The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 action RPG, places heavy demands on hardware, and the measured results for the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 570 reveal a system that is clearly constrained by its graphics card at higher resolutions. The data shows a playable experience only at 1080p and with reduced settings, while 4K is a non-starter for this combination.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate collapse from 1080p to 4K is stark. At the High settings preset, the average frame rate drops from 45 FPS at 1920x1080 to 29 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 16 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a decline of approximately 35.6% when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 44.8% drop from 1440p to 4K. The pattern clearly indicates that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor as pixel count rises. The Radeon RX 570's 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and its 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth are simply not enough to feed the demands of 4K rendering in this title.

This behavior is consistent across all settings. At Low settings, the frame rate halves when moving from 1080p (68 FPS) to 4K (25 FPS). At Medium, the drop goes from 53 FPS to 19 FPS. Even at Ultra, the most demanding preset, the average falls from 35 FPS to 13 FPS. The scaling is not perfectly linear, which hints at the influence of other factors beyond pure pixel count. For instance, at 4K, the gap between Low and Medium settings is a mere 6 FPS (25 vs 19), but at 1080p the same settings gap is 15 FPS (68 vs 53). Tells you the graphics card is swamped at 4K and the CPU is waiting for the GPU to catch up.

The data suggests that the limiting component is unequivocally the GPU. The Ryzen 5 8400F, with its Zen 4 architecture and 6 cores/12 threads, is clearly not the bottleneck here. The benchmark results show a system that can handle 1080p gaming with ease but starts to stumble as the render resolution climbs. The performance delta between 1080p and 4K at High settings is a 64.4% reduction, and the system never reaches a playable frame rate at 4K, even at the lowest settings. The 25 FPS average at 4K Low is the best case, and this is still far below the 60 FPS that most gamers would consider smooth.

The scaling pattern also indicates that the game engine, while not modern, is still heavily reliant on the fill-rate and memory bandwidth of the GPU. The Radeon RX 570's 32 ROPs and 128 TMUs are just not enough for 3840x2160. The data makes it clear that 4K is only for the bravest of players, and even then, only at the lowest preset. The GPU's 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is being asked to do too much at 4K, and the frame rate is the result.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with High settings?

A: The average frame rate at 2560x1440 with High settings is 29 FPS, which is on the edge of playability for a single player action RPG.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 8400F bottleneck the RX 570 in The Technomancer?

A: No. The data shows that the frame rates scale dramatically with resolution, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads provide a strong base, but the graphics card is overwhelmed at higher resolutions.

Q: What is the best setting for 4K gaming with this combo?

A: The best 4K result is 25 FPS at Low settings, which is not playable. Even at Low, the frame rate is below 30 FPS, making 4K a poor experience for this system.

Q: Can the system achieve 60 FPS at 1080p?

A: The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the average frame rate is 68 FPS, exceeding 60 FPS. However, at Medium, the average is 53 FPS, and at High, it is 45 FPS, so the 60 FPS target is only met at the lowest settings.

Q: How much of a performance difference is there between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The difference is significant. At 1080p, the average frame rate goes from 68 FPS at Low to 35 FPS at Ultra, a 49.9% reduction in performance.

Q: What is the frame time consistency at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the average is 53 FPS with a minimum of 45 and a maximum of 60. At 1440p Medium, the average is 34 FPS with a minimum of 29 and a maximum of 40. At 4K Medium, the average is 19 FPS with a minimum of 16 and a maximum of 22. The range between min and max suggests some stutter, but the frame pacing is relatively stable.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 8000 series, based on the Zen 4 architecture and Phoenix codename. It has a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, with a TDP of 65 W. This is a modern CPU from 2024, released in March of that year, and it is built on a 4 nm process from TSMC.

The CPU's benchmarks show it is a healthy processor. In Cinebench R23, it scores 2943 in single-core and 20851 in multi-core. The single-core score is particularly relevant for gaming, as many games to rely on a few threads. The PassMark multi-thread score is 24389, and the 3DMark 16-thread score is 6091. These numbers indicate that the Ryzen 5 8400F is not a weak point in this system. The CPU's percentile vs all CPUs is 77, meaning it is better than 77% of all CPUs in the database, which is a solid position.

When looking at the nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 8400F is basically tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F, scoring 0.2% higher. It is also within 0.4% of the Intel Core i7-13620H. This shows that the CPU is a modern, high-performing part that is not limiting the frame rates in The Technomancer. The game's frame rates at 1080p, which are mostly above 45 FPS at High, are more than enough to keep the GPU fed. The 12 threads may not be fully utilized, but the game's engine does not appear to be CPU-bound, as the scaling from 1080p to 4K is dramatic.

The CPU's memory bandwidth is 83.2 GB/s, and it supports DDR5 memory. This is more than adequate for the Radeon RX 570, which has its own 224 GB/s of dedicated video memory bandwidth. The CPU's PCIe Gen 4 interface provides plenty of bandwidth for the GPU, but the RX 570 uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 connection. This could theoretically bottleneck the CPU-to-GPU transfer, but the data shows the GPU is the more significant constraint.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of things, this combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and the AMD Radeon RX 570 ranks 3523 out of 3696 combos tested in The Technomancer. This places it in the bottom 5% of all tested combinations, which is a reflection of the graphics card's age and performance level. The RX 570 was released in 2017 and is now end-of-life, and its 4 GB of VRAM is insufficient for modern games at high resolutions.

