Red Dead Redemption 2

Red Dead Redemption 2 presents a demanding workload for the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings show a system that is heavily influenced by the graphics card, with the CPU providing a stable foundation that rarely becomes the primary constraint. The data set provides a clear picture of how this pairing behaves, from high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming to the more immersive 4K experience, and the results align with the component specifications listed.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 clearly demonstrates the GPU-bound nature of this title for this specific hardware pairing. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 121 FPS at 1080p to 90 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 60 FPS at 4K. This represents a 50% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K at High settings, which is a substantial scaling factor. The data suggests that as resolution increases, the rendering load on the RTX 4080 grows significantly, directly impacting the output.

Looking at the Low preset, the scaling pattern is similar but with higher absolute numbers. The system produces 167 FPS at 1080p, 145 FPS at 1440p, and 96 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K here is 42.5%, which is slightly less severe than at High settings. This indicates that even at the lowest settings, the GPU is still the primary limiting factor, as the CPU is capable of feeding the graphics card with enough data to maintain these high frame rates. The RTX 4080's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 716.8 GB/s bandwidth are likely being utilized fully at these resolutions.

The Medium preset shows a similar trend, with 145 FPS at 1080p, 108 FPS at 1440p, and 72 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 4K is 50.3%, nearly identical to the High preset. This consistency across presets reinforces the notion that the GPU's computational throughput is the bottleneck. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, yields 87 FPS at 1080p, 65 FPS at 1440p, and 43 FPS at 4K, showing a 50.6% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The consistency of these percentages across all four presets is a strong indicator that the limiting component is the GPU, as the relative performance cost of increasing resolution is not affected by the specific settings applied.

The data does not suggest that the Ryzen 5 5600F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, becomes a significant bottleneck at lower resolutions. While the 1080p Low preset achieves 167 FPS, which is high, the incremental scaling to 1440p and 4K is smooth. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would likely see a plateau or a less pronounced drop in frame rates as resolution increases, but the data shows a consistent and steep decline, which is the hallmark of a GPU-limited scenario.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate for this combo at 4K with High settings?

A: The measured average frame rate is 60 FPS at 3840x2160 resolution with the High preset.

Q: How does the frame rate at 1440p Medium compare to the frame rate at 1080p Medium?

A: The 1440p Medium preset achieves an average of 108 FPS, while the 1080p Medium preset achieves 145 FPS. This represents a 37 FPS difference, or approximately 25.5% lower performance at the higher resolution.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The benchmark results indicate the GPU is the primary limiting factor. The frame rate scales consistently with resolution across all settings, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU's specifications, including its 6 cores and 12 threads, are sufficient to avoid becoming the main bottleneck.

Q: What is the best average frame rate recorded in the entire data set?

A: The highest average frame rate is 167 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low preset.

Q: Are there any frame rate data points for the Ultra preset at 4K?

A: Yes, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 yields an average frame rate of 43 FPS. This is the lowest average FPS recorded in the measured data.

Q: How does the combo's performance in this game compare to other tested configurations?

A: The combination ranks 365th out of 3714 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2, placing it in the top 10% of all recorded configurations.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the dominant component in this pairing. Its specifications paint a picture of a high-end card designed for heavy workloads. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. This is a significant amount of memory bandwidth, which is crucial for high-resolution textures and complex scenes like those found in Red Dead Redemption 2. The card's base clock is 2205 MHz and it boosts to 2505 MHz, with a memory clock of 1400 MHz (22.4 Gbps effective).

The GPU's compute capabilities are robust, with 9728 shading units, 304 TMUs, and 112 ROPs. It also has 76 RT cores and 304 tensor cores, which are relevant for ray tracing and DLSS features, though the measured frame rates in this data set do not specify if these features are enabled. The RTX 4080's FP32 performance is listed at 48.74 TFLOPS, indicating a strong raw compute throughput. In the context of this game, the data shows that the GPU is the main driver of performance. The frame rates at 4K, even at Medium settings, only reach 72 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra, it can hit 87 FPS. This suggests that the game's engine is effectively utilizing the GPU's resources, and the performance scales as expected with the card's capabilities.

The 16 GB of VRAM is likely a key factor in maintaining playable frame rates at 4K, as the game can allocate a large amount of memory for textures and geometry without resorting to slower system memory. The measured 4K High preset at 60 FPS suggests a stable experience, while the Ultra preset drops to 43 FPS, indicating that the most demanding settings push the card to its limits. The GPU's average benchmark score is 54247, placing it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival is the RTX 4080 SUPER, which scores 54209, a difference of just 0.1%. This confirms the RTX 4080's position as a top-tier performer in the current market.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination achieves a rank of 365 out of 3714 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places the pairing in the top 9.8% of all recorded configurations, which is a strong result. The rank is determined by the measured frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings. Given the GPU's high percentile rank of 86 among all GPUs, this overall combo rank is expected. The CPU, with its 85th percentile rank among all CPUs, is also a capable partner, but the GPU's performance is the primary driver of this high combined ranking.

