The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, places distinct demands on both processor and graphics card, and the pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 produces a dataset that clearly illustrates the bottleneck dynamics at play. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a system where the legacy game engine scales in predictable ways, and the 8 GB VRAM and 8-core CPU chart a specific course for performance.

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge, and built on a 4 nm TSMC process node. It operates with a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.20 GHz. The CPU integrates 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a substantial pool that can be leveraged by games to keep frequently accessed data on-die, reducing latency. Its scores in synthetic benchmarks place it in the 87th percentile against all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 39768 sits very close to several of its nearest rivals. Specifically, it is only 0.4% faster than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS, 0.7% faster than the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450, and 0.8% slower than the AMD Ryzen 7 7700. The margin to the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 is also narrow, at -0.7%.

In The Technomancer, a game with a 2016 release date, the CPU's role is often to manage a continuous stream of game logic, AI, and physics, while the GPU is responsible for the bulk of frame rendering. The benchmark results for this combo show that at 1080p with Low settings, the system reaches an average of 130 FPS. This is the highest measured average across all tested configurations, indicating that the CPU is not the limiting factor at that resolution and preset. The CPU's strong single-thread performance, demonstrated by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2080 and Geekbench single-core score of 2964, suggests it can maintain high frame throughput when the GPU has to handle fewer pixels. However, the game's engine may not fully exploit a high-thread-count CPU; the 16 threads are available, but the performance scaling from the 8-core/16-thread design is typical for a title of that era. The CPU's 120W TDP is a moderate power envelope, but power draw is not the focus here. Rather, the data shows that as the resolution and graphical load rise, the CPU's dominance fades, and the GPU becomes the primary contributor to performance, which is a classic sign of a well-balanced combo where neither component is unnecessarily strained in lower resolutions, but the GPU holds back the CPU at higher settings.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is a RDNA 2.0 architecture GPU, built on a 7nm TSMC process, featuring 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus. Its memory bandwidth is 224.0 GB/s, and the card has a boost clock of 2491 MHz and a game clock of 2044 MHz. The GPU is equipped with 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. Its benchmark performance places it in the 63rd percentile against all GPUs, with a Passmark G3D score of 15096 and a Geekbench OpenCL score of 28850. The nearest rivals to the RX 6600 are the NVIDIA Quadro K6000 (0.0% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile (-0.1%), the NVIDIA Tesla K20m (-0.3%), and the NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation (0.4%), showing a very tight cluster of performance.

In The Technomancer, the GPU's 8 GB of VRAM is a key factor. At 4K Ultra, the measured average FPS is 24, and at 4K High, it's 31 FPS. These numbers suggest that the GPU is heavily taxed at that resolution, and the VRAM capacity and bandwidth are likely being stressed. The 224.0 GB/s bandwidth is on the lower side for 4K textures, leading to potential fill-rate limits. At 1440p, the GPU performs much better: High preset averages 56 FPS, Medium 65 FPS, and Low 85 FPS. This demonstrates that the GPU is capable of delivering a fluid experience at lower resolutions, but the 4K results show a steep drop-off. The data indicates that the RX 6600 is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can maintain playable frame rates across all presets, but at 4K, it becomes the primary limiter, unable to push past the 31 FPS average on High. The GPU's 8 GB of VRAM is a potential constraint at 4K with high-quality textures, but the frame rates at 4K Low (47 FPS) and 4K Medium (36 FPS) show that even with reduced settings, the GPU is the bottleneck, not the memory alone.

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

The measured FPS data across resolutions provides a clear picture of the scaling behavior. At 1080p with High settings, the average FPS is 85. Moving to 1440p High, it drops to 56 FPS, a 34.1% decrease. Continuing to 4K High, the average is 31 FPS, a further 44.6% decrease from 1440p. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. When the CPU is the bottleneck, the FPS would be more constant, but here the FPS drops as the resolution increases, indicating the GPU is the limiting component.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more revealing. At 1080p Low, the average is 130 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 85 FPS (a 34.6% drop), and at 4K Low, it's 47 FPS (a 44.7% drop from 1440p). This shows that even at the lowest settings, the GPU is the bottleneck, since the scaling is consistent with the pixel count increase. The 1080p Low result of 130 FPS is also the highest FPS measured in the entire dataset, highlighting that the CPU can push high frame rates when the GPU isn't the constraint. The scaling from 1080p to 4K across all presets is steep, but the percentage drops are similar, indicating that the GPU's memory bandwidth or compute capacity is the primary limiter, not the CPU. The fact that the 1080p Ultra averages 67 FPS, while 1440p Ultra averages 44 FPS and 4K Ultra averages 24 FPS, confirms the GPU is the primary constraint. The CPU's high performance is only fully visible at 1080p Low, where it can output 130 FPS, but as the resolution grows, the GPU's workload grows exponentially, and the frame rate plummets. This dataset shows a classic CPU-beating scenario at lower resolutions, with the GPU taking over the limiter role at higher ones.

