Pc Building Simulator

# Pc Building Simulator with Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a formidable combination for Pc Building Simulator, a simulation title from 2019 that leans heavily on CPU performance for its intricate system-building mechanics. This combo ranks 34th out of 3,002 tested combinations, placing it in the top 1.1% of all tested hardware pairings for this game. The measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings presets confirm this is a high-end setup capable of delivering extremely smooth gameplay, though the data reveals interesting scaling characteristics that merit closer examination.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 34 out of 3,002 tested combinations is exceptional, placing it in the 98.9th percentile of all tested hardware pairings for Pc Building Simulator. This positioning reflects the combined strength of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090, both of which are flagship-tier components in their respective categories. The CPU alone holds a 96th percentile rank among all tested processors in the database, while the GPU sits at a 92nd percentile among all tested graphics cards.

Looking at the CPU's nearest rivals provides context for its performance contribution. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285K posts an average benchmark score of 83,807, which is just 0.2% lower than the 290K Plus's 84,003 average. This extremely tight margin suggests the 290K Plus offers only a marginal improvement over its immediate predecessor in synthetic workloads. The AMD EPYC 4584PX trails by 1.1% with a score of 83,090, while the AMD EPYC 9135 comes in 1.2% behind at 82,980. Interestingly, the AMD EPYC 7F72 actually outperforms the 290K Plus by 1.3%, posting a score of 85,072. These comparisons indicate that while the 290K Plus is a top-tier consumer processor, it faces stiff competition from both Intel's own lineup and AMD's enterprise offerings.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5090's nearest rivals tell a similar story. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605, just 0.3% below the RTX 5090's 79,842 average. The Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB is 0.6% behind at 79,396, while the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT trails by 1.1% with 78,940. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X actually leads the RTX 5090 by 1.4%, scoring 80,959. These narrow margins are surprising given the RTX 5090's advanced Blackwell architecture, but they reflect the specific benchmark suite used for comparison rather than real-world gaming performance.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data across different settings presets reveals a clear hierarchy for optimal gameplay experience. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers a massive 486 FPS average, while Medium drops to 377 FPS, High to 266 FPS, and Ultra to 253 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra is relatively small at just 13 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional visual fidelity comes at a modest performance cost at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the pattern shifts slightly. Low delivers 336 FPS, Medium drops to 238 FPS, High to 168 FPS, and Ultra to 160 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra narrows further to just 8 FPS, making Ultra a compelling choice for users seeking maximum visual quality without significant performance penalties. The Medium preset at 1440p provides a balanced 238 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 3840x2160, the performance hierarchy becomes more pronounced. Low delivers 176 FPS, Medium drops to 124 FPS, High to 88 FPS, and Ultra to 84 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra remains small at 4 FPS, but the drop from Medium to High is substantial at 36 FPS. For 4K gaming, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance, delivering 124 FPS average with a minimum of 106 FPS and maximum of 143 FPS. This consistency makes Medium the recommended preset for 4K, while High and Ultra are viable for users prioritizing visual fidelity over raw frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about which component is limiting performance in Pc Building Simulator. At Ultra settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (253 FPS) to 2560x1440 (160 FPS) represents a 36.8% performance drop, while moving from 1440p to 4K (84 FPS) shows a 47.5% decline. This steep scaling curve indicates that the GPU becomes increasingly stressed as resolution increases, but the absolute frame rates remain high enough that the CPU still has headroom.

At Low settings, the scaling pattern is even more revealing. The jump from 1080p (486 FPS) to 1440p (336 FPS) shows a 30.9% decline, while the drop to 4K (176 FPS) represents a 47.6% reduction from 1440p. These massive frame rates at lower resolutions suggest that the CPU is the primary bottleneck at 1080p and 1440p with Low settings, as the GPU is capable of rendering far more frames than the CPU can feed it. The fact that 4K Low still achieves 176 FPS demonstrates that even at high resolution, this combo has exceptional headroom.

