Red Dead Redemption 2

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured frame rates for Red Dead Redemption 2 with the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 reveal a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases. At 1080p High settings, the combo delivers 121 FPS, which drops to 90 FPS at 1440p and further to 60 FPS at 4K. This progression represents a 25.6% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 33.3% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling curve is steep and consistent, indicating that the RTX 4080 is the primary constraint at higher resolutions.

The Low preset tells a more interesting story. At 1080p Low, the system produces 194 FPS, but dropping to 1440p Low yields 145 FPS—a 25.3% decrease—and 4K Low produces 96 FPS, another 33.8% drop. These reductions closely mirror the High preset scaling, which is notable because at Low settings, the CPU should have more headroom. The fact that the percentage drops remain nearly identical across presets suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU is still the limiting factor at every resolution tested.

Medium settings show a similar trajectory: 145 FPS at 1080p, 108 FPS at 1440p, and 72 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset delivers 87 FPS at 1080p, 65 FPS at 1440p, and 43 FPS at 4K. Interestingly, the gap between Medium and High is smaller at 1080p (145 vs 121 FPS, a 19.8% difference) than at 4K (72 vs 60 FPS, a 20.0% difference), suggesting the performance penalty for each quality tier scales roughly proportionally regardless of resolution.

The data indicates that the Ryzen 5 9600X is not the bottleneck in this configuration. Even at 1080p Low with 194 FPS, the CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads appear sufficient to feed the RTX 4080. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see diminishing returns when lowering resolution—that is, the FPS at 1080p Low should be much higher relative to 1440p Low if the CPU were capping performance. Instead, the consistent resolution scaling pattern confirms the GPU is doing the heavy lifting across all settings.

The 4K Ultra result of 43 FPS is particularly telling. This is the only configuration that falls below the 60 FPS threshold, and it represents a 50.6% drop from 4K Medium's 72 FPS. The RTX 4080's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 716.8 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for most scenarios, but the combination of Ultra settings and 4K resolution pushes the GPU to its limits. The minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium is 61 FPS, which suggests that even at Medium settings, the system is operating near the edge of smooth performance at 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: The data shows 1440p High delivers 90 FPS average, providing a strong balance between visual quality and smoothness. At 4K High, the system manages 60 FPS exactly, which is playable but leaves no headroom for demanding scenes. For guaranteed smooth performance, 1080p High at 121 FPS or 1440p Medium at 108 FPS are the safest choices.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 compare to its closest rival in raw GPU benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4080 scores 54247 in the average benchmark, which is 0.1% higher than the RTX 4080 SUPER's 54209. It also sits 1.1% above the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54828) when comparing deltaPct values, though the Pro W5700X actually has a higher raw score of 54828 versus the RTX 4080's 54247.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 9600X a bottleneck in this game?

A: Benchmark results indicate no. The CPU scores 29713 on average, ranking in the 81st percentile of all CPUs. More importantly, the measured FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K follows a consistent GPU-bound pattern. If the CPU were limiting performance, we would see smaller FPS gains when lowering resolution, but the data shows FPS increases by roughly 33-35% when moving from 4K to 1440p at each preset.

Q: What FPS can I expect at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average is 87 FPS at 1080p Ultra. This is comfortably above 60 FPS and provides a smooth experience while pushing the RTX 4080 to its limits in terms of visual quality settings. The system does not record a minimum FPS for this configuration, but the average suggests consistent performance.

Q: How much faster is the Ryzen 5 9600X compared to its nearest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 5 9600X has an average benchmark score of 29713. Its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE, scores 29656, which is 0.2% lower. The Ryzen 7 7840H scores 29868 (0.5% higher), the Ryzen 7 5800XT scores 29879 (0.6% higher), and the Ryzen 7 8845HS scores 29955 (0.8% higher). The 9600X is effectively within 1% of all four rivals.

Q: Does the game benefit more from the CPU or GPU in this pairing?

A: The evidence points strongly to the GPU. The RTX 4080 ranks in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, and the measured FPS scaling shows that performance drops by roughly 25-34% each time resolution doubles from 1080p to 1440p to 4K. This consistent degradation is the signature of a GPU-bound workload, meaning the RTX 4080 is the component that determines playable settings and resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 260th out of 3714 tested combinations in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places the combo in the top 7% of all configurations tested, which is a strong result for a pairing of a 6-core desktop CPU with a high-end 40-series GPU. The rank of 260 out of 3714 means that roughly 3454 other combos tested slower in this game, while only 259 combinations delivered higher performance.

This ranking context is important because Red Dead Redemption 2 is known to be a demanding title, and the data shows the combo handles it well at most settings. The RTX 4080's 86th percentile GPU ranking and the Ryzen 5 9600X's 81st percentile CPU ranking both contribute to this top-tier placement. The CPU's performance is within 1% of four rival processors—the Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE, Ryzen 7 7840H, Ryzen 7 5800XT, and Ryzen 7 8845HS—which means the CPU choice is unlikely to be the differentiator in this game.

The combo's rank suggests that for most users, this configuration will provide a high-refresh-rate experience at 1080p and 1440p, with playable 4K performance depending on settings. The 4K Ultra result of 43 FPS is the only measured configuration that falls below 60 FPS, and it represents the extreme end of the settings spectrum. Given that the combo ranks 260th out of 3714, it outperforms the vast majority of tested hardware pairings in this specific game, making it a robust choice for Red Dead Redemption 2 enthusiasts.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low preset produces 194 FPS average, Medium produces 145 FPS with a minimum of 123 FPS and maximum of 167 FPS, High produces 121 FPS, and Ultra produces 87 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 55.2% reduction in frame rate, which demonstrates the significant cost of higher quality settings even at 1080p.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop noticeably but remain playable at all presets. Low preset yields 145 FPS (a 25.3% reduction from 1080p), Medium yields 108 FPS with a minimum of 92 FPS and maximum of 125 FPS (a 25.5% reduction), High yields 90 FPS (a 25.6% reduction), and Ultra yields 65 FPS (a 25.3% reduction). The consistency of the percentage drop across presets—all falling between 25.3% and 25.6%—confirms that resolution scaling is uniform regardless of quality settings.

