Roblox

Roblox, a long-running sandbox title, presents an unusual benchmark scenario where frame rates are exceptionally high across all tested configurations. The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT produces results that are primarily limited by the CPU at lower resolutions and by the GPU only at the most demanding settings. The data indicates that this pairing is capable of delivering extremely smooth gameplay, often exceeding the refresh rate of standard displays, with the primary bottleneck shifting as resolution and graphical load increase.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At 1080p High settings, the combo achieves an average of 296 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 198 FPS, a reduction of 98 FPS. At 4K High, the average further declines to 112 FPS. This represents a 62% decrease in frame rate from 1080p to 4K at High settings, which is a substantial drop but leaves the game highly playable.

The scaling pattern shifts when examining the Low settings preset. At 1080p Low, the system pushes an average of 368 FPS. At 1440p Low, it averages 246 FPS, and at 4K Low, it averages 139 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 229 FPS, or 62%. This consistency in percentage drop across settings presets suggests that the resolution scaling is largely uniform, but the absolute headroom at lower resolutions is massive.

The transition from 1440p to 4K is particularly telling. At High settings, the frame rate falls from 198 FPS to 112 FPS, a 43% reduction. This is a larger relative drop than the 33% reduction seen when moving from 1080p to 1440p. This steeper decline at 4K indicates that the GPU is beginning to become a more significant limiting factor at this resolution, as the pixel throughput demand increases substantially. For a game like Roblox, which is not graphically intensive by modern standards, the RX 6700 XT still has ample headroom, but the data shows that even this capable GPU will eventually hit a wall as resolution climbs.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a 6-core, 6-thread processor from the Coffee Lake generation, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 6629 and a single-core score of 935, place it in the 47th percentile of all CPUs. This is a mid-range standing, and the nearest rival data shows it performs nearly identically to the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500, with a deltaPct of -0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.

In the context of Roblox, which is known to be sensitive to single-thread performance, the i5-9400's boost clock of 4.10 GHz is a critical asset. The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo reaches 368 FPS. This high frame rate, in a scenario where the GPU is heavily underutilized, strongly suggests that the CPU is the primary driver of performance. The game's engine, which often relies on a single primary thread for game logic, benefits directly from the processor's clock speed.

The CPU's influence is most visible when comparing the 1080p and 1440p results at Low settings. The frame rate drops from 368 FPS to 246 FPS, a 33% decline. This drop is not solely attributable to the GPU; rather, it indicates that the CPU is still managing to feed frames at a high rate, but the increased pixel count is starting to demand more from the system as a whole. The 6-core, 6-thread configuration is sufficient for Roblox's threading model, and the data does not indicate a core-count bottleneck, as the scaling from Low to High at the same resolution is relatively modest, for example, a 72 FPS difference at 1080p (368 vs 296), suggesting that the CPU can handle the additional draw calls without issue.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 296 FPS, with a minimum of 285 FPS and a maximum of 386 FPS recorded at the Medium preset.

Q: How does the system perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 91 FPS. This is the lowest average frame rate in the entire measured dataset.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p Low?

A: At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 368. This extremely high frame rate, combined with the low graphical load, indicates that the CPU, with its 4.10 GHz boost clock, is the primary limiting factor in this specific scenario.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops from 246 at Low settings to 160 at Ultra settings. This is a difference of 86 FPS, demonstrating the impact of graphical settings on performance at this resolution.

Q: How does this combo rank against all other tested combinations?

A: The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT ranks 1940th out of 3711 tested combos for Roblox, placing it in the middle of the database.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded in the entire dataset?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 368 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database for Roblox, this specific combination of components is ranked 1940th out of 3711 tested combos. This places it in the 52nd percentile, meaning that just over half of all tested systems perform better in this game. This ranking is a holistic measure that considers all tested resolutions and settings.

The ranking is somewhat surprising given the high frame rates measured, but it must be contextualized. Roblox is a game that can be run on very modest hardware, and many of the 3711 tested combos likely include higher-end CPUs that can push even higher frame rates at 1080p. The i5-9400's 47th percentile CPU score suggests that it is not a top-tier performer, and in a game where the CPU can be the limiting factor at lower resolutions, this holds the combo back from a higher rank. For instance, a combo with a faster single-threaded CPU could potentially push the 1080p Low average beyond 368 FPS, which would improve its standing.

