Minimum

Minimum, the 2014 third-person shooter, shows a clear performance hierarchy when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080. The measured FPS data reveals a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s high core count and boost clock provide ample headroom for high frame rates at 1080p. This analysis breaks down the scaling, component roles, and specific performance metrics from the benchmark data.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, indicating that the rendering load scales aggressively with pixel count. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 164 at 1920x1080 to 106 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 58 FPS, and then further to 57 at 3840x2160, another 49 FPS drop. This pattern shows a diminishing return as resolution increases, with the 4K figure representing just 34.8% of the 1080p performance.

The Low preset exhibits the most dramatic scaling, starting at 256 FPS at 1080p and dropping to 165 FPS at 1440p, then to 89 FPS at 4K. The 4K result is 65.2% lower than the 1080p figure. This suggests that even at the lowest graphical fidelity, the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth are heavily taxed at 4K, as the RTX 4080’s 716.8 GB/s bandwidth and 280.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are pushed to their limits.

Medium settings show a similar trend, with 196 FPS at 1080p, 126 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 35.7% from 1080p to 1440p, and 46.0% from 1440p to 4K. Ultra settings, the most demanding preset, scale from 125 FPS at 1080p to 81 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 43 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is a 65.6% reduction from the 1080p baseline.

The data indicates that the limiting component is the GPU. The consistent pattern of roughly halving or more than halving performance when moving from 1440p to 4K across all settings points to pixel throughput and memory bandwidth constraints. The RTX 4080’s 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 256-bit bus are sufficient, but the sheer pixel count at 4K overwhelms the rendering pipeline, causing the average FPS to fall below the 60 FPS threshold at High and Ultra presets.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, based on the AD103 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture, is the primary driver of performance in Minimum. Its boost clock of 2505 MHz and base clock of 2205 MHz are relatively high, allowing for substantial compute throughput. The GPU’s 9728 shading units and 304 texture mapping units provide the raw processing power needed to handle the game’s effects, while its 112 ROPs are responsible for pixel output, directly impacting resolution scaling.

The memory subsystem is critical for high-resolution play. With 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, the RTX 4080 achieves a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. This bandwidth is sufficient for 1440p, where the GPU maintains playable frame rates across all settings, but at 4K, the memory bandwidth becomes a bottleneck. The 57 FPS average at 4K High and 43 FPS at 4K Ultra suggest that the GPU is struggling to feed data to the shaders fast enough, despite the high memory clock of 1400 MHz.

The GPU’s pixel rate of 280.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 761.5 GTexel/s are theoretical maximums that are not fully realized in this game. The benchmark results show that at 4K, the GPU utilization is likely near its maximum, as performance scales linearly with resolution. The 89 FPS at 4K Low is notable, indicating that reducing settings can alleviate some pressure, but the GPU remains the limiting factor.

The RTX 4080’s FP32 performance of 48.74 TFLOPS is more than adequate for this title, but the game’s rendering engine appears to be fill-rate bound. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6567 and Passmark G3D score of 34457 indicate strong overall performance, yet the measured FPS in Minimum shows that real-world gaming loads can still tax the GPU heavily. The GPU’s 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms its high-end status, but the 4K results here show that even top-tier hardware can struggle with demanding titles at maximum resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H, with 16 cores and 22 threads, is a mobile processor that offers substantial multi-threaded capability. Its base clock of 3.90 GHz and boost clock of 5.10 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, which is crucial for game logic and physics. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 17984.5 and single-core score of 1810.5 demonstrate that the CPU has ample headroom to avoid bottlenecking the GPU at lower resolutions.

At 1080p, the CPU’s role is more prominent. The 256 FPS average at Low settings is a strong indicator that the CPU can feed the GPU with enough draw calls and game state updates to sustain very high frame rates. The 164 FPS at High settings and 196 FPS at Medium settings further confirm that the CPU is not a limiting factor at 1080p, as the GPU is still able to render frames quickly.

The CPU’s 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache help reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for gaming. The Passmark multi-thread score of 29376 and single-thread score of 3697 show that the processor is well-balanced. The Geekbench multi-core score of 11657 and single-core score of 1794 are also strong, but the real-world gaming data shows that the CPU can maintain high FPS without being the bottleneck.

