Minimum

The Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 combination delivers a playable but dated experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. The data shows this pairing sits near the bottom of the performance hierarchy, ranking 3383 out of 3712 tested combos. The 6-core, 6-thread processor with a 2.90 GHz base and 4.10 GHz boost clock provides adequate processing power for this title, but the RX 580's 8 GB of GDDR5 VRAM becomes the defining factor as resolution increases. At 1080p, the combo manages respectable frame rates, but 4K performance collapses to the low 20s, indicating a clear GPU-bound scenario. This analysis breaks down the component roles, scaling behavior, and settings that yield the best experience.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a Coffee Lake Refresh desktop processor with 6 physical cores and 6 threads, operating at a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its 14 nm process node and 9 MB of shared L3 cache place it in the mid-range of 2018-era CPUs. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 6629 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, 935 in single-core, and 5141 in Geekbench multi-core. Its average benchmark score of 2254 places it at the 47th percentile among all CPUs, meaning it outperforms roughly half of the processors in the database. Compared to its nearest rivals, the i5-9400 is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (deltaPct -0.2%), the Intel Core i7-10710U (deltaPct 0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (deltaPct 0.4%). The Intel Core i3-10305 sits 0.4% ahead. This clustering indicates that the i5-9400's CPU horsepower is not a differentiator in Minimum; it provides enough single-thread performance for the game's logic but is not a bottleneck at most settings.

For a 2014 title like Minimum, the CPU's 6 threads are sufficient to handle the game's AI, physics, and rendering commands without causing frame dips. The boost clock of 4.10 GHz is particularly relevant for single-threaded tasks, which older games often rely on heavily. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 91 FPS, showing that the CPU can feed the GPU effectively when the graphical load is light. However, the CPU's performance ceiling is visible when comparing to newer processors — the i5-9400's 47th percentile ranking means many modern CPUs would deliver higher minimum FPS in CPU-heavy scenes. The 65 W TDP and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (42.7 GB/s bandwidth) are adequate for this workload, but the lack of hyper-threading means the 6 threads are the absolute maximum available. In Minimum, the data indicates the CPU is not the primary limiter; the GPU takes that role as resolution climbs.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is built on the Polaris 20 chip with GCN 4.0 architecture, featuring 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. It operates at a base clock of 1257 MHz and a boost clock of 1340 MHz, with memory clocked at 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective). The 8 GB of GDDR5 VRAM on a 256-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is generous for a 2014 game. The GPU's pixel rate is 42.88 GPixel/s and texture rate is 193.0 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 6.175 TFLOPS. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 8813 in Passmark G3D, 45235 in Geekbench Metal, and 45173 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its average benchmark score of 12928 places it at the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, indicating it sits just above the median. Nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (deltaPct -0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER (deltaPct -0.4%), and the AMD Radeon 740M (deltaPct 0.5%).

The RX 580's VRAM capacity is not the limiting factor in Minimum; the game's textures fit comfortably within 8 GB even at 4K Ultra. Instead, the GPU's raw compute power determines frame rates. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 91 FPS, but this drops to 58 FPS at High and 45 FPS at Ultra, showing a 50% performance penalty from the lowest to highest settings. At 1440p, the same trend continues: 59 FPS at Low, 38 FPS at High, and 29 FPS at Ultra. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed, with 32 FPS at Low and just 15 FPS at Ultra. The 185 W TDP and dual-slot cooler are appropriate for this class of card, and the 1x 8-pin power connector requires a 450 W PSU. The GPU's 53rd percentile ranking suggests it is a mid-pack performer, and the measured FPS data confirms that it becomes the bottleneck at resolutions above 1080p.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 ranks 3383 out of 3712 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the 9th percentile of all system pairings. This means roughly 91% of tested configurations deliver higher average FPS. The rank is heavily influenced by the GPU's performance ceiling, as the CPU's percentile (47th) is higher than the GPU's (53rd) would suggest, but the combo's overall position reflects the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions. In practical terms, this combo is positioned near the bottom of the database, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing playable 1080p performance but sub-30 FPS at 4K Ultra.