The GPU's 72nd percentile ranking, however, indicates that the RX 6700 XT is a stronger component relative to its peers. The fact that the combo is ranked lower than the GPU's percentile suggests that the CPU is indeed holding back the system's overall potential in this specific title. The rank of 1940 is a clear signal that while the experience is smooth, it is not at the very top of the performance hierarchy for Roblox.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is a substantial piece of hardware, featuring 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s. Its architecture, RDNA 2.0, includes 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2581 MHz. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 19786 in Passmark G3D and 93500 in Geekbench Vulkan, placing it in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090, has a deltaPct of -0.5%, indicating the RX 6700 XT is slightly ahead of that high-end card in the aggregate benchmark score.

In Roblox, the GPU's role becomes dominant at higher resolutions and settings. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 91. This is a 60% reduction from the 4K High average of 112 FPS, and a 75% reduction from the 1080p Low average. This steep decline is a direct consequence of the GPU being tasked with rendering more pixels and applying more complex visual effects. The 12 GB of VRAM is not a limiting factor at these settings, as Roblox's textures are relatively simple, but the raw compute power of the GPU is being taxed.

The GPU's performance scaling is also visible at 1440p. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 86 FPS (246 to 160). This is a smaller absolute difference than at 1080p, but the relative drop of 35% is significant. The GPU's clock speed of 2581 MHz boost is sufficient to maintain high frame rates, but the data shows that the Ultra preset, which likely introduces additional draw calls and post-processing effects, significantly increases the workload on the GPU. The GPU is performing its role effectively, but its limits are clearly defined by the resolution and settings matrix.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data is derived from the measured FPS table for this specific combo in Roblox. All values are average FPS unless otherwise specified.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. The Low preset yields an average of 368 FPS. The Medium preset averages 335 FPS, with a minimum of 285 FPS and a maximum of 386 FPS. The High preset averages 296 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 240 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a drop of 128 FPS, illustrating that while the CPU is capable of high output, the graphical settings still have a measurable impact.

At 2560x1440, performance remains very high. The Low preset averages 246 FPS. The Medium preset averages 224 FPS, with a minimum of 190 FPS and a maximum of 257 FPS. The High preset averages 198 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 160 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 86 FPS, which is a narrower margin than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is taking on more of the workload.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are still respectable but show the most significant drop. The Low preset averages 139 FPS. The Medium preset averages 127 FPS, with a minimum of 108 FPS and a maximum of 146 FPS. The High preset averages 112 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 91 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 48 FPS, and the 4K Ultra result is the only one in the dataset that falls below the 100 FPS threshold.

The Medium preset is the only one that provides complete data including minimum and maximum FPS for all resolutions. At 1080p, the minimum is 285 FPS and the maximum is 386 FPS. At 1440p, the minimum is 190 FPS and the maximum is 257 FPS. At 4K, the minimum is 108 FPS and the maximum is 146 FPS. The narrowing of the range between minimum and maximum from 1080p to 4K suggests that the frame time consistency is better at higher resolutions, likely because the CPU is less likely to cause stutters when the GPU is the primary bottleneck.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and the desired frame rate. For users with a 60 Hz display, any resolution and preset combination will deliver a completely smooth experience, as the lowest average FPS measured is 91 at 4K Ultra.

For users with a 144 Hz display, the 1080p and 1440p resolutions offer the most headroom. At 1080p, all presets, including Ultra at 240 FPS, exceed the 144 FPS target. At 1440p, the Ultra preset at 160 FPS also clears this threshold, though with less margin. The High preset at 1440p, with an average of 198 FPS, provides a more comfortable buffer and is a recommended choice for a balance of visual fidelity and performance.

For users with a 240 Hz display, the options become more limited. At 1080p, the Low preset at 368 FPS and Medium preset at 335 FPS are the only presets that consistently average above 240 FPS. The High preset at 296 FPS also averages above this threshold, but the min FPS data for Medium (285) suggests that drops below 240 FPS are possible. At 1440p, no preset averages above 240 FPS, with the Low preset at 246 FPS being the closest.

For 4K gaming, the data suggests that the High preset is the most balanced. It averages 112 FPS, which is sufficient for a 100 Hz display. The Ultra preset at 91 FPS is still playable but offers diminishing returns over High for a 23% reduction in frame rate. The Medium preset at 127 FPS is also a viable option if higher frame rates are preferred over the visual enhancements of High. The Low preset at 4K, while hitting 139 FPS, does not offer a significant enough performance advantage over Medium to justify the graphical compromise, given that all 4K presets are above 90 FPS.