The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting scaling challenge for the Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 pairing. The benchmark data shows a system that is decisively GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but which reveals a more balanced profile as the resolution drops. The measured frame rates indicate that the Radeon RX 9070 is the primary driver of performance in this title, with the Core i5-14400F providing ample headroom to avoid becoming a bottleneck, especially at 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K demonstrates a steep performance curve that is characteristic of a GPU-limited scenario. At 1080p with Ultra settings, the combo produces 110.7 FPS, but this falls to 75.9 FPS at 1440p and further to 42.4 FPS at 4K. This represents a 61.7% drop in frame rate from 1080p to 4K, a significant reduction that points squarely at the graphics card as the limiting factor. The GPU is working progressively harder to fill the increasing pixel count, and the data suggests the CPU is not constraining this process.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. For instance, at High settings, the frame rate drops from 143.1 FPS at 1080p to 94.2 FPS at 1440p, and then to 49.9 FPS at 4K. The incremental cost of each resolution step is substantial, reinforcing that the Radeon RX 9070's rendering capabilities are the ceiling for this configuration. The Core i5-14400F, with its 10 cores and 16 threads, appears to be feeding the GPU efficiently, as the performance degradation is smooth and predictable.

The 4K results are particularly telling. Even at Low settings, the system only manages 80.8 FPS, and at Ultra it dips to 42.4 FPS. This indicates that 4K gaming with this title and preset is a demanding task for the RX 9070. The data suggests that to maintain a smooth experience at 4K, users would need to rely on lower presets or potentially upscaling technologies, as the raw performance headroom is limited. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is where the most significant performance hit occurs, highlighting the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute limitations under extreme load.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy for optimizing the experience. At 4K, the jump from High to Ultra settings costs 7.5 FPS (from 49.9 to 42.4), which is a 15% performance penalty for what may be marginal visual gains. Conversely, dropping from High to Medium at 4K yields a significant 9.7 FPS improvement (from 49.9 to 59.6), a 19.4% increase. The most balanced 4K option appears to be High settings, which offers 49.9 FPS, or Medium at 59.6 FPS if a smoother frame rate is prioritized.

At 1440p, the system has more headroom. Ultra settings deliver 75.9 FPS, which is playable, but High settings at 94.2 FPS provide a much more comfortable margin above 60 FPS. Medium settings push the frame rate to 112.7 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. The data shows that High is the sweet spot for 1440p, offering a strong balance between visual fidelity and performance.

For 1080p, the story is one of abundance. Even at Ultra settings, the system produces 110.7 FPS, which is well above the standard 60 FPS target. High settings push this to 143.1 FPS, and Low settings reach 221.8 FPS. This resolution is clearly CPU-limited in some respects, as the GPU has enough power to render frames much faster than the game's engine can process them. For competitive play, Low or Medium settings would yield the highest frame rates, but for general use, Ultra is perfectly viable. The data suggests that users with 1080p displays can max out the settings without concern.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the undisputed performance driver in this benchmark. Its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a massive 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for feeding the shader units at high resolutions. The GPU's boost clock of 2520 MHz allows it to maintain high throughput, and its 3584 shading units are responsible for the raw pixel processing. The data shows that as resolution increases, the GPU's workload becomes the limiting factor, confirming its central role.

The GPU's performance in The Technomancer is consistent with its general benchmark profile. It sits at the 79th percentile for all GPUs in the database, and its average benchmark score of 34780 places it in a competitive tier. The GPU's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA A2 and Quadro GV100, with a deltaPct of -0.2% and 0.3% respectively. This indicates that the RX 9070 is performing at a level consistent with these professional-grade cards in synthetic tests, and the game data reflects this strong compute capability.

The GPU's memory configuration is particularly relevant for this title. The 16 GB frame buffer is more than sufficient for The Technomancer, even at 4K with Ultra settings. However, the performance drop from 1440p to 4K suggests that the memory bandwidth, while high, is still a constraint at the highest resolution. The GPU's pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s are the theoretical limits that the benchmark results are approaching at 4K Ultra.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 221.8 FPS, while Medium yields 167.5 FPS, High drops to 143.1 FPS, and Ultra rounds out the chart at 110.7 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 111.1 FPS, which represents a 50% reduction in performance, but even the lowest result is far above the threshold for smooth gameplay.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain strong. Low settings average 141.6 FPS, Medium reaches 112.7 FPS, High achieves 94.2 FPS, and Ultra settles at 75.9 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution is a 65.7 FPS difference, showing that the GPU is beginning to feel the pressure of the increased pixel count. The 1440p Ultra result is just above the 60 FPS target, while High and Medium provide substantial headroom.

At 3840x2160, the performance curve flattens considerably. Low settings average 80.8 FPS, which is the only 4K result above 60 FPS. Medium settings drop to 59.6 FPS, High falls to 49.9 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 42.4 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 38.4 FPS, a significant range that shows the GPU's limits are being reached. The step from 1440p to 4K at Ultra settings represents a 33.5 FPS loss, the largest single-resolution drop in the data set.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination ranks 541st out of 1656 tested combos in The Technomancer. This places it in the 67th percentile of all tested configurations, indicating that while it is a strong performer, there are many other combinations that achieve higher frame rates in this specific game. The ranking is a composite of the CPU and GPU's combined performance, and the data suggests that the GPU is the primary factor pushing this combo up the list.

The CPU component of this ranking is solid. The Core i5-14400F sits at the 88th percentile for all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32508. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-12800H, has an almost identical score of 32513 with a deltaPct of 0%, showing that the i5-14400F is at parity with that mobile chip. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 is just 0.2% behind, and the AMD Ryzen 7 250 is 0.2% ahead, placing the CPU in a tight performance cluster.

The GPU's contribution is equally important. The Radeon RX 9070 is at the 79th percentile for GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 34780. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA A2, is 0.2% behind, while the Quadro GV100 is 0.3% ahead. The combination of a top-quartile CPU and a top-quartile GPU results in a ranking that is respectable but not elite. The 541st position out of 1656 suggests that while this pair handles The Technomancer well, other combinations with more powerful GPUs or CPUs will naturally perform better.