Red Dead Redemption 2

The Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination ranks 169th out of 2902 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2, placing it in the top 5.8% of all systems. This is a formidable position, but the ranking reveals a significant imbalance: the RTX 5090 D is a top-tier GPU while the i5-10400F is a mid-range 2020 processor. The data indicates the system is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but at 1080p, the CPU begins to limit performance, preventing the combo from climbing higher in the rankings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 169 out of 2902 tested combinations is strong, but it is not a top-tier result given the hardware involved. The RTX 5090 D is a flagship GPU, yet the overall system performance places it behind 168 other combos. This suggests that the Core i5-10400F, which holds a 68th percentile ranking among all CPUs, is holding back the GPU in certain scenarios. The GPU itself ranks in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, a much higher relative standing than the CPU. This discrepancy is the defining characteristic of this pairing.

The CPU’s average benchmark score is 14185, which places it near rivals like the Intel Xeon 6756E (14163, 0.2% slower) and the AMD EPYC 7552 (14115, 0.5% slower). It is also slightly above the Intel Core 7 160UL (14232, -0.3% difference) and the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277, -0.6% difference). These are all close scores, indicating the i5-10400F is competitive with a wide range of server and mobile chips in synthetic tests. However, in gaming, its 6 cores and 12 threads are less impactful than its single-thread performance, which is a modest 688 in 3DMark single-thread and 2541 in PassMark single-thread.

The GPU’s average benchmark score of 77712 puts it in the same league as the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76904, 1.1% faster) and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (78940, -1.6% slower). It also edges out the NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants. These rivals are all mobile or datacenter parts, which highlights how the RTX 5090 D’s desktop-focused design delivers massive compute throughput. In Red Dead Redemption 2, this raw power translates to high frame rates, but the CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions prevents the system from achieving the absolute highest ranks.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing, featuring 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, delivering 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. This is a massive amount of VRAM for a game like Red Dead Redemption 2, which will never come close to exhausting it. The GPU’s base clock is 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz, and memory runs at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective speed. These clocks, combined with 21760 shading units and 680 TMUs, allow the card to push exceptionally high pixel rates of 423.6 GPixel/s and texture rates of 1636.8 GTexel/s.

In this game, the GPU’s role is to handle the heavy graphical load, and it does so admirably at 4K. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the combo achieves 72 FPS, and at Low settings it reaches 115 FPS. The GPU is clearly capable of far more, as evidenced by the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14326. The bottleneck is not the GPU’s raw compute, but rather the CPU’s ability to feed it with draw calls and game logic. The RTX 5090 D’s FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS is so high that the i5-10400F cannot keep up at lower resolutions, leading to diminishing returns.

The GPU’s 176 ROPs and 170 RT cores are underutilized in this game, as Red Dead Redemption 2 does not heavily rely on ray tracing. Instead, the card’s massive bandwidth and shading power are what drive the high frame rates. The 32 GB VRAM ensures there are no texture streaming issues, even at 4K Ultra settings, which is a common problem for lower-end cards. The data shows the GPU is the clear star, but its performance is capped by the CPU in CPU-bound scenarios.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of the CPU becoming more of a limiting factor as resolution decreases. At 4K (3840x2160), the combo scales well with settings: High yields 72 FPS, Medium 86 FPS, Low 115 FPS, and Ultra drops to 52 FPS. The jump from High to Low at 4K is a 59.7% increase in FPS, indicating the GPU is the primary bottleneck at this resolution. The GPU is working hard to fill all those pixels, and the CPU has enough headroom to keep up.

Moving to 1440p (2560x1440), the frame rates rise significantly: High hits 109 FPS, Medium 124 FPS, Low 137 FPS, and Ultra 79 FPS. The difference between Low and High is now just 25.7%, which is smaller than at 4K. This suggests the CPU is starting to limit performance at lower settings. The gap between 1440p High (109 FPS) and 1080p High (128 FPS) is 17.4%, which is less than the 51.4% increase seen when going from 4K High to 1440p High. This indicates diminishing returns as resolution drops.

