Overpower

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER presents a compelling case study in resolution scaling for Overpower. The data shows a clear pattern: as resolution drops from 4K to 1080p, frame rates increase, but the magnitude of that increase reveals where the bottleneck lies. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the combo averages 117.1 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High, the average rises to 126.4 FPS, a modest gain of roughly 8%. Dropping further to 1920x1080 High yields 131.9 FPS, just a 4% improvement over the 1440p result. This flattening of the performance curve at lower resolutions strongly indicates that the Intel Core i5-9400 is becoming the limiting component.

The trend is even more pronounced at Low settings. At 4K Low, the system produces 147.7 FPS. At 1440p Low, that number climbs to 156.4 FPS, and at 1080p Low, it reaches 162.4 FPS. The total spread from 4K to 1080p is just under 10%, which is surprisingly narrow for a GPU as powerful as the RTX 4080 SUPER. In a GPU-bound scenario, the expectation would be for 1080p to deliver a significantly larger advantage over 4K. The fact that it does not suggests that the CPU's six cores and six threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, are saturated, preventing the graphics card from fully stretching its legs at lower resolutions. The GPU is clearly capable of higher output, but the processor cannot feed it data fast enough.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is the dominant component in this pairing, but its role changes with resolution. The card features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 736.3 GB/s. This memory configuration is more than sufficient for Overpower at any of the tested settings, so VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor in these results. The GPU's clock speeds are listed with a base of 2295 MHz and a boost of 2550 MHz. These figures are constant across all resolutions, but their impact on frame rates is mediated by the CPU.

The benchmark data suggests that the GPU is fully utilized at 4K, where it is the primary driver of performance. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 46.7 FPS (147.7 vs 101.0), indicating that the graphics card is doing heavy lifting as settings increase. At 1080p, however, the same comparison shows a much smaller gap of 41.6 FPS (162.4 vs 120.8). This compressed range at 1080p is a classic sign of a CPU bottleneck. The GPU’s passmark g3d score of 34245 and its 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs confirm its raw power, but that power is only fully expressed when the resolution is high enough to keep the processor from becoming the constraint. The GPU’s 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is effectively wasted in some lower-resolution scenarios.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal settings for this combination depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 3840x2160, the High preset delivers 117.1 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 101.0 FPS. The Medium preset sits between them at 122.9 FPS, which is actually higher than High. This makes Medium the best choice at 4K for maximizing frame rate without a significant visual penalty, as it outperforms High by 5.8 FPS. Low at 4K offers 147.7 FPS, but the visual trade-off is likely substantial.

At 2560x1440, the picture changes. Low produces 156.4 FPS, but the more demanding presets are all above 114 FPS. High at 126.4 FPS and Medium at 129.9 FPS are close, while Ultra trails at 114.9 FPS. For a balance of visual quality and performance, High is the recommended preset at 1440p, as it stays above 120 FPS. Pushing to Ultra would cost 11.5 FPS, which may not be worth the marginal quality increase. At 1920x1080, all presets exceed 120 FPS. Low hits 162.4 FPS, Medium 134.9 FPS, High 131.9 FPS, and Ultra 120.8 FPS. Here, the CPU bottleneck is most apparent, and the recommendation is to use High or Ultra. Ultra is the only preset that dips below 125 FPS, but it remains playable, and the added detail is the best use of the GPU’s capabilities given that frame rates are already high.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full dataset provides a detailed view of performance across all combinations. At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 147.7 FPS, Medium 122.9 FPS, High 117.1 FPS, and Ultra 101.0 FPS. The progression shows a near-linear drop as settings increase, with the largest single-step decline being 16.1 FPS from High to Ultra. At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 156.4 FPS, Medium 129.9 FPS, High 126.4 FPS, and Ultra 114.9 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is just 3.5 FPS, making them nearly interchangeable. At 1920x1080, the figures are: Low 162.4 FPS, Medium 134.9 FPS, High 131.9 FPS, and Ultra 120.8 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 41.6 FPS, which is the smallest absolute difference across all resolutions, reinforcing the idea of a CPU limit.

The data also reveals how the GPU scales with resolution. From 1080p High to 4K High, the drop is 14.8 FPS (131.9 to 117.1). From 1080p Low to 4K Low, the drop is 14.7 FPS (162.4 to 147.7). This consistency suggests that the GPU is handling the increased pixel count efficiently, but the CPU overhead at lower resolutions is capping the maximum achievable frame rate. The 4K results are the most representative of the GPU’s true performance, as they show a wider separation between settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the broader context of all tested combinations in Overpower, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER ranks 378th out of 1744 combos. This places it in the top 22% of all systems tested, which is a strong showing given the age of the processor. The CPU itself is in the 50th percentile of all CPUs based on its average benchmark score of 2305, and its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-10305 (score 2300, delta 0.2%) and the Intel Xeon E-2134 (score 2295, delta 0.4%). These rivals are all within 0.6% of the i5-9400, so the processor is performing exactly as expected for its class.

The GPU, however, is a different story. With an average benchmark score of 53610, the RTX 4080 SUPER sits in the 88th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (score 53489, delta 0.2%) and the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (score 53414, delta 0.4%). The GPU is clearly a top-tier part, but the combo rank of 378 suggests that the CPU is holding it back from higher placements. Systems with more modern processors would likely push this GPU into a higher percentile ranking. The 378th rank reflects a bottlenecked configuration rather than a poorly performing one.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average frame rate at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 120.8 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the GPU is the primary limiting factor. The frame rate drops from 147.7 FPS on Low to 101.0 FPS on Ultra, indicating that the graphics card is being taxed by the higher resolution and settings.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its nearest rival in terms of average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 53610, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT with a score of 53489.

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

A: The High preset at 2560x1440 delivers 126.4 FPS, which is a good balance of visual quality and performance. Medium is similar at 129.9 FPS, but High offers better detail for only a 3.5 FPS penalty.

Q: Is there a significant frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at Low settings?

A: The difference is 14.7 FPS, with 1080p Low at 162.4 FPS and 4K Low at 147.7 FPS. This small gap indicates that the CPU is limiting performance at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems?

A: This combo ranks 378th out of 1744 tested combinations in Overpower, placing it in the top 22% of all systems.