The CPU’s 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs places it slightly below its nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, which has an average score of 35719 and a deltaPct of -0.1%. This indicates that while the Core Ultra 9 185H is very capable, it is not the absolute fastest, but it is more than sufficient for Minimum. The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting component at any resolution, as the FPS scaling is entirely dependent on the GPU’s rendering capabilities.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers high frame rates across all presets. The Low preset achieves 256 FPS average, which is the highest recorded. Medium follows at 196 FPS, with a minimum of 166 and maximum of 225 FPS. High settings produce 164 FPS, and Ultra drops to 125 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the system can easily handle the game, with even the most demanding preset staying above 120 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance drops but remains smooth. Low settings yield 165 FPS, Medium averages 126 FPS with a range of 107 to 145 FPS, High delivers 106 FPS, and Ultra falls to 81 FPS. The 1440p results are all above 60 FPS, making this resolution a sweet spot for the combination, as even Ultra settings remain playable.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more variable. Low settings average 89 FPS, which is still smooth. Medium averages 68 FPS, with a minimum of 58 and maximum of 78 FPS, making it borderline for a 60 FPS target. High settings drop to 57 FPS, and Ultra falls to 43 FPS. The 4K results show that the system can handle the game at Low and Medium settings, but High and Ultra presets will require a compromise on visual fidelity to maintain a consistent frame rate.

The Ultra preset at 4K, at 43 FPS, is the lowest recorded result, indicating that the game’s most demanding settings combined with the highest resolution are too much for the RTX 4080 to handle smoothly. The Medium preset at 4K, with a 58 FPS minimum, is the only 4K setting that guarantees a frame rate above 60 FPS for the majority of the time, though the average of 68 FPS suggests occasional dips.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 918th out of 2939 tested combos in Minimum. This places it in the 68.8th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that it performs better than the majority of configurations. However, it is not in the top tier, as the 4K Ultra results significantly drag down the overall ranking.

The GPU’s nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, has an average benchmark score of 54209, which is 0.1% lower than the RTX 4080’s 54247. This suggests that the standard RTX 4080 is slightly faster in synthetic benchmarks, but the difference is negligible. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X, with an average score of 54828, is 1.1% faster, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB is 2.6% faster at 55698.

The CPU’s ranking is more competitive. The AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 has an average score of 35719, which is 0.1% lower than the Core Ultra 9 185H’s 35670. The Intel Core 7 250H is 0.2% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 is 0.4% lower. The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X is 0.7% lower, meaning the Core Ultra 9 185H is slightly ahead of its nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks.

The overall ranking of 918 out of 2939 is influenced by the GPU’s performance at 4K, which is not exceptional. The data shows that the combination is well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it delivers high frame rates, but it falls short at 4K Ultra settings. The ranking reflects a balanced system that excels in most scenarios but is not optimized for maximum resolution gaming.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 256, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: No, the measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 43, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS at 2560x1440 Medium settings is 107, with an average of 126 and a maximum of 145.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H has an average benchmark score of 35670, which is 0.1% higher than the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350’s 35719.

Q: What is the GPU’s memory bandwidth and size?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 has 16 GB of GDDR6X memory with a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s.

Q: At which resolution is the system most likely to be CPU-limited?

A: At 1920x1080, the system’s high frame rates (up to 256 FPS) suggest the CPU is capable, but the GPU is still the primary bottleneck, as performance scales with resolution.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience at 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is recommended, as it delivers 125 FPS, providing a smooth and visually detailed experience. At 1440p, the High preset at 106 FPS is a good balance, but Ultra at 81 FPS is also viable for those prioritizing visuals. The Medium preset at 126 FPS is the best choice for competitive play at 1440p, as it offers a high frame rate with a minimum of 107 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the recommended option, with an average of 68 FPS and a minimum of 58 FPS. This ensures a mostly smooth experience while maintaining a reasonable level of graphical quality. The Low preset at 89 FPS is also a viable option for 4K gaming, but it sacrifices visual fidelity. The High preset at 57 FPS and Ultra at 43 FPS are not recommended for 4K, as they fall below the 60 FPS target and may cause noticeable stuttering.

The data shows that the Medium preset is the most versatile, providing the best balance between performance and quality across all resolutions. At 1080p, it delivers 196 FPS, at 1440p it averages 126 FPS, and at 4K it maintains 68 FPS. For users who want a consistent experience without adjusting settings per resolution, Medium is the optimal choice. For 1080p and 1440p, Ultra settings are recommended for the best visual experience, while 4K users should opt for Medium or Low to maintain playable frame rates.