Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a solid, high-refresh-rate experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter that remains surprisingly demanding at higher settings. The combination ranks 918th out of 2,939 tested combos, placing it in the 69th percentile of all configurations. This is a strong showing for a mobile platform, though the data reveals that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K, while the CPU’s 16 cores and 32 threads provide ample headroom at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 918 out of 2,939 tested configurations places it comfortably in the upper third of all systems tested for this game. This position is not a fluke; it reflects a balanced pairing where neither component is severely underpowered for the title’s demands. The rank is driven by the CPU’s exceptional multi-threaded performance, which is crucial for maintaining frame pacing in a game that can spawn numerous AI entities and physics calculations.

Benchmark results indicate that the Ryzen 9 8945HX is a top-tier mobile processor, achieving an average benchmark score of 76,212. This places it in the 95th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX, scores 76,155, a negligible 0.1% difference, meaning the two are effectively interchangeable in this scenario. The AMD EPYC Embedded 8224P and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX are 0.4% behind, while the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 0.6% ahead. These tiny deltas confirm that the 8945HX is at the very apex of mobile processing power.

On the GPU side, the RTX 4080 (mobile) scores an average of 54,247, placing it in the 86th percentile of all graphics cards. Its nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, is only 0.1% faster, which is within run-to-run variance. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X is 1.1% behind, and the Radeon RX 6750 GRE is 2.6% behind. This indicates the GPU is a high-end part, albeit not the absolute fastest available. The combination of a top-5th-percentile CPU with an 86th-percentile GPU explains why the combo ranks so highly; the processor ensures there is no bottleneck to hold back the graphics card’s output.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the dominant performance driver in this pairing, particularly as resolution increases. It features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. This is a substantial amount of VRAM for a 2014 title, ensuring that texture data never spills into slower system memory, even at 4K Ultra settings. The GPU’s 9,728 shading units and 76 RT cores are more than adequate for the game’s DirectX 12 Ultimate workload.

The card’s base clock is 2,205 MHz, with a boost clock of 2,505 MHz. These clocks are high for a mobile part, and the boost behavior is critical for sustaining frame rates. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 43, which is a clear sign that the GPU’s raw compute is being taxed to its limit. The 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is fully utilized here. In contrast, at 1080p Low, the GPU has so much headroom that the CPU becomes the limiting factor, as evidenced by the 256 FPS average.

The GPU’s 86th percentile ranking against all GPUs underscores its high-end status. However, the deltaPct against its rivals shows that the 4080 is not a class leader; it is a very fast upper-midrange part. The 16 GB VRAM is a future-proofing feature, but for Minimum, the data suggests that the GPU’s compute throughput, not memory capacity, is the primary constraint at 4K Ultra. The memory clock of 1,400 MHz (22.4 Gbps effective) is adequate for the game’s bandwidth needs, as the 716.8 GB/s is rarely a bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a classic resolution scaling pattern, with the GPU becoming increasingly dominant as pixel count rises. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 164 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, that number drops to 106 FPS, a 35% reduction. At 4K High, it falls further to 57 FPS, a 65% reduction from the 1080p baseline. This steep curve indicates that the game is heavily pixel-bound, and the RTX 4080’s rasterization power is the key variable.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly telling. At 1440p High, the 106 FPS suggests the CPU and GPU are working in tandem. However, at 4K High, the 57 FPS shows the GPU is struggling to fill the extra pixels. The jump from 1440p (106 FPS) to 4K (57 FPS) is a 46% drop, which is larger than the 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p. This non-linear scaling confirms that the GPU’s fillrate and memory bandwidth are being saturated at 4K.

These results indicate that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p and 1440p, the CPU’s strong single-thread performance (6,030 in Cinebench R23) prevents it from bottlenecking the GPU. However, at 4K, the GPU’s 48.74 TFLOPS of compute is not enough to maintain high frame rates. The data shows that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combo, offering a high refresh rate experience (106 FPS on High) without pushing the GPU into a territory where frame times become inconsistent.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the combo’s capabilities across three resolutions and four quality presets.

