Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 delivers a fascinating performance profile in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter that clearly scales aggressively with both resolution and graphics presets. The data shows a combination capable of extreme frame rates at 1080p, yet one that becomes surprisingly constrained at 4K Ultra, revealing a distinct shift in system bottleneck as workload increases. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings to explain exactly what this pairing offers.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, indicating a strong reliance on GPU throughput as resolution climbs. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 293 at 1920x1080 to 189 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 104 FPS, and then further to 102 at 3840x2160, another 87 FPS drop. This represents a 65% decrease in average FPS from 1080p to 4K on Low, which is a massive penalty that points directly at the GPU as the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced at higher presets. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 188 at 1080p to 121 at 1440p (a 67 FPS loss), and then to 65 at 4K (a 56 FPS loss). Similarly, at Medium, the drop is from 224 at 1080p to 144 at 1440p and finally to 78 at 4K. At Ultra, the progression is 143 at 1080p, 92 at 1440p, and 50 at 4K. The consistent halving of performance from 1080p to 4K across all presets strongly suggests that the RTX 5090’s raw pixel-pushing capabilities are being fully taxed, while the Core Ultra 7 155H has ample headroom to feed the GPU at lower resolutions.

What is particularly telling is the gap between 1080p and 1440p versus the gap between 1440p and 4K. For Low settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 104 FPS, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 87 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU might be starting to limit the maximum frame rate, preventing the GPU from reaching even higher numbers. The fact that the RTX 5090, with its 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 1.79 TB/s memory bandwidth, cannot push beyond 293 FPS at 1080p Low indicates a potential CPU bottleneck at that resolution. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, and the scaling becomes more predictable.

The data shows that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combo. At High settings, 121 FPS is achievable, and at Medium, 144 FPS. This resolution offers a balance where the GPU is still heavily utilized but the CPU is not the primary constraint, resulting in frame rates that are both high and stable. At 4K, the performance drops to a level where the experience becomes less fluid, especially on Ultra, which only averages 50 FPS. The implication is that for 4K gaming, users must be willing to dial back settings to Low or Medium to maintain a playable frame rate.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Minimum?*

A: The highest measured average FPS is 293, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This indicates a scenario where the CPU and GPU are working in tandem to deliver a very high frame rate, though it is likely near the CPU’s limit.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 perform at 4K Ultra in this game?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 50. This is the lowest measured performance in the dataset, showing that the GPU is heavily taxed at this resolution and preset combination.

Q: Is there a significant difference between Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: Yes. At 2560x1440, the average FPS is 144 on Medium and 121 on High, a difference of 23 FPS. The Medium preset also has a recorded minimum FPS of 123 and maximum of 166, while the High preset has no min/max data provided.

Q: Which resolution provides the most balanced experience for high-refresh-rate monitors?

A: Based on the data, 2560x1440 on Medium settings, with an average of 144 FPS, appears to be the most balanced for high-refresh-rate displays. It offers a frame rate that matches common 144Hz monitors while maintaining a higher visual quality than Low.

Q: Does the Core Ultra 7 155H bottleneck the RTX 5090 at any point?

A: Yes, the data suggests a potential CPU bottleneck at 1080p. The relatively small FPS difference between Low (293 FPS) and High (188 FPS) at 1920x1080, compared to the larger differences at 1440p, implies the CPU may be limiting the maximum frame rate before the GPU’s full potential is reached.

Q: How does the combo’s performance at 4K Low compare to 4K Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS on Low is 102, while on Ultra it is 50. This is a 52 FPS difference, showing that the preset choice has a dramatic impact on performance at 4K, effectively doubling the frame rate when switching from Ultra to Low.

Settings Recommendations

For this specific CPU-GPU pairing, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1920x1080, the data shows that even Ultra settings provide an average of 143 FPS, which is excellent for most monitors. High settings push that to 188 FPS, and Low to 293 FPS. Given the high frame rates, the recommendation is to prioritize visual quality. Ultra at 1080p is entirely playable and provides the best image fidelity without sacrificing fluidity. For users with 240Hz displays, High or Medium settings would be more appropriate to push frame rates higher, with Medium at 224 FPS being a strong choice.

At 2560x1440, the sweet spot is clearly Medium, which delivers 144 FPS average. This is ideal for 144Hz monitors and provides a good balance between visual quality and performance. High settings at 121 FPS are also viable for 120Hz displays, but Medium offers a more comfortable margin above the refresh rate threshold. Ultra at 92 FPS is playable but may feel less smooth on high-refresh displays. Low at 189 FPS is extremely fast but sacrifices visual fidelity unnecessarily, as Medium provides a much better experience for only a 45 FPS penalty.

At 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The data shows that Ultra averages only 50 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. High is better at 65 FPS, but still not ideal. Medium at 78 FPS is the best balance for 4K, offering a playable frame rate while maintaining a reasonable level of graphical detail. Low at 102 FPS is the only setting that provides a truly smooth 4K experience, but it requires a significant visual compromise. For 4K gaming, the recommendation is to use Medium settings as the default, with the option to drop to Low if a higher frame rate is needed.

