Red Dead Redemption 2

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a demanding title, and the measured results for the Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination show a wide performance envelope depending on how the game is configured. The data reveals that this system is most at home at 1080p, where it can deliver excellent frame rates, but it struggles to maintain playable performance at 4K with higher visual fidelity. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS data to determine the optimal settings, the scaling behavior across resolutions, and the respective roles of the CPU and GPU in shaping the experience.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured average frame rates, the optimal experience for this combination of Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 9060 is achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low preset. This configuration yields an average of 102 FPS, which is the highest measured average across all resolutions and settings in the dataset. This provides a fluid, high-refresh-rate experience that is significantly smoother than the Medium preset at the same resolution, which averages 76 FPS. While the High preset at 1080p still produces a respectable 64 FPS, the Low preset offers the best margin for ensuring consistent performance.

For users who prioritize visual quality over maximum frame rate, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 is the most balanced choice. The data shows an average of 76 FPS with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS, indicating a stable experience that should feel responsive. The High preset at this resolution, averaging 64 FPS, is also viable, but the Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 46 FPS, which is a significant step down in smoothness. Therefore, the High preset is the highest visual tier recommended for a consistently playable experience at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the performance ceiling is lower, and the settings recommendations shift accordingly. The Low preset at this resolution averages 76 FPS, matching the Medium preset at 1080p. This is the only setting at 1440p that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset at 1440p, averaging 57 FPS, is playable but with more frequent dips. The High preset at 1440p averages 48 FPS, and the Ultra preset falls to 34 FPS, making it unsuitable for fast-paced gameplay. The data suggests that at 1440p, users will have to choose between smoothness (Low) and visual fidelity (Medium or High) without achieving both.

At 3840x2160, the data indicates that this combination is not well-suited for high-fidelity gaming. The Ultra preset at 4K produces an average of only 23 FPS, which is not a viable experience. The High preset at 31 FPS and the Medium preset at 38 FPS are also below the threshold for smooth gameplay. The only setting that approaches playability at 4K is the Low preset, which averages 50 FPS. However, this requires a significant reduction in visual quality. The data shows that the Medium preset at 4K has a minimum of 32 FPS and a maximum of 43 FPS, indicating a performance range that is consistently below 60 FPS. Therefore, the recommendation is to reserve 4K for the Low preset if resolution is the absolute priority, but the system is clearly best utilized at 1080p or 1440p.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo can achieve in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 102 FPS, which is achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming at high settings?

A: No. At 3840x2160 with the High preset, the average frame rate is 31 FPS. The Ultra preset at the same resolution drops to an average of 23 FPS, which is not a playable experience.

Q: How much of a performance drop is there between the Medium and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 57 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 34 FPS. This represents a performance decrease of 23 FPS when moving from Medium to Ultra.

Q: What is the most stable performance profile in the dataset?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 shows a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS, with an average of 76 FPS. This narrow range indicates a stable experience with minimal fluctuation.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the performance difference between presets is substantial, with a 56 FPS difference between Low (102 FPS) and Ultra (46 FPS). This indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as the workload scales heavily with graphical settings.

Q: How does this combo's rank compare to other tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 1673 out of 2902 tested combinations in this game, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the performance distribution.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. For the Low settings preset, the average frame rate drops from 102 FPS at 1080p to 76 FPS at 1440p, a 25.5% decrease. Moving from 1440p to 4K, the average drops further to 50 FPS, a 34.2% decrease from the 1440p figure. This scaling is expected, as higher resolutions increase the pixel count and the load on the GPU.

For the Medium preset, the same trend is observed. The average frame rate is 76 FPS at 1080p, drops to 57 FPS at 1440p (a 25% decrease), and then falls to 38 FPS at 4K (a 33.3% decrease from 1440p). The High preset follows a similar pattern, with averages of 64 FPS at 1080p, 48 FPS at 1440p (a 25% decrease), and 31 FPS at 4K (a 35.4% decrease from 1440p).

