Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT delivers a decisive performance advantage in Minimum, sitting comfortably in the top tier of tested combinations. This pairing ranks 521st out of 2,939 tested combos, placing it in the 82nd percentile of all systems evaluated for this title. The data indicates a setup that will not struggle with this game’s demands, regardless of the resolution or settings chosen. The combination of a modern 14-core processor and a high-bandwidth graphics card creates a balanced platform where neither component consistently bottlenecks the other, allowing the game’s engine to stretch its legs. The measured frame rates suggest that this is a system built for high-refresh-rate displays and maximum visual fidelity, not one that requires significant compromises.

How This Combo Ranks

The overall ranking of 521 out of 2,939 combos is a strong indicator of this pairing’s capability in Minimum. This position places the configuration well above the median tested system, demonstrating that the Core Ultra 5 245 and RX 7900 XT work together effectively for this specific title. The data shows a system that is not just adequate, but genuinely high-performing, with the headroom to handle the game’s most demanding settings. When examining the individual components, the CPU’s average benchmark score of 48,995 places it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs tested, while the GPU’s average score of 13,745 puts it in the 55th percentile of all GPUs. This disparity in percentile rankings is interesting; the CPU is a top-tier performer while the GPU is more mid-pack in its own rankings, yet the game’s results show the combo excels. This suggests that Minimum is more sensitive to CPU performance and memory bandwidth than raw GPU compute, favoring the processor’s strong multi-threaded and single-threaded capabilities.

The Core Ultra 5 245’s benchmark performance is closely matched by its nearest rivals, with an average score just 0.4% below the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G and 0.5% below the AMD Ryzen 9 7900. It also sits 0.6% above the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and 0.8% above the Intel Core i5-14600K. This tight grouping indicates that, from a pure processing power standpoint, the Ultra 5 245 is on par with several strong alternatives. However, the game’s measured FPS shows that this CPU, in this specific combo, translates its compute power into excellent frame rates. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 660M, which is only 0.5% behind, and the NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile, also 0.5% behind, while the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is 1.5% ahead. This data suggests that the RX 7900 XT, despite its mid-pack overall GPU percentile, provides a solid foundation for the CPU to work with in this game.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is a substantial piece of hardware, built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 31 chip. Its role in this combo is to provide the raw rendering power and memory capacity to feed the display, and the measured FPS shows it performs this role admirably in Minimum. The GPU comes equipped with 20 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 320-bit bus, yielding a substantial 800.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This large memory pool and high bandwidth are crucial for high-resolution gaming, ensuring that textures and geometry data can be streamed quickly without causing stutters or frame drops. The core clock speeds are also worth noting, with a base clock of 1387 MHz and a boost clock of 2394 MHz, alongside a game clock of 2025 MHz. These clocks indicate the card’s ability to sustain high performance under load.

The GPU’s specifications, including 5,376 shading units and 192 ROPs, contribute to a pixel rate of 459.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 804.4 GTexel/s. These figures translate directly to the card’s ability to fill the screen and apply complex textures, which is essential for a third-person shooter with detailed environments. The 51.48 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is more than sufficient for the DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) API that the game likely uses. In the context of Minimum, the GPU’s role becomes clear when looking at the FPS scaling across settings. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 300 FPS, but this is likely a cap or a point where the CPU becomes the limiting factor. As resolution increases to 4K, the demand on the GPU grows, and we see the average FPS drop to 104 on Low, showing the GPU is now the primary driver of performance. The data indicates a balanced system where the GPU is strong enough to avoid being a bottleneck at lower resolutions but becomes more influential at 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve over 100 FPS on average?

A: Based on the measured data, both 2560x1440 and 1920x1080 can exceed 100 FPS at any settings. At 3840x2160, you can achieve over 100 FPS on Low settings, but High, Medium, and Ultra all fall below that threshold.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 51 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for many, but it is the lowest measured performance point for this configuration.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 a bottleneck for the RX 7900 XT in this game?

A: The data does not show a significant bottleneck. At lower resolutions like 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 300 FPS, which is likely a limit of the game engine or a frame rate cap, rather than a CPU constraint. At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, indicating a balanced pairing.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: The measured data shows a significant difference. At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves an average of 193 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves an average of 95 FPS. This is a difference of 98 FPS, or roughly 51% lower performance for the Ultra preset.

Q: Does the GPU’s 20 GB of VRAM provide an advantage in this game?

