The Technomancer

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 produces a distinct performance profile in The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG. Across the measured resolutions and settings, the data reveals a combination that is heavily influenced by GPU load at higher resolutions, while showing strong CPU headroom at 1080p. The combo ranks 1632 out of 2825 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database, though its frame rates at mainstream settings remain playable.

Resolution Scaling

Resolution scaling in The Technomancer shows a clear and predictable pattern for this hardware pairing. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at High settings drops the average frame rate from 103 FPS to 67 FPS, a reduction of 36 FPS. Continuing to 3840x2160 at High produces 37 FPS, which is 30 FPS lower than the 1440p result and 66 FPS below the 1080p figure. This scaling behavior indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting component as pixel count rises, since the frame rate decline is roughly proportional to the increase in rendered pixels.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced in absolute terms. The 1080p Low average is 157 FPS, which falls to 102 FPS at 1440p and then to 56 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 55 FPS, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 46 FPS. These large absolute declines suggest that the RX 9060 is being pushed progressively harder, and the 1080p Low result appears to be near the upper limit of what this GPU can deliver in this title, possibly approaching a frame time ceiling imposed by the engine or driver overhead.

Medium settings show a similar trend. At 1080p, the average is 120 FPS with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 90 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 43 FPS with a minimum of 37 FPS and a maximum of 50 FPS. The minimum frame rates at each resolution are notably lower than the averages, indicating some frame time variance, but the overall pattern remains consistent with GPU-bound scaling.

Ultra settings push the combination to its limits. The 1080p Ultra average is 80 FPS, which is still smooth for most gameplay. At 1440p Ultra, the average falls to 52 FPS, which is borderline for action-oriented gameplay. At 4K Ultra, the average is 29 FPS, which is below the threshold for comfortable play. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra is a 28 FPS drop, and from 1440p to 4K is a 23 FPS drop, showing that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at all resolutions when the preset is set to Ultra.

The data suggests that this combination is not ideal for 4K gaming in The Technomancer, as even Low settings only achieve 56 FPS at that resolution. The 1440p results are more viable, with Medium and High settings providing 79 FPS and 67 FPS respectively. The 1080p results are the strongest, with all presets except Ultra exceeding 100 FPS. The scaling pattern indicates that the RX 9060’s memory bandwidth and compute resources are the limiting factors at higher resolutions, while the Ryzen 5 5600X provides sufficient processing power to avoid becoming a bottleneck at 1080p.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 44 chip, fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It features 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 raster operation units. The GPU has 28 ray tracing cores and delivers 21.43 TFLOPS of FP32 compute. Its pixel rate is 191.4 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 334.9 GTexel/s. These specifications position the card as a mid-range offering, which aligns with its benchmark percentile of 59 among all GPUs.

The memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, providing 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock is 2250 MHz, which translates to 18 Gbps effective. The base clock is 1700 MHz, the game clock is 2400 MHz, and the boost clock reaches 2990 MHz. This clock range allows the GPU to scale its performance dynamically, though the measured results in The Technomancer show that the card’s capabilities are taxed at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s role in this game becomes evident when comparing the 1080p and 4K results. At 1080p Low, the average of 157 FPS suggests that the card has significant headroom, and the CPU is likely contributing to the frame rate. However, at 4K Low, the average drops to 56 FPS, which is a 64% reduction. This large drop indicates that the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth are the primary constraints at 4K, as the pixel count quadruples while the frame rate does not scale linearly.

The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for The Technomancer, as the game’s release date in 2016 predates the high VRAM demands of modern titles. The measured data does not show any anomalies that would suggest VRAM capacity is limiting performance, such as sudden frame rate collapses at higher settings. Instead, the consistent scaling across settings points to compute and bandwidth limitations rather than memory capacity issues.

The GPU’s average benchmark score is 16014, with a Passmark G3D score of 17631 and a Passmark GPU Compute score of 9919. In DirectX 11, the Passmark score is 182, while DirectX 12 yields 44 and DirectX 9 yields 280. These scores indicate that the card performs best in older APIs, which is relevant for a 2016 game like The Technomancer that likely relies on DirectX 11. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti with an average score of 16129, which is 0.7% higher, and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 with an average score of 15852, which is 1% lower. This places the RX 9060 in a competitive position relative to these cards.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 1632 out of 2825 tested combos in The Technomancer, placing it in the 57.8th percentile of all combinations. This rank reflects the mid-range nature of both components, as neither is a flagship part, but both are capable of delivering playable performance at lower resolutions.

The CPU’s benchmark scores provide context for its role in this ranking. The Ryzen 5 5600X has an average benchmark score of 21771, with a percentile of 75 among all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H with an average score of 21749, which is 0.1% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U with an average score of 21874, which is 0.5% higher. The Intel Core i7-11700 also appears as a rival with an average score of 21891, 0.5% higher, and the AMD EPYC 9554P with 21899, 0.6% higher. These small deltas indicate that the 5600X is closely matched with these other processors in synthetic benchmarks, which translates to similar CPU-bound performance in games.

The GPU’s rank is lower, with a percentile of 59 among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 16014 is close to the RTX 3060 Ti’s 16129, a 0.7% difference, and the Radeon R9 370X’s 15862, a 1% difference. The Radeon RX 7700 scores 15852, which is 1% lower, and the Radeon Pro W5500 scores 15679, which is 2.1% lower. These close scores suggest that the RX 9060 performs similarly to these GPUs in general benchmarks, but the in-game results for The Technomancer show that the combination’s overall rank is influenced by both components.