SETTINGS RECOMMENDATIONS — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured data provides a clear guide to the best experience for this combo. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves 130 FPS, which is the highest possible, but the Medium preset's 100 FPS (min 85, max 115) is still very fluid. The High preset at 85 FPS is also excellent. The Ultra preset at 67 FPS is the most visually demanding but still playable. For a smooth experience, Medium or High at 1080p is the sweet spot, as they offer high frame rates with acceptable visual quality. The 1080p Medium's minimum of 85 FPS indicates it is stable and won't dip below 60 FPS, making it a solid recommendation.

At 1440p, the High preset averages 56 FPS, which is borderline for a 60 Hz display, but the Medium preset's 65 FPS (min 56, max 75) is a better choice for a smoother experience. The Low preset at 85 FPS is also a strong candidate for high-refresh-rate monitors, though it sacrifices visual fidelity. The Ultra preset at 44 FPS is the least playable at 1440p, and the data does not indicate a minimum FPS for Ultra, but the average is below 45, which may be too low for fast-paced action.

At 4K, the only preset with an average above 30 FPS is Low, which averages 47 FPS. Medium and High average 36 and 31 FPS, respectively, while Ultra averages 24 FPS. None of these are ideal for a fluid gaming experience, but Low is the most playable option if 4K is a requirement. The GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and 224 GB/s bandwidth are likely the reasons for the steep performance drop at 4K. The data suggests that for this combo, the best experience is at 1440p with the Medium preset, which offers a great balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, with a minimum of 56 FPS and an average of 65 FPS. For a high-frame-rate experience, 1080p Low at 130 FPS is the best, but for most players, 1080p High or 1440p Medium will provide the best balance of quality and performance.

HOW THIS COMBO RANKS — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D combined with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 has a combo rank of 2872 out of 3696 tested combos in The Technomancer. This places it in the 22nd percentile of all tested combos, meaning it outperforms about 22% of the possible combinations. Out of 3696, a rank of 2872 indicates that this combo is on the lower end of the performance spectrum for this game. The other combos likely feature more powerful GPUs, as the RX 6600 is only in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, and the CPU is in the 87th percentile of all CPUs. This pairing, while strong in CPU performance, is held back by the GPU's mid-range standing. The data shows that the combo's performance is primarily limited by the GPU, as the CPU is a high-end part. The rank suggests that users with this combo will experience frame rates that are below average for the game, especially at higher resolutions. The combo's performance in 4K is particularly weak, with the Ultra preset only achieving 24 FPS, which is a very low result. This ranking is a useful metric for users to understand where this combo stands relative to other possible combinations, and it indicates that while the CPU is capable, the GPU is the constraining factor in this game.

MEASURED FPS BREAKDOWN — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

Here is the full breakdown of the measured FPS for the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D and AMD Radeon RX 6600 in The Technomancer:

3840x2160 (4K)

• High: average 31 FPS
• Low: average 47 FPS
• Medium: average 36 FPS, minimum 31 FPS, maximum 41 FPS
• Ultra: average 24 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p)

• High: average 56 FPS
• Low: average 85 FPS
• Medium: average 65 FPS, minimum 56 FPS, maximum 75 FPS
• Ultra: average 44 FPS

1920x1080 (1080p)

• High: average 85 FPS
• Low: average 130 FPS
• Medium: average 100 FPS, minimum 85 FPS, maximum 115 FPS
• Ultra: average 67 FPS

The data shows a consistent pattern across all settings: as the resolution increases, the average FPS drops. The Medium preset is the only one with min/max data, and it shows that at 4K, the minimum FPS is 31, which is near the average, indicating stability. At 1440p, the Medium min is 56 FPS, and at 1080p, the min is 85 FPS. The Low preset at 1080p is the only one to exceed 100 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with the lowest FPS at each resolution, and the 4K Ultra is the lowest of all at 24 FPS. The High preset is a middle ground, with 31 FPS at 4K, 56 FPS at 1440p, and 85 FPS at 1080p. This data is useful for setting expectations, showing that 1080p is the most comfortable for this combo, with 1440p becoming playable only on lower presets, and 4K being a struggle even on Low.

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

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with the High preset for this combo?

A: The average FPS is 85 FPS at 1080p with the High preset, according to the measured FPS data.

Q: How does the combo rank in the game compared to other combos?

A: This combo is ranked 2870 out of 3696 combos, placing it in the 22nd percentile of all tested combos.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between the Low and Ultra presets at 4K?

A: At 4K, the Low preset averages 47 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 24 FPS, a difference of 23 FPS.

Q: Which resolution and preset gives the highest average FPS?

A: The highest average FPS is 130 FPS, achieved at 1080p with the Low preset.

Q: What is the minimum FPS on the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The minimum FPS on the Medium preset at 1440p is 56 FPS, with a maximum of 75 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K?

A: The data shows the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, as the FPS drops significantly with each preset increase, while the CPU is capable of higher frame rates at 1080p.