Rust

Rust is a CPU-heavy survival title where the Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX produces a surprisingly balanced result across resolutions, with the GPU's massive 24 GB VRAM and high bandwidth ensuring that frame rates scale predictably as settings are adjusted. The combo ranks in the 70th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that while this pairing is not at the absolute top of the leaderboard, it delivers consistently playable performance at 1080p and 1440p, with 4K remaining viable only at lower quality presets.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a 6-core, 6-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture, running on a 14 nm process node. Its base clock is 2.90 GHz with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, and it carries 9 MB of shared L3 cache. In Rust, which is known for heavy server-side and world-generation calculations, the CPU's thread count and clock speed are primary determinants of minimum frame rates and overall consistency. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 142 FPS average, but this drops to 104 FPS at Ultra settings — a 27% reduction that is largely attributable to the CPU's ability to feed the GPU with draw calls as graphical complexity increases.

The i5-9400's benchmark scores place it in the 47th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 2254. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, scores 2259 (0.2% higher), while the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264 (0.4% higher). This indicates the i5-9400 sits in a tightly contested mid-range tier where minor clock differences translate to single-digit percentage changes in synthetic tests. In Rust specifically, the 6-core/6-thread configuration means the processor can handle the game's primary simulation threads but lacks the headroom of higher-thread-count parts, which becomes evident when comparing 1440p Medium (108 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (78 FPS) — a 28% drop that suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at these settings, but rather the GPU's workload scaling.

The processor's integrated UHD 630 graphics are irrelevant for this analysis since the system uses a discrete GPU, but the 65 W TDP and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (42.7 GB/s bandwidth) are notable. The memory bandwidth is modest by modern standards, yet Rust's memory access patterns appear to be handled adequately, as evidenced by the smooth scaling from 1080p to 1440p: the average FPS at High settings only drops from 115 to 101 (12% decrease), which is less than the pixel count increase, implying the CPU is maintaining its performance ceiling while the GPU absorbs the extra resolution load.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is the dominant component in this pairing, featuring the Navi 31 chip on a 5 nm process with 57,700 million transistors. Its 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus provides 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for Rust's large textures and open-world streaming. The GPU's boost clock is 2498 MHz, with a game clock of 2365 MHz, and it delivers 61.39 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. These specifications translate to a 64th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19410. Interestingly, its nearest rivals in the database are older or lower-tier cards: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB scores 19334 (0.4% lower), and the NVIDIA TITAN Xp scores 19177 (1.2% lower), which is an artifact of the benchmark aggregation methodology rather than indicative of real-world equivalence.

In Rust, the RX 7900 XTX's role becomes clear when examining the measured FPS across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 142 FPS average, which is the highest recorded in the dataset. The GPU's VRAM capacity is never stressed at these settings, and the limiting factor appears to be the CPU's 6 threads. As resolution increases to 1440p, the GPU begins to take on more work, with High settings producing 101 FPS and Ultra producing 78 FPS. At 4K, the GPU's capabilities are fully exercised: High settings yield 60 FPS average, while Ultra drops to 46 FPS. The 4K Medium preset shows a minimum FPS of 61 and maximum of 82, with an average of 72 — this is the only preset at 4K that provides a fully playable experience with FPS data for all three metrics.

The GPU's 96 ray accelerators and DirectX 12 Ultimate support are not directly measured in the Rust data, but the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6841 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 85612 suggest strong API efficiency. The Passmark G3D score of 31238 reinforces that this is a high-end rasterization card, and its 192 ROPs and 384 TMUs are more than sufficient for Rust's draw calls. The 750 W suggested PSU and 355 W TDP indicate power requirements are substantial, but these are not performance metrics and should be considered only for system planning.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 1099 out of 3723 tested combinations, placing it in the top 30% of all systems in the database. This rank reflects a balanced pairing where the GPU is significantly more capable than the CPU, but the CPU does not cripple the GPU's output at lower resolutions. The rank is contextualized by the measured FPS data: at 1080p, the combo produces 115 FPS on High and 104 FPS on Ultra, which are strong numbers for a survival game with frequent physics calculations. At 1440p, the combo maintains 101 FPS on High, which is within the range of high-refresh monitors. At 4K, the combo falls below 60 FPS on Ultra (46 FPS), which is the primary weakness of this pairing.