A: The FACT PACK does not include data on VRAM usage or limitations for Minimum. However, the 20 GB memory pool and 800.0 GB/s bandwidth are the specifications of the card, and the measured frame rates show no issues with performance at any tested setting.

Q: How does this combo's performance at 1080p Medium compare to 4K Medium?

A: The measured data shows an average FPS of 230 at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, and an average FPS of 80 at 3840x2160 with Medium settings. The 1080p result is nearly three times higher.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of how different settings affect performance, allowing for specific recommendations based on the target display and desired frame rate. For players with a 4K display seeking the highest visual fidelity, the Ultra preset is an option, but the 51 FPS average may not be ideal for a fast-paced third-person shooter. The High preset at 4K is a better balance, delivering a 67 FPS average, which is smoother and still visually impressive. If a higher frame rate is a priority at 4K, the Medium preset offers an 80 FPS average, which is a significant improvement over High and Ultra, while still providing a substantial visual upgrade over Low. The Low preset at 4K is the only way to break the 100 FPS barrier, hitting 104 FPS, but this comes with a significant reduction in graphical quality.

For 1440p users, the situation is more flexible. The Ultra preset is very playable at 95 FPS, and the High preset is even smoother at 124 FPS. The Medium preset at 148 FPS is an excellent choice for high-refresh-rate monitors, providing a great balance between visual quality and speed. The Low preset is exceptionally fast at 193 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play where frame rate is king. At 1080p, the combo is so powerful that even the Ultra preset achieves 147 FPS, which is excellent. However, the High preset at 193 FPS and Medium at 230 FPS are better for very high refresh rate displays. The Low preset hits the 300 FPS cap, which is the maximum measured value and suggests the game is hitting a limit. The best experience per the measured rows is likely the Medium preset at 1440p, as it offers a high average FPS of 148 with a minimum of 126 FPS, ensuring a consistent and smooth experience without sacrificing too much visual detail.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo shows a clear and logical scaling pattern across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the performance is exceptionally high. The Low preset achieves an average of 300 FPS, which appears to be a cap. The Medium preset averages 230 FPS, with a minimum of 195 FPS and a maximum of 264 FPS, showing excellent consistency. The High preset drops to an average of 193 FPS, while the Ultra preset still manages a very playable 147 FPS. This resolution shows that the combo is overkill for most 1080p displays, with even the most demanding preset providing a high refresh rate experience.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains very strong. The Low preset averages 193 FPS, which is still exceptionally high. The Medium preset averages 148 FPS, with a minimum of 126 FPS and a maximum of 170 FPS, indicating a robust frame time. The High preset averages 124 FPS, which is perfect for a 120Hz display. The Ultra preset is also very playable, averaging 95 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a drop of approximately 51%, which is expected given the increased graphical load. At 3840x2160, the GPU's workload increases significantly. The Low preset averages 104 FPS, which is the only setting at this resolution to break the 100 FPS mark. The Medium preset averages 80 FPS, with a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 92 FPS. The High preset averages 67 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 51 FPS. The data shows that at 4K, the GPU is the primary factor, and users will need to adjust settings to achieve their desired frame rate target. The minimum FPS data points, available for the Medium presets across all resolutions, show that the system maintains a stable frame rate without severe dips.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 plays a critical role in this combo’s high performance in Minimum. This processor, part of the Core Ultra Series 2, features 14 cores and 14 threads, which is a unique configuration that omits hyper-threading. This design choice prioritizes physical cores, which can be beneficial for games that utilize multi-threading. The CPU has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, allowing it to deliver strong single-threaded performance when needed, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4,648. The 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache help keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing latency.

The CPU’s multi-threaded capabilities are also strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32,924 and a Passmark multi-thread score of 38,706. This processing power is more than sufficient for Minimum, a game released in 2014 that is not known for being extremely CPU-intensive by modern standards. The data suggests that the CPU is rarely a limiting factor in this game. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 300 FPS, which is likely an engine-level frame rate cap, not a CPU bottleneck. Even at 1080p Ultra, the CPU keeps up, allowing the GPU to render 147 FPS. The CPU’s high percentile ranking (90th) compared to the GPU (55th) supports the idea that this processor provides a strong foundation, ensuring that the GPU can operate at its full potential. The memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s on a dual-channel DDR5 bus is also sufficient to feed the CPU’s cores without starving them, contributing to the stable minimum FPS numbers seen in the Medium preset measurements. This CPU is a strong partner for the RX 7900 XT in this title, ensuring that the graphics card is the primary determinant of frame rates at higher resolutions and settings.