Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER produces a fascinating dataset in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. This combination of a flagship 2023 CPU with a 2019 mid-range GPU creates a pronounced bottleneck dynamic, where the measured frames per second (FPS) reveal exactly which component dictates performance at each setting and resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The data clearly shows that performance degrades predictably as resolution increases, but the rate of that degradation is the key story. At 1080p with Ultra settings, the combo averages 63.2 FPS. Moving to 1440p at Ultra drops that to 42 FPS, a reduction of 21.2 FPS. Scaling further to 4K at Ultra yields just 25 FPS, a 38.2 FPS drop from the 1080p figure. This steep decline suggests that the GPU is being saturated at higher pixel counts.

However, the pattern changes dramatically at Low settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 132.5 FPS. At 1440p Low, it still manages 83.3 FPS, and at 4K Low, it falls to 46.6 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 1440p Low is 49.2 FPS, while the gap between 1440p and 4K Low is 36.7 FPS. This indicates a more linear scaling curve at lower settings, which implies that the CPU is not the limiting factor here; instead, the GPU’s raw throughput is being taxed consistently.

The most telling comparison is at High settings. The average FPS goes from 82.1 at 1080p to 56.9 at 1440p (a 25.2 FPS drop), then to 31.7 at 4K (a further 25.2 FPS drop). This perfectly even 25.2 FPS reduction across each resolution step suggests a well-balanced workload for the GPU at this preset. The data implies that at High settings, the GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary constraint, with the Ryzen 7 7800X3D providing ample headroom.

Settings Recommendations

For players prioritizing smooth gameplay, the Low preset at 1080p offers the highest measured average at 132.5 FPS. This is the only configuration in the dataset that exceeds the 120 FPS threshold, making it the clear choice for high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset at 1080p delivers 101.5 FPS, which remains excellent for most monitors, while High at 1080p still provides a playable 82.1 FPS.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more nuanced. Low settings yield 83.3 FPS, which is respectable, but Medium drops to 63.3 FPS. High at 1440p produces 56.9 FPS, which is borderline for competitive play but acceptable for casual sessions. The Ultra preset at 1440p, at 42 FPS, is likely too sluggish for a third-person shooter where reaction time matters.

At 4K, the data is less encouraging. Even Low settings only reach 46.6 FPS, and High falls to 31.7 FPS. Ultra at 4K bottoms out at 25 FPS. Benchmark results indicate that 4K is not viable for this GPU in this title, regardless of settings. The best experience per the measured rows is arguably 1080p Medium, which balances the 101.5 FPS average with presumably better visual fidelity than Low, without the significant performance penalty seen at High or Ultra.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, with a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. Its base clock is 1530 MHz, boosting to 1785 MHz. The GPU is built on the Turing architecture using a 12 nm process at TSMC, with 1,408 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. These specifications result in a pixel rate of 85.68 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 157.1 GTexel/s.

The game’s results correlate strongly with the GPU’s memory bandwidth. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 25 FPS, which is exactly half of the 1080p Ultra score of 63.2 FPS? No, it is not exactly half; it is 38.2 FPS lower. The 6 GB VRAM capacity appears adequate for this 2014 title at 1080p and 1440p, but the sharp drop to 25 FPS at 4K Ultra suggests the GPU is running out of both memory bandwidth and raw compute headroom. The FP32 performance of 5.027 TFLOPS is the likely ceiling here.

Interestingly, the GPU’s average benchmark score is 14,286, placing it in the 55th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT, scores 14,389, a delta of -0.7%. This indicates the GTX 1660 SUPER is a solid mid-range performer, but it is clearly outclassed by the demands of 4K Ultra in Minimum.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1508 out of 1,733 tested combos for this game. This places it in the bottom 13% of all configurations, which is surprising given the CPU’s strength. This low rank is almost entirely attributable to the GPU’s limitations; the CPU is a top-tier part, but the measured FPS figures are constrained by the graphics card.

This ranking implies that in the broader database, most other combos use more powerful GPUs, even if they have weaker CPUs. For context, the GTX 1660 SUPER sits at the 55th percentile of all GPUs, meaning roughly half of all tested graphics cards are slower. Yet, because this game is not particularly demanding on the CPU, the pairing’s overall rank suffers. The data suggests that for Minimum, the GPU choice matters far more than the CPU, and this combo is held back by its mid-range graphics solution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D is a formidable processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, based on the Zen 4 architecture. It operates with a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, featuring a massive 96 MB of shared L3 cache. Its benchmark scores are exceptional: Cinebench R23 multi-core reaches 29,149, and single-core hits 4,115. The CPU also achieves a Geekbench multi-core score of 15,101 and a single-core score of 2,725.

Despite this compute power, the CPU’s role in Minimum appears minimal. The FPS differences between settings at the same resolution are purely GPU-driven. For example, at 1080p, the spread from Low (132.5 FPS) to Ultra (63.2 FPS) is 69.3 FPS, which cannot be attributed to CPU scaling. The CPU’s average benchmark score is 31,580, putting it in the 87th percentile of all CPUs, with its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-12700F, scoring 31,543 (a 0.1% delta).

The data suggests the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is vastly overqualified for this game. Even at 1080p Low, where the FPS is highest at 132.5, the CPU is likely not breaking a sweat. The 3D V-Cache technology, which benefits many modern titles, has little impact here because the game is older and likely does not leverage large cache pools. This results in a scenario where the CPU is idle, and the GPU is the sole performance arbiter.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The dataset provides 12 distinct measured configurations, each with an average FPS. At 1920x1080, the results range from 132.5 FPS on Low to 63.2 FPS on Ultra. Medium settings produce 101.5 FPS, and High yields 82.1 FPS. This shows a clear 20+ FPS drop for each step from Low to Medium to High, with a larger 18.9 FPS drop from High to Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the scores are 83.3 FPS on Low, 63.3 FPS on Medium, 56.9 FPS on High, and 42 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Medium is 20 FPS, but the gap between Medium and High is only 6.4 FPS. This suggests diminishing returns on visual quality at higher settings, with the GPU struggling more with specific effects.

At 3840x2160, the figures are 46.6 FPS on Low, 35.7 FPS on Medium, 31.7 FPS on High, and 25 FPS on Ultra. The relative drop from Low to Medium is 10.9 FPS, while High to Ultra is 6.7 FPS. The 4K data shows a compressed range, indicating the GPU is hitting a hard performance wall. The difference between 1080p Low (132.5 FPS) and 4K Low (46.6 FPS) is 85.9 FPS, a 64.8% reduction, which highlights how pixel count dominates performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 132.5, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with the GTX 1660 SUPER in this title?

A: No. The best 4K result is 46.6 FPS on Low settings, while Ultra drops to 25 FPS. These are not playable for a shooter.

Q: How does the CPU’s performance compare to its closest rival?

A: The Ryzen 7 7800X3D scores 31,580 on average, while the Intel Core i7-12700F scores 31,543, a negligible 0.1% delta.

Q: What is the difference between 1080p and 1440p at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 82.1 at 1080p to 56.9 at 1440p, a 25.2 FPS reduction.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck in this pairing?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck. The CPU is in the 87th percentile, while the GPU is only in the 55th, and FPS scales with resolution and settings as expected for a GPU-bound scenario.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested configurations?

A: This combo ranks 1508 out of 1,733 total tested combos for Minimum, placing it in the lower percentile due to the GPU’s limitations.