The data suggests that the combo is well-balanced for this game, but the ranking also highlights that there are many other combos that perform better. The 365th rank out of 3714 indicates that a significant number of configurations, likely featuring more powerful CPUs or GPUs, are able to achieve higher frame rates. However, the performance of this specific pairing is still very respectable, offering smooth gameplay at high resolutions and settings. The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 5 225, which has a nearly identical average score (36938 vs 36945), and the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, which is slightly lower. This shows that the 5600F is performing as expected for its class, and it is not dragging down the overall combo ranking.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 4K gaming, the High preset provides an average of 60 FPS, which is the standard for smooth console-like gameplay. The Medium preset at 4K offers a higher average of 72 FPS, with a minimum of 61 FPS, which could be preferable for players with high-refresh-rate 4K displays. The Ultra preset at 4K, with an average of 43 FPS, is likely too demanding for a consistently smooth experience, and the Low preset at 96 FPS sacrifices too much visual quality for the frame rate gain.

At 1440p, the High preset achieves a solid 90 FPS, which is excellent for a 144Hz monitor. The Medium preset also provides a very good experience at 108 FPS, with a minimum of 92 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 65 FPS, which is playable but may not be ideal for fast-paced action. The Low preset at 145 FPS is for competitive play, but it undermines the visual fidelity of the game. For 1080p, the High preset at 121 FPS is a great balance, and the Medium preset at 145 FPS is even smoother. The Ultra preset at 87 FPS is also viable, offering higher visual quality at a still-high frame rate.

The data suggests that the High preset is the sweet spot for this hardware across all resolutions, providing a good balance between visual quality and performance. The Medium preset is a viable alternative for those seeking higher frame rates, while the Ultra preset is best reserved for lower resolutions like 1080p where the frame rate remains above 60 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average frame rates are as follows: Low preset 167 FPS, Medium preset 145 FPS (with a min of 123 and max of 167), High preset 121 FPS, and Ultra preset 87 FPS. The Medium preset's min and max values show some variance, but the average is stable. Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 145 FPS, Medium 108 FPS (min 92, max 125), High 90 FPS, and Ultra 65 FPS. The trend continues at 3840x2160, where the averages are: Low 96 FPS, Medium 72 FPS (min 61, max 82), High 60 FPS, and Ultra 43 FPS.

The data reveals a clear pattern: each step up in resolution results in a significant performance penalty. The jump from 1080p to 1440p at High settings costs 31 FPS (121 to 90), and the jump from 1440p to 4K costs another 30 FPS (90 to 60). This is a linear scaling pattern that is typical for a GPU-bound game. The Low preset, while offering the highest frame rates, shows a similar pattern, with 167 FPS at 1080p, 145 FPS at 1440p, and 96 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with the 4K average falling below 60 FPS at 43 FPS.

The min and max FPS data, available only for the Medium preset, shows that the frame time variance increases with resolution. At 1080p, the range is 44 FPS (123 to 167), at 1440p it is 33 FPS (92 to 125), and at 4K it is 21 FPS (61 to 82). This suggests that while the average frame rate drops, the frame pacing becomes more consistent at higher resolutions, possibly due to the GPU being more uniformly loaded.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer. It has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. The CPU has a 32 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory. Its specifications are more than adequate for gaming, and the benchmark data suggests that it is not the limiting factor in Red Dead Redemption 2 for this GPU pairing.

The CPU's benchmark scores show strong single and multi-threaded performance. It scores 2872 in both the Passmark single-thread tests and 19236 in the multithread test. These scores place the CPU in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. The nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 5 225, which scores 36938, just 0.0% lower than the 5600F's average score of 36945. This indicates that the 5600F is performing on par with its direct competitors.

In the context of Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU's role is to keep up with the RTX 4080's frame generation. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system can reach 167 FPS, which is a high frame rate that requires a capable CPU to avoid becoming a bottleneck. The fact that the frame rate scales consistently with resolution suggests that the CPU is not limiting performance at any point. The 12 threads are likely sufficient for the game's AI and physics workloads, and the 32 MB L3 cache helps with data locality. The CPU's TDP of 65 W is modest, and its 7 nm process node ensures efficient operation, but these factors do not directly impact the measured frame rates. The data confirms that the 5600F is a solid match for the RTX 4080, providing enough processing power to let the GPU operate at its full potential.