Minimum

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB delivers a solid, high-refresh-rate experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter that remains surprisingly demanding at higher presets. The combo ranks 1113th out of 2939 tested configurations, placing it in the upper-middle tier of the database, which is respectable given that the GPU sits in the 29th percentile of all GPUs while the CPU is in the 73rd percentile. Benchmark results indicate that this pairing is well-balanced for the game, with the CPU providing enough headroom to feed the GPU at most settings, though the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor at 4K Ultra.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s overall rank of 1113 out of 2939 tested combinations places it comfortably above the median, meaning the majority of tested systems will deliver lower frame rates in Minimum. This ranking is driven primarily by the CPU’s strong relative performance; the i5-12400F scores in the 73rd percentile against all CPUs, which is significantly higher than the GPU’s 29th percentile standing. The data suggests that while the RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB is not the fastest card in the database, the processor’s high single-thread and multi-thread scores help mitigate potential bottlenecks.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals in the database, the i5-12400F posts an average benchmark score of 19039, which is virtually identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS at 19047 (a 0% delta). It edges out the Intel Core 3 201E by a marginal 0.1% (19056 vs. 19039) and trails the Intel Core i5-1335U by 0.3% (18982 vs. 19039). These near-ties indicate that the CPU’s performance is typical for its class, and in Minimum, this translates to consistent frame delivery without unusual dips.

For the GPU, the RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB shows an average benchmark score of 4901, which places it just 0.1% behind the AMD FirePro W5130M (4904) and 0.2% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 (4893). More notably, it outperforms the AMD Radeon R7 M265 and R7 M360 by 0.6% each (4929 and 4931 respectively). In practical terms for Minimum, these rival comparisons suggest that the GPU is a mid-to-low-tier performer in the broader database, but the measured FPS shows it is still capable of high frame rates at lower resolutions.

The rank is also a function of the game’s age; since Minimum released in 2014, it does not leverage modern multi-threading as heavily as newer titles. The i5-12400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads are more than sufficient, and its 3DMark single-thread score of 909 combined with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1680 ensures that the game’s primary thread runs efficiently. Data shows that the combo’s 4K Ultra score of 40 FPS is the only sub-60 result, which aligns with the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM being stressed at that resolution.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience varies by resolution, but the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all three tested resolutions. At 1920x1080, Medium delivers an average of 178 FPS with a minimum of 151 FPS and a maximum of 205 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate of most monitors and provides a smooth, stutter-free experience. The jump from Low to Medium is substantial—from 233 FPS down to 178 FPS—but the visual fidelity gains are worth it since the frame rate remains far beyond playable thresholds.

For 2560x1440, Medium again stands out with an average of 115 FPS and a minimum of 98 FPS, ensuring that even the most intense scenes stay above 60 FPS. High settings at this resolution drop to 96 FPS, which is still playable, but the 19 FPS difference between Medium and High suggests that the extra visual details are not worth the performance cost unless the user has a 144Hz monitor and prefers sharper textures. The data indicates that Ultra at 1440p (73 FPS) is viable for those who prioritize image quality over frame rate, but it approaches the lower bound of high-refresh gaming.

At 3840x2160, Medium is the only preset that maintains a minimum frame rate above 53 FPS, averaging 62 FPS. High settings drop to 52 FPS average, which is borderline for smooth gameplay, and Ultra falls to 40 FPS, making it less desirable for action-heavy sequences. Low settings at 4K (81 FPS) are playable, but Medium provides a better visual experience without sacrificing the 60 FPS target. Therefore, the recommendation is to use Medium for all resolutions; it is the only preset that consistently keeps minimum frame rates within 10% of the average, as evidenced by the 53 FPS minimum at 4K and 98 FPS minimum at 1440p.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for this hardware?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 with Medium settings yields the highest average FPS of 178, with a minimum of 151 FPS. This is the optimal choice for competitive play, as it provides the smoothest experience without the visual penalties of Low settings.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but only at Medium settings, which averages 62 FPS with a minimum of 53 FPS. High and Ultra presets at 3840x2160 drop to 52 FPS and 40 FPS respectively, which are below the ideal threshold for fluid gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU’s performance compare to its rivals?

A: The i5-12400F’s average benchmark score of 19039 is statistically tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (19047, 0% delta) and Intel Core 3 201E (19056, -0.1%). It is slightly ahead of the Intel Core i5-1335U by 0.3% and the AMD EPYC 7773X by 0.3%, indicating no significant performance gap among these processors.

Q: Is the GPU a bottleneck at any resolution?

A: The data suggests the RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB becomes a bottleneck at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS drops to 40. At lower resolutions, the CPU provides enough headroom, as evidenced by the 233 FPS average at 1080p Low, which is likely GPU-limited but still very high.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the GPU and CPU?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB has a launch MSRP of 379 USD, and the Intel Core i5-12400F has a launch MSRP of $174.

Q: How much VRAM does the GPU have, and does it matter?

