Outriders

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 pairing in Outriders presents a clear case of a GPU-bound experience at higher resolutions, but with a surprising reversal at 1080p Ultra. The measured data shows a system capable of high refresh rate play at 1440p, yet one where the CPU’s six-thread ceiling becomes a tangible limiting factor in the most demanding preset. This analysis breaks down the performance characteristics, scaling behavior, and component roles based solely on the provided benchmark figures.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression across resolutions for this combo reveals the classic behavior of a modern GPU paired with a mid-range processor. At 1080p High, the average frame rate is 102 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 88 FPS, representing a 13.7% performance penalty. The jump to 4K High further reduces the average to 50 FPS, a substantial 43.2% drop from the 1440p figure. This steep decline from 1440p to 4K strongly indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is the primary bottleneck at the higher pixel counts, as the workload shifts heavily onto the graphics card.

However, the Low preset tells a different story. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 128 FPS. At 1440p Low, it only drops to 110 FPS, a 14.1% decrease. But the most telling data point is at 4K Low, where the average is 88 FPS. This is a 20% drop from the 1440p Low result, which is a smaller relative decline than the High preset’s 43.2% drop over the same resolution step. This suggests that even with the graphics load reduced, the system still delivers playable frame rates, but the scaling is not perfectly linear.

The most critical observation comes from the Ultra preset. At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 91. This is lower than the 1080p High result of 102 FPS, but the gap is relatively small. However, at 1440p Ultra, the average plummets to 69 FPS, a 24.2% reduction. At 4K Ultra, the average falls to just 36 FPS. This dramatic drop at higher resolutions with the Ultra preset confirms that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and compute resources are being exhausted. The data shows that while the RTX 3070 can handle 1440p High with ease, the Ultra preset at 4K is beyond its practical limits for a smooth experience, and the CPU begins to show its age at 1080p Ultra.

How This Combo Ranks

In the overall database for Outriders, this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 holds a rank of 2762 out of 3710 tested combos. This places it in the lower 25.5% of all configurations, which is a significant finding given the individual components’ capabilities. The ranking suggests that while the GPU is a high-performance part, the pairing with the i5-9400 prevents it from achieving a top-tier position in this specific game.

The CPU’s own standing is unremarkable. The Core i5-9400 sits at the 47th percentile when compared against all CPUs in the benchmark database, with an average benchmark score of 2254. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, which scores 2259 (a 0.2% difference), and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500, which scores 2246 (a 0.4% difference). This indicates that the processor’s raw compute power is squarely in the middle of the pack. When this mid-tier CPU is paired with a GPU that sits at the 61st percentile (average score of 17208), the resulting combo rank of 2762 out of 3710 suggests that the CPU is holding the system back in Outriders, preventing the GPU from fully expressing its performance potential.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is a balance between visual fidelity and frame rate stability. The 1440p High preset, with an average of 88 FPS, emerges as the sweet spot. It offers a significant visual upgrade over Low and Medium while maintaining an average frame rate that is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The 1440p Medium preset, at 98 FPS, is also a strong candidate, but the data shows it provides a 10 FPS advantage over High, which may be preferable for competitive play.

For users with 1080p displays, the High preset at 102 FPS is the recommended choice. It provides a substantial frame rate advantage over the Ultra preset (91 FPS) while delivering nearly identical visual quality in most scenes. The Ultra preset at 1080p should be avoided, as the marginal visual gains do not justify the 11 FPS performance loss, and it is likely that the CPU’s six threads are becoming a limiting factor, as evidenced by the smaller performance gap between High and Ultra at this resolution compared to higher ones.

