Minimum

The Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER combination delivers a remarkably consistent experience in Minimum, with results that clearly separate the GPU's raw power from the CPU's capability to feed it. The measured FPS data shows that this pairing is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher settings, but the CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads become a significant factor at lower presets, where frame rates climb into the hundreds. For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, the data points to the Medium preset at 1440p and 4K, while the High preset remains the most practical choice for those prioritizing image quality without sacrificing playability. The Ultra preset, while playable at 1440p, proves too demanding at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy of presets, and the data suggests that the "High" preset is the sweet spot for this combination across all resolutions. At 3840x2160, High delivers an average of 81.7 FPS, which is a solid, playable frame rate for a third-person shooter. Moving down to Medium at 4K only increases the average to 96.2 FPS, a modest 14.5 FPS gain that comes with a noticeable reduction in visual quality. The Ultra preset at 4K falls to 59.1 FPS, which is below the smoothness threshold most players expect from a modern shooter.

At 2560x1440, the High preset shines with an average of 148.9 FPS, comfortably exceeding the refresh rate of most high-end monitors. The Medium preset at 1440p yields 177 FPS, but the jump from High to Medium is less impactful than the jump from Ultra to High, making High the more efficient choice. At 1920x1080, all presets are playable, but the High preset’s 228.9 FPS average is already so far beyond typical display capabilities that pushing to Medium (272.8 FPS) or Low (352.6 FPS) offers no practical benefit outside of extreme competitive play. The data indicates that Ultra is best reserved for 1080p, where its 174.3 FPS average still holds up well.

How This Combo Ranks

The benchmark database places this specific combination at rank 105 out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum. This puts it in the top 6% of all configurations tested, a position that reflects the GPU's high percentile ranking rather than the CPU's more modest standing. The RTX 4080 SUPER sits at the 88th percentile among all GPUs, while the i5-12400F is at the 77th percentile among all CPUs. This discrepancy shows that the combo’s excellent overall rank is driven primarily by the graphics card. The data implies that pairing this GPU with a faster CPU would yield even higher rankings, but the current combination still outperforms the vast majority of systems in the database.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications explain the high frame rates observed. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 736.3 GB/s. This large memory pool and high bandwidth are essential for handling the texture loads and effects at 4K resolution, where the High preset still manages an 81.7 FPS average. The GPU’s boost clock of 2550 MHz and its 10240 shading units deliver the raw compute necessary to push frame rates from 59.1 FPS at 4K Ultra to 123.2 FPS at 4K Low.

The data shows a clear scaling pattern: at 4K, dropping from Ultra to High yields a 22.6 FPS gain, while dropping from High to Medium yields another 14.5 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that heavily tax the GPU’s 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The RTX 4080 SUPER’s 80 RT cores and 320 tensor cores are present in the spec sheet, but the measured FPS for this game does not isolate ray tracing or DLSS usage. The benchmark results indicate that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at all resolutions above 1080p, as the frame rate differences between presets are substantial.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are 59.1 FPS on Ultra, 81.7 FPS on High, 96.2 FPS on Medium, and 123.2 FPS on Low. The progression shows that each step down in settings yields a significant performance increase, with the largest single jump being 22.6 FPS from Ultra to High. The gap from Medium to Low is 27 FPS, indicating that the Low preset removes a substantial portion of the visual workload.

At 2560x1440, the results are 113.9 FPS on Ultra, 148.9 FPS on High, 177 FPS on Medium, and 229.4 FPS on Low. The relative differences shrink compared to 4K, but the pattern remains. The jump from Ultra to High is 35 FPS, while the jump from Medium to Low is 52.4 FPS. This resolution is where the RTX 4080 SUPER starts to show its strength, as even the Ultra preset maintains a frame rate above 100 FPS.

At 1920x1080, the averages spike to 174.3 FPS on Ultra, 228.9 FPS on High, 272.8 FPS on Medium, and 352.6 FPS on Low. The 1080p results show a diminishing return on settings changes; the difference between Ultra and High is 54.6 FPS, but the difference between Medium and Low is 79.8 FPS. The data reveals that at 1080p, the CPU’s single-thread performance becomes a limiting factor, as the frame rates approach the i5-12400F’s maximum output. The CPU’s 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and its 2-thread score of 1699 suggest that the processor can sustain these high frame rates, but the scaling from 1440p to 1080p is not linear, indicating a CPU bottleneck at the lowest resolution and settings.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but with caveats. The data shows an average of 81.7 FPS at 4K High and 96.2 FPS at 4K Medium. The Ultra preset drops to 59.1 FPS, so sticking to High or Medium is recommended for smooth play.

Q: Is the RTX 4080 SUPER overkill for 1080p?

A: The benchmark results show 228.9 FPS at 1080p High and 352.6 FPS at 1080p Low. These numbers far exceed standard 60 Hz or 144 Hz monitors, so the GPU’s potential is largely wasted unless using a very high refresh rate display.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance at low settings?

A: At 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 352.6 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s limit. The i5-12400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient, but its single-thread score of 909 in 3DMark suggests it will cap frame rates in this scenario.

Q: What is the best preset for competitive play?

A: At 1440p, the Low preset delivers 229.4 FPS, which offers the highest frame rate. However, the High preset at 148.9 FPS still provides a competitive advantage with better visuals, making it a more balanced choice.

Q: Should I use the Ultra preset?

A: Only at 1080p, where it averages 174.3 FPS. At 1440p it drops to 113.9 FPS, and at 4K it falls to 59.1 FPS. The visual upgrade over High is not worth the performance loss at higher resolutions.

Q: How does this combo compare to others in the database?

A: It ranks 105th out of 1733 tested combos. This places it in the top 6%, a strong result driven by the GPU’s 88th percentile ranking among all graphics cards.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F plays a supporting role in this combination, but its specifications are still relevant to the measured results. The CPU features 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It has 18 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory. The benchmark results show that this CPU is capable of feeding the RTX 4080 SUPER at most settings, but it becomes a limiting factor at lower resolutions and presets.

The CPU’s 3DMark 16-thread score of 5895 and its 8-thread score of 4779 indicate strong multi-threaded performance for a 6-core part. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16518 confirms that it can handle the game’s background tasks without issue. However, the single-threaded performance, as shown by a 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and a Passmark single-thread score of 3481, is the key metric for high-FPS gaming. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 352.6 FPS, which is close to the CPU’s practical limit. This is evident from the fact that the frame rate increase from 1440p Low (229.4 FPS) to 1080p Low (352.6 FPS) is 123.2 FPS, a smaller jump than the resolution change would suggest if the GPU were the sole bottleneck.

The i5-12400F’s position relative to its rivals also provides context. It scores 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i7-8700K and 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i5-1335U, but 0.7% lower than the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS. This puts it squarely in the mid-range tier of CPUs, which is sufficient for this game. The CPU’s 77th percentile ranking among all CPUs shows that it is not a top-tier part, but the measured FPS data demonstrates that it does not hinder the RTX 4080 SUPER until the settings are dropped to Low at 1080p. For most players using High or Medium settings, the CPU will not be the limiting factor.