Roblox

The Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 combination delivers a remarkably fluid Roblox experience, with the data revealing a system that is heavily GPU-limited at higher resolutions yet capable of extreme frame rates at 1080p. The measured results indicate that while the CPU provides a solid foundation, the Radeon RX 6600 is the primary driver of performance scaling across settings.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a 6-core, 6-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, which is critical for Roblox's often single-threaded physics and scripting workloads. The processor features a 9 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration, providing a 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth. This CPU sits at the 50th percentile when compared to all CPUs in the benchmark database, indicating it is a mid-pack performer.

Benchmark results show the i5-9400 achieving a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and a single-core score of 1125. The single-core score is particularly relevant for Roblox, as the game engine frequently relies on a single primary thread for game logic. The processor's average benchmark score of 2305 places it in close competition with the Intel Core i3-10305, which scores 2300 with a deltaPct of 0.2, and the Intel Xeon E-2134 at 2295 with a deltaPct of 0.4. It also slightly trails the Intel Core i7-8809G, which scores 2319, a deltaPct of -0.6.

In the measured FPS data, the CPU does not appear to be a bottleneck at 1080p, as frame rates exceed 280 FPS on Low settings. However, the fact that the CPU is not unlocked for overclocking (multiplierUnlocked: false) means its performance is fixed. The 6-thread limit could theoretically become a constraint in heavily populated Roblox servers, but the data shows that even at Ultra settings, the system maintains 185.6 FPS at 1080p, suggesting the CPU has sufficient headroom to feed the GPU in most scenarios.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with a Navi 23 chip, fabricated on a 7 nm process. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1626 MHz, a boost clock of 2491 MHz, and a game clock of 2044 MHz. With 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 raster operation units, the RX 6600 delivers a pixel rate of 159.4 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 279.0 GTexel/s.

The GPU ranks at the 69th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 25235. This places it in a tight cluster with the AMD Radeon 890M (score 25246, deltaPct 0) and the AMD Radeon RX 6700M (score 25180, deltaPct 0.2). Interestingly, it is nearly identical in average score to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which scores 25120 with a deltaPct of 0.5, highlighting that the RX 6600 offers competitive raw compute performance despite its lower power envelope.

The GPU's 8 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for Roblox, which is not a VRAM-intensive title. The 224.0 GB/s memory bandwidth appears adequate, as the measured frame rates scale consistently with resolution changes. The GPU's compute capabilities, measured at 8.928 TFLOPS FP32, are likely the limiting factor at 4K, where the Ultra preset drops to 67.2 FPS. The 14 Gbps effective memory speed and PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provide ample data transfer rates for this workload.

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

The measured data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. At 1080p Ultra, the system achieves 185.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p Ultra drops the frame rate to 125.1 FPS, a reduction of 32.6%. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate plunges to 67.2 FPS, a further 46.3% decrease from 1440p. This dramatic scaling from 1440p to 4K strongly indicates the GPU is the limiting component at higher resolutions.

Conversely, the scaling at Low settings shows less severe drops. At 1080p Low, the system hits 281.7 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 190.7 FPS, a 32.3% reduction. At 4K Low, it falls to 106.4 FPS, a 44.2% drop from 1440p. The percentage drops are similar between Low and Ultra settings, which suggests that the GPU is consistently the bottleneck across all settings, rather than the CPU becoming limiting at lower graphical loads.

The data implies that the CPU can comfortably feed the GPU at 1080p, where even the most demanding Ultra preset yields nearly 186 FPS. The frame rate differences between settings at 1080p are relatively modest: Low (281.7 FPS) to High (228.4 FPS) shows an 18.9% drop, while High to Ultra (185.6 FPS) shows an 18.7% drop. This indicates that the GPU has enough headroom at 1080p to render higher quality effects without collapsing performance. At 4K, however, the GPU's fill rate and shading capabilities become the primary constraint, as evidenced by the 20.5% drop from High (84.6 FPS) to Ultra (67.2 FPS).

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain high frame rates?

A: At 1080p, all settings produce frame rates above 185 FPS, with Low reaching 281.7 FPS. At 1440p, frame rates range from 125.1 FPS (Ultra) to 190.7 FPS (Low), making it viable for high-refresh monitors.

