The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload for older and mid-range hardware. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti across a matrix of resolutions and settings. The data provided offers a clear picture of this combo's capabilities, limitations, and the optimal way to configure the game for a playable experience.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy of performance across the four available settings presets: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. The primary goal is to identify the preset that provides the best balance between visual fidelity and a stable frame rate, avoiding both the unplayable low end and the unnecessarily restrictive high end.

At 1920x1080, the most common resolution, the data shows a consistent stepwise progression. The Ultra preset yields an average of 56 FPS, which is playable but leaves little headroom for demanding scenes. High settings produce an average of 72 FPS, which is a substantial improvement and falls comfortably within the range of smooth gameplay. Medium settings push the average to 84 FPS, and Low settings reach 109 FPS. The jump from Ultra to High is particularly notable, representing a 16 FPS gain (from 56 to 72), which is a significant margin for stability. The Medium preset offers another 12 FPS over High, but the visual difference between High and Medium is often more noticeable than between Ultra and High. Therefore, the High preset at 1080p is the recommended starting point, as it provides a strong 72 FPS average without sacrificing the game's intended visual quality as aggressively as Medium.

For 2560x1440, the situation becomes more constrained. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 37 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth, responsive gameplay. High settings provide a more respectable 47 FPS, but this is still not ideal for action-oriented combat. The Medium preset, at 55 FPS, emerges as the most balanced option at this resolution. It offers a playable frame rate that is 8 FPS higher than High and 18 FPS higher than Ultra. The Low preset hits 72 FPS, but at 1440p, the visual compromises of Low are generally more apparent. Based on the data, the Medium preset is the recommended choice for 1440p, as it is the only preset that consistently delivers a frame rate above 50 FPS while maintaining a moderate level of detail.

At 4K (3840x2160), the GTX 1660 Ti is clearly overburdened. The best result comes from the Low preset, which averages 39 FPS. This is technically playable but will feel sluggish. The Medium preset averages 30 FPS, with a minimum of 26 FPS and a maximum of 35 FPS, indicating inconsistent performance. High and Ultra are effectively unplayable, with averages of 26 FPS and 20 FPS respectively. Given these numbers, the Low preset is the only viable option for 4K, but even that is a compromise. The data strongly suggests that 4K is not a target resolution for this hardware combination in this title.

The overall recommendation is to prioritize the High preset at 1080p for the definitive experience. If a higher resolution is desired, Medium at 1440p is acceptable. For 4K, users should expect to use the Low preset and accept a lower frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database for The Technomancer, this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti holds a rank of 3188 out of 3696 tested combos. This places it in the lower 14th percentile of all systems tested for this game, indicating that it is a below-average performer in the grand scheme of the database's results. This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU being the primary bottleneck, as the GTX 1660 Ti is an older, entry-level graphics card.

This low rank is expected given the GPU's standing in the broader benchmark pool. The GTX 1660 Ti has a percentile of 41 versus all GPUs, meaning it performs better than only 41% of all graphics cards tested in the database. Its average benchmark score is 7723. When looking at its nearest rivals, the data shows a very tight cluster of performance. The AMD Radeon 540 is a mere 0.7% faster, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 is 1.9% faster, and the Intel Arc A310 is 2.3% faster. The AMD Radeon R7 250 is actually 2.2% slower. This indicates that the GTX 1660 Ti is at the very bottom of the performance tier for modern GPUs, competing with entry-level and older workstation parts.

The CPU, in contrast, is a much stronger component. The Core i5-14400F has a percentile of 83 versus all CPUs, placing it in the top 17% of all processors. Its average benchmark score is 32279, with its nearest rivals—the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U, Intel Core i9-11900, AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS, and Intel Core i7-12800H—all scoring within 0.5% of the i5. This is a powerful mid-range CPU that would not be the limiting factor in most gaming scenarios. The massive disparity in relative performance between the CPU and GPU confirms that the GTX 1660 Ti is the anchor dragging the combo down to its 3188 rank in The Technomancer.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is the decisive component in this system's performance in The Technomancer. Its specifications from the FACT PACK paint a clear picture of a GPU that is several generations old and designed for entry-level 1080p gaming. The GPU features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. This is a modest amount of memory and bandwidth by modern standards, and it is likely a limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The GPU's clocks are set at a base of 1500 MHz and a boost of 1770 MHz. With 1536 shading units, it delivers a pixel rate of 84.96 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 169.9 GTexel/s. The FP32 performance is 5.437 TFLOPS. These are all modest figures that align with its performance percentile of 41. The 6 GB VRAM is particularly relevant for a game like The Technomancer. At 1080p, the data shows playable frame rates, suggesting that 6 GB is sufficient for the game's textures at that resolution. However, at 1440p and 4K, the frame rates drop precipitously, which is often an indicator that the GPU is running out of memory or that the memory bandwidth is insufficient to feed the rendering pipeline at higher pixel counts.

The measured FPS data corroborates the GPU's limitations. The average FPS at 1080p High is 72, which is a solid result for this card. However, scaling up to 1440p High drops the average to 47, and at 4K High it falls to 26. This steep decline is a classic sign of a GPU that is bandwidth-limited. The GPU is forced to work much harder to fill the increased number of pixels, and its relatively narrow 192-bit memory bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth become the bottleneck. The GPU's end-of-life production status and its position relative to rivals like the AMD Radeon 540 and Intel Arc A310 further confirm its role as the system's primary performance constraint in this benchmark.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across all tested configurations. The results are presented as average FPS, with some entries also including minimum and maximum FPS for the Medium preset.