The Ultra preset shows the most severe drop. It averages 46 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p (a 26.1% decrease), and 23 FPS at 4K (a 32.4% decrease from 1440p). The consistent percentage decrease across all presets, roughly 25% from 1080p to 1440p and roughly 33% from 1440p to 4K, strongly indicates that the AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the limiting component. If the Intel Core i5-14400F were the primary bottleneck, we would expect to see a plateau in performance at lower resolutions or a less significant drop when increasing resolution. The data shows no such plateau, and the performance scales inversely with pixel count, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings was measured. The Low preset provides the highest average of 102 FPS. The Medium preset averages 76 FPS, with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS. The High preset averages 64 FPS. The Ultra preset produces the lowest average at this resolution, 46 FPS. The difference between the Low and Ultra presets is 56 FPS, demonstrating a massive performance range at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the measured averages are lower across the board. The Low preset averages 76 FPS. The Medium preset averages 57 FPS, with a minimum of 48 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS. The High preset averages 48 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 34 FPS. At this resolution, the Low preset is the only one that maintains an average above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, all presets yield average frame rates below 60 FPS. The Low preset averages 50 FPS. The Medium preset averages 38 FPS, with a minimum of 32 FPS and a maximum of 43 FPS. The High preset averages 31 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 23 FPS. This resolution is clearly the most demanding, and the data shows that even the Low preset struggles to maintain a smooth experience.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Red Dead Redemption 2, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 9060 holds a rank of 1673 out of 2902 total combinations. This places it in the 42nd percentile of all tested systems, meaning that roughly 58% of the tested configurations deliver higher average performance in this specific game. This rank reflects the fact that while the system is capable at lower resolutions, its performance is heavily constrained at higher resolutions and settings.

The rank is a holistic measure that combines the results from all measured settings and resolutions. The system's strong performance at 1080p Low (102 FPS) is offset by its weak showing at 4K Ultra (23 FPS). This wide performance swing suggests that the system's overall ranking is more of a reflection of its potential at lower settings rather than its capability at high-fidelity 4K gaming. The data indicates that this combo is positioned as a mid-range performer, capable of smooth gameplay in less demanding scenarios but not a top-tier contender for maxed-out settings at high resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 21645 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3055 in single-core, with a Passmark multithread score of 25470. Its overall average benchmark score is 32279, placing it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs.

In the context of Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and process game logic. The benchmark data shows that the CPU is not the primary bottleneck in this system. This is evident from the performance scaling across resolutions. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates at 1080p and 1440p would be more similar, as the CPU's workload does not increase with resolution as much as the GPU's. However, the data shows a clear drop in FPS with each resolution increase, indicating that the GPU is being saturated before the CPU.

The CPU's high single-thread performance, as indicated by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3055, is sufficient to handle the game's main thread. The multi-core performance, with 16 threads and a score of 21645 in Cinebench R23, ensures that background tasks and the game's secondary threads do not cause stuttering. The data does not show any instances where the CPU is unable to keep up with the GPU, even at 1080p with the Low preset, which is the most CPU-intensive scenario due to the high frame rate.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is a GPU from the Radeon RX 9000 series based on the RDNA 4.0 architecture. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. It has a base clock of 1700 MHz and a boost clock of 2990 MHz, with a game clock of 2400 MHz. The GPU scores 17631 in the Passmark G3D benchmark and 3322 in 3DMark Steel Nomad, with an average benchmark score of 16014, placing it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs.

The data clearly identifies the GPU as the primary determinant of performance in Red Dead Redemption 2. The frame rates scale predictably with the settings preset, with a 56 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p. This massive difference is a direct result of the GPU's rendering workload increasing with more complex effects, higher texture quality, and more detailed shadows.

The GPU's 8 GB of VRAM is a critical factor at higher resolutions. The significant drop in performance when moving from 1440p to 4K suggests that the GPU may be hitting its memory capacity limit or that the memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s is insufficient for the data throughput required at 4K. The frame rates at 4K are all below 60 FPS, even at Low settings, which indicates that the GPU is heavily overburdened at this resolution. The GPU's performance, relative to its nearest rivals, is within 2.1% of the AMD Radeon RX 7700 and 1% of the AMD Radeon R9 370X, but it trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti by 0.7%. This places it in a competitive but not leading position, and in this demanding game, it is the component that governs the overall experience.