Rust

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

The measured FPS data for Rust reveals a striking pattern in how this combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX scales across resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system produces 250.6 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops that to 179.2 FPS, a reduction of roughly 28%. At 3840x2160 Low, the frame rate falls further to 106.3 FPS, which is about 58% lower than the 1080p result.

This scaling curve is informative. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings is steep, and the drop from 1440p to 4K is even steeper in absolute terms. When the graphics load is minimal, the CPU has more room to push frames, but the GPU becomes the bottleneck as pixel count rises. The 179.2 FPS at 1440p Low versus 106.3 FPS at 4K Low suggests that the RX 7900 XTX's rendering throughput is being taxed heavily at higher resolutions.

The picture changes when settings are raised. At Ultra settings, the 1080p result is 114.6 FPS, while 1440p Ultra yields 79.6 FPS and 4K Ultra drops to 47 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 1440p Ultra is a 30% reduction, while the gap between 1440p and 4K Ultra is a 41% reduction. This indicates that at Ultra, the GPU is the dominant limiting factor — the RX 7900 XTX with its 24 GB of GDDR6 memory and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth is working hard, but the 4K Ultra load is simply enormous.

What does the data imply about the CPU's role? The i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads boosting to 5.40 GHz, is clearly capable of feeding the GPU at 1080p, where the 250.6 FPS Low result shows no obvious CPU ceiling. However, the scaling pattern suggests that as resolution increases, the GPU's pixel and texture throughput becomes the primary constraint. The 106.3 FPS at 4K Low — still a very playable number — shows that even a high-end GPU like the RX 7900 XTX cannot maintain triple-digit frames at 4K in Rust when the resolution is the bottleneck.

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

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, fabricated on Intel's 10 nm process node. Its base clock is 2.10 GHz, and it boosts to 5.40 GHz. This CPU sits in the 94th percentile versus all CPUs, which means it outperforms the vast majority of processors in general benchmark tests.

In Rust, the CPU's role is most visible at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully stressed. The 1080p Low result of 250.6 FPS is the highest measured frame rate in this dataset, and it indicates that the CPU can drive the game's simulation and draw calls without creating a hard cap. The 20 cores and 28 threads provide ample parallel processing headroom for a survival game that often has many entities and physics calculations running simultaneously.

The benchmark scores for this CPU reinforce its strength. In Cinebench R23, it scores 35443 in multi-core and 5003 in single-core. The single-core score is particularly relevant for Rust, which tends to rely on single-threaded performance for game logic. The Geekbench single-core score of 2711 and multi-core score of 16571 further confirm that this CPU has both strong per-core performance and substantial multi-threaded capability.

When comparing to its nearest rivals, the i7-14700F's average benchmark score is 54097. The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X scores 54450, which is 0.6% higher, and the Ryzen 9 9900X3D scores 54681, 1.1% higher. The Intel Xeon Phi 7290 scores 53469, putting the i7-14700F 1.2% ahead, and the AMD EPYC 7313P scores 53206, with the i7-14700F leading by 1.7%. These are marginal differences, suggesting that within its performance class, the i7-14700F is competitive but not dominant.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is doing its job well — the 250.6 FPS Low result shows no obvious CPU bottleneck. At 1440p High, the 103.5 FPS result is likely still CPU-influenced, but the GPU is becoming more relevant. At 4K, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU takes over as the primary limiter.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is a flagship GPU from the Radeon RX 7000 series, built on the Navi 31 chip with RDNA 3.0 architecture. It features 6144 shading units, 384 texture mapping units, and 192 render output units. The GPU has 96 ray tracing cores and an FP32 performance of 61.39 TFLOPS. Its boost clock is 2498 MHz, with a game clock of 2365 MHz and a base clock of 1929 MHz.

Memory is a significant strength here: 24 GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus provides 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is crucial for a game like Rust, which can have large and complex worlds. The high VRAM capacity means that at 4K Ultra, the GPU is unlikely to run out of memory, but the 47 FPS result at that setting shows that raw compute and memory bandwidth are still insufficient to maintain high frame rates.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 85th percentile versus all GPUs. Its PassMark G3D score is 31238, and its Geekbench OpenCL score is 189573. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 6841. These numbers indicate strong overall performance, but the measured FPS in Rust shows that the game is demanding enough to push this GPU to its limits.

Comparing to nearest rivals, the RX 7900 XTX's average benchmark score is 44019. The AMD Radeon Pro 580 scores 44195, which is 0.4% higher, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti scores 44900, which is 2% higher. The RTX 4090 Mobile scores 43667, putting the RX 7900 XTX 0.8% ahead, and the Quadro M6000 scores 43313, with the RX 7900 XTX leading by 1.6%. These deltas are small, suggesting that the RX 7900 XTX is competitive with these cards, though the RTX 4070 Ti holds a slight edge in aggregate benchmarks.

