Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti combination delivers a compelling performance profile in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter that remains surprisingly demanding at high resolutions. The measured data reveals a system that is heavily GPU-limited at 4K but possesses enough headroom to push very high refresh rates at 1080p. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, interprets the scaling behavior, and contextualizes the results against the specific hardware’s capabilities and rival components.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a steep and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 178 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 115 FPS, a reduction of 63 FPS or roughly 35%. The jump to 4K is even more punishing, with the average falling to 62 FPS — a further 46% decrease from the 1440p result. This pattern indicates that the RTX 3080 Ti’s rendering throughput is the primary constraint, rather than the CPU’s processing power.

The scaling from Low to Ultra settings at each resolution reinforces this conclusion. At 1080p, the difference between Low (277 FPS) and Ultra (136 FPS) is a massive 141 FPS. At 1440p, the gap narrows to 92 FPS (179 vs. 87), and at 4K, it shrinks to 49 FPS (96 vs. 47). This is a clear indicator that as pixel count rises, each frame becomes more expensive to render, and the GPU’s fill-rate and shading resources become fully saturated. The CPU, with its 14 cores and 14 threads, is clearly not the bottleneck here; otherwise, we would see more consistent FPS across resolutions at the same settings.

The data implies that the Ultra 5 245 is providing more than enough instruction throughput to feed the RTX 3080 Ti. The 1080p Low result of 277 FPS reflects the CPU’s strong single-thread performance, as such high frame rates require rapid draw-call processing. However, the game’s age (released in 2014) means it likely doesn’t utilize the CPU’s full 14-core potential, making the high boost clock of 5.10 GHz more relevant than the core count. The performance cliff between 1440p and 4K is the most notable finding, suggesting that 4K Ultra is not playable (47 FPS) while 4K High is borderline (62 FPS).

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal experience depends heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1440p, the Medium preset provides an excellent balance, delivering 137 FPS with a minimum of 116 FPS. This ensures smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors without the need to drop to Low. The High preset at 1440p (115 FPS) is also viable, but the 22 FPS gain from dropping to Medium is substantial and likely worth the minor visual trade-off in a fast-paced shooter.

At 1080p, the story is about maximizing frame rates. The High preset at 178 FPS is already excellent for competitive play. However, the Low preset’s 277 FPS is a significant leap that could benefit players with 240Hz or higher displays. The jump from High to Low (99 FPS) is much larger than from Medium to High (34 FPS), suggesting that High is the sweet spot for visual fidelity without sacrificing the high refresh-rate advantage. Ultra at 1080p (136 FPS) is playable but represents a 42 FPS loss compared to High, which is a steep price for marginal visual gains.

For 4K, the options are more constrained. The Low preset’s 96 FPS is the only setting that provides a consistently smooth experience on standard 60Hz displays. Medium (74 FPS) is playable but with a minimum of 63 FPS, it is close to the edge of what most would consider fluid. High (62 FPS) and Ultra (47 FPS) are best avoided unless the player has a variable refresh rate monitor and prioritizes visuals over frame rate. The data suggests that 4K is not the intended playground for this combo; 1440p is where it shines.

The most interesting data point is the 1080p Low result of 277 FPS. This is nearly double the 4K High result and shows the immense headroom available when the GPU’s pixel-pushing workload is reduced. For esports-style play on Minimum, dropping to Low at 1080p is the clear choice for maximum responsiveness. For a more balanced experience, 1440p Medium offers the best combination of smoothness and detail, as the 116 FPS minimum is well above the 60 FPS threshold.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and RTX 3080 Ti combination achieves an average of 115 FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings.

Q: How does performance scale from 1080p to 4K at the High preset?

A: The average FPS drops from 178 at 1920x1080 to 115 at 2560x1440, and finally to 62 at 3840x2160. This represents a 65% reduction in FPS from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Is 4K Ultra playable with this hardware combo?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the measured average FPS is 47. This is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, making it a poor choice for this title.

Q: What is the best setting for a 144Hz monitor at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 1440p yields an average of 137 FPS with a minimum of 116 FPS, which is the only measured setting that consistently stays above 114 FPS (needed for 144Hz with some margin).

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 1080p Low?

A: No. The 1080p Low setting produces 277 FPS, indicating excellent CPU headroom. The performance drop at higher resolutions is attributed to the GPU’s rendering limits, not the processor.

Q: How large is the FPS gap between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: The difference is 92 FPS, with Low averaging 179 FPS and Ultra averaging 87 FPS. This shows a significant performance cost for maximum visual quality.

Measured FPS Breakdown

3840x2160 (4K)

• Low: 96 FPS average. This is the only 4K setting that provides a comfortable margin over 60 FPS.
• Medium: 74 FPS average, with a minimum of 63 FPS and a maximum of 85 FPS. This is playable but the minimum is close to the refresh rate floor.
• High: 62 FPS average. This is right at the edge of playability for standard displays.
• Ultra: 47 FPS average. This is not suitable for smooth gameplay.