Q: How does the RX 6600 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 6600 scores 25235 on average, which is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon 890M (25246) and the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (25287). It also posts a score extremely close to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (25120), with a deltaPct of 0.5.

Q: Is the i5-9400 a bottleneck for Roblox?

A: The data suggests no. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 281.7 FPS, and at 1440p High it maintains 153.4 FPS. The CPU's single-core Cinebench R23 score of 1125 appears sufficient for Roblox's workload.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 4K, Low settings produce 106.4 FPS, Medium produces 96.5 FPS, High produces 84.6 FPS, and Ultra produces 67.2 FPS. This represents a 36.8% drop from Low to Ultra.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM on the RX 6600 limit performance in this game?

A: The data does not indicate VRAM limitations. The frame rate scaling from 1440p to 4K is consistent with GPU compute limitations rather than memory capacity issues, as Roblox is not a graphics-intensive title.

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

A: This combo ranks 1429 out of 1800 tested combinations in Roblox, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database, despite delivering high absolute frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 ranks 1429 out of 1800 tested combos in Roblox. This ranking places it in the 21st percentile of all tested combinations, which is lower than the individual component percentiles (CPU at 50th, GPU at 69th). The discrepancy suggests that while the hardware is capable, other tested combos may pair stronger CPUs with similar GPUs or use higher-end graphics cards.

The ranking implies that for Roblox specifically, many other combinations deliver higher frame rates, likely due to more powerful CPUs that can better handle the game's physics calculations in complex scenes. However, the absolute frame rates are still high, with the combo exceeding 280 FPS at 1080p Low. The rank of 1429 out of 1800 indicates that this is a mid-tier performer, but the measured data shows it is more than adequate for smooth gameplay.

The deltaPct values for the GPU's nearest rivals suggest that swapping the RX 6600 for an RTX 3060 Ti would yield only a 0.5% average benchmark difference, meaning the combo's ranking is likely more influenced by the CPU than the GPU. The i5-9400's nearest rival, the i3-10305, scores within 0.2% in average benchmarks, indicating that CPU upgrades in the same performance class would not significantly alter the ranking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers:

• Low: 281.7 FPS
• Medium: 254.4 FPS
• High: 228.4 FPS
• Ultra: 185.6 FPS

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are:

• Low: 190.7 FPS
• Medium: 169.5 FPS
• High: 153.4 FPS
• Ultra: 125.1 FPS

At 3840x2160, the performance drops to:

• Low: 106.4 FPS
• Medium: 96.5 FPS
• High: 84.6 FPS
• Ultra: 67.2 FPS

The data shows a consistent pattern: each settings tier costs approximately 10-15% performance at the same resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Medium is 27.3 FPS (9.7%), Medium to High is 26.0 FPS (10.2%), and High to Ultra is 42.8 FPS (18.7%). At 4K, the absolute differences are smaller: Low to Medium is 9.9 FPS (9.3%), Medium to High is 11.9 FPS (12.3%), and High to Ultra is 17.4 FPS (20.6%).

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal experience depends on the display's refresh rate. For 1080p displays with 144Hz or 240Hz refresh rates, the High preset at 228.4 FPS offers an excellent balance, providing high visual quality while exceeding the refresh rate of most monitors. The Ultra preset at 185.6 FPS is also viable for 144Hz displays, offering the maximum visual fidelity without dropping below the refresh rate threshold.

For 1440p displays, the High preset at 153.4 FPS is the recommended choice for 144Hz monitors, as it delivers smooth gameplay with good visual quality. The Medium preset at 169.5 FPS provides a slight performance buffer for competitive play, while Ultra at 125.1 FPS is acceptable for 120Hz displays but falls short of 144Hz targets. For 4K displays, the Low preset at 106.4 FPS is the only setting that exceeds 100 FPS, making it the default recommendation. The Medium preset at 96.5 FPS is acceptable for 60Hz displays, while High at 84.6 FPS and Ultra at 67.2 FPS are playable but may not feel as responsive.

The data suggests that for the best overall experience, the High preset at 1080p provides the highest visual quality while maintaining frame rates above 200 FPS. Players prioritizing maximum frame rates should use Low at any resolution, as it consistently offers a 15-20% performance boost over Medium settings. The Ultra preset offers diminishing returns, with a 18.7% frame rate penalty over High at 1080p, making High the sweet spot for visual fidelity and performance.