The deltaPct values for the CPU's nearest rivals show that swapping the i5-9400 for a comparable processor like the Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (0.4% ahead) would have negligible impact on the combo's rank. The GPU's nearest rivals similarly show minimal differences — the GTX 1660 SUPER is only 0.4% faster, and the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile is 0.1% slower. This indicates that the combo's rank is not sensitive to small component swaps; the bottleneck is systemic. The rank of 3383 suggests that this configuration is best suited for 1080p gaming at medium settings, where it achieves 70 FPS. At 1440p, it falls to 45 FPS on Medium, which is borderline playable. At 4K, even Low settings yield only 32 FPS, making the experience frustrating. The data shows that this combo is not future-proof for higher resolutions, but it is adequate for the game's minimum requirements at lower settings.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently delivers above 60 FPS. At Low settings it hits 91 FPS, Medium achieves 70 FPS, and High reaches 58 FPS. At 2560x1440, only Low settings (59 FPS) crack 60 FPS, while 3840x2160 never exceeds 32 FPS.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 58 at 1080p to 38 at 1440p and 20 at 4K, representing a 65% reduction. At Low settings, the drop is from 91 FPS to 59 FPS to 32 FPS, a 65% reduction as well. The consistent percentage loss indicates GPU-bound scaling.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the primary limiter. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 91 FPS, which is close to the CPU's potential given its 47th percentile ranking. Dropping to High settings reduces FPS to 58, showing the GPU cannot sustain high frame rates with increased graphical load.

Q: How does this combo compare to the GTX 1660 SUPER?

A: The RX 580 is 0.4% slower than the GTX 1660 SUPER in average benchmark score (12928 vs 12986). In game terms, this translates to a negligible FPS difference, meaning the GTX 1660 SUPER would not meaningfully change the combo's ranking in Minimum.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1440p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured data shows 29 FPS at 2560x1440 with Ultra settings. This is below the 30 FPS threshold commonly considered minimum playability, so the combo is not recommended for 1440p Ultra in this game.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM help at 4K?

A: The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for the game's textures, but the data shows the GPU's compute power is the bottleneck. At 4K Ultra, the combo only achieves 15 FPS, indicating that VRAM capacity is not the limiting factor — the Polaris 20 chip cannot render the frames fast enough.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a consistent and steep drop as resolution increases, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound configuration. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 91 at 1080p to 59 at 1440p (a 35% drop) and then to 32 at 4K (a 46% drop from 1440p). At High settings, the progression is 58 FPS at 1080p, 38 FPS at 1440p (a 34% drop), and 20 FPS at 4K (a 47% drop). The scaling pattern is nearly identical across settings, with roughly a 65% total reduction in FPS from 1080p to 4K. This consistency indicates that the GPU's rendering throughput is the limiting factor — the CPU's workload does not scale with resolution, so if the CPU were the bottleneck, we would see smaller FPS drops at higher resolutions.

The scaling also reveals that the RX 580's 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is insufficient for 4K workloads. At 4K Low, the combo only manages 32 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. The pixel rate of 42.88 GPixel/s is simply too low to fill a 3840x2160 frame at high rates. In contrast, the CPU's boost clock of 4.10 GHz and 6 threads are more than adequate for the game's logic at any resolution. The data shows that the combo is fundamentally a 1080p solution; at 1440p, only Low settings approach playable frame rates, and at 4K, all settings are below 35 FPS. The resolution scaling confirms that upgrading the GPU would provide the largest FPS gain, while a CPU upgrade would have minimal impact on this game's performance.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 in Minimum, the measured data points to a clear settings hierarchy based on resolution. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers 70 FPS average with a minimum of 59 FPS and maximum of 80 FPS, providing the best balance of smoothness and visual quality. The High preset at 58 FPS is playable but dips below 60 FPS, while Ultra at 45 FPS is noticeably less smooth. Low at 91 FPS is the fastest but sacrifices visual fidelity unnecessarily. For a 2014 title, Medium at 1080p is the recommended default because it maintains a consistent 59 FPS minimum, ensuring no stutter during intense action.

At 2560x1440, the options narrow significantly. Low settings achieve 59 FPS, which is right at the playability threshold, while Medium drops to 45 FPS (minimum 38 FPS) and High falls to 38 FPS. Ultra at 29 FPS is not recommended. For 1440p, Low is the only preset that provides a consistently smooth experience, though Medium is acceptable for players who prioritize visual detail over frame rate stability. At 3840x2160, no preset is truly playable: Low yields 32 FPS, Medium 24 FPS, High 20 FPS, and Ultra 15 FPS. The data advises against 4K with this combo unless the player accepts sub-30 FPS gameplay. Overall, the best experience per the measured rows is 1080p Medium, which offers a 70 FPS average with a 59 FPS floor, making it the only configuration that combines visual quality with reliable performance.