The Technomancer

# The Technomancer with AMD Ryzen 5 8400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting case study for modern high-end hardware. This combination pairs AMD's 6-core Zen 4 desktop processor with NVIDIA's flagship Blackwell GPU, producing measured frame rates that range from 66 FPS at 4K Ultra to 266 FPS at 1080p Low. The data reveals a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-limited at higher resolutions but shows signs of CPU influence at lower settings, with the combo ranking 58th out of 3,696 tested combinations in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, though the magnitude of the drop varies significantly depending on the quality preset selected. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 228 FPS at 1920x1080 to 154 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 74 FPS, and then to 85 FPS at 3840x2160, another 69 FPS drop. This translates to a 63% performance loss from 1080p to 4K at High settings, which strongly indicates that the RTX 5090 D's rendering workload is scaling with pixel count rather than being constrained by the CPU.

The Low preset tells a similar but less dramatic story. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 266 FPS, falling to 231 FPS at 1440p and 129 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 1440p is only 13%, suggesting the CPU can still feed the GPU adequately at the lower resolution, but the jump to 4K produces a 44% reduction in frame rate, showing where the GPU begins to become the dominant limiting factor. The Medium preset shows intermediate behavior: 241 FPS at 1080p, 180 FPS at 1440p, and 99 FPS at 4K, with the 4K figure representing a 59% drop from the 1080p baseline.

The Ultra preset exhibits the steepest scaling curve, with 184 FPS at 1080p dropping to 120 FPS at 1440p and then to just 66 FPS at 4K. The 1080p-to-4K reduction of 64% is the largest of any preset, which makes sense given that Ultra settings impose the heaviest per-pixel workload on the GPU. The fact that even the 4K Ultra result remains above 60 FPS average suggests the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are sufficient to handle the game's demands, but the scaling pattern shows that this title's engine does not scale gracefully with resolution increases at maximum quality.

The frame time consistency, visible in the Medium preset where min/max values were recorded, shows tighter ranges at lower resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the range spans 205 to 278 FPS, while at 1440p it spans 153 to 207 FPS, and at 4K it narrows to 84 to 114 FPS. This compression of the frame time distribution at higher resolutions is consistent with the GPU becoming the bottleneck, as the variance in CPU-side frame production becomes less impactful when the GPU is the limiting stage.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, built on a 4 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock of 4.20 GHz and boost clock of 4.70 GHz provide the raw throughput needed to drive high frame rates in this title. The CPU's benchmark scores show strong single-thread performance, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 951 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,943, which are relevant because older games like The Technomancer often rely heavily on one or two primary threads for game logic and draw call submission.

The processor's multithreaded capabilities are also substantial, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 20,851 and a 3DMark max-threads score of 6,165. However, the game's frame rates at 1080p suggest that even this level of CPU performance is not the primary constraint in most scenarios. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 266 FPS, which is likely near the engine's practical ceiling for frame presentation, but the fact that 1080p Ultra only achieves 184 FPS — a 31% reduction — indicates that the CPU is not the limiting factor even at the lowest preset; the GPU's rendering workload still dominates.

The Ryzen 5 8400F's memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s from dual-channel DDR5 support provides adequate data throughput for game assets, and its 16 MB of shared L3 cache (with 1 MB L2 per core) helps maintain low latency for frequently accessed data. The CPU's percentile ranking against all CPUs sits at 77, with an average benchmark score of 25,005. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F (0.2% ahead at 24,964), Intel Core i7-11850H (0.3% ahead at 24,935), and Intel Core i7-13620H (0.4% ahead at 24,911), showing this chip sits in a tightly contested performance band.

The game's performance at 1440p High (154 FPS) and 4K High (85 FPS) shows that the CPU can maintain adequate frame pacing even as GPU load increases, since the frame rate drops are proportional to resolution rather than showing sudden cliffs that would indicate CPU starvation. The 65 W TDP of the 8400F is modest, and its 4 nm process node allows for efficient operation, but these characteristics are secondary to its actual performance delivery in this context.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing, with specifications that place it in the top tier of available graphics hardware. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus delivers 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which provides ample headroom for The Technomancer's texture and geometry data even at 4K Ultra settings. The GPU's boost clock of 2,407 MHz, combined with 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 render output units, gives it a theoretical FP32 throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS.

The GPU's benchmark results confirm its high-end positioning, with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326 and a PassMark G3D score of 44,065. Its percentile ranking against all GPUs is 92, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Interestingly, the nearest rivals listed include the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (1.1% ahead at 76,904) and AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (1.6% behind at 78,940), though these are mobile parts that would not typically be compared to a desktop flagship in real-world gaming scenarios.

In The Technomancer specifically, the RTX 5090 D's performance ceiling is never fully stressed at 1080p, where even Ultra settings yield 184 FPS. The 4K results are more revealing: at 4K High, the card produces 85 FPS, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 66 FPS, showing that the game's Ultra preset imposes a significant additional load over High settings. The 4K Low result of 129 FPS demonstrates that when the GPU has less work to do, the overall system can still deliver high frame rates, but the 4K Ultra figure shows the card's limits in this specific title.

