Outriders

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER produces a split personality in Outriders: the CPU is a top-tier performer, while the GPU is a mid-range part, creating a system where the graphics card is the definitive bottleneck. The data indicates that this combo ranks 1113th out of 1693 tested combinations, placing it in the lower third of the database, which aligns with the GPU's 63rd percentile ranking among all GPUs. For the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, the Medium preset is the recommended target across all resolutions, as it provides a significant performance uplift over High settings while maintaining a playable experience.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data across the three resolutions and four quality presets reveals a clear pattern: the RTX 2060 SUPER is the limiting factor, and the Medium preset represents the optimal compromise. At 1920x1080, Medium delivers 149.8 fps average, which is a 36.2 fps increase over High (113.6 fps) but only a 54.2 fps decrease from Low (204 fps). This places Medium in a sweet spot where the visual upgrade from Low is substantial, yet the performance remains well above the 60 fps threshold. The Ultra preset drops to 81.1 fps at this resolution, which is still playable but offers diminishing returns for the performance cost.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset produces 92.7 fps, which is comfortably above the 60 fps target, while High falls to 73.6 fps. The gap between Medium and High here is 19.1 fps, a more pronounced difference than at 1080p, suggesting that the GPU's 8 GB memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are being taxed more heavily at higher resolutions. Ultra at 1440p drops to 54.2 fps, which is below the ideal threshold for smooth gameplay. At 3840x2160, only the Low preset (71.2 fps) and Medium (51.2 fps) remain viable, with High (38.2 fps) and Ultra (28.8 fps) falling into unplayable territory. The data shows that the scaling from Low to Medium at 4K is a 20 fps penalty, while the jump from Medium to High is a 13 fps penalty, indicating that the GPU's raw compute throughput (7.181 TFLOPS FP32) is the primary constraint.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU built on TSMC's 12 nm process, featuring 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Its memory configuration of 8 GB GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which becomes a critical factor in Outriders as resolution increases. The GPU's base clock is 1470 MHz with a boost clock of 1650 MHz, and its pixel rate of 105.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 224.4 GTexel/s directly influence how the game renders its environments. The benchmark results show the GPU scoring 16462 in Passmark G3D and 6721 in GPU Compute, placing it at the 63rd percentile among all GPUs.

The GPU's nearest rivals in the database are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (deltaPct 0.3), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (deltaPct 0.5), NVIDIA Quadro K5200 (deltaPct 0.8), and NVIDIA Tesla K40m (deltaPct 1.3). These deltas are remarkably small, indicating that the RTX 2060 SUPER sits in a performance cluster where individual cards are nearly interchangeable. The RTX 2070 is only 0.5% faster in average benchmark score, yet the RTX 2060 SUPER's 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores provide hardware features that the older GTX TITAN lacks. In Outriders, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU's 8 GB memory is sufficient for Medium settings at all resolutions, but the Ultra preset at 4K (28.8 fps) and 1440p (54.2 fps) reveals that the memory bandwidth becomes a bottleneck when higher-quality textures and effects are enabled.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1113 out of 1693 tested combinations places this system in the 34th percentile of all CPU-GPU pairings tested in Outriders. This ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU's position in the performance hierarchy, as the Intel Core i7-14700K is a much stronger component. The CPU's benchmarks show it at the 96th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70074, and its nearest rivals are the Intel Core i7-14700KF (deltaPct 0), AMD EPYC 9115 (deltaPct 0.3), AMD Ryzen 9 9950X (deltaPct -0.5), and Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 (deltaPct -1.4). The i7-14700K's 20 cores and 28 threads, with a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, are clearly not the limiting factor in this pairing.

The discrepancy between the CPU's high percentile (96th) and the combo's lower rank (1113th) indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER holds the system back in Outriders. The GPU's 63rd percentile ranking and its average benchmark score of 19774 are the primary determinants of the combo's position. This is a classic case of CPU over-provisioning relative to the GPU, where the i7-14700K's capabilities are largely wasted in GPU-bound scenarios. The data shows that even at 1920x1080 with Low settings, where the CPU would have the most influence, the combo achieves 204 fps, which is a strong result but does not leverage the CPU's full multithreaded potential (as shown by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 44534).

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values across presets are as follows: Low produces 204 fps, Medium produces 149.8 fps, High produces 113.6 fps, and Ultra produces 81.1 fps. The progression from Low to Medium is a 54.2 fps drop, from Medium to High is a 36.2 fps drop, and from High to Ultra is a 32.5 fps drop. This linear scaling suggests that the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth are being incrementally taxed by each quality tier. The 1080p results demonstrate that the RTX 2060 SUPER is capable of high refresh rate gaming at lower settings, with the Low preset exceeding 200 fps, but the Ultra preset still maintains a respectable 81.1 fps.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS values are: Low 132.5, Medium 92.7, High 73.6, and Ultra 54.2. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is most pronounced at High settings, where the FPS falls from 113.6 to 73.6, a 35.2% decrease. This indicates that the GPU's 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth becomes a more significant constraint at 1440p, particularly with higher-quality textures. The Medium preset at 1440p (92.7 fps) is still well above the 60 fps target, making it the recommended setting for this resolution. The Ultra preset at 54.2 fps is the only sub-60 fps result at 1440p, suggesting that this preset is not viable for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS values are: Low 71.2, Medium 51.2, High 38.2, and Ultra 28.8. The 4K results show a steep decline, with only the Low preset exceeding 60 fps. The Medium preset at 51.2 fps is borderline playable, but the High and Ultra presets are clearly not viable for competitive or immersive play. The data reveals that the RTX 2060 SUPER's 8 GB memory and 256-bit bus are insufficient for 4K gaming with this title at higher quality settings. The scaling from Low to Medium at 4K is a 20 fps drop, from Medium to High is a 13 fps drop, and from High to Ultra is a 9.4 fps drop, showing that the GPU's compute resources are exhausted at this resolution.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming in Outriders with this combo?*

A: The Medium preset is the best choice for 2560x1440, delivering 92.7 fps average. This is significantly higher than the 73.6 fps from High settings and maintains smooth gameplay above the 60 fps threshold.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K resolution in Outriders?*

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which produces 71.2 fps average. The Medium preset at 51.2 fps is playable but not ideal, while High (38.2 fps) and Ultra (28.8 fps) are not recommended for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its nearest rival, the RTX 2070?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 19774, while the RTX 2070 scores 19680, making the RTX 2060 SUPER 0.5% faster in average benchmark score. This difference is negligible in real-world gaming.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700K a bottleneck for the RTX 2060 SUPER in this game?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU ranks at the 96th percentile among all CPUs, while the combo ranks 1113th out of 1693, showing that the GPU's performance is what determines the frame rates.

Q: What is the expected FPS at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 113.6 fps. This is a smooth experience for most displays, though the Medium preset offers 149.8 fps for higher refresh rate monitors.

Q: How does the GPU's memory configuration affect the 4K results?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. This configuration is insufficient for 4K at High settings, which drops to 38.2 fps, whereas Low settings at 4K achieve 71.2 fps due to reduced memory pressure.