The Technomancer

FAQ

Q: What is the combo rank for this CPU and GPU pairing in The Technomancer?

A: This combination of AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 ranks 1648 out of 3696 tested combos in the game, placing it in the upper-middle portion of the database.

Q: How does the Ryzen 9 9900X compare to its closest rival in average benchmark score?

A: The Ryzen 9 9900X scores 57498 on average, which is 0.1% lower than the AMD EPYC 9015 (57555) and 0.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313 (57399). It also trails the Intel Core i9-14900 by 1.1% and the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M by 1.4%.

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile relative to all graphics cards?

A: The RTX 5060 sits at the 72nd percentile among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 26331 is just 0.3% below the AMD Radeon 860M (26401) and 0.3% below the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (26421), while it leads the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT by 1.2%.

Q: What are the measured FPS results at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with Medium settings, the combo delivers an average of 138 FPS, with a minimum of 117 FPS and a maximum of 159 FPS.

Q: Does the 4K High preset hit playable frame rates?

A: At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 42. This is below the 60 FPS threshold typically considered smooth, but it is still above 30 FPS for playable performance.

Q: How much faster is the CPU at 1080p Low compared to 4K Ultra?

A: The 1080p Low preset achieves 180 FPS average, while 4K Ultra drops to 33 FPS average. This represents the largest performance gap in the measured data, showing an 82% reduction in frame rate.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB206 chip manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 21,900 million transistors into a 181 mm² die. The GPU operates with a base clock of 2280 MHz and a boost clock of 2497 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz for 28 Gbps effective speed.

Memory capacity is 8 GB of GDDR7 across a 128-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a critical constraint in The Technomancer, particularly at higher resolutions. The measured FPS data reveals a pattern consistent with VRAM pressure: at 4K Ultra, the average drops to 33 FPS, while at 4K Low, it reaches 65 FPS. The 8 GB frame buffer appears sufficient for 1080p and 1440p across all settings, but the 4K results suggest the card is working near its memory limits.

The GPU's compute capabilities include 3840 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. Its pixel rate is 119.9 GPixel/s and texture rate is 299.6 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput reaches 19.18 TFLOPS, with FP16 at the same 19.18 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio). With 30 RT cores and 120 tensor cores, the card supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

The RTX 5060 draws 145 W TDP and requires a 300 W suggested PSU, connecting via a single 8-pin power connector. It uses a PCIe 5.0 x8 bus interface. The card's dual-slot design measures 241 mm in length, 111 mm in height, and 40 mm in width. Display outputs include one HDMI 2.1b and three DisplayPort 2.1b connections.

Benchmark results show the GPU achieving a PassMark G3D score of 20891 and a PassMark GPU Compute score of 10899. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 3628. Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan scores are 112787 and 113321 respectively. The 72nd percentile ranking among all GPUs places it as a mid-to-upper tier card, which aligns with the measured performance in The Technomancer where it handles 1080p and 1440p well but struggles at 4K Ultra.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 9 9900X and RTX 5060 achieves a rank of 1648 out of 3696 tested combinations in The Technomancer. This places it in the 45th percentile of all tested combos, meaning roughly 55% of the tested systems perform better in this specific game.

This ranking is noteworthy because the CPU itself sits at the 92nd percentile among all processors, while the GPU sits at the 72nd percentile. The combo's lower relative rank suggests that The Technomancer is more GPU-bound in this configuration. The CPU's high benchmark scores — including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 32172 and a Geekbench multicore score of 22174 — do not translate into top-tier gaming performance when paired with a mid-range GPU.

The nearest rival CPUs in average benchmark score include the AMD EPYC 9015 (57555, 0.1% ahead), AMD EPYC 7313 (57399, 0.2% behind), Intel Core i9-14900 (58115, 1.1% ahead), and Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M (58323, 1.4% ahead). These processors all cluster within 1.4% of the Ryzen 9 9900X's 57498 average score, indicating that the CPU's raw compute performance is competitive with these server and high-end desktop parts.

The GPU's nearest rivals in average score are the AMD Radeon 860M (26401, 0.3% ahead), NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (26421, 0.3% ahead), AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (26553, 0.8% ahead), and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT (26011, 1.2% behind). The RTX 5060's 26331 average score places it in a tight cluster with these GPUs, all within 1.2% of each other.

The data indicates that this combo's rank of 1648 reflects a balanced pairing where neither component dramatically bottlenecks the other, but the GPU's mid-range positioning limits the overall gaming performance despite the CPU's strong compute showing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce an average of 180 FPS. Medium settings drop to 138 FPS average, with a minimum of 117 FPS and maximum of 159 FPS. High settings average 118 FPS. Ultra settings average 92 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 49% reduction in frame rate, indicating that the GPU has headroom at this resolution even with maxed-out settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance remains strong. Low settings average 118 FPS. Medium settings average 90 FPS, with a minimum of 77 FPS and maximum of 104 FPS. High settings average 77 FPS. Ultra settings average exactly 60 FPS. The 1440p results show a smooth progression from Low to Ultra, with each settings tier costing roughly 15-20% performance.

At 3840x2160, the picture changes significantly. Low settings average 65 FPS. Medium settings average 50 FPS, with a minimum of 42 FPS and maximum of 57 FPS. High settings average 42 FPS. Ultra settings average 33 FPS. The 4K results show a much steeper drop-off, with Ultra producing less than half the frame rate of Low.

