Minimum

Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter, exhibits markedly different performance characteristics on the Intel Core i7-14700K and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination depending on the resolution and quality preset selected. The measured data reveals a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but transitions to a more balanced or CPU-bound state at 1080p, particularly at lower settings. This analysis walks through the measured frames per second (FPS) data to interpret how this specific hardware pairing handles the title, what settings provide the optimal experience, and what the benchmark results indicate about the role of each component.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial and clearly demonstrates that the AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. At the High preset, the average FPS falls from 169 at 1920x1080 to 109 at 2560x1440, and then further down to 59 at 3840x2160. This represents a 35% decrease in performance when moving from 1440p to 4K, and a 65% decrease from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering workload at higher pixel counts outstrips the computational capacity of the graphics card.

The Low preset shows a similar trend, though with higher absolute numbers. The average FPS at 1080p is 262, which drops to 169 at 1440p and 91 at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K is 65%, nearly identical to the High preset, which suggests that the resolution scaling is consistent regardless of the graphical load. However, the fact that the Low preset at 4K (91 FPS) is nearly as fast as the High preset at 1440p (109 FPS) indicates that the GPU is still the bottleneck; reducing the settings does not eliminate the cost of rendering more pixels.

Looking at the Medium preset, which is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, the scaling pattern is more granular. At 1080p, the average is 201 FPS with a minimum of 171 FPS and a maximum of 231 FPS. At 1440p, the average drops to 130 FPS, with a minimum of 110 and a maximum of 149. At 4K, the average falls to 70 FPS, with a minimum of 59 and a maximum of 80. The minimum FPS values at 1440p and 4K are 110 and 59 respectively, which suggest that the frame pacing remains relatively stable, but the overall throughput is constrained by the GPU's pixel fill rate and shading capabilities.

The data indicates that the Intel Core i7-14700K is not the limiting factor in this game at resolutions above 1080p. The consistent scaling of FPS with resolution is a classic sign of a GPU bottleneck. If the CPU were the primary constraint, we would expect to see a smaller performance delta between resolutions, as the CPU workload would remain constant while the GPU workload increased. Instead, the near-linear relationship between pixel count and FPS confirms that the AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the component that determines the upper limit of performance in Minimum at these settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Ultra preset is only viable at 1080p, where it achieves an average of 128 FPS. At 1440p, the Ultra preset drops to 83 FPS, which may still be playable for some, but the 4K Ultra preset falls to 45 FPS, which is likely below the threshold for a smooth experience in a fast-paced third-person shooter. The data suggests that the Ultra preset is too demanding for this GPU at higher resolutions, and users with 1440p or 4K displays should consider lower settings.

The Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all tested resolutions. At 1080p, it delivers an average of 201 FPS, which is more than sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors. At 1440p, the average of 130 FPS remains smooth, and even at 4K, the 70 FPS average is respectable. The recorded minimum FPS values for the Medium preset are 171 at 1080p, 110 at 1440p, and 59 at 4K. These minimums are well within acceptable ranges for maintaining fluid gameplay, indicating that the Medium preset provides a stable experience without significant frame drops.

The High preset is a close second to Medium in terms of the experience it provides. It achieves 169 FPS at 1080p and 109 FPS at 1440p, but the 4K performance of 59 FPS is identical to the Medium preset's minimum at that resolution. This suggests that the High preset at 4K is pushing the GPU to its limit, and any minor scene complexity could cause the FPS to dip below the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset, while delivering the highest frame rates (262 FPS at 1080p), does not offer the visual fidelity that most players would prefer for a modern title, and its performance advantage over Medium is less pronounced at 4K (91 vs 70 FPS).

The data supports a recommendation for the Medium preset at 4K, as it is the highest quality setting that maintains an average FPS above 60. For 1440p, the High preset is a strong choice, providing 109 FPS, but the Medium preset at 130 FPS offers a more substantial margin for demanding scenes. At 1080p, the Ultra preset is playable, but the Medium preset's 201 FPS average will benefit users with 240Hz displays more than the Ultra preset's 128 FPS.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the dominant component in this combination for Minimum, as evidenced by the resolution scaling data. The GPU's memory configuration includes 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s. For a game released in 2014, this memory capacity is ample, and the high bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and memory-intensive effects at 4K resolution do not become a bottleneck.

The GPU's clock speeds are noteworthy: a base clock of 1330 MHz, a game clock of 2070 MHz, and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. The game clock is the typical frequency expected during sustained gaming workloads, and the boost clock represents the maximum potential under ideal conditions. The performance difference between the Low and High presets at the same resolution is directly attributable to the GPU's shading units (3584) and texture mapping units (224) working at these clock speeds. At 4K, the Low preset achieves 91 FPS, while the High preset achieves 59 FPS. This 35% reduction in performance when moving from Low to High at 4K illustrates the cost of enabling higher-quality shaders and textures.

The GPU's raw compute capabilities are substantial, with an FP32 throughput of 36.13 TFLOPS. This explains why the card can handle the 4K resolution at all, even if the Ultra preset proves too demanding. The pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s are the metrics that govern how quickly the GPU can fill the screen with pixels and apply textures. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the GPU is unable to maintain 60 FPS, indicating that the pixel fill rate or shader complexity is the limiting factor. The 128 ROPs (Render Output Units) are responsible for the final pixel output, and their throughput is insufficient to handle the Ultra preset's effects at 3840x2160.

