The Technomancer

# The Technomancer with AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces a benchmark profile that is defined by extreme headroom at lower resolutions and a predictable transition to GPU-bound territory as pixel count rises. Across all twelve measured configurations—three resolutions and four quality presets—the combo delivers playable frame rates everywhere, but the scaling pattern reveals where each component's contribution peaks. The data set shows a system ranked 15th out of 2,825 tested combinations in this title, placing it in the top 0.5% of all recorded configurations. This is a pairing where the CPU's 3D V-Cache architecture and the GPU's massive memory subsystem combine to eliminate most conceivable bottlenecks, though the game's age and engine characteristics still impose limits at 4K Ultra.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K exposes a clear shift in workload distribution. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces 319 FPS average, which is the highest recorded figure in the entire data set. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset drops the average to 235 FPS—a 26.3% reduction. At 3840x2160 Low, the average falls further to 129 FPS, representing a 45.1% decrease from the 1440p figure. This steep drop-off at 4K indicates that the RTX 5090 D begins to encounter pixel-throughput limits even at minimal settings, where the CPU would normally be the primary constraint.

When examining the High preset, the scaling follows a similar but slightly shallower curve. The 1080p result of 236 FPS gives way to 154 FPS at 1440p—a 34.7% decline—and then 85 FPS at 4K, a 44.8% drop from 1440p. The percentile reductions from 1080p to 4K are consistent across presets: Low loses 59.6% of its 1080p performance, High loses 64.0%, Medium loses 64.1%, and Ultra loses 64.1%. This uniformity suggests that resolution scaling is primarily a function of pixel count rather than settings complexity, which is typical for a game from this era with relatively simple shading workloads.

The Medium preset provides the only complete min/max data in the set, offering insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the range spans from 235 FPS minimum to 317 FPS maximum, with an average of 276 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the range tightens to 153–207 FPS with a 180 FPS average. At 4K Medium, the range narrows further to 84–114 FPS with a 99 FPS average. The shrinking spread at higher resolutions indicates that frame pacing becomes more stable when the GPU is more uniformly loaded, whereas at 1080p, the CPU can cause more variance as it occasionally becomes the limiting factor.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D's 8 cores and 16 threads are sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 D well beyond 200 FPS in most presets, but the GPU still has headroom that the CPU cannot fully exploit. At 4K, the situation inverts: the GPU's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth become the dominant factors, and the CPU's role diminishes. The inflection point appears to be around 1440p, where both components share the workload more evenly.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in The Technomancer?

A: The highest recorded average is 319 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This represents the absolute ceiling for this pairing in the measured data, with the CPU's high single-thread performance (2,080 in Cinebench R23 single-core) enabling frame rates that far exceed typical display refresh rates.

Q: How does the combo's rank in this game compare to its overall hardware percentiles?

A: The combo ranks 15th out of 2,825 tested combinations in The Technomancer, which places it in the top 0.53%. The CPU sits at the 87th percentile among all CPUs in general benchmarks, while the GPU sits at the 92nd percentile among all GPUs. The game-specific rank is therefore slightly lower than the raw hardware percentiles might suggest, indicating that this title does not fully utilize the extremes of either component.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset delivers 129 FPS average, while the Ultra preset delivers 66 FPS average. This represents a 48.8% performance reduction when moving from Low to Ultra. The Ultra preset also shows no recorded minimum or maximum values, suggesting the frame pacing is either highly consistent or the measurement methodology did not capture variance.

Q: Does the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB VRAM provide any measurable benefit in this game?

A: The measured data does not include any VRAM utilization metrics, so a direct benefit cannot be quantified. However, the GPU's 1.79 TB/s memory bandwidth and 32 GB GDDR7 capacity far exceed the requirements of a 2016 Action RPG, meaning memory capacity is unlikely to ever be a limiting factor in this title.

Q: How does the Medium preset's frame consistency compare across resolutions?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with complete min/max data. At 1080p, the spread between minimum (235 FPS) and maximum (317 FPS) is 82 FPS. At 1440p, the spread is 54 FPS (153–207). At 4K, the spread is 30 FPS (84–114). The narrowing range at higher resolutions indicates more consistent frame delivery when the GPU is more heavily loaded.

Q: What is the combo's rank relative to the total number of tested configurations?