At 1920x1080, the combo is exceptionally fast. Low settings produce an average of 256 FPS, which is far beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. Medium settings yield 196 FPS, with a minimum of 166 FPS and a maximum of 225 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery. High settings drop to 164 FPS, still very smooth. Ultra settings average 125 FPS, a significant drop from High but still playable on high-refresh displays.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong. Low settings average 165 FPS, matching the 1080p High result and showing that the CPU is still keeping up. Medium settings average 126 FPS, with a minimum of 107 FPS and a maximum of 145 FPS. High settings drop to 106 FPS, which is the first point where the GPU starts to be a limiting factor. Ultra settings average 81 FPS, which is a playable frame rate for a single-player title.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. Low settings average 89 FPS, which is a substantial drop from the 165 FPS at 1440p Low. Medium settings average 68 FPS, with a minimum of 58 FPS and a maximum of 78 FPS, showing some frame pacing issues near the low end. High settings drop to 57 FPS, which is borderline for a smooth experience. Ultra settings average 43 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and not recommended for competitive play.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Dragon Range. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This high boost clock is crucial for gaming, as it provides excellent single-thread performance. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6,030 is top-tier, ensuring that the CPU is never the bottleneck in most gaming scenarios.

The CPU’s 64 MB of L3 cache is ample for a game like Minimum, which likely has a moderate cache footprint. The dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 83.2 GB/s bandwidth ensures that the CPU can feed the GPU with data quickly. The 5 nm process node from TSMC allows for high clock speeds while maintaining a 55 W TDP, making it an efficient but powerful mobile part.

In this game, the CPU’s role is to maintain frame pacing, especially at low resolutions. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 256 FPS, which confirms the CPU’s ability to feed the GPU with draw calls. The PassMark multithread score of 51,405 and the Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42,713 indicate that the CPU has immense headroom for any background tasks or streaming workloads. The nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX, is only 0.1% faster in average benchmark score, meaning the 8945HX offers the same level of gaming performance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user’s display and performance goals. For 4K displays, the High preset is the best balance, with an average of 57 FPS. This is marginally above the 60 FPS target but may require enabling adaptive sync to smooth out frame times. The Ultra preset at 4K (43 FPS) is too demanding and should be avoided unless the user prioritizes visual fidelity over frame rate.

For 1440p displays, the High preset is the clear winner. It delivers 106 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors (144Hz or 165Hz). The Medium preset at 126 FPS is also excellent, offering a higher frame rate with only a slight visual downgrade. The Ultra preset at 81 FPS is playable but sacrifices 25 FPS compared to High, which may not be worth the visual gains.

For 1080p displays, the High preset is recommended, providing 164 FPS. This is well above the 144Hz refresh rate of most gaming monitors. The Medium preset at 196 FPS is overkill for most displays but could be used to minimize input latency. The Ultra preset at 125 FPS is also viable, but the drop from High suggests that the visual improvements are not worth the 24% performance penalty. The Low preset at 256 FPS is only useful for competitive play where maximum frame rate is the priority.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo’s overall ranking in this game?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination ranks 918th out of 2,939 tested configurations, placing it in the 69th percentile of all systems.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Ryzen 9 8945HX has an average benchmark score of 76,212, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX’s score of 76,155. It is also 0.4% ahead of the AMD EPYC Embedded 8224P and Threadripper PRO 9945WX.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: The data shows 1440p is the sweet spot. At 1440p High, the combo averages 106 FPS, which is a high refresh rate experience. At 4K High, the average drops to 57 FPS, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: Is the GPU’s 16 GB VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: Yes, the 16 GB of GDDR6X memory is more than sufficient for Minimum. The game’s maximum memory usage is unlikely to exceed a few gigabytes, so the 716.8 GB/s bandwidth is the more relevant performance metric.

Q: How much does the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 164 at 1080p to 106 at 1440p (a 35% drop) and further to 57 at 4K (a 65% drop from the 1080p baseline). This shows the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

Q: What is the CPU’s multi-threaded performance?

A: The CPU scores 42,713 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 51,405 in PassMark multithread, placing it in the 95th percentile of all CPUs. This ensures it does not bottleneck the GPU at any resolution.