Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER combination delivers a playable experience in Minimum, but the data reveals a system that is heavily constrained by the GPU at higher resolutions. The measured frame rates show a clear pattern: at 1080p, the CPU has ample headroom, but as resolution increases, the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck, causing substantial performance drops.

Resolution Scaling

The performance degradation from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, confirming that the RTX 2070 SUPER is the limiting component in this pairing. At Ultra settings, the average frame rate falls from 92.3 FPS at 1920x1080 to 60.6 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 31.7 FPS. Moving to 3840x2160, the average drops further to 34.1 FPS, which is a 63% reduction from the 1080p figure. This dramatic scaling indicates that the GPU's rendering throughput, not the CPU's processing power, dictates performance at higher pixel counts.

The trend is identical at High settings, where the average FPS goes from 123.8 at 1080p down to 77.6 at 1440p and finally to 39.5 at 4K. Even at Low settings, which typically reduce the GPU load, the scaling remains steep: 190.1 FPS at 1080p falls to 121.5 FPS at 1440p and 64.2 FPS at 4K. The fact that even the Low preset cannot maintain high frame rates at 4K underscores that the GPU is saturated. The 12-core, 24-thread Ryzen 9 7900X, with its 4.70 GHz base and 5.60 GHz boost clock, is clearly not the bottleneck here; its high single-thread and multi-thread scores suggest it can feed frames far faster than the GPU can render them at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested processor and graphics card combinations, this pairing holds a mid-pack position. The combo ranks 1046 out of 1733 total combinations, placing it in the lower half of all tested systems. This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's age and tier; the RTX 2070 SUPER sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, while the Ryzen 9 7900X is in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. This mismatch means the processor's potential is largely unrealized in this game.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 22206 places it in a tight cluster with its nearest rivals. It is 0.5% behind the NVIDIA RTX A400 (score 22307) and 0.9% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (score 22006). It also trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile by 2.3% (score 22729) but leads the AMD Radeon RX 5700 by 2.5% (score 21670). These small deltas show that the 2070 SUPER's performance is competitive with its direct contemporaries, but it lacks the raw power to push the combo higher in the overall standings. The CPU, meanwhile, is effectively a top-tier part; its average score of 50556 is nearly identical to the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 (50598, -0.1% delta) and the AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT (50738, -0.4% delta), confirming that the processor is not the reason for the mid-pack ranking.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, the data points to the High preset as the optimal choice at 1440p. At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers an average of 77.6 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Ultra preset at this resolution drops to 60.6 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes. The Medium preset at 1440p offers 92.5 FPS, but the jump to High provides a significant visual improvement for a relatively modest performance cost of 14.9 FPS.

At 1080p, the High preset is the clear winner, achieving 123.8 FPS. This is high enough to take advantage of high-refresh-rate monitors while maintaining excellent visual quality. The Ultra preset at 1080p still manages 92.3 FPS, but the extra GPU load yields diminishing returns. For 4K gaming, the data shows that no preset provides a truly smooth experience; the highest average is 64.2 FPS on Low, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and requires a significant sacrifice in visual quality. The High preset at 4K only manages 39.5 FPS, making it unsuitable for fast-paced action. Therefore, the recommendation is to target High settings at 1080p or 1440p for the best experience.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play Minimum with this hardware?*

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 provides the highest frame rates, with the High preset delivering an average of 123.8 FPS. 2560x1440 is also viable, with a High preset average of 77.6 FPS, but 3840x2160 struggles to maintain playable frame rates on any preset.

Q: How much of a performance drop is there between 1080p and 4K?

A: The drop is substantial. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 123.8 FPS at 1080p to 39.5 FPS at 4K. At Ultra settings, it falls from 92.3 FPS to 34.1 FPS, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The CPU is a high-end part, ranking in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU ranks in the 65th percentile. The steep FPS drops from 1080p to 4K confirm that the RTX 2070 SUPER cannot keep up with the Ryzen 9 7900X's output.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all other tested combinations?

A: This specific CPU and GPU pair ranks 1046 out of 1733 tested combinations. This places it in the lower half of all systems, largely due to the GPU's age and performance tier relative to the CPU.

Q: Which settings preset is recommended for 1440p gaming?

A: The High preset is recommended for 2560x1440, as it delivers an average of 77.6 FPS. This provides a good balance between visual quality and performance, with the Ultra preset only offering 60.6 FPS.

Q: Does the GPU have enough VRAM for this game?

A: The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory. The benchmark results show that at 4K resolution, the highest average frame rate is 64.2 FPS on Low settings, which suggests the GPU's processing power, rather than VRAM capacity, is the primary constraint.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is the primary determinant of frame rates in Minimum, especially at higher resolutions. Based on the Turing architecture, this GPU features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units. It operates at a base clock of 1605 MHz and a boost clock of 1770 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

The benchmark results show that this card's performance is consistent with its position in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 22206 is within 2.5% of its nearest rivals, including the AMD Radeon RX 5700. In Minimum, the GPU's limitations become apparent at 4K, where even the Low preset yields only 64.2 FPS, a figure that is below the 60 FPS target. The card's FP32 performance is rated at 9.062 TFLOPS, and while this is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming, the data shows that it is insufficient for maintaining high frame rates at 4K. The 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores are present, but the game's performance scaling suggests that raw rasterization throughput is the limiting factor.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is a high-end processor that provides more than enough computational power for Minimum. With 12 cores and 24 threads based on the Zen 4 architecture, it operates at a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. It has a large 64 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus, offering 83.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

The CPU's performance metrics are excellent, as evidenced by its 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 50556 is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with a delta of only -0.1% compared to the Intel Core Ultra 5 235. In multi-threaded workloads, it scores 43695 in Cinebench R23, and its single-thread score of 6168 in the same test is also strong. The measured FPS data in Minimum suggests that the CPU is never the bottleneck. At 1080p, the lowest average frame rate is 92.3 FPS on Ultra settings, which is still high, but the GPU is already struggling. At 4K, the frame rates are much lower, but this is entirely due to the GPU's inability to render at that resolution. The CPU's high clock speeds and core count ensure that it can handle the game's logic and physics without imposing any frame rate limits.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data points represent the measured average frame rates for this specific hardware configuration in Minimum.

At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 190.1 FPS, the Medium preset achieves 146.6 FPS, the High preset achieves 123.8 FPS, and the Ultra preset achieves 92.3 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves 121.5 FPS, the Medium preset achieves 92.5 FPS, the High preset achieves 77.6 FPS, and the Ultra preset achieves 60.6 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset achieves 64.2 FPS, the Medium preset achieves 51.6 FPS, the High preset achieves 39.5 FPS, and the Ultra preset achieves 34.1 FPS.

These numbers clearly illustrate the performance hierarchy. The gap between the Low and Ultra presets widens as resolution increases, from a 97.8 FPS difference at 1080p to a 30.1 FPS difference at 4K. This indicates that at lower resolutions, the CPU has more headroom to push higher frame rates, but at 4K, the GPU's rendering limits cap the maximum output. The data confirms that the RTX 2070 SUPER is the definitive bottleneck for 4K gaming, while the Ryzen 9 7900X provides ample performance for all other scenarios.