At 1920x1080, the performance is as follows:

• Low: 109 FPS average
• Medium: 84 FPS average, with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 97 FPS
• High: 72 FPS average
• Ultra: 56 FPS average

This is the most playable resolution. The 109 FPS at Low is excellent, and even the Ultra preset at 56 FPS is above the minimum for playability. The Medium preset's minimum of 71 FPS is reassuring, indicating that even in the most demanding moments, the frame rate does not dip below a smooth threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops significantly:

• Low: 72 FPS average
• Medium: 55 FPS average, with a minimum of 47 FPS and a maximum of 63 FPS
• High: 47 FPS average
• Ultra: 37 FPS average

Here, the Ultra preset falls to 37 FPS, which is not suitable for a smooth experience. The High preset at 47 FPS is borderline. The Medium preset at 55 FPS, with a minimum of 47 FPS, is the most viable option at this resolution. The Low preset's 72 FPS is playable, but the visual quality is significantly reduced.

At 3840x2160, the data shows the GPU is overwhelmed:

• Low: 39 FPS average
• Medium: 30 FPS average, with a minimum of 26 FPS and a maximum of 35 FPS
• High: 26 FPS average
• Ultra: 20 FPS average

All presets at 4K deliver average frame rates below 40 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 26 FPS highlights the severe stuttering and inconsistency that would be present. This resolution is not recommended for this hardware.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: the GTX 1660 Ti is capable of handling the game at 1080p with most settings, is stretched at 1440p, and is not capable at 4K. The FPS drop between each setting tier is also consistent, with the largest percentage drops occurring when moving from Low to Medium and from High to Ultra.

Resolution Scaling

The performance degradation from 1080p to 4K is sharp and informative. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 72 at 1080p, to 47 at 1440p, and finally to 26 at 4K. This represents a 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 45% drop from 1440p to 4K. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 64%.

This scaling profile is a textbook example of a GPU-limited scenario. The CPU, Intel Core i5-14400F, is far more powerful than the GPU. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21645 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2058, place it in the top tier of processors. It has 10 cores and 16 threads, with a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. This processing power is more than sufficient to handle the game's logic and physics at any of these resolutions.

The frame rate is instead dictated by the GPU's ability to render pixels. As the resolution increases, the number of pixels the GTX 1660 Ti must process grows exponentially. The GPU's fillrate and memory bandwidth are fixed, so it cannot keep up with the increased demand. This is why the FPS drops so dramatically with each resolution increase. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see the FPS remain relatively stable as resolution increases, because the CPU's workload is largely independent of resolution. Instead, we see a steep decline, confirming that the GPU is the sole limiting factor. The 6 GB VRAM is also likely a contributor, as 4K textures and the higher resolution framebuffer can easily exceed this capacity, forcing the system to use slower system memory.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for a smooth experience?

A: Based on the measured data, the 1920x1080 resolution with the High preset is the strongest choice. It delivers a 72 FPS average, which is well within the range for smooth gameplay. This is significantly better than the 56 FPS average at Ultra, and it maintains a higher level of visual detail than the Medium or Low presets.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in The Technomancer?

A: No. The data shows that even at the Low preset, the 4K resolution only yields a 39 FPS average. The Medium, High, and Ultra presets all fall below 31 FPS, which is not a playable experience. The GTX 1660 Ti does not have the memory bandwidth or fillrate to handle the demands of 4K in this game.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 Ti compare to its closest rivals?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has an average benchmark score of 7723. It performs nearly identically to its nearest rivals, with the AMD Radeon 540 being 0.7% faster, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 being 1.9% faster, and the Intel Arc A310 being 2.3% faster. This places it in the entry-level tier of GPUs.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-14400F a bottleneck for the GTX 1660 Ti in this game?

A: No. The CPU is significantly more powerful than the GPU. With a percentile of 83 versus all CPUs, it is a high-performing component. The FPS data shows a clear GPU limitation, as performance scales strongly with resolution, which is not characteristic of a CPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the difference in average FPS between the Medium and High presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 55 FPS, while the High preset averages 47 FPS. This is a difference of 8 FPS, which is a meaningful margin. The Medium preset also shows a higher minimum FPS of 47, compared to the High preset's average of 47, suggesting more consistent performance.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for any configuration?

A: The lowest average FPS is 20, which is recorded at the 3840x2160 resolution with the Ultra settings preset. This configuration is effectively unplayable, as the frame rate is far too low for responsive gameplay.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F plays a supportive, non-limiting role in this benchmark. Its specifications are robust for a mid-range desktop processor. It features 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. The CPU has a 20 MB shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 and DDR5 memory. Its benchmark scores are consistently strong, such as a Passmark multithread score of 25470 and a single-thread score of 3701. These numbers place it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs, far above the GPU's 41st percentile.

In the context of The Technomancer, the CPU's high performance ensures that it will not be the factor limiting frame rates. The data from the measured FPS shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. This is a definitive sign of a GPU bottleneck. A CPU bottleneck would manifest as a plateau in FPS across different resolutions, because the CPU's workload (game logic, AI, physics) is the same regardless of the output resolution. Since the FPS drops by 64% from 1080p to 4K at High settings, the rendering pipeline is clearly saturated by the GPU's inability to process the increasing pixel load.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database are the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U, Intel Core i9-11900, AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS, and Intel Core i7-12800H, all of which have average scores within 0.5% of the i5-14400F. This confirms that the CPU is operating at a high level, comparable to powerful laptop and desktop chips from recent generations. In this specific game, the i5-14400F is essentially providing all the headroom needed, but the GTX 1660 Ti cannot utilize it. The data suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield significant performance gains, while the CPU would not need to be replaced for this title.