Minimum

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT paired with the Intel Core i5-11400F delivers a compelling 1080p and 1440p experience in Minimum, but the data shows a significant performance cliff when moving to 4K. The measured FPS across all four settings presets indicates that this combination is heavily GPU-bound at lower resolutions, while the demands of 4K Ultra push the system to its limits, resulting in frame rates that dip below the 60 FPS threshold.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 reveals a classic pattern of GPU limitation. At 1080p with Low settings, the system produces an average of 279.7 FPS, which is an exceptionally high frame rate that suggests the CPU is keeping pace without bottlenecking the GPU. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same Low preset drops the average to 177.7 FPS, a reduction of approximately 36%. The transition to 4K Low further reduces the average to 98.3 FPS, which represents a 45% drop from the 1440p figure.

The scaling pattern becomes even more pronounced at higher quality settings. With Ultra settings, the 1080p average is 133.6 FPS, which falls to 86.8 FPS at 1440p—a 35% decrease. At 4K Ultra, the average plummets to 48.6 FPS, a 44% reduction from the 1440p result. This consistent ~35-45% drop between each resolution step strongly indicates that the limiting component is the GPU's rendering throughput rather than the CPU's processing capability. The RX 9070 XT, with its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth, handles the lower resolutions with ease, but the pixel workload at 4K becomes the dominant factor.

The delta between Low and Ultra settings widens as resolution decreases. At 1080p, the difference between Low (279.7 FPS) and Ultra (133.6 FPS) is 146.1 FPS. At 1440p, that gap narrows to 90.9 FPS (177.7 vs. 86.8). At 4K, the gap is 49.7 FPS (98.3 vs. 48.6). This narrowing gap at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is becoming the sole constraint, and the CPU's ability to feed frames becomes less relevant. The data suggests that for 4K gaming, the RX 9070 XT is the primary bottleneck, while at 1080p the i5-11400F's six cores and 12 threads are sufficient to keep up.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 177.2 FPS. This is a very playable frame rate, indicating that the combination of the Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is well-suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p displays.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 98.3 on Low settings to 48.6 on Ultra. While Low and Medium presets (64.1 FPS) can achieve playable frame rates, the Ultra preset falls below 60 FPS. For a consistent 60 FPS experience at 4K, users would need to use Medium or High settings.

Q: How does the CPU perform relative to its rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-11400F has an average benchmark score of 17,181, which is virtually identical to its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, which scores 17,189 (a delta of 0%). It also sits close to the Intel Core i7-1260P (17,212, delta -0.2%) and the Intel Core Ultra 7 164U (17,215, delta -0.2%). This indicates the CPU's performance is highly competitive within its immediate peer group.

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p experience?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 114.8 FPS, while Ultra delivers 86.8 FPS. Both are playable, but the High preset offers a substantial 28 FPS advantage over Ultra. Medium settings provide 137.2 FPS, which is an even smoother experience if visual fidelity is less of a priority.

Q: Is the GPU's performance close to any specific rival?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT has an average benchmark score of 39,647. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon Pro 575, scores 39,703, representing a delta of -0.1%. The NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile scores 39,568, a 0.2% difference, showing the RX 9070 XT is within a very tight performance band of these comparable cards.

Q: What is the frame rate drop from Medium to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Medium preset averages 212.3 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 133.6 FPS. This is a drop of 78.7 FPS, or roughly 37%. The jump from Medium to Ultra carries a significant performance cost, which is typical for the most demanding graphics settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that the High preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance for this specific combination. At 1080p, High delivers 177.2 FPS, which is only 35.1 FPS less than Low but provides a substantial visual upgrade over Medium. At 1440p, High yields 114.8 FPS, comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and close to the 137.2 FPS of Medium. This makes High the most versatile preset across the two most common resolutions.

For users with 4K displays, the recommendation shifts. The High preset at 4K averages 64.1 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS target but may not be stable enough for all scenes. The Medium preset at 4K provides 74.2 FPS, offering a more comfortable margin while still maintaining a reasonable level of graphical detail. Choosing Medium at 4K sacrifices some visual fidelity compared to High but results in a 10.1 FPS improvement, which is more valuable for gameplay smoothness.

