Minimum

# Minimum — AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D + AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX

This pairing of AMD's 12-core 9900X3D with the 24 GB Radeon RX 7900 XTX delivers a strong 1440p experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter that still scales heavily with GPU load at higher resolutions. The measured data shows a system that can push well past 200 FPS at 1080p on lower presets, yet drops to 55 FPS at 4K Ultra—a clear sign that the RX 7900 XTX becomes the limiting factor as pixel count rises. The 9900X3D, with its 128 MB of L3 cache and 5.50 GHz boost, has ample headroom to feed the GPU at every tested resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1080p to 4K follows a predictable pattern, but the magnitude of the drop reveals where the bottleneck sits. At High settings, average FPS falls from 209 at 1920x1080 to 135 at 2560x1440, then to 72 at 3840x2160. That is a 35% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 47% drop moving to 4K. The scaling is not linear—4K High delivers only about one-third of the 1080p frame rate.

Low settings show the same trend with higher absolute numbers: 325 FPS at 1080p, 209 at 1440p, and 113 at 4K. Medium settings land between Low and High, with 249 FPS at 1080p, 160 at 1440p, and 86 at 4K. Ultra is the most demanding preset, producing 159 FPS at 1080p, 103 at 1440p, and just 55 at 4K.

The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the CPU still has meaningful influence—the gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 166 FPS (325 vs 159), which indicates the GPU is not saturated at lower resolutions. At 4K, the spread narrows to 58 FPS (113 Low vs 55 Ultra), because the GPU is working much harder and setting-based load differences become more pronounced relative to total render time. In short: at 4K, the RX 7900 XTX is the primary constraint; at 1080p, the 9900X3D’s strong single-thread performance (3,041 Geekbench single-core) helps maintain high frame rates even on lighter presets.

GPU Role

The Radeon RX 7900 XTX is a 24 GB GDDR6 card built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, with a 384-bit memory bus and 960 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock reaches 2498 MHz, with a game clock of 2365 MHz. These specs directly influence the measured results: the card’s raw throughput (61.39 TFLOPS FP32) and pixel rate (479.6 GPixel/s) allow it to handle 4K rendering, but the frame counts show it is taxed at that resolution.

At 4K Ultra, the 55 FPS average is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider playable for a shooter. The card’s 24 GB VRAM is not a limiting factor here—the game is from 2014 and likely uses far less—but the compute load from higher presets pushes the GPU to its limits. The 4K Medium result of 86 FPS (with a 73 FPS minimum) is more comfortable, while 4K Low at 113 FPS shows the card can deliver high refresh rates even at 4K when settings are dialed back.

The GPU’s benchmark profile reinforces its position: a Passmark G3D score of 31,238 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6,841 place it in the 64th percentile of all GPUs. Notably, its nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB (deltaPct +0.4) and the NVIDIA TITAN Xp (deltaPct +1.2), which are much older cards—this suggests the 7900 XTX’s average benchmark score of 19,410 is being compared against a wide field, and its actual gaming performance in Minimum is far ahead of those older parts. The 0.4% delta versus the GTX 1060 is a quirk of the aggregate score, not a reflection of real-world gaming, where the 7900 XTX’s 24 GB VRAM and modern architecture dominate.

At 1080p, the GPU is not the bottleneck. The 325 FPS Low result indicates the card can push far beyond typical 144 Hz monitors, and even Ultra at 159 FPS is well above 144 Hz. The 1440p results are similarly impressive: Low at 209 FPS and High at 135 FPS are both excellent for competitive play. Only at 4K does the GPU’s performance become the deciding factor, where users must choose between fidelity (Ultra at 55 FPS) and frame rate (Low at 113 FPS).

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using TSMC’s 4 nm process. It boosts to 5.50 GHz with a base clock of 4.40 GHz, and its 128 MB L3 cache is a key asset for gaming workloads. The CPU’s benchmark scores are strong: 47,737 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, 6,739 in single-core, and 22,884 in Geekbench multi-core.

In Minimum, the CPU’s role is most visible at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully loaded. At 1080p Low, the 325 FPS result is likely near the engine’s frame rate ceiling, and the 9900X3D’s single-thread performance (3,041 Geekbench single-core, 1,269 3DMark single-thread) keeps the game’s main thread from becoming a bottleneck. The 1440p Low result of 209 FPS still shows CPU influence, as the GPU could theoretically push higher if the CPU were weaker.

The 9900X3D’s 91st percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54,762, puts it slightly behind the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (deltaPct -0.6) but ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700F (deltaPct +2.1). These rivals are all strong gaming processors, and the 9900X3D’s edge in cache (128 MB vs typical 32-36 MB) likely helps in Minimum’s scene complexity, though the measured FPS data does not isolate CPU vs GPU contribution directly.

The CPU’s 24 threads matter for background tasks and streaming, but Minimum is not a heavily threaded title. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 12,490 and max-thread score of 13,795 show scaling, but the game likely uses only a few cores. The single-thread results (1,269 in 3DMark, 679 in Cinebench R15 single-core) are more relevant, and they are strong enough to avoid limiting the GPU at 1080p and 1440p. At 4K, the CPU’s role diminishes entirely, as the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck—the FPS differences between presets at 4K are driven by GPU load, not CPU capability.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for each resolution. At 1920x1080, all presets are playable, but the best balance of visual quality and frame rate is High at 209 FPS. Ultra at 159 FPS is still above 144 Hz, so users with high-refresh monitors can choose Ultra without sacrificing smoothness. Medium at 249 FPS is excellent for competitive play, while Low at 325 FPS is overkill for most displays but useful for maximum responsiveness.