The measured data indicates that the Medium preset offers the most consistent performance across all resolutions, with a clear minimum and maximum FPS recorded at every resolution. This suggests it is a well-balanced setting that avoids the extreme performance swings seen on other presets. Ultimately, the best experience is achieved by matching the preset to the display’s refresh rate and resolution, with Medium being the most versatile choice.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 581st out of 2939 tested combos for Minimum. This places it in the top 20% of all tested system configurations, which is a strong result given the game’s age and the hardware’s capabilities. The rank indicates that this pairing is well-suited for this title, delivering performance that is superior to the vast majority of other systems in the database.

The CPU’s own benchmark scores help contextualize this ranking. The Core Ultra 7 155H has an average benchmark score of 32697, placing it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i5-14600T (score 32707, delta 0%), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 (score 32662, delta 0.1%), and the AMD Ryzen 5 7400F (score 32750, delta -0.2%). These extremely close scores, with deltas of only a few tenths of a percent, indicate that the CPU’s performance is highly competitive with mid-range desktop and mobile processors, providing a solid foundation for gaming.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5090 has an average benchmark score of 79842, placing it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (score 79605, delta 0.3%), the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (score 79396, delta 0.6%), and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (score 78940, delta 1.1%). The small deltas here show that while the RTX 5090 is a top-tier consumer card, its raw compute performance is comparable to professional and previous-generation high-end parts in synthetic benchmarks.

The combination’s rank of 581 out of 2939 suggests that while the individual components are high performers, the pairing is not necessarily optimized for Minimum. The game’s age means that many newer CPUs and GPUs may have better optimized drivers or architectures, potentially pushing other combos higher in the rankings. However, the 581st rank is still a very respectable position, placing this system in the upper echelon of tested configurations.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing for Minimum, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops when resolution increases. The GPU features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. This is critical for high-resolution gaming, as it allows the GPU to quickly access texture and geometry data. The 21760 shading units and 176 ROPs are responsible for the raw pixel and fragment processing, and the 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance gives it immense compute power.

The GPU’s clock speeds, with a base of 2017 MHz and a boost of 2407 MHz, are relatively high, and the 50-series architecture (Blackwell 2.0) on a 5 nm process node from TSMC ensures efficient power delivery. The transistor density is 122.9M per mm², with a total of 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. This massive chip is clearly designed for maximum throughput, which is why it performs so well at lower resolutions where the CPU can keep up.

In Minimum, the GPU’s role becomes more critical as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU appears to be the limiting factor, as the GPU cannot achieve frame rates much higher than 293 FPS. However, at 4K, the GPU is fully saturated, and its performance directly dictates the FPS. The 32 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, which is a 2014 title and likely does not require large memory allocations, but it ensures headroom for future titles and high-resolution textures. The 512-bit bus and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are the key specs that allow the GPU to maintain high frame rates at 4K, where memory bandwidth often becomes a constraint.

The RTX 5090’s benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 39650 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 18355, confirm its high-end positioning. Its performance in this game, particularly the ability to hit 293 FPS at 1080p Low, shows that it is not the bottleneck at that resolution. The GPU’s role is to provide the raw power needed for high resolutions, and the data shows it does this effectively, albeit with a significant performance drop at 4K Ultra.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo is comprehensive, covering three resolutions and four settings. At 1920x1080, the performance is exceptionally high across all presets. The Low setting achieves an average of 293 FPS. The Medium setting averages 224 FPS, with a minimum of 190 FPS and a maximum of 258 FPS. The High setting averages 188 FPS, and the Ultra setting averages 143 FPS. This shows a clear progression where higher settings reduce performance, but even the lowest average (143 FPS on Ultra) is still very smooth.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a more significant drop off. The Low setting averages 189 FPS. The Medium setting averages 144 FPS, with a minimum of 123 FPS and a maximum of 166 FPS. The High setting averages 121 FPS, and the Ultra setting averages 92 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p is a standout, offering a frame rate that exactly matches common 144Hz monitor refresh rates.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops considerably, especially on higher settings. The Low setting averages 102 FPS. The Medium setting averages 78 FPS, with a minimum of 66 FPS and a maximum of 89 FPS. The High setting averages 65 FPS, and the Ultra setting averages 50 FPS. The data shows that at 4K, the Ultra setting is not viable for smooth gameplay, while Medium and Low provide more acceptable frame rates.

The only settings with complete min/max data are Medium at all three resolutions, which provides insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the range is 190-258 FPS, a variance of 68 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the range is 123-166 FPS, a variance of 43 FPS. At 4K Medium, the range is 66-89 FPS, a variance of 23 FPS. This suggests that frame pacing becomes more consistent as resolution increases, likely because the CPU bottleneck is reduced and the GPU workload becomes more uniform. This data reinforces that the Medium preset is the most stable option across all resolutions, offering a good balance of performance and consistency.