In Rust, the GPU's role is most evident at 4K Ultra, where the 47 FPS result is the lowest measured. The 106.3 FPS at 4K Low shows that the GPU can handle 4K when settings are reduced, but the scaling from Low to Ultra at any resolution is significant. At 1080p, the GPU is capable of 250.6 FPS at Low but drops to 114.6 FPS at Ultra, indicating a 54% performance loss from settings alone.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are: Low 250.6, Medium 175.3, High 148, and Ultra 114.6. The spread from Low to Ultra is 136 FPS, which is the largest absolute gap across all resolutions. This indicates that at 1080p, settings have a massive impact on performance, likely because the CPU and GPU are both capable of high frame rates, and the graphics settings are the primary variable.

At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 179.2, Medium 122.1, High 103.5, and Ultra 79.6. The gap from Low to Ultra is 99.6 FPS. Compared to 1080p, the Low setting drops by 71.4 FPS, while the Ultra setting drops by 35 FPS. This shows that the GPU is starting to feel the pressure of higher resolution, but the settings still dominate the performance profile.

At 3840x2160, the results are: Low 106.3, Medium 72.2, High 62, and Ultra 47. The gap from Low to Ultra is 59.3 FPS. The Low setting at 4K produces about 42% of the 1080p Low result, while the Ultra setting at 4K produces about 41% of the 1080p Ultra result. This consistency suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, and the settings are scaling nearly proportionally with the resolution.

Across all resolutions, the Medium setting provides a balanced performance profile. At 1080p, Medium yields 175.3 FPS, which is 69.9% of the Low result. At 1440p, Medium yields 122.1 FPS, which is 68.1% of Low. At 4K, Medium yields 72.2 FPS, which is 67.9% of Low. This consistent ratio indicates that the GPU's workload scales predictably with settings.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This particular combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX ranks 162nd out of 1717 tested combos in Rust. This places it in the top 9.4% of all combinations tested, which is a strong result given the large number of possible CPU-GPU pairings.

The rank is notable because it reflects the balance between the CPU and GPU. The i7-14700F's 94th percentile CPU score and the RX 7900 XTX's 85th percentile GPU score combine to produce a system that is well above average but not at the very top. The 162nd rank out of 1717 suggests that there are 161 combinations that perform better in Rust, likely featuring even higher-end CPUs or GPUs.

The data implies that this combo is well-suited for Rust at 1080p and 1440p, where it can achieve high frame rates. At 4K, the performance is still respectable but not elite, as the 47 FPS Ultra result shows. The rank of 162 indicates that while this is a high-performing system, enthusiasts seeking the absolute best Rust experience might look to other combinations.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset appears to offer the most balanced experience across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium delivers 175.3 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay and leaves headroom for demanding scenes. At 1440p, Medium produces 122.1 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. At 4K, Medium yields 72.2 FPS, which is playable and smooth for most users.

For users with 144Hz or 165Hz monitors, the Low preset is the best choice at 1080p, where it delivers 250.6 FPS, ensuring maximum frame rates. At 1440p, Low provides 179.2 FPS, which is also sufficient for high-refresh displays. However, Low sacrifices visual quality, and the data shows that Medium at 1440p still provides 122.1 FPS, which is likely a better trade-off for most players.

At 4K, the High preset yields 62 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold and offers better visual fidelity than Medium's 72.2 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 47 FPS, which may be acceptable for slower-paced survival gameplay but is not ideal for fast action. For 4K users, the data suggests that Medium or High are the best options, depending on whether visual quality or frame rate is prioritized.

The Ultra preset is only recommended at 1080p, where it delivers 114.6 FPS, which is still smooth. At 1440p, Ultra's 79.6 FPS is playable but not optimal for competitive play. The data clearly shows that Medium is the sweet spot for this combo, as it provides a strong balance of performance and visual quality across all resolutions.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the highest average FPS measured for this combo in Rust?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 250.6, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the RX 7900 XTX compare to the RTX 4070 Ti in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 44900, while the RX 7900 XTX scores 44019, putting the RTX 4070 Ti 2% ahead.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS measured for this combo in Rust?

A: The lowest measured average FPS is 47, achieved at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings.

Q: How many cores and threads does the Intel Core i7-14700F have?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has 20 cores and 28 threads, with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations in Rust?

A: This combo ranks 162nd out of 1717 tested combinations, placing it in the top 9.4% of all tested configurations.

Q: What is the RX 7900 XTX's memory configuration?

A: The RX 7900 XTX has 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus, providing 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth.