Minimum

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti shows a steep performance curve as resolution climbs. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 134 FPS, but this drops to 84.6 FPS at 1440p and 45.5 FPS at 4K. That represents a 37% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and another 46% drop from 1440p to 4K. These scaling patterns point to the GPU as the primary limiting component at higher resolutions, as the pixel-count increase directly impacts fill-rate-bound workloads.

The High preset tells a similar story: 83.6 FPS at 1080p falls to 58.2 FPS at 1440p and 32.1 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is even more punishing, with 62.5 FPS at 1080p collapsing to 20.1 FPS at 4K. The Ultra-to-4K figure is particularly telling — it is below the 30 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for playable frame rates. The data indicates that the 1660 Ti's 6 GB GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus are being saturated by the higher resolution demands, despite the CPU's strong 8-core, 16-thread configuration.

The scaling from Low to Ultra at each resolution also reveals the GPU bottleneck. At 1080p, the spread from Low (134 FPS) to Ultra (62.5 FPS) is 71.5 FPS, showing headroom for settings tuning. At 4K, the spread narrows to 25.4 FPS (45.5 Low vs 20.1 Ultra), indicating the GPU is already near its limits even on Low settings. This is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario where the graphics card, not the processor, dictates the ceiling.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 1498 out of 1733 tested combinations in this game. That places it in the lower 14th percentile of all tested hardware pairings, which is a weak showing for a system built around the Ryzen 7 5700X3D. The CPU itself ranks in the 82nd percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 24673, but the GPU sits in the 55th percentile with an average score of 13925. This mismatch underscores that the graphics card is the bottleneck holding the overall combo rank down.

The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the Intel Core i7-1360P (deltaPct 0.2), AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D (deltaPct 0.3), and Intel Core i5-11600 (deltaPct 0.5). These are all within a fraction of a percent, meaning the 5700X3D is essentially tied with them in raw compute. However, the GPU's nearest rivals — the AMD Radeon RX 570X (deltaPct 0.4), NVIDIA Tesla K10 (deltaPct -0.7), and NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile (deltaPct 0.8) — are all older or lower-tier parts. The GTX 1660 Ti is not being paired with a GPU that can leverage its CPU's 96 MB of shared L3 cache or its 4.10 GHz boost clock effectively in this title.

The rank of 1498 out of 1733 is a verdict: this pairing is far from optimal for Minimum. The CPU has the compute headroom to drive much higher frame rates, but the GPU's 5.437 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 288.0 GB/s memory bandwidth are insufficient to keep pace. In a game released in 2014, the data suggests modern high-core-count CPUs are not the limiting factor; the 1660 Ti's Turing architecture, despite its 12 nm process, simply cannot deliver the throughput needed for competitive positioning.

GPU Role

The GTX 1660 Ti is built on the TU116 chip with a 12 nm process and 6,600 million transistors. Its base clock is 1500 MHz with a boost of 1770 MHz, and memory runs at 1500 MHz with 12 Gbps effective throughput. The 6 GB GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus gives 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is the key constraint at 4K. The measured data shows that at 4K Ultra, the combo drops to 20.1 FPS, a level that is unplayable for a third-person shooter. Even at 4K Low, the 45.5 FPS result is below the 60 FPS standard that most competitive shooters target.

The GPU's pixel rate of 84.96 GPixel/s and texture rate of 169.9 GTexel/s are modest by modern standards. The 1536 shading units and 48 ROPs are the same class as mid-range parts from 2019, and the 5.437 TFLOPS FP32 performance places it firmly in the budget-to-midrange segment. The PassMark G3D score of 12871 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1061 confirm this. When paired with the 5700X3D, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor at every resolution above 1080p.

The VRAM situation is worth noting. At 1080p, the 6 GB capacity is sufficient for Low and Medium presets, but at 4K, the demands of High and Ultra presets likely exceed what 6 GB can hold, causing the dramatic FPS drops. The 32.1 FPS at 4K High versus 45.5 FPS at 4K Low highlights how quickly the GPU's memory subsystem becomes a wall. The 288.0 GB/s bandwidth is not enough to feed the CPU's fast 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth in a balanced way, though the CPU is not the bottleneck here.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1080p with High settings, delivering 83.6 FPS. This is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and only 18.7% below the Low preset's 102.6 FPS at Medium. The High preset provides better visual fidelity than Low while maintaining playable frame rates. At 1440p, the High preset drops to 58.2 FPS, which is borderline for a shooter, but Medium at 66.3 FPS is a viable alternative if the user prefers higher resolution over visual quality.

