Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER delivers a playable but constrained experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. The benchmark data shows a system where the GPU consistently acts as the performance ceiling, with the modern 8-core CPU providing ample headroom. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, contextualizes the combo's standing against 2,938 other tested configurations, and examines the specific hardware characteristics that define its performance profile.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance cliff as resolution increases, a classic indicator of GPU-bound operation. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo averages 84 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 drops that to 54 FPS, a 36% reduction. The jump to 3840x2160 is even more punishing, falling to 29 FPS—a 65% decline from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU that is saturated at higher pixel counts, with the 6 GB VRAM buffer and 192-bit memory bus becoming significant limiting factors.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically at higher resolutions, further confirming GPU limitation. At 1080p, the spread from Low (131 FPS) to Ultra (64 FPS) is 67 FPS. At 1440p, that spread narrows to 44 FPS (85 vs 41). At 4K, the spread compresses to just 24 FPS (46 vs 22). This compression at 4K indicates that even the lowest settings cannot overcome the raw pixel throughput demands, whereas at 1080p, the GPU has enough headroom to differentiate between quality presets.

Interestingly, the Medium preset shows the most consistent minimum FPS data across resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the average is 100 FPS with a minimum of 85 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 65 FPS with a minimum of 55 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 35 FPS with a minimum of 30 FPS. This suggests that Medium settings provide a more stable frame pacing experience relative to other presets, likely because it balances the load between the CPU and GPU more evenly than Ultra, which crushes the GPU, or Low, which may introduce CPU-side bottlenecks at high frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F + GTX 1660 SUPER combination ranks 2509th out of 2939 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the 15th percentile of all configurations. This low ranking is surprising given the CPU's strength—the Ryzen 7 9700F sits in the 94th percentile among all CPUs—but it underscores how heavily this game's performance is dictated by the GPU. The GTX 1660 SUPER, while a capable 1080p card, ranks in only the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, and its age shows in this title.

The data implies that this combo is significantly held back by its graphics card. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Passmark single-thread score of 4691 and a multithread score of 36470, are far above what a 2014 shooter would require. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 12699, while respectable, simply cannot keep pace with the CPU's capabilities. This creates a lopsided pairing where the processor idles while the graphics card struggles, particularly at higher resolutions.

Compared to the GPU's nearest rivals, the GTX 1660 SUPER's average benchmark score of 12986 is only 0.4% ahead of the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940) and 0.4% ahead of the RX 580 (12928). It trails the Tesla M2090 by 0.7%. These marginal differences suggest that swapping to any of these similarly-performing cards would yield nearly identical results in Minimum, reinforcing that the GPU tier, not the specific model, defines this combo's ranking.

GPU Role

The GTX 1660 SUPER's specifications paint a picture of a card designed for 1080p gaming that is being pushed beyond its comfort zone. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for 1080p but becomes a bottleneck at 1440p and 4K. The card's boost clock of 1785 MHz and base clock of 1530 MHz are modest by modern standards, and its 1408 shading units must work overtime to fill 4K frames.

The GPU's memory configuration is particularly telling in Minimum. The game, released in 2014, was designed for GPUs with far less VRAM, but modern texture packs and the game's age mean that even this 6 GB buffer is likely insufficient at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS collapses to 22. The 22 FPS result at 4K Ultra is the lowest measured in the entire dataset, indicating that the card is completely overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and maximum settings.

The GPU's compute capabilities, as measured by its Passmark GPU Compute score of 5076, suggest that it can handle the game's physics and particle effects at lower settings but struggles when those effects are scaled up. The 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the raw horsepower available for shading, and the data shows that this is enough for smooth 1080p gameplay but not for high-refresh-rate 1440p or any meaningful 4K experience. The card's 48 ROPs and 88 TMUs are also relatively limited, which directly impacts fill-rate-dependent scenarios like Minimum's open environments.

Settings Recommendations

Based strictly on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 offers the best balance of performance and visual quality. The 100 FPS average at 1080p Medium with a minimum of 85 FPS provides a smooth, consistent experience that stays well above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset at 1080p, averaging 84 FPS, is also viable but offers less headroom for demanding scenes, while the Low preset at 131 FPS is excessively fast and likely sacrifices too much visual fidelity for the hardware's capability.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset remains the most playable option, averaging 65 FPS with a minimum of 55 FPS. This is borderline for competitive play but acceptable for casual sessions. The High preset at 1440p (54 FPS) dips below the ideal 60 FPS mark, and the Ultra preset (41 FPS) is too inconsistent for smooth gameplay. For 4K, the data shows that even the Low preset (46 FPS) fails to maintain 60 FPS, making 4K a non-viable option for this combo regardless of settings.

