Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K and AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT combination delivers a robust experience in Minimum, a Third-Person Shooter from 2014. The data shows a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and presets, with the combo ranking in the 61st percentile of all tested configurations. The pairing leverages a 20-core CPU with a 16 GB GPU to produce frame rates that range from playable at 4K Ultra to exceptionally high at 1080p Low.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows the combo performs best at 1920x1080, where even the Ultra preset achieves 124.5 FPS. At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 102.1 FPS, while 3840x2160 sees a significant drop, with the Ultra preset falling to 39.4 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K has an average benchmark score of 79102. This places it 0.2% behind the Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF and Intel Core i9-14900KF, and 0.9% behind the Intel Core i9-14900K, showing nearly identical performance to its direct competition.

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT sits in the 76th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32619. Its closest rival, the AMD FirePro S9300 X2, is only 0.2% behind, while the NVIDIA P104-100 is 0.4% ahead.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The GPU's 76th percentile is notably higher than the CPU's 97th percentile among their respective categories. However, the 1080p Low setting reaches 246.8 FPS, suggesting the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU effectively even at high frame rates in this title.

Q: What is this combo's overall ranking among tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 668th out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all configurations tested for this game.

Q: Does the game scale well with the Ultra preset?

A: No, the Ultra preset shows a steep performance cost. At 2560x1440, Ultra drops to 80.4 FPS from High's 102.1 FPS, and at 3840x2160, Ultra falls to 39.4 FPS, which is below the 54.7 FPS achieved on High.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The CPU's large L3 cache of 30 MB shared across the cores helps maintain high throughput in gaming workloads.

In Minimum, the CPU's strength is most evident at lower resolutions where the GPU is less taxed. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 246.8 FPS, a figure that relies heavily on the processor's ability to issue draw calls and manage game logic quickly. The single-core performance, reflected in a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7060, ensures that the game's primary thread is not a limiting factor. Multi-threaded performance is also strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 50009, which helps maintain consistent frame pacing when background tasks are active.

The CPU's 97th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms it is a top-tier part. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, is virtually identical at only 0.2% faster in average score. The Intel Core i9-14900K is also close, at 0.9% faster, meaning the 265K delivers comparable performance to previous-generation flagship parts. This headroom means that in Minimum, frame rates are unlikely to be CPU-bound at any resolution above 1080p, where the GPU becomes the primary determinant of performance.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip, manufactured on a 5 nm process. It features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has a boost clock of 2430 MHz and a game clock of 2124 MHz, with 3840 shading units and 60 ray accelerators.

The 16 GB VRAM capacity is a significant asset for Minimum, allowing the game to load high-resolution textures without spilling into system memory. This is reflected in the 4K results, where the High preset (54.7 FPS) is much more viable than the Ultra preset (39.4 FPS), suggesting the Ultra preset's additional graphical features, rather than VRAM capacity, are the performance culprit. The GPU's 76th percentile ranking places it above average, but its closest rivals are all within 0.7% performance delta, indicating a tightly contested mid-to-high-end segment.

The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support ensures full compatibility with the game's rendering paths. The measured data shows the GPU scales predictably with resolution: at 1080p High, the combo hits 160.2 FPS, dropping to 102.1 FPS at 1440p High, and 54.7 FPS at 4K High. This scaling curve indicates a balanced GPU that can handle 1440p gaming very well and 4K gaming with adjusted settings. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 4157 provides a baseline for synthetic performance, while the PassMark G3D score of 24176 confirms its position in the market.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the optimal settings for this combo. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers 124.5 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The High preset at 160.2 FPS and Medium at 192.7 FPS offer even more headroom for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Low preset at 246.8 FPS is only useful for competitive play where maximum frame rates are paramount.

At 2560x1440, the High preset is the sweet spot, delivering 102.1 FPS. This provides a smooth experience without the visual compromises of Medium (124.1 FPS) or the performance hit of Ultra (80.4 FPS). The data suggests that High is the best balance of visual fidelity and performance at this resolution, as the jump to Ultra costs 21.7 FPS (a 21% drop) for marginal visual gains.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The High preset (54.7 FPS) is the only viable option for a playable experience, though it falls short of 60 FPS. Medium (65.2 FPS) actually achieves a higher frame rate than High, which is unusual but indicates that the High preset may have a specific setting that disproportionately impacts performance on this GPU. The Low preset (85.2 FPS) is the best choice for 4K if smoothness is prioritized over visual quality. The Ultra preset at 39.4 FPS is not recommended for 4K gaming, as it falls below the threshold for comfortable play.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT ranks 668th out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum. This places the combination in the 61st percentile of all systems tested, meaning it outperforms the majority of configurations while sitting below the top-tier enthusiast setups.

This ranking is consistent with the individual component placements: the CPU is in the 97th percentile, while the GPU is in the 76th percentile. The combo's overall rank is pulled down by the GPU, which is a mid-to-high-end part rather than a flagship. The data indicates that the CPU has significant headroom, as it is paired with a GPU that is not its performance equal in this specific game.

When compared to other systems, this combo is likely to be beaten by configurations using higher-end GPUs, even if they have weaker CPUs. The frame rate data supports this: the 4K Ultra result of 39.4 FPS suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor at high resolutions, while the strong 1080p Low result of 246.8 FPS demonstrates the CPU's ability to push frames when the GPU is not the bottleneck. This pairing is best suited for 1440p gaming, where it delivers a convincing 102.1 FPS on High settings, and can handle 4K with reduced settings. The rank of 668 out of 1733 confirms that this is a capable, upper-mid-range combination that will handle Minimum well, but is not at the absolute top of the performance hierarchy.