Rust

This combo, pairing the Intel Core i5-11400F with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090, ranks 145th out of 1,717 tested combinations in Rust. That places it in the top 8.4% of all tested setups, a strong showing that reflects the GPU's dominance, though the CPU's position in the overall hierarchy suggests it may be holding back the full potential of the graphics card in certain scenarios.

How This Combo Ranks

The 145th rank out of 1,717 combos is a clear indicator of high-end performance. The RTX 5090 sits in the 94th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84,306. Its nearest rivals include the RTX 5090 D (0.1% ahead), RTX 5050 Mobile (0.2% ahead), and AMD Radeon PRO W6600 (1.3% ahead). This GPU is unquestionably a top-tier part. However, the Intel Core i5-11400F is in the 75th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17,181. Its nearest competitors, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U and Intel Core i7-1260P, are essentially tied with it (0% to -0.2% delta). This pairing of a top-tier GPU with a mid-to-upper tier CPU creates a bottleneck dynamic that is visible in the measured FPS data. The rank suggests that in Rust, the combination yields a very playable experience, but the data implies that the CPU is the limiting factor in achieving even higher frame rates, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU has more headroom.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides a massive 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. This is a critical asset for Rust, a game known for its large, persistent worlds and complex bases that require streaming vast amounts of texture and geometry data. The GPU's clock speeds are also significant, with a base of 2017 MHz and a boost of 2407 MHz. The 32 GB frame buffer is particularly important at 4K resolution with High or Ultra settings, where memory capacity can be a limiting factor. The benchmark data shows the GPU's raw compute power: 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a PassMark G3D score of 39,650. With a 94th percentile ranking, the RTX 5090 is clearly capable of handling the most demanding graphical loads. The measured FPS data confirms this, as the GPU manages to push frame rates that are largely constrained by the CPU rather than its own limits, especially at 1080p and 1440p.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-11400F a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 in Rust?

A: The data suggests a CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 176.6, but at 1440p Low, it drops to 157.1, and at 4K Low, it falls to 131.6. This scaling pattern indicates that the CPU is maxing out its capabilities before the GPU does, particularly at 1080p where the GPU has the most headroom.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 compare to its closest rivals in terms of benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 5090's average benchmark score of 84,306 is nearly identical to its closest rival, the RTX 5090 D, which is only 0.1% faster. The RTX 5050 Mobile is also very close at 0.2% faster, while the AMD Radeon PRO W6600 is 1.3% slower.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve a high refresh rate?

A: To consistently exceed 144 FPS, 1080p is the only resolution that works. At 1080p Medium, the combo averages 153 FPS, and at 1080p Low, it reaches 176.6 FPS. At 1440p, the maximum average FPS is 157.1 on Low, which is still high, but 4K High only achieves 74.8 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU's single-threaded performance matter for Rust?

A: Yes, the data indicates it does. The i5-11400F's single-core benchmark scores (e.g., 868 in 3dmark_single_thread and 2,029 in Cinebench R23 single-core) are relatively modest. Since Rust is known to be CPU-intensive, the performance scaling from 1080p to 1440p suggests that single-thread performance is a limiting factor.

Q: How much of a performance drop is there from 1080p to 4K on High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 141.7 at 1080p High to 126.7 at 1440p High and further to 74.8 at 4K High. This is a 47.2% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the GPU is becoming more heavily utilized at higher resolutions.

Q: Is the 32 GB VRAM on the RTX 5090 overkill for Rust?

A: The data shows that even at 4K Ultra, the combo achieves an average of 60.6 FPS. While the game may not use all 32 GB, the sheer memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s and the large frame buffer ensure that texture streaming and memory allocation are never a bottleneck, allowing the GPU to focus on rendering.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average FPS is 176.6. Moving to Medium drops the average to 153, while High settings yield 141.7 FPS. Ultra settings at 1080p still manage a solid 130.6 FPS. This shows that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary constraint, as the difference between Low and Ultra is only 46 FPS, a 26% reduction. At 2560x1440, the frame rates are still excellent. Low settings average 157.1 FPS, while Medium, High, and Ultra deliver 131.9, 126.7, and 96.2 FPS respectively. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 60.9 FPS, indicating a larger GPU influence. At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the dominant factor. Low settings average 131.6 FPS, but this drops significantly to 90.6 FPS on Medium and 74.8 FPS on High. Ultra settings at 4K produce an average of 60.6 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is a substantial 71 FPS drop, showing the immense load placed on the RTX 5090 at this resolution.

Settings Recommendations

The data suggests that for the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, 1440p with High settings is the sweet spot. This configuration yields an average of 126.7 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay and close to the 144 Hz refresh rate that many monitors offer. For players prioritizing competitive performance, 1080p with Low settings provides the highest average FPS at 176.6, ensuring maximum responsiveness. At 4K, the only way to achieve a high refresh rate experience is to use Low settings, which averages 131.6 FPS. However, for a more visually rich 4K experience, High settings at 74.8 FPS is playable, though it sacrifices the high-refresh-rate advantage. The Ultra preset at any resolution below 4K is viable, but the performance gains from High to Ultra are minimal in comparison to the added GPU load, making High the recommended setting for most users.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Rocket Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. While it has a respectable 12 MB of shared L3 cache, its benchmark scores are modest by modern standards. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 14,372, and its single-core score is 2,029. The data shows that the CPU's performance is the limiting factor in this combo at lower resolutions. The fact that 1080p Low (176.6 FPS) and 1440p Low (157.1 FPS) are the only settings to exceed 150 FPS indicates that the CPU is peaking. The delta between these two resolutions is only 19.5 FPS, which is a relatively small drop compared to the 52.8 FPS drop seen between 1440p Low and 4K Low. This pattern confirms that the i5-11400F is holding the RTX 5090 back, as the GPU is not being fully utilized until the resolution is high enough to shift the bottleneck. The CPU's 75th percentile ranking and its close ties with mobile processors like the Ryzen 7 5700U highlight its mid-range positioning, which contrasts with the GPU's top-tier status.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic bottleneck shift. At 1080p, the average FPS across all settings is roughly 150.5. This drops to an average of 128 at 1440p, and then further to 89.4 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 15%, which is moderate and indicates that the CPU is still managing to feed the GPU adequately. However, the drop from 1440p to 4K is a much steeper 30%, showing that the GPU is now the primary constraint. Looking at High settings specifically, the frame rate drops from 141.7 at 1080p to 126.7 at 1440p and then to 74.8 at 4K. This is a 47% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The data implies that for this specific game, the i5-11400F can handle the CPU load at 1080p and 1440p, but the RTX 5090's immense power is only truly taxed at 4K. The relatively small performance difference between 1080p and 1440p (a 15% average drop) suggests that the CPU is the limiting component in this range. Once the resolution increases to 4K, the GPU's rendering workload becomes so great that it overtakes the CPU as the bottleneck, leading to the larger performance drop. This scaling behavior is typical for a high-end GPU paired with a mid-range CPU.