Outriders

# Outriders: Intel Core i7-14700KF + AMD Radeon RX 9060 Benchmark Analysis

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 delivers a mid-pack performance profile in Outriders, ranking 1584 out of 2913 tested combinations. This places the combo in the 54th percentile of all tested systems, indicating a configuration that handles the game competently but sits firmly in the middle of the performance distribution. The CPU, which ranks in the 94th percentile among all processors, vastly outperforms the GPU, which sits in the 59th percentile, creating a system where graphics capability is the primary constraint on frame rates. The measured data reveals a configuration capable of smooth 1080p gameplay at most settings, with 1440p requiring some compromises and 4K pushing the GPU to its limits.

How This Combo Ranks

At position 1584 out of 2913 combos, this system lands almost exactly in the middle of the field. The ranking reflects a hardware pairing where the GPU's mid-range standing (59th percentile among all GPUs) pulls down what would otherwise be an exceptional CPU performance. The Core i7-14700KF's average benchmark score of 70163 places it marginally ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (69996, 0.2% delta) and the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875, 0.4% delta), while trailing the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K (70879, -1% delta). These close margins indicate that the processor is not a limiting factor in this configuration.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 16014 sits just behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129, -0.7% delta) and slightly ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7700 (15852, 1% delta). This clustering around the 16000-point mark suggests the RX 9060 delivers performance comparable to established mid-range cards. In Outriders specifically, the combo's rank of 1584 out of 2913 means roughly 54% of tested systems perform better and 46% perform worse. The data indicates this is a configuration that will handle the game at competitive settings but will not dominate in performance comparisons.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on optimal settings for this hardware combination. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 124 FPS average, while Medium produces 165 FPS average with a minimum of 141 FPS and maximum of 190 FPS. The Low preset reaches 227 FPS, but the visual quality trade-off is substantial for a looter shooter where enemy visibility matters. The Ultra preset drops to 90 FPS average, which remains playable but sacrifices the headroom needed for consistent high-refresh-rate gameplay.

For 2560x1440, the High preset yields 78 FPS average, which is smooth for most gameplay scenarios. The Medium preset provides 104 FPS average with a minimum of 89 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS, offering the best balance of visual fidelity and performance at this resolution. The Low preset achieves 144 FPS, while Ultra falls to 57 FPS average, making it less ideal for competitive play.

At 3840x2160, the High preset produces 41 FPS average, which is borderline for a fast-paced shooter. The Medium preset delivers 55 FPS average with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 63 FPS, making it the most viable option for 4K. The Low preset reaches 75 FPS, while Ultra drops to 30 FPS average. The data suggests Medium settings provide the most consistent experience across all resolutions, with High being a reasonable choice at 1080p and 1440p.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU as the dominant bottleneck. At High settings, the frame rate drops from 124 FPS at 1920x1080 to 78 FPS at 2560x1440 (a 37% reduction), then to 41 FPS at 3840x2160 (a 47% further reduction). This steep decline indicates that the RX 9060's 8 GB VRAM and 288.0 GB/s memory bandwidth become increasingly strained as pixel count rises.

The Low settings scaling shows a similar pattern: 227 FPS at 1080p drops to 144 FPS at 1440p (37% reduction) and 75 FPS at 4K (48% reduction). The consistency of these percentage drops across settings presets points to a resolution-bound limitation rather than a settings-related constraint. The GPU's 128-bit memory bus and 8 GB VRAM capacity are the likely culprits, as Outriders' texture-heavy environments demand substantial memory bandwidth at higher resolutions.

Interestingly, the scaling from 1440p to 4K shows a larger relative drop than from 1080p to 1440p at every settings level. At Medium settings, the drop from 104 FPS at 1440p to 55 FPS at 4K represents a 47% reduction, compared to a 37% reduction from 1080p to 1440p (165 to 104 FPS). This accelerating decline suggests the GPU hits a memory bandwidth wall at 4K, where the 288.0 GB/s bandwidth cannot sustain the data throughput required.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RX 9060 paired with the i7-14700KF delivers its strongest results. The Low preset achieves 227 FPS average, while Medium produces 165 FPS with a minimum of 141 and maximum of 190. High settings yield 124 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 90 FPS average. These figures indicate the CPU's 20 cores and 28 threads are more than sufficient at this resolution, with the GPU becoming the primary determinant of performance.