The Ultra preset is only recommended for 1080p if visual fidelity takes absolute priority over frame rate, as its 64 FPS average is still playable. However, the data strongly suggests that Medium at 1080p is the sweet spot, offering a 56% performance uplift over Ultra (100 vs 64 FPS) while presumably retaining most of the visual enhancements. Users with 1440p monitors should stick to Medium, while 4K displays will require dropping to Low and accepting a sub-60 FPS experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings range shows clear performance tiers. Low settings produce an average of 131 FPS, Medium produces 100 FPS (minimum 85, maximum 115), High produces 84 FPS, and Ultra produces 64 FPS. The 67 FPS gap between Low and Ultra demonstrates the GPU's sensitivity to graphical fidelity at this resolution, but even the lowest tier remains far above playable thresholds.

At 2560x1440, the averages drop significantly across all presets. Low leads with 85 FPS, followed by Medium at 65 FPS (minimum 55, maximum 74), High at 54 FPS, and Ultra at 41 FPS. The 44 FPS spread between Low and Ultra is narrower than at 1080p, indicating that resolution scaling begins to dominate over settings adjustments. The Medium preset's minimum of 55 FPS is the only configuration at 1440p that stays close to the 60 FPS target.

At 3840x2160, all presets fall below ideal playability. Low averages 46 FPS, Medium averages 35 FPS (minimum 30, maximum 40), High averages 29 FPS, and Ultra averages 22 FPS. The 24 FPS gap between Low and Ultra is the smallest of any resolution, confirming that at 4K, the GPU's raw pixel throughput is the primary constraint, and settings changes have diminishing returns. None of the 4K configurations achieve a 60 FPS average, and the Ultra preset's 22 FPS is borderline unplayable.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a Zen 5 architecture processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, running at a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its Passmark multithread score of 36470 and single-thread score of 4691 place it far above the requirements of Minimum, a game that was released in 2014 when 4-core CPUs were the standard. The CPU's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 89.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth are more than adequate for this title's data streaming needs.

The benchmark data strongly suggests that the CPU is never the bottleneck in this combo. At 1080p Low, where the GPU has the least work, the CPU still manages to feed it to 131 FPS, indicating no obvious CPU limitation. The CPU's nearest rivals include the Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.2% faster), Core i7-14700KF (0.2% slower), Ryzen 9 7950X (0.7% faster), and Core i7-14700K (0.9% faster). These marginal differences mean that swapping the 9700F for any of these would not meaningfully change Minimum's FPS, as the GPU would remain the limiting factor.

The CPU's 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs further emphasizes its capability. With a TDP of 65 W and a 4 nm process node, it is both powerful and efficient, but this efficiency is wasted in this pairing for Minimum. The data implies that users would see nearly identical performance with a much weaker CPU, as the GTX 1660 SUPER's 53rd percentile GPU ranking is the clear performance ceiling. The only scenario where the CPU might matter is at 1080p Low, where the 131 FPS average approaches the CPU's potential frame delivery limit, but even then, the GPU is still doing the heavy lifting.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution and settings for this combo in Minimum?*

A: Based on measured data, 1920x1080 with Medium settings provides the best experience, averaging 100 FPS with a minimum of 85 FPS. This is the only configuration that combines high frame rates with consistent minimums above 60 FPS.

*Q: Can this combo run Minimum at 4K?*

A: Technically yes, but not well. The best 4K result is on Low settings at 46 FPS average. Medium averages 35 FPS, High averages 29 FPS, and Ultra averages 22 FPS. None of these meet the 60 FPS standard.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 9700F holding back the GTX 1660 SUPER?

A: No. The CPU's Passmark multithread score of 36470 and single-thread score of 4691 are vastly superior to what a 2014 game requires. The GPU's 53rd percentile ranking and the steep FPS drops at higher resolutions confirm the GPU is the bottleneck.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its closest rivals in this game?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score of 12986 is within 0.9% of its nearest rivals (RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, RX 580, Tesla M2090, Radeon 740M). In Minimum, this means swapping to any of these cards would produce nearly identical FPS results.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low averages 131 FPS while Ultra averages 64 FPS, a difference of 67 FPS. This is the largest settings gap across all resolutions, indicating the GPU has headroom to scale at 1080p.

Q: Does the Medium preset offer stable frame pacing?

A: Yes. The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum FPS values at all resolutions: 85 at 1080p, 55 at 1440p, and 30 at 4K. The data suggests this preset provides more consistent frame delivery than High or Ultra, which lack measured minimums.