Comparing to other combos, the rank of 1099 suggests that many systems with newer CPUs or more balanced pairings outperform it, but the RX 7900 XTX's raw power ensures that it beats most systems with mid-range GPUs. The deltaPct values from the nearest rivals are not directly applicable to this combo ranking, but the CPU's 47th percentile and GPU's 64th percentile indicate that the GPU is pulling most of the weight. In Rust specifically, the 1080p Low result of 142 FPS shows that the CPU can sustain high frame rates when the GPU is not heavily loaded, which is a positive sign for players who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Rust?

A: The data shows that 1440p High settings provide 101 FPS average, which is a strong balance of visual quality and performance. At 1080p, High settings yield 115 FPS, but the visual upgrade to 1440p is marginal in FPS cost (12% drop), making 1440p the sweet spot.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Rust?

A: Yes, but only at lower presets. At 4K Medium, the combo averages 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 FPS, which is playable. At 4K High, it drops to 60 FPS average, and at Ultra it falls to 46 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 scores 2254 on average, which is 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (2259) and 0.4% lower than the Intel Core i3-10305 (2264). It outperforms the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2246) by 0.4%, indicating near-identical synthetic performance among these parts.

Q: What is the GPU's memory bandwidth and why does it matter?

A: The RX 7900 XTX has 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth from its 24 GB GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus. This high bandwidth is critical for Rust's streaming of large world textures and helps maintain consistent frame rates at 1440p and 4K, as seen in the moderate FPS drops between resolutions.

Q: Is the GPU's 24 GB VRAM necessary for Rust?

A: The data does not indicate VRAM usage, but the 24 GB capacity ensures that no resolution or preset in this dataset (up to 4K Ultra) would exceed memory limits. This is a qualitative advantage, as the measured FPS drops from 1080p to 4K are consistent with GPU compute limitations rather than memory bottlenecks.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in the database?

A: It ranks 1099 out of 3723 tested combos, which places it in the top 30% of all systems. This rank is driven by the GPU's high benchmark scores (64th percentile) compensating for the CPU's mid-range position (47th percentile).

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound behavior at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the combo produces 142 FPS at 1080p, 125 FPS at 1440p, and 105 FPS at 4K — a total drop of 26% from 1080p to 4K. This is a relatively shallow decline, suggesting that at Low settings, the CPU is the primary limiter, as the GPU has excess capacity that is not being fully utilized. At High settings, the FPS values are 115 (1080p), 101 (1440p), and 60 (4K) — a 48% drop from 1080p to 4K, which indicates the GPU is becoming the bottleneck as pixel count increases. At Ultra settings, the drop is even steeper: 104 FPS at 1080p, 78 FPS at 1440p, and 46 FPS at 4K — a 56% reduction, confirming that the GPU's rendering workload dominates at maximum quality.

The Medium preset provides the most complete data with min and max FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the average is 122 FPS with a range of 104-140. At 1440p Medium, the average is 108 FPS with a range of 92-124. At 4K Medium, the average is 72 FPS with a range of 61-82. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is 11%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 33%. This non-linear scaling is typical of GPU-bound scenarios, where the 4K pixel count (3840x2160) is roughly four times that of 1080p (1920x1080), but the FPS does not quarter because other bottlenecks (CPU, memory) become relatively less significant. The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the CPU is the limiting component, while at 4K, the GPU's raw compute and memory bandwidth are the controlling factors.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide clear guidance for optimal settings based on resolution. At 1080p, the Ultra preset delivers 104 FPS average, which is only 11 FPS lower than High (115 FPS) but offers the full visual experience. Given that the minimum FPS is not recorded for these presets, the data suggests that Ultra is a safe choice at 1080p for players with 60 Hz or 144 Hz monitors, as the average remains well above 60 FPS.

At 1440p, the High preset (101 FPS) is the recommended choice over Ultra (78 FPS) because the 23 FPS difference is substantial, and High likely retains most visual fidelity without the performance penalty. The Medium preset at 1440p (108 FPS) offers a higher average than High, but the difference is only 7 FPS, so High is the better balance. The 4K resolution presents a more constrained decision: Medium is the only preset that consistently stays above 60 FPS (72 FPS average, 61 FPS minimum), making it the only viable option for smooth gameplay. High at 4K averages exactly 60 FPS, which may drop below 60 in demanding scenes, while Ultra at 46 FPS is not recommended for competitive or fast-paced play.

For players who prioritize maximum frame rate, the 1080p Low preset (142 FPS) is the top choice, but it sacrifices visual quality. The data indicates that the Medium preset at 1080p (122 FPS) provides a better experience than Low with only a 14% FPS reduction, and it includes min/max FPS data (104-140) confirming stability. Overall, the recommended path is: 1080p Ultra for max fidelity, 1440p High for balanced play, and 4K Medium for playability.