The combo rank is the 3523rd position out of 3696, meaning there are 173 combos that perform worse. This is a low rank, but it is not the absolute worst. The data shows that this system is not suitable for 4K gaming, and it is barely acceptable for 1440p. The rank is a clear sign that the GPU is the major bottleneck, as the CPU is a recent, powerful part.

The GPU's average benchmark score is 28766, with a percentile of 74. This places the RX 570 above 74% of all GPUs in the database. However, this is based on synthetic benchmarks, which may not reflect gaming performance in The Technomancer. The game is an action RPG with complex scenes, and the GPU's 4 GB of VRAM can be a problem at higher resolutions.

The combo's rank is a direct consequence of the GPU's limitations. The GPU's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 470, which scores 0.8% lower, and the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, which scores 0.4% higher. The low rank of the combo suggests that the GPU is the weakest link, and that any upgrade to a more powerful GPU would drastically change the combination's position.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is a GPU based on the Polaris 20 chip, using the GCN 4.0 architecture. It has a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz, with 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The memory configuration is 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. The GPU has a TDP of 150 W and is a dual-slot card.

In The The Technomancer, the GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions above 1080p. The frame rate at 4K is 16 FPS at High settings, which is unplayable. Even at 720p, the data shows a variation from 35 FPS at Ultra to 68 FPS at Low.

The GPU's performance is also reflected in its benchmarks. The GPU scores 880 in 3dmark_steel_nomad_dx12, which is a modern benchmark. The GPU also scores 39349 in Geekbench Metal, 32084 in OpenCL, and 42752 in Vulkan. These scores are not directly comparable to the game, but they indicate the GPU's raw compute power.

The RX 570's memory is a significant constraint. The 4 GB of GDDR5 is not enough to hold the textures and data needs for 4K resolution. The GDDR5 memory speed of 1750 MHz and the effective 7 Gbps rate are the limiting factor. As the resolution increases, the GPU must store more data, and it runs out of memory, causing frame rate drops.

The GPU is also old, released in 2017, and it is now end-of-life. The successor, Vega, was released after it. This means that the GPU is not able to keep up with modern games, which is clear from the benchmark results.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance is reasonable. At Low settings, the average frame rate is the highest at 68 FPS. At Medium, it is 53 FPS, with a minimum of 45 and a maximum of 60. At High, it drops to 45 FPS, and at Ultra, it is 35 FPS. This means that the system can handle 1080p gaming, but only at the lower presets for a smooth experience.

At 2560x1440, the performance drops significantly. At Low, the average is 45 FPS, at Medium, it is 34 FPS (min 29, max 40), at High, it is 29 FPS, and at Ultra, it is 23 FPS. The Medium preset is the best for 1440p, as it provides a playable frame rate with some visual quality.

At 3840x2160, the system is not capable of playing. At Low, the average is 25 FPS, at Medium, it is 19 FPS (min 16, max 22), at High, it is 16 FPS, and at Ultra, it is 13 FPS. All of these are far below the 30 FPS minimum for playability.

The data shows a clear pattern: the system is only comfortable at 1080p, with 30 FPS at High, and 60 FPS at Low. The GPU cannot handle the 1440p well, and 4K is not possible.

Settings Recommendations

The best experience with this system is at 1920x1080. The Low settings produce 68 FPS, but that may sacrifice visual fidelity. The Medium settings at 1080p provide 53 FPS, which is a good balance between quality and performance. The High settings at 45 FPS is acceptable, but the Ultra at 35 FPS is still playable but not ideal.

For a more stable experience, the 1080p Medium settings are the best choice. The 53 FPS average is above 30 FPS, and the minimum of 45 FPS ensures that there are no severe dips. The High settings are also viable if the player wants better visuals, but the frame rate is lower.

At 1440p, the Medium setting is the best option. The 34 FPS average is on the edge of playable, and the minimum 29 FPS may cause a bit of stutter. The Low setting at 45 FPS is smoother, but the visual quality is lower. The High and Ultra settings are not recommended, as they are below 30 FPS.

At 4K, none of the settings are playable. The Low setting at 25 FPS is the best, but it is still below 30 FPS. The game would be a slideshow at this resolution, so the recommendation is to stay at 1080p or 1440p.

The data suggests that the best experience is to use the Medium preset at 1080p. This provides a playable frame rate and a good mix of visual quality. The High settings are a good alternative, but the player will have to accept a lower frame rate. The Ultra settings are not recommended, as the frame rate drops too low. The 1440p is possible with Low settings, but the visual quality might not be worth the 45 FPS. The 4K is not recommended.

The CPU and GPU combination is not a high-end system, and the settings should be adjusted to match the hardware's capabilities. The game's engine is from 2016, and it shows in the performance of the system. The user can achieve a good experience with the right settings, but not at the highest quality.