The combo rank of 1632 suggests that many other pairings achieve higher frame rates in this game, likely those with higher-end GPUs or CPUs. However, the rank also indicates that the combination is not at the bottom of the list, and the measured frame rates at 1080p and 1440p demonstrate that it can handle the game reasonably well. The data shows that the CPU is not a significant bottleneck in this title, as evidenced by the strong scaling with GPU load, which allows the combo to achieve higher ranks than would be expected if the CPU were limiting performance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal setting for this combination depends on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 103 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset offers 120 FPS, and the Low preset reaches 157 FPS, but the visual quality difference between Low and High is likely substantial for a game with detailed environments. The Ultra preset at 1080p produces 80 FPS, which is still playable but offers diminishing returns over High given the additional GPU load.

At 2560x1440, the High preset yields 67 FPS, which is acceptable for most players, though those seeking higher frame rates may prefer Medium at 79 FPS. The Low preset at 1440p reaches 102 FPS, which is smooth, but the visual compromise may be too significant. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 52 FPS, which is borderline and may result in noticeable stutter during combat sequences.

At 3840x2160, the data shows that this combination struggles to maintain playable frame rates. The High preset averages 37 FPS, which is below the 40 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for playable action games. The Medium preset averages 43 FPS, which is marginally better, and the Low preset reaches 56 FPS, which is the only 4K setting that provides a comfortable experience. The Ultra preset at 4K averages 29 FPS, which is not recommended for gameplay.

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the High preset at 1080p is the recommended choice, as it provides 103 FPS with likely good visual fidelity. At 1440p, the Medium preset offers 79 FPS and is a reasonable compromise, while at 4K, the Low preset is the only viable option. Players prioritizing frame rate over visuals may opt for Medium at 1080p or Low at 1440p, but the data suggests that High at 1080p and Medium at 1440p offer the best experience per the measured rows.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured results are as follows. Low settings produce an average of 157 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Medium settings average 120 FPS, with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS. High settings average 103 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Ultra settings average 80 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a steady decline of 77 FPS, with the largest single drop occurring between Low and Medium at 37 FPS.

At 2560x1440, Low settings average 102 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Medium settings average 79 FPS, with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 90 FPS. High settings average 67 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Ultra settings average 52 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. The drop from Low to Ultra is 50 FPS, and the scaling is consistent across the settings levels.

At 3840x2160, Low settings average 56 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Medium settings average 43 FPS, with a minimum of 37 FPS and a maximum of 50 FPS. High settings average 37 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Ultra settings average 29 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. The drop from Low to Ultra is 27 FPS, which is smaller in absolute terms than at lower resolutions but represents a larger percentage reduction.

The Medium settings at each resolution include minimum and maximum values, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the range is 102 to 138 FPS, a spread of 36 FPS. At 1440p, the range is 67 to 90 FPS, a spread of 23 FPS. At 4K, the range is 37 to 50 FPS, a spread of 13 FPS. This narrowing range at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is more consistently loaded, while at 1080p, the CPU or other factors may introduce more variance.

FAQ

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

A: The average frame rate at 1920x1080 with High settings is 103 FPS, with no minimum or maximum values recorded in the data.

Q: Can this combination handle 4K gaming in The Technomancer?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 56 FPS, the Medium preset averages 43 FPS, the High preset averages 37 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 29 FPS. Only the Low preset provides a consistently playable frame rate at 4K.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to the RTX 3060 Ti in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, while the RTX 3060 Ti has an average score of 16129, which is 0.7% higher. This indicates they perform similarly in general GPU benchmarks.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested combinations?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 1632 out of 2825 tested combos in The Technomancer.

Q: What is the maximum frame rate recorded at 1440p Medium settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the maximum frame rate is 90 FPS, with an average of 79 FPS and a minimum of 67 FPS.

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

A: At 1080p Low, the average frame rate is 157 FPS, which is high enough that the CPU may be contributing to the result. The data shows a large drop to 102 FPS at 1440p Low, indicating the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution increases.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture with the Vermeer codename. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, with a TDP of 65 watts. The CPU features 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and 32 MB of L3 cache. It supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration with a maximum memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. The processor is built on a 7 nm process at TSMC, with 4,150 million transistors on a 74 mm² die.

The CPU’s benchmark scores show strong single-threaded and multi-threaded performance. In Cinebench R23, it scores 1541 in single-core and 11838 in multi-core. In Geekbench, it scores 1989 in single-core and 9173 in multi-core. The Passmark multi-thread score is 21858, and the single-thread score is 3364. These scores place the CPU in the 75th percentile among all CPUs, indicating it is a capable processor for gaming workloads.

In The Technomancer, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU at higher resolutions. The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K follows a pattern consistent with GPU-bound performance, as the CPU is likely able to keep up with the GPU’s demands. The 1080p Low result of 157 FPS suggests that the CPU can drive high frame rates when the GPU is not heavily loaded, but the drop to 56 FPS at 4K Low indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the AMD Ryzen 7 4800H, which scores 21749, a 0.1% difference, and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U, which scores 21874, a 0.5% difference. These small deltas suggest that the 5600X performs similarly to these processors, which means the choice of CPU would have a minimal impact on frame rates in this game. The Intel Core i7-11700 scores 21891, also 0.5% higher, and the AMD EPYC 9554P scores 21899, 0.6% higher, further confirming that the 5600X is competitive with these parts.

The CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for The Technomancer, as the game’s release in 2016 likely does not utilize more than a few threads effectively. The data does not show any CPU-bound limitations at lower resolutions, as the frame rates at 1080p are high and scale smoothly with settings changes. The 65-watt TDP and AM4 socket make it an efficient and compatible choice for a mid-range gaming system, and its performance in this game is consistent with its benchmark results.