At 3840x2160, the system reaches its limits. Low preset delivers 96 FPS (a 50.5% reduction from 1080p Low), Medium delivers 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 FPS and maximum of 82 FPS (a 50.3% reduction), High delivers 60 FPS (a 50.4% reduction), and Ultra delivers 43 FPS (a 50.6% reduction). The 4K results continue the pattern of uniform scaling, with all presets showing approximately a 50% drop from their 1080p counterparts.

The Medium preset is the only configuration with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 123 FPS and maximum of 167 FPS indicate a 44 FPS variance. At 1440p Medium, the minimum of 92 FPS and maximum of 125 FPS show a 33 FPS variance. At 4K Medium, the minimum of 61 FPS and maximum of 82 FPS demonstrate a 21 FPS variance. The narrowing variance at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU becomes more consistently loaded, reducing frame time spikes.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to 1440p Medium as the optimal balance for this combo in Red Dead Redemption 2. At this configuration, the system delivers 108 FPS average with a minimum of 92 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without dipping below 60 FPS. The 92 FPS minimum provides a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold, and the 125 FPS maximum shows there is headroom for less demanding scenes.

For users prioritizing visual quality over raw frame rate, 1440p High at 90 FPS is an excellent choice. This preset maintains 90 FPS average, which is still well above the 60 FPS playability threshold, and the visual upgrade from Medium to High is generally noticeable in a game like Red Dead Redemption 2 with its detailed open world. The lack of a recorded minimum FPS for High settings means we cannot confirm the worst-case performance, but the 90 FPS average suggests typical gameplay will be smooth.

At 4K, the recommendation shifts to Medium settings. The 4K Medium configuration delivers 72 FPS average with a minimum of 61 FPS, which barely stays above 60 FPS. This is the highest quality preset that maintains a 60+ FPS minimum at 4K. The 4K High result of exactly 60 FPS average is borderline, and without a recorded minimum FPS, it carries risk of dropping below 60 FPS in demanding scenes. The 4K Ultra result of 43 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

For competitive play or maximum frame rates, 1080p Low at 194 FPS provides the highest possible performance, though the visual quality reduction is substantial. The 1080p Medium at 145 FPS offers a strong middle ground for high-refresh-rate monitors, with the 123 FPS minimum ensuring consistent performance above 120 FPS. The 1080p High at 121 FPS is also viable for 120Hz displays, providing better visuals than Medium while staying above 120 FPS average.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X features 6 cores and 12 threads, built on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 65W TDP. The CPU's cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. This 4 nm processor from TSMC has 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU's performance appears more than adequate for the demands of the game. The 3dmark benchmarks show a single-thread score of 1253, which scales to 2456 for 2 threads, 4649 for 4 threads, 6726 for 8 threads, and 7590 for max threads. This scaling pattern shows strong multi-threaded efficiency, with the 8-thread score reaching 88.6% of the max-thread score. The Cinebench R23 scores of 2183.5 single-core and 17528.5 multi-core further confirm the CPU's capability.

The Ryzen 5 9600X's 81st percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 29713, places it in a competitive position. Its nearest rivals—the Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE, Ryzen 7 7840H, Ryzen 7 5800XT, and Ryzen 7 8845HS—all score within 1% of the 9600X, indicating that CPU choice among these options would have minimal impact on Red Dead Redemption 2 performance. The measured FPS data supports this, as the consistent resolution scaling patterns indicate the CPU is not creating a bottleneck.

The CPU's DDR5 memory support with dual-channel configuration and 89.6 GB/s bandwidth provides ample memory throughput for the game's open-world data streaming. The PCIe Gen 5 interface with 24 lanes ensures the RTX 4080 can communicate with the CPU without bandwidth constraints, though the GPU runs on PCIe 4.0 x16 in this configuration. The integrated Radeon Graphics are present but not utilized for gaming, as the discrete RTX 4080 handles all rendering.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is based on the AD103 chip with Ada Lovelace architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It features 9,728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 render output units. The GPU operates with a base clock of 2205 MHz and a boost clock of 2505 MHz, with memory clocked at 1400 MHz (22.4 Gbps effective). The 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus provides 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth.

The GPU's compute capabilities are substantial, with 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and an equal 48.74 TFLOPS of FP16 performance. The 76 ray tracing cores and 304 tensor cores enable advanced rendering features, though the measured FPS data does not specify whether ray tracing was enabled in the test configurations. The RTX 4080's pixel rate of 280.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 761.5 GTexel/s indicate significant fill-rate headroom for high-resolution rendering.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the RTX 4080's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54247, positions it as a high-end performer. Its nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, scores 54209, which is 0.1% lower. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54828 (1.1% higher), while the Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55698 (2.6% higher) and the Radeon 8060S scores 55757 (2.7% higher). These rival comparisons show that the RTX 4080 sits at the edge of a competitive cluster of GPUs.

The 16 GB VRAM capacity is a key asset for Red Dead Redemption 2 at 4K resolution. The measured 4K results show the GPU handling Medium settings at 72 FPS and High at 60 FPS, with the 16 GB memory buffer preventing texture streaming issues that could cause stuttering. The 716.8 GB/s memory bandwidth provides sufficient throughput for the game's detailed textures and open-world assets, though the 4K Ultra result of 43 FPS indicates that the GPU's compute and memory resources are fully saturated at the highest settings.