FPS
• Ultra: 67 average FPS

The data shows a consistent scaling pattern. For each resolution, the frame rates decrease as the settings increase from Low to Ultra. The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data across all resolutions, showing a consistent minimum-to-maximum spread of about 90 to 100 FPS at each resolution. This suggests stable performance without significant frame-time spikes. The jump from 1080p to 1440p reduces performance by roughly 32% across all settings, and the jump from 1440p to 4K further reduces performance by roughly 46%. This geometric progression highlights the increasing burden on the GPU at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 7000 series, based on the Zen 4 Raphael architecture and built on a 5 nm process. Its defining feature is the large 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a significant advantage for gaming. This cache helps reduce memory latency and improves performance in games that benefit from large data sets being readily accessible to the CPU cores. The base clock is 4.00 GHz, with a boost clock of 4.50 GHz, which are respectable speeds for a gaming-focused chip.

In Minimum, the CPU’s role is most evident at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 373 FPS, a figure so high that it is likely constrained by the CPU’s ability to process game logic and draw calls. The GPU is not the bottleneck at this point; it has the headroom to render many more frames. The CPU's strong single-thread performance, as indicated by its Passmark single-thread score of 3494, is crucial for this scenario. Its multi-thread score of 25047 also shows it can handle the game's background tasks without issue. The CPU's performance percentile of 89 and average benchmark score of 44573 place it among the top processors, with its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14600, being only 0.7% faster in average score.

The data implies that the 7500X3D is an excellent match for the RTX 4090, as it is powerful enough to prevent significant CPU bottlenecks at most settings, except for the extreme frame rates seen at 1080p Low. The 65W TDP of the CPU is surprisingly low for its performance level, indicating high efficiency. This combination of high cache, strong single-thread performance, and efficiency makes it a strong choice for a high-end gaming system, ensuring that the GPU can be fully utilized at resolutions like 1440p and 4K, where the frame rates are more balanced between the two components.