The GPU's position in the benchmark hierarchy, with a percentile rank of 69 among all GPUs, suggests it is a mid-to-high-tier performer. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, has an average score that is 0.6% lower, while the AMD Radeon RX 6800S is 0.8% higher. These small deltas indicate that the RX 9070 is in a competitive performance tier, but for Minimum, the architecture's strengths in raw throughput are what drive the measured results.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the Intel Core i7-14700K and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination delivers high frame rates across all settings. The Low preset averages 262 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. The Medium preset averages 201 FPS, with a minimum of 171 and a maximum of 231. The High preset averages 169 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 128 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 51% reduction in performance, indicating that the CPU is still able to feed the GPU sufficiently at this resolution, even at the highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a clear step down. The Low preset averages 169 FPS, which is identical to the High preset at 1080p. The Medium preset averages 130 FPS, with a minimum of 110 and a maximum of 149. The High preset averages 109 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 83 FPS. The transition from Low to Ultra at 1440p results in a 51% performance drop, consistent with the 1080p scaling, which suggests that the GPU is now the primary bottleneck.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 91 FPS, which is the only setting that maintains a 90+ FPS average at this resolution. The Medium preset averages 70 FPS, with a minimum of 59 and a maximum of 80. The High preset averages 59 FPS, which is exactly at the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset averages 45 FPS, which is below the standard for smooth gameplay. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 4K is 51%, again showing a consistent scaling factor, further confirming the GPU-bound nature of the workload at this resolution.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: each step up in settings costs roughly 17-20% of the frame rate, and each step up in resolution costs a similar amount. The only exception is the jump from 1440p to 4K, which is more expensive due to the 2.25x increase in pixel count. The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data, and it shows a stable frame time distribution, with the minimum FPS being 85% of the average at 1080p, 85% at 1440p, and 84% at 4K. This consistency suggests that the RX 9070 maintains a steady workload without significant spikes in rendering time.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700K and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination is ranked 1119 out of 3712 tested combos for Minimum. This places it in the 70th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that it performs better than the majority of combinations in this game. The rank of 1119 suggests that while this is a strong pairing, there are many other configurations that achieve higher frame rates, likely those with more powerful GPUs such as the top-tier RTX 40-series or RX 7900-series cards.

The GPU's own percentile rank of 69% among all GPUs is lower than the combo's rank in this specific game, which implies that Minimum is particularly well-optimized for this GPU or that the CPU is helping to boost the combo's standing. The CPU's percentile rank of 94% among all CPUs is significantly higher, and it is likely that the Intel Core i7-14700K's strong single-core performance (as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2160) helps to maintain high frame rates at lower resolutions where the CPU could become a factor.

The combo's rank of 1119 out of 3712 means that it outperforms roughly 70% of all tested systems in Minimum. This is a solid result, but it is not in the top tier. The nearest rival GPUs to the RX 9070 in synthetic benchmarks include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER, which has a score 1.2% higher, and the AMD Radeon RX 6800S, which is 0.8% higher. These rivals likely achieve similar performance in Minimum, and the rank difference would be minimal. The data suggests that to improve the combo's rank significantly, a GPU with a higher raw compute throughput would be necessary, as the CPU is already in the top 6% of all processors.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 4K with the High preset?

A: The average FPS at 3840x2160 with the High preset is 59, which is exactly at the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: Which preset offers the highest frame rate at 1080p?

A: The Low preset at 1920x1080 offers the highest average frame rate of 262 FPS, which is the maximum measured in the dataset.

Q: Is the AMD Radeon RX 9070 the bottleneck at 1440p?

A: Yes, the data indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p, as the FPS scales consistently with resolution changes, which is a sign of a GPU-bound workload.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: The minimum FPS for the Medium preset at 3840x2160 is 59, with a maximum of 80 and an average of 70.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other tested systems in Minimum?

A: This combo ranks 1119 out of 3712 tested combinations, placing it in the 70th percentile of all tested systems.

Q: What is the GPU's boost clock speed?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 has a boost clock of 2520 MHz, which is the maximum frequency it can achieve under load.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K plays a supporting role in this combination, but its capabilities are crucial for achieving the high frame rates seen at 1080p. The CPU has 20 cores and 28 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. This high boost clock, combined with a single-core Cinebench R23 score of 2160, ensures that the CPU can process game logic and draw calls quickly enough to feed the GPU at high frame rates.

At 1080p with the Low preset, the average FPS of 262 is a clear indication that the CPU is not a bottleneck. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see the FPS plateau at a lower value regardless of the GPU's capabilities. The fact that the Low preset at 1080p achieves such a high frame rate suggests that the CPU's single-thread performance is more than adequate for Minimum's engine, which is expected for a game from 2014 that relies heavily on single-core performance.

The CPU's 33 MB of shared L3 cache is another factor that contributes to its strong performance in gaming. This large cache helps to reduce memory latency, which is important for maintaining consistent frame times. The CPU's memory support for DDR4 and DDR5, with a dual-channel bus, provides sufficient bandwidth for the GPU to access game assets without stalling.

The CPU's benchmark scores further illustrate its capability. A multi-core Cinebench R23 score of 33440.5 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 20767 place it in the top tier of processors, with a percentile rank of 94% among all CPUs. The nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, has an average benchmark score that is only 0.2% higher, indicating that the i7-14700K is at the forefront of CPU performance. However, in Minimum, the CPU's role is less about raw multi-threaded power and more about maintaining high single-thread performance and low latency, which it does exceptionally well.

The TDP of 125 W is modest for a processor with 20 cores, and the boost clock of 5.60 GHz is achieved through the CPU's thermal and power management capabilities. For a game like Minimum, the CPU is unlikely to be stressed to its full multi-threaded capacity, but its high clock speeds ensure that it can keep up with the GPU's demands at all tested settings and resolutions. The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor in any of the measured scenarios, confirming that the AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the component that determines the overall performance ceiling in this title.