The Ultra preset is the least recommended option at any resolution. At 1080p, it still achieves a high 133.6 FPS, but the performance cost relative to High is significant. At 1440p, Ultra's 86.8 FPS is playable, but the 28 FPS penalty versus High is noticeable. At 4K, Ultra's 48.6 FPS falls below the standard playability threshold, making it unsuitable for a consistent experience. The data indicates that High is the optimal choice for most users, with Medium as a viable fallback for 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings shows the system's capability. Low settings produce an average of 279.7 FPS, the highest measured value. Medium settings reduce this to 212.3 FPS, a 24% decrease. High settings deliver 177.2 FPS, and Ultra settings bring the average down to 133.6 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 146.1 FPS total reduction, demonstrating the scaling of graphical demands.

At 2560x1440, the averages are lower but still robust. Low settings achieve 177.7 FPS, Medium reaches 137.2 FPS, High hits 114.8 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 86.8 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 90.9 FPS. Notably, the 1440p Low result (177.7 FPS) is nearly identical to the 1080p High result (177.2 FPS), indicating that the GPU can handle the increased resolution when graphical complexity is reduced.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are more pronounced. Low settings average 98.3 FPS, Medium averages 74.2 FPS, High averages 64.1 FPS, and Ultra averages 48.6 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 49.7 FPS. The 4K results highlight the GPU's limitations, as even the Low preset cannot reach the 100 FPS mark, and the Ultra preset falls below 50 FPS. The data shows a clear hierarchy where 1080p is for maximum frame rates, 1440p is the sweet spot for high quality, and 4K requires careful settings management.

How This Combo Ranks

In the overall benchmark database for Minimum, the combination of the Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT ranks 451st out of 1,733 tested combos. This places it in the top 26% of all configurations tested, indicating a strong performance tier. The rank reflects the balance between the CPU's 75th percentile ranking among all CPUs and the GPU's 82nd percentile ranking among all GPUs.

The combo's rank suggests that while it is not at the absolute top of the performance charts, it outperforms the majority of tested setups. The CPU's average benchmark score of 17,181 is closely matched by its nearest rivals, with the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U at 17,189 and the Intel Core i7-1260P at 17,212. The GPU's average score of 39,647 is similarly competitive with its nearest rivals, including the AMD Radeon Pro 575 at 39,703. This proximity in scores indicates that the combo is well-balanced, with neither component acting as a clear weak point.

The 451st rank out of 1,733 combos means that 1,282 other configurations were slower in this game. The data shows that this pairing is capable of delivering high frame rates at mainstream resolutions, and its rank reflects a solid mid-to-high tier position. For users prioritizing 1080p or 1440p gaming, this combo provides a level of performance that is likely to satisfy most demands, as evidenced by the measured FPS figures.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Rocket Lake architecture, built on Intel's 14 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 12 MB shared L3 cache. The CPU's benchmark scores show a strong single-thread performance, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 868 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,029. Multi-threaded performance is also solid, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14,372 and a Passmark multithread score of 16,908.

In the context of Minimum, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (279.7 FPS) is exceptionally high, suggesting that the CPU can feed the GPU with enough data to avoid becoming a bottleneck at lower resolutions. However, the GPU's 82nd percentile ranking and the fact that FPS scales consistently with resolution changes indicate that the RX 9070 XT is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The CPU's 75th percentile ranking versus all CPUs, combined with its competitive scores against rivals like the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, suggests it is more than adequate for this game. The 6-core, 12-thread configuration is sufficient for the workload Minimum presents, and the boost clock of 4.40 GHz provides the single-threaded speed that many games rely on. The data shows that the CPU does not constrain the system's performance in a meaningful way, as the FPS figures are consistently high at 1080p and 1440p, only dropping when the GPU's rendering capabilities are exceeded at 4K.