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Low: 179 FPS average. This is excellent for high-refresh-rate gaming.
• Medium: 137 FPS average, with a minimum of 116 FPS and a maximum of 157 FPS. This is the recommended preset for a balance of quality and speed.
• High: 115 FPS average. This is a solid choice for 100Hz+ monitors.
• Ultra: 87 FPS average. This is smooth but leaves performance on the table compared to lower settings.

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Low: 277 FPS average. This is the highest measured result and ideal for competitive play.
• Medium: 212 FPS average, with a minimum of 180 FPS and a maximum of 244 FPS. This is exceptionally smooth.
• High: 178 FPS average. This is the best visual-to-performance compromise for high refresh rates.
• Ultra: 136 FPS average. This is playable but the FPS penalty is significant.

The data shows a clear tiered structure. The 1080p results are all above 130 FPS, making them suitable for any current monitor. The 1440p results are mostly above 85 FPS, with only Ultra falling below the 90 FPS mark. The 4K results are the most variable, with only Low and Medium providing a playable experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing, as evidenced by the resolution scaling. With 10,240 shading units and 112 ROPs, the GPU has immense raw compute power, but its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus (912.4 GB/s bandwidth) is the key to handling the higher resolutions. The 4K High result of 62 FPS shows that the GPU is being pushed to its limits, while the 1080p Low result of 277 FPS demonstrates its ability to deliver massive frame rates when fill-rate demands are low.

The GPU’s boost clock of 1665 MHz is a modest figure by modern standards, but the Ampere architecture’s efficiency is clear in the scaling. The fact that the Ultra preset at 1440p (87 FPS) is nearly double the 4K Ultra (47 FPS) suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and pixel throughput are the limiting factors, not the shader cores. The RTX 3080 Ti’s percentile ranking of 83 and its average benchmark score of 41187 place it in the upper echelon of GPUs, but the data here shows that even this powerful card struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maximum settings in a modern game.

The GPU’s nearest rivals, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (0.8% faster) and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB (1.2% slower). These are close scores, but the measured FPS in Minimum shows the RTX 3080 Ti’s gaming-specific strengths, particularly its 80 RT cores and DirectX 12 Ultimate support, which are less relevant for this 2014 title. The GPU’s 34.10 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is substantial, but the game’s engine likely relies more on traditional rasterization, where the 112 ROPs and 186.5 GPixel/s pixel rate are crucial.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 plays a supporting role here, but its importance is not to be underestimated. With 14 cores and 14 threads, it offers substantial multi-threading capability, but its 5.10 GHz boost clock is the more critical spec for gaming. The 1080p Low result of 277 FPS is a direct indicator of the CPU’s single-thread strength, as such high frame rates require the CPU to process draw calls and game logic without becoming a bottleneck.

The CPU’s performance in synthetic benchmarks is strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648. This places it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48995. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (-0.4%), AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (-0.5%), Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (0.6%), and Intel Core i5-14600K (0.8%). These deltas are minimal, indicating that the Ultra 5 245 is competitively positioned against other high-end desktop processors.

However, in Minimum, the CPU’s 14 cores are likely underutilized due to the game’s age. The lack of a significant FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings (e.g., High: 178 to 115 FPS) confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor. The game is clearly GPU-bound. The CPU’s 24 MB of L3 cache and 102.4 GB/s memory bandwidth provide ample data throughput to feed the GPU, ensuring no starvation at the higher resolutions. The 3 nm process node and 65W TDP also mean it operates efficiently, but these are not direct performance factors in the measured FPS data.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database for Minimum, this specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti ranks 705th out of 2939 tested combos. This places it in the top 24% of all systems tested, which is a solid result given the GPU’s age and the CPU’s relatively recent release. The rank suggests that while this combo is not at the absolute modern, it outperforms the vast majority of systems in this particular game.

The rank is likely driven by the GPU’s strong performance in the lower resolution tests, where the high frame rates (277 FPS at 1080p Low) are competitive with much newer hardware. However, the 4K Ultra score of 47 FPS is a weak point that likely drags the overall ranking down, as newer GPUs with more memory bandwidth and shading units would achieve higher scores at that resolution.

Compared to the GPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 3080 Ti performs as expected. The AMD Radeon Pro 5300, which is 0.8% faster in average scores, would likely produce lower FPS in Minimum due to its different driver optimization and architecture. The NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB, which is 1.2% slower, is a compute-oriented card that would likely perform worse in gaming. The data implies that the combo’s rank is a fair representation of its practical gaming performance, with the CPU and GPU working together effectively to deliver a high-refresh-rate experience at 1080p and 1440p, while struggling at 4K Ultra.