The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting case study for modern hardware. The combination of Intel’s Core i5-14600K and AMD’s Radeon RX 7600 XT produces a dataset that reveals a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and settings. The measured frames per second (FPS) values show a system that is capable of high refresh rate gaming at 1080p, but one that becomes increasingly constrained as resolution demands on the GPU escalate. This analysis walks through the measured data, examining how the CPU and GPU each contribute to the final frame rates, how the combo ranks among all tested configurations, and what the numbers suggest for optimal in-game settings.

Resolution Scaling

The most defining characteristic of this hardware pairing in The Technomancer is how sharply performance falls as resolution increases. At the High settings preset, the average frame rate moves from 98 FPS at 1920x1080 down to 64 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 35 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a decline of roughly 35% from 1080p to 1440p, and another 45% from 1440p to 4K. The cumulative drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings is a substantial 64% reduction in average FPS. This steep scaling curve is a primary indicator that the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT is the limiting component at higher resolutions. The processor, with its 14 cores and 20 threads, is likely not the bottleneck at 4K, as the workload is simply too heavy for the GPU to keep up with the CPU’s output.

The trend is consistent across all four tested settings presets. At Low settings, the average FPS at 1080p is 149, which falls to 98 at 1440p, and then to 54 at 4K. The Medium preset shows averages of 115, 75, and 41 FPS across the same resolution progression. Even the Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, demonstrates the same pattern: 77 FPS at 1080p, 50 FPS at 1440p, and 27 FPS at 4K. The consistency of this scaling, irrespective of the visual preset, provides strong evidence that the GPU's rendering capabilities are the primary determinant of performance in The Technomancer. The game appears to be heavily GPU-bound, with the resolution increase directly translating into a nearly proportional decrease in frame rate.

The differences between presets also shrink as the resolution increases, which further supports the GPU-bound theory. At 1080p, the gap between Low and Ultra is a massive 72 FPS (149 vs 77). However, at 4K, this gap narrows to 27 FPS (54 vs 27). This compression of the performance gap suggests that at 4K, the GPU is so saturated that even reducing the visual quality settings cannot provide significant headroom. The absolute frame rate floor is being set by the sheer number of pixels the GPU must process, rather than the complexity of the shaders or other settings that differ between the presets. The data clearly shows that for this combo, the 4K resolution is a challenging target, with only the Low preset breaking past 50 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, running at a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. Its role in The Technomancer, as derived from the data, is as a stable foundation that does not bottleneck the GPU at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the system achieves very high frame rates—149 FPS on Low settings and 98 FPS on High—which indicates that the CPU can effectively feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic fast enough to reach these numbers. A weaker processor would likely see frame rates cap out or become less stable at these levels, but the data does not show such a stall.

The CPU's performance in synthetic benchmarks is robust, placing it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs tested. Its average benchmark score is 48,618, which is within a very narrow margin of its nearest rivals. For instance, it is only 0.2% slower than the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and 0.3% faster than the AMD EPYC 4345P. This proximity in average score indicates that the i5-14600K is part of a very tight cluster of high-performance processors. In the context of The Technomancer, this strength means it is unlikely to be the source of any frame rate drops, especially when the game is run at higher resolutions where the GPU is the limiting factor.

The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps maintain high minimum FPS, as more data can be stored closer to the cores, reducing the need to fetch from main memory. While there are no specific per-frame measurements to confirm this, the overall stability of the FPS data, with no major frametime anomalies reported, suggests the processor is handling the game's logic with ease. Even when the GPU is heavily loaded at 4K, the CPU has headroom to process the game's systems without becoming a bottleneck. The data implies that for this game, the Core i5-14600K is a more than sufficient partner for the RX 7600 XT, providing all the necessary computational power for the GPU to reach its performance limits.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT is the clear performance ceiling for this combo in The Technomancer. Built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 33 chip, it features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering a total bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. The GPU's boost clock of 2755 MHz is a key factor in its performance, allowing it to execute a large number of instructions per second. However, the measured FPS data reveals that its raw compute power, estimated at 22.57 TFLOPS FP32, is not enough to handle the game at the highest resolutions and settings. The GPU's percentile rank among all GPUs is 60, and its average benchmark score is 17,083. This places it in a competitive range, but its nearest rivals include older cards like the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 and the AMD Radeon HD 7970M, from which it is only 0.3% and 0.4% faster, respectively.

The GPU's role as the primary performance limiter is evident in the 4K scaling. With 16 GB of VRAM, the card does not run into memory capacity issues that would cause stuttering or texture loading problems; the bottleneck is pure compute throughput. This is a common situation with modern games at 4K, where the sheer number of pixels to be rendered exceeds the GPU's raw shader capacity. The 128-bit memory bus, while paired with 16 GB of memory, is relatively narrow. This means that the GPU can access its memory, but the bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s may be insufficient to fully feed a large amount of pixel data at 4K resolutions, further contributing to the frame rate drop. The data shows that the GPU's compute, not the CPU or memory capacity, dictates the frame rates, with the 4K Ultra preset bottoming out at 27 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested configurations for The Technomancer, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-14600K and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT achieves a combo rank of 2335 out of 3696 total combos. This places it in the 37th percentile of all tested systems, meaning that roughly 63% of all tested combos deliver higher average frame rates. This rank is a direct result of the GPU's performance ceiling, which, relative to the total pool of graphics cards, is not exceptional. The CPU's strong performance is not enough to compensate for the GPU's limitations in this game, as the game is so heavily GPU-bound.