The Medium preset data provides the most complete picture, as it includes minimum and maximum FPS values alongside averages. At 1080p Medium, the average is 377 FPS with a minimum of 320 and maximum of 433. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 238 FPS with a range of 202-274. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 124 FPS with a range of 106-143. The consistent minimum-to-maximum spread across resolutions indicates stable frame pacing, with the 4K Medium preset showing a 37 FPS spread that suggests the GPU is handling the workload consistently.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured FPS across all settings presets demonstrates extraordinary performance. The Low preset achieves 486 FPS average, which is the highest measured frame rate in the entire dataset. Medium delivers 377 FPS with a minimum of 320 and maximum of 433, while High produces 266 FPS and Ultra reaches 253 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a predictable decline, with each step up in visual quality costing approximately 60-90 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains exceptionally high. Low delivers 336 FPS, Medium achieves 238 FPS with a minimum of 202 and maximum of 274, High produces 168 FPS, and Ultra reaches 160 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra narrows to just 8 FPS at this resolution, suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional effects are less demanding relative to the overall workload. The Medium preset's 72 FPS range between minimum and maximum indicates some frame variance but remains well within acceptable bounds for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the performance is still impressive but shows the expected impact of increased pixel count. Low delivers 176 FPS, Medium achieves 124 FPS with a minimum of 106 and maximum of 143, High produces 88 FPS, and Ultra reaches 84 FPS. The 4K Medium preset provides the most consistent experience, with a 37 FPS range between minimum and maximum. The High and Ultra presets at 4K both exceed 84 FPS, which is sufficient for smooth gameplay on standard 60Hz displays but may not fully utilize high-refresh-rate 4K monitors.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware in Pc Building Simulator?

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 with Medium settings provides an excellent balance, delivering 238 FPS average with a minimum of 202 FPS. For users with 4K displays, the Medium preset at 3840x2160 offers 124 FPS average, which is smooth for most gaming scenarios.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested hardware combinations?

A: This combo ranks 34th out of 3,002 tested combinations, placing it in the top 1.1% of all tested hardware pairings for Pc Building Simulator. This exceptional ranking reflects the flagship status of both the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck at different resolutions?

A: At 1080p and 1440p with Low settings, the CPU appears to be the limiting factor, as the GPU achieves frame rates exceeding 336 FPS. At 4K, the GPU becomes more stressed, but the combo still delivers 176 FPS on Low settings, indicating that neither component is severely bottlenecked.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K?

A: At Ultra settings, performance drops from 253 FPS at 1080p to 84 FPS at 4K, representing a 66.8% reduction. At Low settings, the drop is from 486 FPS to 176 FPS, a 63.8% reduction. These scaling patterns are typical for high-resolution gaming.

Q: What is the difference between High and Ultra settings at each resolution?

A: At 1080p, the difference is 13 FPS (266 vs 253). At 1440p, it narrows to 8 FPS (168 vs 160). At 4K, the gap is just 4 FPS (88 vs 84). This suggests that Ultra settings have minimal additional performance cost compared to High.

Q: Does the RTX 5090's 32 GB VRAM provide any advantage in this game?

A: While the RTX 5090 features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, the measured FPS data does not indicate any VRAM-related limitations at any resolution or settings preset. The game's simulation nature likely does not heavily stress VRAM capacity.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It features a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, with a TDP of 125 watts. The processor includes 36 MB of shared L3 cache, along with 192 KB of L1 cache per core and 3 MB of L2 cache per core. These specifications place it firmly in the high-end desktop segment, with an unlocked multiplier for overclocking enthusiasts.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 290K Plus demonstrates exceptional multi-threaded performance, scoring 51,731 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 21,727 in Cinebench R20 multi-core. Single-core performance is equally impressive, with scores of 7,303 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 3,067 in Cinebench R20 single-core. PassMark results show strong performance across various workloads, including 214,760 in floating point math, 166,194 in integer math, and 60,860 in multithreaded tests.

For Pc Building Simulator, the CPU's 24 cores and 24 threads are particularly relevant given the game's simulation nature. The high boost clock of 5.80 GHz ensures responsive single-threaded performance for game logic, while the multi-core capabilities handle the various system-building calculations. The processor's 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is well-suited for this workload, though the measured FPS data suggests that at lower resolutions, the CPU may be the limiting factor given the GPU's ability to render frames at extremely high rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using a 5 nm process, featuring 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz, with 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. The card includes 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 render output units, along with 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 5090 delivers strong performance across various tests. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test scores 18,355, while Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan scores reach 334,370 and 376,728 respectively. PassMark results show 39,650 in G3D and 26,756 in GPU compute tests. The GPU's 92nd percentile ranking among all graphics cards reflects its high-end positioning.

For Pc Building Simulator, the RTX 5090's massive 32 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for any resolution or settings preset, as evidenced by the lack of VRAM-related performance issues in the measured data. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s ensures rapid texture streaming and rendering operations. The card's 575 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate it is a power-hungry component, but the measured FPS data shows it delivers exceptional performance across all tested scenarios. The GPU's role becomes increasingly important at higher resolutions, with the 4K data showing more pronounced performance scaling, though the absolute frame rates remain high even at Ultra settings.