Rust

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination in Rust presents a clear performance hierarchy dominated by resolution scaling. The data shows a consistent and significant frame rate drop as resolution increases, with the most dramatic collapse occurring at 4K Ultra settings, where the system averages just 28 FPS. This pattern indicates that while the RTX 4060 is capable of handling the game's graphical load at lower resolutions, the demands of 4K quickly overwhelm the entire pipeline, making the highest settings essentially unplayable at that resolution. The performance gap between 1080p and 4K is substantial across all settings, revealing a system that is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K with high visual fidelity.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance cliff as resolution increases, a pattern that strongly suggests the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At 1080p Low settings, the system achieves a very high 142 FPS, but this drops to 110 FPS at 1440p and further to 63.3 FPS at 4K. This represents a 55.4% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, indicating that even at the lowest graphical preset, the increase in pixel count from 2.1 million to 8.3 million places an immense burden on the RTX 4060's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 128-bit memory bus.

The scaling becomes even more pronounced at higher settings. At High settings, the frame rate drops from 94.6 FPS at 1080p to 64.5 FPS at 1440p, and then plummets to 39.2 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset shows the most severe degradation: 69.4 FPS at 1080p falls to 47.3 FPS at 1440p, and finally crashes to 28 FPS at 4K. This final figure is particularly telling, as it represents less than half the frame rate achieved at 1080p Ultra. The data shows that the transition from 1440p to 4K is the most punishing, with frame rates nearly halving across all settings except Low, where the drop is still a substantial 42.5%.

These results indicate that the RTX 4060, with its 272.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, is pushed to its absolute limits at 4K. The GPU's pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s is simply insufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K with demanding settings. The system is clearly optimized for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver smooth experiences, but 4K should be reserved for Low settings if any semblance of playability is desired.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400, a 6-core, 6-thread processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture, plays a critical role in Rust's performance, particularly at lower resolutions. With a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, this CPU provides adequate processing power for the game's simulation and physics calculations. The processor's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 7969 and single-core score of 1125 place it at the 50th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is a mid-range performer that can keep pace with the RTX 4060 in most scenarios.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is not the primary bottleneck, as frame rates remain high even at Ultra settings (69.4 FPS). However, the CPU's influence becomes more apparent when comparing the scaling from 1080p to 1440p. At Low settings, the frame rate drops from 142 FPS to 110 FPS, a 22.5% reduction. This relatively modest drop, compared to the 42.5% reduction from 1440p to 4K, suggests that the CPU is still capable of feeding the GPU at 1440p. The processor's 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth provide sufficient data throughput for Rust's open-world environment.

The i5-9400's performance is closely matched by several rivals, according to benchmark data. It sits just 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i3-10305 and the Intel Core i3-1125G4, and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Xeon E-2134. The Intel Core i7-8809G is only 0.6% faster. This cluster of CPUs around the 2300 average benchmark score indicates that the i5-9400 is squarely in the middle of the performance pack, and its 6 cores and 6 threads are adequate for Rust but do not provide any headroom for future, more demanding titles.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Rust at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Only at Low settings, where it averages 63.3 FPS. At Medium settings, the frame rate drops to 46.5 FPS, and at High and Ultra, it falls to 39.2 FPS and 28 FPS respectively, making those presets unsuitable for smooth gameplay at 4K.

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

A: The data shows that 1080p delivers the highest frame rates, with Low settings reaching 142 FPS and Medium achieving 110.8 FPS. Even at High settings, the system maintains 94.6 FPS at 1080p, making it the sweet spot for performance.

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

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305, placing it 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i3-10305 and Intel Core i3-1125G4, and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Xeon E-2134. It trails the Intel Core i7-8809G by 0.6%.

Q: Is the RTX 4060 a bottleneck at 4K?

A: Yes, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K. The frame rate drops from 63.3 FPS at Low to 28 FPS at Ultra, showing that the GPU's 8 GB memory and 128-bit bus cannot handle the pixel throughput required at 4K with higher settings.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, Low settings average 110 FPS, while Ultra settings average 47.3 FPS. This represents a 57% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the significant impact of graphical presets on performance.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 rank against its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 23181. It is 0.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti, while being 0.7% ahead of the Intel Arc B580 and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon 760M.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results: Low settings average 142 FPS, Medium averages 110.8 FPS, High averages 94.6 FPS, and Ultra averages 69.4 FPS. This shows a predictable and smooth degradation as settings increase, with the gap between Low and Ultra being 72.6 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop noticeably. Low settings average 110 FPS, Medium averages 74.4 FPS, High averages 64.5 FPS, and Ultra averages 47.3 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p ranges from 22.5% at Low to 31.8% at Ultra, indicating that the increased resolution impacts higher settings more severely.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles significantly. Low settings average 63.3 FPS, Medium averages 46.5 FPS, High averages 39.2 FPS, and Ultra averages 28 FPS. The degradation from 1440p to 4K is dramatic, ranging from 42.5% at Low to 40.8% at Ultra. The 4K Ultra result of 28 FPS is the lowest recorded, confirming that this resolution and setting combination is not viable for smooth gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 ranks 977th out of 1717 tested combinations in Rust. This places it in the 43rd percentile of all tested systems, indicating it is a below-average performer for this specific game. The ranking reflects the system's inability to maintain high frame rates at 4K, which is a significant factor in its overall position.

This mid-pack ranking is somewhat surprising given the individual component benchmarks. The RTX 4060 sits at the 66th percentile among all GPUs, while the i5-9400 is at the 50th percentile among CPUs. However, the combination's performance in Rust is dragged down by the game's demanding nature at high resolutions. The data shows that while the system can compete at 1080p, its 4K performance places it behind many other configurations in the benchmark database.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this system is achieved at 1080p with Medium settings, which delivers a strong 110.8 FPS average. This provides a balance between visual quality and performance, offering smooth gameplay without sacrificing too much graphical fidelity. For players seeking the highest possible frame rates, 1080p Low at 142 FPS is the clear choice, ideal for competitive play.

At 1440p, the data suggests that Low settings at 110 FPS is the most viable option for maintaining high frame rates. Medium settings at 74.4 FPS is also acceptable, but High and Ultra drop to 64.5 FPS and 47.3 FPS respectively, which may be too low for some players. For 4K, the only playable option is Low settings at 63.3 FPS, and even this may not be smooth enough for fast-paced action. The data clearly shows that 4K Ultra at 28 FPS should be avoided entirely, as it falls well below playable thresholds.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, based on the AD107 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture, is a capable mid-range GPU that excels at 1080p and 1440p but struggles at 4K. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, the GPU has a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s, which is a significant limiting factor at higher resolutions. The GPU's 3072 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 48 ROPs provide solid compute capabilities, reflected in its FP32 performance of 15.11 TFLOPS.

The GPU's clock speeds are notable, with a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz. The memory operates at 2125 MHz, or 17 Gbps effective. These clocks contribute to the GPU's pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s. The RTX 4060 also features 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores, which support DirectX 12 Ultimate and other modern APIs, though these features have limited impact on Rust's performance.

The GPU's benchmark scores show it is a strong performer relative to its peers. Its Passmark G3D score of 19545 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2302 place it at the 66th percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals are closely matched, with the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti being 0.6% and 0.7% faster respectively, while the Intel Arc B580 and AMD Radeon 760M are 0.7% and 0.8% slower. This data confirms that the RTX 4060 is a solid mid-range option, but its 8 GB memory capacity and 128-bit bus are the main constraints preventing higher 4K performance in Rust.