At 1080p (1920x1080), the CPU bottleneck becomes evident. High settings produce 128 FPS, Medium 136 FPS, Low 152 FPS, and Ultra 105 FPS. The difference between Low and High is just 18.8%, which is much smaller than the 59.7% difference at 4K. This shows that the GPU is no longer the limiting factor; the i5-10400F is holding back the RTX 5090 D. The CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, are simply not enough to drive the GPU to its full potential at 1080p. The data indicates that the sweet spot for this combo is 1440p, where the GPU is still heavily utilized but the CPU can keep pace.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear picture of which settings offer the best experience. At 4K, High settings at 72 FPS is the best balance of visual quality and smoothness. Ultra drops to 52 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many players prefer. Medium at 86 FPS is also viable, but High offers better visuals for a modest FPS cost. Low at 115 FPS is fast but sacrifices too much visual fidelity for the GPU’s capability.

At 1440p, High settings at 109 FPS is the recommended choice. It provides a smooth experience with good visuals. Medium at 124 FPS is faster but with noticeably reduced detail. Ultra at 79 FPS is playable but the drop from High is significant. Low at 137 FPS is unnecessary unless the user has a very high refresh rate monitor. The data suggests that High is the optimal setting for 1440p, as it balances the GPU’s power and the CPU’s limitations.

At 1080p, High settings at 128 FPS is the best option. Low at 152 FPS and Medium at 136 FPS are marginally faster, but the CPU bottleneck means the GPU is not being fully utilized. Ultra at 105 FPS is still smooth but offers the highest visual quality. However, given that 1440p High delivers nearly the same frame rate (109 FPS) with better visuals, playing at 1080p is not recommended unless the user has a 1080p monitor. For most users, 1440p High is the sweet spot, as it maximizes the GPU’s potential while staying within the CPU’s limits.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-10400F a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 D in this game?

A: Yes, the data shows a CPU bottleneck at 1080p. The frame rate difference between Low (152 FPS) and High (128 FPS) is only 18.8%, indicating the CPU limits performance. At 4K, the GPU is the bottleneck, as shown by the 59.7% difference between Low (115 FPS) and High (72 FPS).

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: 1440p is the best resolution. High settings yield 109 FPS, which is close to the 128 FPS at 1080p High but with significantly better visuals. The CPU bottleneck is less pronounced at 1440p, allowing the GPU to work more effectively.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems?

A: It ranks 169th out of 2902 tested combos, placing it in the top 5.8%. This is strong, but the CPU’s limitations prevent it from reaching the top 100.

Q: How much VRAM does the GPU have, and is it enough?

A: The RTX 5090 D has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, which is far more than Red Dead Redemption 2 requires. There are no texture streaming issues at any settings or resolution.

Q: What is the GPU’s performance percentile?

A: The GPU ranks in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77712. This is significantly higher than the CPU’s 68th percentile ranking.

Q: What is the CPU’s single-thread performance?

A: The CPU scores 688 in 3DMark single-thread and 2541 in PassMark single-thread. These are modest scores, which explains the bottleneck at lower resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Comet Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 14 nm process. Its base clock is 2.90 GHz with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, and it has 12 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel mode, with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. These specs are modest by modern standards, and the CPU’s percentile rank of 68 reflects its mid-range position.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU’s role is to handle game logic, physics, and draw calls. The game is not particularly CPU-intensive, but it does benefit from strong single-thread performance. The i5-10400F’s single-thread score of 688 in 3DMark and 1451 in Cinebench R23 single-core are adequate but not exceptional. This becomes a problem when paired with the RTX 5090 D, which is so fast that it can render frames faster than the CPU can issue them. The data supports this: at 1080p, the FPS difference between Low and High is small, indicating the CPU is the limiting factor.

The CPU’s multicore performance is stronger, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 10283 and a 3DMark max-threads score of 4735. However, Red Dead Redemption 2 does not scale well beyond 6 cores, so the extra threads are not fully utilized. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the Intel Xeon 6756E (14163, 0.2% slower) and the AMD EPYC 7552 (14115, 0.5% slower), are all server chips with many more cores, but they do not offer better gaming performance. This shows that the i5-10400F’s gaming performance is competitive for its class, but it is simply outmatched by the RTX 5090 D’s immense power. For users looking to maximize the GPU’s potential, a stronger CPU would be needed, but within this pairing, the i5-10400F holds the system back only at lower resolutions.