At 2560x1440, High at 135 FPS is the sweet spot—it is well above 120 Hz and only slightly below the Medium result of 160 FPS. Ultra at 103 FPS is still playable on 100 Hz monitors, but the drop from High to Ultra (135 to 103, a 24% reduction) is significant for marginal visual gains. Low at 209 FPS is ideal for esports-style play, though the visual downgrade may not be worth it on a 1440p panel.

At 3840x2160, the recommendation is more nuanced. Ultra at 55 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and will feel choppy in a shooter. High at 72 FPS is playable but not smooth on 120 Hz 4K displays. Medium at 86 FPS (with a 73 FPS minimum) is the best compromise—it stays above 60 FPS and offers better visuals than Low. Low at 113 FPS is the only preset that fully utilizes high-refresh 4K monitors, but it sacrifices most visual fidelity. For most 4K users, Medium is the recommended preset, as it provides a playable frame rate with reasonable quality.

The data shows diminishing returns from Medium to Ultra at every resolution: at 1080p, Ultra is 36% slower than Medium (159 vs 249); at 1440p, it is 36% slower (103 vs 160); at 4K, it is 36% slower (55 vs 86). High sits between Medium and Ultra, offering about 16-17% less performance than Medium at each resolution. This consistent pattern suggests that Ultra is the least efficient preset, and High or Medium are better choices for maintaining high frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX ranks 368th out of 2,939 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the top 12.5% of all systems tested. That is a strong result for a game that is over a decade old, but the rank reflects the GPU’s limitations at 4K Ultra, where the 55 FPS result drags down the overall standing relative to newer or higher-end GPUs.

The rank is notably lower than the CPU’s own percentile (91st) and the GPU’s percentile (64th), which indicates that the pairing’s performance in Minimum is more constrained by the GPU than the CPU. The 9900X3D is clearly capable of feeding the 7900 XTX at all tested settings—the CPU’s benchmark scores are well above the GPU’s, and the 1440p results (135 FPS High) show no CPU bottleneck. The 368th rank out of 2,939 is competitive, but it is not a top-tier result because the 4K Ultra preset is the weakest link.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the 9900X3D holds its own: it is only 0.6% behind the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF in average CPU score, and 2.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700F. The RX 7900 XTX’s nearest rivals in the GPU database are older cards like the GTX 1060 3 GB and TITAN Xp, which suggests the aggregate benchmark does not fully capture the 7900 XTX’s gaming prowess. In practice, this combo is well-matched for 1440p high-refresh gaming and capable of 4K at Medium settings, but it will not top the charts in Minimum against systems with RTX 40-series or newer GPUs.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 2560x1440 is the sweet spot. At High settings, the combo achieves 135 FPS average, which is well above 120 Hz and only slightly below the 160 FPS Medium result. At 4K, the highest playable preset is Medium at 86 FPS, but 1440p High offers a better frame rate with minimal visual compromise.

*Q: Can this system hit 240 FPS in Minimum?*

A: Yes, but only at 1080p on Low or Medium presets. The measured data shows 325 FPS at 1080p Low and 249 FPS at 1080p Medium. At 1440p, the maximum is 209 FPS (Low), which falls short of 240 Hz. For 240 Hz gaming, 1080p is required.

*Q: Is the 24 GB VRAM on the RX 7900 XTX necessary for Minimum?*

A: No, Minimum is a 2014 game that will not use anywhere near 24 GB of VRAM. The card’s 24 GB capacity is not a limiting factor in this title. The GPU’s compute performance (61.39 TFLOPS FP32) and memory bandwidth (960 GB/s) are what drive the measured FPS, not VRAM capacity.

Q: Why is the 4K Ultra result only 55 FPS, while 1080p Low hits 325 FPS?

A: The 4K Ultra preset requires 4x the pixels of 1080p and uses the most demanding settings, which heavily loads the GPU. The RX 7900 XTX’s raw throughput is sufficient for 1080p at very high frame rates, but at 4K Ultra, the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The 55 FPS result is a 83% reduction from the 1080p Low figure, showing how GPU-bound the system is at 4K.

Q: How does the 9900X3D compare to its closest CPU rivals in terms of benchmark scores?

A: The 9900X3D has an average benchmark score of 54,762, which is 0.6% lower than the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (55,093) and 1.3% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (54,053). It is 2.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700F (53,620). These deltas are small, indicating the CPUs are closely matched in aggregate benchmarks.

Q: What preset should I use for 4K gaming with this combo?

A: Medium is the recommended 4K preset, delivering 86 FPS average with a 73 FPS minimum. High at 72 FPS is playable but risks dipping below 60 FPS on demanding scenes. Ultra at 55 FPS is not recommended for a shooter, as the frame rate is too low for smooth aiming. Low at 113 FPS is the only preset that fully utilizes a 120 Hz 4K monitor, but it sacrifices visual quality.