Outriders

The Intel Core i5-11400F pairs a 6-core, 12-thread configuration with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Rocket Lake architecture chip, with its 12 MB of shared L3 cache, provides the computational foundation for the measured frames. In Outriders, the CPU’s role is evident in the scaling of frame rates as resolution drops. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 169 FPS, which is over 76% higher than the 4K Low result of 56.2 FPS, indicating that the processor is far from being a bottleneck when graphical load is light. The CPU’s synthetic benchmarks reinforce its capacity; its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14372 places it in the 75th percentile among all CPUs, showing strong multi-threaded headroom for a looter shooter that must track numerous entities and game-state variables. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 5619 and max-thread score of 5652 are nearly identical, suggesting that the 12 threads are fully utilized in heavy workloads, but the game’s engine does not appear to require more than that ceiling to feed the GTX 1070. At 1440p Low, the 107.1 FPS result is still well above 60 FPS, and the jump to 1080p Low (169 FPS) shows that the CPU can push frame rates high when the GPU is not saturated, but the performance curve suggests that the GPU becomes the limiting factor as settings and resolution increase.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 brings 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, with a memory bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. Its base clock of 1506 MHz and boost clock of 1683 MHz, combined with 1920 shading units, define its raw throughput. In Outriders, the GPU’s influence dominates the higher resolution presets. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 23.7 FPS, which is unplayable, while 4K High reaches 32.1 FPS. The step down to 1440p shows a more usable range: 44 FPS on Ultra, 58.6 FPS on High, and 77.5 FPS on Medium. This pattern indicates that the GTX 1070’s 8 GB frame buffer and 256.3 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for 1440p Medium, but the card’s compute power, rated at 6.463 TFLOPS FP32, is insufficient for 4K Ultra. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 12331 places it in the 51st percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the GTX 1650 SUPER with a deltaPct of -1.4, meaning the 1070 is slightly faster. The measured data shows that the GTX 1070 is a mid-range card from a past generation; it can handle 1080p Ultra at 64.3 FPS, but the 4K results confirm that this resolution is beyond its intended envelope. The memory clock of 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) is not a limiting factor at 1080p, where the card delivers 92.9 FPS on High, but the transition to 1440p High (58.6 FPS) shows a 37% drop, underscoring the GPU’s memory bandwidth and pixel fill rate constraints.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy for this combo. The best experience, balancing fluidity and visual quality, is the 1080p High preset, which averages 92.9 FPS. This is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and leaves headroom for demanding scenes. The 1080p Medium preset achieves 123.1 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, but the visual fidelity loss from High to Medium is not worth the extra 30 FPS unless the user prioritizes frame rate above all else. The 1080p Low preset hits 169 FPS, which is excessive for a looter shooter where reaction time matters less than in twitch shooters. For users with 1440p monitors, the Medium preset at 77.5 FPS is the sweet spot; it maintains smoothness while providing more detail than Low. The 1440p High preset at 58.6 FPS is marginal, dipping below 60 FPS, and Ultra at 44 FPS is not recommended for sustained play. At 4K, no preset is truly playable: even Low drops to 56.2 FPS, and Medium falls to 38 FPS, so users should avoid 4K with this hardware. The data suggests that the GTX 1070’s 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p Ultra (64.3 FPS), but the core clock and shading units limit higher resolutions. The recommendation is to use 1080p High for the best overall experience, or 1440p Medium if the display demands it, as the frame rate remains above 75 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 1425 out of 1693 tested combos in Outriders, placing it in the lower 16th percentile of all configurations. This rank reflects the age of the GPU rather than the CPU; the i5-11400F’s percentileVsAllCpus of 75 shows it is a competent processor, but the GTX 1070’s percentileVsAllGpus of 51 drags the overall performance down. The rank of 1425 means that the vast majority of tested systems deliver higher average frame rates in this game. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U with a deltaPct of 0, show that the i5-11400F is on par with mobile processors in synthetic tests, but in a gaming scenario with a discrete GPU, the desktop CPU’s higher sustained clocks and 65W TDP give it an edge. The GPU’s nearest rival, the GTX 1650 SUPER, is only 1.4% slower, which is a small margin, but the 1070’s 8 GB VRAM versus the 1650 SUPER’s typical 4 GB is not captured in the deltaPct. The combo’s rank suggests that for Outriders, users should expect to lower settings or resolution to achieve playable frame rates, as the data confirms that the GPU is the limiting component. The 1080p Low result of 169 FPS is the only preset that places this combo in a high-performance tier, while all 4K presets fall below 60 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K reveal the bottleneck. At Low settings, the transition from 1080p to 1440p reduces the average FPS from 169 to 107.1, a 36.6% drop. Moving from 1440p to 4K Low further reduces it to 56.2 FPS, a 47.5% drop from the 1440p figure. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor, as the CPU is capable of maintaining high frame rates at 1080p. At High settings, the scaling is similar: 1080p yields 92.9 FPS, 1440p drops to 58.6 FPS (a 37% reduction), and 4K falls to 32.1 FPS (a 45% reduction from 1440p). The consistent percentage drops across settings point to a GPU-bound scenario where the GTX 1070’s pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth cannot keep up with the increasing pixel count. The 4K Ultra result of 23.7 FPS is less than a quarter of the 1080p Ultra result of 64.3 FPS, showing that the card’s 107.7 GPixel/s pixel rate is overwhelmed. The CPU’s role is better illustrated by the fact that at 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 104.7 FPS (169 to 64.3), which is a GPU-driven change, whereas the CPU’s 3DMark single-thread score of 868 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2029 are sufficient to avoid capping the frame rate at 1080p. The data indicates that as resolution increases, the GTX 1070 becomes the sole bottleneck, and the i5-11400F has ample headroom even at 4K Low, where the CPU would not be the limiting factor.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and preset for this combo in Outriders?

A: The 1080p High preset delivers 92.9 FPS, which is the best balance of visual quality and smoothness. For 1440p users, the Medium preset at 77.5 FPS is the highest playable option, as High drops to 58.6 FPS.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-11400F a bottleneck for the GTX 1070 in this game?

A: No, the CPU is not the bottleneck. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 169 FPS, indicating the CPU can feed the GPU well beyond typical display refresh rates. The GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as seen in the 4K results.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 compare to its closest rival, the GTX 1650 SUPER, in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GTX 1070 has an average benchmark score of 12331, while the GTX 1650 SUPER scores 12504, resulting in a deltaPct of -1.4, meaning the 1070 is 1.4% slower. This is a negligible difference in real-world gaming.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Outriders?

A: No, the 4K results are all below 60 FPS. The highest 4K preset is Low at 56.2 FPS, which is borderline, while Medium (38 FPS), High (32.1 FPS), and Ultra (23.7 FPS) are not playable.

Q: What is the CPU’s percentile ranking among all processors, and what does it imply?

A: The i5-11400F is in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, meaning it outperforms 75% of processors in synthetic benchmarks. This confirms it is a strong mid-range CPU that does not hinder gaming performance in this title.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p Ultra and 1440p Ultra?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset averages 64.3 FPS, while 1440p Ultra averages 44 FPS, representing a 31.5% drop. This shows that the GTX 1070 struggles to maintain high settings at 1440p, making Medium the recommended preset for that resolution.