The 2560x1440 measurements show a clear step down. Low settings produce 144 FPS average, maintaining high-refresh-rate capability. Medium settings deliver 104 FPS with a minimum of 89 and maximum of 120, which represents the sweet spot for 1440p gaming on this hardware. High settings achieve 78 FPS average, while Ultra falls to 57 FPS average. The gap between Medium and High at 1440p (26 FPS) is smaller than at 1080p (41 FPS), suggesting diminishing returns from additional graphical detail as resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become pronounced. Low settings produce 75 FPS average, which is the only preset to maintain playable frame rates comfortably. Medium settings deliver 55 FPS with a minimum of 46 and maximum of 63, making it viable for less demanding scenarios. High settings drop to 41 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 30 FPS average, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay in a fast-paced looter shooter. The min-max range at Medium 4K (46 to 63 FPS) shows significant frame time variance, potentially causing noticeable stutter during intense combat sequences.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combination in Outriders?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 provides the most comfortable performance margins, with High settings achieving 124 FPS average and Medium reaching 165 FPS. At 2560x1440, Medium settings deliver 104 FPS average, which remains playable, while 4K requires Medium settings for a 55 FPS average.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in this game?

A: The RX 9060's overall benchmark average of 16014 places it 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129) and 1% ahead of both the AMD Radeon R9 370X (15862) and AMD Radeon RX 7700 (15852). This indicates similar performance to the RTX 3060 Ti in general benchmarks.

Q: Is the Core i7-14700KF holding back the RX 9060 in Outriders?

A: No. The CPU's benchmark scores show it performs 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and 0.4% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX. With a 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs, the i7-14700KF provides ample processing headroom for the GPU in this title.

Q: What settings preset offers the most consistent frame pacing?

A: The Medium preset shows the most stable performance envelope across all resolutions. At 1080p, it delivers 165 FPS average with a 141-190 range; at 1440p, 104 FPS average with 89-120 range; and at 4K, 55 FPS average with 46-63 range. The min-max spreads are narrower than other presets.

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

A: Yes, but with compromises. The Medium preset at 3840x2160 produces 55 FPS average, which is playable. The Low preset achieves 75 FPS, while High and Ultra drop to 41 and 30 FPS respectively. Players seeking 4K should use Medium settings for the best balance.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 1584 out of 2913 tested combos, placing it in the 54th percentile. This means slightly more than half of tested systems outperform this configuration in Outriders.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF brings substantial processing capability to this pairing. With 20 cores and 28 threads, the Raptor Lake-R architecture provides the multi-threaded performance that Outriders' engine can leverage for physics, AI, and game logic. The 3.40 GHz base clock and 5.60 GHz boost clock ensure responsive single-thread performance, evidenced by the 6235 score in Cinebench R23 single-core testing and 4480 in Passmark single-thread benchmarks. The 33 MB shared L3 cache helps maintain data locality for game assets.

The CPU's benchmark results demonstrate its high-end positioning. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 places it in the 94th percentile among all CPUs, while the Geekbench multi-core score of 21462 reinforces this standing. The Passmark multithread score of 52425 and integer math score of 183056 indicate strong compute capability. In Outriders, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations, and the data suggests it does so without bottlenecking.

The processor's nearest rivals show tight competition. The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F scores 69996 (0.2% behind), the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX scores 69875 (0.4% behind), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69515 (0.9% behind). The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K leads at 70879 (1% ahead). These margins indicate the i7-14700KF is squarely in the top tier of gaming CPUs, though not the absolute leader. The 125 W TDP and dual-channel memory support (DDR4 and DDR5) provide flexibility for system builders. The PCIe Gen 5 x16 interface ensures the GPU has full bandwidth available.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 serves as the performance limiter in this configuration. Based on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 44 chip, this GPU features 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The 28 RT cores provide ray tracing capability, and the 21.43 TFLOPS FP32 throughput offers solid compute performance. The 1700 MHz base clock and 2990 MHz boost clock, with a 2400 MHz game clock, deliver the processing speed that determines frame rates in Outriders.

The memory subsystem is the GPU's most significant constraint. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, the 288.0 GB/s bandwidth becomes a limiting factor at higher resolutions. The 18 Gbps effective memory speed is competitive, but the narrow bus width restricts total throughput. In Outriders, which loads large texture sets and complex environments, this bandwidth limitation manifests in the steep FPS drops observed from 1440p to 4K.

The GPU's benchmark performance places it in the 59th percentile among all GPUs. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3322 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 39476 indicate competent DirectX 12 and Vulkan performance. The Passmark G3D score of 17631 and GPU compute score of 9919 show balanced rasterization and compute capabilities. The nearest rival comparison shows the RX 9060 trails the RTX 3060 Ti by only 0.7%, with the R9 370X and RX 7700 sitting 1% behind. This positioning suggests the RX 9060 competes with established mid-range cards, making it suitable for 1080p and 1440p gaming but stretched at 4K. The 132 W TDP and single 8-pin power connector make it an efficient addition to the system.