Pc Building Simulator

The Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 pairing in Pc Building Simulator presents a clear case of a high-end GPU paired with a mid-range CPU. The processor is a 6-core, 12-thread Rocket Lake part with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support are typical for the platform. Benchmark data shows this CPU sits at the 75th percentile among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 17181. Its nearest rivals, including the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U and Intel Core i7-1260P, all score within a 0.2% delta of the i5-11400F, indicating the processor is performing near the expected envelope for its class.

The RTX 4090, by contrast, is an extreme outlier on the GPU side. This Ada Lovelace part features 16384 shading units, 128 RT cores, and 512 tensor cores, backed by 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus. Its 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth and boost clock of 2520 MHz are top-tier figures. In GPU benchmarks, it reaches the 91st percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 66473. The closest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4 and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56, are within a -0.9% to 0.5% delta, which is remarkable for such different hardware classes. This suggests the RTX 4090 is performing at its expected high level in this simulation title.

CPU Role

The i5-11400F’s role in Pc Building Simulator is defined by its modest core count and clock speeds. With 6 cores and 12 threads, it is a capable multitasker, but the game’s simulation workload appears to scale well beyond this CPU’s comfort zone. The boost clock of 4.40 GHz helps in single-threaded scenarios, as evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 868 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2029. However, the multi-threaded scores, such as Cinebench R23 multi-core at 14372 and Passmark multithread at 16908, show that the processor’s throughput is limited by its physical core count. In the context of the measured FPS data, the CPU is likely the bottleneck at lower resolutions and settings, where the GPU is not fully utilized.

The data supports this interpretation. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 299.5 FPS, which is a high number but not as high as one might expect from an RTX 4090 in a less CPU-dependent title. The gap between 1080p Low and 1080p Ultra is only 73.6 FPS (from 299.5 to 225.9), suggesting that the CPU cannot feed the GPU fast enough to close the gap further. The i5-11400F’s nearest rivals, like the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U with an average score of 17189, are within 0% delta, meaning this CPU is not an outlier in its class—it is simply a mid-range part that cannot keep pace with the top-tier GPU at lower settings.

GPU Role

The RTX 4090 is the dominant component in this pairing. Its 24 GB of VRAM is far beyond what Pc Building Simulator requires at any resolution, so memory capacity is never a limiting factor. The GDDR6X memory runs at 1313 MHz with 21 Gbps effective speed, delivering 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. This bandwidth is crucial for high-resolution rendering, where the GPU must move large amounts of texture data. The GPU’s compute capabilities, including 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, are equally impressive, but the game’s simulation nature may not fully exploit them.

In practice, the GPU does its job admirably. At 4K Ultra, the combo still manages 83.5 FPS, which is a solid result for a demanding setting. The RTX 4090’s benchmark scores reflect its strength: a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 9223 and a Passmark G3D score of 38194. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4 with an average score of 66733, are within a -0.4% delta, indicating the GPU is performing as expected. The GPU is clearly not the bottleneck at 1080p, where the CPU holds back the frame rate, but it takes over as the limiting factor at 4K, where the frame rates drop significantly.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the shifting bottleneck between CPU and GPU. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 299.5 at 1080p to 172.2 at 4K, a reduction of 127.3 FPS or about 42.5%. This is a steep drop, but the 4K Low result is still high, indicating that the GPU has headroom even at higher resolutions. At Ultra settings, the drop is from 225.9 FPS at 1080p to 83.5 FPS at 4K, a reduction of 142.4 FPS or about 63%. This larger percentage drop at Ultra suggests the GPU is being pushed harder, while the CPU’s relative impact diminishes.

The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary limiter. For instance, the difference between 1080p Low (299.5 FPS) and 1080p High (233.7 FPS) is 65.8 FPS, but the difference between 4K Low (172.2 FPS) and 4K High (87.4 FPS) is 84.8 FPS. This widening gap at higher resolutions is a classic sign of the GPU becoming the bottleneck. The 4K Medium result of 119.4 FPS and 4K High of 87.4 FPS further support this, as the GPU’s rendering load increases with settings. The i5-11400F’s limitations are most visible at 1080p Low, where the 299.5 FPS is below what a top GPU could achieve with a stronger CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture across three resolutions and four settings tiers. At 1920x1080, the combo starts at 299.5 FPS on Low, drops to 261.4 FPS on Medium, then 233.7 FPS on High, and finally 225.9 FPS on Ultra. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 73.6 FPS drop, which is relatively modest, indicating that the CPU is capping the maximum frame rate. At 2560x1440, the results are 256.7 FPS on Low, 228.4 FPS on Medium, 162.3 FPS on High, and 153.6 FPS on Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra here is 103.1 FPS, showing a greater sensitivity to settings as the GPU load increases.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are 172.2 FPS on Low, 119.4 FPS on Medium, 87.4 FPS on High, and 83.5 FPS on Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra is 88.7 FPS, but the absolute values are much lower, confirming the GPU is now the dominant limiter. Notably, the gap between 1080p and 1440p at Ultra is 72.3 FPS (from 225.9 to 153.6), while the gap between 1440p and 4K at Ultra is 70.1 FPS (from 153.6 to 83.5). This consistent scaling suggests the GPU is handling the resolution increase in a linear fashion, while the CPU’s influence fades.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the i5-11400F and RTX 4090 ranks 150th out of 1769 tested combos in Pc Building Simulator. This places it in the top 8.5% of all combinations, which is a strong showing. However, the rank is not higher because the CPU is holding back the GPU in many scenarios. The data shows that the combo performs best at 1080p, where the CPU’s limitations are masked by the GPU’s raw power, but the rank reflects the overall performance across all tested resolutions and settings.

The rank of 150 out of 1769 is notable because it places this pairing ahead of the vast majority of systems, but it also indicates that other combos with stronger CPUs achieve better results. The RTX 4090 is so powerful that pairing it with a mid-range CPU like the i5-11400F creates an imbalance. In CPU-bound scenarios, such as 1080p Low, the combo’s FPS is limited by the processor, preventing it from reaching the heights that a top-tier CPU could achieve. The benchmark data for the CPU, including a Passmark single-thread score of 2981 and a 3DMark 2-thread score of 1691, confirms that it is not a top performer in single-threaded tasks, which are critical for this game’s simulation logic.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in the game?

A: The highest average FPS is 299.5, measured at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo produces an average FPS of 83.5, which is the lowest measured result in the data.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between 1080p Low and 4K Low?

A: The average FPS drops from 299.5 at 1080p Low to 172.2 at 4K Low, a reduction of 127.3 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p High?

A: At 1080p High, the combo achieves 233.7 FPS. Since the RTX 4090 is capable of much higher frame rates, the i5-11400F is the primary limiting factor at this resolution.

Q: How does the i5-11400F compare to its nearest CPU rival in average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5700U has an average score of 17189, which is a 0% delta from the i5-11400F’s average score of 17181.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested combinations in the game?

A: The combo ranks 150th out of 1769 tested combinations, placing it in the top 8.5% of all systems.