The GPU's 92nd percentile ranking places it well above most installed hardware, and its 5 nm process node from TSMC, with 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, represents a substantial investment in compute resources. The 575 W TDP and 950 W suggested PSU indicate the power demands of this card, but in terms of game performance, the data shows that The Technomancer can utilize a significant portion of the GPU's capabilities at 4K, while at lower resolutions the GPU idles relative to its maximum potential.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to use with this combination for the highest frame rates?

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 delivers the highest average frame rates across all settings, ranging from 184 FPS at Ultra to 266 FPS at Low. The 1080p Medium preset achieves 241 FPS, which is likely sufficient for most high-refresh-rate displays.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K with maximum settings?

A: Yes, the 4K Ultra preset produces an average of 66 FPS, which stays above the 60 FPS threshold. The 4K High preset is more comfortable at 85 FPS, and 4K Medium reaches 99 FPS, providing headroom for frame rate fluctuations.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 8400F compare to its closest competitors in CPU benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F scores 25,005 on average, which is within 0.4% of the Intel Core i7-13620H (24,911) and 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F (24,964). The AMD EPYC 9474F is 0.4% higher at 25,103, showing the 8400F sits in a very tight performance cluster.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB VRAM necessary for this game?

A: The 4K Ultra preset runs at 66 FPS, and the card's memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s is more than sufficient for The Technomancer's demands. However, the data does not indicate any VRAM capacity constraints, as frame rates remain playable even at the highest settings.

Q: What frame rate can be expected at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average at 2560x1440 High is 154 FPS. This is a significant step down from the 1080p High result of 228 FPS but still provides an excellent experience for most displays, with the 1440p Medium preset offering 180 FPS and Low reaching 231 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for this game?

A: This pairing ranks 58th out of 3,696 tested combos, placing it in the top 1.6% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the high-end nature of both the CPU and GPU, though the game's age means many other combinations can also deliver playable frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on which settings preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for this system. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset achieves 241 FPS with a minimum of 205 FPS, which provides a smooth experience on virtually any display. The High preset at 228 FPS is also excellent, and the difference between Medium and High in terms of frame rate is only 13 FPS, suggesting that High is the better choice at this resolution for those prioritizing visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers 180 FPS with a minimum of 153 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. The High preset at 154 FPS is still very playable, but the 26 FPS gap between High and Medium indicates that High settings impose a meaningful additional load. The Ultra preset at 120 FPS is also viable for 1440p, but the jump from High to Ultra costs 34 FPS, which is a significant trade-off for the visual improvements.

For 3840x2160, the Medium preset at 99 FPS with a minimum of 84 FPS is the recommended choice for those seeking both quality and performance headroom. The High preset at 85 FPS is acceptable for 60 Hz displays, while Ultra at 66 FPS is playable but leaves little margin for demanding scenes. Given that the game is from 2016 and may not have modern visual features, the Medium preset at 4K appears to offer the best combination of stability and quality, while High is the best choice for 1440p and 1080p where the frame rate impact is smaller.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system produces its highest frame rates. The Low preset averages 266 FPS, Medium averages 241 FPS with a minimum of 205 and maximum of 278, High averages 228 FPS, and Ultra averages 184 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 82 FPS, showing that settings have a substantial impact even at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease across all presets. Low averages 231 FPS, Medium averages 180 FPS with a range of 153 to 207, High averages 154 FPS, and Ultra averages 120 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread widens to 111 FPS, indicating that the GPU is becoming more stressed as pixel count increases.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are more pronounced. Low averages 129 FPS, Medium averages 99 FPS with a range of 84 to 114, High averages 85 FPS, and Ultra averages 66 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread is 63 FPS, which is narrower than at 1440p, suggesting that all presets are now more uniformly GPU-bound. The Medium preset's minimum of 84 FPS at 4K shows that even the lowest frame rate remains above 60 FPS, providing a consistent experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D achieves a rank of 58 out of 3,696 tested combinations in The Technomancer, placing it in the top 1.6% of all configurations. This high ranking is driven primarily by the GPU's exceptional compute capabilities, as the 4K Ultra result of 66 FPS is within striking distance of the highest-performing combos, and the 1080p results exceed what most systems can achieve.

The CPU's contribution to this ranking is secondary but not negligible. The Ryzen 5 8400F's single-thread performance, reflected in its 3DMark single-thread score of 951 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,943, ensures that the GPU is not starved of draw calls at lower resolutions. The 77th percentile CPU ranking means there are faster processors available, but in this game, the measured frame rates show that the 8400F does not become a bottleneck until frame rates approach 266 FPS at 1080p Low, which is the highest measured result.

The overall ranking of 58th suggests that a small number of combinations — likely those with even faster CPUs or more optimized configurations — can exceed this system's performance in The Technomancer. However, the gap is likely small in real-world terms, as the game's engine appears to cap out around 266 FPS based on the Low preset result. The data indicates this combo provides a top-tier experience in this title, with 4K Ultra remaining above 60 FPS and 1440p High exceeding 150 FPS, making it a strong performer for both high-resolution and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.