A: The GPU features 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. At 4K Ultra, the 40 FPS result indicates that VRAM capacity or bandwidth may be limiting, as the frame rate drops disproportionately compared to lower resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions—1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160—across four settings: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. At 1920x1080, the lowest preset yields an average of 233 FPS, which is the highest score in the entire dataset. Medium settings reduce this to 178 FPS, with a minimum of 151 FPS and a maximum of 205 FPS, showing a narrow performance envelope. High settings drop further to 149 FPS, and Ultra produces 114 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 119 FPS, indicating that the GPU is heavily utilized at the highest preset even at 1080p.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same pattern holds but with lower absolute numbers. Low settings achieve 150 FPS, which is a 35.6% decrease from the 1080p Low result. Medium settings average 115 FPS, with a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 132 FPS, keeping frames above 90 FPS even in demanding scenes. High settings deliver 96 FPS, and Ultra drops to 73 FPS. The difference between 1080p and 1440p is consistent across presets, with roughly a 35-40% reduction in average FPS, suggesting the GPU is scaling predictably with pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the performance degradation becomes more pronounced. Low settings average 81 FPS, which is still playable, but Medium drops to 62 FPS with a minimum of 53 FPS and a maximum of 71 FPS. High settings fall to 52 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 40 FPS. The transition from 1440p to 4K causes a 46% reduction in average FPS at Medium settings (115 to 62), which is steeper than the 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p. This indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s becomes a limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the 8 GB VRAM is filled more quickly.

The data also shows that the minimum FPS values are only recorded for Medium settings across all resolutions, with 53 FPS at 4K, 98 FPS at 1440p, and 151 FPS at 1080p. This suggests that Medium is the most stable preset, as the lack of min/max data for other presets may indicate either a capped frame rate or more variable performance. The maximum FPS values for Medium scale linearly with resolution, from 205 at 1080p to 71 at 4K, reinforcing the GPU-bound nature of the game at higher settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a GB206 chip, manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It features 4608 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units, along with 36 ray tracing cores and 144 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2407 MHz and a boost clock of 2572 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective) on an 8 GB GDDR7 interface. The 128-bit bus width provides a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s, which is a key specification for understanding the 4K performance drop.

In Minimum, the GPU’s role is clear from the measured FPS: it is the primary driver of frame rates at all resolutions, but its limitations become apparent at 4K. The GPU’s FP32 performance of 23.70 TFLOPS and texture rate of 370.4 GTexel/s are sufficient for high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the 149 FPS average at High 1080p and 96 FPS at High 1440p. However, the pixel rate of 123.5 GPixel/s and the 8 GB VRAM capacity are strained at 3840x2160, where the fill rate requirements increase by 2.25 times compared to 1440p.

The GPU’s 29th percentile ranking against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 4901, places it in the lower half of the database. Its nearest rivals include the AMD FirePro W5130M (4904, -0.1% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 (4893, +0.2% delta), which are older or lower-tier cards. This suggests that while the RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB is modern, its performance is not exceptional in absolute terms, and the 8 GB VRAM is likely the bottleneck at 4K Ultra, where the 40 FPS result indicates the GPU cannot maintain memory bandwidth.

The 180 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU are standard for this class, and the dual-slot design with a single 8-pin connector is efficient. The GPU’s PCIe 5.0 x8 interface provides ample bandwidth for the game’s data transfer needs, and the measured FPS shows that the GPU is not limited by the bus. The DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 compatibility are irrelevant for a 2014 title, but the raw compute capabilities are what drive the frame rates.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel’s 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU features 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel mode, though the memory bandwidth is not specified in the data.

In Minimum, the CPU’s role is to maintain a steady frame pipeline, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not saturated. The CPU’s 73rd percentile ranking, with an average benchmark score of 19039, is significantly higher than the GPU’s percentile, indicating that the processor is not a bottleneck. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 12380 and single-core score of 1680 are strong indicators of its capability to handle both the game’s main thread and background tasks. The 3DMark single-thread score of 909 is particularly relevant, as older games like Minimum often rely on a single core for game logic.

The CPU’s nearest rivals are all within a 0.3% performance delta, with the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS being the closest at 19047 (0% delta). This means the i5-12400F is exactly in line with similar processors, and its performance in Minimum is typical for its class. The high boost clock of 4.40 GHz ensures that the game’s primary thread can run at maximum speed, which is evident from the 233 FPS average at 1080p Low, a result that is likely CPU-limited rather than GPU-limited.

The 6 cores and 12 threads provide enough parallelism for the game’s background processes, and the PassMark multi-thread score of 19433 confirms solid multi-core performance. The CPU’s memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5 is not directly tested in the FPS data, but the dual-channel bus ensures sufficient memory bandwidth for the GPU to receive data without stalls. Overall, the i5-12400F is a strong match for the RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB, as it provides the necessary single-thread performance to push frame rates high at 1080p and 1440p, while the GPU becomes the limiting factor only at 4K Ultra.