At 4K, the situation is more challenging. The High preset yields an average of 50 FPS, which is borderline playable but may not be smooth enough for a fast-paced looter shooter. The Medium preset, at 67 FPS, provides a more playable experience. The Low preset at 88 FPS is the only way to achieve a high refresh rate experience at 4K, but it requires a significant sacrifice in visual quality. Therefore, for a balanced experience, 1440p High is the definitive recommendation, with 1080p High as the best alternative for those prioritizing frame rate over resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured average frame rates for this combination is as follows:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 128 FPS
• Medium: 114 FPS (min 97, max 131)
• High: 102 FPS
• Ultra: 91 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 110 FPS
• Medium: 98 FPS (min 83, max 112)
• High: 88 FPS
• Ultra: 69 FPS

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 88 FPS
• Medium: 67 FPS (min 57, max 77)
• High: 50 FPS
• Ultra: 36 FPS

The data shows a consistent scaling pattern. The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data, revealing a 14 FPS variance at 1080p (97 to 131), a 29 FPS variance at 1440p (83 to 112), and a 20 FPS variance at 4K (57 to 77). This indicates that frame time consistency degrades as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. The jump from Medium to High at 4K results in a 17 FPS loss, while the jump from High to Ultra costs another 14 FPS. This demonstrates that the Ultra preset is disproportionately expensive at 4K, delivering the lowest performance of any preset-resolution combination.

FAQ

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

A: The data indicates that 2560x1440 with the High preset is the optimal balance, yielding an average of 88 FPS. This provides a high level of visual detail while maintaining a smooth frame rate.

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

A: Yes, but with limitations. The High preset averages 50 FPS, which is playable but not ideal. For a smoother 4K experience, the Medium preset at 67 FPS is recommended.

Q: Why is the 1080p Ultra preset slower than 1440p High?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset averages 91 FPS, while 1440p High averages 88 FPS. The performance difference is small, suggesting that at 1080p Ultra, the game is becoming more CPU-bound, limiting the GPU’s ability to render more frames than the processor can feed.

Q: How does the i5-9400 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Core i5-9400 has an average score of 2254. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, scores 2259, which is a 0.2% difference. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246, a 0.4% difference, showing these CPUs are nearly identical in raw compute performance.

Q: Is the RTX 3070 a bottleneck at 1080p in this game?

A: No, the data suggests the opposite. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 128 FPS, but at 1080p Ultra, the frame rate drops to 91 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution is not as steep as at 4K, indicating the CPU is likely holding back the GPU at the lower resolution and higher presets.

Q: What is the performance delta between the RTX 3070 and its closest GPU rival?

A: The RTX 3070 has an average benchmark score of 17208. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT, has a score of 17083, which is a 0.7% difference. This shows they are nearly equivalent in overall performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This configuration is a key factor in its performance in Outriders. The lack of hyper-threading means the CPU has a fixed set of six threads to handle all game logic, physics, and draw calls. The data shows that this becomes a limiting factor at 1080p with the Ultra preset, where the frame rate is 91 FPS, only 11 FPS lower than the High preset. This smaller-than-expected gap suggests that the CPU is unable to provide the RTX 3070 with enough data to push frame rates significantly higher.

The CPU’s 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support are adequate for gaming, but its 47th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is not a high-end part. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 6629 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 935 in single-core. These scores are moderate. In the context of Outriders, the six-core design is sufficient for maintaining playable frame rates, but it does not allow the system to achieve the high refresh rates that the RTX 3070 is capable of at lower resolutions. The performance ceiling imposed by the CPU is most evident when comparing the 1080p High (102 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (91 FPS) results, which show a smaller performance drop than would be expected if the GPU were the sole bottleneck.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is the dominant component in this pairing. Built on the Ampere architecture with 5888 shading units, it offers substantial compute power. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is a critical factor in the 4K performance, where the data shows a steep drop from 50 FPS at High to 36 FPS at Ultra. The high texture and shading demands of the Ultra preset at 4K appear to exceed the GPU’s capacity, leading to the lowest measured average frame rate.

The GPU’s clock speeds of 1500 MHz base and 1725 MHz boost support its high throughput. Its 61st percentile ranking among all GPUs is strong, but the nearest rival data shows it is closely matched with the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT. In Outriders, the RTX 3070 demonstrates its capabilities in the 1440p resolution, where it delivers 88 FPS on High and 98 FPS on Medium. The scaling from 1440p to 4K shows a 43.2% performance loss for the High preset, which is a clear sign of the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck, as the workload becomes more demanding on the graphics card’s memory and processing units. The GPU’s performance is the deciding factor for the maximum frame rate at higher resolutions, while the CPU limits the absolute maximum at lower resolutions.