The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG with a distinctly last-generation engine, presents a demanding workload for modern hardware. When paired with the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER, the benchmark data reveals a system whose performance is heavily dictated by resolution and graphics settings, with the GPU acting as the primary bottleneck in nearly every scenario. This analysis of measured FPS data shows a combo that can deliver smooth 1080p gameplay at high settings but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K, even on the lowest presets.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is severe, indicating that the graphics card is the limiting component in this system. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 72 FPS at 1920x1080 to 47 FPS at 2560x1440, a substantial 34.7% reduction. Pushing further to 3840x2160, the average collapses to just 26 FPS, a 63.9% drop from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline is classic evidence of GPU-bound scaling, where the pixel count overwhelms the GTX 1660 SUPER's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 5.027 TFLOPS of compute power.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. On Low, the system achieves 110 FPS at 1080p, drops to 72 FPS at 1440p, and falls to 39 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most punishing, with average frame rates of 56 FPS, 37 FPS, and 20 FPS at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively. The fact that even the Low preset cannot maintain 60 FPS at 4K (39 FPS average) confirms that resolution, not graphical fidelity, is the primary stressor. The game's engine appears to scale almost linearly with pixel count, with no evidence of a CPU bottleneck emerging at higher resolutions—the Ryzen 5 8400F's robust single-thread performance is sufficient to feed the GPU even when frame rates are low.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing sits in the lower half of the database. The combo achieves a rank of 3157 out of 3696 tested combos for The Technomancer, placing it in the 15th percentile of all systems tested. This is a low ranking, but it is more a reflection of the GPU's age and position than the CPU's capability. The GTX 1660 SUPER holds a 53rd percentile ranking among all GPUs, while the Ryzen 5 8400F sits much higher at the 77th percentile among all CPUs.

The CPU's benchmark scores reinforce this disparity. In Cinebench R23, the Ryzen 5 8400F scores 20851 points multi-core and 2943 points single-core, placing it in a league with the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F (0.2% higher average score) and Intel Core i7-13620H (0.4% higher). This indicates the processor is far more capable than the graphics card. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Radeon RX 580 (0.4% higher score) and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (0.4% higher), highlight that the GTX 1660 SUPER is firmly in the mid-range performance tier. The combination rank of 3157 shows that while the CPU can push high frame rates in CPU-limited scenarios, the GPU holds the system back in this GPU-intensive title, resulting in a combo that is less competitive than its individual parts suggest.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, built on a 4nm process. Its base clock of 4.20 GHz and boost clock of 4.70 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, which is critical for older game engines like the one powering The Technomancer. In Cinebench R23, the single-core score of 2943 points is robust, and the multi-core score of 20851 points indicates that the CPU has sufficient headroom for modern multi-threaded workloads.

However, in the context of this game, the CPU's role is largely to stay out of the way. The data shows that frame rates scale inversely with resolution, which is the signature of a GPU bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the 110 FPS average suggests the CPU is capable of delivering high frame rates, but the GPU cannot maintain that pace at higher resolutions. The CPU's 16 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (83.2 GB/s bandwidth) provide ample bandwidth for the game's data streaming, but these resources are not the limiting factor. The measured FPS data indicates that the Ryzen 5 8400F is never the bottleneck; the GTX 1660 SUPER's pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth are the gating factors. The CPU's 77th percentile ranking versus the GPU's 53rd percentile confirms this hierarchy.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers playable performance across all presets. The Low preset averages 110 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium settings average 84 FPS (min 72, max 97), providing a smooth experience with better visual fidelity. High settings average 72 FPS, which is still perfectly acceptable for most players. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 56 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play, though it remains above the 30 FPS minimum threshold for playability.

At 2560x1440, the GPU begins to struggle. Low settings average 72 FPS, which is good, but Medium drops to 55 FPS (min 47, max 63), showing some frame time instability. High settings average 47 FPS, which is borderline playable, while Ultra averages just 37 FPS, indicating a sub-optimal experience. The frame rate drops of roughly 35% from 1080p to 1440p are consistent with the GPU workload doubling.

At 3840x2160, the system is not viable for smooth gameplay. Low settings average 39 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target. Medium settings average 30 FPS (min 26, max 35), which is at the edge of playability. High settings average 26 FPS, and Ultra averages just 20 FPS. These numbers suggest that 4K is not a practical resolution for this combo, even at the lowest quality presets. The 6 GB VRAM capacity may also be a limiting factor at 4K, potentially causing texture swapping and micro-stutters not captured in the average FPS figures.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run The Technomancer at 60 FPS on 1080p?

A: Yes, at the Low, Medium, and High presets. The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 is 110 FPS on Low, 84 FPS on Medium, and 72 FPS on High. The Ultra preset averages 56 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target.

Q: What is the best resolution for this GPU and CPU pairing?

A: The data indicates that 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution. All presets are playable at this resolution, with even the Ultra preset averaging 56 FPS. At 2560x1440, only the Low preset averages above 60 FPS (72 FPS), while the High preset averages 47 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. This is evidenced by the significant frame rate drops as resolution increases. The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2943 points and multi-core score of 20851 points are strong, while the GPU's Passmark G3D score of 12699 is modest. The frame rate scaling with resolution is a classic sign of GPU limitation.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 8400F compare to its nearest rival, the Ryzen 5 7500F?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F has an average benchmark score of 25005, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F's score of 24964. This makes the two processors effectively identical in overall performance.

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

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 72 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 37 FPS. This represents a 48.6% reduction in frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest quality preset.

Q: Is the GTX 1660 SUPER's performance closer to the RX 580 or the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 12986. The AMD Radeon RX 580 scores 12928 (0.4% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 12940 (0.4% lower). The GPU is essentially tied with both rivals, with differences well within the margin of error.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the High preset at 1920x1080 is the recommended starting point. This configuration averages 72 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, while offering significantly better visuals than the Medium or Low presets. The High preset at 1080p is the sweet spot for this combo, as it provides a 28.6% performance headroom over the 56 FPS Ultra preset, allowing for more consistent frame times.

For players who prioritize maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 1080p delivers an average of 110 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays. This setting is preferable for fast-paced action sequences where frame pacing is critical. However, the visual sacrifice is substantial.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only viable option for a playable experience, averaging 72 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 55 FPS, which may be acceptable for some players, but the frame rate dips to 47 FPS at the minimum, which can be noticeable. The High and Ultra presets at 1440p are not recommended, as they average 47 FPS and 37 FPS respectively, falling below the 60 FPS target.

The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution for this combo. At 1080p it averages 56 FPS, at 1440p it averages 37 FPS, and at 4K it averages 20 FPS. The performance cost of Ultra settings is not justified by the marginal visual improvements over High in this game. The data suggests that the High preset at 1080p is the definitive recommendation, offering the best balance of visual fidelity and playable performance. For 1440p, only the Low preset is recommended for a consistently smooth experience. 4K is not a viable resolution for this hardware configuration, as even the Low preset fails to maintain 40 FPS.