Pc Building Simulator

Pc Building Simulator pairs a six-core Intel Core i5-9400 with a 12 GB AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, producing a measured performance profile that is heavily dependent on resolution and quality presets. The data shows a system capable of high refresh rates at 1080p, but one that progressively cedes ground to the GPU as resolution increases, with the final Ultra preset at 4K falling below the 60 FPS threshold.

FAQ

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

A: At 1920x1080 with the Ultra preset, the measured average FPS is 145.8, indicating a highly playable experience for simulation enthusiasts.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in raw compute?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i3-10305's score of 2300, and 0.4% higher than the Intel Xeon E-2134's 2295.

Q: Does the RX 7700 XT keep 4K performance above 60 FPS on any preset?

A: Yes, the data shows that at 3840x2160, both the Low and Medium presets exceed 60 FPS, with averages of 99.3 FPS and 71.4 FPS, respectively.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all tested graphics cards?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT sits at the 73rd percentile when compared to all GPUs in the database.

Q: How much faster is the combo at 1080p Low compared to 4K Ultra?

A: The measured FPS at 1080p Low is 241.9, which is more than five times the 46.0 FPS recorded at 4K Ultra.

Q: Is the i5-9400's single-core performance strong relative to its multi-core?

A: The CPU's Cinebench R23 scores show a single-core result of 1125 against a multi-core score of 7969, suggesting that individual core performance is a relative strength for this chip.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT is the dominant force in this combo's gaming performance. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s, which is a critical asset for a simulation game that likely loads many assets. The GPU's boost clock of 2544 MHz and game clock of 2171 MHz are the primary drivers behind the high frame rates observed at 1080p and 1440p. The data supports this, as the FPS scales dramatically with resolution changes, a hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario. For instance, at 1440p High, the average FPS is 95.6, but at 1080p High, it jumps to 152.3, a 59.3% increase that is almost entirely attributable to the GPU's workload being reduced.

The RX 7700 XT's overall capability is reflected in its Passmark G3D score of 22547 and its 73rd percentile ranking. When compared to its nearest rivals, the data shows a tight cluster: it is exactly 0.0% different from the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, 0.2% slower than the AMD Radeon RX 570, and 0.4% faster than the NVIDIA Tesla M60. This indicates that while the card is not a class leader, it is positioned in a highly competitive performance band. In Pc Building Simulator, the GPU's raw throughput dictates whether the system can hit high refresh rates at lower resolutions, or if it will struggle to maintain smooth motion at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy for the best experience. For players targeting 60 FPS or higher, the 4K resolution is only viable with the Low or Medium presets, yielding 99.3 FPS and 71.4 FPS respectively. The High and Ultra presets at 4K fall to 52.3 FPS and 46.0 FPS, which may be acceptable for a slower-paced simulation but do not guarantee smoothness.

At 2560x1440, the situation improves significantly. The High preset delivers 95.6 FPS, and the Ultra preset still manages 90.7 FPS. This suggests that 1440p is the sweet spot for balancing visual fidelity and performance, as even the most demanding preset stays above 90 FPS. The 1080p results are uniformly excellent, with the Ultra preset hitting 145.8 FPS and the High preset at 152.3 FPS.

The optimal choice depends on the user's display. For a 60 Hz 4K monitor, Medium settings are the highest quality option that maintains frame pacing. For a 144 Hz 1440p panel, Ultra settings are the best choice, as they keep the average FPS above the refresh rate. The data implies that the Ultra preset at 1440p offers the best combination of visual quality and headroom, while the High preset at 4K is a compromise that sacrifices some smoothness for higher resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific configuration of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT holds a rank of 829 out of 1769 tested combos in Pc Building Simulator. This places it in the upper-middle tier of all possible pairings in the database. The rank suggests that while this is not a top-tier enthusiast setup, it is far from a low-end configuration. The data indicates that this combo is more capable than a majority of the tested systems, but it is not among the elite performers that would dominate the top of the leaderboards.

The combination's ranking is likely held back by the CPU. The GPU's 73rd percentile ranking is higher than the CPU's 50th percentile ranking, suggesting a slight imbalance where the processor is the weaker link in the chain. This is corroborated by the resolution scaling data, which shows that the FPS drops are more pronounced at higher resolutions where the GPU is fully engaged, but the CPU's limitations may become more apparent at lower resolutions where the GPU is less taxed.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its 9 MB of shared L3 cache is a significant resource for a game like Pc Building Simulator, which involves managing numerous components and their interactions. The CPU's Cinebench R20 scores of 3346 multi-core and 472 single-core give it a percentile ranking of 50, meaning it is exactly average in the database.

In this game, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage the simulation's logic. The data suggests that the i5-9400 is sufficient for this task at most settings, as the frame rates scale consistently with GPU load. However, the CPU's average benchmark score of 2305 is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with only a 0.2% difference from the Intel Core i3-10305 and a -0.6% difference from the Intel Core i7-8809G. This indicates that the i5-9400 is not a standout performer, and its six threads may become a limiting factor in heavily populated scenes or when running background tasks.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a consistent pattern across all resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 241.9 on Low to 145.8 on Ultra. The Medium preset sits at 217.0, and High at 152.3. The step from Medium to High is a 29.8% drop, while the step from High to Ultra is a 4.3% drop, indicating that the Ultra preset is not significantly more demanding than High at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the numbers are 194.1 (Low), 134.5 (Medium), 95.6 (High), and 90.7 (Ultra). The drop from 1080p to 1440p is substantial: at High settings, FPS falls from 152.3 to 95.6, a 37.2% reduction. This is a classic sign of the GPU becoming the bottleneck, as the pixel count increases by 78% but the frame rate does not scale proportionally.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 99.3 (Low), 71.4 (Medium), 52.3 (High), and 46.0 (Ultra). The jump from 1440p to 4K at High settings sees FPS drop from 95.6 to 52.3, a 45.3% decrease. This steep decline highlights the GPU's struggle to maintain playable frame rates at the highest resolution with more demanding presets.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K provides a clear picture of system bottlenecking. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 241.9 at 1080p to 99.3 at 4K, a 58.9% reduction. This massive drop indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU is being pushed to its limits at 4K. However, the absolute FPS at 4K Low is still very high, suggesting the CPU is not a major constraint at this quality level.

At Ultra settings, the FPS drops from 145.8 at 1080p to 46.0 at 4K, a 68.5% reduction. This is a more pronounced drop than at Low settings, which is expected since the GPU is handling a heavier workload. The fact that the percentage drop is larger at Ultra than at Low suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS drop would be less severe at higher resolutions, as the CPU workload would remain constant while the GPU takes on more pixels.

The data shows that the i5-9400 is capable of driving high frame rates at 1080p, with the GPU becoming the clear bottleneck as resolution increases. The 4K Ultra result of 46.0 FPS is a clear indicator that this combo is not designed for maximum settings at 4K, but rather for high-refresh-rate gaming at 1080p or high-quality gaming at 1440p.