For 4K, the data shows no preset achieves 60 FPS. The best option is Low at 45.5 FPS, which is technically playable but not ideal for competitive play. Medium at 36.5 FPS and High at 32.1 FPS are increasingly stutter-prone, while Ultra at 20.1 FPS is not recommended. The verdict is clear: this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with High settings as the sweet spot. Users targeting 1440p should accept Medium settings as the ceiling, and 4K should be avoided unless playable frame rates are not a priority.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings range is playable. Low delivers 134 FPS, Medium drops to 102.6 FPS, High is 83.6 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 62.5 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 71.5 FPS, showing that the GPU has some headroom at this resolution. The 5700X3D's 8 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient to feed the GPU here, as evidenced by the CPU's Cinebench R23 multicore score of 22366.

At 2560x1440, the numbers compress. Low is 84.6 FPS, Medium is 66.3 FPS, High is 58.2 FPS, and Ultra is 40.7 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at High is 25.4 FPS, a 30% reduction. Ultra at 1440p is the first preset to fall below 60 FPS, making it unsuitable for fast-paced third-person action. The data shows that 1440p requires medium-to-low settings to maintain smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the results are marginal. Low is 45.5 FPS, Medium is 36.5 FPS, High is 32.1 FPS, and Ultra is 20.1 FPS. Every preset is below 60 FPS, and the Ultra figure is below 30 FPS, which is generally considered the minimum for playable frame rates. The 4K results confirm that this GPU is not designed for such high pixel counts. The 32.1 FPS at High is 61.6% lower than the 1080p High result, illustrating the severity of the resolution penalty.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: The data shows 1080p is the only resolution where all presets exceed 60 FPS, with High delivering 83.6 FPS and Low reaching 134 FPS. At 1440p, only Low and Medium stay above 60 FPS.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: No preset achieves 60 FPS at 4K. The best result is 45.5 FPS on Low settings, while Ultra drops to 20.1 FPS, which is below playable thresholds.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has an average benchmark score of 13925. The AMD Radeon RX 570X is 0.4% ahead, the NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile is 0.8% behind, and the NVIDIA GTX 680 is 0.8% behind. The differences are marginal.

Q: What is the CPU's ranking among all processors?

A: The Ryzen 7 5700X3D ranks in the 82nd percentile, with an average benchmark score of 24673. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-1360P, is 0.2% behind.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multicore score of 22366 indicates strong compute, but the GPU's 5.437 TFLOPS FP32 performance limits frame rates at higher resolutions.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the GPU?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has a launch MSRP of 279 USD. The CPU's launch MSRP is $249.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D is a 5000-series processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, based on the Zen 3 architecture on a 7 nm process. Its base clock is 3.00 GHz with a boost of 4.10 GHz, and it features a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multicore score of 22366 and single-core score of 3157 indicate strong performance, and its PassMark multithread score of 26318 places it in the 82nd percentile. These numbers suggest the CPU can handle the demands of a 2014 third-person shooter with ease.

However, the measured FPS data shows the CPU is not the limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 134 FPS, which is likely near the game's engine limits. The CPU's 16 threads are more than enough for a game from 2014, and the 3D V-Cache (96 MB L3) provides excellent memory latency for gaming workloads. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 12871 is the constraint, not the CPU's 81257 integer math score or 46492 floating point math score.

The CPU's nearest rivals — the Intel Core i7-1360P, AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D, and Intel Core i5-11600 — are all within 0.5% of its average benchmark score, confirming that the 5700X3D is a top-tier gaming CPU. Yet the combo rank of 1498 out of 1733 shows that pairing it with a GTX 1660 Ti wastes its potential in Minimum. The CPU's 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth and DDR4 support are adequate, but the GPU's 288.0 GB/s bandwidth cannot translate that CPU power into high frame rates at 1440p or 4K. The verdict is clear: the 5700X3D is a capable processor, but in this pairing, it is held back by a GPU that ranks only in the 55th percentile.