Minimum

# Minimum with Intel Core i5-14600K + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti

This combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti delivers solid playable performance in the 2014 third-person shooter Minimum, with the benchmark results indicating a clear shift in system bottleneck behavior as resolution scales. The measured frame rates show a configuration that is heavily GPU-limited at higher resolutions, yet capable of high refresh rate output at 1080p, making it a balanced pairing for this title's fast-paced action. The data reveals a system ranking in the 1483rd position out of 1733 tested combos, placing it in the lower-middle tier of all possible configurations for this game, which is consistent with the GPU's age and mid-range positioning.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1483 out of 1733 tested combinations places this pairing in the 15th percentile of all tested systems for Minimum, meaning approximately 85% of tested configurations deliver higher average frame rates. This positioning is primarily attributable to the GPU component, as the GTX 1660 Ti's average benchmark score of 13925 sits at the 55th percentile of all GPUs, while the i5-14600K's average score of 49166 places it at the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. The discrepancy between CPU and GPU percentile rankings explains why this combination underperforms relative to what the processor alone would suggest.

The CPU itself performs nearly identically to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks. The i5-14600K scores 49166 on average, which is just 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X's 49062 and 1% above the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H's 48698. It trails the AMD EPYC 4345P by 0.9% and the i5-14600KF by 0.4%. These negligible margins indicate that the processor is not the limiting factor in this build. The GPU, meanwhile, sits within 0.8% of the AMD Radeon RX 570X and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680, and 0.7% above the NVIDIA Tesla K10, showing it holds its own against similarly positioned graphics hardware.

The measured FPS data confirms this analysis. At 1080p Low settings, the system achieves 133.2 FPS, which is more than double the 65.6 FPS at 1080p Ultra. This spread suggests the GPU is the primary constraint, as a CPU-bound scenario would show less variation across settings at a fixed resolution. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32881 and single-core score of 4642 demonstrate ample headroom for the game's physics and AI workloads, while the GPU's Passmark G3D score of 12871 indicates mid-range graphics capability that will bottleneck at higher quality presets.

FAQ

Q: How does this combo perform at 1080p for competitive play?

A: At 1080p Low settings, the system produces 133.2 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Even at 1080p High, it maintains 84.2 FPS, indicating solid performance for fast-paced third-person shooting.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The benchmark data indicates the GPU is the limiting component. The CPU scores in the 93rd percentile of all processors, while the GPU sits at the 55th percentile. Frame rates scale significantly with resolution changes, which is characteristic of GPU-limited scenarios.

Q: Can this system handle 4K resolution in Minimum?

A: At 3840x2160 with Low settings, the system delivers 48.1 FPS, which is playable but not ideal. At 4K High, it drops to 30.4 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 23.6 FPS, making higher quality 4K settings impractical for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU scores 13925 on average, sitting 0.4% above the AMD Radeon RX 570X and 0.8% above both the NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile and GeForce GTX 680. It trails the NVIDIA Tesla K10 by 0.7%.

Q: What is the best resolution for consistent 60+ FPS performance?

A: The system achieves 60+ FPS at 1440p across Low, Medium, and High settings, with frame rates of 82.5, 66.2, and 57.0 respectively. At 1080p, all settings except Ultra exceed 84 FPS, with Low reaching 133.2 FPS.

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

A: The i5-14600K's average score of 49166 puts it 0.2% ahead of the Ryzen 9 5950X, 1% ahead of the Xeon Gold 5318H, and 0.4% behind the i5-14600KF and 0.9% behind the EPYC 4345P.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 133.2 at 1080p to 82.5 at 1440p, a 38% reduction, and then to 48.1 at 4K, a 42% further reduction from 1440p. This steep decline with pixel count indicates that the GTX 1660 Ti's rendering throughput is the dominant constraint, as the CPU's performance headroom remains largely unused at higher resolutions.

At Medium settings, the scaling pattern is similar but slightly steeper: 105.2 FPS at 1080p, 66.2 FPS at 1440p (37% drop), and 36.5 FPS at 4K (45% drop from 1440p). The High preset shows 84.2 FPS at 1080p, 57.0 FPS at 1440p (32% drop), and 30.4 FPS at 4K (47% drop). The increasing percentage drop from 1440p to 4K as settings rise suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s and 6 GB GDDR6 capacity become more limiting at higher quality levels.

The Ultra preset demonstrates the most dramatic scaling: 65.6 FPS at 1080p drops to 40.2 FPS at 1440p (39% reduction) and then to 23.6 FPS at 4K (41% reduction). The fact that even at 1080p Ultra the system does not reach 70 FPS indicates that the GPU's 5.437 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 1536 shading units are simply insufficient for maximum quality settings in this title. The CPU's 14 cores and 20 threads, along with its 24 MB of shared L3 cache, provide ample processing power that never becomes the limiting factor across any resolution or settings combination tested.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its strongest performance. Low settings produce 133.2 FPS average, which is the highest measured frame rate across all configurations. Medium settings achieve 105.2 FPS, High settings reach 84.2 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 65.6 FPS. All these values exceed the 60 FPS threshold, making 1080p a fully playable resolution at every preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance becomes more varied. Low settings maintain 82.5 FPS, which remains smooth for competitive play. Medium settings drop to 66.2 FPS, still above 60 FPS. High settings reach 57.0 FPS, which is playable but shows the GPU beginning to struggle. Ultra settings fall to 40.2 FPS, which is below the ideal threshold for fast-paced gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the system's limitations become apparent. Low settings produce 48.1 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a third-person shooter. Medium settings drop to 36.5 FPS, High settings fall to 30.4 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 23.6 FPS. These figures indicate that 4K gaming is only viable at the lowest quality settings, and even then, the frame rate is below 50 FPS. The GPU's 6 GB VRAM and 192-bit memory bus are clearly insufficient for 4K rendering at higher quality levels in this title.

Settings Recommendations

For players prioritizing frame rate and responsiveness, the 1080p Low preset at 133.2 FPS represents the best experience, offering more than double the frame rate of Ultra settings while maintaining the game's core visual clarity. This configuration takes full advantage of the GTX 1660 Ti's capabilities without exposing its limitations. The 1440p Low setting at 82.5 FPS provides a middle ground for those with higher-resolution displays, delivering smooth gameplay while improving image sharpness over 1080p.

For a balance between visual quality and performance, the 1080p Medium preset at 105.2 FPS is the recommended choice. It provides a significant visual upgrade over Low settings while maintaining frame rates well above 60 FPS. The 1440p Medium setting at 66.2 FPS is also viable, though it leaves less headroom for demanding scenes. The 1080p High preset at 84.2 FPS offers the best visual fidelity for players who can tolerate slightly lower frame rates, though the 1440p High setting at 57.0 FPS begins to approach the edge of acceptable performance.

Ultra settings are not recommended for this combination. Even at 1080p, the Ultra preset delivers only 65.6 FPS, which is barely above the 60 FPS threshold and leaves no margin for frame time spikes. The 1440p Ultra at 40.2 FPS and 4K Ultra at 23.6 FPS are both below playable thresholds for a third-person shooter where quick camera movements and target tracking are essential. The GPU's Passmark DirectX 11 score of 103 and DirectX 12 score of 51 suggest it is better suited to the game's lower API overhead at reduced settings. Overall, the 1080p Medium preset offers the optimal combination of visual quality and performance, while 1080p Low provides the highest frame rate for competitive play.