The minimum FPS data points are telling. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 117 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 77 FPS, which is 86% of the average. At 4K Medium, the minimum is 42 FPS, which is 84% of the average. This consistency suggests that frame pacing remains stable across resolutions, with no sudden stutters or hitches.

The maximum FPS values show similar consistency. At 1080p Medium, the maximum is 159 FPS (15% above average). At 1440p Medium, the maximum is 104 FPS (16% above average). At 4K Medium, the maximum is 57 FPS (14% above average). This tight variance indicates a well-behaved frame delivery profile.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with a TDP of 120 W. The CPU uses the AMD Socket AM5 platform and supports DDR5 memory with dual-channel configuration, providing 89.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 cache per core, and 64 MB of L3 cache. The processor is manufactured on a 4 nm process at TSMC, with 16,630 million transistors across a die size of 2x 70.6 mm². It supports ECC memory and includes integrated Radeon Graphics. PCIe Gen 5 with 24 lanes is available from the CPU.

The 9900X's benchmark results are impressive. Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 32172, while single-core scores 2253. Geekbench multicore hits 22174 with single-core at 3010. In 3DMark, the processor scores 13929 at max threads, 12552 at 16 threads, 9114 at 8 threads, 4886 at 4 threads, and 2519 at 2 threads. Single-thread 3DMark score is 1286.

PassMark results show strong multi-threaded performance with a multithread score of 54643 and single-thread score of 4672. The processor excels in integer math (181056), floating-point math (120083), and extended instructions (55243). Data compression scores 683579, while data encryption reaches 33421. Random string sorting hits 72013, and physics processing scores 3381. Prime number finding is a relative weakness at 436.

The CPU's 92nd percentile ranking among all processors confirms its high-end positioning. In The Technomancer, the 9900X's capabilities are more than sufficient for the game's demands. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 180 FPS, which suggests the CPU can feed frames well beyond typical display refresh rates. However, the CPU's performance does not appear to be the limiting factor at any resolution, as the GPU scales down consistently when resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate.

For 1080p, the Medium preset provides the best balance. At 138 FPS average with a 117 FPS minimum, it delivers smooth gameplay well above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset at 118 FPS is also excellent, but Medium offers a 17% performance boost with presumably minimal visual difference. Ultra at 92 FPS is still playable but represents a 33% drop from Medium, which may not justify the visual gains.

At 1440p, the High preset is the recommended choice. At 77 FPS average, it offers a solid experience for most players. Medium at 90 FPS provides additional headroom if desired, while Ultra at exactly 60 FPS is the minimum for smooth gameplay. The 60 FPS average at Ultra is borderline, and the Medium preset at 90 FPS offers a more comfortable margin. For players with high refresh rate monitors, Low at 118 FPS is the only preset that fully utilizes 120 Hz displays.

At 4K, the Low preset is the only option that consistently delivers playable performance. At 65 FPS average, it provides a smooth experience. Medium at 50 FPS is acceptable for less demanding players, but the 42 FPS minimum may cause noticeable stutter in busy scenes. High at 42 FPS and Ultra at 33 FPS are below the threshold for comfortable gameplay, making them unsuitable for most players.

The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming with medium to high settings. At 4K, players should stick with Low settings to maintain playable frame rates. The Medium preset across all resolutions shows the most consistent frame delivery with stable minimum and maximum values, making it the safest choice for a smooth experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about the bottleneck characteristics of this combo.

At Low settings, the progression from 1080p to 1440p shows a 35% reduction from 180 FPS to 118 FPS. Moving from 1440p to 4K Low shows a 45% reduction from 118 FPS to 65 FPS. The total drop from 1080p Low to 4K Low is 64%.

At Medium settings, the scaling is similar. From 1080p (138 FPS) to 1440p (90 FPS), the drop is 35%. From 1440p to 4K (50 FPS), the drop is 44%. The total reduction is 64%, identical to Low settings.

At High settings, the drop from 1080p (118 FPS) to 1440p (77 FPS) is 35%. From 1440p to 4K (42 FPS), the drop is 45%. The total reduction is again 64%.

At Ultra settings, the pattern continues. From 1080p (92 FPS) to 1440p (60 FPS), the drop is 35%. From 1440p to 4K (33 FPS), the drop is 45%. The total reduction is 64%.

The consistency of these scaling ratios across all settings presets is striking. A 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 45% drop from 1440p to 4K, regardless of quality settings, indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p and by 125% from 1440p to 4K, but the FPS drops are less than proportional, suggesting some efficiency in the GPU's scaling.

However, the fact that the scaling is identical across all settings presets is unusual. If the CPU were a bottleneck at low settings and high resolutions, the scaling would be less steep at 4K Low compared to 4K Ultra. The uniform scaling suggests that the GPU is consistently the limiting factor, even at 1080p Low where 180 FPS is achieved. The 8 GB VRAM capacity may also contribute to the scaling pattern, as the game likely requires more memory at higher resolutions regardless of quality settings.

The data implies that this combo is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with the GPU being the primary constraint at 4K. The CPU's substantial compute headroom — evidenced by its 92nd percentile ranking — is not fully utilized in this game, as the GPU reaches its limits first. Players seeking higher 4K performance would need a more powerful GPU, while the CPU has ample capacity for future upgrades.