A: The combo achieves rank 15 out of 2,825 tested combinations, meaning it outperforms 2,810 other configurations. This places it in the 99.5th percentile of all recorded combos in this game, despite the game's age and the hardware's modern architecture.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 15th out of 2,825 configurations places it in the top tier of all tested hardware pairings for The Technomancer. This rank is notable because the game launched in 2016, and the hardware combination represents technology released eight and nine years later (the CPU in November 2024, the GPU in January 2025). The high rank indicates that the game's engine, while older, still responds well to modern CPU and GPU architectures.

The CPU's nearest rivals in general benchmarks provide context for its contribution. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS scores 39,603 in average benchmark score, a delta of 0.4% below the 9800X3D's 39,768. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 scores 40,048, which is 0.7% higher. These rivals are all mobile or lower-tier desktop parts, yet the performance differences are within 1%, suggesting that the 9800X3D's advantage in this game comes more from its cache architecture than raw compute throughput. The 96 MB of shared L3 cache is the defining feature, and in a game with relatively simple AI and physics, this cache likely helps maintain high minimum frame rates rather than boosting peak averages.

The GPU's nearest rivals show a similar pattern. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT scores 76,904 on average, a 1.1% delta below the 5090 D's 77,712. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.6% higher. These are laptop-class GPUs, and the fact that the desktop RTX 5090 D is within 2% of them in the aggregate benchmark score is unusual. However, the in-game results tell a different story: the 5090 D's 32 GB VRAM and 512-bit memory bus provide substantial advantages in resolution scaling that the aggregate benchmark may not capture.

At 1080p, the combo's rank of 15 suggests that the CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads, running at 4.70 GHz base and 5.20 GHz boost, are more than sufficient for this title. The game's threading model, typical of 2016-era engines, likely uses fewer than 8 threads effectively, meaning the 9800X3D's high single-core performance (1,212 in 3DMark single-thread) is the primary CPU asset. At 4K, the rank is likely maintained by the GPU's raw pixel throughput, which the 4K Low result of 129 FPS confirms is substantial.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers the following average frame rates: Low produces 319 FPS, High produces 236 FPS, Medium produces 276 FPS, and Ultra produces 184 FPS. The Medium preset includes a minimum of 235 FPS and a maximum of 317 FPS, giving a spread of 82 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 42.3% performance drop (319 to 184 FPS), which is the smallest relative drop across all resolutions, confirming that at 1080p the CPU is the primary limiter.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low at 235 FPS, High at 154 FPS, Medium at 180 FPS, and Ultra at 120 FPS. The Medium preset's range spans 153 to 207 FPS, a spread of 54 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra drop is 48.9% (235 to 120 FPS). The 1440p results show the combo still delivering well above 120 FPS in every preset, making this resolution the sweet spot for high-refresh-rate displays.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low at 129 FPS, High at 85 FPS, Medium at 99 FPS, and Ultra at 66 FPS. The Medium preset's range spans 84 to 114 FPS, a spread of 30 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra drop is 48.8% (129 to 66 FPS). The 4K results show the combo providing playable frame rates even at Ultra, though the 66 FPS average indicates the GPU is now the clear bottleneck.

Comparing the same preset across resolutions, the Low preset loses 59.6% of its performance from 1080p to 4K (319 to 129 FPS). The High preset loses 64.0% (236 to 85 FPS). The Medium preset loses 64.1% (276 to 99 FPS). The Ultra preset loses 64.1% (184 to 66 FPS). The consistency of these percentages—particularly between Medium and Ultra—suggests that the game's rendering pipeline scales linearly with pixel count, and the settings do not introduce non-linear GPU workload increases.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge, built on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It operates at a base clock of 4.70 GHz and boosts to 5.20 GHz, with a 120 W TDP. The defining feature is the 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is significantly larger than typical desktop processors and is designed to reduce memory latency in cache-sensitive workloads.

In The Technomancer, the CPU's role is most apparent at 1080p, where frame rates exceed 300 FPS at Low settings. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 10,081 and max-thread score of 10,067 indicate that the processor can sustain high multi-threaded throughput, but the game's 2016-era engine likely does not scale to 16 threads. The single-thread 3DMark score of 1,212 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,080 are more relevant, as they represent the CPU's ability to handle the game's primary game logic and draw call submission.

The CPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks—the Ryzen 7 PRO 8840HS, Ryzen AI 9 365, and Ryzen AI 7 450—all have similar average scores within 0.8% of the 9800X3D. However, the 9800X3D's 96 MB L3 cache gives it an advantage in games that exhibit cache locality, which The Technomancer likely does given its action-RPG nature with many entities and scripted events. The CPU's memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s over dual-channel DDR5 is not exceptional, but the cache hierarchy compensates by reducing the frequency of memory accesses.

The 3DMark 2-thread score of 2,394 and 4-thread score of 4,669 indicate that the CPU's performance scales well with thread count up to 8 threads (3DMark 8-thread score of 8,252), but the incremental gain from 8 to 16 threads is minimal (8,252 to 10,067). This suggests that the game benefits most from the first 8 threads, and the additional 8 threads provide only marginal gains. For a game from 2016, this is expected, and the 9800X3D's high single-thread performance ensures that the game's main thread is never a bottleneck.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of which preset offers the best experience at each resolution. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 236 FPS average, which is more than sufficient for any display refresh rate. The Ultra preset at 184 FPS still provides excellent smoothness, but the 22.0% performance drop from High to Ultra (236 to 184 FPS) is unlikely to be justified by visual improvements in a game of this era. The Medium preset at 276 FPS offers the best combination of visual quality and frame rate headroom, particularly for displays with refresh rates above 240 Hz.

At 1440p, the High preset's 154 FPS average is ideal for 144 Hz displays, while the Ultra preset's 120 FPS average is still playable but approaches the threshold where frame pacing could become noticeable on high-refresh-rate panels. The Medium preset at 180 FPS provides substantial headroom for 165 Hz or 180 Hz displays. For most users, High at 1440p is the recommended balance, as it maintains a 120 FPS minimum in the Medium data (which is the only min/max available) and likely similar consistency.

At 4K, the High preset's 85 FPS average is the recommended choice for smooth gameplay, as it sits above the 60 FPS threshold for standard displays and approaches the 90 FPS mark that many consider ideal for action games. The Ultra preset's 66 FPS average is just above 60 FPS, but the lack of min/max data for this preset means frame dips could push it below 60 FPS in demanding scenes. The Medium preset at 99 FPS offers a better safety margin, though the visual difference between Medium and High in a 2016 title is likely minimal.

The Medium preset consistently shows the most stable frame delivery, as evidenced by the complete min/max data across all three resolutions. The spread of 82 FPS at 1080p, 54 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K indicates that Medium provides predictable performance. For users who prioritize frame consistency over maximum visual fidelity, Medium is the safest choice. For those who want the best visual quality while maintaining high frame rates, High at 1440p or 4K is the optimal selection based on the measured averages.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on a 5 nm process by TSMC, with 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. It operates at a base clock of 2017 MHz and boosts to 2407 MHz, with a 575 W TDP. The memory subsystem is the standout feature: 32 GB of GDDR7 on a 512-bit bus, delivering 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, with a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s.

In The Technomancer, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution increases. At 1080p, the GPU is underutilized, as evidenced by the CPU-bound frame rates above 300 FPS. At 1440p, the GPU begins to assert itself, with the Low preset dropping to 235 FPS. At 4K, the GPU is the clear bottleneck, with even the Low preset limited to 129 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 66 FPS shows the GPU's raw pixel throughput is challenged by the game's shader complexity at maximum settings.

The GPU's nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks are all mobile parts (RX 6650M XT, RX 6850M XT) or older server accelerators (Tesla P100 variants), with deltas ranging from -2.4% to +1.1%. This is surprising given the 5090 D's specifications, but it reflects the aggregate benchmark's weighting, which may not emphasize the GPU's strengths in memory bandwidth and ray tracing. In this game, the 5090 D's 1.79 TB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and memory allocation are never bottlenecks, even at 4K Ultra with the game's full texture detail.

The GPU's 32 GB VRAM is excessive for a 2016 title, which likely uses less than 4 GB even at 4K. However, the memory capacity is not the limiting factor; rather, the GPU's compute throughput and rasterization rate determine the 4K results. The passmark G3D score of 44,065 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326 indicate the GPU's overall capability, but the game's performance is more directly tied to the pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s. The 4K Medium result of 99 FPS aligns with expectations for a GPU with this pixel throughput, suggesting the game's pixel shaders are the primary workload at higher resolutions.