The combo rank is a holistic metric that considers performance across all settings and resolutions. It is not a measure of CPU or GPU capability in isolation but of how well they work together in this specific game. Given the GPU's 60th percentile rank and the CPU's 90th percentile rank, the combo's overall ranking of 2335 suggests that the system's total performance is pulled down by the GPU. A more powerful GPU would likely catapult this combo's rank significantly higher, as the CPU has proven it has the headroom to support a stronger graphics card. The data indicates that the CPU is the stronger partner in this duo, while the RX 7600 XT is the limiting factor holding this combo back from a higher overall ranking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The dataset provides specific average FPS figures for three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160) across four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, and Ultra). For the Medium preset, there are also minimum and maximum FPS values recorded.

1920x1080:

• Low: 149 FPS average. This is the highest average in the entire dataset, indicating a very smooth experience with the graphics settings turned down.
• Medium: 115 FPS average, with a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 132 FPS. This preset offers a significant performance boost while still providing a frame rate well above the standard monitor refresh rate.
• High: 98 FPS average. A solidly playable frame rate, showing that the High preset is not too demanding at this resolution.
• Ultra: 77 FPS average. This is still a perfectly playable frame rate, demonstrating that the system can handle the highest settings at 1080p, though not with the same headroom as the lower presets.

2560x1440:

• Low: 98 FPS average. This matches the 1080p High preset, showing that reducing settings can compensate for the additional pixel count.
• Medium: 75 FPS average, with a minimum of 64 FPS and a maximum of 86 FPS. The performance is still smooth, though the impact of the resolution is clear.
• High: 64 FPS average. This is a playable frame rate, but it starts to approach the point where the GPU is being taxed.
• Ultra: 50 FPS average. This is a playable frame rate, though it may not be ideal for those who prefer very high frame rates.

3840x2160:

• Low: 54 FPS average. This is the only 4K preset that reaches a standard 60 FPS threshold, and only just barely.
• Medium: 41 FPS average, with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for slower-paced games, but it is on the low side.
• High: 35 FPS average. This frame rate is on the edge of being playable, and it is significantly below the 60 FPS target.
• Ultra: 27 FPS average. This is the lowest performance in the dataset, and it is only suitable for screenshots or very low frame rate gaming.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend entirely on the target resolution and the user's preference for frame rate versus visual fidelity. At 1920x1080, the system is powerful enough to run the game at the Ultra preset with an average of 77 FPS. This is the best experience available for this resolution, as it provides a high frame rate with the maximum visual quality. For users with high refresh rate monitors, the High preset at 98 FPS is a good choice to maximize smoothness, while the Medium at 115 FPS could be used for even higher refresh rates. The Low preset at 149 FPS is only necessary for the most extreme refresh rates and is not recommended for a balanced experience.

At 2560x1440, the situation becomes more nuanced. The High preset averages 64 FPS, which is a playable experience on a standard 60 Hz monitor. However, the Medium preset at 75 FPS offers a better balance between visual quality and performance, providing a smoother experience while still looking good. The Ultra preset at 50 FPS is the point where visual quality starts to compromise smoothness. The data suggests that the Medium preset is the best choice for a 1440p monitor, as it achieves a high frame rate without a significant visual penalty. The Low preset at 98 FPS is also a viable option if maximum performance is the goal.

At 3840x2160, the data paints a clear picture: the GPU is over-taxed. The only preset that comes close to a standard 60 FPS target is Low, which averages 54 FPS. This is the only configuration at 4K that can maintain a frame rate above the 50 FPS. The Medium, High, and Ultra presets all fall below 45 FPS, with the Ultra at 27 FPS. For a 4K monitor, the Low preset is the only one that provides a playable frame rate, and even then, it may not be ideal for fast-paced action. The overall conclusion for this resolution is that the RX 7600 XT is not suited for high settings at 4K in this title, and users should expect to play at Low or Medium settings with lower frame rates.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo can achieve in The Technomancer?

A: The highest average FPS measured is 149 FPS, which is achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-14600K or the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT the main bottleneck at 4K?

A: The benchmark data indicates the GPU is the main bottleneck. The FPS drops sharply from 1080p to 4K, and the CPU's high benchmark scores and 90th percentile ranking suggest it is not the limiting factor.

Q: Can this system run The Technomancer at 60 FPS on a 2560x1440 monitor?

A: Yes. At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 98 FPS, the Medium preset averages 75 FPS, and the High preset averages 64 FPS. All of these are above the 60 FPS target.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 3840x2160 display?

A: The Low preset is the best choice for a 4K display, as it is the only one that averages above 50 FPS, providing a playable frame rate. The Medium preset is an alternative at 41 FPS, but the High and Ultra presets should be avoided due to their low frame rates.

Q: How does the combo rank overall compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 2333 out of 2336 total combos for this game, placing it in the bottom 37th percentile of all tested systems. This rank is primarily due to the GPU's performance, which is in the 60th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: How much faster is the Low preset compared to the Ultra preset at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 149 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 77 FPS. This difference is 72 FPS, or roughly a 95% improvement in frame rate.